Faith Driven Entrepreneur

We’re just as happy as you are that 2020 has finally come to an end. There’s been turmoil, turnover, and uncertainty around every corner. Yet, here at FDE, one thing has remained constant—this podcast. Week in and week out, we’ve recorded these conversations as we always do, and we couldn’t be more grateful for all the guests that joined us as well as the grounding consistency that this routine ha...

No one ever prepares to speak at their spouse’s funeral. But after a tragic car accident, Coach Monty Williams found himself burying his wife long before they had a chance to grow old together.  But what happened in that moment was something powerful and unforgettable— he offered forgiveness to the driver who had killed his wife.  Monty took us through this story, every painful detail, but he also...

Dave Blanchard , co-founder of Praxis , inspires faith-driven entrepreneurs and investors to pursue redemptive entrepreneurship--“following the pattern of creative restoration through sacrifice”--as they venture into the business world.  In today's episode, he presents a gospel-centered plan encompassing redemptive strategic vision, a biblical operating model, and the value of intentional, sacrifi...

When Brittany Underwood founded Akola Jewelry, she had no idea what the future of the jewelry handcrafted by women in Uganda would look like. Now, you can find Akola jewelry in Nordstrom's all across America.  Today, you're going to hear her whole entrepreneurial story, but you're also going to hear from Sheeba Philip , the current CEO of Akola. Together, Brittany and Sheeba talked about the relat...

Andy Crouch , partner for theology and culture at Praxis, joined us to talk about the drama of leadership and how to navigate the tensions of authority and vulnerability as a faith driven entrepreneur.  Andy presents a 2x2 matrix and explains the surprising reality that “authority and vulnerability go together at the moments of greatest flourishing in our lives.” Listen in to hear his call to reco...

If you're in America, you may think of the company Grab as the Uber of Southeast Asia. Of course, if you live in Southeast Asia, Uber is the Grab of America.  Whatever way you look at it, with 198 Million Downloads of the App, 9 Million Drivers in 352 Cities in 8 Countries, and a $14B valuation, Anthony Tan and Grab are making huge waves in the ridesharing industry.  Today, Anthony shared his entr...

Today's guest has over 25 years of CEO experience at major corporations, and he's got some wisdom to show for it. Joel Manby's most recent job was as the President and CEO of SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment.  Before that, he served as the CEO of Herschend Enterprises, the largest family-owned theme park and entertainment company in the United States with popular brands such as the Harlem Globetro...

Jewel Burks Solomon is the Founder of PartPic, which raised over $2million before being acquired by Amazon. And that was just the beginning of her entrepreneurial journey.  Now, she’s a managing partner at Collab Capital—a group working to provide a viable pathway to sustained wealth for the black community. She’s an incredible story, a fascinating entrepreneur and investor, and someone we can’t w...

Today’s guest comes to us from Nashville, Tennessee. Will Acuff noticed he was surrounded by talent all over his community, but these people were lacking a clear path to opportunity.  So, he and his wife Tiffany co-founded Corner to Corner , where they created The Academy, which works to give underestimated entrepreneurs a clear path to start their business journey. Will joined us today to share h...

Lecrae is the staple of the Christian rap scene. When people are looking to define the genre, they look to him. And with good reason—he has won 3 grammy awards.  But before he was the face of Christian rap, he and Ben Washer , now Co-Founder and CEO of Reach Records, were recording songs for summer camps and pursuing their creative dreams in the best, scrappy way they knew how.  We talked to both...

Food & Wine Magazine once called Canlis “one of the 40 most important restaurants in the past 40 years.” They’ve humbly received 22 consecutive Wine Spectator Grand Awards and have been nominated for 15 James Beard Awards and we've won three of them.  But today’s podcast guest, Mark Canlis , won’t tell you that. Instead, he’ll talk to you about the lives he gets to interact with every day, both in...

Truth is still truth in the marketplace of ideas. But society has constructed a new moral code that makes it difficult to navigate. So, how do we navigate winsomely in a world when 42% of people think that people of faith are not the help, or the answer, but rather the problem?  Gabe Lyons , founder of Q Media has spent a decade wading into the data and bringing out the conversations that we need...

Hard to argue that there is a better halftime show than the NBA on TNT crew with Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and today’s guest, Ernie Johnson .  Ernie shared with us just what makes that show so special (and so fun), as well as his personal story, which includes calling MLB games with his dad and his battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Ernie is an incredible man of faith, and he...

Bryan and Shannon Miles are the husband and wife team behind BELAY. Bootstrapping their business with no outside funding, BELAY has generated over $100M in revenues since its beginning and has exploded to over one thousand team members. Without an office, BELAY has graced the Inc. 5000 list five times and was awarded the number one spot in Entrepreneur Magazine’s Best Company Culture and been feat...

Today’s guest is one that needs no introduction, but here’s one anyway. Michael Hyatt is the former Chairman & CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers and the current Founder & CEO of a fast-growing, Inc. 5000 leadership-development company.  He is also a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of multiple books. With a top-rated podcast called Lead to Win, bestselling physic...

At 14-years-old, Peter Irvine took a job at an advertising agency and then worked his way up to the top. Then, someone in his church small group pointed him toward a business that he should get involved in based out of Chicago. Well, one round trip between Australia and America later and Peter Irvine found himself as an international franchisee for GLoria Jean’s Coffee Shops. His story is amazing,...

Well, would you look at the time? It’s another Tuesday with Faith Driven Entrepreneur, and today’s episode is for all you old-schoolers who check the time by looking at your wrist. That’s right, we’re talking about watches, not phone screens.  Today’s guest is Hamilton Powell of Crown & Caliber. He buys and sells used luxury watches, and today he’s going to share with us how he got started on this...

Today, we’re talking about love languages. Now, you may have heard of the five love languages, but that’s not where we’re going today. Instead, we’re talking to Dr. Paul White , co-author of The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace , to hear how the principles that are so useful in our marriages and relationships can also apply to our work and how we lead our businesses.  Dr. Paul White is...

We are SO excited for today’s episode and for what it means for you, the Faith Driven Entrepreneur. As you know, our mission is to equip and encourage you along the journey.  Obviously, we hope this podcast is a part of doing exactly that, but we also know that there are more ways to create and share resources to help you live out your faith in your work. One of the ways we’ve done that is through...

If you’ve never heard of Scott Harrison or Charity: Water , you’re going to be glad you tuned in today. His story starts when after a decade as a nightclub promoter, Scott declared spiritual, moral, and emotional bankruptcy.  As Scott shares , he tried every vice imaginable before he found himself looking for something more. In a search for meaning, he spent two years on a hospital ship off the co...

Today’s guest was once recognized by President Barack Obama during a speech at the White House, and she was named one of Forbes’ Most Powerful Women Changing the World with Philanthropy.  As the CEO and Co-Found of Rising Tide Capital , Alfa Demmellash is working to help underserved entrepreneurs get the recognition and investment capital they need. In this podcast, she took us on a journey to Eth...

For today’s episode, we brought back one of our favorite Faith Driven Entrepreneurs and Investors, Pete Ochs , and with him today is David Simnick , Founder of SoapBox Soaps.  They both shared their entrepreneurial journeys with us, but what we spent most of our time talking about was the way they both had to adjust quickly in the face of Covid-19. Their ability to nimbly pivot their businesses se...

If you grew up collecting baseball cards, you’re going to love today’s show. We sat down and talked with Jim Beckett , creator of Beckett magazine, the gold standard for valuing trading cards.  He shared with us his personal story, gave us some insight into the memorabilia collected in his office, and also told us about how he stewarded his influence to be a further encouragement to aspiring Faith...

Today’s guest is thought-leading writer and recognized champion of the Multiethnic Church Movement, Mark DeYmaz . He’s the author of several books and is on the show today to talk to us about his latest, The Coming Revolution in Church Economics .  Mark shared how churches can respond to the steady decrease in tithes and donations happening around the world—especially in light of recent events. He...

Today’s episode features two entrepreneurs who have created a product that has saved more than 5,000 lives. Seriously.  Eric and Evan Edwards are entrepreneurial twins who created pocket-sized auto-injectors that help those suffering from a severe allergic reaction or opioid overdose. Their ingenuity is changing the game for easy-to-use, accessible healthcare, and they’re on the frontlines of the...