Noel Carroll is the CEO of Biofriendly Corporation. Noel is a thought leader, influencer, visionary, and successful entrepreneur. Noel provides the leadership and energy that has inspired the creation of Biofriendly Corporation.
Noel Carroll joins other leading Bestselling Authors, International Speakers & Entrepreneurs, CEOs and Founders taking part in our Leader Roundtable Interview Series. The DotCom Magazine editorial team is delighted to have Noel join us for our Leader Roundtable Interview.
Let’s start by telling us about your business.
Biofriendly is an environmental education and technology company. We have two flagship products, one is Green Plus® energy transition fuel additive, and the other is Biofriendly Planet eMagazine. Green Plus is a United Nations eco-labeled additive that reduces carbon emissions from everyday fuels by 7%. We’ve treated over 11 billion gallons of fuel and prevented over 8 million metric tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere. Biofriendly Planet is an education and entertainment website that presents environmentalism in a very approachable way. We avoid the doom and gloom that has become common in our field and focus instead on small, simple changes that anyone can make in their life to be a little bit greener.
Q: Please tell us how you make sure your customers will become raving fans of your company?
We are looking to cut through a lot of the political nonsense surrounding the environment and provide simple ideas and solutions that actually lead to a cleaner planet. We believe that if we make environmentalism easy, keep the message upbeat and have a bit of fun with it, the customers will become fans as well.
Q: Please tell us the one thing that separates your business from the competition?
We are never going to brow beat a potential customer for their green failings. Life is hard and change can be even harder, it’s our job to make things easier.
Q: And to finish this section, Please tell us what is the one major key to your company’s success?
Integrity. It is odd that environmentalism has somehow become controversial when most people want clean air, clear water and a thriving ecosystem for all life on our planet, but these are the facts of the day. So, in order to throw our hat into the green ring, it is incumbent upon us to do our research, to be fair with what we find and to do our best to make decisions (without financial bias or influence) that truly lead to a cleaner planet.
Q: For our readers just starting to build a company, what advice can you give entrepreneurs just starting out with a new venture?
Find good people! It is the first thing that you need to do. You will know that your company is worthwhile if others show an interest in helping you to build it. That interest can come in the form of financial investment or just good old fashioned elbow grease from a friend, but that is what you need and that will be a good early measure for your chances of success. The best way to find good people is to clearly document your business idea and share it with people you trust. Keep refining the idea until you find that others are as excited about it as you are and then solicit help. The greatest companies are filled with great people, find them, share with them and keep growing.
Q: For entrepreneurs seeking to build a business as successful as yours, what big piece of advice can you give them when times get a little challenging?
My directing partner and I have a rule from our years in the entertainment industry, it’s called, “Step-1: Shave.” The basic idea is that problems get solved one step at a time, so when you wake up in the morning, instead of worrying about the totality of your challenges for the day, just do the first thing, check it off and then move on to the next. Every business that I have ever been involved with has had problems that seemed too overwhelming to solve, but in every case, the solution presented itself by putting one foot in front of the other and continuing to march forward, no matter how difficult things appeared to be.
Q: In today’s fast changing business environment, how do you stay abreast of things?
The tools to find news are better today than ever thanks to social media and smart phones. The difficulty that I find is to get unbiased information. I use Feedly to subscribe to news sources that I trust, from the industries that affect us the most and I use Twitter to get updates from the ‘horse’s mouth’ as it were. Often if there is a big piece of news that is important to our business, I will actively seek out reporting on it from opposing sources in order to find where the biases are and dig out the relevant data that we need.
Q: What is your “Why”? In one sentence, why do you get up in the morning?
Since my daughter was born it has pretty much been my kids, so I think a lot about the future and how I can make the world better for them.
Q: In one sentence, what is the most important thing one has to do to be a great leader?
Confront and solve problems.
Q: In one sentence, describe how important your customers are to your business?
Without customers you have no business and I think that when you operate your business in a responsible way, you get more customers, so they are pretty key to the whole equation.
Q: In one sentence, describe a positive way that technology can make the world a better place?
Behind technology there is usually a discovery that led to a greater understanding of things, even if a technology turns out to be a negative, the knowledge makes the world a better place.
Q: In one sentence, tell us something positive to motivate our readers?
13 of the 20 richest people in the world right now were self-made.
Q: In one sentence, tell us how you start your day to get ready?
Biofriendly is an international business, so by the time I wake up I already have missed calls, but I make it a point to spend time with my family before I go to work.
Q: In one sentence, describe how you handle rejection and setback?
I run until my frustration simmers into calm, contemplation of my next actions.
Q: In one sentence, describe what your hiring philosophy is?
I want people who are bright in both personality and mind.
Q: In one sentence, describe how you keep your sanity in a competitive business environment?
I take two walks per day, one at midday for lunch and one in the late afternoon, they help a lot.
Website
https://www.facebook.com/biofriendly/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/biofriendlyone/
Noel Carroll , thank you so much for participating in the DotCom Magazine Leader Roundtable Interview Series. We appreciate you participating in this important roundtable interview series, and helping our readers learn more about what it takes to build a great company and become a great leader. We wish you, your family, and of course Biofriendly Corporation, nothing but the best.
