#181 - The Opportunity Train: Skye Banks on Global Entrepreneurship, Small Business Growth & AI

0:00 I'm always going to have an entrepreneurial mindset. think that's in my DNA. I'm always excited to pursue what I see as the next big thing. Hey you all, welcome back for what's gonna be another great, we're not tall calling them episodes anymore, we're calling them sessions, we're calling them mental breakouts, we're gonna call them mindset shifts, but anyway, I'm pumped when somebody comes on and they're a different generation.

0:43 I don't think that age is the only thing that matters, like experience and perspective does, and I'm pumped today to talk to somebody with a cool name. So today's guest is Sky Blanks, and y'all, that's Sky with an E. He's the chief operating officer of the International Council for Small Business. It's ICSB. They work across more than 80 countries to support entrepreneurs, small businesses, and the ecosystems around them, from policy and research to education and global collaboration. Sky oversees organizations, operations, and partnerships and has a unique vantage point on what small business owners around the world are facing right now, which is a ton. uh What's actually helping them grow where the system still falls short So I'm excited to dig in to the real slate and state of small business and what entrepreneurs need to know going forward.

1:34 Sky, that's a whole bunch of stuff that we get to pack into 15 minutes, but welcome to the necessary entrepreneur, man. Thank you for having me, Mark. Yeah, man, this is I'm excited about this. So 80 countries around the world supporting entrepreneurs. ah What a big gig, huh? Yeah, no, it's definitely opened my perspective about the world ah and just hearing the cases of how being in so many different places all around the world, there's a lot of similarities that face businesses and issues there and how can we bridge that gap? And that's really what, know, ISISB does the best is bring together, I say our three buckets, our policymakers, our practitioners, our professors. So we have research-backed solutions. We have, you know, forums to bring people together.

2:16 And, you know, my personal, uh passion is connecting the students and startups to those experienced leaders and having them, you know, learn by example. there are you see you touched on a little bit, but if you go around the world, there similar similar experiences happening in entrepreneurship or business or there are there some distinct differences from the US to Europe to Asia? there a lot of similarities here? I, there's definitely, you know, cultural uh differences, right? So the U S is very, uh, know, individual, individual society where people are very much about, you know, um, the individual first, where you go more East, you start getting into more community focused, um, the collaborative, um, nature of things, or, you know, I always, I always joke about how we're talking to our colleagues and you're up in there on.

3:08 a whole month of vacation in August and know Americans are like we're working through we're going to keep going and so there's a very different culture and I think it's important to learn from both right? Having a balance, being up to date with a lot of like innovation because I think a lot of people get left behind sometimes because they're used to the way things are and so I think the more east you go the more I guess resistant there is to change and the more west you are the more open you are to change. And so I like to, you know, see where that gap lies. And I was in the Pacific region most of the summer hopping around country to country and just learning about the young population there.

3:48 There's a lot of young people. was in Indonesia and they have one of the youngest populations in, um, in Asia and one of the largest too. And a lot of it is tradition and what they're used to, but we need to reframe the focus and say, Hey, Just because you're Indonesia doesn't mean you can't have the next, you know, billion dollar company. Let's, you know, refrain ourselves and not put ourselves in a box. And so a lot of what, you know, what we do and what I learned is people sometimes are used to what tradition is and they're used to what's happening. But they need to step aside, look at the goal perspective and say, Hey, we can learn from each other. We can collaborate with a company in the U S and, and, you know, propel ourselves to the next level or a U S company can learn from the cases of family business and uh tradition in the Asia Pacific region and be able to build on that.

4:38 there's a desire I see with touch, like high touch for human interaction with all this technology being there. And so I think there's definitely a lot of collaboration happening moving forward and how we can learn from that. Are they, when you travel around the world and you just spent time in the Pacific and Asia and you mentioned Indonesia, uh are they as optimistic there as inherently this entrepreneurial system is in America? I don't think so. Because people a lot of times in these cultures don't do well with failure. Right. It's easier to go with the safe bet. It's easier to, you know, have the corporate job where in America, I feel like we're very much open and we love a story about the underdog and they failed a bunch of times.

5:28 We talking about Mendoza and how, you know, you're able to overcome the adversity where a lot of these other cultures you're frowned upon, you're carrying your family name, you need to be able to have a guaranteed shot. And so the risk taking degree is very different. I think that's probably where their optimism about entrepreneurship, but they're not high risk tolerance. Their risk tolerance is very much, I guess, lower than maybe the US. down every one of these stories, they call it what the hero's journey. Yeah. That right. The hero had massive failure moments where it looked like it wasn't going to happen. And all of sudden out of the blue, does. um I think you do have to believe in that because if you don't believe that that's possible, you're probably not going to step out on the edge of the board there.

6:13 Right. I mean, that is true. And it comes down to the community around you, We hear the stories all the time in the US because that's just how our culture is built, where you're looking and seeing that role model and say, they did it. I can do it. They come from similar communities. Where a lot of these other cultures, they're looking to the US, but they're like, I'm not American. I don't really have the resources for these possibilities. ah So I think that's maybe where this connect is. Yeah. So how'd you get into this role with the International Council for Small Business? You ripped through it quick on the acronym ICSB, right? That's what you guys do. But how'd you arrive here? Honestly, it was all about being curious and asking questions and having conversations.

6:59 So funny enough, I was my sophomore year undergrad. I went to George Washington University in DC, focused on international affairs. I didn't really know what I wanted to do. Honestly stumbled upon that degree. I'm like, Hey, I get to learn about the world. not? But always, you know, came from a family business, always had an interest in business. And so I took a minor in creativity, innovation, entrepreneurship. My first class in entrepreneurship was taught by a professor named Dr. Iman El-Tarabishi. He came to the class kind of something different than all my other professors did. He's bringing donuts in, he's talking about his background, he wants to know about us. He's not even talking about business, he's talking about the people.

7:39 And that stuck to me and I'm like, this guy's really cool. He worked in the World Bank, he did his PhD, he's a professor, but he also runs this nonprofit. And I'm like, what's this nonprofit about? I, over the summer I was in DC. had like reached out to him. like, want to just learn about you and what you do. And turns out he's the CEO of ICSB. And he's like, I really like your, your curiosity. I really like your tenacity. I want you to intern with me. So from sophomore year of undergrad, I started as an intern, worked myself up to project manager and you know, did my, my grad studies and everything came back and now I run the operations. So. It's kind of a story of you never know where a conversation leads, where you build that trust with somebody and be able to lead, you know, this multilateral organization that, you know, touches so many people.

8:30 Yeah, what what's your all's purpose? What's the purpose of the business? Like not just mission statement and all that. But what do you feel now with you being the CEO spot? What do feel your purpose is every day? I say it's connecting knowledge across borders. uh People get siloed a lot. I think there's, uh we say the ivory tower of academia where people or researchers are just talking about theory and theoretical ideas where ISISV is different is what we're able to take that theory and bridge and say, hey, you guys aren't really talking to people. Let's talk to the local small one shop. man shop in Kenya and get their perspective.

9:14 Let's talk to the UN. And so a lot of us, a lot of what we do is be an advocate and a knowledge connector for the everyday person to these uh institutions that are seen on a pedestal that's not accessible to maybe common people. So we try to be that bridge. Hmm. What, where do you guys get your funding? How in the world is there enough revenue to drive this thing to grow it around the world? Who supports it? Honestly, it's all self-funded. A lot of it comes from our research. So we have a network of universities and partners that publish in oh our journals, the Journal of Small Business Management, uh the Journal of the International Council of Small Business.

9:56 A lot of our revenue and operating budget happens there with the researchers. For the operational side of things, it comes down from our uh different countries sponsoring So we'll do a project with Azerbaijan. were in Baku. We did a forum with them. We had a program with uh Korea. So these different institutions will take and sponsor initiatives and we'll able to go in and execute on those things. But a lot of it also is membership based. There's different organizations that are members. They pay a fee. We call them k-hubs, knowledge hubs. And so it's very bootstrapped. We are very thin line budget.

10:36 It's not as super. super stressful sometimes of like, how are going to get this thing done? But a lot of it is, you know, just having in kind sponsors and be able to uh do a lot of it from your passion and your heart of like, Hey, we'll make it happen. We'll figure it out. Um, but that's kind of the day to day funding of ICSB. How in the world do you have time to travel to Baku, to Azerbaijan, and travel to South Korea and spend time with them when you are also an entrepreneur yourself? Yeah, my partners are like, sky in the country? And I'm like, that was my caveat of getting in business people. like, this is what I do. This is what I enjoy. This is where we're different because I get this goal perspective that a lot of people in our industry don't.

11:19 They're in their bubble. And so they see the value of it. And it's really just really scheduling my time and being very, strict with, with my, with my commitments and be able to plan ahead. I literally sat down last Saturday and just planned out my whole year of like, okay, I know I have to go here. I don't have to go to this event here. Let's make sure I have, you know, coverage for, uh, you know, help at the store and do this and that. it's, it's a lot of planning, would say, advanced planning to figure out how I can be in multiple places at once. So what happens here in this world of cannabis, you all have an operation. We're to go deep into it. um What do you do when you have all these different responsibilities and you have this calendar?

12:02 What do you do when inevitably it doesn't go well because there's a lot of things that don't in this world of entrepreneurship? um How does sky handle it? What do you do when the plans just don't work out? Yeah. it's something that I'm still trying to figure out. uh It's lot of being okay with a Plan B and being okay with, I uh guess being patient is the first thing, right? You have to be patient with yourself. can't, I say, luckily I'm not in the healthcare field. Someone's life's not really dependent on what I do right away, right? uh If our store has an issue and we're down for an hour, hopefully no one's having an issue about getting their cannabis.

12:43 So I'm like, okay, it's okay. Let's take a step back. Let's breathe. We can work through this. Um, it gets frustrating. Of course you, you're, um, you know, our operation has, you know, 40, 40 employees and we're working, you know, all that's, we're always open. So there's always inevitably something that pops up and I'm okay. Well, I'm on a plane, uh, to South Korea. I need to get this proposal set and I have to run the payroll. Uh, so it's a lot of juggling, but it's also rely on a strong team. Right. I have incredible partners. I'm writing to the store of me, know, in-store management, my C-suite team, and then, know, ICSB, have, you know, my, my project managers under me that help.

13:23 I can delegate, right? Delegate a lot of things. And I think that saved me. saying, Hey, trusting someone to carry out something that you know, you're not going to have time for. Having an executive assistant is helpful. This building that, that team that's, that can have your back. Cause you realize in business you want to do it all yourself, but you can't. You have to. give the baton to someone else to be able to grow and have that scale. Um, tell us about primo cannabis because you know, there's some good revenue here. It's a really good business. Um, tell us about this entrepreneurial journey of, um, of a 27 year old hustler who's making that happen. Who's also out here running and leading the COO spot of this international business organization.

14:06 Tell us about this journey because you know, there's this stat out there, you know, we hang onto this data. I'm sure you do the same thing in your job that comes out, but right now. I think it was Malcolm Gladwell wrote in his latest book or something that it's either one in four or one in five humans around the world are either currently starting a business or thinking about starting one. so cannabis was the hot topic for a long time. Now it's becoming more of the norm around our country, but talk to us about this journey, how it started. And I'm sure we're going to learn some of the tough moments and, and how you keep going. build it to multiple million dollars in revenue, but there's a lot of people at your age. that really want to be in business and they're really thinking about this.

14:48 So let's talk about this story here for a minute. Of course. One of my mentors, Dr. Winslow Sargent, he always says the opportunity train, you have to be ready to jump on the train and there might be only three or four of those trains that pop up in your life and you have to get your luggage and get on it. And so that's kind of the story with Primo. I was doing MBA, I was studying about just try to get my business acumen up here. I social sciences as my major. So just getting my finance uh degree and having the accounting, all the stuff I hate, right? Now it's something I do every day, but you have to overcome that.

15:29 And so I was doing that. I get a phone call from my father and he's like, Hey, I know, you know, I told you never to smoke weed, but we're going to get into uh the dispensary business. Could you help me with that? Like I, you're the one that went to school. You're the one that, you know, has the, the operational. Acumen, let's get in the business together. And I'm like, I can't say no that. Let's figure it out. And personally, I don't use cannabis, which is the funny thing is, my dad, he was in the music industry and he owned a gym and did health and fitness. So growing up, if you see my brothers, all of us are built athletes, but I decided to use my brain and just stick to academics.

16:10 And so he's like, we can really do something with this. This is our community, our town. had voted yes. So in New Jersey, uh basically in 2022, they voted yes for recreational cannabis. And a family friend of my dad, the Chandler family, who he has a relationship with from the music industry and growing up, uh is both a father-son duo. So his contemporary, Darren Chandler Sr., did some stuff with dispensaries in Colorado. Him and his son were trying to build uh of dispensary or grow as well during the medical licensing in 2016.

16:52 Didn't work out. They dealt with a lot of issues. And so it just became the perfect timing. I was finishing my business degree. They had the know-how from Colorado. My dad had the insight with the town and the politics and location. And so, you know, we're like, Hey, let's go in business together. Let's actually try to get this license. And so it was a fight. We started this process in 2022. didn't get open to 2024 because of just how long it takes to go through approvals and logistics. And I'm going up and down from DC to New Jersey and we're getting presentations from the council. We're, you know, lobbying the government about, you know, getting more funding and grants for people to be able to be open, pay rents for two years and not have anything coming in.

17:37 Right. So it was definitely a lot of figuring it out on the fly. A lot of. getting our foundation and footing. But once we got the doors open, you know, it just really fell into a rhythm. And so we're able to grow, grow, grow every, every month, be able to have our staff, um, learn the systems. We, you know, promote a lot of people to be management with from the first core group we had. And so was just this beautiful, I guess, full circle moment because You know, our families have faced, you know, the issues of the war on drugs and it's who better to run this industry and be in this industry and be a leader now as one of the top 10 independent dispensaries in New Jersey than us, right?

18:24 And so having that uh success has been really a blessing and, uh you know, humbling that I can be part of that narrative, the story. The, um, what's the success from it? Cause you had to fight for those two years to get it. And it's like, we arrived here. So you have the success. Um, what do you do now though? So you have this business, you're a partner. you, do you build more? Do you grow it? Do you, cause I was going to make a joke earlier when you're like, well, now it's just grow, grow, grow. went, all right, sky's the time for make a joke. Or we just, are we grow, grow, the plants or, know, you were talking about revenue and profits. Um, but what do you do now? You're 27. There's this new inspiration for entrepreneurism in our country.

19:06 um What do you do with this knowledge that you've learned, the understanding and all the success and the failure that's come with it? What do do now? Yeah, so with Primo, we're still looking to expand, we're reinvesting, we're thinking differently, right? You have to be creative in lots of spaces and be able to share that knowledge as well. So, uh we're working on projects uh to have roundtables with other uh business owners and share the knowledge and say, hey, we can come together and be stronger together because there's large multi-state operators that dominate the space in lot of states and don't really... consumers first and we want to make sure that we're able to do that.

19:48 And some of that knowledge, you know, I've taken and started my own private consulting firm, Herman Todd Consulting Group, and, you know, different business owners from any industry were able to look at, you know, their operations and say, hey, do you have the foundational keystones and strategies to take your business to, you know, six figures? And a lot of them would say, hey, I've been just figuring it out on my own. And from being able to do this from a... domestic perspective with my own company and in the global perspective of seeing what works and doesn't work. I positioned us to be in a good space to say any business can really come to us and figure out what's the pain points and what can we do to elevate ourselves.

20:29 And that's where I get excited, right? Like just be able to change someone's life because they just need a little bit guidance um and take those lessons and reapply to my own business. So it's a... ecosystem, I say of things I do because they all reinforce each other. They all help me grow my knowledge space. Um, and any mistakes I've seen from other people, I don't have to make those. can, you know, learn from their mistakes and, build and say, Hey, let's, let's, uh, go in a different direction because this might not work all the time. This might be something that's one off. Um, just being really intentional with the decisions we make as a company. Do you think you said to take other people's advice and maybe you don't have to make the same mistakes and all that.

21:13 I'm listening. I'm like, Hmm. I wonder if sky was this type of a kid. Your dad said, don't, don't do, don't smoke weed. And you didn't, but I'm like, I don't know if he was the guy that was taking dad's advice all the time. I would say, you know, I'm definitely stubborn. Um, and I definitely learned, and that's part of the beauty of working with my father and, and, and Darren senior is that we have the OG council, we call it. And they're the ones that, you know, had the wisdom and are able to bring it down. And if I have a crazy idea and they have to bring me down to earth a bit, I'm like, okay, let me, let me take a step back. Let's not be too, uh, don't put personality into it. and fight them on this.

21:53 They've seen it, they've done it. But sometimes they're wrong too. And so me and Darren Jr. have to be like, okay, we need to convince them that we need to be more calm about this decision and look at every option. And so, as a kid, was pretty, I guess, straight-laced. If you see my father, he's uh still, he's large, working out every day, strong guy. So I was a little intimidated to ever do anything wrong. If I didn't have straight A's, it was over. um You know, she were a rule follower Yeah, for the most part, I have two younger brothers. I'm the oldest. So a lot of it, you know, as the oldest child, they put it on you. You have to be the one to do everything the right way. Um, you know, I, I wouldn't say I have a rebellious streak, really more just in DC, figuring out who I am as a person, you know, be able to screw up a bit and, and understand I'm overextending myself or doing something, you know, that I should be spending my time doing better.

22:47 So a lot of that was my own self discovery, um, throughout college, but. Through high school. Yeah, was by the book. uh Good. It served you well. What do you think, what do you think your dad would say right now? So there's a lot of life that both of you have to live to keep going, but what do you think he'd say right now? Yeah, I hear his voice in my head all the time. He's like, uh, you know, he always calls me his immortality. I'm his legacy. He's so proud of how, uh, I've, you know, became a man and be able to run this company and do my own thing and be able to also give back to my people, uh, not, you know, just be selfish and, I could just run off and, and work in, you know, a fortune 500 company, but, uh, I decided to take the chance and be there for him.

23:41 when he needed it. you my goal goal is I seen him work every day in his life. And when we got this dispensary open, that's the first time I seen him and my mom taking vacation. And that was like very, you know, respiring to me. I'm like, this is what it's for, you know, be able to see him relax and be able to not work every single day, have other people work for us and have this community built, um, is important because I know they've sacrificed so much and my mom just to get to where I am with college and see my brothers, you know, try to go through their path through school and everything like that. I just know there's so much love there. So the first vacation that he's taken or first one he's taken in a long time. Yeah, since I've been alive, I would say.

24:24 Um, see that's something that the world, it's nice that you've had a front row seat to that, to being in the audience of him being on the stage of his life and, making the sacrifice and the commitment. And that's what maybe your generation that you can pass on to them, right? These examples of like, Hey, listen, y'all, you got to go all in for a long time. before you get to a place where it feels like I've arrived or maybe I can take a breath. And so I think his goal for you, obviously he created a life where you could take it a level up, right? You get your MBA, I'm assuming he doesn't have his MBA. Yeah, yeah, I'm the first gen to college in my family, so...

25:06 And so that's it. So he lived his life. Your parents did to put you there. So what your generation has to make sure is that you do the same thing. Yep. Right. And I think that's something that you being even in this position of, of ICSB to take out to the world to say, you all like, it's worth it. Go on this journey. You don't have to go work, work just for fortune 500, but you're to have to go all in, make a lot of sacrifice, be patient for the outcome. And don't just expect that it's going to happen right now. Right. Be willing to put in the time. Cause I think that's the debate is it feels like, cause we're out here looking at Instagram and we're looking at Tik TOP and it's like people my age are already living the life. It's like guys, even if you think about an influencer, those people do not have easy lives.

25:48 No. Right. They're working 16 and 18 and 20 hour days and their lives are controlled. So maybe you can be the voice to the, to the next generation. Cause before long, here's what I'm gonna tell you before long, you're going to be 35 and there's me a younger generation behind you. Right. Exactly, exactly. I already hear it my brothers. Right. That's it. And I think you're probably looking at them and probably rolling your eyes or shaking your head or something. Yeah. You're thinking about moments now. Um, you're, you're going to go to the West coast soon. that correct? Yep. Is that out in the world? Did I just break something that isn't supposed to be broken? No, it's public, I guess. It'd be a little bi-costal. Yeah, so what do you think your wife's gonna, cause then you're gonna stack that responsibility too. So you're gonna have new relationships on the West coast.

26:30 You have this East coast cannabis operation. You can still perform your role in ICSB, but what do you think that's gonna be like on stacking more responsibility in another geographical area? Yeah, my thing I realized, you know, moving from DC back up to, you know, the Northeast is really getting involved in the community. you know, one goal for me was, you know, or one goal I have to aspire for when I move out to the West Coast is how can I be in the community? How can I have things and not be in the office all day and on the computer? Like I want to interact with people. I want to help build people. And luckily enough, like having this global network I have built and having, you know, the nonprofit work I do and volunteering I do on the side.

27:13 I've been able to find, you know, friends and family that are out there that I can go to and point me in the right direction of, you should work with a certain organization or, hey, let's talk to this university and run their startup camp for kids. Like those are things that excite me. And I feel like I can build on that. And then there's opportunity for business, you know, without even looking for it, right? You just be yourself, authentic. budget the time for that, you know, I'm not going to do every weekend. That's going to be, you know, maybe once a weekend thing in the month, but taking it one step at a time and slowly easing into that new life. But everything, like I said, is the ecosystem of how I operate.

27:55 Everything is built on top of each other. The world's so much smaller than you realize, I guess, as a person who's been to, I don't know, 24 countries. like, I see so much similarities. So be on other side of the U.S. I'm like, Hey, this is nothing. I don't mind being on a plane. I was in Bangkok in January and was on the flight for 15 hours. You know, this is six hours. It's easy. So I'm excited. You know, I like new things. If I want in one place too long, I get a little antsy. Okay, all right, good. You wanna get stuff done. If you go back a five year segment, go back to the 22 year old Sky. Yeah. What do you tell that guy?

28:39 I think I say, make sure you pour into the people around you. think 22 years old, I was hyper-focused on just myself and just trying to do something, trying to figure it out, right? Like, I didn't know where I was going to be. I didn't know this opportunity was going to land itself of being able to be an entrepreneur. I maybe, you know, didn't nurture those, those friendships as much. didn't, uh I like to say my fiance, she's very intentional about things. She writes, you know, cute cards to friends and it's really great with my family. And I'm like, I want to learn that, like how to be intentional, have time for the little things and being mindful about how you're leaving an impact on somebody because you don't want to come off as arrogant or not caring and you want to be empathetic.

29:34 You want to have this legacy of where people are always going to talk great about you. Understand the nuance of who you are. I think for me it's hard for me to always explain Why do I do it's I do it and then I'm like, okay, how do I get deeper into it? and to let people into your life is something that I think a lot of people might not always do because we're as humans are just you protective but it's okay to do that a little bit more so because that's where you see the authentic relationships get built and you have your circle of people that will help you when you're down and need their help. And I think a lot of times as young people, especially in your early 20s, you're just trying to like extract and try to talk to somebody just to get this opportunity.

30:22 But no, let's get to know them as a person. Let's have an authentic relationship. I don't want to use people and I want them to use me. And what you put out there is what you'll get in return. Um, so then the challenge is I think the benefit, we shouldn't look back for regret, but the benefit to that is, is then to say, okay, if that's what you would have told the 22 year old sky, like you articulated it very well. So now the challenge is to make sure we do it. Yeah. Right. Yeah. Um, yeah, it's so good. What, um, what are you hoping to do when you wake up? I think it's, have to be careful not to think too far ahead because we need to be in the moment. For sure. Um, but we do have these goals that we're working towards and we have these plans for life.

31:04 What I've learned is they usually don't work out exactly the way you want them to. Things take a little longer than you hope that they would. But, in your mind right now, this optimistic mind with all this worldwide experience now, getting ready to go to another side of the country. What do you, what do you think you want? What do you, what do you think it is? do I want? And I said, think you want, because what I've learned and if you, it's gonna evolve. But right now, what do think you want? I I talked about this about, you know, your New Year's resolution. Like, what do you look forward to? And one of my friends who I did my MBA with, I'm like, yeah, you know, I just want like routine and like, calmness in my life.

31:50 He's like, you're not going to get that, man. Like you're, you're too energetic. You're lying to yourself. You need, you need to be fed with, you know, um, with challenges and, be able to overcome them. And so I think ultimately, you know, reflecting on what he said, knowing me, I'm like, maybe it's not calmness, but maybe it's just, um, I would say consistency, right? Consistency in how I show up for everybody and every day, how people show up for me and having that drive and confidence that, yeah, every day looks a little different, but that, energy, that enthusiasm is always there.

32:33 Because I think we get a routine and we're like, yeah, I have everything. I have this special business. have, you know, people that love me, but am I showing up for them? Is that energy there? Am I just burnt out? And so that consistency, you know, comes into where, okay, I have to say no to some things because I won't be able to show up in that energy and provide that for my businesses, my relationships, uh and for myself, right? So I think what I really want is consistency. um When you don't get the reciprocity back of you're saying about showing up for people and making an impact in their life, when you don't get that reciprocity in return, what's the current, how does the current sky handle that?

33:15 What do you do with it? Yeah, it's hard. uh, it's always that investing in me. I, know, I just slowly, you know, let them fade. I'm like, you know, they're asking me for things and, and always asking, asking, asking and never reciprocating that. I'm like, I'm not going to respond to your, your calls or text messages as frequently. I tend to, as a person who I think is wired to always respond and be there for people, uh, I'm always like, oh, I, I'm on a call or I'm. doing another task and someone's calling me, I pick it up. I need to keep my phone, do not disturb and then look and see, okay, is this something that's actually urgent? this something that someone actually deserves my time?

33:56 Because I think as a young person, you're so willing to give out your time and that's one of your most valuable assets. uh And giving to people that don't reciprocate is not gonna last. So that's something where I'm slowly building those boundaries and saying, hey, You're not showing up for me. It's okay. Maybe we'll cross paths and you decide to, you know, uh, pour into me and then we can, we can figure it out. But right now I don't have the capacity for you. Um, isn't that something that's tough? It's like, where do you put your time? That's what you're speaking to, but also on business with all these things pulling you, um, staying focused.

34:38 Yep. Um, what do you have? I'm assuming, uh, the professor who leads, you know, ICSB, I'm assuming he's still the CEO. Yeah. Yep. I'm assuming he's a mentor. Have you intentionally searched for mentors or have they shown up in your life? think majority of them shown up, know, you interact with somebody. I like authenticity, right? Those mentorship programs that a lot of these, you know, schools or things do, where they just pair you up randomly based on like some common industry insights don't usually work well. I think you need to have an authentic conversation where you don't have the, the angle in mind.

35:18 You're just, okay, I somebody. And that's when you develop this, this pure mentorship where, uh, They are excited to talk to you. They don't feel like it's work. You can joke around and have a nonprofessional, know, a nonbusiness relationship. It's, you know, a personable relationship. And, you know, for the most part, I think the people that consistently show up for me that I see as, you know, mentors or role models, they all have come into my life in that way. Yeah. What's going to be your advice um right now? You're obviously in this spot with, know, ICSB, but you know, I there's probably a lot of folks your age and younger, they're looking up to you because of the cannabis space and what you've built there.

36:05 What's your advice? Not just being a big brother, but advice to your younger brothers and people around them and even employees in your businesses. What's your advice to this next generation? It's the next generation really soon behind you um who want to build. And not just hustle. So what's the advice? I would say the, the, the, of the most things that people need to make sure they preserve is their ability to critically think. I think a lot of people are on autopilot. They go with emotions. They go with the status quo. Let's, let's question it and, and quickly think about this thing.

36:45 You know, everyone's using AI and things to answer simple questions. You're losing your, your tenacity. You're losing your, your ability to think on your feet and, and challenge, you know, what's, what's happening, right? Like. Whoever controls the narrative and certain things, you go with that. No, let's, let's look back and see how we can change the injury on this head. That's how you innovate. Uh, you know, the creative disruption that happens a lot of times in these different industries, you have to be able to, to react to that. And so, you know, I see, you know, peers and people younger than me, they're like, okay, I see this person doing this and they have the roadmap and, and I'm going to follow it. that you don't know enough about that person or how they got there for you to copy them.

37:29 You need to question and understand because everyone's path is different. And so I always, I always like to ask why. And, and, and, know, probably you think when I was little, I'm always asking why I was the kid, you know, I was a dinosaur kid and asking why this happened. And, and I thought I was going to do engineering in high school. So I was like trying to figure that out and why things were built. And that curiosity I think is, is, you know, might be dwindling because everyone's just. um Again, just going with the flow and I'm like, no, let's step back. Let's ask how they get there. Why do get there? Is this something I really even like? What's my motivation for pursuing this career or pursuing this hustle? Am I just trying to make money?

38:11 No. What's the number one goal you have? And getting to that question and that answer is what I would say young people need to figure out. Hmm. Do you think there's many other future adventures in entrepreneurship for you? Do you think, cause who knows the opportunities are going to come your way? Do you think there's many or no? You took a big deep breath. You kind of, you kind of post it up a little bit. Yeah, no, it's, it's building on each other, right? Like I mentioned before, the opportunity train, I'm always, I take the Amtrak a lot, so I'm always ready to jump on the train. and I'm always thinking what's next. What's, what's sustainable? What's the, you know, future of what our legacy wants to be as Primo or HTCG or ICSB.

38:58 How am I leaving impact? And, and so if it comes through entrepreneurship, we're just building on what we're doing. You know, that's what I'm going to pursue. And, you know, I have some ideas and things in the works with, some team members and we're trying to do some, some things in tech, uh, related to your retail. And that's exciting for me. I always like to think again, against the status quo. Everyone in the, you know, the cannabis industry is very much about brick and mortar. Let's look at how we're going to, you know, do things virtually e-commerce, those opportunities there. So I'm always going to have an entrepreneurial mindset. think that's in my DNA. Uh, and I'm always excited to, to pursue what I see as the next big thing.

39:42 Well, we got a big thing going on right now that's called AI. Yeah. What are you, what are you doing there? Are you, are you in the space? Is your mind on it? Are you digging in like millions and billions of people? What do you think about it? Yeah, it's definitely a tool that I interact with every day. ah I try to understand it, be, you know, in the news about it, understand what's coming up and what's not, you what's being used. ah I'm not as involved, I guess, in like developing AI or anything, but we see it be implemented and how the education around it for a lot of small business owners of ICSB ah can be demystified, right? People just think of the language models that people use with ChatChainBT and...

40:23 Claude, but there's more automation and things that go with it. did a discussion in Seoul in July about how digitalization is affecting uh education and startups. And a big thing about people is they're using AI for personal branding. They're using AI for building their business card and understanding who they are. Right. You can leverage AI to make yourself more human and authentic by putting yourself out there. talking to people, having workshops, explaining, know, uh what you do and who you are. Because again, I think this wave of technology and the focus on automation has given people maybe the wrong idea about what the path forward is.

41:15 uh Again, I think it's community and uh we say human centered entrepreneurship, where we're looking towards the employees and the interactions they have with the customers and not just looking at how can we be super efficient. Let's look at the touch of the old, you know, mom and pop shops where people are remembering your name and talking to you and not treating you as a number. And so that's the piece where I say, let's use AI to bring that back and not get lost in just automating everything. Hmm. So you mentioned you ride the Amtrak a lot. Yeah. What's the most fascinating thing that you've learned from riding the Amtrak?

41:56 Yeah. Um, honestly, I think it's the, this is funny. They, so I go from New Haven to Jersey, from New York to, uh, DC a lot. And so depending on what corridor you're on, they take forever to, to load the train. So in New York, they'll stay for 30 minutes. They'll switch the engines. I'm like, why am I sitting here for so long? And I think, um, The people that come on the train, it's a mix. It's, everyone takes the Amtrak surprisingly. You have students, have professors, you have business people. Depending on what time you're leaving, you'll get a different crowd.

42:36 Sometimes it's very empty. So the Amtrak, you know, is a great place for me when I'm like, I'm going to have a conversation with the person next to me. Let's learn about why they're here, where they're going. Just get some case studies. I've talked to people who are business owners and talked to students. I've talked to... people who are just grandmas that are just trying to get to Thanksgiving. So it's actually a great place to have a conversation because that person is stuck next to you. And it's good to learn about, what's the pulse of like, what's happening around our area and like, where are you into? So either I'm doing that or I'm locking in on my computer and multitasking, but it's definitely an interesting place where you just learn from the people next to you.

43:18 Yeah. Um, what do you look back? do you have, are you a business planner? Do you have a documented 2026 plan? I'm trying to develop one. Definitely trying to, know, SOPs are big center operating procedures, having those things in place for your staff as you grow. You know, that's something that we refresh every year. Our roadmap, you know, we have a loose roadmap of where we want to be. But I would say you got to keep it flexible. I wouldn't stay strict with it because as we mentioned, things change all the time. You have to react to new problems. You have to react to new revelations.

43:58 And so I am definitely a planner by heart and nature. I have to be because of all the things I do and knowing where I have to be, but uh staying flexible and understanding that as we talked about earlier, be okay with plan B, be okay when things don't work out um and adaptive and have those things in place where I don't know the old answers. Let me ask my people on the ground. Let me ask a peer in the industry for insight. Don't be afraid. to ask for help and that's where adding people who get stuck with a business plan. They're like, okay, I'm to follow this to the T. It has to work. No, can mess up. Let's ask for help and revise it and keep it as a living document.

44:41 Um, we can sit here and talk forever, man, but you've got to get to life. You probably have an Amtrak leaving soon, but I want to, I want to wrap up with one here. What internationally, um, you've done a lot of travel recently with ICSB. Um, what are entrepreneurs, what's getting harder that, that it doesn't seem like we're prepared for? there a category? there, is there one area that you're really seeing standing out that it's like, whoa, this is really challenging right now. Yeah, I think a big piece that we're noticing is the great, like the wave of, I say the gray wave of people retiring. And a lot of these businesses that have been, you know, held as staples in certain communities need to have a successor.

45:26 And a lot of these people don't have, you know, family that wants to take it over or they don't know how to go about selling the company or having someone that's actually a involved owner. And there's going to be uh a gap, I think, with a lot of these legacy businesses that have been there forever, that people are really, that really like, that are going to be transitioning to people that aren't experienced operating them or they just close up because there's no one to take on the reins. so, especially in these communities, like in Japan, that their population's very much on the older side. There's a lot of people, not enough young people to even take over these businesses. And so you'll see a lot of things that are independent mom and pop shops closed down and to get taken over by big corporations.

46:13 And so there needs to be a understanding of that, a pathway for people to who are interested in entrepreneurship, is something that a lot of MBAs are doing now is entrepreneurship through acquisition and having a marketplace for these companies that have been around forever, really great, profitable, but maybe aren't super growth businesses. have someone come in and take over and understand it and continue that torch, that they might not have someone to uh carry out for them. When you say MBAs are doing is that being taught while you're getting your MBA or they're coming out of school and they're looking for those businesses to operate and run? And when I was doing it, I think it wasn't as, when I was doing my MBA, I don't think it was as like on the radar, but now talking to people that were, I guess, graduating maybe more recently, 2024, 2025, they are now learning about this in class.

47:07 Like people often go to like the big five, you know, consulting firms or they're trying to do something to help businesses externally, but they're like, why not just take the money that I would be taking from one these firms. and reinvested into acquiring a business and running myself. And so there's, there's definitely a nuance there because a lot of these businesses are run by people that might not have this language and lingo of the MBA. They're, you know, small business owners. And so it's finding that bridge and be able to be the understanding of the intricacies and the people in those places to help them, you know, carry on the torch. So there is a desire and I, you know, I have a friend who's That's his plan once he graduates is to do that.

47:54 But there needs to be more systems for people to learn how to do that. Even for those who don't go to business school. Yep. I agree. Um, wow. All right. Sky banks is good. You got all these three big roles, man. The COO of, uh, this CSP, which is just awesome that you guys are out here doing this international council for business. think it's going to benefit tremendously. You stick with it. I can see a decade or two or three ahead, how to shrink the world even more. Um, I think it's been really good, man. This role you're in that, your Hermantide consulting group, you're probably going to go keep diving deeper into that. And then Primo cannabis, man, this is just a, you got a lot on your plate at 27 years old. Sure do. Does it feel like that?

48:34 Do you feel the pressure? A little bit, you you have to show up for people and, and, know, sometimes I'm not as great as a communicator. I had to disappear into the work and then come back and say, Hey, I need, you know, another day to finish this. So, you know, I'm still learning. I'm still young, but in the end, that vision's there and that determination, I have to stay up late and make it happen. We're going to make it happen. And I think every one of my teams across all companies understand that and know I'm reliable. good man. love the tenacity. So what's the best place that you just go to your social media and guys I said, Scott's SKYE but blanks. I mean, that's a pretty simple ass name. People can't forget this man. Sky blanks. Where's the one place that you can direct them to so they can find out everything about all this stuff you're doing.

49:19 Yeah, I think the easiest is looking up on LinkedIn, connect with me, send me a message and love to learn more about you guys' journey and how we can help each other. Awesome, Hey, thanks for giving us the time here and cheers for your next train ride. Thank you.