{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Staying Focused And Authentic with Tristan Schukraft","description":"Brian chats with Tristan Schukraft, president and CEO of MISTR, a telehealth platform that offers discrete access to medication that can help prevent HIV. On the episode, Tristan shares how he started MISTR to help his friends, which led to a business fueled by passion. He also discusses the importance of knowing your market, staying true to your mission, and questioning how to make the status quo better. Episode Highlights Mission-driven businesses make a positive impact on communities. Like other guests on the podcast, Tristan defines a mission-driven business as one that has a higher purpose and makes a positive impact on the world. But he goes one step further by saying mission-driven businesses even more specifically make a positive impact on the communities they\u2019re designed to serve. \u201cThe mission of any business is like the guiding North star,\u201d Tristan said. \u201cAll business decisions that are made all circle back to the mission. It\u2019s really important for entrepreneurs to understand what the mission is and stay focused on that.\u201d For MISTR, that mission is to help increase access and adherence to Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), a once-daily medicine that helps prevent HIV. While PrEP is \u201ca huge change in the fight against HIV,\u201d the number of people using it to prevent new HIV infections was limited. Tristan created MISTR to try and help. \u201cIt was not necessarily a business at first, but more that I wanted to help my friends get on PreEP and help eliminate HIV infections,\u201d Tristan said. \u201cWhen you\u2019re focused on making money, it doesn\u2019t work out. And when you\u2019re so passionate about what you\u2019re doing, everything kind of comes together.\u201d Know your audience. To be a successful entrepreneur, you not only need to be passionate about your work and your mission but you also have to know the audience you\u2019re serving. For instance, Tristan was invited to join the HIV Commission in Los Angeles, which was made up of passionate people who lived through the AIDS crisis. But to get more young people to use and adhere to PreP, the commission\u2019s plan involved calling people and using data that was years out of date. \u201cI quickly realized if you want adherence and access to increase, you have to move this online,\u201d Tristan said. \u201cWho are you trying to target? Young people. Young people don\u2019t answer the phone. Young people don\u2019t have voicemail.\u201d Stay focused to find success. Tristan is full of energy and ideas, and he\u2019s always looking for opportunities. So his brother gave him advice that has stuck with him: To be really successful, you have to stay focused. Tristan applied his brother\u2019s advice to launch his first successful company and still uses it to focus on his business initiatives today. \u201cYou can\u2019t be everything to everyone,\u201d Tristan said. \u201cYou have to really understand your market and stay true to your market.\u201d Staying focused is also something that Tristan tells the marketing team of MISTR. The company speaks to its target community in a non-medical and very sex-positive way, which resonates with its customers. \u2018You\u2019re going to offend some people, but that's okay, right?\u201d Tristan said. \u201cIf you\u2019re trying to please everybody, then you lose your authenticity.\u201d Resources + Links Tristan\u2019s Social Media: Instagram, LinkedIn Mistr: Website, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook The Tryst Beachfront Hotel Brian\u2019s Social Media: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook About Brian and the Mission Driven Business Podcast Brian Thompson, JD\/CFP, is a tax attorney and certified financial planner who specializes in providing comprehensive financial planning to LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs who run mission-driven businesses. The Mission Driven Business podcast was born out of his passion for helping social entrepreneurs create businesses with purpose and profit. On the podcast, Brian talks with diverse entrepreneurs and the people who support them. Listeners hear stories of experiences, strength, and hope and get practical advice to help them build businesses that might just change the world, too. ","author_name":"Mission Driven Business","author_url":"https:\/\/btfinancial.com\/podcast","html":"