In this episode of QueerHustle, Michelle sits down with entrepreneur and business builder, Jade Baranski. Jade’s entrepreneurial journey started when they were nineteen. After a chance meeting while working at a restaurant and juggling five other jobs, Jade was offered a role that would change the trajectory of their career. Since then, Jade has started their own business, JoyLab, with the goal of being able to align their work with what’s going on in the world. Today, Michelle and Jade talk about the importance of mentorship, the stigma of queer people pursuing money in business, and best practices for building a sellable business.
In this episode of QueerHustle, Michelle sits down with entrepreneur and business builder, Jade Baranski. Jade’s entrepreneurial journey started when they were nineteen. After a chance meeting while working at a restaurant and juggling five other jobs, Jade was offered a role that would change the trajectory of their career. Since then, Jade has started their own business, JoyLab, with the goal of being able to align their work with what’s going on in the world. Today, Michelle and Jade talk about the importance of mentorship, the stigma of queer people pursuing money in business, and best practices for building a sellable business.
What We Covered:
00:51 – Introducing today’s guest, Jade Baranski, who shares their background as a serial entrepreneur
04:58 – Jade speaks to the importance of mentorship
08:18 – Building a network of contribution and how being queer has been one of Jade’s most powerful traits
12:24 – Jade provides their thoughts on the stigma of queer people pursuing money and power
15:57 – Jade talks about why they build companies with the intent of exiting and selling
19:47 – Best practices for building a sellable business, the importance of hiring and finding the right business partner
26:30 – Jade opens up about the challenges and difficulties of entrepreneurship
Tweetable Quotes:
“I think, at this point, I’ve mentored three younger folks who have since started businesses. So I feel like that’s a huge win.” (08:09) (Jade)
“I used to talk about this a lot when I was younger in my career how me being queer really set me up in a unique way in business to really – you call it hustle – I call it power through.” (10:15) (Jade)
“Someone is going to get the money, so why not you? Because what you’re going to be able to do with that money is unique. So go get the money!” (14:01) (Jade)
“The two businesses I own now I know the exit strategies. And they’re both about five to seven years. And I feel great about that because building wealth and creating business opportunities for other people is part of what I do.” (19:11) (Jade)
“What I’ve found that’s even more important than how I’ve created my team is getting everyone’s feedback and being really open to it.” (27:54) (Jade)
Links Mentioned: