I’m a big social media fan. I was first on Facebook in 2005 after my college, Washington University in St. Louis, was one of the first few schools added. Back then it was called “The Facebook” (wow did I just date myself?!)

Did I think I would one day use it for business? No.
Did I think it would evolve into what it is now? Nope.

I really use Facebook for everything. Having fun. Uploading and sharing photos. Making connections that go deeper than an email and more lasting than a quick conversation. Promoting my business and other people’s businesses. Sharing funny stories. Stalking..I mean checking up on people.

Twitter and I became friends in 2008. I was not an … Read More »

Today was a great day in studio for definitely the most unique shoot I’ve ever been part of which we will be bringing to you in Season #2 beginning on September 6th.

The crew worked hard, the art entrepreneurs were absolutely incredible and it will not soon be a day I forget…and I’m excited to share it all with you.

A few people you will notice:
Our great crew Elias, Rachel and Katie working hard.
My lovely and talented girlfriend Marcie enjoying the festivities today.
Internationally acclaimed artist Paco Rosic and rising star artist Kennedy Yanko.
Plus serial entrepreneur and founder of Abstrakt Art Gallery Scott Scully was in the house.

More photos extremely soon on the website and … Read More »

We are supporting a special event this Sunday, August 30th and that is the Metropolis Debaliviere Place Summer Pool Party. Besides the drinks, food and fun there will be music from Live Feed (a non-profit dedicated to fighting hunger in St. Louis) and we will have the cameras rolling for The Rise To The Top LIVE with interviews with businesses and folks in attendance. Make sure to come on out from 2-6 PM (we will be shooting around 3:30 PM) and enjoy the festivities…and you and your business might just end up on ABC. Yippy!

Event Info

Facebook Event Page

And keep your eyes peeled for a BRAND new season of Dinner and Discussions beginning in September! We will be … Read More »

Good writing. Dynamic writing. Big Ideas. Forward-thinking journalism. Drea Knufken is what I like to call a visionary journalism entrepreneur. She understands the digital world, what it means to you and ways you can get involved right now. I recently had a chance to catch up with Drea and pick her brain on some big concepts.

1. You have written for a variety of sources, web and non-web. How has the Internet changed journalism?

In several ways. When you write a print article, you work with editors. Your work has to be revised or rewritten, sometimes several times, before the print outlet publishes it. Web writing, on the other hand, may or may not be edited.

As a blogger, … Read More »

Set the calendar for September 6th, 2009 for the season debut of The Rise To The Top with an exclusive featured interview with Anna Kournikova.

Also, building your brand through widgets with the founder of Widget Realm Brian Powell, Twitter tips with mommy blogger Ria Sharon, a few pages out of the Ultimate Entrepreneur Playbook to save you time and money in this recession.

You can catch the first episode:
Sunday, September 6th, 11 AM KDNL ABC30 Following This Week with George Stephanopolos
Online: www.therisetothetop.com
Mobile Phones: mobile.therisetothetop.com… Read More »

So, I’ve been bombarded with emails, messages, DM’s on Twitter, Facebook messages, phone calls (darn voicemail..promise to get back to everyone) with people (pretty much) asking the same question: When is The Rise To The Top Season #2, where can I watch and who are the guests?

First of all, thanks for caring! Seriously, it means a lot as we have been busting our tails behind the scenes conducting interviews, doing research, traveling around the country, and most importantly listening to what you want for this season and let me tell you, I PROMISE we are going to deliver (insert smily face) the most unique and entertaining business show on TV (and online of course).

Once again, thank … Read More »

Alltop is a GREAT free site that brings some of the top sites on the Internet together so people can find information on a particular subject quickly and easily. Sort of like a virtual magazine of your favorite things.

We are fortunate to be listed now in Alltop’s Small Business section where they bring you “All the top Small Business news.” Check it out as there is some amazing company on the page including American Express Open Forum, Entrepreneur Magazne, Fast Company, INC.com, Small Business Trends, Seth Godin’s world-famous blog, New York Times Small Business, Forbes and more.

In case you want to learn a bit more about Alltop, we did a feature on them last season as a Hot … Read More »

We are always so busy as entrepreneurstags. Meetings, phone calls, proposals, big ideas, stress, managing people, marketing, the list is endless.

Often something important is overlooked: Giving back.

You don’t need a multi-million dollar budget to give to your favorite charity as every little bit counts. Plus, starting your giving early in the entrepreneurial process will make it automatic for you in the future. Giving to charities and non-profits should be a habit.

We were very blessed to have Lift For Life, an amazing cause that gets underprivileged kids off the street and working out as well as other positive activities as our featured charity this past July for Summer Business Break.

We were able to raise money through … Read More »

Yahoo! has been making waves lately with the changing of upper management and dealing cards with Microsoft, but their biggest play may be Yahoo! TV Widgets also known as Yahoo! Connected TV.
I think it is a fundamental  game-changer for the future of television and content. Also, it will be something that content-producing AND consuming entrepreneurs are going to want to keep an eye on.

There have been many ill-fated attempts to bring the Internet TV. These have failed for numerous reasons including bad partnerships, poor distribution and most importantly crappy user-interfaces that felt like a browser on your TV.

In nutshell, Yahoo TV Widgets allows you to connect your TV to WiFi and bring up customizable widgets on your … Read More »

A quick question. Would you rather learn what to do or what NOT to do? Does failure hit home more than success?

It seems every entrepreneur has a story of brutal failure. A company went way over budget, disaster struck at every corner, the secretary was hit by a train (OK, grim example)…you get the point.

On the other side of the entrepreneurial coin, you rarely fine a success story that doesn’t include some kind of failure. The rare stories that don’t include a struggle are often the extreme rare exception as opposed to the rule.
Speaking of stories…

The upcoming season of The Rise To The Top is going to be a little different to really add value to … Read More »