ABOUT THIS EPISODE
What if some of the emotions you consider healthy are actually keeping you disconnected, stuck and unable to grow?
In this episode of Elevate & Execute, the team sits down with Curtis Morley, a five-time entrepreneur, Wall Street Journal bestselling author, speaker, educator, patent holder and business coach.
Curtis shares how growing up in a small Utah town shaped his entrepreneurial mindset, beginning with the moment an 11-year-old Curtis discovered what an entrepreneur was while watching Saturday morning television.
He also reflects on serving a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His journey took him from Japan to the campus of Brigham Young University and eventually Minnesota, where unexpected experiences strengthened his faith and changed his understanding of purpose.
Curtis later built multiple companies, created technology for the music industry and helped grow an education company to eight figures. Along the way, he experienced failed ventures, costly marketing campaigns, difficult partnerships and the challenge of learning when to trust others.
The conversation becomes deeply personal as Curtis discusses divorce, depression and the emotional pain that led him to study what he calls “counterfeit emotions.”
He explains the difference between pain and misery, guilt and shame and being nice versus being genuinely kind. According to Curtis, healthy emotions can move us toward growth and connection, while their counterfeits often create cycles of avoidance, blame and disconnection.
Curtis also shares lessons from his books, The Entrepreneur’s Paradox and The Timeline of Business, including why successful entrepreneurs must eventually stop doing everything themselves, learn to delegate and invest in people.
In this episode:
- Growing up in a small Utah town
- Discovering entrepreneurship at 11 years old
- Serving a two-year mission in Japan, Utah and Minnesota
- The role faith has played throughout Curtis’ life
- Building and learning from multiple businesses
- Creating technology for the music industry
- The danger of trusting business partners without proper due diligence
- Turning an unsuccessful direct-mail campaign into a valuable lesson
- Why staying small can be its own form of risk
- Growing an education company to eight figures
- Navigating divorce, depression and emotional pain
- The difference between pain and misery
- Why Curtis believes misery is built on blame and shame
- The difference between guilt and shame
- Why being nice is not the same as being kind
- Turning conflict into an opportunity for connection
- Why entrepreneurs struggle to delegate
- Investing in people instead of doing everything yourself
- Common mistakes entrepreneurs make as their businesses grow
- The ideas behind The Entrepreneur’s Paradox
- Curtis’ work surrounding counterfeit emotions
Growth often requires more than a new business strategy. It requires confronting the emotions, habits and fears that keep us from changing.
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