Grant Webster - CEO of Launch Thought

12/04/19 • 106 min

“It's really just realizing 'look on my own, I don't have what it takes to be successful or perform at a high level.' I need other people to come alongside of me and help me." -- Grant Webster

Grant Webster (@grantwebster) is the CEO and Founder of Launch Thought, an investor in several startups, Silicon Valley consultant. Grant gravitated toward learning while being homeschooled as a kid, even checking out classic business books from the library. While still in college Grant started his own software and web development firm. The combined busyness of getting married and the growth of his business led him to drop out of school and continue his career without a formal degree. Despite this nontraditional path, Grant’s career has continued to flourish. Today, Grant is able to spend the majority of his time serving other entrepreneurs and leaders who are advancing God-inspired solutions to the world’s greatest challenges through his work in the Christian Economic Forum.

He joins Bob in this podcast episode to talk about what a coach is and why Grant invested in one. He highlights key differences between a friend, mentor, and coach, and he emphasizes the key things to look for in a mentor or coach. Additionally, Grant shares his story on his educational background, how he got started in his entrepreneurial endeavors, and the thoughts he encounters daily as an entrepreneur. Along the way, Bob and Grant discuss how to dispel fear, combat the doubt, and believe in the truth.

Notes on the difference between a friend, mentor, or coach:

-A friend is close to you, and they may be biased.

-A mentor counsels you and gives advice. They’re typically intentionally asked to mentor an individual.

-A mentor wants to see that their investment in you will be worthwhile. They’re gifting you something, so they want to see you use the gift.

-A coach can give you unvarnished and unbiased outside perspective.

-A coach can see things you can’t see.

-One coach can’t help you with everything. It’s not a one-sized all approach.

-A tennis player is so successful because they have a coach for multiple areas of their game -- their nutrition, their technique, their mental health, their strategy, etc.

-If you’re looking for a coach, don’t look for a unicorn that can mentor you or coach you on everything. Those are unfair expectations. Don’t view a mentor or coach as the end all be all.

-Look for a mentor that’s really good at something you want to learn about or improve upon yourself. However, be careful not to take everything that they are and emulate that.

-Keep in mind you are a unique individual, and you can’t replicate their whole life. You’re a different person.

-If you want a mentor, prove you’ll be a good student. Volunteer to help them. Learn as much as you can from them. Be a value-add to them.

-Oftentimes, someone you’re asking to mentor or coach you lives a busier life than you do. They’ll willingly mentor you if you’ll use what they’ve given you. If it falls on deaf ears, the doors will close.

Links in this episode include:

Executive Coach or Therapist? It’s Getting Harder to Tell the Difference, a WSJ article

Peter Thiel’s Fellowship Program, his program open to students to start their own businesses

Zero to One, a book by Peter Thiel

Launch Thought, Grant’s web development company

Antifragile, a book by Nassem Taleb

Sunk Cost Fallacy, here’s a Wikipedia page on sunk cost and the sunk cost fallacy

The OODA Loop, a Wikipedia link about the Observe, Orient, Decide, and Act process cycle developed by John Boyd, a military strategist and United States Air Force Colonel

The Messy Middle, a book by Scott Belsky

O...

“It's really just realizing 'look on my own, I don't have what it takes to be successful or perform at a high level.' I need other people to come alongside of me and help me." -- Grant Webster

Notes on the difference between a friend, mentor, or coach:

-A friend is close to you, and they may be biased.

-A mentor counsels you and gives advice. They’re typically intentionally asked to mentor an individual.

-A mentor wants to see that their investment in you will be worthwhile. They’re gifting you something, so they want to see you use the gift.

-A coach can give you unvarnished and unbiased outside perspective.

-A coach can see things you can’t see.

-One coach can’t help you with everything. It’s not a one-sized all approach.

-A tennis player is so successful because they have a coach for multiple areas of their game -- their nutrition, their technique, their mental health, their strategy, etc.

-If you’re looking for a coach, don’t look for a unicorn that can mentor you or coach you on everything. Those are unfair expectations. Don’t view a mentor or coach as the end all be all.

-Look for a mentor that’s really good at something you want to learn about or improve upon yourself. However, be careful not to take everything that they are and emulate that.

-Keep in mind you are a unique individual, and you can’t replicate their whole life. You’re a different person.

-If you want a mentor, prove you’ll be a good student. Volunteer to help them. Learn as much as you can from them. Be a value-add to them.

Links in this episode include:

Executive Coach or Therapist? It’s Getting Harder to Tell the Difference, a WSJ article

Peter Thiel’s Fellowship Program, his program open to students to start their own businesses

Zero to One, a book by Peter Thiel

Launch Thought, Grant’s web development company

Antifragile, a book by Nassem Taleb

Sunk Cost Fallacy, here’s a Wikipedia page on sunk cost and the sunk cost fallacy

The OODA Loop, a Wikipedia link about the Observe, Orient, Decide, and Act process cycle developed by John Boyd, a military strategist and United States Air Force Colonel

The Messy Middle, a book by Scott Belsky

O...

Previous Episode

Tymber Lee - Serial Entrepreneur, Commercial Real Estate Developer, Investor

"The race you are starting, I've finished. I survived. You can take your life experiences that are personal to you and you can open yourself up. There are people at the starting point of the race you've finished. The social media lens we have into people's lives is unfair. All you see is their best picture on vacation or their perfect cup of coffee with their devotion. You don't see the chaos on either side of the phone. It's the same thing with entrepreneurship. You compare yourself to the highlight reel of all of these companies, and that's not fair. It's not real. If you can peel back the onion, maybe 10 layers back, you'll see they were where you were at at some point too." -- Tymber Lee

Tymber Lee (@tlee3232) is an investor, board member, former professional baseball pitcher, and commercial real estate investor and developer. Tymber is a get-after-it use every ounce of blood, sweat, and tears kind of entrepreneur and business owner. With entrepreneurialism in his blood, he’s been involved in various business opportunities and endeavors since he was a kid helping in his family business of custom homebuilding and development. His love for competition, teamwork, and winning carried over into his studies as he attended Wichita State University as a student athlete and was selected in the Major League Baseball draft as a pitcher by the Anaheim Angels. His career evolved into specializing in commercial investment property and industrial sales and leasing, which has led to the development of The Lee Companies (TLC).

He joins Bob in this podcast episode to talk about fear and failure, the lessons from heartbreak, and the grandfather who taught and mentored him growing up. They hash out the journeys they’ve experienced as entrepreneurs, investors, and business executives in this heart-wrenching and thought provoking episode.

Notes on Fear and Failure:

-Ask thought leaders, “If you were to go back and do anything differently, would you?”

-Then, “shut up, and listen.”

-Action cures fear.

-Don’t be afraid of failure. Failure is where the gems are.

-People want to see how you’re going to fail. How will you handle the failure? How you handle failure determines your success.

-Failure is not a matter of how or if. It’s a matter of when.

Links in this episode include:

Tymber’s Board Bio

Tymber’s MiLB Profile, a stat sheet from the Minor Leagues

Tymber’s MLB Profile, a stat sheet from the MLB

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, a book by Angela Duckworth found here on Amazon

Instagram’s history, a synopsis from Wikipedia

Bonvera, a business platform that Bob and Tymber are both passionate about

Audible, Amazon’s audible book platform

Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike, a cool story about the creator of Nike

The Messy Middle: Finding Your Way Through the Hardest and Most Crucial Part of any Bold Venture, a book by Scott Belsky found here on Amazon

The American Icon, a book by Alan Mulally found here on Amazon

Netflix’s History, a synopsis from Wikipedia

Are you an Entrepreneur or a ‘Wantrepreneur?’, an article by Entrepreneur.com

The Trillion Dollar Coach, a book by Bill Campbell found here on Amazon <...

Next Episode

Mark & Raquel Williams - Police Officer, Entrepreneurs, Sales Leaders

"I had a win, and it told me that I could do it. I had that piece of me that kept reminding me of that win saying 'You can do it. Remember?’" -- Mark & Raquel Williams

Mark and Raquel Williams (@mdub50 and @RRWilliams_) are a couple of entrepreneurs partnered up with Bonvera. Both from different backgrounds, these two are humble but incredibly successful on their own and together in their respective industries. Mark comes to the table with a background in law enforcement, detective work, SWAT team, and kicking butt, while Raquel comes from a background of recruiting, staffing, and sales. Coming together, they’ve brought their expertise and grit to be business partners, entrepreneurs, and industry professionals in their own ventures, including an ice cream shop and a Bonvera business. Mark and Raquel reside in California where they manage a big family, multiple businesses, and several teams of entrepreneurs.

They join Bob in this podcast episode to talk about how to win. Raquel personalizes her story about how she came to believe “I can do it!” Mark shares his training and experience with law enforcement and as a SWAT officer. Together, they share with Bob the lessons they learned from a typical 9-to-5 job and how they applied them in their entrepreneurial pursuits.

Notes on Believing in Yourself:

-Remind yourself over and over again of your self-belief.

-You can do it. Remember? You’ve done it before.

-Find a great mentor who will believe in you and push you.

-A great mentor instills the courage in you to help you develop and grow.

-Oftentimes, we have pain and wounds that hold us back.

-It takes courage to go into our wounds, heal them, and move forward.

-Find tools and resources that help you heal your wounds.

Links in this episode include:

Mark & Raquel’s Leadership Profile, a bio on their story, why they joined Bonvera, and what their life looks like as entrepreneurs

How to Beat Self-Doubt and Stop Selling Yourself Short, an interesting article from Forbes on the very topics Raquel faced early in her career

SWAT Team process, an article on how you become a SWAT officer