Blackstone Medical’s Founder Vick Tipnes On Scaling a $500 Office Into a Healthcare Empire | E137

Summary

Podcast Summary

Leap Academy with Ilana Golan

Episode 137: Blackstone Medical’s Founder Vick Tipnes On Scaling a $500 Office Into a Healthcare Empire

Date: December 9, 2025
Guest: Vick Tipnes (Founder & CEO, Blackstone Medical Service)

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Episode Overview

In this deeply candid and inspiring episode, Ilana Golan talks with Vick Tipnes, the founder of Blackstone Medical Service, about his journey from being broke—with just $78 in his bank account—to building one of the fastest-growing healthcare companies in the U.S. Together, they explore the realities of entrepreneurship, the darkest moments behind apparent “overnight success,” and the personal growth required to scale not just a company, but one’s own life. Vick shares hard truths about risk, perseverance, failure, and how building a meaningful, aligned life matters as much as business achievements.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Early Influences & Family Background ([02:39]–[05:11])

• Entrepreneurial roots: Vick was inspired by his father, who ran a small business after the family migrated from the UK.
  • "I knew at a very young age... Probably eight, nine years old. My father was an entrepreneur...I just started to gravitate more towards that." ([02:52] – Vick)
• Knowing what he didn’t want: Observing the relentless grind and lack of work-life balance in his father’s business clarified for Vick what he was determined to avoid: becoming "a slave" to his company.

2. Leaving the Traditional Path ([05:11]–[06:22])

• Rejection of tradition: Vick dropped out of college after only six months to "lean into" his ambitions.
  • "I just leaned into what I knew I wanted to do...to be a really crazy individual and put everything on the line and risk everything to hopefully have your day in the sun." ([05:28] – Vick)
• Family pushback: Significant resistance from parents who wanted him to be a doctor or lawyer; called the “black sheep” for charting his own path.

3. Foundational Sales Experience & First Venture ([06:30]–[11:25])

• Sales as a critical skill: Intentional decision to sell cars at 18, not as a career, but for learning salesmanship.
  • "I needed to know how to sell... I just sold my ass off, basically." ([07:37] – Vick)
• Personal hardship leading to healthcare: Both parents diagnosed with terminal cancer; exposure to the healthcare system’s lack of empathy sparked his first entrepreneurial venture in radiology.
  • "I saw that there was a need for a customer service level in healthcare..." ([07:37] – Vick)

4. The Painful Learning Curve of Business ([11:25]–[14:00])

• Selling first business, bitter truths: Sold radiology business for several million but only walked away with $250K after debts and mistakes.
• Key lesson for entrepreneurs:
  • "It's like eating glass... Unless it’s something you really enjoy...I don't recommend it." ([12:20] – Vick)
  • "I don't think businesses go out of business because of cash flow. They go out of business because people quit." ([13:03] – Vick)

5. The Reality of Risk, Resentment, and Resilience ([15:06]–[16:09])

• Using disappointment as fuel:
  • "I was angry that I put myself in that position. I'm not the victim type...The best revenge is massive success." ([15:27], [15:48] – Vick)

6. Building Blackstone Medical: From $500 Office to Market Leader ([17:59]–[30:44])

• Starting with nothing: In 2011, after a divorce, with two young kids, no money, no support, Vick rented a $500/month office.

  • "We had to interview people at Starbucks because we saw people pull up to interview and then they left. It was that bad." ([21:52] – Vick)

• Calculated bet on home sleep testing: Saw the future in at-home diagnostics for sleep apnea. No personal experience with sleep disorder, but clear on market need.

• Years of immense struggle:

  • Lived “day to day for years.” Was making $800–$900 a week until 2015/16.
  • "It was this constant robbing Peter to pay Paul...I didn't have the luxury of even week to week. It was day to day for years..." ([24:04] – Vick)
  • "The business was losing money, but...the numbers were going up. I wish it was going up faster, but it wasn't going down." ([24:18] – Vick)

• Patience and evidence-based positivity: Anchored to measurable progress even through losses, recalling Jeff Bezos’ focus during Amazon’s crisis.

  • "I just had to stay in business long enough for it to really get traction and then go right." ([26:10] – Vick)

• On personal growth and self-reinvention:

  • "You gotta make sure the company doesn’t outgrow you...You almost have to shed your skin..." ([27:58] – Vick)

• Inflection point and “hockey stick” growth: Success came by 2018/2019, thanks to years of foundational work and being ready when the market shifted.

7. Scaling, Leadership, and Mindset ([27:58]–[33:56])

• Hiring challenges: The further the company scales, the harder it is to find top-tier talent.
• Letting go to grow:
  • "It's almost like you need to fire yourself from the role that you've been..." ([29:13] – Ilana)
• Intense focus on readiness:
  • "When the right opportunity came...we were ready to execute, and we drove the ball all the way down the field..." ([29:35] – Vick)

8. Identity, Mindset, and Living “Maximum Life” ([31:36]–[36:59])

• Avoiding complacency and reclaiming a sense of adventure:

  • "When you were a little kid, everything was just very bright and new and adventurous...that's something that I've always been chasing myself to never lose." ([31:36] – Vick)

• Portfolio careers and diversification: Advocates time-blocking and disciplined ruthlessness with scheduling to avoid “spread too thin.”

  • "I try not to allow time to tell me what to do...I block everything out and I can just go do that." ([33:56] – Vick)

• Investing in self-identity:

  • "Nothing in life was going to change unless I changed me...If you’re not where you want to be, there’s something you got to change about yourself." ([35:54] – Vick)

• Key priorities for entrepreneurs:

  • Mental health
  • Spiritual growth
  • Communication ability
  • Discerning truth within massive information

9. Reflections, Advice, and “Genius Abilities” ([40:44]–[44:14])

• Advice to younger self:
  • "Just having the understanding you’ll get through it. Good times or bad times, they don’t last...You just have to remain positive and keep going." ([40:44] – Vick)
• Tenacity is partly innate:
  • "I think it's God-given...Some people's tenacity only gets so far...no one’s ever told me, Vic, you just need to work harder or be more tenacious. No one’s ever said that to me." ([41:53] – Vick)
  • "I think everyone has genius abilities, but I think they're at different levels. Some people have more than others, and we're all uniquely different." ([43:02] – Vick)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Trying to grow a business and remain cash flow positive, it’s like eating glass. It’s a painful, painful thing that people underestimate. I don’t think businesses go out of business because of cash flow. They go out of business because people quit.” — Vick ([13:03])

• “I don't have the idea that I can quit...There is no quitting switch in me.” — Vick ([14:25])

• “The best revenge is massive success.” — Vick quoting Frank Sinatra ([15:48])

• “When the right opportunity came...we were ready. That's the simplicity of it. Had I built the company in 2017, 2016, I don’t think that we would have been able to capitalize on it.” — Vick ([29:35])

• “You gotta make sure the company doesn’t outgrow you. The company requires a different skill set from management...You almost have to shed your skin.” — Vick ([27:58])

• _"Nothing in life was going to change unless I changed me." — Vick ([35:54])

• “Some people have more [tenacity] than others, and we're all uniquely different. At the end of the day, whoever you are, whatever you're doing, there’s only one you. If everybody was the same, it would be very boring.” — Vick ([43:02])

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Early influences and work ethic – [02:39]–[05:11]
• Decision to leave college and become an entrepreneur – [05:11]–[06:22]
• First sales job and lessons in sales – [06:30]–[07:37]
• Transition to healthcare after parents’ illness – [07:37]–[09:41]
• First business, learning from mistakes – [11:25]–[12:56]
• The myth of entrepreneurship and resilience – [13:03]–[14:14]
• Selling business, channeling frustration into growth – [15:06]–[16:09]
• Starting Blackstone Medical from scratch – [17:59]–[23:42]
• Years of struggle, making ends meet, maintaining belief – [24:04]–[26:10]
• Leadership, company growth, finding talent – [27:58]–[29:13]
• Inflection point and scaling up – [29:35]–[30:44]
• On writing and mindset (“maximum life”) – [31:36]–[32:52]
• Managing time and portfolio careers – [33:56]–[35:14]
• Personal change and investing in identity – [35:54]–[36:59]
• Advice on mental health and growth – [36:59]–[37:30]
• Advice to younger self: perseverance and lightness – [40:44]–[41:53]
• Tenacity and unique genius – [41:53]–[44:14]
• How to get a home sleep test (practical info) – [38:36]–[39:56]

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Tone & Style Highlights

• Vick is brutally honest and pragmatic, highlighting entrepreneurship’s pain, not just its glamour.
• Ilana draws out underlying motivations and the emotional, personal aspects of what it really takes to "leap."
• Persistent themes: Resilience, self-awareness, intentionality, and personal reinvention.
• The conversation stays grounded, skipping fluff in favor of practical wisdom and hard-won lessons.

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For Listeners: Key Takeaways

• Entrepreneurial success is almost never quick or easy; patience and endurance are essential.
• Major business growth is possible only after years of foundational struggle and self-evolution.
• Developing deep self-awareness, a willingness to change, and a disciplined mindset are keys to both professional and personal fulfillment.
• Building something meaningful is about more than just money—it’s about crafting a life aligned to your true ambitions and strengths.

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Connect with Vick Tipnes:

• Social Media: @VicTipnes on all platforms
• Company: Blackstone Medical Service
• Book: Did You Sell Your Soul? It’s Never Too Late to Change Your Story

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Transcript

[A]

Wow. This show is going to be incredible. So buckle up and I'm sure you're going to enjoy it. But before we get started, I want to ask you for a favor. See, it's really, really important for me to help millions of people elevate their career. Fast track to leadership land, dream roles, jump to entrepreneurship or create portfolio careers. And this podcast is all about enabling this for millions of people to see a map of what it actually takes for big leaders to reach success. So subscribe and download so you never miss it. Plus, it really, really helps me continue to bring amazing guests. Okay, so let's dive in.

[B]

Trying to grow a business and remain cash flow positive, it's like eating glass. I don't think businesses go out of business because of cash flow. They go out of business because people quit.

[A]

Vic Dipnes went from being completely broke with just $78 in his bank account to building one of the fastest growing healthcare companies in the country. Now serving millions, reshaping how we think about sleep and wellness.

[B]

Life was day to day. I didn't have the luxury of even week to week. It was day to day for years for me. All the things that I was building in 12, 13, 14 through 18, when the right opportunity came, when it was, when it was our time to go out and play in the game, we were ready. Most people look at entrepreneurs as risk takers. I think they're more calculated risk takers than most think.

[A]

You're with two young kids, you don't have a safety net and still you're trying to like, why not find a job?

[B]

I'm not built for that. The reason that I'm not is because I.

[A]

Listen, you need to get ready for a really inspiring story today. Vic Dipnes went from being completely broke with just $78 in his bank account to building one of the fastest growing healthcare companies in the country. Blackstone Medical Service, now serving millions, reshaping how we think about sleep and wellness. And again, not only that, he's a CEO of a multimillion dollar company, but he's also an author, an investor, a mentor, a thought leader, and really inspiring entrepreneurs everywhere to live what he calls maximum life. So, first of all, Vic, thank you for being on the show.

[B]

Thank you. Thanks for having me on.

[A]

I want to take you back in time to what shaped you when you grew up. How did you grow up? Did you grow up knowing that you're going to be an entrepreneur? What was it that sparked that interest?

[B]

You know, I knew at a very young age, I think probably eight, nine, Years old. My father was an entrepreneur and we migrated here from the UK when I was about eight, nine years old. And my dad had a small business in Tallahassee, Florida. And I learned by watching him, him being an owner, operator of a small business. And we didn't grow up rich, we grew up middle class at best. So for me, work ethic, seeing him every single day, working in his company, in his business, doing the things that an entrepreneur does, helped shape my own thoughts about it. And I was able to compare other people that, whether they went into the professional career aspect of life and went to college and did all these things. I was able to see him and other people that were in my family, in my vicinity, that were entrepreneurs. And I was able to look and see, you know what, I like what they're doing. I kind of like that better than what the other person's doing. And I just started to gravitate more towards that.

[A]

Let me tap into that because that's beautiful. Because seeing your parents, your dad can bring one of two things. One, you can say, oh my God, he hustles all the time. And I don't know if I want that or it can pull you. What do you think made you actually be drawn to this kind of a life? Because it's really hard to be your own boss.

[B]

I saw a lot of things I loved about what my father did and a lot of things that I didn't like what he did. One of the things was he was really a slave to his company, to his business. And it was a 24 hour business. And I remember only going to a few places with both of my parents because they both had to be at the business. So it was a small 25 unit motel and you know, it's a 24, 7 business. So we worked all the time. There was no weeks off or family holidays. I mean, really could count on one hand the amount of times we went somewhere together. So for me as I was growing up, I knew that's what I didn't want. So at least I had that. I knew what I didn't want. And so it then allowed me to focus on what I wanted again, completely trying to run away from this other type of life. I didn't want to be a slave to my company.

[A]

So let me go there. Because you start college but you decide to leave and you decide that the regular traditional path of being maybe an employee or whatever is not necessarily. Or to study really well and whatever that is not it. What made you change?

[B]

I don't know if I changed. As much as I just leaned into what I knew I wanted to do, I knew at a very young age I wanted to be a businessman. That's what I wanted to do. So going to college for six months just reinforced that, hey, you need to go back to what you really want to do, which is be a really crazy individual and put everything on the line and risk everything to hopefully have your day in the sun.

[A]

Okay, so you decide to leave. Did you get pushback from family or anybody else?

[B]

I got some pushback. My parents definitely wanted me to go to college and get a degree and either be a doctor or a lawyer or something. I just didn't see that for myself. So I went against the grain quite a bit. In my childhood. I was always called the black sheep of the family.

[A]

But at least it prepared you well for entrepreneurship. It sounds like the very thick skin for sure.

[B]

As much as it could be. I don't really think there's anything that can prepare you for entrepreneurship. I think so. I really don't think so.

[A]

So you jump. And if I'm not mistaken, you start with selling cars, or was there something in the middle?

[B]

Yeah, no. I started selling cars when I was about 18 years old. I did really well with that. I was salesman of the month, and then from there, I decided to get into radiology, and I was the youngest startup founder of a radiology business.

[A]

Okay, so you start selling cars, and I'm sure you learn a lot from it. Sales. I still think it's one of the most important skills that you can learn as a human. I wish they taught this more in school. So you learn a lot about people, Sales deals. Talk to me a little bit. What do you take, and how does that take you to this radiology business?

[B]

First, I knew that in order for me to be a great businessman, I needed to know how to sell. So I needed to flex that. I needed to grow that muscle. I needed to flex it on a daily basis.

[A]

That was an intentional thing. Like, you actually wanted to go to sales to learn this. It wasn't just, I don't know where I gonna find a job.

[B]

No, no, no. I never thought about it for a second that it would be a career. I thought about it like, I need to learn skills on how to sell. That was it. So I did that to learn how to sell and to push myself. And I worked seven days a week, and I just sold my ass off, basically. And I'm like, I need to know how to sell. So as I was doing that, unfortunately, both my Parents had a terminal sickness with cancer that introduced me to the healthcare world and having to take them from doctor to doctor, facility to facility. I saw that there was also a need for a customer service level of the human aspect of healthcare, which was lost, in my opinion, and still is to this day. Service is just something that people forget about and they don't understand that people are going to come in to a clinic or get any sort of test done and there's a level of anxiety there that they're concerned about, am I going to be okay? What's going to happen if. And the what ifs go rushing through their minds. So I wanted to provide a service and that was at that time in radiology, in being able to provide great comfort and care to patients. So I was able to actually get financing. This was when banks actually loaned money.

[A]

What year is that?

[B]

This was 2000. It was 25 years ago.

[A]

Wow. So tell me, you're going through this really hard time as an individual because seeing your parents like this is one of the hardest things ever. But you're able to see this need probably because you're pissed at the healthcare industry and the lack of service. But how do you from that decide that I gonna stop selling cars and I gonna jump into trying to do you never raise capital? You have no clue how it goes. How does that work?

[B]

You know, when you say it like that, it was like, wow, it was really crazy.

[A]

Sorry, I'm just putting the mirror here.

[B]

Second. Well, I stopped doing the cars, selling cars because my parents needed somebody to help them. I moved in with them. I think I was like 19 years old. They passed away when I was 23 years old. 23, 24. Thank you. And I started then the radiology business that same year. It was good in a way that it kept me distracted and not engulfed in everything that was going on. But I was also but at the same time fighting for my own survival and path because I didn't have a fallback. There was no plan B for me. And particularly when your parents aren't around, you can't go home and go to home base and recharge and reset again. So I had to grow up very fast in that regard.

[A]

So around the 2000, there was also the bust of the Internet. Were you able to raise capital before that?

[B]

You know, in the healthcare, it really didn't affect anything. There were lenders back in those times that were actually lending money. So I was able to get a loan to buy equipment. I didn't realize until very much later on Just what I was getting myself into. But I think it was just sheer will, really. I was just like, okay, I'm going to do this. I had no experience in it and I had to figure it out as I went along.

[A]

Okay, so you take this loan, which is scary as hell if you don't have a big safety net, and we'll talk about how this is also related to what you're doing today. But you're taking this big loan and you're starting this business in a space. You don't really know it, but you witnessed it through your parents. And I think you just have this big drive because of your parents. So tell me, eventually you sell it, but what happens in the middle?

[B]

Well, a lot of work, a lot of risk and a lot of learning. You do a tremendous amount of learning earlier on than you think. And I didn't really make any money when I sold it. I sold it for several million dollars, but I only walked away with like $250,000. So it wasn't like a life changing event. I had made every entrepreneurial mistake you can imagine. I over leveraged too many partners. There was no synergies. It was just pure will of just, hey, I want to do this. And looking back now, I can say, you know what, I should have thought things through a little bit differently of how I structured things and did things.

[A]

But nobody's there to teach you. There's just a lot of learning. So what would you say if somebody's an entrepreneur that is listening to this, what is the big thing that you want them to know specifically from this experience?

[B]

I think you have to really do some soul searching and see if you're really up for this. Because it's not easy. It really is like eating glass. It's a very painful, painful experience. And unless it's something you really enjoy and you really have the tenacity to get through it, I don't recommend it. I really don't. I can't tell you that. Yeah, I would recommend that you go out there and you take all this risk. Tremendous amount of risks.

[A]

There's no four hour work week. You're not going to work four hours. You're going to work your ass off and you take massive risks.

[B]

And I don't even think it's the working your ass off that I think people underestimate. Yes, you're going to have to work a tremendous amount being your own boss. It's just not like you're working four hours a day. But I think what they don't Correctly estimate is the amount of worry and the amount of sleepless nights that you'll have because everything is on you and there's no off day. Even if your business is closed that day, you're still thinking about it. So you have to really be prepared for that. And then you have to really understand too, that the other painful aspect of running a business is growing a business. Trying to grow a business and remain cash flow positive in the green, it's like eating glass. It's a painful, painful thing that people, they underestimate that, in my opinion. And I think that's why a lot of people quit. I don't think businesses go out of business because of cash flow. They go out of business because people quit.

[A]

I think this is so important because I think there's a myth around how easy it is now. And you see all the successes, and I don't think you see the.

[B]

All the social media, how easy it is to make $20,000 a week just by working one hour a day.

[A]

So take me, by the way, to one of those sleepless nights. What makes you not stop? What worries you? Talk to me about it for a second.

[B]

Look, I've had many sleepless nights. I really couldn't tell you. I think it's an innate thing within some people. I don't have the idea that I can quit. I've struggled with that for many years because I would sometimes think something is insurmountable or something is very difficult and challenging. And I have to remind myself that there is no quitting switch in me. So this idea that something would fail is unless sometimes industries change and it doesn't matter what you do, you don't have anything anymore. But outside of those types of things, if you really just don't quit, you eventually arrive. Eventually you just have to have that.

[A]

Tenacity, tenacity to continue. So, Thomas, you're selling this business for $9 million, but again, you're seeing how little relatively you're actually taking from this. And again, between the debt and partners, et cetera, is there resentment? What does that make you feel?

[B]

I was angry. I was angry that I put myself in that position. I'm not the victim type. So I immediately went into that I'm going to turn this around for myself and that I'm going to make something out of my life and that I'm going to prove to not only myself, but to other people that I can do it. And so that was really the thing I focused on.

[A]

So it became a fuel for you.

[B]

It really did I mean it's, you know, Frank Sinatra said it best. The best revenge is massive success. So I just said, you know what? I'm going to focus on massive success. And whether that took a year or five years or 10 years, that's really going to be where I'm going to put my energy into that because that's the best revenge and focus on that.

[A]

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[B]

I got out of the radiology business in 2005, 2006, and then the private equity group that bought me out, I stayed on board with them for about four years. So I left that group in 2010 and I started Blackstone in 2011, just at the end of 2011 I think October of 2011. And I had no money, I had no backing, I had nothing really. I had also gotten divorced the Same year. And I had two kids that were 7 and 8. So I was in probably the worst position that anybody could be in to start anything. Like the worst. Like the worst. But I said, look, I knew. And unfortunately, I had got married very young, and I knew that the person I was with, we were very different mindsets. And I said, look, if I ever have a chance of getting to where I want to be in my life, which was very important for me. And I think going back to what you said about what keeps you going through those sleepless nights, I think that is part of it. Thinking about giving up on your goals is not an option for me because I'm giving up on myself. So when I decided that I was going to get divorced and go my own way with no support, no family backing, nothing, it was really for that. I believed in myself that much, and I believed in my dreams that much that I didn't want to be that guy on my deathbed one day, long time from now, that I gave up on what it was that I wanted to have for my life. And I think that's probably the thing that if you surveyed this, maybe most entrepreneurs would be like, yeah, I agree with that. But that was the component that I didn't want to face, that I did not want to have that conversation with myself.

[A]

But, Vic, why not find a job? You're with two young kids. You don't have a safety net. Was that even on your radar? Why am I just not going to chill? There's a huge difference between number one and number anything else in the company. So did that even cross our mind or it was very clear to you that you're going to start another business?

[B]

No, it was clear. It didn't cross my mind. I'm not built for that. And I would tell you the thing that I know that I have. If you look at my company today, I don't do a lot of things in the sense of I don't know how to schedule patients. I don't know how the system works, operates and works in the sense of the software and the this and the that. And, you know, I don't know how to answer, schedule patients and all. I don't know how to do any of that stuff you said, hey, Vic, can you go schedule a patient? It would be a disaster. Okay. But what I do have an ability to do is to observe, decide, and act. I can observe really well and I make decisions fast. And so for me, going the conventional route of getting a job and doing all that stuff, I know That I would be extremely frustrated because I just know I have that ability that is above average. So I would just get frustrated because I would see so many things and I wouldn't be able to fix it because I wouldn't have the authority to fix it. And I didn't want to live in that frustration. So had I met somebody that wanted to be the number one guy that had that ability and was successful, I would have gotten behind that, that I could have been involved with, but I didn't have that luxury, so I had to be that guy for myself. So for me, it was like, okay, I don't really have an option. Otherwise I would just been very, very frustrated.

[A]

So it's 2012. Blackstone Medical Service doesn't just born what happens. What instilled that idea. How do you start tinkering with that? And how do you know that this is the thing?

[B]

Well, I think every entrepreneur has an idea that this may be the thing. I think that most people look at entrepreneurs as risk takers. I think they're more calculated risk takers than most think. I looked at what the market was doing, and I made an observation that I think that insurance companies and doctors want people to be tested in the home as opposed to going to a hospital or a facility, because it's just easier to get done and it's obviously more cost effective and the access is better. Right. So I made that bet. Somebody had emailed me about a sleep testing device, and I saw it. I said, huh, I can probably build something around this. So I. I didn't think too much about it. I said, this is it for me. And I leased an office space for $500 a month. It was a horrible office. It was so bad that we had to interview people at Starbucks because we saw people pull up to interview and then they left. It was that bad? It was that bad. It was horrible. Like, the floor was slanted and all this stuff. So I rented the office for 500 bucks a month, and I had one employee, I was a sales rep, and I was just trying to drum up cash, and I would take cash from any investor that I could. And I raised a couple of hundred thousand dollars and I was off. That was October, November 2011, and we didn't really make any money until 2016.

[A]

Whoa, wait, wait. So take me there for a second. So first of all, in terms of sleep, was that something that you also suffered from, that you figured there must be more people that suffer from it?

[B]

Why that I sleep like a baby. So I had no sleeping Issues. But I saw that there are people that did have sleeping issues. So I thought, okay, let's create a company that can really help them get diagnosed for that.

[A]

So you decide to do this. You see this medical device that maybe can help. How do you then basically sponsor Life to kids? I don't know what divorce means, but that could get expensive really quick. So how do you sponsor Life? I guess for the first few years.

[B]

It was tough sponsoring life, paying bills. I would tell you that up until 2015, maybe early 2016, I was making 8, $900 a week. That was 10 years ago.

[A]

I would hire you. I'm kidding.

[B]

I mean, I wasn't making any money. The business was losing money, but we were putting off. I mean, it was this constant robbing Peter to pay Paul. And life was day to day. I didn't have the luxury of even week to week. It was day to day for years for me. Years of, how do we pay this? This got shut off. That got shut off. Can't pay this, can't do that, can't go on this trip, can't do this. Like everything was a can't. But the thing that kept me going was the fact that I saw every month the numbers were going up, the patients coming in were going up, the testing numbers were going up, the billing was going up. Like it was all going up. Now, I wish it was going up faster, but it wasn't going down. And it was growing 20%, 30%, but it wasn't growing fast enough. And because I didn't have adequate capital, it was always this robbing Peter to pay Paul, being bankrupt several times just because we didn't have $10,000 or $20,000. And then I had to go borrow it from somebody and pay him back. And that was just normal everyday life for years. For years.

[A]

Oh, wow. And again, how do you work on your own mindset or your own belief to basically say, I feel like. And again, you see the numbers, so that helps. But there's still like, I'm sure within the numbers there's days that. Sorry for the language. Suck. Right. So through those numbers, you need to kind of also tell yourself, this is going to work out. What do you do for yourself to just cultivate that belief? It's going to work out. I got this.

[B]

I think you got to focus on the positive. And never had the idea to quit because I just honed into what was going good. The patience coming in were good. It kept getting better. There was a story I heard about Jeff Bezos when they were building Amazon. And then the stock market crashed because of the bubble in 2000, and the stock went from $116 to 6. And everyone in the company had this panic. Families were calling, is everybody okay? And they all thought it was the end of the world, and it was the end for Amazon. And Jeff Bezos said, look, I could have gravitated towards and got sucked into that. But what he said was, I went and I looked and I saw, hold on, there's more people visiting the website week after week, month after month. There's more people buying stuff week after week, month after month. And even though they were losing money, they were losing less money. So for me, it was like, hey, we're losing money, but we're losing less money now than we were. And the patient volumes were growing, so we were gaining market share. So now I just had to stay in business long enough for it to really get traction and then go right. And that didn't happen until late 2018, beginning 2019.

[A]

That's a lot of patience. And again, I want the listeners to hear this, because I think there's this myth about the overnight success, but this overnight success usually takes a decade to get there or more. Right? And I think that's really, really important. And I think you also need at that point to start growing yourself as a leader, start growing a team. How do you grow yourself and not settle? You settle initially, probably a little bit. But tell me a little bit, how do you see that growth?

[B]

Well, I think the biggest thing for growth is you got to make sure the company doesn't outgrow you. And I always tell my team this. The company requires a different skill set from management. When it's at 2 million, 5 million, 10 million, 15 million, 20, it requires a different person. You almost have to shed your skin because the same guy Running a $25 million business or $100 million business is very different. It's very different. Hence why there's less than 1% of the companies out of the 33 million in the US do over $10 million in revenue. It's a very small number. Companies doing over 25 million is less is 0.003%, barely 1/3 of 1%. So if you think about that and then you're trying to hire a skill set for this 0.03 percentile out of this big group of people, it becomes challenging. So finding great people becomes tough. That's where you start really getting into the problems of trying to then scale even higher. Because I tell my team all the time is that, hey, guys. They're like, yeah, it's so hard to find the right people. I said, well, it's harder now than it was when we were doing 2 million bucks.

[A]

That's true. And it's almost like you need to fire yourself from the role that you've been. There's a little bit of that that needs to happen so that you can scale and grow. So talk to me about what enabled, you know, eventually this kind of like a hockey stick that you guys are on now, Vic. So share a little bit of that growth that you've been on.

[B]

Well, I think hockey stick for most companies are the ones that really right place, right time had the right fundamentals in place to take advantage of the market opportunity. That's really what happened. We were right place, right time, number one. Number two, we had the infrastructure, all the things that I was building in 12, 13, 14 through 18. When the right opportunity came, when it was our time to go out and play in the game, we were ready. That's the simplicity of it. We were just ready to execute, and we drove the ball all the way down the field, and we just kept scoring year after year after year after year. Had I had built the company in 2017, 2016, I don't think that we would have been able to capitalize on it. And that's what made us the market leader. We were right place, right time with the foundation in place, that allowed us to really hockey stick, but without all those years. And there was. Look, it was a lot of pain, Ileana, but I got to tell you, it was also. We learned a lot, and we just became better operators year after year after year. And I think that we're not only the best in the country, but I don't think that anybody in this industry operates at the level that we do.

[A]

It's just incredible to hear your story and just see that, yes, if you didn't start it, when you started it, if you didn't build that muscle that was able to go through all these pain points, probably this would not have happened. So a lot of these dark moments, and I think the listeners need to hear this because sometimes you're in this really, really, really dark moment, and I do believe it's darkest before the sunrise somehow, even in business. And I loved your story of how even though it wasn't all shiny and roses like it just not, it never is. And you write up a book, actually, it's about the previous company, but it's also about this, and it says, did you sell your soul Right. It's never too late to change your story. Why did you feel like you want to write that book?

[B]

You know, I felt it was the right time. It was kind of like me blowing off steam in a way. And I feel like, look, you know, the reason I got on social media was really to hopefully be able to give somebody the right advice, mindset, motivation, whatever you want to call it, to be able to really accelerate their life. I think we unfortunately, and it's just a human condition, we feel like at some point, you know, when you were a little kid, everything was just very bright and new and adventurous, and every idea was a new possibility, and every day you woke up was a new day. And that's something that I've always been chasing myself to never lose. And so for me, I think writing the book and doing what I do on social media is just to remind people about that, because I think sometimes as you get older, you get very down on yourself.

[A]

Complacent or.

[B]

Yeah, complacent. And you give up on that newness of life and the excitement of it, and it's adventurous. And I really. I want to enjoy life. I want it to be fun, and I want it to be meaningful, and I want it to be a chore. And I think, unfortunately, a lot of people fall into that trap where life has become a chore as opposed to an adventure.

[A]

Oh, I think this, what you just said, I literally get goosebumps. Because the truth is, that's why I started Leap Academy. I kind of had it all. So, you know, it's one of those things that I had the home, I had, the two kids. Theoretically, I should be so grateful. And yet something was so, so, so missing. And sadly, it took a huge fall in order for me to understand that this is actually what I want to do. And I think if all of us get really intentional, very strategic with how we live life, it's kind of what you call. Right. Maximum life. It's like, because it's not just a paycheck, it has to be the life that you want with that paycheck, and what does that involve? So I absolutely love it. And you did diversify a lot of things. I mean, you have multiple ventures, and you have health tech and Tipnus Capital, and you do all these things. And we're big advocates for portfolio careers, so I love that. But how do you combine between having this incredible portfolio and not spreading yourself too thin?

[B]

Well, I think it's hard to not spread yourself too thin. I think when you've got a Lot going on. It's very hard not to. I think what I do is I really manage my time really well. I'm a bit of a time hog. If I got something I got to do, I leave. If I have another meeting, I have another call or I've got this time blocked out for something, I block everything out and I can just go do that. And so I try not to allow time to tell me what to do. I kind of say, okay, well, from this time to this time, I'm going to be doing this and focused on this. Because you do have enough time. The reality is 24 hours a day you're sleeping eight, if that. Right. You get 16 hours. That's a lot of time. So I just time manage everything. And I don't really have lunch meetings with people. I rarely do dinner meetings. It's a waste of time. Like, we got to talk about something. Let's just talk. But I'm not going to spend an hour and a half just having lunch for, for a five minute for the sake of it. Yeah, yeah. And I'm not a big small talk guy. So it's like, hey, can we just talk about what we're talking about? Like what's, you know, it's different if I'm hanging out with my friends and we're just shooting the shit. That's different. But with business stuff, it's rare that I'll be like, hey, let's go do a two hour lunch and all that stuff.

[A]

I'm right there with you. And I think in your book you also talk about investing in identity, which I think is so, so, so critical. And unfortunately, it took me a couple of decades to learn about mindset and identity and looking at myself and who am I becoming? And if I summarize your book for people that I highly recommend it, you talk about rewriting, you could rewrite your story. Right. The failures are an asset. And invest in identity. I think I would say these are the big things that. So, Vic, can you talk a little bit about these? For you?

[B]

Yeah, I mean, I think for me it was investing in myself. I knew that nothing in life was going to change unless I changed me. So if I didn't change and invest in myself, I probably wouldn't be on your podcast. You'd be like, it's this guy. But it's very true. And so I knew there were things that I needed to get better at and so I doubled down on that. If you're not where you want to be in life, there's something you got to change about yourself.

[A]

And I'm so glad you're talking about it, Vic, because I don't know for a couple decades that I knew that I need to invest in myself. We live in this era of you just tick the box of career education, college. I tick that box and after that there's basically you scrape your knees and that's okay. And I think that was part of the calling of Leap Academy. Right. There should be a better way to run professional education. But okay, so when you talk to entrepreneurs to invest in their identity or invest in themselves, what are some of the things that are really important for you?

[B]

Mental health, spiritual growth, all these things. Learning how to communicate, learning how to understand things and how the world works and all of that stuff is very, very, very important. And if you don't have a good understanding of that stuff, you're going to find yourself quite lost because there's just so much false data out there as it relates to mental health conditions and spirituality and all this type of stuff. And it's like people just get lost in the shuffle and then they end up more confused.

[A]

So if you look at Vic, I don't know, five, ten years into the future, do you see where Vic is going and where the company is going? Is there a pretty clear vision for you?

[B]

Yeah, I mean, I think the company's just going to continue to grow and get better and be competitive. The sleep market is a huge market and we're going to continue to grow at double digit rates. So I think that's something we're really focused on. And then I think for me it's also just having fun. Look, I like to win. I don't like to lose. I know that my future just has more winning. So it's really just me focused on that and having fun. And I love being a businessman. That's what I wanted to do and I get to continue to do that and I'm happy.

[A]

So let's break it down for a second, Vic, because for people who maybe don't have good sleep, and I actually have some friends that have, what do you call it, sleep apnea. Like I don't even know sleep apnea.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, that's what we test for.

[A]

What should they do? Do they reach out to you guys? Do they check you out on your website? Like, what's the right thing?

[B]

They can go to blackstone medicalservices.com but what I recommend is that you call your doctor, contact your doctor and just let him or her know that you'd like to get us a home sleep test done by Blackstone and get a prescription and send it to us. You can send it to us through our website. You can call us directly the phone numbers on the website. You can fax it to us, you can email it to us, whatever. And we will contact you and get you set up, and we will overnight test to you so that you can do it in your comfort of your own home. You don't have to go anywhere. It's very easy. It's a ring, goes on your finger. Connect it to your iPhone or your Android phone. Then you'll know in a couple of days if you have it. And if you have it, what's the treatment involved with getting you better? And sleep is probably one of the most important things, because obviously if you're not sleeping good at night, you're not performing great during the day, or you're probably a grouch to be around.

[A]

Exactly.

[B]

Making mistakes at work and all that stuff. So sleep is very, very important. And it has a big factor to do with weight. And your ability to lose weight effectively has to do with you getting proper REM sleep. So I highly recommend that if you feel like, hey, I'm waking up at night, maybe your spouse has said that you're waking up at night gasping for air or whatever it may be to then get a test done.

[A]

And I think sleep, I think it is somehow underrated. And maybe now it's starting to be a little more relevant.

[B]

I mean, it's blown up a lot.

[A]

Yeah. Because when I grew up, or maybe a decade ago or two decades ago, I was actually proud of not sleeping. I think I was just like, this was like, the more red eyes, the more you can slam in. You were kind of cool. I don't know. That's how I grew up. Right. And you're right. Like, I was a grouch. I was nasty at everybody around me, so. But, Vic, I like to get your reflection, and that's how we usually end the show. But if Vic talks to your younger self and maybe you're one of those hard moments, what would you say to yourself? What were some of the things that you wish you knew earlier in your career or your life?

[B]

I think maybe just having a lighter mindset about it. I think sometimes we take things very seriously. And I think that just having the understanding that you'll get through it. Good times or bad times, they don't last. It just doesn't last forever. Eventually it turns. Eventually you just have to not give up. It's really what it comes down to, you have to stay positive. You have to work hard, you have to be disciplined, you have to be ethical, you have to have tenacity. But you really just can't quit. You just have to know that eventually it's gonna end. Whatever's going on in your life, good or bad, is gonna end. So you just have to remain positive and keep going. Really. And have a little bit of a lighthearted attitude about it, that there's people in worse positions.

[A]

That's for sure.

[B]

There are people in worse positions. You just have to maybe think about that. Who do you know that's in a worse position? It ain't hard to find somebody in a worse position.

[A]

And then you have to be grateful. Do you think something built that tenacity for you?

[B]

I think it's God given. I don't think that it's your childhood or something triggers in your mind. I really don't. I think there's a level of tenacity in everyone. It's in an innate ability. But some people's tenacity only gets so far. You know those people, right? Like, no matter what I do to the people that I know and say, hey, I need you to push more. I need you to be more tenacious. It only goes so far yet nobody in my life has ever told me to quit or to work harder. No one's ever told me, vic, you just need to work harder. Or, vic, you need to be more tenacious. No one's ever said that to me. And so it's really just. I think, you know, it's just my observation, and I think it's just innate. I think some people have that. Maybe they have an abundance of that ability, and that's just them. Like my wife, she's a great person, but if I told her to be more tenacious, she's only gonna get a little bit more tenacious. You know, she's just mainly.

[A]

She's gonna get angry maybe. I don't know.

[B]

She'll probably just get pissed with me. But, you know, it's like.

It'S not her. She's just a sweet person. Like she can't hurt a fly. She's just not that person. So I think everybody has that ability. I think everyone has genius abilities, but I think they're at different levels. Some people have more than others, and we're all uniquely different. I think at the end of the day, whoever you are, whatever you're doing, there's only one you. And if everybody was the same, it would be very boring.

[A]

Exactly. So lean on that zone of genius and be.

[B]

It would be very boring. Like, imagine if everybody was the same.

[A]

I mean, my company would collapse.

[B]

I love myself, but I wouldn't want another me hanging around me all the time.

[A]

This would be too much beside it was for me. It would be a complete chaos. I always laugh that I need my team. Otherwise everything breaks apart. Like, it's just like I just run. And I hope somebody's catching all the things that I'm throwing their way.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. We have to have a mix.

[B]

So you need that. You have to have a mix. So wherever you fall within that mix, be happy that you're in that mix and carry on.

[A]

Vic, thank you so much. Where do people find you? Or if you want them to find you or you don't want them to find you?

[B]

I'm easy to find. I'm all over social media, my handle at Vic Tipnus, everywhere, all the platforms. You'll find me there. And if I can help anybody with their sleep, please connect with us. But hopefully this podcast hits somebody and gets them to keep pushing and to never quit.

[A]

It will hit a lot of people. And Vic, thank you so much for sharing the truth because I think for me, it's a lot about bringing that truth. Not what it looks like in social media, but what it actually takes to drive these big things. And I mean, your story is incredible. You are a little crazy and I appreciate the story.

Thank you so much.

[B]

Thank you very much. Thanks for having me on.

[A]

I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did. If you did, please share it with friends now. Also, if you're feeling stuck or simply want more from your own career, watch this 30 minute free [e-mail] training. That's leapacademy.com training. See you in the next episode of the Leap Academy with Ilana Golancho.