In today’s world, one can be convinced that the world is a dark and stormy place. Sometimes, the people that we encounter aren’t necessarily the nicest people the world has to offer. Imagine having these encounters on a day-to-day basis, it would suck! But once in a while, out of the many that we encounter every day, there’s always that one person that you can remember for their unquestionable authenticity and their kindness. Mario Simon is someone who stood out to me when we first met, and it was his undeniable passion for his business that spoke volumes.
Mario Simon, the founder and CEO of Damn Good Academy, a company that helps businesses have a better social footprint online. Mario and his team have pretty much mastered marketing to ensure companies can sell online and stay profitable, starting from scratch. An awesome business idea that has been proven successful as Mario has worked with companies such as Sofitel, Oktoberfest and even the Just Do It champions, Nike!
Although Mario’s business is taking off, it wasn’t all roses trying to get this business started. During our interview, we spoke about many adversities and challenges Mario had to go through in order to ensure the business was up and running. One word that yells out ‘Mario’ to me is ‘courageous‘ and I say this because of what he had to go through, and the obstacles he had to run early on in his career. From leaving his farm in Africa that was filled with corruption, crime, and a lack of opportunity to ‘living in constant terror.’ If you take a look at what Mario went through and what he has accomplished to date, the courage is very high! AND he’s only just getting started.
Here are some of the key points that stood out to me:
- No matter how hard it may seem, make the jump– If we rewind the clock to twelve years ago, Mario was still back in South Africa figuring out his next move. If he didn’t jump out if his comfort zone, he would never have even made it to Australia, let alone never even come close to the successful entrepreneur he is today. Mario’s jump was more than just a move, it was literally a leap of faith that landed him in the happiest place he’s ever been.
- Lend a helping hand– The first time I met Mario, he shared with me a story that I’ve literally been telling everyone about (check it out HERE). I won’t go into too much detail as you can read his blog or listen to my podcast episode, but Mario singlehandedly changed someone’s life by being a nice person and lending a helping hand. Some (I) would even say he’s a hero!
- Lead without the knowledge of leading– The best thing about Mario is his humbleness. Mario is such a great leader to his team. You can make that assumption within the first 45 seconds of meeting him, and the best part? He doesn’t even know it. I mentioned before the amount of passion he has for his job, and the passion he has for making companies have a better social footprint. He is so involved in his team and his customers, that he doesn’t even know he’s leading them! That’s the definition of staying #humble, and that’s why people want to work with Mario!
If you’d like to get in contact with Mario, or use his services, please check out the links below:
LinkedIn: Mario Simon
Peace!
Shiv Rad.
