How to Be Bold Before You Feel Confident — Fred Joyal | Audacious Living
The Audacious Living PodcastShow Notes
How do you become bold when you don't feel confident yet? Fred Joyal believes we've been thinking about confidence backwards.Fred describes himself as a painfully shy introvert who once assumed bold people were simply born differently. Then he began deliberately doing things that made him uncomfortable and discovered that boldness wasn't something he had to wait for. It was something he could practise.In this episode of The Audacious Living Podcast, Fred and I get into the hidden cost of playing it safe, why failure may deserve a completely different meaning, and what happens when you start building boldness before you actually need it.Fred's perspective is wonderfully practical: if you want to become more courageous when the stakes are high, start getting uncomfortable while the stakes are low.We also get into the unlikely story behind 1-800-DENTIST. Fred wasn't a dentist and admits he didn't know whether the business would even become profitable for roughly two and a half years. It eventually grew to nearly $50 million in annual revenue with 250 employees.Yet one of my favourite moments comes when Fred describes what all that practice with boldness eventually did for him:“I didn't become a different person. I became the full "That's where this conversation gets bigger than entrepreneurship.What could become possible if you stopped waiting to feel completely ready?Key Insights• Why boldness is a skill rather than a personality trait• Why confidence doesn't necessarily need to come first• How low-stakes discomfort prepares you for high-stakes decisions• Why failure can become useful information• The long-term cost of constantly playing it safe• How missed opportunities can accumulate into regret• Why becoming bolder doesn't require becoming someone elseAbout Fred JoyalFred Joyal is a longtime entrepreneur, author and advocate for developing boldness as a practical life skill.He co-created 1-800-DENTIST and ran the company for 28 years. At its peak, Fred says the company generated nearly $50 million annually and employed approximately 250 people.What makes Fred's work particularly interesting isn't that boldness always came naturally to him. It's the opposite. He describes his younger self as painfully introverted and eventually became fascinated by figuring out how boldness could be deliberately learned and strengthened. That journey became the foundation for his book Superbold.Connect With Fred Joyal🌐 Website: FredJoyal.com📘 Book: SuperboldFred identifies his website as the main destination for his book, keynote work and boldness programs.Read the Audacious InsightWhy Playing It Safe Is the Riskiest Decision You’ll Ever Make🔗 Blog: https://www.bestaudaciouslife.com/episodes/fred-joyal-build-boldness-confidenceListen on Major Platforms🎧 Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/show/2jVR6V7X2kRiCCDXE0FTyl?si=IR3TsfEWR3WA6BzfBRnVXQ🍎 Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-audacious-living-podcast/id1547447345📦 Amazon Music → https://music.amazon.ca/podcasts/9f7902bb-dec8-4bd9-918d-d1fef21b7c67/the-audacious-living-podcast?ref=dm_sh_pGv57yQvAmAQVp2IIaXoDwtFtBehind the ConversationThere was an immediate connection in this conversation because Fred and I approach audacity from remarkably similar places.Yet what I particularly enjoyed was his distinction between confidence and boldness. We often think we need the first before attempting the second. Fred makes a compelling argument that we've got the order backwards.Stay for the Fearless Fast Round too. Fred describing himself as a “ready fire aim guy” tells you quite a bit about how he approaches risk
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You have an idea. Maybe you have had it for years, sketched on a napkin or sitting in a journal. The difference between you and the inventor on QVC is not talent. It is knowing the right way to move. Signature Quote "Do not share your information until the ink dries." Lisa learned the hard way that an unprotected idea is a vulnerable one. This line from her book is the rule she lives by, and the one she wants every new inventor to hear first. Lisa Ascolese, known as The Inventress, has spent decades turning everyday frustrations into products that sell. Her first invention came from being embarrassed to breastfeed in public, so she created the Bosom Buddy nursing cape. A sock she used to tie her hair into a church-ready bun became the Bun Tie, her first product on QVC. A lost pair of scissors while wrapping gifts became the Wrap and Store organizer, which sold out on QVC. In this conversation, Lisa shares what inventing the right way actually means. Do your due diligence. Build a working prototype before you ever call a patent attorney. Do not add so much to a simple product that it can never get made. And keep your idea close until it is protected, because the naysayers will talk you out of it before it has a chance. She also talks about the audacity it took to pick up the phone and call buyers and celebrities, including a 30-year relationship with Dionne Warwick that started with one cold call, and why she founded the Association of Women Inventors and Entrepreneurs to lift other women up. This is a practical, no-fluff conversation for anyone sitting on an idea. This episode is for you if... - You have an idea sketched somewhere and no clue what to do next - You have wondered whether to patent first or prototype first - You want to get a product onto QVC, HSN, or a store shelf - You have been burned before and want a trustworthy guide this time - You believe inventors should lift each other up Lisa Ascolese is known as The Inventress, a name her publicist coined years ago and one she has since trademarked. Born in London and raised in Brooklyn by West Indian parents, she was inventing as a child, taking things apart around the house and making them work for her. Her first product, the Bosom Buddy breastfeeding cape, sold nationally and internationally, and she went on to sell multiple products on QVC, including the Bun Tie, the Wrap and Store organizer, and the Perfect Pockets organizer, which she later redesigned for HSN. Today Lisa helps inventors go from a napkin idea all the way to the marketplace, teaching them to do it the right way with due diligence, working prototypes, and protected ideas. She is the founder of the Association of Women Inventors and Entrepreneurs, now celebrating its 13th year, and host of The Inventors Podcast. Her book is "The Inventress Guide to Inventing the Right Way: All or Nothing, Now or Never." Her mission is simple: lifting each other up two hands at a time. 🌐 Website: https://inventingatoz.com/ Her podcast, The Inventors Podcast, and her social channels are all linked from her website. Listen on Major Platforms 🎧 Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/show/2jVR6V7X2kRiCCDXE0FTyl?si=IR3TsfEWR3WA6BzfBRnVXQ 🍎 Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-audacious-living-podcast/id1547447345 📦 Amazon Music → https://music.amazon.ca/podcasts/9f7902bb-dec8-4bd9-918d-d1fef21b7c67/the-audacious-living-podcast?ref=dm_sh_pGv57yQvAmAQVp2IIaXoDwtFt Enjoying the show? Share this episode with someone who needs to hear this. ⭐ Leave a review: 👉 https://ratethispodcast.com/audacious