Utah is a beautiful place to live. But, unfortunately, we have a big environmental problem in the northern part of the state: winter inversions. The number of red air quality days has exploded from 4 in 2012 to 23 in 2016, an almost five-fold increase! That’s where Bill Wilson and his team at Sustain3 come in. They are working hard to change the way people live and work, and to use resources more efficiently, which will ultimately improve our environment. I caught up with Bill in Park City to chat about how things were going.

BRIAN OLESEN: What is your elevator pitch for your venture?

BILL WILSON: We empower organizations who are committed to integrating environmental sustainability into their key business strategy but struggle getting their employees engaged in this strategy. We provide awareness and education through the tool, more importantly with action. We motivate them with a point system, competitions, and mix up the action. And it really works!

BRIAN OLESEN: What excites you the most about it?

BILL WILSON: I get a lot of excitement from the potential of impacting a lot of people. Done right, we can impact thousands of people and maybe tens of thousands eventually. I’d love to have an effect on the mindset of the average Joe on the street just by pointing out some common sense ideas and lifestyle changes. Most people want to do the right thing as long as it’s convenient and makes sense.

BRIAN OLESEN: What are you really nailing?

BILL WILSON: I think we’re having an impact on company culture. We have an 85% participation rate from the last client we implemented. This is really exciting, and we’re able to change the way people work and live.

BRIAN OLESEN: What is impeding your success the most?

BILL WILSON: Sometimes I feel like I’m standing in the way of our own success. It’s easy to blame money or financing, but the truth is that I have limitations (energy, contacts, etc.) and sometimes it’s challenging to overcome them. I need some new methods and ways to acquire new clients and that’s why I’m excited to partner with Mindshare Ventures.

BRIAN OLESEN: What would you do differently next time?

BILL WILSON: This journey started back in 2008 when I started a solar company. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the right team at the time so I think I would have been more selective in that area. Also, I’d be more aggressive with client acquisitions.