Episode 24: Dave Budniakiewicz

On this episode of “The Overlap,” Sid Sexton and Keith Glines sit down with Dave Budniakiewicz, founder and owner of Eagle River Outfitter located in Eagle County, Colorado.

Dave’s story is one of following passion and not settling for ease and comfort. Dave graduated from college with a degree in sociology and realized that was not going to be the path for him, He began to grind doing what he loved most, which was fly-fishing. It was not an easy or quick journey, but now Dave is living a life that he loves as owner of his own fly-fishing apparel and guided trip business.

Dave and the guys talk about learning to adjust as a business to stay relevant, as well as the missed opportunities your business will experience when you try to control instead of giving your team the freedom to do what they do best. “My job as a business owner is not to drive the ship. It’s to hire people and put them in positions of their expertise and support them in doing that,” says Dave.

Dave shares how he spent years working for companies that didn’t allow him to be innovative in his area of expertise, and how the slippery slope of “this is how we’ve always done it” mentality stifles the success of a business and contributes to unfulfilled employees and a high turnover rate in your company.

Listen as they discuss how to operate a customer-centered business, setting goals, managing profit and more.