Paul Zelizer, Business Coach

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Paul Zelizer, Business Coach

Business coach for social entrepreneurs | Award-winning podcaster 🎙️ | Albuquerque business coach | Impact investing evangelist

08/11/2026

🌟 New Mexico has an enormous opportunity to shape the future of clean energy—and collaboration will be key.

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Scott Lopez on the Awarepreneurs podcast about New Mexico’s emerging nuclear ecosystem, the infrastructure needed to support our energy future, and why cross-sector relationships matter so much.

A few takeaways:

⚡ Collaboration breaks down silos. Bringing together policymakers, tribal leaders, utilities, investors, businesses, and communities can accelerate meaningful energy and infrastructure solutions.

🔋 Nuclear is a significant opportunity for New Mexico. Our state has deep experience—from national labs and uranium mining to advanced reactors and nuclear medicine. Scott also emphasized the importance of acknowledging and learning from the difficult parts of that history.

💰 Energy infrastructure is economic development. Affordable, reliable, resilient energy creates the foundation for stronger communities, new industries, and quality jobs.
I really appreciated Scott’s ecosystem-building perspective and commitment to thoughtful collaboration across New Mexico.

Listen on the Awarepreneurs website (www.awarepreneurs.com/podcast) or your favorite podcast app.

07/21/2026

🌟 400 episodes!!!

I’m honored (and a little awestruck) to celebrate this milestone.

Nearly 9 years ago, I took a friend’s advice - thank you Keith Carlson - to move from blogging to podcasting — and what a transformative journey it’s been.

Through hundreds of deep-dive conversations with social entrepreneurs, impact investors, and changemakers worldwide, I’ve learned more than I could have imagined about building a mission-driven business.
Here are my top 3 takeaways:

✅ Financial sustainability is a core part of the mission. Purpose and passion matter, but without solid revenue and a resilient business model, even the best intentions can’t survive long-term turbulence.

✅Change is never a straight line. Progress for impact founders is often messy and full of pivots, setbacks, and lessons. Flexibility and willingness to adapt are non-negotiable traits for success.

✅The most impactful change-makers aren’t always in the spotlight. Some of the most inspiring leaders I’ve interviewed do their best work outside major networks and media attention, often in marginalized or overlooked communities.

If you’ve found value in the show, please share it with someone who could benefit.

You can listen on the Awarepreneurs website, www.awarepreneurs.com/podcast, or your favorite podcast app.

Here’s to continuing the work of positive impact! 💡

07/14/2026

☀️ How do you build a 100% renewable data center?

As AI adoption accelerates, so does the demand for data centers—and with it, growing concerns about electricity use, water consumption, and community impacts.

What if data centers could become part of the climate solution instead?

On the latest Awarepreneurs episode, I sat down with Tim Shaler, CEO of 639 Solar and 639Cloud, to discuss how his team is building data centers powered entirely by solar energy and battery storage.

Three takeaways from our conversation:

☀️ Rethinking renewable energy: 639 Solar combines advanced solar technology with large-scale battery storage to deliver reliable, around-the-clock clean power.

💧 Designed for the Southwest: Their New Mexico data centers use virtually no water beyond minimal humidity control—an important advantage in arid and rural communities.

📈 Better economics, bigger impact: Co-locating solar, batteries, and data centers reduces transmission costs while creating opportunities for clean energy investment, job creation, and rural economic development.

Tim's work demonstrates that 100% renewable data centers aren't just possible—they're becoming practical, scalable, and economically competitive.

🎧 Listen at www.awarepreneurs.com/podcast or your favorite podcast app.

06/09/2026

☀️ How do we retain purpose-driven women in solar—especially when many still feel like they’re navigating the industry alone?

That question was at the heart of my recent Awarepreneurs conversation with Riley Neugebauer, founder of Solar for Women.
Riley shared what makes women-focused solar communities so powerful:

“What we talked about... our group is much more like, how do we lift people up and encourage them? How do we help answer people's questions? How do we help just celebrate the work that you're doing?”

That may sound simple.

But in technical fields like solar, where underrepresented professionals can feel isolated, support and recognition are not “soft” extras.

They are essential retention strategies.

They help people build confidence, deepen skills, and see a future for themselves in the industry.

One takeaway for employers:

Create spaces where celebrating wins is normal, questions are welcomed, and technical knowledge is shared without judgment.

That kind of culture helps build stronger teams. 🌱

What practices have helped you create belonging and growth in technical teams?

Riley offers a grounded, hopeful look at what it takes to build a solar workforce where more people can stay, lead, and thrive.

🎧 Listen at the Awarepreneurs website — www.awarepreneurs.com/podcast — or your favorite podcast app.

05/26/2026

⚠️ Many social entrepreneurs assume that if they build a successful company, they’ll have more power to protect the mission.

Eric Ries (author of the Lean Startup) says that’s often dangerously wrong.

In our latest Awarepreneurs conversation, Eric shared a sobering insight:

The more successful, trusted, and valuable a company becomes, the more attractive it becomes to people and systems that may not share the founder’s mission.

In fact, Eric shared a sobering statistic: “According to Harvard Law School research, among venture capital backed startups without appropriate protections, only 20% of founders survive even three years as a CEO after going public.”

That’s why governance can’t be an afterthought.

We talked about founders being pushed out, companies drifting from their purpose, and impact brands becoming something very different.

❌ Good intentions are not enough.
❌ A strong culture is not enough.
❌ Even product-market fit is not enough.

If you want your life’s work to survive growth, capital, leadership transitions, and outside pressure, you need to design for durability from the beginning.

Eric frames this as building “incorruptible” companies—enterprises with the structure and integrity to stay true to their purpose over time.

How are you protecting your company from mission drift before it becomes urgent?

🎧 Listen to the full Awarepreneurs episode with Eric Ries at www.awarepreneurs.com or your favorite podcast app.

05/26/2026

Beautiful and relaxing holiday weekend in Durango!

04/29/2026

The recent hackathon that and hosted was a big success!

70 hackers, 20 mentors, 200+ people at the demo portion.

The tech for good community is growing in New Mexico!

04/20/2026

Let's go!!

Mayor Tim Keller from kicking off the judging at the Desert Dev Lab hackathon.

Big thanks to for hosting this event!

04/14/2026

☀️ Episode 395 of Awarepreneurs is a little different.

In this solo episode, I share why I’m taking a strategic pause to protect the quality of the show.

🚀Over the past several months, I’ve said yes to a lot of meaningful work: two fractional leadership roles with clean energy companies, helping lead NM Tech Talks and TechFest 2026, and supporting a full coaching roster. At a certain point, I realized I was doing too many important things at a B level instead of doing a few of them really well.
Awarepreneurs matters too much to me to show up rushed or half-present.

So I’m taking a 6-week break to create more space for sharper ex*****on, better preparation, and the thoughtful conversations this community deserves.

This pause is not about stepping away from the mission. It’s about protecting the quality, care, and intention behind the show as we head toward Episode 400.

🎧Listen at www.awarepreneurs.com/podcast or your favorite podcast app.

The show returns May 28 with Eric Ries discussing his new book, Incorruptible.

03/31/2026

🕸️How are organizations moving from transactional gatherings to transformative impact networks?

❓What if your next event catalyzed real collaboration instead of ending with applause - and everything going right back to the way it was?

On the Awarepreneurs podcast, Paul Zelizer explores these questions with Cole Hoover, drawing from Cole's 17+ years of experience with thousands of social impact leaders and changemakers.

Cole’s pragmatic takeaway: “Marketing can be trickier in this space, but when it works, it builds deep trust.” He underscores that the true value of networks comes from relationships held over time, not one-off conferences or endless surveys.

His advice: Fund the connective tissue. Support the facilitators, experimenters, and relationship stewards who make communities resilient. That’s where real breakthroughs emerge.

How are you resourcing collaboration in your ecosystem? The latest Awarepreneurs episode dives into strategies for building lasting impact in uncertain times—check it out for inspiration and practical tips.

🎧Listen at www.awarepreneurs.com/podcast or your favorite podcast app.

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