About this episode

This week’s episode was a special one for me to create. Why? Well it was not due to the celebrity status of our featured founder nor was it due to his gift for handcrafted woodworking (although I am fascinated by woodworking). This episode was special because of how incredibly similar my entrepreneurial story was to this week’s guest, Clint Harp.

Yes, this week’s featured founder is Clint Harp, co-founder of Harp Design Co., and America’s favorite furniture maker from the hit HGTV show Fixer Upper. While Fixer Upper made Clint Harp a household name, he was actually just a few years into his entrepreneurial journey before the show took off. There were so many incredible moments he shared. In fact, despite this episode’s length, there was so much we did not cover. You can learn more about Clint in his book, “Handcrafted: A Woodworker’s Story.”

In this episode, you will learn some incredible lessons about being considerate of your family when jumping into a startup. You will also hear, firsthand from Clint, how critical it is to listen to the wisdom of those closest to you. Finally, you will learn that while it might be painful to move on to something different, you have to stay aware or you will miss the next great opportunity. Before Clint started Harp Design Co., his journey included stints in ministry, mission work, and even medical device sales. While that may surprise you now, once you hear about his early days and his upbringing it will all make perfect sense. This is Clint’s startup story.

In this episode you’ll hear

• Clint’s early childhood, being raised by a dreamer, and rolling around to backwoods churches and big tent revivals with his mother, so she could sing; plus the impact her journey had on him
• His dreams and aspirations as a child, including becoming a professional baseball player
• His journey as a musician, a ministry worship leader, and finally getting to a point of being honest with himself that a career in music was not going to happen
• His transition away from music and what came next: medical device sales
• The importance of exercising your brain, vocalizing big, crazy dreams, and seeing where things lead
• How and when his adventure into woodworking began
• The beginnings of Harp Design Co. and the importance of listening to (and leaning into) your partner or those you are closest to
• Startup lessons: realizing startup is going to be a lot harder than anticipated
• Clint talks about when he moved to Waco, TX, the struggle he experienced during those years, and how by persevering, it led him to the opportunity with HGTV’s Fixer Upper

Resources from this episode

Our Sponsor, MovoCash: https://www.ththestartupstory.co/MovoCash
Connect with Clint Harp on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clint-harp-3aa96068/
Harp Design Co.: https://harpdesignco.com
HGTV’s Fixer Upper: https://www.hgtv.com/shows/fixer-upper
Clint’s book, Handcrafted: A Woodworker’s Story - https://amzn.to/2XNymJz

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Full Episode Transcript

Special Guest: Clint Harp.

Sponsored By:

• Movocash: Download the Movocash app today!