One year after Shark Tank

Five things I learned that changed my life

1. Going Deep: Finding what I wanted in my business and in my personal life

I had to think deeply about what exactly I wanted: a legacy or money. An article in Harvard Business Review, “Founder’s Dilemma” by Noam Wasserman, helped me to generate questions for myself so that I could delve deeper into discovering which path I wanted to pursue.

2. Money is Out There

I realized that money is out there waiting to be taken. I quickly had to immerse myself in learning about Mergers and Acquisitions, Private Equity, and Venture Capital. They were foreign concepts to me prior to appearing on Shark Tank. In preparation for my appearance, I seized the opportunity to learn about unfamiliar business terminology. I knew that I was going to be given so many options to grow my business and I wanted to understand and be prepared to take them.

3. Focus on the Details: Do better at what made us who we are today

It is important to stay focused on the bigger goal. I told myself for a year, “I will stay focused on what we need to do as a company to accomplish the big picture and not get complacent with short-term success.

4. Be inspired: Create “once in a lifetime” experiences

To be happy, I have to create more “once in a lifetime” opportunities. Shark Tank was absolutely a “once in a lifetime” opportunity that I created through persistence. I had applied three times previously to get on the show before I was given a chance to be on the show. I know from that experience that “once in a lifetime” opportunities do not come easily.  The experience should make you feel uncomfortable, nervous, and excited, all at the same time. I enjoyed the process of being on Shark Tank more than watching myself on the show. I enjoyed every moment of it and felt that I made my family and my team proud. Since the show, I am inspired to do things that I will look back on and think to myself, “That was a once in a life time moment!”

I ask myself a few questions; “Does this make me feel excited? Does this make me feel nervous? Do I feel a little embarrassed?” If it does, I do it. You will always remember the moment that you chose to have that experience and it will create a great story for your life.

5. Be in the moment: Have fun!

I told myself to focus on and enjoy the moment. Typically, I tend to say, “what’s next?” and keep moving forward. Instead, I fully immersed myself in connecting with our customers after Shark Tank aired. Our staff was proud to work for Chi’Lantro because they respected what we stood for and how that was represented on television. They knew I was being my authentic self on the show. Our customers recognized me and wanted to connect and to share how proud they are to have Chi’Lantro in their community. I will never forget the phone call I got from a kid in New Mexico who was in bed due to his illness. He called me and told me that I was an inspiration for him and that my episode was his all time favorite. It made me feel so good that my eyes filled with tears of gratitude.