Ideas are brought to life by a good team.
Dynamic American entrepreneur Spring Saunders was born in Japan in Brazil, Europe and China.
Her pioneering spirit was evident in her early teens when she founded a dance studio, her first business in China. With this notable first accomplishment, Ms. Saunders was able to pay for her education at Shandong University of Business and Technology, where she studied Mandarin. She is fluent in English and Mandarin, and also speaks Portuguese.
While living in China, Ms. Saunders launched several more thriving businesses, including a Mexican restaurant, an export service and an English language tutoring center.
Ms. Saunders relocated to Los Angeles in 2014 and became vice president of business development for Malibu Wines. She went on to launch her first American-based business, Empire Concierge, a company that catered to upscale Chinese travelers. Her work in the bespoke services industry led her to develop alliances with several private jet companies.
After one year of curating her luxury concierge service, she recognized a high demand for private jet services by her high level Chinese and global clientele, and New York Jet Club was born.
Under Ms. Saunders’ leadership as ceo, the company experienced immediate success, garnering its first million USD in sales in its first three months, and acquiring its first aircraft within the first quarter. She has assembled a team of intelligent, savvy and knowledgeable women to join her in her business activities.
Currently residing in Los Angeles, New York and Shanghai, Ms. Saunders is dedicated to forging new partnerships and expanding the company further, both internationally and domestically.
Where did the idea for New York Jet Club come from?
The idea behind New York Jet Club arrived from the realizations of the lack of similar services and commercial alternatives currently in the market, for individual clients to enjoy the luxury of private charter flights. We wanted to offer the clients the experience of convenience and comfort of charter jets, which otherwise may not have the options to enjoy the opportunity on their own.
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
One thing I have found to boost productivity is to start my day by listening to audiobooks of people whom despite the odds, managed to overcome great adversity. Of course, proper diet and exercise is also paramount in maintaining my focus and firing up my day. While my schedules may vary on a typical day, I work nine to five like any other Americans, but with large projects I may work anywhere from 7AM to 3AM. Regardless, I always maintain a healthy work/life balance.
How do you bring ideas to life?
Ideas are brought to life by a good team. They are the backbone of turning any good ideas into reality. Actions are even more important — don’t just talk about it, put the actions into making the idea come to life.
What’s one trend that excites you?
Business and companies are finally becoming more open and less conservative. People finally have the opportunity to be more open and real. I love walking into my office and be surrounded with people who can be their authentic selves and connect with one another.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
I strive to always cultivate the perspectives of experienced mentors as they are a fountain of wisdom. Surround yourself with people to whom you can listen. Their advice can be invaluable in any endeavors. We are living in a wonderful age of social media, where if you can’t find anyone for advice, you can always turn to YouTube, where you will find thousands of postings designed to improve efficiency and productivity.
What advice would you give your younger self?
I am still my younger self and I am currently waiting on advice from my older self.
Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on?
I set goals for myself, and some of these goals can be casually dismissed by others, such as to achieve financial success greater than the current President. I also started as a young entrepreneur and based on measurements of his success at my age, I am on track to vastly surpass him.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
I highly stress the importance of a good work-life balance. It’s completely okay to work hard and play hard, as long as you set goals and achieve them. I am not the type to set my personal life aside, and I embrace the fact that we no longer have to. Now we can play hard at work and work hard at home, as long as we stay focused on the goals we’ve set to achieve.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business? Please explain how.
My strategy is very easy to follow — setting goals. Set your goals, then set guidelines and break them down into smaller goals and assign rewards to them for motivation. Next, constantly put actions to achieve the smaller goals, and use the success as inertia in reaching the larger goals.
What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
I think it would be very empowering for people to starting viewing failure as an educational tool. I’ve gained clarity from assessing the situation so I won’t repeat the same mistakes, and I can operate at better efficiency from the experience, so that I can try again. I am so blessed to have been a part of great companies and organizations before, some of which are no longer around. My time with them have been invaluable in preparing me to understand failure as a by-product of success with perseverance.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
I would love to see someone come up with Uber Eats for the office. It would be amazing to have an app that allows for everyone to choose a restaurant du jour and place their orders from their own desks and conveniently have it delivered.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
I recently gave money to my twelve year old brother. He had been saving up allowances from chores since he was four, when he stated his dream to have his own turkey farm. I wanted to match the amount he put in and the opportunity to contribute to my brother’s success is so rewarding. I still consider that my best investment ever.
What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
Gmail, and every CRM system. They are invaluable in keeping me on track.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
I highly recommend ‘The 4-Hour Workweek’ by Timothy Ferriss. This book can teach anyone how to effectively time manage and achieve work-life balance.
What is your favorite quote?
“She believed she could so she did.”
Key learnings:
– Find a mentor, they are everywhere.
– Don’t wait for advice, go out and get it.
– Set goals, work hard. Achieve goals, play hard.
– Don’t be afraid of failure, learn
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Mario Schulzke is the Founder of ideamensch, which he started a decade ago to learn from entrepreneurs and give them a platform for their ideas.