We Bring Out the Hero Within

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal and business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Eric Winkler, Founder, and CEO of Epic Voyage Inc., located in Miami, FL, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Epic Voyage is a life and business coaching company designed to help already successful professionals and entrepreneurs who know they have more potential to unlock but are stuck in their comfort zone. Being stuck keeps them from greater life satisfaction, more income, and less negative self-talk. We work with men and women from all over the world (from the US & Canada to Europe and down to Australia), ages 21-50, who are ready to commit to a more fulfilled life and greater financial success than they know they have the potential to unlock but are stuck with a negative mindset and not having a strategic plan to execute to get there.

Tell us about yourself

I am a 29-year-old tech professional who started a side hustle of life & business coaching in 2018. In 2015 when I was in college at California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo studying for a degree in Biochemistry, I suffered from debilitating anxiety that forced me to hospitalize myself 3 days in a row because I thought I was having a heart attack when it ended up being panic attacks. My anxiety came from worrying about what I would do after graduating with a degree I no longer found fulfilling and due to the stress I was under being President of my Fraternity Delta Sigma Phi. I was able to overcome this anxiety by reprograming my mindset (using meditation techniques I learned while studying abroad in Thailand in 2014) that was focused on the negativity of the situation (fear of failure, lack of confidence in where I was headed, etc.) to the positive which gave me the confidence to change my direction in life. Fast forward 3 years later, I had graduated with my degree but now worked as a project manager for a tech company making over 6 figures right out of college. It was then that I realized on my 25th birthday I needed to launch a business as I had always been an entrepreneur at a young age (catering company, tutoring, and President of my Fraternity). I never set out to be a life coach and still don't truly consider my program as a "life coaching" program...it's just an easy way to explain what I do. I realized people in my friendship circles would come to me for advice on managing their mindset, how to increase their income, and be more fulfilled in life. So in 2018, I designed a program that helps people do exactly that (by reverse engineering my own success). In 2019, I took on my first clients for free, and in 2020 I formally incorporated Epic Voyage Inc. Since then, I've built a social media following of over 100k with helpful content posted daily, coached over 100+ clients, built a 6 figure side hustle, bought a million dollar condo in Miami, and now manage a team of 5 for Epic Voyage to grow it to 7 figures in 2023.

I am motivated each day by my own ability to overcome rock bottom in 2015 and being able to spread that knowledge to those who follow me and are my clients. People struggle so much in life...either not knowing what they want out of it all or not being able to overcome mindset blocks that hold them back from growing to the heights that they have the ability to hit. There's truly no reason to suffer through these situations for very long...our time here on earth is so precious, and I fear a lot of us waste it. My mission with Epic Voyage is to reduce the amount of regret that my clients feel about their death bed. It's very existential, but it's the truth. We don't know how much time we have, but we do have the ability to find what will bring us joy, build a plan to get it, and manage our state of mind to make the effort we put into our goals make them a reality with EASE vs. how most people struggle/suffer their way through change or just think this is how I will always be...So long story short, I am a man who wants to achieve all that I can in my life...while helping others do the same but in their own unique way.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

The top two accomplishments I am most proud of are:

Tripling my business revenue year over year TWICE from 2020-2021 and then again from 2021-2022. It's hard to grow a side hustle from the ground up while you work a demanding tech job full time, but focused execution that prioritizes the right actions will net you the result you so desire. Taking my coaching business from $0 to 6 figures in 2 years as a side hustle is no simple task, but I am only just getting started.
Seeing how my Epic Voyage Program has positively impacted the lives of many in ways that I didn't even imagine. I've had clients ranging from a woman who overcame such a lack of confidence in herself that she left a dead-end job and increased her income by 67% by finding a job she was actually passionate about. To clients who have tried everything to overcome a negative mindset (self-sabotage, people pleasing, anger management, fear of failure, etc.) that then allowed them to find healthy relationships again in their life (professional, romantic, and friendships). Taking a negative in my life and changing it to a positive that helps others will always go down as one of my most proud accomplishments in my life.

What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?

One of the most difficult things that comes with being a business owner is knowing when to stay the course or pivot. Always adjusting your strategy and execution will keep you running in circles because you need to put in a tremendous amount of effort before you can see the rewards of your labor. On the other hand, if you don't adapt, you will die. Do a gut check before pivoting...understand if you've truly given your strategy the execution it needs to become successful before pivoting to something else. This way, you can be sure you need to adjust to keep growing.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Look inward first...find what you're truly passionate about before you decide to commit to building a business. Try different things until you find what feels the most right, don't copy others, and don't rush the process. If you're not passionate about it, you'll never reach the levels you want because it requires relentless execution and dedication.
Figure out what value you can provide in the marketplace. What are your strengths? How can those strengths solve a need in the market? It can be a product you build or a service you provide. I used to discount my strengths, thinking others had the same strengths and wouldn't value what I could provide...once I realized I was wrong, the door to success opened up.
Never stop developing as a leader. You will need to be a leader for yourself, your prospects, your clients, and your future team. Being a solopreneur is the first phase of your growth, but you will need to hire to truly grow. Don't wait to build your skills as a leader (communication, sharing a vision, delegation, managing expectations, etc.) until you need to hire a team because if you do that, you'll always be playing catch up. The difference between successful products/services and those that fail is the leader behind the scenes running and directing the business.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://yourepicvoyage.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ewink13
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericanthonywinkler/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ericanthonywink
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-anthony-winkler-pmp-8133a0107/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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