Lorand Soares Szasz: From Gardener to Leader in Entrepreneurial Education

Lorand Soares Szasz, a leader in entrepreneurial education, inspires entrepreneurs to achieve success through discipline, courage, and vision.

Lorand Soares Szasz is a reference name in entrepreneurial education in Romania, with over 17 years of experience in entrepreneurship, consulting, and SME development.

Lorand is an expert in business acceleration, who has inspired and educated over 200,000 participants through his in-person courses and hundreds of thousands more online.

Throughout his career, he has transformed countless lives and businesses, becoming one of the most-followed Romanian entrepreneurs on social media.

Lorand is known for his practical, results-driven approach and for his bold mission to grow entire nations by growing entrepreneurs.

C&B: How would you describe yourself in a single sentence, in a way that sparks curiosity for those who don’t know you yet?
Lorand Soares: I am the man who teaches entrepreneurs how to escape daily chaos, increase sales and profit, and take their business to the next level—so that the company can run even without their constant intervention.

C&B: If we were to look at a narrative thread of your career or business, what were the key moments that defined you?
Lorand Soares: My professional life has had several turning points. The first was when I left Portugal, where I was working as a gardener. The physical work was tough, but that’s where I realized I didn’t want to spend my whole life at the edge of survival. I was blessed to be hired by the largest business coaching company in the world and to witness how small businesses around the globe were growing using the same system and methodology. That’s when I felt like I was born a second time.

The second moment was the first training I held in Romania. I saw how what I taught helped entrepreneurs completely change their way of working and achieve results. That’s when I understood I had found what I was meant to do. I felt I had discovered my purpose and calling.

And the third moment was more recent when I created in-person Immersions for entrepreneurs. There, I saw that it wasn’t just about inspiration and education anymore, but about real, measurable transformations in people’s businesses. That’s where I saw the greatest impact of our work on entrepreneurs’ lives, on their companies, and on society.

C&B: What were the main challenges in the early stages of building your company?
Lorand Soares: Like any entrepreneur at the beginning, I hit many walls. One of the biggest challenges was the lack of a system. Everything depended on me—from sales to delivery, to invoicing, and even solving clients’ problems. I was a one-man show. Everything revolved around me, and I was involved in everything. At the ego level, it felt great—I felt important and valuable—but at the level of profit, scaling, and health, I was headed straight into a ditch.

Then came the challenges with people. I hired too quickly, didn’t fire when I should have, put people in the wrong positions, and paid the price. I built teams, lost people, promoted the wrong ones, had to go back into operations, and rebuild everything from scratch, only better.

And of course, there was the cashflow problem—sustaining an entrepreneurial education company in Romania is not exactly the easiest thing. Less than 1% of Romania’s active population is involved in lifelong learning. We are not a people who are very hungry for education; we’re more attracted to gossip and entertainment.

Building a successful, profitable company without loans, investors, or debt was a real challenge.

But the hardest lesson was learning that I don’t have to do everything myself. That if I want to build something serious, I need a strong team—not just personal “superpowers.”

C&B: Is there a dream or ambition that has always guided you, regardless of obstacles?
Lorand Soares: Yes. To create a global educational ecosystem for entrepreneurs. A place where entrepreneurs can learn how to become free—to have money, time, and energy. I dream that one day, whether in Romania, Portugal, or Indonesia, entrepreneurs will know there is a place where they can learn to take their business from survival to excellence.

Every time I’ve faced challenges in business or tough times, I’ve reconnected with this dream.

C&B: What were you like at the beginning of your journey, and how do you feel you have transformed until now?
Lorand Soares: Full of enthusiasm, convinced that I was going to change Romania and later the world. Extremely confident in my own abilities. Sometimes even arrogant. I had no real business experience, and what I learned in theory sounded great, but when I faced the market, I got a big slap that woke me up to reality.

After six months in business, I hadn’t signed a single contract, couldn’t convince any client to work with me, and lost all the money I had. It wasn’t much, but it was everything I had.

Life and business taught me to be more humble and to rely more on the strength of my team, not just my own abilities. I learned that alone, I can move fast, but together with them, I can go far.

I learned to accept that I’m not perfect and that being vulnerable doesn’t mean I’m not worthy of teaching others. On the contrary, I can offer more useful lessons from blows, mistakes, and failures than from success.

C&B: If we were to meet your team or collaborators, what do you think they would say about you?
Lorand Soares: It depends on who. I know I have people on my team who admire me, and for them, it’s an honor to work with me. They are often blinded by this admiration.

I also have colleagues who see me with both my strengths and weaknesses. They accept me as I am and push me to become better.

And I have colleagues who see more of the negative than the positive in me and still stay in my company because the negative isn’t painful enough to drive them away.

I’m not a perfect leader or an exceptional manager. I try to respect my colleagues, but I admit that not all the time does my behavior reflect the appreciation I truly have for them.

C&B: What is the most important decision you’ve made that changed your trajectory?
Lorand Soares: To do what I want, not what others want for me.

C&B: What are the medium- and long-term development and expansion plans for Upriserz?
Lorand Soares: Our dream is to become a global platform for entrepreneurs and to contribute to the growth of economies in the countries we enter. We want to see more entrepreneurs running profitable businesses that also offer them greater freedom.

As for plans, we’d rather show them than talk about them.

C&B: What is Upriserz’s mission, and what sets the company apart from other digital projects in Romania and internationally?
Lorand Soares: Our mission is to grow entire nations by growing entrepreneurs. We believe that the prosperity of an entire country depends on how well small and medium businesses perform.

Upriserz stands out through personalized, practical learning that can be applied immediately in business, through its strong entrepreneur community, and through the credibility of demonstrated results. We don’t sell theory—we provide tools and processes that transform businesses step by step.

C&B: What does a typical day look like for you now, and which moments bring you the greatest satisfaction?
Lorand Soares: I usually wake up at 5:40. Until 6:00 is time for love—that means I stay in bed with my wife, and sometimes we just hold each other for minutes. It’s a way I recharge.

From 6:00 to 7:00 I read, study scripture, pray, and write a short message for my clients who follow me on my channels.

At 7:00 I wake up our daughter, and we have breakfast together. At 7:30 she gets ready for school, and my wife and I get ready to go to the gym.

From 8:00 to 9:00 gym time—we train the body so it can carry the mind.

From 9:00 to 10:00 hygiene and preparation for the workday. By 10:00 I’m at the office, and until 12:30 I have meetings, reply to messages and emails, make decisions, get involved in operations, and work on business growth.

Then I have lunch with my wife, and in the afternoon from 14:00 to 18:00 I work again. Often I create free content for courses; other times, I work with clients and the team. I split my time between roles as entrepreneur, salesperson, marketer, educator, and author.

My greatest satisfaction comes from interacting with my audience through social media and courses.

C&B: How did Upriserz come to life, and what inspired you to found this company?
Lorand Soares: Upriserz was born out of both a desire and a frustration. The desire to help more entrepreneurs and the frustration that I no longer had time for my family. I was traveling across the country, holding dozens of conferences every year, and sleeping 160 nights a year in hotels.

I realized that if I wanted to reach more entrepreneurs, I couldn’t do it through this system and business model.

That’s how the idea was born to create an online platform that could serve more entrepreneurs worldwide, not just in Romania.

C&B: What advice would you give to young digital entrepreneurs who want to build scalable and innovative companies?
Lorand Soares: First piece of advice: don’t fall in love with your idea, but with the client’s problem. If the problem is real and important, your solution will have a market.

Second: build a system, not just a product. A good product can die quickly, but a good system lasts and grows.

Third: don’t chase shortcuts. Entrepreneurship isn’t a sprint—it’s a marathon. Discipline and consistency beat short-term enthusiasm.

And last but not least, get yourself a mentor! It will help you save time, money, and energy.

Lorand Soares Szasz remains a benchmark in entrepreneurial education, a leader who has proven that success comes from discipline, vision, and courage.