For entrepreneurs and investors Daymond Johndeciding which projects he chooses to put his time, energy and money behind comes down to one thing: making a positive impact on the world.

In 2020, he created Black Entrepreneurs Day (BED), wanting to do something to lift up Americans who are hurting after the killing of George Floyd. “People were in the streets burning down businesses when I said they should build them,” John said. entrepreneur. “So I called friends in business and some great brands to see what we could do to empower people and show them how we were able to overcome struggles and find success.

“What started as a virtual phone call from Daymond's basement has now become an annual in-person event featuring some of the most accomplished people living at the intersection of business and culture. 5th Annual Black Entrepreneurs Day will take place on Friday, November 22 at the Fox Theater in Atlanta and will feature a line-up of guests including Kelly Rowland, Flavor Flav, Charlamagne tha God, Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles and many more. Personal and broadcast tickets are free and can be ordered at blackentrepreneursday.com.

Related: How Daymond John went from selling t-shirts on the street to running a $350 million company

BED is not only in the business of inspiring entrepreneurs, it is also in the business of funding them. From October 24 to November 1, entrepreneurs can apply for a $25,000 Powershift grant. (Apply here.) Along with partners JPMorgan Chase, Hilton, T-Mobile for Business and Constant Contact, a total of $100,000 in grants will be awarded to small business owners.

So what does it take to earn the trust and support of BED investors and win one of those grants? We asked the “People's Shark” himself.

When someone is pitching you, what do you want to hear that makes you say, “I want to give this person my money”?
Do you want to hear them ask and answer three questions: 1. Why me? 2. Why now? 3. And why this? You will talk about who you are, what you have been through and why you decided to do this business. You saw a pain in the market or you want to give someone joy. And then we want to know that you know your numbers. We want to hear how obsessed you are with your customers. We want to know that you're moving and shaking, you're agile and you're changing with the times. You are working with AI. You are making sure you are hiring people from your community. If you have a real passion for it, it's infectious. It's like, “Man, I want to know this person. I want to root for them because they're somebody who's going to add value to people's lives.”

What advice would you give a young Daymond John?
I would say to a younger person that you already know the brand. You are obsessed with your culture. You are obsessed with the product. You want to make the best clothes ever. But you won't be able to run this business and keep it sustainable if you don't learn your numbers. What are the freight costs? who do you sell to? How many people do you need to hire? What number do you need to reach to be at your limits? Do you have the business structure for someone to invest or are all your bills in a shoebox? That's what I would have told my younger self.

If you were starting out today and only had $1,000 in your bank account to work with, what would you do?
I would start with homework by asking “What am I trying to solve?” And then I start with the OPMs. That means other people's brainpower, manpower, production, marketing, money. I'm not spending my thousands of dollars, I'll borrow their OPM. And then I will study for six months or a year to understand how I can enter this market and help solve the problem. And then 50 DM per day in search of funding, mentoring and cooperation. I will not use my thousands of dollars. I will try to use everything else.

Applications for BED's Energy Transition Grant are accepted from October 24 to November 1.