An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
Hire people. You definitely should not be doing everything yourself. Look for collaborators! When you open up your mind to new possibilities, the universe somehow finds those “Who’s” for you. Stick to your unique ability. I focus on the 2–3 things that I’m really good at and look to hire/collaborate with others who have different talents than me. Take time off. You need to decompress. Take some free days where you do not touch anything business related. Read books. Books can be a gateway to a bigger and better future for you!
As a part of our series called “Making Something From Nothing”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Bill Bloom.
Bill is a husband, father, sailor, classic car driver, entrepreneur and podcaster. Bill has spent over 13 years in the financial services space and has created a new Fintech app, Diane Money, to help figure out people’s money issues for them. Bill is very passionate about finding better outcomes for one’s financial life.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a bit about your “childhood backstory”?
When I was a child, my parents always struggled with money. So, naturally, taking a pain and making it a benefit has been a big part of my story and life. I still remember my parents arguing whether or not they can pay their mortgage payments. I never wanted that for my family. Now that my wife and I have two kiddos, I never wanted money to be an issue for us. That is why my life’s work is all about helping others create better outcomes with for their money.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
There are so many to name here. One of my favorites is from Dr. Jeff Spencer. Action creates clarity. It’s so brilliant.
Is there a particular book, podcast, or film that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
Strategic Coach. I get to be in a room with some of the top entrepreneurs in the world. It is just incredible the amount of brainpower in one room. Not to mention Dan Sullivan is my coach. Just the best.
Ok super. Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. There is no shortage of good ideas out there. Many people have good ideas all the time. But people seem to struggle in taking a good idea and translating it into an actual business. Can you share a few ideas from your experience about how to overcome this challenge?
If you focus on the user’s experience, I think it gives you a leg up on the competition. For my new company, Diane Money, my whole focus is to help our users get better clarity for their money and utilize the app’s suggestions to live a better financial life.
Often when people think of a new idea, they dismiss it saying someone else must have thought of it before. How would you recommend that someone go about researching whether or not their idea has already been created?
Competition is a good think. It mean’s you’re not first to market. Focus on doing one thing really well first. Then expand into other areas.
For the benefit of our readers, can you outline the steps one has to go through, from when they think of the idea, until it finally lands in a customer’s hands?
In particular, we’d love to hear about how to file a patent, how to source a good manufacturer, and how to find a retailer to distribute it. It takes time. Slow and steady is an important factor here. You need to learn when to put your foot on the gas and pump the breaks. Another Dr. Jeff Spencer line. Look for collaborations. If you don’t have the capitol to build it yourself, find a collaboration to help you condense your timeline.
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Started Leading My Company” and why?
Hire people. You definitely should not be doing everything yourself. Look for collaborators! When you open up your mind to new possibilities, the universe somehow finds those “Who’s” for you. Stick to your unique ability. I focus on the 2–3 things that I’m really good at and look to hire/collaborate with others who have different talents than me. Take time off. You need to decompress. Take some free days where you do not touch anything business related. Read books. Books can be a gateway to a bigger and better future for you!
Let’s imagine that a reader reading this interview has an idea for a product that they would like to invent. What are the first few steps that you would recommend that they take?
Find 3–5 collaborations that you lack in. Talk to founders. Ask them for coffee, lunch or a zoom meeting. People love sharing insights. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. I do it all the time.
There are many invention development consultants. Would you recommend that a person with a new idea hire such a consultant, or should they try to strike out on their own?
Go out on your own. Make it your own. At the end of the day, you’re responsible for your future. Go with your gut and go for it!
What are your thoughts about bootstrapping vs looking for venture capital? What is the best way to decide if you should do either one?
Depends on your financial situation. I’ve bootstrapped my first two companies at this point. If you can put your foot on the gas and go faster with other’s capitol, then go for it!
Ok. We are nearly done. Here are our final questions. How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
Diane Money is an incredible financial app that will simplify your money for you by utilizing AI. I mean, would it be a bad idea for you to receive help every month to make better financial decisions and reach your goals faster? That’s what Diane Money does! I see this technology being used in other countries as the business expands!
You are an inspiration to a great many people. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
You never know what your idea can trigger. Better money habits. Everyone has money issues. It just to what extent. When you can leverage AI and technology to help you make better decisions, I see less stress being involved in our lives.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.
Harry Stebbings from 20VC Fund. Love his podcast!
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
Making Something From Nothing: Bill Bloom Of Diane Money On How To Go From Idea To Launch was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
