Scott Duffy LIVE with Greg Reid Secret Knock at LA LIVE interview

This is Scott Duffy with entrepreneur and co host of business and Burgers which you can find on Entrepreneur at the number one business conference for entrepreneurs and small business in the United States, Secret Knock. And I'm here with the founder, Greg Reed. Say hi, Greg.

Hello.

And I got to tell you guys, this conference is unbelievable. We're going to go inside one of the hardest conferences in the country to get into. We're going to get a sneak peek and actually get to go inside, meet some of the amazing people that are here. And you're going to be able to ask questions directly to people like, you know, the founder of Chuck E. Cheese.

And the whole idea is that we put on an event where we don't bring in coaches or teachers or mentors. We just bring in the actual human being. So if you want to start a non profit, we bring in the founder of Make a Wish. If you want to start a restaurant chain, yes. We got the creator of Chuck E. Cheese. The whole idea is where could you be if you surround yourself with people that are doing what you want? That's what Secret Knock's about.

That's awesome. All right, you guys ready? Are you guys ready? And by the way, make sure to post your questions right here in the thread on Facebook. Follow us here at Entrepreneur. Also make make sure to check out business and burgers businessandburgers.com you can find us on Entrepreneur. We have a new episode going live today with survivorman Les Stroud. You gotta see it. Let's do it. Let's roll. Here we go. All right, guys. Secret knock.

Here we go.

How cool is this, right? We have an amazing tribe here at Secret Knock. And you, you know what? You know, I know, I know, I know this. This is the most amazing event. Hold on just a second.

All right, hold on, hold on just a second. So first of all, everyone here at Secret Knox, say hi to everyone on Entrepreneur and Facebook Live right now say hey gu.

You can only get this with Entrepreneur.

Hey.

As we walk in. What I'd love to do is have you point out some of the amazing people that are here.

Absolutely. Everyone have a seat. Relax yourself. And one person standing right here. You don't sit down. Ron Klein. Now you've been noted as the creator of the multiple listing service for realtors. You automated the New York Stock exchange, but you also created the credit card magnetic strip validating system, the little swiper system that change the way do banking. Do you have a little nugget for the people that they could do if they have an Invention.

Wait, wait. Before you do that, you actually create. Like who? Like, that's amazing. So the actual magnetic strip that's on the back of every credit card, every debit card in the world, you created that?

I created that. And I made you the motor.

Okay.

So it mimics the tape recorder, and you're the motor. Isn't that great?

Wow. So, as Greg was saying or asking, what is one piece of advice that you'd give to today's entrepreneurs?

Entrepreneurs have to greatly simplify their challenges, and they have to have stickability. And remember, there's only plan A.

Thank you so much. Ron Klein, everybody. Ron Klein.

And then right here, we have to.

Have.

Gene Landrum, creator of Chuck E. Cheese. You know, it's really interesting. When he went to this industry, so many people told him he was crazy. Imagine when to bring a rat as a mascot to the restaurant business.

And what did your mom say?

Oh, I brought her to the first one in 1977, and I had the rat. I said, that's my mom out there. Take her beer in the rat costume. Take her a beer. I walk over, I said, mom, I designed this. I created it. I'm the president. I'm going to build a chain. And she looked at me, she said, honey, when are you going to get a real job?

I think we can all relate to that.

Absolutely.

Gene Landrum, everybody. The founder of Chuck E. Cheese.

What's really cool is there's icons sitting literally within us. Right here. Tonino Lamborghini, all the way from Italy. Put your hands together for Tonino.

How many of you guys are fans of Lamborghini cars? Right here.

Yeah. There you go. So you've got an interpreter. How do you love America? And we understand that you like American cars just like you can like your fancy Italian ones.

I like America guy, because you don't you have to consider that all Italian people forget the communist.

No.

But all the others like America. Because you many years ago, when the war finished, you come to us to open our door. So in our hand, in our mind, America is the dream that changed our life. And my father considered death. Start thanking you.

How to say thank you?

Thank you. Because start to product produce tractor. Throw the engine and the vehicles of the war American.

At this at low price and high speed, high potential.

High power.

Because.

Probably many of you know that Marshall, the famous piano Marshal.

The Marshall.

Plan after the war helped Italy to start again. So my father understand this opportunity and start. And today is a little thank you.

And also big thanks to Clarissa burr. Clarissa, over 250 magazine covers around the world. Amazing. What's one piece of advice that you give to today's women who are out.

There starting businesses to number one, Never give up. Always believe that you know anything. You again, we hear it here all the time. But you know, the most important, important thing is that people are going to call them crazy. People are going to tell them they're not able to do it. People are going to tell them all kinds of different things. Never listen to the negativity. Stay really strong, stay very focused in exactly what it is you want to do and make it happen because it will.

Awesome. A big hand right here.

I would like to say another thing, another consideration. In my life, I do something. No, not very much, but I do. I ask to myself, if some years ago, I know Greg today, where I.

Am.

Where can I arrive? So, Greg, unfortunately, after 30 or 40 years, next life.

Fantastic. Only here at Secret Knocking, we actually have some more amazing people we want.

To introduce you to.

We got Dan Fleischman, the youngest person ever publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. And now he's running the Model Citizens Fund, helping the homeless. Amazing individual. Dan, what is one of your tidbits or your greatest counsel for startups?

Just get started. It's never been easier before. You know, in the last four years, we have Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, all these social media platforms. But you also have WordPress.com and all these sites to build up your websites. Everything about what you do now from legal accounting software. It's also cheaper, free. You don't have to wait like your uncle wants to start some little fishing hook company for the last 15 years. Never get started. You can get that started today for a couple hundred bucks instead of waiting around 20 years and never actually getting started. So let's get started.

Dude, that is so awesome. A big hand for Dan Fleischman.

Wait, by the way, we're just getting started. I want to introduce Scott. Scott is the only person to not only have gone to space, but also climb Mount Everest.

That is correct. Yeah. I've been very fortunate to see the world in many different perspectives. I'm explorer at heart and I think it's just fundamental human nature to be curious to explore.

I gotta ask you a question. So when I'm watching. So I'm like the geek that will go to YouTube. Beanie Geek is so cool. I'll go to YouTube. I'll like watch. I'll type in Space Shuttle and I will watch the takeoffs over, like crank up the stereo and Just over and over and over again. And there's one thing I've always wanted to ask, and it's when you're flying the space shuttle and you're re entering the atmosphere, there's a point. By the way, how fast are you going?

Well, about 17,500 miles an hour.

Okay, so you're going seven speed limit. Breaking some speed limits. 17,500 miles an hour. But like, here's the crazy thing. When I watch it on tv, there's this moment where it looks like you're completely surrounded in a ball of fire.

Yeah, we're flying through a ball of fire. It's a plasma flow, actually. We're converting all of our kinetic energy, the motion energy, into heat so we can slow down and actually come back to Earth. If we didn't have that, we'd stay up there forever.

Okay, so you're going 17,500 miles an hour and you are in a ball of fire.

Are you just like totally freaking out?

I'm just hoping that these tiles work today.

A big hand for Scott.

So one of the things that we're going to do today is Greg is always the person who's doing the interviewing. Today we're going to interview Greg and ask him a couple of questions. So we're going to head back here to this seat. And.

Greg, so for, you know, over 10 years, you've been on this journey.

That's right.

You. You travel around the world and you meet with people that are truly the best of the best in all kinds of industries, all kinds of fields all over the world. What's the single most common thing that you found? Like, the one thing that's consistent amongst all of these top entrepreneurs, I'd say flexibility.

Like, they're willing to adapt and adjust along the ride. You know, you hear about stickability, you hear about the concept of keeping your eye on the prize. But if you're not willing to adapt and adjust along the way, you end up just getting stuck. And every one of these thought leaders understands that there's a little bit of movement along the way and not get so caught up in exactly how it has to happen.

That's awesome. And I think that, you know, one of the things that entrepreneurs do is they fail to get started. They have so many excuses. I'm just curious that how would you respond? I think I've heard a story about a spider monkey.

Yeah, it's interesting. I think that the spider monkey theory is great, and the rainforest is the most quick, nimble creature. You can't Harpoon it, spirit catch it. One hunter figured it out. He took a heavy log, drilled a tiny hole and left it at the base of the jungle, dropped the peanut inside and walked away. The monkey would smell the nut, come down, reach his hand in, grab a hold of the nut, and his fist become so big he can't pull it back out and become anchored to the log. All he's got to do is let go. But he thinks it's nutrition, it's saving him. The hunter comes by an hour later, captures he loses spider and monkey. The big question is, are we holding onto our own nut in life? But it could be in the form of a job or a car or a deal, and what we think is saving us right now, like the monkey thought the nut could be the single thing that's leading to your own demise. Sometimes you have to have the courage to let go, to live to fight another day.

That's awesome. Big hand for that. Isn't that killer?

So let me ask you one more question, because I know we have to keep things going. If there was one lesson, one lesson you could share with all of entrepreneurs, readers, and viewers around the world, one thing that you've learned that you think really separates, you know, the top leaders and the top performers from everyone else, what would it be?

Counsel versus opinion. It seems like so many people listen to opinion, which means based on ignorance, lack of knowledge, inexperience, like maybe a family friend who's never done what you're about to venture upon. Where counsel is based on wisdom, knowledge, mentorship, people have paved the way. If you go to a family friend and say you're going to write a book, they might talk you out of it if they've never done it. But if you go to Mark Victor Hanson, who wrote Chicken Soup for the Soul, he'll say, before you get started, here's what you need to know and give you counsel based on that knowledge. If we would spend our activity only seeking counsel and ignoring people's opinion, that's the day your life would change.

That's awesome. And for all of you that are watching live today, please go into the comments section and make sure to ask your questions. And if we don't get a chance to answer those right now, we'll come back over the next couple of days and we'll jump into the thread and we'll make sure to get all those answered for you. I know we have a guest that.

We'Re going to bring up.

We're going to ask him one question and then let you Roll.

Okay, no pressure, Steve Sims, but you want to get started walking right now. So, yeah. Coming to the stage, everyone, a round of applause for the one and only Mr. Steve Sims. That's right.

Now, Steve is a very interesting cat, which you're about to find out. Now, this guy owns one of the greatest concierge services of our generation called Bluefish. The real reality is, if you want to go to the Monaco Grand Prix, this is the guy that can make it happen. But more importantly, if you want to get married in the Vatican by the pope, this is the knucklehead that gets it done. The realities are the this is a regular guy who's doing extraordinary things and more importantly, can open up the doors to truly impact your life. Again, a round of applause for Steve Sims, everyone.

So I want to ask you just a couple of questions, and then we're going to let you go and let Greg, you get on with the rest of secret knock. And I also want to point out that we filmed you. We filmed Steve Sims on Sunday, Barney's Beanery in West Hollywood, California, for business and burgers. And by the way, if you haven't checked it out, go to businessandburgers.com you can also find us on Entrepreneur. The other thing that I want to say is, dude, you're just like, you're awesome. And no, I was so. Well, we do.

I was so blown away by our discussion. I just want to ask, you know, Greg was talking about going and, like, setting something up with a pope, like a wedding. You have told me the craziest stories. What makes you so effective at getting things done and the kinds of things that everyone else says are impossible?

I think I'm. I think I'm pretty stupid, for one. So when someone stood there going, well, how do you do that? I make a phone call. You know, I start so. So many. Like you were saying, the butts getting in the way of you. I just start doing it. You know, they say, how do you eat an elephant? You know, little by little. So I just don't look at it as an objection. I just go, well, okay, I'm going to try and do this. And the more I do, the more I get a little bit cocky and confident and get to pull it off each time.

That's awesome. Well, we want to thank you. I'm going to let you guys get on with the conference. We want to thank all of you and all of you who joined us today on Facebook Live. Make sure again to shoot us your comments, your questions. We'll go back into the stream. We'll answer those over the next couple of days. Make sure to pick up this month's issue of Entrepreneur. Check us out at entrepreneur.

Com.

Don't forget business and burgers from all of us here at Secret Knock. Let's all say goodbye to everyone here.