In this episode of the Business Blast Podcast, host Tyler Wagner interviews Savannah Louderback, a 21‑year‑old business management student passionate about hospitality. Savannah shares a personal story about moving from Indiana to Florida for college, emphasizing that stepping into uncomfortable situations fuels growth. She highlights coachability as the most valuable skill in hospitality, urging listeners to absorb new information like a sponge. Her broader business advice centers on relationship building and trust as the foundation of successful transactions. Savannah offers self‑compassion advice to her younger self, urging less self‑criticism and more learning from mistakes. She defines happiness as surrounding oneself with loved ones, pursuing passions, and being productive. Her favorite recent book, Growth Mindset at University by Jordan Parris, taught her that persistence and mindset can overcome insecurity. Savannah also shares a cherished Winnie the Pooh quote about the difficulty of goodbyes, illustrating emotional resilience. Finally, she directs listeners to her LinkedIn for further connection, and the episode concludes with an Anchor podcast platform promotion.
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Alright everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host Tyler Wagner. Today I have Savannah Louder back with us. She is a 21-year-old business management student with a passion for working in the hospitality industry. So welcome to the show.
Thank you, Tyler Wagner. Hello everyone, I'm so excited to be here.
Of course, and we're grateful to have you on. So Savannah, the first one we ask on this show is what is the best story from your life that has an underlying valuable message?
So I would have to say the best story from my life— miles away from home. I grew up in Fishers, Indiana, and I decided that I wanted to go to Florida Gulf Coast University. And it's very— it was a really big deal for me because as a high schooler, I was very insecure. I had absolutely no confidence, but I knew that I wanted to move away and have a fresh new start. So the valuable message underlying here would have to be that I found that I can do anything that I want if I put my mind to it. I've always was told growing up that in order to grow, you have to put yourself in the most uncomfortable situations and find comfort within yourself. And that's exactly what I did, and I couldn't be happier to be where I'm at.
And then what is the most valuable piece of information we should know that's within your expertise or industry?
So the most valuable information within my industry which would be hospitality, would be the importance of being coachable. So to be coachable, you have to put everything that you've learned in the past to the side and absorb all the new information that you're being told as if you were a sponge. You shouldn't say things like, oh no, I was told differently, or someone told me to do the task this way. You should say, oh, okay, awesome, I will continue forward the way that you've taught me and just go from there. People will want to help you more.
And then what is your— it could tie in, but what is your best piece of overall business advice? So not necessarily industry-specific.
So my best advice business-wise would have to be probably the importance of relationship building. Business is all about trusting one another and confiding in each other to get the job done. So when there's no trust, there will be not nearly as proficient of an exchange. So the likelihood of doing business again in the future will be slim to none. So I always just think to wear a smile, always speak— [SPANISH] language about one another. Never say anything, you know, that's not good about another person. And just make sure that your word is always impeccable.
And then if you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would that be?
So I would tell my younger self not to be so critical of myself, actually, uh, whether the problem has to do with my hair, what others thought of me, what I was wearing. In the grand scheme of things, it's really not worth, um, wasting your mental capacity over it. So I would just not be so hard on myself. I wouldn't be so hard about the mistakes I've made, just to learn and rethink in the future as opposed to dwelling and beating myself up over silly things.
And then in your opinion, what is the key to happiness?
The key to happiness to me would be to surround myself with the ones I love, doing the things that I love, being the most productive version of myself that I can be.
And what is the best book that you've read? And what was the number one thing you learned from that?
So I've read a lot of books in my lifetime, but my favorite book from this year would have to do with Growth Mindset at University, written by Jordan Parris. His book kind of made me realize that while I was growing up, I wasn't the only one that felt alone, that was awkward and insecure. But when you put your mind to something and continuously push yourself, You'll be the happiest version of yourself and excel way past all those who had confidence while you're growing up. And I actually have the author here with me and he wants to say something.
What is going on? Thank you, Savannah. I appreciate that. And I'm glad you saw the value in it.
Oh yeah. Yeah.
Awesome. Dude, that's so cool. That's awesome. And then, Savannah, the last one I got for you is, what is your favorite quote and why?
So my favorite quote would be, "How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard," by Winnie the Pooh. And this is my favorite quote because I think about it every time I get upset about having to leave, whether it's someone, something, or somewhere significant to me. I still cry every time I leave my family and my best friends. When I'm home and I go back to school, but this quote helps me get through it every single time.
And I have to say, I do love Winnie the Pooh. Winnie the Pooh is tight. So thank you so much for coming on and thanks for the feature there, Jordan. The last one I got for you, Savannah, is where can our audience best find you online?
So I am best found on my LinkedIn And I will have— I'll send you that URL to put that in the blog.
Perfect. That sounds good. Thanks again for coming on.
Thank you so much for having me.
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