Built from Scratch
Welcome to Built from Scratch, a podcast hosted by Erik Libby, CEO and founder of the To-Do Dudes. On this show, Erik shares key lessons from his entrepreneurial journey and highlights the stories of entrepreneurs and business professionals who are all under 30. Built from Scratch is dedicated to spotlighting the next generation of leaders ready to change the world.
Episodes
42 episodes
3 Lessons After Meeting with Mentors
After five mentor sessions, I committed to morning deep-work sprints and uncovered three key insights:It always takes longer than you plan (Hofstadter’s Law in action)A cleared calendar is the fastest route to foc...
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Episode 42
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11:12
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Deep Work = Faster Progress
How blocking full days for deep work—like my ongoing Excel sprint—beats endless multitasking.How Adam Grant, Kobe Bryant, and Steve Jobs eliminated distractions and embraced the process.I’ll share my Wednesday deep-focus routine, ...
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Episode 41
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11:28
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Enttor: Leo Zhang (20)
Originally from Ontario, Canada, Leo’s entrepreneurial journey began in 2020 when he co-founded a nonprofit called Notzr while still in high school. During that time, he scaled to over 50 classes internationally and brought the platform into 20...
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Episode 40
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35:45
Asic Jungle: Charles Wissa (29)
Originally from Montreal, Canada, Charles began his entrepreneurial journey in 2020 when he founded a platform for buying and selling crypto mining hardware—just two weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.His interest in crypto mining st...
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Episode 39
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44:16
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5 Lessons in 5 Years
The To-Do Dudes has officially turned five. What started out as yard work for my grandmother has turned into an operation with 36 team members, over 3,000 homeowners served, 7,000+ projects completed, and more than 500 five-star reviews on Goog...
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Episode 38
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19:05
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First Love: Sharuka Suthaharan (27)
Originally from Ontario, Canada, Sharuka’s entrepreneurial journey began in 2020, when she and her sister Navina turned a sewing machine and a passion for self-care into First Love—a brand rooted in fashion, wellness, and advocacy....
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Episode 37
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38:44
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What We Got Wrong (and Right) About Hiring
From hiring friends to building scorecards and screening 120+ applicants — here’s how our hiring and onboarding process evolved across field and admin roles. What we got wrong, what we fixed, and what you can steal to make your next hire your b...
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Episode 36
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20:58
7 Steps to Launching Your Business Today
This episode is for the entrepreneur at day one. After reflecting on my own journey, I’ve identified 7 key steps that helped me finally gain traction and move from idea to action. It took me a long time to figure things out — but my hope is tha...
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Episode 35
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17:02
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Storage Scholars: Matt Gronberg (26)
Originally from Massachusetts, Matt dreamed of becoming an orthopedic surgeon.He started hustling early, launching a car detailing business at 13, proving his sales skills at 14 by selling a record-breaking 88 football booster cards, and...
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Episode 34
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46:07
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Lessons on Project Management
We're currently experiencing a period of growth at The To-Do Dudes as we begin expanding into new markets. With that, the challenges of project management have become more complex. What worked last year will not continue to work this year.<...
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Episode 33
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17:39
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Getting your First Customers
In this episode, I talk about going from zero customers to a few customers during our Daytona Beach expansion. Using Alex Hormozi’s strategy of his “Core Four” to get customers, I show how we have adopted this for our customer acquisition strat...
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Episode 32
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18:45
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Memos: Q1, 2025
This episode is a bit different. As I reflect on Q1 of 2025, I’ve pulled together unfiltered audio memos and videos from throughout the quarter. To keep things raw and authentic, I only removed pauses to make your listening experience smoother....
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Episode 31
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11:13
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Setting your Quarterly Goals
In this video I will talk about goal setting that took us from a failing company losing money, to hitting our first profitable year in 2024 with an even better outlook for 2025.
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Episode 30
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19:42
SharpStakes: Shubs Kaushal (22)
Originally from Canada, Shubs graduated from the Ivey Business School and began his career in Mergers & Acquisitions and Innovation Banking. He was also part of the founding team of a Y Combinator-backed startup.Now, Shubs is the Co-...
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Episode 29
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38:09
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How I Plan for an Effective Week
Is your week filled with distractions, an unorganized schedule, or, worse, no clear plan at all?In this episode, I break down my Sunday strategy for setting up a productive week. With a few simple adjustments, I’ve seen a big improvement...
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Episode 28
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10:49
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Five Founders on Hiring Employee #1
Five Founders on Hiring Employee #1In this episode, I sit down with five entrepreneurs under 30 to discuss their experiences hiring their first full-time employee. These founders come from diverse industries, including food, collectibles...
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Episode 27
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48:23
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Sideshift: Canyon Pergande (22)
Originally from Eden Prairie, Minnesota, Canyon grew up as a multifaceted athlete, playing both baseball and hockey.His entrepreneurial journey began in 2019 when, as a senior in high school, he started a landscaping company called CP La...
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Episode 26
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28:02
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Interlix Staffing: Sebastian Paredes (22)
Sebastian earned his BBA from Babson College, graduating with the prestigious Dean’s Award Platinum Pin.He started his career as a Social Media Manager at ERIFIXSocial, building digital strategies from the ground up.In the undergr...
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Episode 25
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46:50
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Stages of Building a Team
In this episode, I share my thoughts on the ten phases of building the To-Do Dudes team - from hiring neighborhood kids to creating a structured leadership and efficient field team operation.
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Episode 24
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19:08
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Chewk’s Cookies: Michael Blum (22)
Originally from Edina, Minnesota, Michael started his entrepreneurial journey at a young age by reselling vintage clothes.In 2021, while attending Grand Canyon University, he went on to co-founded Chewk’s Cookies. What began in a dorm ro...
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Episode 23
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52:43
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Detroit Salsa Company: Finn Gomez (22)
Originally from Wyandotte, Michigan, Finn's journey began in middle school with a class assignment creating a pretend business. Inspired by his great-grandmother salsa recipe, he turned his idea into reality.Starting with local samples, ...
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Episode 22
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58:21
High School Hustle: Hunter Beale (25)
Originally from Indianapolis, Indiana, Hunter’s entrepreneurial journey began in 5th grade, selling snow cones, flipping Jordan sneakers, and turning Goodwill finds into eBay gold.While he started strong, his path wasn’t without challen...
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Episode 21
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1:14:29
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MAD Social Agency: Maddie Thompson (23)
Originally from Manitoba, Canada, Maddie began her entrepreneurial journey at 13, landing a fashion internship with Triple Flip after pitching her designs to over 150 businesses.By high school, she co-founded Social Clothing, transformin...
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Episode 20
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57:41
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Snow Scholars: Jake Piekarski (22)
Originally from Huntington Beach, California, Jake’s entrepreneurial journey began at just 8 years old, selling hockey tape outside his local rink. Over the years, he’s built six businesses, including JPS Surfboards and Chore Hub, which employe...
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Episode 19
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58:27
The Art of the Performance Evaluation
In this episode, I’m sharing my personal journey with performance evaluations—what we got wrong at first, what we’re doing better now, and how we plan to level up in the future to build stronger leaders.I’ll break it down into three part...
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Season 1
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Episode 18
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16:46
