Paul Powers

Co-Founder of Physna

(Forbes 30 Under 30)

6 June 2019 9 Min Read

Paul Powers: A Driving Force in the Manufacturing Industry

Meet Paul Powers, the co-founder and CEO of Physna, the world’s leading geometric deep-learning and 3D search company that finds, compares, and analyses 3D models. He has reached many achievements, one being the recognition from Forbes when they included Paul on their 30 Under 30 US & Canada 2019: Manufacturing & Industry list.

Paul has a B.A.Sc from Ludwig Maximilian University, as well as one from Harvard University. He also earned his Law Degree from Heidelberg University. However, his education is not his only power, as he has the experience to match. Paul has been an entrepreneur for a long time. Before Physna, he founded many other companies, including GeoCultural Enterprises LLC and Zoozler LLC.

With such a rich portfolio, one has much to share for us to learn. I am eager to hear his experience and tips firsthand. Feel free to join me in hearing more about Paul and his companies, his habits to ensure success, and the team-building strategies he implements in his businesses!

The Logician

Hello Paul, and welcome to this interview! Before anything, I would like to thank you for being a part of this mission! Now, can you introduce yourself? Who is Paul Powers? How did you choose the career you have today?

Paul Powers

Thank you for having me.

I am the Co-Founder and CEO of Physna and have been an entrepreneur for my entire adult life.

I would not call this a career, but rather as a calling.

From my early years, my purpose and goals in life were extremely clear to me.

My purpose is to move mankind forward to my fullest potential, and the best way for me to do that is to pursue a goal of creating a new type of technology that will bridge the gap between mankind and our next step forward.

That is precisely what Physna does.

The Logician

I have read somewhere that you had your first entrepreneurial endeavors at the age of 16, which is beyond incredible! How did you know tech-focused enterprises are what you are ‘meant’ to be a part of? Why do most people never discover their calling in life?

Paul Powers

Like everyone else, I will only be alive for a brief moment in the journey of humanity. In our short time on that path, each of us will leave behind a footprint of some kind.

We each make two choices in our lives that determine what impact we leave: The first is whether to lead or to follow. Leaders leave behind very large footprints. The second decision is the direction you take.

Will your footprint be pointed backward or forwards? My mission in life is to leave behind the biggest footprint I can, pointed forwards. This way of thinking is what defines me and everything I do. It is my “Why”.

Technology is a means to an end. It is my “How”. By focusing on technology that does good and amplifies human potential in a positive way, I’m able to help progress humanity forwards.

It is the Why, not the How, that drives me. It gives me clarity, purpose, and ambition.

Everyone has a calling. Not everyone listens.

The most fundamental flaw in human thinking is that we are told to think of our path first and our goal second. If you want to go somewhere no one has ever gone, you have to forge a path no one has ever taken. Each of us is following a path at any given moment. If you are not sure of your path, first become sure of your destination.

The Logician

On this note, I would also like to congratulate you for making it among Forbes 30 under 30! How was that experience for you? What do you believe contributed the most to this success?

Paul Powers

Thank you. Being recognized is always a humbling and fulfilling experience.

I received the award for starting and running Physna, which is fundamentally changing how computers work with 3D data and saving time, money and lives by improving engineering, manufacturing and many other industries.

I view awards much like reaffirming road signs.

They confirm that I am making progress on the path to my goal. But they are not, and should never be, the goal themselves.

The Logician

Do you mind telling us more about Physna and Zoozler? What is the vision of Physna? Why is it important? Additionally, how did you develop the business idea of founding Zoozler? Finally, how did you know you had the right idea?

Paul Powers

Physna is short for “Physical DNA”. We take 3D data from all sources (all file types, etc.) and turn them into a proprietary structure much like DNA.

This allows us to analyze 3D models and our physical world in a manner very similar to how traditional computing views two-dimensional data like text and numbers. We use this to give engineers, manufacturers and others the tools they need like auto-fill for CAD design, comparing engineering models, automating their analysis, finding flaws before production, etc.

It makes engineers twice as productive as they were before, and it significantly improves part procurement, manufacturing quality, cost, and safety. There are other applications as well, but the best way to summarize our vision is this: Physna is turning into the universal bridge between the physical world and the digital world.

Zoozler works with both large and small companies and has an entire program for startups specifically. It is a uniquely ROI-focused tech development firm with additional capabilities in fundraising, innovation consulting and facilitating revenue growth for its clients.

The idea came from my own experience of starting companies and my frustration with the misalignment between the goals of the client and that of the development company. Zoozler ensures there is always goal alignment. The success and attention of Zoozler were the factors that proved we were onto something significant.

The Logician

What are the five most important habits for achieving success? Please explain.

Paul Powers

The body follows the mind. Without the right mindset, you will never develop the right habits.

The most important thing is to know your Why. The greatest gift you have is that you get to determine the narrative of your own existence. Give yourself a mission.

Make your life worth reading about and your life will be worth living.

Your ‘Why’ will determine your direction in life. To ensure to go as far as you can in that direction, you need a destination in mind.

The further away it is and the harder it is to reach, the more likely it is that you will come close to traveling as far in that direction as your potential allows. If your destination is easy to reach, you are underestimating yourself. Choose a clear destination. Focus on it. Let it consume you.

If you managed to achieve these two things, the next step is to underline them in bold and make sure you never lose focus.

Remind yourself of your purpose and your destination every single day. You will never reach your full potential and you will certainly never feel fulfilled if you lose sight of where you’re going.

If you manage these three things, my money is already on you succeeding, because from this point on it becomes obvious.

The next step is simple and something you do every time you head out the front door: You decide on a path to get you to your destination. Track back from your destination to where you are now. That is your How.

How often is there a direct road from your front door to your destination with no turns, no traffic, no interruptions? I would venture to say that is virtually never the case.

On a regular basis, you endure countless turns, obstacles, and inconveniences on your way to something trivial like a party. But when it comes to the journey of your life itself, most people give up at the first red light.

You will hit obstacles, you will have to make turns, you will even run into detours. This is the final challenge.

When things don’t go your way, do you give up? Do you change destinations? Or do you find another way, then another until, finally, you arrive at your destination no matter what it takes?

Those are the five most important things to know. Everything else is trivial. You will only work hard if you have a goal in mind. You will only overcome challenges and failures if you are determined and truly believe that there is no acceptable substitute for achieving your destination.

Your habits and perseverance will flow naturally from your conviction that your life has this meaning you have assigned to it. Nothing has the right to take that away from you, and only you can forfeit your life’s meaning. No one else, nothing else, can ever do that.

The Logician

How did you build your team? Are team-building activities important? If so, what are the best team-building activities that you practice?

Paul Powers

We use a highly objective hiring practice consisting of objective criteria, supplemented by subjective evaluation of soft skills.

Competence is all we care about. Part of competence is the ability to collaborate with others.

We ensure applicants have that ability long before we make a hiring decision. Team-building is important, and we have company-sponsored get-togethers as well as an open and welcoming atmosphere.

It is equally important that we do not overdo this, however. It is best to hire motivated, talented individuals who can be trusted to work well on their own and in groups.

Motivation is the best manager, and as a leader, it is important that you lead by example and not by title. Do what is right and do what you expect others to do. The rest will take care of itself.

The Logician

How do you cope with failure and pressure? What are the best healthy ways to overcome failure?

Paul Powers

If you have to take a detour to get to your destination, you only failed to arrive at your destination if you decide to give up. Failures are just obstacles as long as you know where you are going in life and why.

If you arrive at your destination without having faced obstacles along the way, you chose a destination that is way too easy to begin with.

Accept that obstacles will present themselves and that often it will turn out that a detour leads to a better road that can take you further faster. But never, ever change your destination.

The Logician

If you could change one thing in your life, what would it be? Why?

Paul Powers

I have the ability to change most things in my life. If I knew why I would make that change and knew what that change would be, I would have already made that change.

There are some things in life over which I truly have no control – perhaps the weather. But I don’t know if I would actually change the weather if I had that ability because I haven’t studied what effects that would have.

And I haven’t studied what effects that would have because I can’t change the weather.

The Logician

Let’s imagine it is the year 2030. Where are you by then? What about your business/es?

Paul Powers

By 2030 I will be over a decade further down my path toward my goal, and no matter what, I will have come a very long way.

I know that I have the ambition, drive, and resourcefulness to have achieved great success by then, and so does my business.

Based on the road so far and my honest forecast, I firmly believe that we will be a multi-billion dollar business by then.

Having said that, I don’t know what we might run into on the road ahead. No one does. But I do know that no matter what we hit, we will never quit, and we will always find a way.

The Logician

Finally, what would you advise anyone wanting to become a successful leader?

Paul Powers

Know where you will lead those who follow you.

Conviction, persistence and raw decisiveness will make you a natural leader.

If you know where you are going and don’t care what others think or say because you are too busy running as fast as you can towards your destination, you will look back one day and see that many others are following you — not because of who you are or your title — but because unlike them, you know where you’re going.

The Logician

Paul’s entrepreneurial spirit inspires everyone to start creating their own business. So, thank you, Paul, for sharing what you think are essential characteristics of a leader and your advice to ‘know where you will lead those who follow you.’ It was great hearing more about your companies and how they work. I wish you luck in achieving your goal of becoming a multi-billion-dollar business. At last, I hope we talk again as soon as you get there so that my readers and I can hear a few more helpful insights from such a wise individual as yourself. See you then!

The Logician

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Paul Powers: A Driving Force in the Manufacturing Industry

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