lystn

As an entrepreneur, Liz Wald thrives in uncertainty and where change is the norm. Liz is an Executive and Board Director for Good Earth Organics (GEO).

Her career has been focused on building global marketplaces for emerging industries like cannabis and early-stage companies such as GEO. During her career, she has led in the technology category and is even credited with bringing Etsy from $80M to $800M while overseeing global operations. In this episode, we’ll talk about getting good at short-term plans by thriving in uncertainty, building community authentically, and how to capitalize on an emerging industry.

So dive in and let’s talk about how to be early to the next big thing. 

Things you will learn in this episode:

[00:01 - 05:14] Opening Segment 

• I introduce today’s guest, Liz Wald
• Liz gives us a bit of her background
• Liz’s college journey 
• Her early career experience
• Transitioning into business and eCommerce 
• A fascination with uncertainty and innovation

[05:15 - 15:30] Getting Comfortable with the Unknown

• Getting on the cutting edge
• Generalist vs. specialist 
• Getting good at short term strategies 
• Liz’s thoughts on the value of long term vs. short term plans
• There is value to both but you need to be able to adapt fast 
• 80% right is close enough 
• The value of a household name 
• Don’t underestimate the first-mover advantage
• A look at Etsy’s growth 
• How to authentically build community with your users 
• The example of Patagonia - living your values 
• A quick word from our sponsors

[15:31 - 28:18] How to Be Early to the Next Big Thing

• Liz shares about her work in the Cannabis industry 
• The beauty of an emerging industry
• Get there early and spread the information 
• Get curious to learn ‘enough” about your market
• Using your skillset to get into something new 
• Look at what you’re good at and plug it in 
• Who you know or what you know? 
• Knowledge is power, but it speeds up with a great network 
• Great people will open up doors for you 
• What you know gives you the confidence to go to the who 
• Make yourself someone ‘worth knowing’ 
• Enthusiasm and generosity are huge in networking 
• Don’t just network for your benefit 
• What is the next big change? 
• New York is finally coming online 
• Beverage and consumption lounges for cannabis 



[28:19 - 34:46] Closing Segment 

• The RaNDoM RoUnD
• How to connect with Liz - links below
• Final words 

Tweetable Quotes: 

“I think the beginning, the start, and the growth is really around people who are very comfortable with risk and the unknown and kind of thrive in it.” - Liz Wald

“The beautiful thing about an emerging industry is, when you’re early, you only have to be 10 minutes smarter than everyone else.” - Liz Wald

“You have to know enough to be confident to go out there, but once you do, those people can make the path so much more open to you in ways that all of your knowledge isn’t going to get you.” - Liz Wald

You can connect with Liz on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. You gotta check out https://goodearthorganics.com/. Use Code: GEO15 to get a 15% Discount on premium soil for all you home-growers out there! Available till 12/25/21.

Did you love the value that we are putting out in the show? LEAVE A REVIEW and tell us what you think about the episode so we can continue putting out great content just for you! Share this episode and help someone who wants to connect with world-class people. 

Jump on over to travischappell.com/makemypodcast and let my team make you your very own show!

If you want to learn how to build YOUR network, check out my website travischappell.com. You can connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Be sure to join The Lounge to become part of the community that’s setting up REAL relationships that add value and create investments.