Dan Vansteenburg, Spin the Planet CEO, on what happens when you change your mindset

Off the Record

As Dan Vansteenburg knows, mindset can make the difference between success and failure. Now the CEO of Spin the Planet, which owns and operates 46 Jimmy John's franchise stores and other restaurants, Vansteenburg admits he had to overcome a lot of challenges during his school years.
He was small and unathletic for his age and a “horrible student,” Vansteenburg tells Off the Record podcast hosts Kathy Robideau, former market president and publisher for the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, and Dave Faust, president and CEO of Platinum Bank, in this episode. But one day, after his family moved to Brooklyn Park during his high school years, he had a moment of clarity.
“I felt the hand of God on my shoulder,” Vansteenburg says. “I heard Him say, your arms work, your legs work, your ears and eyes and mouth work. You’ll never be the football player. You’re not going to go to state wrestling as a high school student. You’re not going to be a lot of things, but I want you to try. I want you to work at it. I want you to try.”
Listen to the episode to hear Vansteenburg’s success journey and more about:
Memories of Vansteenburg’s early teaching career (21:17).

• Doing the homework on where to open his first Jimmy John’s franchise store (27:35).
• Why Vansteenburg decided to give 25-30% of the monthly net income of each store to the store managers — and what impact that has had on the team (36:06).
• The sign Vansteenburg put up in all his Jimmy John’s stores that the company founder saw and asked every franchisee to replicate (41:20).
• The creation of Tenacity Restaurant Group and what’s on the horizon (50:19).

Leaders like Vansteenburg understand the value of moving quickly and acting creatively, just like Platinum Bank. Learn more about business banking with a different kind of bank.