Carter Hopkins: As a State, Texas Is Very Pro-business & Pro-entrepreneurship

Carter Hopkins of Pursuit .

Tell us about yourself?

I was born and raised in Shreveport, Louisiana! I moved to Texas where I attended Baylor University, graduating with degrees in finance and entrepreneurship.

I spent 3 years in medical sales before taking the leap to quit my comfortable job and pursue a dream in 2015. Since I was young, my motto has been love God, love people.

I love what I get to do every day and the team that I get to do it with. It’s been a blessing watching my dream unfold before my eyes.

What lessons has being an entrepreneur taught you? 

The biggest thing being an entrepreneur has taught me is how far I have to grow as an individual. As you lead others, all personal flaws get brought to light.

I have struggled with control in different areas of leading a business and this has been brought to the forefront.

Having people on my team that I trust and know I can lean on to get things done helps me through this.

If you could go back in time to when you first started your business, what piece of advice would you give yourself?

“Things are never as good as you think they are and they’re never as bad as you think they are.”

A lot of entrepreneurs find it difficult to balance their work and personal lives. How have you found that?

Faith, family, and then work are my priorities in life; in that order. Gaining clarity on what my priorities are and then relentlessly keeping those priorities in order is what helps me keep ‘work-life balance’.

Reading scripture daily helps keep my focus on the most important thing which is my faith, and having people around me to call me out when those priorities get out of wack.

Give us a bit of an insight into the influences behind the company?

A huge influence on Pursuit is our mission to develop people personally and professionally.

The first few hires I made have helped immensely with this mission and have also shaped our culture and the company we are.

Seeking out mentors and people who have done this before me also play a big part in who Pursuit is today.

What do you think is your magic sauce? What sets you apart from the competitors?

What sets us apart from other sales recruiting companies is our people.

We strive to develop and care for our people both personally and professionally, and this bleeds into the way they care for our clients and candidates.

Each recruiter on our team takes the time to get to know candidates on a personal level and makes sure that they are the right fit for the job (& that the job is the right fit for them!).

We don’t rely on AI or systems to match candidates with roles, we have intentional conversations with people to ensure they are making the right move.

How have you found sales so far? Do you have any lessons you could pass on to other founders in the same market as you just starting out?

Get scrappy and keep sales as a top priority in your company. Without sales, you don’t have a company

What is the biggest challenge you have faced so far in your business, and how did you overcome it?

Like many other companies, COVID was a huge challenge for us. Fortunately, we’ve got a team who is in the foxhole together.

We have continued fighting for each other and have come out the other side stronger than we were before.

What do you consider are the main strengths of operating your business in Texas over other states in the US?

As a state, Texas is very pro-business & pro-entrepreneurship.

They set things up to make it a favorable environment to start your own business, which is sometimes not the case in other states.

Are there any disadvantages of operating our business in Texas?

Not that I have found so far

Texas has a pretty diverse population. How have you found the quickly changing demographics have impacted your business? Have you got new opportunities? Managed to expand your business into new areas?

We have always served a diverse population since we provide sales recruiting services across the country.

The number of different businesses moving into Texas has definitely increased our opportunities to have a large client base close by us.

It is often reported that, in Texas, politics and business are intertwined. Have you noticed this? Has it impacted your business?

Texan politicians have created an environment that is favorable for people starting businesses.

Other entrepreneurs relocating their businesses to Texas have helped entrepreneurs here as a whole.

With rising prices across Texas (and the US as a whole) have you been impacted? Do you have a plan for dealing with inflation going forward?

Because of the nature of our business, we haven’t had to deal with it as much as other businesses. Internally, we have raised compensation for current employees to help with increased expenses.

What do you want to accomplish in the next 5 years with your business?

I want to be the number one sales recruiting company in the US and I want to continue developing our people personally and professionally.

And finally, if people want to get involved and learn more about your business, how should they do that?

Our website is www.pursuitsalessolutions.com, you can contact us through the website or send an email to ‘[email protected]’. You can also connect with us on social media – LinkedIn page here:https://www.linkedin.com/company/pursuit-sales-solutions/mycompany/verification/?viewAsMember=true and Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/pursuitsalessolutions_/

Follow Pursuit on Twitter or Linkedin.