Meet Joe Hector | Owner of Extreme Kayak Fishing Inc.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Joe Hector and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Joe, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Even when I was young I always wanted to create new things and then find out how I can make money selling those things. Sometimes I wonder if being a entrepreneur is in someones blood. I come from a family of entrepreneurs, my great grandfather sold land & houses, my grandfather after WW2 made & sold computers and gadgets and my father built and ran a commercial AC business in NJ and NY until he recently sold it. Now I run EKFT & Joe’s Training on the Go.
So In the end my main thought process behind starting my own business was I just don’t think I could ever work my ass off for someone else’s dream..
It’s not in my blood..

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Back in 2006, a year after graduating college I was laid off from my graphic design company in Miami. Stressed and not knowing what was next for me I talked with one of my mentors about running my own business and he told me that if I go down that road it will be challenging and I would have to put everything into it, and to make sure I love it. Right away I thought of mixing fishing (which I love) with my talents of graphic, web design and public speaking. I saw that most fishing tournaments at the time had the same big money guys winning. So I made a business plan that had my events be for the little guy and the middle class blue collar angler. I made it so that anglers can also use their physical tools to complete against one another using kayaks! And in 2010 Extreme Kayak Fishing Inc. was born in Pompano Beach, FL. One of the biggest lessons I learned over the years is that NOTHING is easy and to make sure to always have a backup plan in place. Running events your head is on a swivel and delegating is everything. Know what you don’t know. Then hire the people that do know! Your only as good as your team.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My father is a big reason why I have the entrepreneur drive in me. He can be hard on me but I have always knew it came from a good place to help me succeed in life. Another mentor of mine I have to mention is Frank Flynn, Frank was a successful business man that I used to personal train. He would give me so much great advice and he even helped me with my first business. Unfortunately he died of cancer before he could see what I have built now. I’ll always remember our talks on life, business and “the little things”.

Website: https://www.extremekayakfishingtournament.org/#/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/extremekayakfishing?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-hector-a3850868

Twitter: https://twitter.com/_EKFT

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/extremekayakfishinginc

Youtube: https://m.youtube.com/user/raiderfrog1?feature=mhee