Lake Wales · Polk County
BusinessFreeLake Wales Startup Night: Start Smart — Know Your Numbers + Get Found Online
A free, practical evening for aspiring entrepreneurs and new business owners. Hayden McCoy, CFE, EA, CTC, CFP® (Synergy Wealthcare Solutions) presents Five Things Every New Business Owner Needs to Know — startup costs, pricing and break-even points, revenue vs. profit vs. cash flow, connecting business goals to personal finances, and AI prompts and worksheets for evaluating your idea. Bonus: a take-home workbook with financial exercises, planning worksheets, practical AI prompts and free resources. Jason AI Wade (BackTier) presents Get Found Online: AI Search Visibility for Small Businesses — the fundamentals of SEO, Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) and Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), with practical steps to help Google, ChatGPT, Gemini and other AI-powered search tools find, understand and recommend your business.
Agenda
- 5:45 PMCheck-in and networking
- 6:00 PMWelcome and introductions
- 6:10 PMHayden McCoy: Five Things Every New Business Owner Needs to Know
- 6:55 PMJason AI Wade: Get Found Online with AI Search
- 7:25 PMQuestions, discussion, and networking
- 8:00 PMEvent concludes
Proposed session times from the Eventbrite listing, not a confirmed final agenda.
- Date
- Wednesday, November 18, 2026
- Time
- 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
- Eastern time · America/New_York
- Venue
- The Thirsty Dragon
- Cost · age policy
- Free — no ticket requiredThe listing describes admission as free; the Eventbrite checkout panel shows a "Donation" ticket type.
- Accessibility
- Not confirmed
- Good to know
- Free admission per the listing · Doors 5:45 PM · Free street parking · All ages · Refunds up to 7 days before the event · RSVP on Eventbrite · Checked October 25, 2026
Tickets & RSVP
Tickets / RSVP →Organizer: Lake Wales Startups
Getting there
The Thirsty Dragon · 126 N 1st St, Lake Wales, FL 33853 (approximate — pin shows the city center)
Distance from nearby hubs
- Lake Wales0 mi
- Winter Haven12 mi
- Lakeland24 mi
- Bartow16 mi
- Haines City15 mi
- Orlando46 mi
- Tampa53 mi
Straight-line distances — open a route above for driving time.
Entity graph
Civic connections
How this listing connects to the records that govern and fund it. Each card keeps its own verification state — the connection itself is editorial context, not a claim.
Capital project
Related to
Parks & facility improvements
Recurring capital maintenance across municipal parks, courts, and community buildings funded in the culture and recreation line.
Reported · Last checked Thursday, July 16, 2026 · City of Lake Wales — FY 2024-2025 municipal report
City department
Hosted at a facility run by
Parks & Recreation
Maintains municipal parks and runs leagues, camps, and aquatic programs.
Reported · Last checked Thursday, July 16, 2026 · City of Lake Wales — FY 2024-2025 municipal report
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