John Jantsch

Nov 26th, 2019

John Jantsch is the best-selling author of Duct Tape Marketing, The Referral Engine and most recently The Self Reliant Entrepreneur, made publicly available on Oct 22. Seth Godin has praised Jantsch’s unique perspective, and his blog was chosen as a Forbes favorite for marketing and small business. In addition, his podcast made it to the top ten marketing show on iTunes, and was called a “must listen” by Fast Company magazine.

 

 

 

Jantsch new book, The Self Reliant Entrepreneur encroaches on the often-ignored area of entrepreneurship: fear, anxiety and the emotional erosion of entrepreneurs. Starting something from scatch with no support is difficult but often hidden from public view, making the problem worse. It’s one of the reasons this podcast talks openly about failure.

 

Entrepreneurs understand growing the business and making certain sacrifices are important, but Jantsch warns that sacrificing their mental health or relationships never ends well. Sadly, many entrepreneurs don’t make it a priority. That’s a mistake.

Jantsch also explains the lie most entrepreneurs fall into, which is believing if they only cross a few difficult bridges at the startup phase, then things will be ok. This is never the way it plays out, however. In fact, Jantsch explained many entrepreneurs start to experience true failure or experience trials after their business has already gained traction. This can be debilitating.

 

Many entrepreneurs are crushed because they buy into a false narrative that failure is only something to encounter in the beginning, they never seem to figure out failure is a constant thing to address and grow from.

 

John Jantsch, Too Many Failures To Count

When asked if this was a mid-life crisis book, Jantsch mentioned his many failures. Unlike many leaders, however, he speaks candidly about them, and I believe this attitude gives him the freedom to learn from those failures.

 

The Self Reliant Entrepreneur

Buy The Self Reliant Entrepreneur by John Jantsch

“A daily workbook, designed to challenge you to focus on the hard part—finding work that matters. John’s prompts are a masterwork.”  – Seth Godin, Author

 

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If you enjoyed this interview with John Janstch, you may also enjoy my interview with Steve Robinson, Chick-Fil-A’s CMO, or Steve Clayton, Microsoft’s Chief Storyteller.