We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful AUBREY BANKS. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with AUBREY below.

AUBREY, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?

FIRST LET ME START BY SAYING, I FEEL LIKE IN ORDER TO BE SUCCESFUL IN TODAYS SOCIETY, YOU HAVE TO FOCUS ON SHORT TERM GOALS. SOME TIME LONG TERM GOALS CAN SET YOU UP FOR FAILURE. SIMPLY BECAUSE YOU DONT KNOW WHAT LIES IN TOMORROW, BUT YOU CAN CONTROL TODAY.

WHEN I START ANY BUSINESS, IT OBVIOUSLY START WITH A IDEA, THE DIFFERNCE BETWEEN ME AND ALOT OF OTHER PEOPLE IS I MAKE MY IDEAS REAL IMMEDIATELY . I BUY THE DOMAIN, I CREATE THE LLC, AND GET THE EIN NUMBER EVEN IF ITS JUST AN IDEA. I DO THIS BECAUSE THEN IT MAKES THE IDEA TANGIBLE NOW ITS SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN TOUCH. FROM THAT POINT YOU CAN EXECUTE AT A QUICKER AND MORE PROFICENT PACE.

ONCE YOU DO THIS, THEN YOU CAN CREATE A BUSINESS PLAN ETC. ITS NOT A BUSINESS IF ITS NOT ON PAPER SO START THERE AND WATCH HOW IT PAYS OFF. I STARTED MY COMPANY WHEN I WAS ONLY 17 YEARS OLD AND IF I WOULD HAVE FOLLOWED THESE GUIDLINES AND RULES THEN I WOULD BE MUCH FURTHER IN LIFE AND BUSINESS.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I WAS WORKING AT POPEYES AND GOING TO SCHOOL. I REALIZED VERY EARLY NEITHER WAS FOR ME. I WAS GOOD AT BOTH BUT WORK FOR SOMEONE TO ME SEEMED UNFAIR, I COULD NOT UNDERSTAND HOW THEY COULD TELL ME WHAT I WAS WORTH BEFORE SEEING ME DO THE JOB, AND AS FAR AS SCHOOL , I EXCELLED AT IT, SCHOOL BECAME BORING TO ME I DID NOT WANT TO GO TO COLLEGE BECASUE TO ME I WOULD HAVE BEEN BEING TAUGHT BY PEOPLE STILL TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT THEMSELVES . THAT LEAD TO ONE OTHER THING AND THAT WAS BECOME A BUSINESS OWNER.

I THEN STARTED TO SELL SHOES AND CLOTHES OUT OF MY CAR, THEN I TOOK THAT MONEY AND OPENED A CLOTHING STORE. WHILE IN CLOTHING I STARTED TO STYLE SOME CELEBRITIES BUT WASNT MAKING THE MONEY I THOUGHT I DESERVED, THAT LEAD ME INTO GETING INTO THE MUSIC INDUSTRY AND THE REST IS HISTORY.

THE FIRST STEP IS BELEIVING IN YOURSELF. I BELIVED I DESERVED TO BE IN THE ROOMS I WAS IN, I KNEW THAT I ADDED ALOT OF VALUE TO EVERY TABLE THAT I WAS ASKED TO SIT AT, THE CONTINGENCY WAS I JUST NEEDED TO BE INVITED TO THAT TABLE.

MY NUMBER ONE RULE IS TO KEEP GOING. YOU CANT WIN A RACE YOU DONT FINISH. SO I ALWASY KEEP GOING NO MATTER WHAT!

I ALSO OWN A INTERIOR DESIGN FIRM AND AND MULTIMEDIA MARKETING AGENCY FOR PRO SPORTS PLAYERS. MY BUSINESSES HAVE BEEN CARVED OUT OF MY OWNER PERSONAL EXPERIENCES AND GIFTS. I LITTERALY USE WHAT GOD GAVE ME NATURALLY AND MAKE A BUSINESS OUT OF IT. THAT SIMPLE.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

A GREAT STORY FROM MY PAST IS THE FIRST 5 YEARS OF MY CAREER I DID EXCEPTIONALLY WELL . MADE MY FIRST MILLION DOLLARS BEFORE THE AGE OF 25. THEN I LOST IT ALL. AND I MEAN EVERTHING, I HAD TO GO BACK TO MY MOMS HOUSE AND REEVALUATED WHAT I WAS DOING WRONG.

ALL OFF THIS SUCCESS AND INTELLIGENCE AND I LOST IT ALL. I REALIZED VERY QUICKLY IT WASNT WHAT I WAS DOING IT WAS HOW I WAS DOING IT. I SPENT ALOF OF MY EARNINGS ON OTHERS, TRYING TO BE THE COOL GUY AND SAVE THE WORLD. I HAD TO SAVE MYSELF FIRST, BE GOOD TO MYSELF, TRUST MYSELF BEFORE I WAS ABLE TO HELP ANY ONE ELSE.

THIS LEAD TO MY THINKING OF KEEP GOING. NO MATTER WHAT KEEP GOING.
AGAIN YOU CANT WIN A RACE YOU DONT FINISH.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

MY LESSON THAT I HAD TO UNLEARN WAS OUR PARENTS DO THE BEST THEY COULD IN RAISING US. BUT WHEN YOU BECOME AN ADULT YOU HAVE TO DECIDE YOUR OWN PATH. IF YOUR PARENTS KNEW EVERYTHING THEN THEY WOULD HAVE EVERYTHING AND WOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SAVE YOU FROM ALOT OF MISTAKES BUT WE ARE ALL IN THIS LIFE FIGURING IT OUT AS WE GO, INCLUDING YOUR PARENTS. THEREFORE YOU HAVE TO CARVE OUT WHAT THE REST OF YOUR LIFE WILL BE AND BE OK WITH THE RESULTS.

Contact Info:

• Website: WWW.WHYNOTMEMASTERCLASS.COM
• Instagram: _CHASINGBANKS
• Facebook: WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/ITSBANKSBABY

Image Credits
@SHOTBYBENNI ON INSTAGRAM