Tag Archives: Entrepreneurship

Follow your bliss. That summarizes the philosophy of 20th century author and mythologist Joseph Campbell. In his book, Reflections in the Art of Living: A Joseph Campbell Companion, Campbell said, “If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living… I say, follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.” I bring up Campbell and this idea because I believe it is a very important concept for leaders and entrepreneurs. I find that successful leaders and entrepreneurs understand that they will be most effective when they live authentic lives and are true to themselves. I thank my interviewee this week, Coyt Bailey, for introducing me to Campbell and his work. Bailey is the owner of Mercury Aviation, a leading helicopter aviation company based in Flowood, Miss.

Coyt Bailey

Bailey is a Jackson native who received his undergraduate degree from Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia. Out of college, Bailey followed his passion of the outdoors and worked for a number of years for Outward Bound. His travels also took him to Mexico where he was a teacher. However, he kept coming back to a desire to fly helicopters. When he looked into pursuing his training to become a helicopter pilot, he was strongly dissuaded from that path. People told him there were not any jobs and that he should become a fixed wing pilot instead. He followed this guidance and earned his pilot license in Oklahoma and flew for about a year, but he still wanted to pursue being a helicopter pilot. In spite of his detractors, he decided to “follow his bliss” and went to Oakland, California, to get his credentialing as a helicopter pilot.

Out of training, he landed a job doing traffic reports back in Jackson. For those in the local Jackson market, they will probably remember his tenure where he was Captain Coyt who flew with Chopper Bob for WLBT.

What originally started out as following a passion, has turned into a thriving business. Today, his company Mercury Aviation has nine pilots and provides helicopter services all over the country.  His company has expanded to serve law enforcement agencies, utilities, real estate and construction companies, and many others. As I interviewed him for this article, he was flying his helicopter across the Midwest to a project in North Dakota. He shared, “It has been an incredible experience to visit 48 states and view the world from 500 feet in my helicopter.”

It takes courage to follow your bliss. Bailey explained that his mother gave him books by Joseph Campbell when he was in college. He said, “She always believed in me and encouraged me to pursue my dreams.” He also credits his father, Buster Bailey, with modeling for him how to lead a successful business. He noted, “My father drilled into me from an early age the importance of integrity, honesty and compassion. He modeled these for me in how he ran his business.” For young entrepreneurs, Bailey advises, “Make sure you are passionate about your business. It will take much more work than you expect, and there will be unforeseen challenges along the way. If you are not passionate about your work, it will be very difficult to endure these challenges.” I was encouraged by Bailey’s story and the focus he has to follow his bliss for his life and career. I hope you will consider and follow your own bliss for your career. Life is too short not to.

A few years ago, Keith McFarland wrote a book titled The Breakthrough Company, which was based on a five-year study he did of more than 7,000 companies. I like his book because it focuses on how middle market companies can achieve lasting success. Too often, business books are geared towards large global companies which has little relevance for small and mid-size businesses.  One of the key attributes of companies that break out of the entrepreneurial phase is that they surround themselves with networks of outside resources which McFarland calls “scaffolding.”  For example, one story he shared was about former NFL Hall of Famer Roger Staubach, who started The Staubach Company real estate company in 1977.  Staubach faced some challenging times early on in his career, and he credits the support of his Young Presidents Organization (YPO) forum group for helping him work through the difficulties.

Kristian Agoglia

Whether forum groups, advisory boards or key consultants, there is much to be gained in having this kind of “scaffolding” as you build a business.

My interviewee this week, Kristian Agoglia, has built a successful vegetation management and disaster recovery company in New York and is now expanding his business to Mississippi. Kristian is a native of Long Island and grew up in a hard-working entrepreneurial family. He attributes the core values that his parents instilled in him as having a big impact on his success in business.

When Kristian was 15, he started a lawn service business, which was the predecessor to his business today, Looks Great Services.  By the time he graduated high school and went off to Liberty University, he had a thriving business, which he was able to continue even while in college and later graduate school at Regent University. In 1999, Kristian formally incorporated his business and the rest, as they say, “is history.” He has continued to grow his business and later added disaster clean up services as a service offering.

In 2005, Kristian deployed crews to Mississippi to help with post-Hurricane Katrina clean up. It was during this time that he met his wife who was from Columbia, Miss. After getting married, he decided it was time to start Looks Great Services of Mississippi, which specializes in vegetation management for utility companies and employs over 75 people in the state.  This past year, Kristian and his wife decided to relocate from New York to her hometown of Columbia.

As we discussed the challenges of growing a company, Kristian noted how he had always sought outside perspectives on his business. He shared a story of how he hired Bobb Biehl, a guest lecturer at Regent University, to advise him on his business while he was still in college. He shared, “It was a significant investment for me at the time, but it was worth every penny.” Biehl has continued to be an advisor to Kristian and his company. He noted, “I have always sought other people’s opinions and advice on my business to help identify blind spots, gain perspective, and improve my operations.” Kristian noted that over the last 15 years he has invested significant time and resources in seeking this type of feedback on his business and it has paid large dividends for him.

During disaster recovery projects, Kristian can have over 1,000 people working for him. His ability to scale quickly when needed is based on the quality of the team he has developed. He noted, “I try to help my employees find their strengths and focus their work on those type projects.” He continued, “My philosophy is to try and fit a round peg into a round hole.”  He spends a lot of time in the interview process to really get to know the individual. He wants to understand what truly motivates them and what they care about. Kristian’s commitment to maintaining his own “scaffolding,” his perseverance, and his perspective on the importance of people has him positioned for continued success in his business. Kristian is a welcome transplant to Mississippi, and I know he will have a positive impact on the state.