Meet Jim Donnelly | Founder / Serial Entrepreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jim Donnelly and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jim, is there something you believe many others might not?
I often hear people telling entrepreneurs to follow their passion. This can be both good advice and horrible advice. In order for it to be good advice, you must be good at what you are passionate about. And other people must want what you are passionate about. In other words, your passion has to present a big opportunity. When either of those things isn’t true, you have a bad fit between passion and business opportunity. Having said that, I do believe entrepreneurs should seek impact and work on things that help others in a big way. Those things tend to be easy to be passionate about.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Restore Hyper Wellness has become the leader in the preventative health and wellness category. More consumers are being proactive about their health and Restore has become a big part of that. Restore now has 220 locations in 39 states and opens a new location almost every week. Restore will do close to 3 million services this year and help our clients do more of what they love to do.

I’m most excited by the societal impact Restore is creating. When you make thousands of people healthier and more capable of doing the things they love to do, you make society better. You help improve families and marriages. You really make a difference.

Over the years, I’ve learned various things at each job and venture. Fortunately, I’ve learned to apply those lessons to create and grow great businesses. I’ve also made great relationships and had many people follow me from venture to venture. Finally, I’ve always focused on culture and believe it is the key to any great business.

Ultimately, all challenges are solved by leadership. I try to create teams with very capable, talented people that are great leaders. With some guidance on goals, great leaders find a way to overcome challenges. I always look for people that have demonstrated the ability to push through the hard things.

Some lessons I’ve learned:
– A lack of options provides clarity. At different stages of a business, it will be clear what you should do simply because you only have a few options.
– Invest in people. The great people will be with you multiple times if you treat them right and give them opportunities.
– Enthusiasm matters. Leaders need to motivate. Everyone enjoys themselves more in an environment of enthusiasm.
– Be authentic. Lean into your strengths and don’t try to be someone who shifts with the wind.
– Enjoy the journey. You will never be happy if you measure success by the outcomes. You spend way more time on the journey. Make sure you enjoy it by surrounding yourself with people you enjoy doing something you care about.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I live in Austin, TX and I can’t imagine living anywhere else. I have a lot of friends that always try to travel to other places, but I can always have a great time in Austin.

I’d start by mapping out some great live music. Austin is the live music capital of the U.S. and there is always someone worth going to see. Sandwich an awesome show with great food and good drinks and you have the foundation for a few fun filled evenings.

I’d also create the ultimate foodie tour. Austin has some incredible restaurants and it is easy to fill a week with perfect choices. I’d make sure we had some great Tex-Mex. I’d also make sure we did the ultimate BBQ tour. Most of the renowned BBQ families of TX have locations in and around Austin. A BBQ crawl in Lockhart is a great time.

I’d spend a day on Lake Austin. Lots of little coves provide a nice place to hang out with friends. Some beer, wine, surfing and chilling on the lake provides a great day.

Some active outdoor activities would also be in the mix. There is great biking (both road and mountain biking). And there is as much hiking as you could possibly want for a week. A long hike and bike followed by a dip at Barton Springs is a super fun afternoon.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I always thank my father. He was the most enthusiastic person I’ve ever known. He taught me all my high level values around being an entrepreneur. Most importantly, he taught me enthusiasm matters, loyalty matters and creating human impact is important. For a variety of reasons, he wasn’t a successful entrepreneur. But it never dampened his enthusiasm and he kept trying new ideas until the day he died. I always remember the specific advice he gave me as a teenager. He said, “There is no debtor’s prison in the U.S. If you fail, you can start something else the next day. As long as you do what you say you are going to do, work hard, treat your investment the same as your investor money, people are incredibly supportive and will follow you to your next venture.” He also made it clear that I had a place to land if I ever needed it. That kind of support is priceless for an entrepreneur.

Website: www.Restore.com

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/jimdonnellyhyperwellness