AJ Wilcox is first and foremost a family man, but he is passionate about his business, too. After discovering that SEO allows you to actually meaningfully direct marketing to consumers, AJ wanted to break into the digital marketing space. Initially he was concerned with Google Ads and Facebook Ads—but he soon found that LinkedIn Ads were much more successful.

AJ talks about how he always loved startups and the energy they give off, but that he never really saw himself jumping into one as an entrepreneur. He and his wife care a lot about providing financial security for their family. So when he was let go from his job, it really changed what he thought was really possible. They had saved for almost a year’s worth of expenses, and they decided to go ahead and try starting their own company. They decided if they got close to the end of their runway, they could go out and find other work.

Now running his own business (and wearing all the hats), AJ found himself starting to live out his dreams of running a digital marketing business. He wasn’t sure there was enough interest in LinkedIn Ads initially, but he knew he could find ways to generate more qualified leads. He talks about how LinkedIn has the ability to target specific job types, skills, and businesses, which makes it ideal for b2b.

AJ also shares a lot about trying to balance his home and work life. It wasn’t until he started working from home that he was really able to get a lot done. He is thankful to be around his family so much, even though they still work on nailing down what works and what doesn’t. He talks about how the most important takeaway from all of this is that you can choose to spend money on experiences instead of more and more things. Retail therapy doesn’t really work. But you can invest in the memories you make with your family. And nothing could be more important.

Enjoy this candid conversation between two “all in” entrepreneurs.

Previous episodes of Daniel’s podcast can be found here.