Business Grit

We can plan for the best year, set the most strategic goals, heck, even hire the greatest team. However, if you don't know how to evaluate your business correctly along the way, you are doomed this year!  Join in on the conversation where Andrew Fay and I discuss how to evaluate your company on a week-to-week basis so that at the end of the year, you achieve!

As an entrepreneur you need to believe in yourself that you can overcome adversity and there is always light at the end of the tunnel. However, one of the biggest mistakes we make as entrepreneurs is turning a blind eye to the facts. Numbers don't lie, people do (even if its unintentionally).  In this episode, I explain how to evaluate the hard truths of your company, expose the issues and improve them by establishing metrics.  

If you are operating in the Service Industry and dealing with residential clientele, this episode is for you.  In this episode, I share a decade of authentic sales wisdom on how to flat out close more sales. This is not an episode with Gimmicky tactics to persuade people into buying from you. Its quite the opposite.  Implementing these strategies into how you present your services to your clients will be a game changer. Check it out!

If you are a business owner, you know that delegation is important; but what exactly do you delegate, when do you do it, to whom to you delegate and how?  This is a jam packed episode full of what I've learned over a decade of improperly delegating. This episode is sure to help you lead your team more effectively!

This episode is piggy-backing off of Episode 13. My goal is to bring you simple practical advice based on the mistakes I've made as a young entrepreneur.  Here is what you need to focus on and prioritize as an early Entrepreneur. Check it out!

Looking back on your entrepreneurial journey, you are sure to realize that there were some mistakes you could have avoided. In this episode, I'm pretty honest about some early entrepreneurial mistakes of my own. My goal is to bring you value to help you avoid making some of these early entrepreneurial mistakes as well as bring you value with a few simple concepts that you can directly implement into your business. If you are in the trenches of your business or even if you haven't started yours yet, check out this episode. 

Do you have problems in your business that continue to occur? Does your team work together on a unified front or against one another? Do you have a hard time running meetings or even see no value in them at all? Do you have goals? Vision? Does your team have proper expectations? Do you ever find yourself yourself dreading coming to the workplace environment that you've created? In this episode Jeremiah Campbell brings the heat on these common questions with his experiences from the trenches in running his own business! As we dive into process, culture, managing people, and much more; if you don't leave this episode with a full page of notes you aren't listening! Applying just a few of these key concepts will dramatically improve not only the growth of your business but also your success as an entrepreneur. Check out Jeremiah's lessons from the trenches!

Have you ever wondered what it would be like venturing into Real Estate BEFORE the success came? In this episode, JJ Bradley, owner of Bradley Dream Homes Renovation shares his current experiences with brutal honesty.  This episode may seem a bit dark but it is sure to give you some real-life insights to some good... but... mostly the bad and ugly of house flipping. These are the lessons from the trenches that only a truly gritty entrepreneur could have the stomach to bare.    Check it out!

Most Business Podcasts focus on us as the entrepreneurs, as the interviewees. We can talk a big game but in this episode I am putting the mic in front of my team to put our company culture to the test! These lessons from the trenches are sure to give you a unique perspective on: motivating your team proper delegation leadership how your decisions truly affect your team how to wrestle with the mindset of quitting overall company culture and much more This is a jam packed episode that any manager or employer needs to hear!

Episode Summary: In Episode 9 Mike sits down with Sean Lowery of Lowery Brands and discusses systems, processes and lessons from the trenches of a succesful retail company.  Topics Covered: Sean’s biggest adversity Laying off 50% of the workforce Importance of understanding metrics that keep your business healthy Overspending On This Can Cripple Your Business Training Yourself To Be Honest Most Dangerous thing you can do as an entrepreneur Hiring More Responsibly How do you responsibly Balance Growth? The most important attribute to look for when hiring? Tips to Combat Negative company culture The power of starting with why when communicating with your team The importance of utilizing the experts on your team Sean’s unique outlook on being insulted Sean’s Cash Flow Management system Sean Shares His In Depth Business Systems Power of being Honest About your Success through every stage of business Sean's Best Advice for focus in the early days Sean's Final Lesson From The Trenches Where to Find Sean:  Personal Instagram: @seanlowery20 Business Instagram:@unitedmonograms Webiste: https://www.united-monograms.com/

Mike Cessna is Mike Farrell (our host) business partner and co-owner of a company called My Auto Care, a full service traveling auto repair service. My Auto Care has seen steady growth in its infancy of business but Mike has dealt with his fair share of adversity already! These are Mike Cessna's lessons from the trenches! Don't Forget To Subscribe To The Show!   Mike Cessna    Mobile Auto Service Company   Mike’s big risk when starting My Autocare with a baby on the way. Difference between the Fake Entrepreneurs and the Real ones The near Knockout Early on for Mike ( Communication Mistakes As The Owner (12:40) Should You Hire Workers Smarter Than You? (17:00) Unique Accounting Method that Keeps Consistent Cash in the Bank (19:00) Best Strategy to Attract Quality Team Members During Labor Crisis  (29:00) Dealing With Low Expectations During the Labor Crisis (31:00) The Deception of Entrepreneurship in 2019 (37:00) Major Lessons of Being Too Soft (40:00) Dangers of Talking Too Big (47:00) Choosing Marriage or Business    (53:00) Mike’s Vision for The Future (56:00)  

Episode Summary:  Looking to get the edge in new-age business? In Episode 7, Mike's interview with Pastor and Business Consultant, Travis Davenport, covers culture, vision, and everything in between to help you get the edge in business and in life.   Episode 7 Topics Covered:   Travis’s Gritty Struggles (6:00) How to Handle Anyone Distracting You From Your Company Vision (7:33) Three Powerful Reasons Why The Vision Cannot Be For Sale (10:23) Biggest Thing That Limits Leaders (11:24) Defining and Leveraging Relational Currency (12:09) Making The Hard Decisions To Keep Your Company Culture Thriving (16:43) One Major Sign Of Weak Leadership You Might Be Doing ( 18:32) Answering Where Your Weaknesses In Your Business Stem From (21:57) The Missing Piece To Building a Great culture (23:36) What Your Business Must Have to Authentically Survive (24:28) Free Ways To Show You Really Care About Your Teammates (35:00) Examining Old School Leadership (39:04) The Danger Of Buzzwords As Your Company Core Values (45:13) Can You Grow Someone Who Doesn’t Want To Grow? (46:54) Travis’s Business Superpower (52:53)    

Episode Summary: With a single ladder strapped to the top of his purple Saturn and an air compressor in his trunk, learn how this former hot head leader deals with daily bed ridden illness, and has managed to grow his roofing company to a multi-million dollar operation in the midst of a labor shortage. Episode Topics: Unique hiring strategies in solving the national labor shortage Grit & Leadership in the face of  sudden divorce and bed ridden illness Innovative strategy for seasonal businesses Investing in the growth of your teammates What Caleb will never let happen again in his business Unique disciplinary practices for your team Advice to hot heads in business Guaranteed way to fail The value of taking the time to learn individual teammate motives The most important system for Caleb’s business Unique ways to manage millennials

Would you have enough GRIT to put everything on the line for a business that wasn't guaranteed to succeed? Would you have enough GRIT to continue after four days on life support and a broken neck and back that forced you to re-learn the basics of walking again? Do you have the GRIT to build an 8 million dollar company 6 years later?   Meet Andy Ross.      

Episode Summary: If You want to go broke, do what broke people do, if you want to be successful do what successful people do!  But what do successful people have that broke people don’t? In Episode 4 of Business Grit, Mike uses 4 realizations to nurture this concept. When you are faced with challenges do you make decisions like broke people or successful people? Mike dives into how to make it happen and ultimately breaks down the 4 realizations that build the mindset of a successful person.

Episode Summary: Dave Ramsey says,” Employees come late, leave early and steal while they’re there”. Mike couldn't agree more.That’s why he refers to his staff as his “team members”, and in this episode, he shares the 7 team traits that helped him more than double his revenue in less than 6 month’s time. Find out exactly what these traits are and why they matter as Mike delivers yet another lesson from the trenches in episode 3 of the Business Grit Podcast. Show Notes: Mike starts out by explaining why he doesn’t want employees and you shouldn’t either. He references the book  ‘EntreLeadership’ (linked at the bottom of show notes) and Dave Ramsey’s quote on employees. Mike doesn’t want you to settle for a mediocre team like he did because he knows it can cripple your business.   Mike explains why it is less about money and more about purpose and how money is not the driver, it's just a result.   Mike gives strong tips on how to draw a revenue doubling team.   As the leader you need to create your company as an opportunity generating machine   It is up to you as the leader to create a winning environment   Before Mike reveals the traits, he tells you - everyone is not going to have these traits.    Mike gives his definition of an employee: “Someone who is going to pass through your company until they get sick and tired of working, thinking you’re taking advantage of them and owe them more, leave and repeat with someone else's company.”   Mike says you need superstar team members at your top tier and you cannot compromise with those members, they must exemplify these 7 traits.   He then gives an in-depth explanation of the 7 team traits that doubled his revenue.   Download the list in the link below in the show notes.   As Mike closes he urges you to download the 7 team traits and post them on your wall to use as guiding principles for every teammate you have in your company.   Rate and review the podcast and listen in next week to the Business Grit Podcast.   Follow Business Grit and tell me more about your business: Instagram  Facebook https://www.flipsnack.com/GYGYMBGP/bgp-7-team-traits-pdf.html Email me: Mike@businessgritpodcast.com If you are unable to get 7 Team Traits Download Send me a Direct message on social or email me! Books Mentioned: Dave Ramsey: EntreLeadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches  

Episode Summary: You’re no dummy. Sales, marketing, systems and processes are pivotal to a growing and thriving business, but outside of those things, Mike wants to give you the ‘ONE thing’ that changed the game for him in business.  Learn an easier path to implementing this ‘one thing’ in your business and how to identify if you are already doing this ‘one thing’ that changed everything in a matter of days for him and his companies. Find out on episode 2 of the Business Grit podcast. Show Notes: Think back to when you first started your company:  the passion and excitement you had to wake up and get to work in the morning. You were consumed with your company to make a better life for yourself and those around you, so you have to have this ‘one thing’ for your company to survive through every season!  If you don’t have a business that reflects you, you’ve built a house with no foundation. Your business needs to reflect who you are!  Mike tells the story of how he sensed a mass exodus about to happen in his company - money was tight and he had to shut the company down over the holiday season, and when they returned, he had a heart-to-heart with every employee and told them that the company was going to run as a reflection of him and if they didn’t like it, they could go find another job and shouldn't bother coming back to work on Monday.  As a result, Mike had the tall task of re-building his company when nearly 90% of his employees left. One of which told him he was leaving because if one more employee left him, he would be out of business. Mike’s response? “You obviously don’t know me”.  Fast forward six months. Mike’s company doubled in payroll efficiency, grew revenue by 60% and more than 10x’d their profit.  Mike was able to do this with a smaller, less experienced team that was loyal and made no excuses because they were ready to buy-in to the culture and vision.  After Mike tells this powerful story he asks you some key questions about your company and if it reflects you or not. He says you can’t change people's moral compass, you have to find people that are going to truly buy-in to your vision and function as a reflection of you. Otherwise, they will run your company into the ground. Mike closes this episode with a challenge.  The challenge is this: Pick the one thing you refuse to tolerate in your company any longer and share this one thing on the Business Grit Podcast Instagram or Facebook page so he can support your efforts. Subscribe, rate, and review the podcast so Mike can get this in front of as many entrepreneurs as possible! Head over to episode 3 where Mike shares the 7 team traits of a revenue doubling team. Follow Business Grit and tell me more about your business: Instagram  Facebook Email me: Mike@businessgritpodcast.com

Episode Summary: Have you ever wondered what separates the winners from the losers in business? What is it that you need to give you the edge over your fellow industry competitors? Join host Mike Farrell in this pilot episode as he explains what Business Grit is, how he developed it, and most importantly how he can help you develop it so you can win in business! Show Notes: Every stage of your business is going to require Business Grit. Business Grit is doing whatever it takes and not giving up; it’s having the balls to stay true to your goals when everyone around you thinks you’re crazy for having them; it’s believing in yourself way more than you care how much people believe in you; it’s having enough pride to not take no for an answer; it’s about more than getting knocked down and getting back up stronger, it’s about being on the ground getting kicked in the ribs over and over, and having the strength to keep breathing and get back up stronger. It’s enjoying that feeling a little too much. Mike dives deep into the many adversities that he has gone through within his multi-million dollar operations as an entrepreneur including, but not limited to, maxing out every credit card, taking a second mortgage out on his home to cover payroll for employees that didn’t even like him, nearly going bankrupt, and 25% of his company operation being crippled overnight through theft of trucks and equipment. All of Mike’s lessons come from the trenches of his own companies and as the show progresses he will be bringing on other gritty entrepreneurs to share their lessons from the trenches as well. Mike will help you take control of your business and develop and/or strengthen processes in your business so you can make time to work on the things that move the needle in your company. Mike knows the sacrifices that you have made and he knows you want to win and that is why Business Grit exists.  Subscribe, rate and review the podcast so Mike can get this in front of as many entrepreneurs as possible! Follow Business Grit and tell me more about your business: Instagram  Facebook Email me: Mike@businessgritpodcast.com

It's Finally here! Get a sneak peak into the Business Grit podcast with this short trailer. Subscribe now so you too can learn what it takes to win in business!