Living The Red Life — “How a Trophy Maker Built a Legacy Beyond Awards”

Podcast: Living The Red Life
Host: Rudy Mawer (Red Life Edition hosted by Ray Gutierrez)
Guest: Jim Gano, Crown Trophy Franchisee
Episode Date: October 13, 2025

Overview

This episode features Jim Gano, a franchisee with Crown Trophy and a passionate advocate for recognition, service, and legacy. Through his career in award-making, community work, and a recent turn as an inspirational author, Jim shares his philosophy on building a meaningful legacy, going beyond trophies to change lives. Listeners get a behind-the-scenes view into the art and impact of recognition — both in business and in personal growth.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Power of Recognition & Reward in the Workplace (03:27-05:08)

• Retention through Reward: Jim recounts how he created the "Recognize, Reward, Retain" program at a pharmaceutical company to curb employee turnover.
  • The key insight: Employees want to be seen and appreciated for their contributions.
  • Small gestures (certificates, T-shirts, awards, or even a congratulatory dinner) can lead to increased loyalty and longer tenure.
• Quote:

  “So often when I talked to the candidates, they were telling me, ‘I’m just a number. Nobody knows who I am … I don’t get rewarded for it.’ … Just create some kind of program that shows them you appreciate what they do.” — Jim Gano (03:38)

2. The Art and Business of Trophy Making (05:21-09:57)

• Award Hierarchies & Customization: Jim explains his “Good, Better, Best” approach to awards, devising solutions for any budget while ensuring meaningfulness.
• Manufacturing Innovations: The shop integrates cutting-edge techniques such as crystal engraving and 3D subsurface etching, staying creative with technology to deliver impressive, modern awards (including spinning globes etched in crystal).
  • "One of the coolest products out there right now is what we call 3D subsurface...the image is etched inside in 3D." — Jim (08:02)
• Inventory Philosophy: Jim prefers lean inventory, tailoring stock to actual demand to keep business efficient.
  • “You’re running a store, not a museum.” — Ray Gutierrez (09:27)

3. Jim’s Background and Values (10:02-12:36)

• Roots in Bridgewater, NJ: Jim grew up and still lives in Bridgewater, praising it as both formative and community-oriented.
• Service to Others: A key theme in Jim’s life, from volunteering for Special Olympics (eventually chairing a chapter) to employing and mentoring special needs students to teach them job and life skills.
  • “My thing has always been service to others, particularly those that don’t have the same advantages that I do. That’s why I bring in students into my business who are special needs.” — Jim (11:10)

4. The Workplace Readiness Program (12:21-12:36)

• Empowering Special Needs Youth: Jim’s shop operates as a training ground for special needs students, focusing on skills that can transfer to future employment and daily living.
  • “If I can teach you how to pull inventory, how to assemble a trophy…maybe some of those skills will transfer over.” — Jim (12:31)

5. Personal Resilience & Jim’s Cancer Journey (12:54-16:04)

• Battling Cancer: Four years prior, Jim faced severe health challenges but overcame them, drawing strength from family and community.
• Book Insight: Jim discusses his book, I’m Not Done Yet — an “inspirational roadmap” for anyone facing difficulties, which recently won the International Impact Book Award.
  • “It’s a little bit [biography], but it was more, here’s what happened to me, here’s how I handled it, here’s how I think you should handle it…So many people have written me … it’s offered them hope, it’s offered them motivation…” — Jim (15:24)

6. Building a Legacy: Philosophy & Advice (16:10-17:24)

• Legacy over Accolades: For Jim, being remembered for making a difference matters more than any physical award.
  • “I don’t do what I do for awards. It’s just more, you know, to leave that impression that somebody says I made a difference in their life, and that’s all I really need.” — Jim (17:15)
• Advice to the Bullied and Overlooked: Jim reflects on resilience, sharing hard-earned wisdom about growing up bullied and encouraging others that circumstances do change.
  • “You’re going to graduate high school and it’s over. You’ll go to college, you’ll meet new people and that all stops.” — Jim (16:42)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “You collect more bees with honey than you do with vinegar.” (12:57) – Jim, sharing advice from an old colleague that became his guiding principle.
• On crafting awards for unique client needs:

  “Some of these team names, I’m like, I have a female engraver. I’m like, ‘I’ll engrave this one. There’s no way I’m letting you read this page.’” — Jim (02:41)

• On innovation:

  “The innovations that are coming out lately are just…mind-blowing.” — Jim (07:21)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:27] Creating employee reward programs for retention
• [05:21] Structure of awards: the “Good, Better, Best” approach
• [07:57] Technological advances in trophy making (3D subsurface etching)
• [10:02] Jim’s personal background and roots
• [11:10] Service ethos and working with special needs
• [12:54] Lessons from cancer — launching “I’m Not Done Yet”
• [16:10] How Jim wants to be celebrated
• [16:42] Advice for those being bullied
• [17:24] Where to find Jim and connect

Ways to Connect with Jim Gano

• Website: www.jimgano.com
• Social: Facebook & LinkedIn — under Jim Gano or Crown Trophy of Flemington

Conclusion

Jim Gano’s approach to business is as much about heart as hustle: recognition, service, and legacy are at the center. From his inventive trophy-making techniques to his uplifting mentorship of special needs youth and his candid story of surviving cancer, Jim’s “be nice” philosophy leaves listeners with both practical business lessons and lasting inspiration.

“Never let it rest until your good is better and your better is best.” (13:57) — Jim, quoting his father