Today's podcast is all about a business model that sometimes gets a bad rap on this show: "the agency". We recently bumped into our friend Johnathan Solorzano at MicroConf in Austin, and he had quite a bit to say about the subject. Johnathan is the founder of Solo Media Group, a remote agency of web developers that focuses primarily on Shopify and WooCommerce projects. We've invited Johnathan onto the show this week to share his thoughts about the upside of running an agency, specifically how it can provide you with unique insights into your market, improve your professional network, and help you start earning revenue fast.

Tropical MBA - Entrepreneurship, Travel, and Lifestyle

TMBA620: The Upside of Running an Agency

In last week's podcast, Carrie McKeegan shared how she has been using author Gino Wickman's EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) to help her grow and manage her team. This week, we're diving deeper into the topic by speaking with an entrepreneur who has developed their own customized version of the very same system with impressive results. Neel Parekh is the founder of MaidThis, a business that offers cleaning services for residential homes and AirBNB rentals. Neel joins us today to discuss why he chose to use the EOS system in MaidThis, the steps he has taken to implement it, and how smaller businesses can utilize a "Lite" version of EOS to help manage their teams.

TMBA619: Does Your Business Need an "Operating System"?

We've spoken at great length on this podcast about how the Covid pandemic has forced us to make changes in the way that we run our businesses. This week, we're going to speak to an entrepreneur who used the landscape of Covid as an opportunity to provide an entirely different educational experience for her children. Carrie McKeegan is the CEO and co-founder of Greenback Expat Tax Services, which helps Americans abroad prepare and file their taxes. She and her husband Dave have been living outside of the United States for many years, raising their children as "Third Culture Kids", a subject that has become increasingly popular in our online community. Carrie joins us this week to talk about what it's like educating children abroad, why she decided it was time to "reinvent education" for her kids, and how the book "Traction" by Gino Wickman has shaped the way that she manages her team.

TMBA618: Exploring Alternative Education Options for Nomadic Families

It has been nearly two years since we've hosted an event for the members of our private membership forum The Dynamite Circle. DCMEX, our first official event since 2019, is just a few short weeks away, and we couldn't be more excited to see so many listeners of this podcast in Mexico City this October. In-person events are so important to those of us in the entrepreneurial community. From the relationships that we develop to the things that we learn together, there are so many reasons why entrepreneurs can benefit from being together in the same place. We've invited our longtime friend Jeff Pecaro back onto the show this week, to reflect on what the past few years have been like without DC events, how things have changed since the last time we've all been together, and why we've chosen Mexico City for our newest event.

TMBA617: Once Upon a Time in Mexico

Today's episode is all about mental health, depression, anxiety, and the effect that these things can have on the way that we run our businesses. Benny Lewis is the founder of Fluent in 3 months, and he recently opened up about his own struggles at our unofficial DCx event in London a few weeks ago. While his business was "successful" by many traditional metrics, his personal life was far from it. He soon found himself under a mountain of credit card debt, with his marriage to his partner of five years ending in divorce. Benny joins us on this week's podcast to share the details of his personal journey. You'll hear about his battle with clinical depression, the steps he took to get back on his feet, and how his business was able to survive through such a tumultuous period in his life.

TMBA616: The True Cost of Burnout, Anxiety, and Entrepreneurial Depression

This week's episode is full of actionable advice for anyone who is looking to improve their revenue and optimize their sales. We were taking notes throughout the entire conversation with today's guest, and by the time it had ended, it felt like we had taken part in an incredible workshop. John Ainsworth is the founder of Data Driven Marketing, and he has recently started a group that coaches course creators who are looking to increase the revenue of their business. John joins us on today's podcast to share the specific steps that he has been using with his own clients that have helped them see immediate results in their sales funnel.

TMBA615: 8 Simple Steps for Improving Your Sales Funnel

This week's podcast is inspired by a blog post that we published back in 2014. That post was titled "What is the Real Cost of the Permanent Travel Lifestyle?" and many of the points we touched on in that article are still being discussed by people in our community today. One of those people is Jesse Schoberg. Jesse is the co-founder and CEO of DropInBlog.com, and he is all too familiar with the challenges of bootstrapping his way up the "Lifestyle Ladder". Jesse joins us this week to share his thoughts on location arbitrage, financial freedom, and what he believes the "Lifestyle Ladder" of the permanent traveler looks like in 2021.

TMBA614: The Lifestyle Ladder

We've seen a lot of great conversations take place in our private community The Dynamite Circle as of late. One of our favorites came in the form of a thread titled "Is Digital Nomadism Possible to Combine With Having a Family?" While there were many insightful responses in that thread, one member, in particular, caught our attention. Steven Ladek is the Principal of E-Learning Advocacy for a company called Open LMS. He's also a longtime entrepreneur and has lived outside of the United States for 16 years. Together with his wife Dana, they have raised three children in Hungary, Costa Rica, Thailand, and Mexico. Steven joins us this week to talk about what it's really like to balance parenting with nomadism, and the unique challenges that expat families face around the globe.

TMBA613: Is It Possible to Raise a Family as a Digital Nomad?

We are once again reaching into the mailbag this week to answer some pressing questions from the Tropical MBA audience. This is a somewhat unorthodox episode, as we are "shooting from the hip" on a variety of items that have come across our desk in the past few months. We'll be discussing how to structure your teams (specifically in an agency), tips for staying focused on what's important in your business, and how to avoid the dreaded "D-word" in your business: drama.

TMBA612: Mailbag: Avoiding Drama in Your Business

Today's guest has been on an incredible journey that touches on so many of our favorite entrepreneurial milestones. Derek Pankaew is the co-founder of Mythia, a financial startup that has partnered with banks to create a debit card aimed exclusively at gamers. He has experienced just about every entrepreneurial path, from running a "4-Hour Workweek" business built on passive income, to seeking out more ambitious projects in the San Francisco startup community, and eventually raising roughly 2.2 million dollars in venture capital funding. Derek joins us this week to take us through the steps of his incredible journey, and to share some of the fundamental differences between bootstrapping and running a venture capital-backed business.

TMBA611: Should You Bootstrap or Seek Funding For Your Startup?

Today's episode is particularly insightful for entrepreneurs who are looking to improve their social media or content marketing game, and for those of us who are interested in the property investment space. Moses Kagan is the co-founder of Adaptive Realty, a boutique real estate private equity firm based in Los Angeles, which has about $200 Million in assets under management. He is also an extremely savvy Twitter user and has successfully leveraged that platform to build meaningful relationships, many of which have led to massive investment deals. Moses joins us this week to talk about his strategies for social media and content marketing, the principles he has used to drive the success of his real estate business, and so much more.

TMBA610: Building Deal Flow from Social Media and Content Marketing

This week, we are once again diving into the world of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. Gerbz is a regular contributor to this podcast and our go-to guy for all things crypto. He is the founder of BitLift.com, and the host of the brand new BitLift podcast, which aims to guide people down the crypto rabbit hole. Gerbz joins us this week to discuss the world of "Decentralized Finance", or "DeFi", where smart contracts and blockchain technology are being used to replace traditional financial institutions. He'll also be answering 5 pressing questions that we have about the state of crypto in 2021. Disclaimer: These are just our opinions, and are presented for informational purposes only. They are not intended to be considered as financial advice.

TMBA609: Is "DeFi" the Future of Finance?

The term "Digital Nomad" has been beaten to death over the years, but it still means a lot to those of us who have identified with that label. James Clark is certainly one of those people. He's been a full-time nomad since the early 2000s, and we've shared many great memories with him around the world. James is also the author of a brilliant blog called Nomad Notes, where he recently published an article that captured our attention. The post was titled Digital Nomadism History, and in it he chronicles the start of the digital nomad movement through today, touching on all of the most important milestones. James joins us on today's podcast to talk about the history of digital nomadism, what inspired him to write that blog post, and a whole lot more.

TMBA608: The History of Digital Nomadism

Longtime listeners know that Dan and Ian have been business partners for many years, and sometimes it's hard for us to imagine what it would be like to run a business on our own. So many entrepreneurs do choose this path, though, and the quest of a "Solopreneur" can be a long and arduous one. Darren Joe is the director of TouchMBA, a service that matches prospective students with MBA programs. He is also the author of a new book called "The Fail-Safe Solopreneur", where he offers some insights and practical exercises to help navigate the journey of the solopreneur. Darren joins us on today's podcast to talk about his own journey as a solopreneur, what inspired him to write this book, why he has chosen to make Ho Chi Minh his home, and much more.

TMBA607: The Lonely Path of the Solopreneur

We aren't usually the type for navel-gazing, but this summer marks an important milestone for us. 10 years ago, our desire to "find our tribe" led us to form the Dynamite Circle, a private membership community of location-independent entrepreneurs. Since then, there have been dozens of DC events all over the globe, and it has truly become a life-changing adventure for so many of the people involved in the community over the last decade. We've invited our good friend Jeff Pecaro on to the podcast this week to look back on the ups and downs of the last ten years of the Dynamite Circle. We are also going to pull back the curtain a bit and discuss the behind-the-scenes details of what it's really like to run a private community and the unique challenges that these types of businesses present.

TMBA606: Reflections on 10 Years of Running an Online Community

The Tropical MBA Podcast aims to show you the inside story of the people who are building “micro-multinational” businesses while they travel the world. We are interested in entrepreneurship, travel, internationalization, and personal freedom. Join 1,000’s of listeners from all around the world, every Thursday morning.

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Tropical MBA - Entrepreneurship, Travel, and Lifestyle

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