This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
Hey there, thanks for tuning in today. My name is Chris Guillebeau, so glad you're here. You're listening to Side Hustle School, the only podcast bringing you daily stories of people in the trenches making extra money without quitting their job, or sometimes making so much money that they quit their job and go all in, but always doing it without going into debt and by using a skill they already have. That's our mission statement. This segment today, Throwback Thursday, is where we take an in-depth look at someone whose story has evolved since we first featured them.
And we've been doing this podcast a long time, 1,804 days in a row, to be precise, so we got a lot of stuff in the archives. Now last week, we heard about a sporadic mushroom foraging company, sporadic mushroom foraging company that has just sprung up over the past couple of years. Well, it's actually really developed over the past couple of years, but you know, anyway, that was last week. Today, in our latest feature, we'll hear from Dave Green, the founder of Mystery Trip. What's Mystery Trip?
It is an event planning company that does all sorts of cool stuff for work teams and other groups. They've worked with some really big corporations, also a lot of small businesses. And in the update, he'll tell you about one of these events that he did recently that was really cool. You'll also hear how this largely in-person event company was able to make some quick changes during the pandemic. So let's turn it over to Dave.
[Music]
- My name is Dave Green. I am based in Los Angeles, California, and I'm the founder and chief mysterious officer of Mystery Trip, a leading team bonding event planning company. Mystery Trip started out as a summer party for my friends. I was having a really good time hosting these annual parties, and so I decided to turn it into a business. I sent an email to everybody I know, and I said, "Hey, you know what I do?" And I'd appreciate it if you could spread the word.
Within a month, I had my first client. I was featured in LA Weekly's Best Of, and it kind of took off from there. Quickly started working with global brands, and over the years, I've had the extreme pleasure of taking teams from companies like Airbnb, Chevron, SpaceX, Facebook, Google, Kaiser, Netflix, NBC, Taco Bell, Deloitte, and hundreds more on mystery trips throughout the United States. What's happened since the last time you featured me on the show is this little thing called COVID. The pandemic really greatly impacted not only the way Mystery Trips themselves are handled, but also our clients' needs to ensure that their team bonds are still strong during this time.
We started offering virtual experiences prior to COVID, although our main product was in-person experiences, which included everything from scavenger hunts to culinary classes to behind-the-scenes tours, flash mobs, music videos, and things of that nature. But when shelter-in-place happened and everything shut down, we were unable to provide in-person experience. We doubled down on the virtual offerings and created completely unique games for our clients looking to inject some levity and connectiveness into their team's work lives. We started out with trivia, and from there we slowly introduced family feuds, scatagories, scavenger hunts, and game of games, which is a collection of mini-games to the mix. And I'm really excited to share that we're officially launching our newest game, Minute to Win It, next week, which is a hybrid game where guests are shipped a mystery box, and they'll use the items received in that box to play the game.
The beta test has received a ton of positive feedback, and I see it being a very popular experience for our clients in the upcoming holiday season and beyond. One of the most memorable trips that I've done for sure is for an international group that came in to Los Angeles. They were all YouTube employees, and we wanted to create an international experience for them. So we took them to the studio where We Are the World was originally recorded, and we recreated the music video in that studio with everybody singing a different part. Truly an amazing experience, and I've got the video to show it for sure.
The advice I'd give somebody who is looking to follow my footsteps is be prepared for change. Expect and plan for the unexpected. Be open and be willing to change. I certainly never thought that virtual and hybrid events would be a main part of my arsenal, but now I'm forecasting them to be about 50% of mystery trips revenue for at least the next few years. And at all times, you have to keep your head held high.
In every situation, the best course of action is always to remain true to yourself and go after work that inspires you and that you love and that makes you happy. Because if you do that, it's gonna bring out who you really are in your work life and bridge the personal with the professional. And that's really where the heart is. That's what will lift you above the competition and provide you with a certain sort of laser-focused vision and generate novel ideas that don't just drive revenue, which is an important goal, of course, but also helps you be a person on a mission to make a positive, lasting impact in the communities you touch through your work. We're really excited about our new hybrid offerings, and we're equally overjoyed to be offering in-person mystery trips again.
In the last few months, we've had the pleasure of hosting trips in LA, New York, Las Vegas, and elsewhere for leading brands. And it's great to see our clients in person again. [Music]
Well, you heard it best from Dave. He said, "Expect and plan for the unexpected," which is something I think we've all learned in the past couple of years. In his case, you know, he never thought that the virtual and hybrid events would be a main part of the arsenal, but now it's 50% of his revenue.
So very cool to see how he's adjusted. Check out Dave's website, MysteryTrip.co, MysteryTrip.co. Let me know what you think and who you'd like to see featured from our archives of well over 1,000 stories. If you've got a question for us, just hop by sidehustleschool.com/questions. You can also follow me on social media.
I always enjoy hearing what you're working on, what you're up to, what's going well, and what your challenges are. And I hope you'll subscribe or follow and come back tomorrow. New episode every day. My name is Chris Guillebeau. This is Side Hustle School.
[Music]
- From the Onward Project.
