Sam Jockel is the founder of ParentTV, which offers hundreds of on-demand videos and courses to support the parenting and care of children from birth to teens. Sam is also the Entrepreneur In Residence at The University of Queensland. Before entering the startup world, Sam was a serial entrepreneur, starting several businesses including Biddy Bags, a profit-for-purpose company producing handcrafted, ethical designer products.
ParentsTV: https://parenttv.com/Biddy Bags: https://www.facebook.com/biddybagsonline/Sam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samjockel/details/experience/
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Adam Spencer: Let me tell you about our partner, Teamified. If you need to build a top-notch team quickly, Teamified is your go-to solution. They not only provide fractional CTOs, they can also do contractors and even remote team members tailored exactly to your needs. And whether you're looking for expertise in the Philippines, India, or Sri Lanka, Teamified has you covered. What's amazing is that Teamified uses a blend of AI and human expertise to cut hiring times by 50%, cent. Their platform handles everything from automated onboarding to day-to-day management and even performance tracking. You can also handle rewards and recognition, buy equipment, and order training all through their platform. Simplify your hiring process and get the best talent fast with Teamified. Check them out now and transform your team. Go to dayone.fm/teamified. That's dayone.fm/teamified. Thank you. T-E-A-M-I-F-I-E-D, and get started today. Hi, I'm Adam Spencer, founder of the Day One Network, which is bringing the history of the Australian startup ecosystem to you. I believe in founders. It's why I do everything I do at Day One and our media company, W2D1 Media. And that's why the Day One Network exists, to create helpful content for founders. We've got some great shows in development. But a large part of what we do couldn't be done without support from our partners and sponsors. And I couldn't be happier than to be working with NTP, who get community better than any other technology recruitment company out there. A Newcastle company like mine, NTP are invested in seeing the growth of the local tech community in Newcastle, Sydney, and more broadly Australia. So thank you NTP for helping us bring— Thank you. Helpful content to founders and the startup community in Australia. Back to the interview. Hi, I'm Adam Spencer, founder of the Day One Network, which is bringing the history of the Australian startup ecosystem to you. I believe in founders. It's why I do everything I do at Day One and our media company, W2D1 Media. And that's why the Day One Network exists, to create helpful content for founders. We've got some great shows in development. But a large part of what we do couldn't be done without support from our partners and sponsors. And I couldn't be happier than to be working with NTP, who get community better than any other technology recruitment company out there. A Newcastle company like mine, NTP are invested in seeing the growth of the local tech community in Newcastle, Sydney, and more broadly Australia. So thank you NTP for helping us bring helpful content to founders and the startup community in Australia. Back to the interview. Hi, I'm Adam Spencer and welcome to Day One, the podcast that spotlights Australian startups, founders, and the organizations that empower Australian entrepreneurship. We go back to the beginning to tell the story of Australia's most inspiring founders and how they built their companies. You're listening to a special interview series as part of a documentary W2D1 is producing about the history of the Australian startup ecosystem. On the episode today, we have—
Sam Jockel: Hey, I'm Sam. I'm the founder of Parent TV, also the recent founder of another company called Qualify and entrepreneur in residence at the University of Queensland. I've been running my own businesses now for probably about 15 years or so, and really in that stage startup world for 3 to 4 years now. Pre that, I actually have 3 children that are now 14, 11, and 7. So my life is a hoot.
Adam Spencer: Hahaha.
Sam Jockel: Being a mum to a couple of kids, well, 3, and a couple of businesses as well that often feel like my children. I love business and I love the freedom that I feel like it gives me to decide what I do when I wake up. Every day, and it feels like a privilege to be in a position where I get to do that. I started out as a social worker. I have a double degree in theology and human services, which feels very far away from believing or thinking that I would end up in technology startups, but somehow I feel like I've maintained that part of my life and that vision I had for what I wanted to kind of do with my life and somehow merge that with tech and I don't know, I feel like it's a beautiful thing, it's a challenging thing, but it's great to wake up every day and do what I do. In terms of what that looks like, think about Parent TV a little bit like Netflix or YouTube for parenting resources. We brought together some of the world's leading parenting educators all in the one place and we filmed over now 1,300 videos just answering the questions that parents and educators are asking.
Adam Spencer: Mm-hmm.
Sam Jockel: In terms of, I guess, where the market was for our product and what we're doing these days is even though parents are essentially who we reach, our business actually mostly supports people who support parents. So working with early learning centers, schools, organizations, corporates who have parents as a part of their community, and they use our online resource, I guess, as tools to support parents in the moments they need it. I guess during COVID there's been a lot of support needed in terms of our social and emotional wellbeing. And yeah, we kind of slot into that place. And Qualify, which I spoke about a little bit earlier, has kind of been a brand that's, we've created and emerged out of Parent TV, specifically looking at professional learning and development, often within that social and emotional space for corporates, for childcare, supporting their staff. Mm-hmm. To be able to support themselves and also their teammates and often the parents and the children in their care. So, yeah, it's fun and games, lots happening all the time.
Adam Spencer: How many businesses or companies would you say you've started?
Sam Jockel: Ah, yeah, that's a good question. Maybe 5 if we don't include childhood businesses like washing cars and collecting trolleys for money and painting shells that we're selling at the caravan park. My first ever proper business was a business called Biddybags. And then I had School Mum, Aussie Mum, Good Funny Smart was an influencer agency. Those things kind of all fit together and then it merged into Startup Land, which was Parent TV. And I guess that was, that was that startup piece for me really, like most of the businesses that I did in my early days, I guess they weren't really set up for scale or I didn't kind of know what that meant. I was at the center of them. So most of them couldn't operate without me and they needed me. And Parent TV was my first kind of evolution into thinking about business where it could exist outside of me and scale outside of me. And yeah, that was about 4 years ago.
Adam Spencer: So yeah, around 2017.
Sam Jockel: Mm-hmm.
Adam Spencer: And that is when you would say you were first exposed to the startup world.
Sam Jockel: Yeah, so I didn't even really know what that meant back there. It's been a big 3 years, so it feels like it's been a part of my life forever. But as I look back on it, like business I kind of knew, but startup and what that actually meant and scaling and systems and processes and tech and raising capital, Yeah, that I knew nothing of. And it was about 3, 4 years ago. I was actually friends with a guy who, Adrian Brown, who actually is the founder of Mr. Yum, which has taken off along with Kim and a few other people and is one of Brisbane/Melbourne's massively growing startups. They're overseas at the moment, that's scaling and doing really well. I bumped into him at an airport. And at the time I was massively involved in social media scaling, marketing, branding, that kind of stuff. And he actually asked me if I could consult with them and help them come up with a strategy for a company they had at the time called Pitch Black. So I started working for them, helping them with their social media strategy. And that Pitch Black company supported people who had startup ideas to take them from idea to, I guess, raising some capital. And I was just exposed to what they did through helping them with their social media strategy. And then about a couple of months later, as I thought about what I wanted to do with my life and realized it wasn't what I was doing, I was like, I think something along the lines of what Adrian does is where my head is at. So I called him and was like, I think I need to come and do this course that you guys are running. And anyway, I paid 5 grand, enrolled in their course at the time. This is years ago. It was a 13-week kind of startup accelerator course, but you paid for it. So no one took any equity in your company. And it was their job to make sure that you learned something, which was really good. I'm the kind of person that if I pay for something, I'm committed to it.
Adam Spencer: Yeah.
Sam Jockel: So yeah, I showed up for 6 weeks, did a startup course, no idea what I was doing, 3 hours at night on a Wednesday night, left my kids with my husband. And 3 months later, Parent TV was a bit clearer in my head about what I wanted to do. The story's hilarious. Like I called the wrong Alex, like I called someone It was the wrong Alex. And then I was like, oh, sorry, Alex. I meant to call someone else. He was like an old boss. And he was like, what are you up to these days, Sam? And I literally was like, oh, I've got this idea about Parent TV. And I was telling him about it. And he's like, do you need like some capital for this? And I was like, actually, I think I do.
Adam Spencer: Wow.
Sam Jockel: And then he said, oh, look, I'm in like Melbourne next week with Graham, who has ended up being my key investor. Who owned The Body Shop Australia, and he'd sold it a couple of years earlier. Why don't you come down, have a meeting with us, pitch us the idea? I think he'd like it. And so a week later I'm on a plane to Melbourne, walk into a meeting, pitch for the first time with a pitch deck, and walked out with $200,000.
Adam Spencer: Wow.
Sam Jockel: I know, right? Craziest story ever.
Adam Spencer: How?
Sam Jockel: I know.
Adam Spencer: That's awesome.
Sam Jockel: Sole female founder, never done startup, did a course for 3 months. I had paid another 10 grand to have like a mockup done of what my idea. So I did have like this working mockup prototype that I could show them. I'd had a history. So, you know, I'd built a couple of online communities that had 650,000 people. I'd done business. So I didn't walk into that meeting like with no history. And that's what I say to people when they do hear that story and they often go— Mm-hmm. Like, wow, it's that easy. I'm like, it's not.
Adam Spencer: Yeah.
Sam Jockel: 'Cause I worked for 15 years and proven that I could execute. So when I come in and say, this is my idea and this is what I can do, there's a story there that shows that I have capacity and that matters a lot.
Adam Spencer: Two follow-up questions. What was, one, what was the biggest lesson kind of that you took away from that 13-week course? Like what was the biggest, what was the biggest thing that you got out of that?
Sam Jockel: What was the biggest thing that I got out of that?
Adam Spencer: Was it a change in mindset or?
Sam Jockel: Yeah, I think probably that I knew more than I thought. For me, my whole life, like I'm learning a lot at the moment in my journey. So the stage I'm at now, I've literally just kind of got a co-founder into everything that I'm doing 3 years after I did it, but he is exceptional and a very successful tech entrepreneur in a number of different, businesses in the past. So watching and learning from him, I've realized that I'm more capable and better than I've ever given myself credit for, which has actually been something that I think has held me back.
Adam Spencer: Mm-hmm.
Sam Jockel: And I remember doing that 13-week course and sometimes going, I feel like I don't wanna say this because it sounds arrogant, but going, I know this stuff and this isn't rocket science. There were bits that I learned that was new, but really for most of it, I was like, ah, actually I already know this. But I still at that point didn't allow that to sink in and feel confident that you know what you're doing rather than just doubting yourself all the time.
Adam Spencer: Mm-hmm.
Sam Jockel: So then I lived with still like a lot of doubt and it's like I knew back then, but I still didn't give myself Yeah, I just didn't give myself permission to go, the experience you have had in the last 15 years in business actually does count a lot, even in this startup space, even though it sounds new and it sounds different and there's all these different bits and pieces. From the actual experience I've had now, having done that and now done this the last 3 to 4 years, I think the biggest learning and the difference and the thing you have to get your head around in terms of what truly makes what makes startup different in my opinion and what is the thing that enables it to scale is actually fully understanding systems and processes.
Adam Spencer: Yeah.
Sam Jockel: So I'm very entrepreneurial.
Adam Spencer: Oh really? I couldn't tell.
Sam Jockel: Well, and so, no, but I'm, so my brain and everything's like just firing off all the time and I actually am incredibly amazing at systems and processes in my own mind for my own ability to be high performing. But that is not enough when you're building that in a business.
Adam Spencer: Yeah.
Sam Jockel: And extracting that out of myself and putting that into something that sits outside of me that other people can pick up and that can be scaled, like that's the thing. That is the work of the last 3 years of my life and I'm still not even there. Because I'm still only just fully understanding the parts that I figure out sometimes in my head and that that's actually important to get down on paper and not just assume that they know or that that isn't a piece of information that somebody needs. And I feel like I just spend my days not understanding what needs to be documented, Yeah, I'm getting better and there's a lot more of that, but it's been 3 years of getting stuff on paper for other people. Like for me, that's what this is. But I kind of think that entrepreneurs are interesting and we all have a story and there's something that happens to us that pushes us into this as a choice because it's an insane choice to make with your life 'cause it's full on.
Adam Spencer: Yeah.
Sam Jockel: And part of it is, I think, a little bit about control. You know, control, when you think about it, is about maintaining your position. And so when the knowledge is you, then there's safety in that. So you have to actually work against yourself to get it out because you're relinquishing control.
Adam Spencer: I'm starting to realize that I should have scheduled more time with you. I'd love to interview you again. My other follow-up question was around how did you prepare for that pitch?
Sam Jockel: Oh, the first one that I ever did?
Adam Spencer: Yeah.
Sam Jockel: Yeah, so I put a pitch deck together. I had a week, so, you know, fortunately being part of a 13-week course, you know, part of that was about learning how to put a pitch deck together. So I used the resources that I had around me and was like, ah! So I put that together and I had like the prototype, but to be honest, like I go and talk at things a lot and pitch a bit. I think in terms of my process for preparation, I manically just think about things all the time. And I realize that, like, it's all there in my mind and I've already had the conversation 77 times before I walk into anything without even realizing that that's what's been percolating. So I've learned to trust myself, like even just coming here on this podcast with you, like I thought about it a minute before I jumped on because I already think about all the things all the time.
Adam Spencer: Yeah.
Sam Jockel: And I've just learned to trust that I know what I think the opportunity is. I really believe in it. I've thought about it for a significant amount of time and I just need to trust that I can show up and know what to say. And I've done it enough now that I can just do it because I believe it. So the preparation is, do you believe yourself? Because if you don't believe yourself, don't go in and talk to anybody because they're never going to believe you. So the prep is really sitting with yourself and what it is that you're trying to create and trying to tell the world is really important. And be honest with yourself about whether you actually truly believe it. And if you do, it will come.
Adam Spencer: What one piece of advice would you give your 2017 self?
Sam Jockel: Ooh, what's one piece of advice?
Adam Spencer: Even before 2017, even before you started your first business, like what one piece of advice would you give yourself?
Sam Jockel: You're better than you think you are. And you know, that's hard for me to even say now, but I spent many years not believing that or just thinking everyone else knew or I didn't know, or just needing to check and needing to do this and that. It kind of got in the way of some things, but our need to prove our value from our work, which is what I have been doing for a long time, which is misplaced, but it is the thing that drives people to be high performers. But at some point there is a ceiling to what you are able to carry and produce on your own. And it all kind of starts to unravel at that point, which was for me about a year ago and where I really needed to ask for help and support and relinquish the control and realize it would still be okay because, you know, because I'm needed and better than I think. So I don't know if that makes sense, but anyone who's been on this journey might understand that a little bit, but—
Adam Spencer: Yeah.
Sam Jockel: Yeah, I think business is a really personal journey for founders. And if you're willing to put everything on the line and put yourself out there, and it's very, very personal. And sometimes you have to stop and ask what's going on there because at some point, yeah, you just have to face yourself all the time as you grow and the next thing comes and having to push through the barriers of, your own limitations requires you to have to do a lot of work personally.
Adam Spencer: The last question I have with the last couple of minutes we have isn't really a question. I just, we're trying to create a documentary here that will tell the whole story of the Australian startup ecosystem. We want founders, investors, policymakers, academics to listen, everyone from all corners of the ecosystem to listen to this documentary. What do you think they need to hear?
Sam Jockel: So in my specific, lane of business that I do, it's really, really unique. So the work that we do has historically sat with non-for-profits. I've come from social work, community development background. And for me, I felt the frustration of seeing opportunities and things that needed to happen, but there being so much red tape that I didn't have any capacity to be able to do those things. So the only way for me to give that a shot was to step into the land of business because that's where I don't have to ask permission. And I've been trying to forge with the work that we're doing solutions for mental health, community wellbeing, and a whole bunch of different bits and pieces using a business framework. And we're doing some amazingly innovative things, but it's really challenging because—
Adam Spencer: Mm-hmm.
Sam Jockel: Sometimes we have to interact with some of these, like, historical government systems and those processes. I understand why they exist, but there absolutely needs to be more value and understanding put on the work that we're doing and how critically important it is from an innovative point of view, because the world is moving so fast and those big legacy systems and organizations, they just actually can't keep up. Keep up with what's needed. And they have to learn to trust business and trust innovators more because we do actually bring to the table solutions and our intent is actually really good. And a lot more listening needs to happen and a lot more belief that intent is good as well. And I think sometimes those two things get missed and business has historically been seen as maybe something where someone just wins and they don't really care about the bigger picture. But I think business is changing and the leaders of those businesses are changing. And yep, there is that element there, but I don't know, there needs to be more listening and more trust. That I know.
Adam Spencer: I hope you enjoyed that interview. More interviews are on the way. Follow the podcast wherever you're listening right now. Stay tuned for more interviews with many, many more amazing people from the Australian startup ecosystem. Thanks for listening and see you next time.
