Podcast Summary
The power of resilience and determination: Growing up on tough streets, Jevon learned to be the best at any task, even the dirtiest ones, from his father. This lesson helped him overcome adversity and become a successful entrepreneur.
The importance of resilience and determination in overcoming adversity. Jevon McCormick, the CEO and president of Scribe Media, shares his experiences growing up on the tough streets of Dayton, Ohio, as a mixed race child of a drug dealing pimp and an orphan single mother. Despite facing hardships such as sexual abuse, homelessness, and stints in juvenile detention, Jevon's father instilled in him the value of being the best at whatever he did, even if it meant cleaning the dirtiest toilets. This lesson stayed with Jevon and helped him climb the corporate ladder and eventually become a successful entrepreneur. Additionally, Jevon discusses his experiences with imposter syndrome and shares his views on leadership and fostering great company culture. Overall, this episode serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of staying focused on your goals and using your past experiences to fuel your success.
The Power of Striving for Excellence: Despite facing adversity, one can achieve success by staying determined and persevering through challenges.
No matter the circumstances, striving to be the best version of oneself can lead to success. The speaker's determination to excel in every aspect of life, from cleaning toilets to becoming a CEO, serves as an inspiring example. Additionally, the speaker's upbringing in poverty and as a mixed race individual in the United States presented numerous challenges. Stories shared include freezing homes, relying on handouts, and even pulling trash from cans for food. Despite these hardships, the speaker's mother's resilience and the determination to provide for her family left a lasting impact. The speaker's life story highlights the importance of perseverance and the power of striving for excellence, even in the face of adversity.
Jovan's upbringing shaped his values: Jovan's father taught him to respect everyone, instilling a lifelong priority for kindness and respect.
Jovan's upbringing, marked by food insecurity and racial discrimination, significantly shaped his experiences and values. He learned the importance of making the most of each month based on welfare payments and faced harsh discrimination as a mixed-race child in Dayton, Ohio. Despite these challenges, Jovan's father instilled essential life lessons, including the importance of being the best at whatever one does and communicating respectfully with everyone. A particularly impactful lesson came when Jovan was young, as his father taught him to show respect and greet everyone, even strangers. This lesson has stayed with Jovan throughout his life, and he continues to prioritize kindness and respect for all people, regardless of their position or status.
The Power of Asking How Someone is Doing: Asking someone how they are can lead to meaningful connections and conversations, revealing experiences and feelings. Money, seen as a source of hardship or a valuable resource, shapes our perspectives and values.
Showing genuine interest in others and asking how they are can lead to meaningful connections. This simple question can open up a conversation and allow people to share their experiences and feelings. The speaker also shared how his experiences with money, shaped by his circumstances, led him to value it deeply. He challenged the common phrase "money is the root of all evil" and instead saw the lack of it as a source of hardship and desperation. The speaker also shared an analogy his father used about the CEO of Budweiser and a drug dealer, highlighting the similarities and differences between legal and illegal substances and the systems that support them. Overall, the conversation emphasized the importance of genuine connections, the power of money, and the complexities of societal norms and systems.
The speaker's mother's determination to provide for her family: The speaker learned the importance of hard work, resourcefulness, and valuing a single child from his mother's struggles and decisions.
The speaker's mother, despite facing significant challenges, always tried her best to provide for her family and instilled in her son the importance of perseverance and responsibility. The speaker shares that his mother's decision to have only one child, despite the difficulties she faced, was a crucial lesson for him. He also reveals that he is a product of his mother's decision to have an illegal abortion earlier in her life, further emphasizing her determination to care for her children. The speaker keeps a rent receipt as a reminder of his humble beginnings and the struggles his family faced. Overall, the speaker's relationship with his mother taught him the importance of hard work, resourcefulness, and the value of a single child.
Start and grow a business with Shopify: Shopify offers a user-friendly platform for entrepreneurs, with AI tools, support, and a $1 trial period, enabling anyone to start and grow a business, regardless of skills or experience.
Shopify provides an accessible and user-friendly platform for entrepreneurs to start and grow their businesses, as evidenced by the success stories of brands like Thrive Cosmetics. Even for those without technical skills or prior business experience, Shopify offers a plug-and-play solution with the help of AI tools and award-winning support. The interviewee's personal story highlights the importance of finding positives in challenging experiences and using them as fuel for success, which can be applied to growing a business on Shopify or in any other industry. Shopify's affordability with a $1 per month trial period makes it an attractive option for those looking to start a side hustle or take their business to the next level, regardless of the stage they're in.
Childhood experience shaped speaker's work ethic and resilience: Even hard childhood experiences can foster resilience and strong work ethic. Committed to every task, using opportunities to learn and grow, and focusing on success can lead to personal and professional achievements.
Personal experiences, even those filled with hardship and stress, can shape and strengthen individuals in profound ways. The speaker shares a childhood memory of being left in charge of his younger siblings during a difficult time, and how the stress he felt during that experience helped him develop resilience and a strong work ethic. This experience stayed with him and influenced his approach to work and life, allowing him to excel in various roles, from cleaning toilets to becoming the president of a company. The speaker emphasizes the importance of being committed and taking pride in every task, no matter how small, and using opportunities to learn and grow. Ultimately, his determination and focus led him to success, starting from the lowest paid position at HeadSpring System and rising to become its president within a few years.
Starting from the bottom and climbing the corporate ladder: Dedication and willingness to go the extra mile can lead to significant career growth. Learn from competitors and be willing to do tasks others won't.
Determination and a willingness to go the extra mile can lead to significant career growth. The speaker shared his experience of starting as a salesperson in a small company, making calls from a storage closet, and eventually climbing the corporate ladder to become the president. He emphasized the importance of learning from competitors and being willing to do tasks that others wouldn't. His dedication and hard work paid off, and he went from being the lowest paid person to leading the company. Even as the CEO of Scribe Media, he continues to embrace this mentality and is not afraid of taking on any task. This approach has earned him respect from his employees and has contributed to his success as a leader.
Realizing the importance of documenting personal history leads to unexpected opportunities: Documenting personal history can lead to professional growth and overcoming imposter syndrome through unexpected opportunities and supportive relationships.
Personal legacy and the desire to document one's story can lead to unexpected opportunities and even professional growth. JT McCormick, the software company president, had a realization during a turbulent flight that his children wouldn't know their family history. He reached out to his LinkedIn connections for help and was introduced to Tucker Maxx. What impressed JT the most was Tucker's accomplishment of having three New York Times bestselling books simultaneously. JT hired Tucker to help him write his book, intending it to be a private legacy piece for his children. However, Tucker was so impressed with JT's leadership skills that he offered him a role in his company, eventually making him the CEO. JT's imposter syndrome, a feeling of being an impostor despite his achievements, was a common challenge he faced due to others' credentials. But with the support of Tucker and Zach, he overcame it and thrived in his new role.
Feeling Intimidated Without a College Degree: Finding Strengths in Business and Entrepreneurship: Success often involves sacrifices. Unique perspectives and skills from non-traditional backgrounds can be valuable. Character, attitude, and reliability are key hiring factors. Indeed is an efficient recruiting tool. Sacrifices in personal time and relationships can lead to professional success.
Success often requires sacrifices, and not having a traditional academic background can provide unique perspectives and skills. The speaker shared his personal experience of feeling intimidated by not having a college degree but discovered his strengths in business and entrepreneurship. He emphasized the importance of character, attitude, and reliability in hiring, and the efficiency of using Indeed for recruiting. The speaker also discussed his philosophy of the 3 S's of success: sacrifice, sleep, and success. He used Lebron James as an example of someone who sacrifices personal time and relationships to achieve professional success. The speaker encouraged recognizing and celebrating these sacrifices, rather than just focusing on the end result. Additionally, he highlighted the power of Indeed in streamlining the hiring process for businesses.
Neglecting Sleep and People: Costly Mistakes in Business: Success requires balance between work and rest, and prioritizing people over processes and profits for a strong company culture.
Achieving success requires making sacrifices. The speaker shares his experience of neglecting sleep in favor of binge-watching TV shows and working long hours, but later realizing the importance of rest for clear thinking and overall health. He also emphasizes the importance of people in business, arguing that they should come before processes and profits. The speaker advocates for a servant leadership style, where leaders prioritize serving their team members and making decisions that benefit them. By focusing on people first, a strong company culture can be fostered, leading to happy and retained talent.
Learning from mistakes and giving back: Success is about persisting through challenges, serving others, and continuously learning from mistakes. Morning routines and community involvement can help set the stage for a productive day and meaningful life.
Success is not about avoiding mistakes, but rather learning from them and persisting through challenges. The interviewee, a successful entrepreneur and leader, emphasized the importance of service to those around you and shared his morning routine for starting the day off right. He also highlighted the significance of giving back to the community and sharing knowledge with those who may not have the same opportunities or experiences. Despite his numerous accomplishments, he acknowledged making mistakes throughout his life and career, but refused to label them as failures as long as he continued to learn and try.
Teaching essential life skills to the younger generation: Successful entrepreneur J.T. McCormick emphasizes the importance of imparting manners, attention to detail, and interview skills to young people, giving them an added advantage in their professional lives. McCormick shares his experiences and lessons on LinkedIn and through his book, 'I Got There'.
Mentorship and teaching essential life skills to the younger generation can make a significant impact on their future success. J.T. McCormick, a successful businessman, investor, and philanthropist, emphasizes the importance of imparting basic manners, attention to detail, and interview skills to those who may not have the opportunity to learn them otherwise. These lessons, which have served McCormick well throughout his career, can give young people an added advantage in their professional lives. McCormick's dedication to giving back extends beyond his teachings, as he also shares his business experiences and lessons learned on LinkedIn and maintains a personal website, jtmccormick.com. Additionally, McCormick's book, "I Got There: How I Overcame Racism, Poverty, and Abuse to Achieve the American Dream," is a compelling read that offers insights into his personal journey and the principles that have guided his success.
