Today's Entrepreneur: Jordan Epstein

No. 1 mistake: Accepting failure

Today's Entrepreneur is Jordan Epstein, Founder of Stroll Health, a company that delivers an app for ambulatory and primary care to physicians’ offices that enables clinicians to make personalized value-based referrals. Epstein went to Carleton College for his BA in Geology. 

Stroll Health (currently in the top 20 semi-finalist) is competing in the Vator Splash Health startup competition. The top 10 finalist will compete and present live on stage in front of several hundred tech influencers (CEOs, media and investors).

Here's a little about Jordan: 

I am a(n): Entrepreneur

Companies I've founded or co-founded: Stroll Health Companies

I work or worked for: NICE Systems, KECK Consortium, Elevar, Merced Systems, Fugro Consultants

Achievements (products built, personal awards won): At Merced Systems, I led the development of a new line of enterprise SMB big data SaaS products used today on five continents. After founding Stroll in Q4 2013, the team I assembled was the Wellmark BCBS Ignition winner, including an LOI. I also participated in Steve Blank's Lean Launchpad for Life Sciences and Healthcare at UCSF, and was accepted into the Prebacked Incubator, Startup Leadership Program, and NEXT.

If you are an entrepreneur, why? I want to change the world.

My favorite startups: Actimator, Flatiron Health, BioFuelBox

What's most frustrating and rewarding about entrepreneurship/innovation? I'm consistently astounded by the level of inertia present in today's economic systems. Change is hard, bureaucracy is entrenched, and attempts to bring a revolutionary idea up through the conventional channels of power can be frustrating. The upside is, entrepreneurship has never been more highly valued, and if you can achieve success and gain traction on your own, chances are good you'll be able to change the world in a meaningful, sustainable way.

What's the No. 1 mistake entrepreneurs make? Accepting failure. Allowing one investor's gloomy prognosis to represent the judgement of the entire market - I see this attitude as the graveyard of hundreds of earth-shaking ideas every year. Entrepreneurial success means persisting in the face of adversity and never giving up.

What are the top three lessons you've learned as an entrepreneur? 1) My product is only as inspiring as the team with which I surround myself. 2) The world is moving faster than ever before, and my time is incredibly precious. I have to be ruthless in choosing which opportunities to pursue. 3) I can never be afraid to fail; every bump in the road is an invitation to learn and grow.

If you had to join a completely new industry, what would it be? I'm incredibly excited by the changes taking place in the financial inclusion sector. In the next 25-50 years, India and Africa will experience tremendous economic growth, and upward mobility requires that the world's poor have access to basic financial products that Americans take for granted - things like savings accounts and access to credit. I'd love to get involved with microfinance or international development somewhere down the road.

To be featured on Today's Entrepreneur: Contact Mitos Suson at mitos@vator.tv.