Passion and Entrepreneurship: The Intersection of Being Successful

with guest Forbes Riley #MakingBank S5E33

When ideas come to entrepreneurs, they turn them into products, companies, and services that better the world around them. But what’s at the center of those ideas? Most of the time, it’s personal. It’s something that the entrepreneur is passionate about, and something that they are determined to create to better the world.  

Forbes Riley, CEO of SpinGym, best-selling author, coaching expert, and the Queen of the Pitch, joins us on this episode of Making Bank to discuss the correlation between passion and success in the business field. With a ton of experience and exposure from her family, Forbes brings an insight on creating something that changes the world, while benefiting your own life at the same time.  

Turning Passion into Business  

There’s a question that Forbes gets asked quite frequently, and that is “How do you like find something you love that the world needs to have?” One way to do it is to follow the path that she took when she started as an entrepreneur, and that’s by being a passionate person.  

“There’s a lot of ways to run a business, but I’m a passionate person. I don’t sell or promote anything I don’t love. And sometimes I love it too much…I found something that excites my soul, makes me crazy, has fun, and also makes me money.” Forbes knows that she didn’t get that passion on her own though – a lot of it comes from her family background and mentors she’s had along the way. 

Before she became the entrepreneur that she is today, Forbes’ father was an entrepreneur. He was a mechanic that made his work and hours. Watching him run his life how he wanted, Forbes was inspired to take control of her own life and what she wanted to do. While being a mechanic, her father was also an investor and a magician. All of these things combined and eventually drove Forbes to be the devoted and strong person she is today.  

Looking back at her childhood, Forbes notes that she’s uncovered a lot about herself that she didn’t recognize as important before. “I’ve been speaking for years now, and I’ve uncovered a lot about me that I didn’t realize. And I will tell you, one of my biggest things I live by is that you’re the sum of the obstacles you overcome.”  

Working While Never Having a Job 

While her father inspired her, she had a tumultuous journey to success. Forbes grew up in her head. She didn’t have a lot of friends – but she didn’t think that was a problem – and neither did her parents. Growing up close to them, she was very hands-on and observed what they did. Watching them create their success and support her, she saw the power of dreaming and seeing something and going towards it. In that same vein, Forbes says that she never had a job and never had to work, because her business was her living her life exactly how she wanted.  

“I’ve never had to worry about money because I always know that whatever I wanted, I just thought we could do it, and we did it. That’s extreme, I don’t recommend people go do that. What I recommend is that you take a piece of this: that you do a little introspection. Who are you? What do you want? Most people that I talk to, no one’s ever asked what they wanted.” At the root of your own life, you want to live your life to the fullest. So why shouldn’t you want that for your entrepreneur life?  

It may seem silly that something as important as knowing what you want to do is the most important question when deciding what you want to do with your life, but it’s too often forgotten. When people focus on money, fame, or just power, they lose sight of themselves and the bigger picture.  

How exactly did Forbes do this? She found her passions. She took time for herself and discovered the things that made her happy, and she reflected on herself. When she evaluated herself, she knew that she had a knack for creating things that didn’t exist. With a zone of genius and then a non-zone of genius, she knew her balance and how to apply it to creating business. Running companies weren’t her natural skills, but she worked her magic and made it happen because her passion was driving her forward. 

However, her passion just doesn’t stop when it comes to working. Outside of her work life, she lives with as much of that passion that she brings to the entrepreneurship table. Forbes balances are her life by always making sure that she’s putting time into the relationships that are important to her, taking care of herself, and ensuring that she’s not just focused on being an entrepreneur. “As an entrepreneur, don’t lose the balance of your life because of too much work.” At the end of the day, you need relationships that will give you the support that you need.