Constant Learning Is the Secret Sauce to Success with José Ochoa - Entrepreneur, Engineer & Business Innovation Evangelist, Ep #132

I met José in preparation for Latin Talks and I could see that he embodied the aspirational success that so many Latinos seek when they immigrate to the States. His story is a powerful example of holding steady through the ups and downs of entrepreneurship in a new country.

José Ochoa is an award-winning Mexican-American entrepreneur, engineer and business innovation evangelist who started multi-million-dollar companies in the US and Mexico, among them Global Containers & Custom Packaging Inc., a logistics and packaging company, and Reikoku LLC a consulting company.

Born in Chihuahua, Mexico, José has an Engineering degree from Instituto Tecnológico de Chihuahua II, and worked as a Packaging Engineer for Delphi, where he immersed in operations and logistics for the packaging industry. He was a Global Packaging Engineer for Siemens, designing products and process efficiencies that he pivoted to his own venture: in 2008 José and a partner launched Global Containers and Custom Packaging de México SA de CV to fill an industry gap: integrated packaging and logistics services committed to providing a flawless customer experience.

José is a graduate of the Stanford University Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative and a member of its Latino Business Action Network, an alumnus of Singularity University’s leadership programs, is a native Spanish and English speaker, and an expert in US-Mexico startup and steady-state business consulting matters.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in...

  • How José navigated bankruptcy with his last company (2:43)

  • What his childhood was like in Chihuahua (8:30)

  • How he feels about the necessity of college (15:12)

  • The importance of mentorship (21:41)

  • How a daily routine can help you to find life’s solutions (29:23)

  • Why the Latino community needs to support each other to succeed (37:18)

  • Why it’s important to bring change in your home first (44:29)

Turning a huge loss into an advantage

After José had built his company to multi-millions in revenue, one of his biggest clients went bankrupt, making him lose a million dollars overnight. This led him to nearly declaring bankruptcy himself, but when I asked him how he navigated that experience, he said that he chose to turn it into an advantage. As he told me, “Business is the most expensive education.” His team worked together to figure out how they could strengthen their company, recoup losses, and prepare for a stronger future. They enrolled in an accelerator to invest in their business knowledge and increase their management skills. They won first prize on the pitch day for the best value proposition and received $25K from Microsoft to put towards the rebuild of their company.

How education factors into your success

José’s parents highly valued education and supported him in going to college. Since then he has taken advantage of multiple educational programs and advanced trainings as his business has grown. I asked him what he thought about the value of formal education and he replied that education shows you how to learn. That skill set has served him throughout his whole career as he continues to invest in his learning. It’s a big miss to think of education as only something you invest in from childhood through college. It’s a lifelong investment and dedication to expansion, learning, and becoming a differentiator in your market.

Why being a mentor is valuable

José was invited to be a mentor to small business owners in Latin America through a friend he met at Singularity University. He immediately said yes and he has learned so much from the young business owners he has met. Their insight and ingenuity have inspired him and now he mentors engineer small business owners in India as well. Even when he has to be up in the middle of the night to do calls across the world, he gets so energized by them that he will sometimes stay up after the call. He sees his investment as something that grows the bigger community and economy around him, and that is his bigger purpose.


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