Podcast Summary: Action Academy | Millionaire Mentorship For Your Life & Business Episode: How Jeremy Perkins Left His $320K Medical Sales Job to Start a $100M Company in His Garage Host: Brian Luebben
Guest: Jeremy Perkins
Date: July 18, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the entrepreneurial journey of Jeremy Perkins, who left a lucrative $320K/year medical sales job to launch a medical device company from his garage—ultimately scaling it to over $100 million in revenue. Brian and Jeremy explore the realities of leaving a cushy job to pursue massive goals, the critical role of mentorship and mastermind groups, the practical challenges and rewards of building a business, and the mindset shifts necessary to play in the big leagues. The discussion also unpacks lessons learned from elite CEO organizations, what wealth really means, and the importance of meaningful goal-setting—serving as a masterclass for anyone looking to turn high income into entrepreneurial impact.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. From Six-Figure Stability to Entrepreneurial Insanity

• Jeremy’s Background & The Leap

  • Grew up lower to middle class, hustled through college by selling books door-to-door.
  • Became a stockbroker out of college—realized he hated it. Transitioned into medical device sales.
  • Was making $320K/year by 2008/09 ("That was like freaking $500,000 or $600,000 now." – [02:23]).
  • Chose to leave the “good” for the “great.” Sold his house, invested his life savings (about $150K) to bootstrap a medical device business from his garage.
  • Early days involved selling other companies’ products, building a unique salesforce of top performers from outside medical sales, and scaling rapidly up and down California.

• Notable Quote:

  • “Good is the enemy of great… I left a job making really good money to put everything I had, like, my whole life savings… into this new medical device company that I wanted to start.” — Jeremy ([02:31])

2. Scaling to $100 Million: Strategy, Grit, and Change

• Bootstrapping & Early Growth

  • Recruited a unique team, leveraged non-traditional medical sales backgrounds.
  • Expanded state by state; became the fastest-growing company in Sacramento ([04:00]).
  • Pivoted from distributing others’ products (thin margins) to inventing and patenting their own devices (manufacturing in-house).

• Building Value through Intellectual Property

  • Developed a patented tubeless, cordless sequential compression device—drastically improving margins and company value.

• Manufacturing and Tariffs Challenge

  • Subcontracted manufacturing until tariff spikes (up to 125%) made it unsustainable.
  • Acquired a US manufacturing plant to secure better control and margins ([05:09])

3. Mindset, Mentorship & the Power of “The Room”

• Mentorship at Every Stage

  • Jeremy credits mentors for his growth at every career phase:
    “For listeners, I think it's so crucial. Everybody should have a mentor. If you don't have a mentor, you're missing out.” ([00:14])
  • Advises finding mentors just 10x ahead of you, not “billionaires” if you’re a beginner ([09:33], [22:03]).
  • Mentions organizations: Entrepreneur’s Organization (EO), Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO), Harvard and MIT CEO programs.

• The Impact of Elite Peer Groups

  • Describes eye-opening experiences learning from CEOs running billion-dollar companies.
  • “Once you see just one person... that's possible.” — Brian ([13:25])
  • The ROI of investing in mastermind groups and mentorship is unmatched once you internalize the value ([14:13], [14:49]).

• Notable Quote:

  • “Every year that you don't know how to make a million dollars costs you a million dollars.” — Brian ([00:19], repeated [13:04])

4. Tactical Lessons on Leadership, Growth, and Operations

• Recommended Reading & Systems

  • Jeremy’s top tactical book: Scaling Up by Verne Harnish ([17:17])—great for stepwise business building.
  • Importance of hiring for weaknesses (e.g. finance, operations) early.
  • Brian’s cash flow system learning from “Millionaire Real Estate Agent” by Gary Keller ([19:41]).

• Execution Over Storytelling

  • Both emphasize the value of technical, actionable books and advice over vague motivational stories ([17:37]).

5. Navigating Macroeconomics: Tariffs, Manufacturing, and Adaptability

• The Tariff Impact on Small Business
  • Discusses the effect of sudden tariff increases on profitability and the “pain point” for small businesses ([05:22], [25:09]-[31:12]).
  • Critiques government policy for lack of transition time and regulatory bottlenecks for moving manufacturing onshore ([28:27]).
  • “You're crushing the small business across America…hundreds of people…have gone bankrupt.” — Jeremy ([29:27])

6. What Money CAN and CAN’T Buy: Wealth, Spending, and Defining “Rich”

• Materialism vs. Experiences

  • Jeremy spent little on personal luxuries for most of his journey—prefers investments and experiences over “stuff.”
  • Both host and guest share how their “splurges” are intentional and tied to milestones or experiences (e.g. custom pool, trips, mega yachts, watches only for strategic networking).
  • “Rich isn’t buying the Lambo. It’s being able to afford to buy the Lambo in cash and choosing not to.” — Brian ([00:10], repeated [36:56]).

• Notable Quotes:

  • “For every 10 pairs of sunglasses, I've lost nine of them. So it gives me anxiety to wear anything too expensive on my wrist.” — Jeremy ([34:11])
  • “If you're gonna go, you know, wherever you're gonna travel… traveling for me is worth way more than any materialistic thing.” — Jeremy ([34:11])

7. Goal Setting—The 3% Rule

• Crystallizing and Achieving Big Goals

  • Reference to the Harvard study: 3% of people write goals down and “crystallize” them; these outperform everyone else ([48:14]-[49:28]).
  • Jeremy meticulously sets goals, breaks them into visual boards and actionable steps.
  • Tangible examples: built California’s largest residential pool as a long-term vision board goal ([39:18]), buying property with specific lifestyle goals.

• Actionable Advice:

  • “If you don’t write down your goals, I think you’re making a big mistake in life.” — Jeremy ([40:05])
  • “Whatever your goals are, it should be something that inspires you.” — Jeremy ([51:46])

Memorable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• “Good is the enemy of great… I left a job making really good money to put everything I had...into this new medical device company." — Jeremy ([02:31])
• "Rich isn’t buying the Lambo. It’s being able to afford to buy the Lambo in cash and choosing not to." — Brian ([00:10] and [36:56])
• “Every year that you don't know how to make a million dollars costs you a million dollars.” — Brian ([00:19], [13:04])
• “You never learn this stuff on social media — it’s ungoogleable.” — Jeremy ([00:23], [15:20])
• “Mentorship is so important in life…find someone 10x ahead.” — Jeremy ([09:33])
• “If you’re going to encourage us all to bring manufacturing back to the US, you gotta let the FDA have quicker approvals…you can’t take nine months…” — Jeremy ([28:27])
• “If you don’t write down your goals, you’re making a big mistake.” — Jeremy ([40:05])
• “Business is a sport to me…I wake up in the morning, I’m ready to freaking kill it.” — Jeremy ([52:46])

Important Timestamps

| Segment | Timestamp | | ----------------------------------- | -------------- | | Jeremy’s leap from sales to startup | 01:23 – 02:31 | | Bootstrapping and building unique team | 02:30 – 05:07 | | Tariffs and manufacturing pivot | 05:07 – 07:19 | | The power & process of mentorship | 07:19 – 16:55 | | Harvard, EO, YPO, and mastermind lessons | 10:25 – 16:55 | | Tactical book recommendations ("Scaling Up") | 17:17 – 19:41 | | Tariffs and macro threats | 24:33 – 31:46 | | Materialism, experiences, and what money means | 31:46 – 44:47 | | Milestone celebrations & goal setting | 44:47 – 51:02 | | Final reflections on business as a sport | 52:46 – 54:07 |

Final Takeaways & Closing Thoughts

• Find and invest in mentorship at every stage. Don’t wait for “billionaire” mentors—work with those just ahead of you.
• Don’t be afraid to trade comfort for greatness if you crave a bigger impact.
• Build your skill stack through peer groups; proximity to higher-level players unlocks new ways of thinking—and higher games to play.
• Material wealth seldom brings deep fulfillment; focus spending on experiences and goals that inspire and elevate you.
• Set goals, write them down, visualize them, and tie them to tangible milestones for lasting motivation.
• Entrepreneurship is the ultimate endurance sport—your shelf life is what you make it!

Follow Jeremy Perkins on Instagram:
JeremyJoel_CEO
Connect on LinkedIn for business insights.

This episode is essential listening for anyone feeling “stuck” in a high-paying job and hungry for a playbook to greater entrepreneurial freedom, deeper impact, and a life truly of your own design.