Podcasts about his business

Dennis Meador is the CEO and Founder and is dedicated to bringing turnkey podcasting solutions to professionals across the United States, particularly attorneys. #podcasting #podmatch #podtour====================Join Podmatch ⁠⁠https://www.joinpodmatch.com/roy⁠Speaking Podcast Social Media / Coaching My Other Podcasts ⁠https://bio.link/podcaster⁠====================Bio of Dennis Meador :Dennis Meador is the CEO and Founder and is dedicated to bringing turnkey podcasting solutions to professionals across the United States, particularly attorneys. With over 20 years of experience in marketing for the legal profession, he is passionate about helping attorneys engage more clients and establish themselves as authorities in their specific areas of practice.What we Discussed: 00:20 Who is Dennis Meador01:30 His Entrepreneurial Journey03:40 His Business at 14 years07:00 My own Entrenurial Journey08:30 His Turnkey Podcasting13:00 Using Mainly Organic Marketing14:20 What type of Podcast do the Attorneys do15:50 Which Platform they use most17:30 What Type of Shorts do they create24:50 The Forgetting Curve and how the sign clients up27:20 Lighting and mics for Podcasting31:45 Improving the Views on YouTube37:20 He picked a great niche45:00 Paid Followers are Fake46:45 When People use your time and how to get paid49:00 How he manages so many people55:00 How to Prasie Employees without just saying Thank You How to Contact Dennis Meador: https://www.thelegalpodcastnetwork.com/https://www.youtube.com/@thelegalpodcastnetwork_https://www.instagram.com/legalpodcastnetwork.lawyerhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/dennismeador/___________________

In this episode of the Construction Royalty Podcast, host Irvin welcomes back Keenan Garcia for a deep dive into various entrepreneurial topics. Keenan shares updates on his transition into the consulting business, focusing on solar energy and larger commercial projects.  The conversation highlights the importance of networking, consistent routines, and the significant role of personal and business development through faith. Keenan discusses the transformative power of AI in business automation and outlines practical uses to streamline operations. Personal anecdotes about marriage, overcoming challenges, and maintaining a balanced life provide additional layers of insight and inspiration. The episode concludes with valuable advice on avoiding 50/50 business partnerships and ensuring God is at the forefront of business decisions. 00:00 Welcome Back to Construction Royalty Podcast 00:21 Reflecting on Past Conversations and Routines 01:47 Introduction to Keenan Garcia and His Business 03:52 The Four Moves for Business Success 07:19 Door-to-Door Sales Experience 10:30 Building Connections and Networking 13:41 Personal Growth and Relationships 26:36 Meeting and Marrying Michelle 40:55 Pursuing Passion and Overcoming Challenges 45:10 Balancing Life and Priorities 45:36 The Importance of God in Marriage 48:09 AI in Business: Human in the Loop 49:38 Jesus in the Loop: Applying Faith in Daily Life 55:50 Automating Business with AI 01:05:06 Building a Future with AI 01:15:36 Integrating Solar and Roofing Solutions 01:21:09 The Value of Home Efficiency 01:34:16 Avoiding 50/50 Partnerships in Business 01:36:45 Final Thoughts and Reflections   Connect with Keenan: Instagram Connect with us: Website

In this episode of The Sevo Show, Sev speaks with Jim Penman, the founder of Jim's Group, one of Australia's most iconic franchise networks. Jim shares his journey from mowing lawns to growing a multi-division empire, explains the unexpected key to retaining great franchisees, dives into his epigenetics research on birth rates, and gives honest, old-school business advice (like why he proudly wears Kmart shoes!). If you're curious about how Jim's Group stays competitive or want a fresh perspective on balancing money with meaning, this one's for you. Enjoyed this deep dive? Like, comment, and subscribe to The Sevo Show for more inspiring conversations. Let us know your biggest takeaway in the comments and share this video with someone who needs a dose of business inspiration.Follow Jim: https://www.instagram.com/thejimpenman/His Business: https://www.instagram.com/jimsmowingau/His Group: https://www.instagram.com/jimsgroupofficial/His World: https://jimpenman.com.au/Follow me:https://www.instagram.com/sevspics/https://www.instagram.com/thesevoshow/Hire My Studio and Production Team:https://brighttsar.com/Sponsor:https://www.whereu.com.au/

Rich chats with Scott Berman about his business Journey, wwo secrets that boosted HIS Business and a new tool that will boost YOURS. Check out: Heavyset.tech

So many people have been telling me that I have to meet the creator of Future Social, Jack Appleby, and today, he is on the podcast so you can hear his story! He is monetizing and building a business in an incredibly unique way and I can't wait for you to hear all about it. Join The Co-op - The Membership for Online Businesses Connect with Abagail Instagram All the Links! Jack has had an extensive career with quite an intense growth trajectory going from zero to 60,000 subscribers almost instantaneously. But he is not making his money as a social media influencer. Instead, Jack's main income in his half-million-dollar business comes from his newsletter! Something most people only use as a lead magnet. Today he delves into how he did it, the importance of creating value-based content, the art of selling creative ideas, and so much more!  Episode Highlights The Tangible Things Jack Does to Get People on His Newsletter [0:06:32]  Why Jack Decided to Make His Newsletter the Main Monetization of His Business [0:10:43] Developing the Skill of Selling Creative Ideas [0:16:04] The Future of Future Social and Jack Appleby [0:26:48] Thank you for listening! Please subscribe, rate, and review The Strategy Hour Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. For show notes, go to bossproject.com/podcast.

              The people of Jesus' time thought they knew who He was and so they did not believe in Him. Sometimes when God gets ahold of our life the people in and around us refuse to see the change in us and what God has called us to do.  Many who begin to live for God in a way that is totally different from before begin to see persecution and people asking them who do they think they are or calling them holier than thou.  Don't let this stop you from doing what God has called you to do.  We are to be different and we do have an assignment from God of sharing what Christ has done for us.  Let us be about His Business today and not care what others think if we know we are doing God's will.  Amen!           Mark 6:1-6 Then He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him. 2 And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were astonished, saying, "Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! 3 "Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?" And they were offended at Him. 4 But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house." 5 Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.   Mark 8:36 "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?              John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. Have you trusted Him as your Savior? He can Save you if You ask Him based on His death, burial, and resurrection for your sins. Believe in Him for forgiveness of your sins today.               “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”  -John 8:32             Our mission is to spread the gospel and to go to the least of these with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ; We reach out to those the World has forgotten.              hisloveministries.podbean.com #HLMSocial hisloveministries.net https://www.instagram.com/hisloveministries1/?hl=en His Love Ministries on Itunes Don't go for all the gusto you can get, go for all the God (Jesus Christ) you can get. The gusto will get you, Jesus can save you. https://www.facebook.com/His-Love-Ministries-246606668725869/?tn-str=k*F             The world is trying to solve earthly problems that can only be solved with heavenly solutions

What complex changes are happening in the healthcare sector and how does that affect patient, provider, and organizational success? In this episode we talk with Frank R. Harrison about the rapid post-pandemic changes experienced by hospitals, opportunities and challenges with technologies, including AI, and navigating the labyrinth of the system. Using New York City as an example, we will look at their current hospital systems and show the pros and cons of being vertically integrated or acquired through traditional M&A Activity. We'll also explore which systems serve different needs best, how to succeed within those challenging environments as a patient, provider, or leader, and the complexity that impacts outcomes. Equipped with an MBA from the Fordham Gabelli School of Business concentrating in Global Marketing, Finance and International Management, and Master of Arts Psychology and Neuroscience and a Certificate in Public Health Advocate through Cornell University and the New York State Department of Health, Frank R. Harrison has 30+ years of experience, including executive roles spanning the Financial Services, Entertainment, and New Media industries. His Business experience coupled with his health training has led to healthcare ventures, advocacy programs and media platforms to illustrate his research and desire to strive for social change one person at a time, bringing it to life through his podcast, Frank About Health. He also has a healthcare platform Health-E-Media.com a division of his new venture Health-E-Media, Inc.Website: www.frankrharrison.comBusiness Site: www.health-e-media.comLinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankrharrison/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fharrison Podcast Site: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBRIDM9zFt52QdjnyBqOzTImCG0h3yKs3&si=zPk7bYyPlsZ17SHr#Frankabouthealth, #healthcare, #healthemedia, #leadership, #healthcareleadershipTune in for this empowering conversation at TalkRadio.nyc

Follow him on IG @bluechipathleticclub https://www.bluechipathleticclub.com/ Join Blaise Curtis as he shares his transformative journey from serving in the Coast Guard to chasing his startup dreams. This detailed discussion unveils how military discipline can shape entrepreneurial success, providing viewers with unique insights into the intersection of service and business innovation. Watch as Blaise breaks down the challenges and triumphs of transitioning to civilian life while building a startup from the ground up. Whether you're a veteran, an aspiring entrepreneur, or someone interested in personal growth and leadership, this video is packed with valuable lessons and inspiring stories. #Entrepreneurship #VeteranSuccess #StartupLife #BusinessGrowth #Leadership #FromServiceToCEO Chapter Guide with Timestamps: Introduction to Blaise's Background [00:00 - 04:00] Introduction to Blaise Curtis, his time in the Coast Guard, and the initial inspiration behind his entrepreneurial journey. Transition from Military to Civilian Life [04:01 - 08:30] Blaise discusses the skills and disciplines from the Coast Guard that helped in his transition and the challenges he faced adapting to civilian life. First Steps into Entrepreneurship [08:31 - 15:00] Exploration of Blaise's early days in business, including setting up his startup, initial hurdles, and how his military experience influenced his business strategies. Growth and Expansion of His Business [15:01 - 22:50] Discussion on the scaling of his startup, key growth strategies, and how he managed team dynamics and business challenges. Key Lessons Learned and Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs [22:51 - 30:00] Blaise shares crucial lessons learned throughout his journey and offers advice to aspiring entrepreneurs, especially veterans looking to start their own business ventures. Q&A Session with Live Audience [30:01 - End] A live Q&A session where Blaise answers questions from the audience, providing deeper insights and practical tips on navigating the transition from military service to entrepreneurship. From Coast Guard to Startup Dreams: The Entrepreneurial Journey of Blaise Curtis

Join us on the Julia and Gino Podcast as we dive into the remarkable story of American Heritage Girls (AHG) with founder Patty Garibay. Discover how AHG, a premier leadership and character development program, has guided over 52,000 members in 50 states and 15 countries towards a life of integrity through faith, service, and fun. In this episode, Patty shares the challenges and triumphs of starting AHG, the program's core values, and its profound impact on young women's lives. Learn about the resources AHG offers for families and hear heartwarming success stories that underscore the lasting influence of this faith-based community. Whether you're a parent seeking to empower your daughter or someone passionate about youth development, this conversation is a testament to the power of vision, perseverance, and community in shaping the leaders of tomorrow. Chapter Title: 00:00 - Intro 00:55 - How Patti Got Started - The History of American Heritage Girls 03:37 - The First Class - the "Beta Test" 06:23 - The Role Patti's Husband Played 08:09 - How Patti's Relationship with Her Husband Grow and Change 10:12 - Gino Relates Patti's Core Values to His Business' Core Values 10:53 - Patti Explains the Groups Core Values 13:32 - When Did the Patti's Vision Turn Into A Business? 16:20 - How Has American Heritage Effected / Changed Girls Future Lives 19:20 - A.G.H - Resources 19:26 - Card - americanheritagegirls.org 19:54 - card - link to books on americanheritagegirls.org 20:58 - Info on A.H.G's New Podcast - out soon 23:11 - The Fear of Starting Something New and Overcoming That Fear 25:14 - Finding a Troop or Starting One In Your Area 26:33 - The Next 5 Years Goal 27:49 - Where Can We Get More Info On A.H.G. 28:47 - Patti's Words to the Listeners 29:39 - Gino Wraps It Up Resources & Highlights: American Heritage Girls Website: Visit Now Free eBooks on Raising Godly Girls: Download Here Raising Godly Girls Podcast: Coming Soon AHG's Mission & Vision: Leadership through faith and fun. Free Parenting Resources: Ebooks and the upcoming Raising Godly Girls podcast. Success Stories: Real-world impacts of AHG on its members.   Visit: American Heritage Girls Website for more information and resources. Subscribe to the Julia and Gino Podcast for more inspiring stories and practical advice on creating impactful change in your community and beyond. Don't forget to leave us a review and share this episode with those looking to make a difference in the lives of young girls across the nation. #AmericanHeritageGirls #Leadership #FaithBasedLeadership #YouthDevelopment #Podcast

Please stop whatever you're doing and buy this book: "Leader of the Pack: How a Single Dad of Five Led His Kids, His Business, and Himself from Disaster to Success" You can find Matt Sweetwood everywhere on social media with the handle @msweetwood. My current project is guiding dads to expand their vision of family, fatherhood and legacy for multi-generational impact. I'd love to discuss how we might work together to achieve this for you. Find me @undeletabledad or by email at tracy@undeletabledad.com. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/undeletable-dad/message

Nick Hutchison is the visionary force behind BookThinkers, a thriving 7-figure marketing agency bridging authors and readers. In just over 7 years, he has cultivated a platform reaching over 1,000,000 people monthly and hosts the top 2% global podcast, "BookThinkers: Life-Changing Books," featuring interviews with renowned authors like Grant Cardone and Lewis Howes. Nick's platform and services have empowered countless authors to reach millions of readers, driving substantial revenue growth. His services encompass video production, podcast booking, and social media brand building. With a mission to inspire readers to take action, Nick authored "Rise of the Reader," delving into mastering reading habits and applying newfound knowledge to unlock potential. Connect With Nicholas Hutchison! instagram.com/nicklovesbooks Visit BookThinkers' To Learn More! bookthinkers.com instagram.com/bookthinkers CHAPTERS: 0:00 - Introduction 02:03 - Meet Nicholas Hutchison 03:32 - How Did Nick Start to Love Reading Books? 05:44 - How Can You Read Books Better? 09:54 - Intentions of Reading Books 12:57 - How Often Does Nick Read a Book? 14:46 - Taking Notes While Reading a Book 17:02 - Purpose of BookThinkers 18:50 - Nick on His Process of Learning 20:49 - Nick's Process of Reviewing Books 23:01 - Reading 100 New Books vs. Reading 1 New Book Multiple Times 24:04 - Nick on Finding New Books to Read 27:10 - Finding the Best Book for Your Needs or Problem 30:06 - Nick on Using AI 34:45 - Vision of BookThinkers 36:27 - How Does Nick Get Amazing People on His Podcast? 39:51 - In-Person vs. Virtual Podcast 41:54 - Nick on Growing Your Podcast Platforms 44:15 - Building Relationships with Your Podcast Guests 48:29 - Nick's Book Launch: Rise of the Reader 52:07 - Nick's Process of Asking Questions to His Podcast Guests 54:40 - Asking Previous Podcast Guests for Referrals 57:56 - Energy Management in Doing a Podcast 01:00:33 - BookThinkers on Creating Clips for Book Reviews 01:06:02 - Nick's Purpose for Writing "Rise of the Reader" 01:07:40 - How Does Nick Balance His Time in His Business? 01:09:35 - Nick's Process of Writing His Book 01:14:12 - Connect with Nicholas Hutchison! 01:15:20 - Outro

Taking Care of His Business

Derek Drake is the CEO and Head Farmer of Ditto Foods, a Chicago-based hydroponic company that provides produce and farming education. His mission is to provide food and resources to underprivileged communities. Did you know that a 320 square-foot shipping container of hydroponics can replace 3 ACRES' worth of traditional farming? Is it possible we can build more effective, sustainable food production? Today I welcome Derek Drake, the CEO and Head Farmer of Ditto Foods, to the podcast. In this episode, Derek shares how he pivoted from the hospitality industry to becoming the business owner of a thriving hydroponic business. We discuss the significance of eating healthy local food and making a positive impact on your community. Listen to this episode now to be inspired by Derek's story and business mission.  In This Episode, You'll Learn:What Are Hydroponics and How Do They Work?How Hydroponics Are Sustainable Alternative to Traditional FarmingDerek's Inspiring Entrepreneurial Story Find More of Derek Drake Here:www.dittofoods.comhttps://www.instagram.com/ditto_foods/ Full Episode Timestamps:0:00:41 How Derek Drake Got Into Hydroponics During the Pandemic0:08:57 Why Grow Produce With Hydroponics?0:10:16 How Much Does Derek's Hydroponics Grow?0:15:29 What Are Hydroponics? How Does It Work?0:19:19 What Does Derek Grow With Hydroponics?0:20:48 Plant Growth Stages in Hydroponics0:22:29 What Is Derek's Product Cycle And Who Does He Sell To?0:24:07 Derek's Efforts In Teaching, Sharing, And Spreading Info on Hydroponics0:26:43 What Are The Expenses With Doing Hydroponics?0:30:30 What's The Best Way to Pick/Harvest Herbs?0:33:05 Derek's Vision for His Business and Its Impact

Meet Kyle McAnaugh, a 28 Year Old self taught Entrepreneur! His Business, Junk Rescue, grosses $1,000,000 in revenue per Year with only 4 employees. Junk Removal is a recession proof industry that isn't talked about enough! As long as people are moving or companies are renovating and need a cleanup crew.. businesses like Junk Rescue will never be at a loss of customers. Today, we talked about how he got into the industry, how he was able to thrive with no prior experience in waste management, the systems he put in place to scale the business and mistakes to avoid if you want to get into the industry!Other Social Media channels: Subscribe to my main channel "Austin Zaback" https://www.youtube.com/c/AustinZabackSubscribe to my Podcast Channel "The Austin Zaback Show" https://www.youtube.com/c/TheAustinZabackShowFollow me on Social Media:https://www.instagram.com/austinzaback/https://www.tiktok.com/@austinzaback

In this enlightening episode, Jake and Gino sit down with The Real Jason Duncan to delve deep into the world of entrepreneurship, the challenges of delegation, and the importance of genuine passion in business. Key Takeaways: Synthetic vs. Genuine Passion: How entrepreneurs often mistake synthetic happiness for true passion. The Lynchpin Dilemma: The risks of being irreplaceable in your business. Mastering Delegation: Building trust and empowering your team for business scalability. The Power of Perspective: The invaluable insights gained from business coaches, mentors, and masterminds. Must-Read Books: Jason Duncan's top book recommendations for mindset and personal growth. Creating Business Value: Strategies to increase the worth and longevity of your business. Jason Duncan's Journey: From ministry to teaching and the world of entrepreneurship. Throughout the conversation, Jake, Gino, and Jason share personal experiences, insights, and actionable advice for entrepreneurs at all stages. Whether you're just starting out or looking to scale, this episode offers a wealth of knowledge. Recommended Reads: "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill "The Science of Getting Rich" by Wallace D. Wattles Don't forget to like, share, and subscribe for more insightful conversations! Chapters: 00:00 - Intro 00:46 - How Did Jason Duncan Get His Start? 01:52 - Why Did Jason Duncan Get out of the Ministry After 13 Years? 03:00 - Why Did Jason Go From Ministry to Teaching? 04:08 - How Did Jason Duncan Decide Upon His First Business After Being Laid Off? 07:41 - First Steps For Implementation and Planning 11:04 - The Most Important Hires for Jason 12:01 - Scaling Mistakes Jason Duncan Has Made 13:00 - Specifically How A Business Coach Helped Jason 13:56 - Job Vs. Business and How To Transition. 16:48 - What Gave Jason Duncan the Idea to "Exit Without Exiting"? 19:06 - Mindset Unlocked: Starting a Company w/ The Exit In Mind 21:07 - Steps and Process That Need Placing In Order to Efficiently "Exit" 24:01 - For People Who Would NEVER Exit Their Business 28:01 - Jason Asks Jake an Important Question about His Business 31:54 - Has Jason Looked at Buying Businesses Vs. Starting From the Ground Up? 33:04 - How To Develope Trust and the Law of Hinderence. 35:24 - Where Does the Solopreneur Start Scaling? 37:29 - Jason Duncan's Book Recommendations 38:44 - Gino Wraps It Up! Brand New? Start Here: https://jakeandgino.mykajabi.com/free-wheelbarrowprofits Want To Get Into Multifamily Real Estate Or Scale Your Current Portfolio Faster? Apply to join our PREMIER MULTIFAMILY INVESTING COMMUNITY & MENTORSHIP PROGRAM. (*Note: Our community is not for beginner investors) https://jakeandgino.com/apply About Jake & Gino Jake & Gino are multifamily investors, operators, and mentors who have created a vertically integrated real estate company. They control over $250M in assets under management. They have created the Jake & Gino Premier Multifamily Community to teach others a simple three-step framework for investing in multifamily real estate. Connect with Jake & Gino on the social media platform you are most active on: https://jakeandgino.com/link-tree/  

Will Rivera (@willchangelives) shares how he went from working in an  Amazon warehouse to becoming an ecommerce legend. His rags to riches story is a true inspiration. From how he got arrested to inspiring millions of people online, Will is a true testament that hard work and dedication can change your life. Over the past few years Will has taken the ecommerce industry by storm with his positive attitude alongside the value he has provided to young entrepreneurs. If you've been on social media, you've most likely seen his face, as he has amassed a following of over half a million just on Instagram alone! Recently he has started to venture into other entrepreneurial spaces such as his gym and his multi-family apartment building. He truly is taking over and building a legacy that will last a lifetime. FOLLOW WILL: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/willchangelives Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNJm-QbohaMzH-YTe6LyqSg Gym: https://www.richandfitclub.com/ Ecom Degree University: https://www.ecomdegreeworkshop.com/learnold46268814   TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Intro 1:30 - Podcast Start 3:14 - Who is Will? 8:50 - Making the Decision to Drop Out of School 10:02 - Starting Side Hustles 12:13 - the Most Money He Made From Dropshipping 17:11 - Meeting Neo Davis/Learning Webinars 24:35  - Adding Upsells to His Webinar 38:41 - Investing in His Business 39:02 - the Impact of Ad Spend 41:55 - Knowing When to Cut Losses 42:45 - Reflecting on His Journey and the Success He Has Achieved 45:51 - Buying an Apartment Building 55:34 - Plans to Create His Own Software 57:31 - Managing His Real Estate Properties 1:00:10 - Impact of Owning an Apartment in His Business 1:15:53 - Fortune Cookie Advice   FOLLOW 4MEDIA: Main YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/4mediamarketing Clips Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNx7auVTseV865Mu1CZX0WQ Website: https://4media.marketing/ Join Our Team: https://4media.marketing/jobs Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/4media.marketing/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@4media.marketing? EDDIE Instagram: https://instagram.com/eddiemaalouf Twitter: https://twitter.com/imakegreatads Marketing Course: https://www.brilliantmarketers.com/ ANDREW Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrew_deitsch Website: https://andrewdeitsch.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/andrewdeitsch Andrew's Other Podcast: https://www.andrewdeitsch.com/podcast

The Head Flickers of the Paper Football League, Glen Patrick, and Pam Brant, join us to tell all about the PFL, taking paper football to an official new era, with new rules, game boards, and weighted paper footballs coming to a Paper Football League near you!Check out our web post about the Paper Football League here.Pam and Glen 's Facebook group Glen Patrick has been a Carpenter//Handyman for 30+ years, Metal Fabricator, and active participant in the Buddy Games (so to speak). He is the creative genius behind The Patrick Family Olympics, and as Commissioner of PFL League, LLC™️. He developed this game to spend quality time with his grandchildren, family,and friends, but found the nostalgia of the game resonates with everyone. After all, his slogan is, Everyone is a Flickin' Athlete©️ in the PFL. His Business goal is to have a National League Week of Play-Offs in Vegas, leading to the PFL Superbowl with a Bynon Trophy to winning team. Pam Brant is a Travel Writer and Business Owner/sports enthusiast who has been listed in Marquis Publishing Who's Who in America 2023, as a Professional Biographer, and Awarded Google's Top 10% Reviewer for Restaurants and Bars. She recently shifted her supportive talents to assist in growing her significant others' business to a National Level. Pam and Glen on YouTube Join us at the Pigskin Dispatch website and the Sports Jersey Dispatch to see even more Positive football news! Sign up to get daily football history headlines in your email inbox @ Email-subscriberMiss our football by the day of the year podcasts, well don't, because they can still be found at the Pigskin Dispatch website.

Go to Him without a request,without a demand,without yourself. Your silence opens the Door.It opens (t)His Love. And then It opens that mouth, and words of healing come. It opens your eyes,so you can see what's really here, the Joy that He's hiding behind every seeming thing. And it opens out a way for Him to bless through. As you bless,you are blessed. Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in Me, will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do."Tell Him you believe. And then look and feel-- the Door is open. Go out and do the Father's Work, be about His Business today,and He'll take care of yours.I Love you,Niknikki@curlynikki.comp.s. There are no walls... no door ❤️ Just THIS.  Also, listen to Yolanda Adams, Open My Heart Please help me keep the show ad free + Get Merch!▶▶https://www.patreon.com/goodmornings_______________________Today's Quotes:   "Who except God can give you peace?Has the world ever been able to satisfy the heart?"-Saint Gerard Majella"Jesus prefers leaving me in darkness to giving me a false light which would not be Himself."-St. Thérese of Lisieux"We who run in the way of love shouldn't be thinking of sufferings that can take place in the future: it's a lack of confidence, it's like meddling in the work of creation."- St. Thérèse"If you still believe that everything will be okay the moment you find a new girlfriend or boyfriend, get a raise, buy a new house or car, then it is not yet time for yoga. Once you've tried all those things and more, and clearly know that none of it will ever be enough- then you are ready. So now, Yoga."-Sadhguru "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do. "-John 14:12 "Angels and Prophets will visit you and hand you what is truly yours."-Gospel of Thomas "Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD!"-Psalm 27:14"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me."-Rev 3:20"We can become quiet and by doing so the door to Silence opens."-Robert Sardello"Say thank you to every door you knocked on that didn't open.Rejoice that it stopped you from getting into places and situations where you did not belong.Obstacles redirect you because you deserve more.Trust that better opportunities are always available.Blocked paths can be blessings to beautiful beginnings.Your door will always open and welcome you."-@commandinglifeSupport the show

Host Chaz Wolfe welcomes Dan Rubenstein to the king's stage. Dan is CEO and Founder of PUPS Pet Club, a membership-based pet club with five locations in Chicago and plans for further expansion. Dan shares the heartbreaking story of how a personal tragedy involving his own dog led to the creation of PUPS Pet Club, as he sought to provide a responsible and professional care alternative for pet parents. Listen in to learn about Dan's journey from New York, where he ran a similar business called Scout, and how he leveraged his experience as a master dog trainer, even working with celebrities' pets, to create the ultimate urban pet club experience.Throughout the episode, Dan and Chaz discuss the importance of handling adversity in partnerships, building a team that makes you a better business owner, and the thought process behind big business decisions. Additionally, they cover the significance of tracking utilization in the service industry and strategies for getting customers to fully buy into your company. Dan's story is a powerful example of using personal failure as fuel to launch a game-changing pet care empire. Don't miss this inspiring conversation filled with valuable insights for entrepreneurs and pet enthusiasts alike. Tune in now to hear how Dan Rubenstein found a way to turn a personal tragedy into a doggy pup club empire.During this episode, you will learn about;[01:42] Intro To Dan and His Business[05:00] Dan's Why[17:53] A Successful Decision Dan Has Made as a Business Owner[20:53] Building a Quality Team Around You[23:21] A Bad Decision Dan Made in Business[27:10] How Dan Makes Big Decisions[29:11] What Metric Would Dan Track if He Could Only Choose One[39:35] What Advice Would You Give to Young Dan[41:08] How to Connect With Dan[42:58] Info on Gathering The Kings mastermindNotable QuotesCommit to the decision once you've made it, but take your time in making the decision. - Dan RubensteinScientifically, it's proven that dogs are better for humans, particularly for our emotional well-being. If I can somehow improve that relationship, then we're winning. - Dan RubensteinPatience is key; however, more importantly, if you want to be a great manager, listen at least twice as much as you talk, if not more. - Dan RubensteinFor entrepreneurs listening to this, you must believe in what you do and put everything you have behind it—not just your money, but also your heart and soul. - Dan RubensteinFor business purposes, focus on taking care of your people, serving your clients through your team, and ensuring all of this aligns with your mission statement. - Chaz WolfeBooks and Resources Recommended:Goggins, David. Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds. Lioncrest Publishing, 2018.Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/Cant-Hurt-Me-Master-Your/dp/1544512279Let's Connect!Dan Rubenstein:https://pupspetclub.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-rubenstein-8316a44b/Chaz Wolfe (Host): Linktree: https://linktr.ee/chazwolfe?utm_source=linktree_admin_shareWebsite: www.gatheringthekings.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/chazwolfe/Instagram:

In today's episode of Profit First for REI, we are joined by Nicholas Nick. He is a real estate entrepreneur and the founder, CEO, and CFO of Lead Mining Pros, a real estate lead generation company with a focus on cold calling. Nicholas started his journey in the restaurant industry and from there developed a unique skill set that he carries to this day, wearing as many hats when it comes to running his business. He shares how he uses his roles to run his business at the fullest potential but recognizes the importance of eventually hiring someone to take over. Tune in to hear more of Nick's insights into leadership, the importance of knowing your numbers, and the power of cold calling!Key Takeaways:[00:45] Introducing Nicholas Nick and His Background[06:47] On Knowing His Financials[10:03] Leaving the Restaurant Scene and Starting His Real Estate Journey[18:15] Lead Mining Pros and Their Cold Calling Services[20:31] On Maintaining His Hands-On Leadership Methodology and Exiting His Business[24:54] Seeing the Future in Numbers for His Business[27:58] Why Investors Live Deal-to-Deal: [32:32] Connect With NickQuotes: [27:16] “If you're not good at math, you're never going to get rich. Plain and simple.”[28:41] “What makes me successful is I learned to do everything as cheap as humanly possible myself. And then when you do it as cheap as humanly possible, and you're really good at it. That only means now that throwing money at it makes you better.”[31:46] “My personal secret to success is not being attached to the result…I'm more attached to the experience that I'm getting,”Connect with Nick:Website: https://leadminingpros.com/Tired of living deal to deal? If you are a real estate investor or business owner who is tired of living deal to deal, and want to double your profits, head over here to book your no-obligation discovery call with me. Either myself or someone from my team will hop on a short call with you to get clear on your business goals, remove any obstacles holding you back, and map out a game plan to help you finally start keeping more of the money you work so hard to make. - David 

Business | "I Just Wanted to Give a Big Thank You to Clay And Everyone At the Office. It's Been Really Exciting to Help Get the Processes In Place!" - Kelly Herneson Joins to Celebrate the 37% Growth of His Business with the Coaching of Clay Clark Business | Why Complexity Fails And Simplicity Scales When Growing a Business + The Importance of Diligence And Hard Work with NBA Superstar-Turned Entrepreneur David Robinson See Thousands of Clay Clark Client Success Stories Today: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Want to Learn How to Open a TipTopK9 Franchise? www.TipTopK9.com Learn How About Kelly Herneson And His Business American Document Shredding HERE: https://weshredonsite.com/ Learn More About Derek Sisney And His Success Story HERE Today: https://sisneymedia.com/ Learn More About Platinum Pest Control Today HERE: https://platinum-pestcontrol.com/ Business | Get Unstuck NOW!!! | 10-Year+ Clay Clark Client Brett Denton Shares How Clay Business Coaching Helped Him to Grow KvellFit.com, His TipTopK9.com Franchise & SawToothWoodProducts.com + The Importance of Lead Tracking Learn More About Brett Denton Today At: www.KvellFit.com www.SawToothWoodProducts.com www.TipTopK9.com Business | Learn How Create Both Time And Financial Freedom NOW By Implementing A Turn-Key Business Model And System "If the Accountability Isn't Weekly It Would Be Easier to Regress." - Josh Johnson (A TipTopK9.com Franchise Owner) Business | Learn How Create Both Time And Financial Freedom NOW By Implementing A Turn-Key Business Model And System "If the Accountability Isn't Weekly It Would Be Easier to Regress." - Josh Johnson (A TipTopK9.com Franchise Owner) Learn More About Becoming a TipTopK9.com Franchise Owner Today At: www.TipTopK9.com Learn More About Buying a Franchise Today At: www.OXIFresh.com www.TipTopK9.com Business | Learn How to Build a Business And Not a Job. Discover How Clay Clark's Business Coaching Has Helped www.PeakBusinessValuation.com to Grow By 217%? | The Importance ofImplementing WEEKLY Proven Systems & Business Coaching Why Do 96% of Businesses Fail By Default? Why 96 Percent of Businesses Fail - https://www.inc.com/bill-carmody/why-96-of-businesses-fail-within-10-years.html Learn More About Opening a TipTopK9.com Franchise Today HERE: www.TipTopK9.com Schedule a FREE Consultation Today At: https://peakbusinessvaluation.com/ - Call 435-359-2684 Business | Learn the SPECIFIC Systems, Proven Processes and Best-Practices Strategies That You Need to Use to Grow Your Business By 10X | Learn How Clay Clark Coached www.PMHOKC.com and www.DelrichtResearch.com Into 10X Growth Business | "Since Working With Clay I've Learned Everything About Business. The Experience Working Here Has Been LIFE CHANGING. I've Not Only Learned New Things, But I've Gained a Whole New Mindset." - Robert Redmond Business | Learn How to Hire, Inspire, Train and Retain High Quality Employees | Learn How Clay Clark Has Helped Multi Clean to Experience EPIC Growth Year Over Year While Building an Incredible Team Business | How to Use Search Engine Optimization to DRAMATICALLY GROW YOUR BUSINESS + How Clay Clark Helped BarbeeCookies.com to DOUBLE the SIZE of Her Business Within Just 12 Months!!! Learn More About the Success Stories Below: www.LivingWaterIrrigationOK.com www.BarbeeCookies.com www.PMHOKC.com www.DelrichtResearch.com www.OXIFresh.com www.PeakBusinessValuation.com www.TipTopK9.com www.TulsaOilers.com https://sierrapoolsandspas.com/ www.AmyBaltimoreCPA.com www.MorningGloryEatery.com www.Pappagallos.com Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) Learn More About How Clay Has Taught Doctor Joe Lai And His Team Orthodontic Team How to Achieve Massive Success Today At: www.KLOrtho.com Learn How to Grow Your Business Full THROTTLE NOW!!! Learn How to Turn Your Ideas Into A REAL Successful Company + Learn How Clay Clark Coached Bob Healy Into the Success Of His www.GrillBlazer.com Products Learn More About the Grill Blazer Product Today At: www.GrillBlazer.com Learn More About the Actual Client Success Stories Referenced In Today's Video Including: www.ShawHomes.com www.SteveCurrington.com www.TheGarageBA.com www.TipTopK9.com www.WeShredOnSite.com Learn More About How Clay Clark Has Helped Roy Coggeshall to TRIPLE the Size of His Businesses for Less Money That It Costs to Even Hire One Full-Time Minimum Wage Employee Today At: www.ThrivetimeShow.com To Learn More About Roy Coggeshall And His Real Businesses Today Visit: https://TheGarageBA.com/ https://RCAutospecialists.com/ Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ 75% of Employees Steal from the Workplace - https://www.forbes.com/sites/ivywalker/2018/12/28/your-employees-are-probably-stealing-from-you-here-are-five-ways-to-put-an-end-to-it/ 85% of Employees Lie On Resumes - https://www.inc.com/jt-odonnell/staggering-85-of-job-applicants-lying-on-resumes-.html 96% of Businesses Fail - https://www.inc.com/bill-carmody/why-96-of-businesses-fail-within-10-years.html The Key Drivers of Success: A Scheduling Center A Weekly Call Group Interview Google Reviews Video Reviews Dream 100 Running Online Advertisements On-Going Search Engine Content Writing

Business | Business Accounting 101 with Doctor Robert Zoellner And Clay Clark | This Show Can Save You Thousands!!! Business | The Gabe Salinas Success Story | How to Systemize and Scale Your Business | Clay Clark Helped WindowNinjas.com to DOUBLE the Size of His Business within Just 3 Short Years Learn More About How Clay Clark Coached Window Ninjas Into Doubling the Size of Window Ninjas Today At: www.WindowNinjas.com Schedule a FREE Consultation with Gabe Salinas Today By Emailing: info@windowninjas.com Services Provided by Window Ninjas: Commercial Window Cleaning Residential Window Cleaning Gutter Cleaning Pressure Washing Local Window Ninjas Owner: Google Reviews Video Reviews Weekly Group Interviews Keep Their Advertisements On The Franchise: Corporate Will Answer the Phones Business | Learn How to Build a Business And Not a Job. Discover How Clay Clark's Business Coaching Has Helped www.PeakBusinessValuation.com to Grow By 217%? | The Importance ofImplementing WEEKLY Proven Systems & Business Coaching Why Do 96% of Businesses Fail By Default? Why 96 Percent of Businesses Fail - https://www.inc.com/bill-carmody/why-96-of-businesses-fail-within-10-years.html Learn More About Opening a TipTopK9.com Franchise Today HERE: www.TipTopK9.com Schedule a FREE Consultation Today At: https://peakbusinessvaluation.com/ - Call 435-359-2684 Business | Learn the SPECIFIC Systems, Proven Processes and Best-Practices Strategies That You Need to Use to Grow Your Business By 10X | Learn How Clay Clark Coached www.PMHOKC.com and www.DelrichtResearch.com Into 10X Growth Business | "Since Working With Clay I've Learned Everything About Business. The Experience Working Here Has Been LIFE CHANGING. I've Not Only Learned New Things, But I've Gained a Whole New Mindset." - Robert Redmond Business | Learn How to Hire, Inspire, Train and Retain High Quality Employees | Learn How Clay Clark Has Helped Multi Clean to Experience EPIC Growth Year Over Year While Building an Incredible Team Business | How to Use Search Engine Optimization to DRAMATICALLY GROW YOUR BUSINESS + How Clay Clark Helped BarbeeCookies.com to DOUBLE the SIZE of Her Business Within Just 12 Months!!! Learn More About the Success Stories Below: www.LivingWaterIrrigationOK.com www.BarbeeCookies.com www.PMHOKC.com www.DelrichtResearch.com www.OXIFresh.com www.PeakBusinessValuation.com www.TipTopK9.com Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About How Clay Has Taught Doctor Joe Lai And His Team Orthodontic Team How to Achieve Massive Success Today At: www.KLOrtho.com Learn How to Grow Your Business Full THROTTLE NOW!!! Learn How to Turn Your Ideas Into A REAL Successful Company + Learn How Clay Clark Coached Bob Healy Into the Success Of His www.GrillBlazer.com Products Learn More About the Grill Blazer Product Today At: www.GrillBlazer.com Learn More About the Actual Client Success Stories Referenced In Today's Video Including: www.ShawHomes.com www.SteveCurrington.com www.TheGarageBA.com www.TipTopK9.com Learn More About How Clay Clark Has Helped Roy Coggeshall to TRIPLE the Size of His Businesses for Less Money That It Costs to Even Hire One Full-Time Minimum Wage Employee Today At: www.ThrivetimeShow.com To Learn More About Roy Coggeshall And His Real Businesses Today Visit: https://TheGarageBA.com/ https://RCAutospecialists.com/ Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ 75% of Employees Steal from the Workplace - https://www.forbes.com/sites/ivywalker/2018/12/28/your-employees-are-probably-stealing-from-you-here-are-five-ways-to-put-an-end-to-it/ 85% of Employees Lie On Resumes - https://www.inc.com/jt-odonnell/staggering-85-of-job-applicants-lying-on-resumes-.html 96% of Businesses Fail - https://www.inc.com/bill-carmody/why-96-of-businesses-fail-within-10-years.html

Business | The Gabe Salinas Success Story | How to Systemize and Scale Your Business | Clay Clark Helped WindowNinjas.com to DOUBLE the Size of His Business within Just 3 Short Years Learn More About How Clay Clark Coached Window Ninjas Into Doubling the Size of Window Ninjas Today At: www.WindowNinjas.com Schedule a FREE Consultation with Gabe Salinas Today By Emailing: info@windowninjas.com Services Provided by Window Ninjas: Commercial Window Cleaning Residential Window Cleaning Gutter Cleaning Pressure Washing Local Window Ninjas Owner: Google Reviews Video Reviews Weekly Group Interviews Keep Their Advertisements On The Franchise: Corporate Will Answer the Phones Business | Learn How to Build a Business And Not a Job. Discover How Clay Clark's Business Coaching Has Helped www.PeakBusinessValuation.com to Grow By 217%? | The Importance ofImplementing WEEKLY Proven Systems & Business Coaching Why Do 96% of Businesses Fail By Default? Why 96 Percent of Businesses Fail - https://www.inc.com/bill-carmody/why-96-of-businesses-fail-within-10-years.html Learn More About Opening a TipTopK9.com Franchise Today HERE: www.TipTopK9.com Schedule a FREE Consultation Today At: https://peakbusinessvaluation.com/ - Call 435-359-2684 Business | Learn the SPECIFIC Systems, Proven Processes and Best-Practices Strategies That You Need to Use to Grow Your Business By 10X | Learn How Clay Clark Coached www.PMHOKC.com and www.DelrichtResearch.com Into 10X Growth Business | "Since Working With Clay I've Learned Everything About Business. The Experience Working Here Has Been LIFE CHANGING. I've Not Only Learned New Things, But I've Gained a Whole New Mindset." - Robert Redmond Business | Learn How to Hire, Inspire, Train and Retain High Quality Employees | Learn How Clay Clark Has Helped Multi Clean to Experience EPIC Growth Year Over Year While Building an Incredible Team Business | How to Use Search Engine Optimization to DRAMATICALLY GROW YOUR BUSINESS + How Clay Clark Helped BarbeeCookies.com to DOUBLE the SIZE of Her Business Within Just 12 Months!!! Learn More About the Success Stories Below: www.LivingWaterIrrigationOK.com www.BarbeeCookies.com www.PMHOKC.com www.DelrichtResearch.com www.OXIFresh.com www.PeakBusinessValuation.com www.TipTopK9.com Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About How Clay Has Taught Doctor Joe Lai And His Team Orthodontic Team How to Achieve Massive Success Today At: www.KLOrtho.com Learn How to Grow Your Business Full THROTTLE NOW!!! Learn How to Turn Your Ideas Into A REAL Successful Company + Learn How Clay Clark Coached Bob Healy Into the Success Of His www.GrillBlazer.com Products Learn More About the Grill Blazer Product Today At: www.GrillBlazer.com Learn More About the Actual Client Success Stories Referenced In Today's Video Including: www.ShawHomes.com www.SteveCurrington.com www.TheGarageBA.com www.TipTopK9.com Learn More About How Clay Clark Has Helped Roy Coggeshall to TRIPLE the Size of His Businesses for Less Money That It Costs to Even Hire One Full-Time Minimum Wage Employee Today At: www.ThrivetimeShow.com To Learn More About Roy Coggeshall And His Real Businesses Today Visit: https://TheGarageBA.com/ https://RCAutospecialists.com/ Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ 75% of Employees Steal from the Workplace - https://www.forbes.com/sites/ivywalker/2018/12/28/your-employees-are-probably-stealing-from-you-here-are-five-ways-to-put-an-end-to-it/ 85% of Employees Lie On Resumes - https://www.inc.com/jt-odonnell/staggering-85-of-job-applicants-lying-on-resumes-.html 96% of Businesses Fail - https://www.inc.com/bill-carmody/why-96-of-businesses-fail-within-10-years.html

In this episode, we're speaking with David Pupo, a real estate investor and the visionary of Florida House Buyers. He studied marketing and finance and worked a corporate job right out of college before transitioning into the real estate industry.David is a big advocate of the Profit First method. He first applied it after realizing he had been spending so much on taxes and realized he needed a system to manage his money. Despite initially struggling to maintain the model, he has recently seen how much of a benefit it is to his business through following Profit First with discipline.Tune in as we discuss his investment journey and how every investor needs Profit First.Key Takeaways:[00:46] Introducing David Pupo and His Background[03:44] David's Entrepreneurial Journey[07:57] Encountering the Profit First Method[10:16] The Value of Profit First After David's Full Implementation[11:56] Struggles Before Fully Implementing Profit First[15:58] David's Teaching Niche in Real Estate that Includes Profit First  [17:58] David's Future Goals for His Business[20:51] Hardest Lesson Learn as an Investor[22:10] Advice for People Who Want to Implement Profit First.[23:13] Connect with DavidQuotes:[10:31] “[Profit First is] sheer discipline, that's what I see coming out from the other side is just a consistent action to make sure that at the end of the day—when it's tax season, you are not gripping, you're not holding for dear life.”[21:11] “You don't need a partner for everything that you might think. You can delegate and hire out a lot of those responsibilities…I always thought that I needed a COO…While I know that there's a lot of benefits to having that COO, I've also been able to realize I can delegate and hire out a lot of what that responsibility was.”[22:31] “[Profit First is] very elementary. It's very action and step oriented…to the point where I can show people that I'm bringing it on as coaching clients in the first two weeks of the program.”Connect with David:Website: www.tripleoffer.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/david.pupo.9/Instagram: @dollarswithdavidTikTok: @dollarswithdavidYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@dollarswithdavidTired of living deal to deal? If you are a real estate investor or business owner who is tired of living deal to deal, and want to double your profits, head over here to book your no-obligation discovery call with me. Either myself or someone from my team will hop on a short call with you to get clear on your business goals, remove any obstacles holding you back, and map out a game plan to help you finally start keeping more of the money you work so hard to make. - David 

The ultimate goal of investing is to generate long-term wealth, not just earn more. You want to make money work for you and not the other way around. It takes effort and stability, but with guidance and an effective system, you will be more equipped to reach your financial goals.Our guest today is someone who dedicates himself to helping others achieve being wealthy. Chris Miles is a cash flow expert, investor, and the founder of Money Ripples, with a mission to teach other entrepreneurs to create quick cash flow.His career is a testament to tenacity, grown into success after suffering from the crash in 2008. So tune in for education and inspiration as Chris shares his story, work, and why you should implement the Profit First method into your life!Key Takeaways:[00:52] Introducing Chris Miles and His Background[02:41] On the Profit First Message [05:11] Experiencing the Real Estate Crash and What Happened After[10:18] Before and After Implemented Profit First into His Business[16:08] On Profit First Allowing Chris to Reinvest in His Business[18:17] On Profit First's Effect on Chris's Mindset[22:22] Passive Real Estate Investing[26:36] Advice for People Who Want to Implement Profit First[28:16] Connect with ChrisQuotes:[03:38] “[Profit First] really took hold of me…I talked about cash flow all the time [you'd] think I would [already be following] it.”[11:16] “I think too many entrepreneurs get into a hustle habit. Or they get stuck in hustle mode, even though they don't have to be, they start getting caught up working harder—not even smarter or working right.”[27:40] “Just [having separate buckets for different expenses and profit] alone, that kind of discipline, it actually just eye-opening.”[25:10] “When [you have] profit, don't spend it unless you know that money you want to spend will give you more money.”Connect with Chris:Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/money-ripples-podcast/id895555599Website: https://moneyripples.com/Tired of living deal to deal? If you are a real estate investor or business owner who is tired of living deal to deal, and want to double your profits, head over here to book your no-obligation discovery call with me. Either myself or someone from my team will hop on a short call with you to get clear on your business goals, remove any obstacles holding you back, and map out a game plan to help you finally start keeping more of the money you work so hard to make. - David 

Business Podcasts | The Steve Currington Success Story & SteveCurrington.com Case Studies Website: www.SteveCurrington.com Business Podcasts | Clay Clark Success Stories | "I've Worked with Clay Clark (for 7 Years Since 2016) Since the Beginning of Our Business. We've Grown from a Startup to Over $1,300,000 of Annual Sales." Learn More About Thomas and His Business www.FullPackageMedia.com Learn More About Josh Wilson and his business Living Water Irrigation HERE: Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ See Thousands of Case Studies Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/does-it-work/

#BusinessPodcasts Business Podcasts | "He's Helped Us Navigate How to Run the Company And Navigating Competition." - Charles Colaw (Founder of www.ColawFitness.com) Business Podcasts | Clay Clark Success Stories | "I've Worked with Clay Clark (for 7 Years Since 2016) Since the Beginning of Our Business. We've Grown from a Startup to Over $1,300,000 of Annual Sales." Learn More About Thomas and His Business www.FullPackageMedia.com Learn More About Josh Wilson and his business Living Water Irrigation HERE: Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ See Thousands of Case Studies Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/does-it-work/

Business Podcasts | Why Ideas Don't Matter and Why the Implementation of Proven Processes and Success Systems Does Matter + What Rhymes with Oranges (Recorded by Clay Clark On May 17th 2018) “Most people are sitting on their own diamond mines. The surest ways to lose your diamond mine are to get bored, become overambitious, or start thinking that the grass is greener on the other side. Find your core focus, stick to it, and devote your time and resources to excelling at it.” - Gino Wickman (Traction: Get a Grip On Your Business) “But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.” - 1 Timothy 5:8 Search Engine Optimization 101: Step 1 - Make Your Website Canonically / Google Compliant Step 2 - Make Your Website Mobile Compliant Step 3 - You Must Create More Original HTML Content Than Your Competition Step 4 - Gather Objective Google Reviews from Your Happy Clients Step 5 - Turn On Your Social Media Ads and Never Turn Them Off Learn More About www.ShawHomes.com They Are Oklahoma's Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Home Builder They Have More Fully Furnished Homes Than Any Other Builder They Have the Most Incredible Incentives for New Buyers Sales Optimization 101: Create a Tracking Sheet Install a Sales Script for Inbound Install a Frequently Asked Questions Document Install a Pre-Written Email Install a Pre-Written Text Install Call Recording With www.ClarityVoice.com Online Reputation Management: Gather an Objective Video Review from Every Happy Patient / Customer Gather an Objective Google Review from Happy Clients Business Podcasts | Clay Clark Success Stories | "I've Worked with Clay Clark (for 7 Years Since 2016) Since the Beginning of Our Business. We've Grown from a Startup to Over $1,300,000 of Annual Sales." Learn More About Thomas and His Business www.FullPackageMedia.com Learn More About Josh Wilson and his business Living Water Irrigation HERE: Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ See Thousands of Case Studies Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/does-it-work/

#BusinessPodcasts Business Podcasts | "He's Helped Us Navigate How to Run the Company And Navigating Competition." - Charles Colaw (Founder of www.ColawFitness.com) Business Podcasts | Clay Clark Success Stories | "I've Worked with Clay Clark (for 7 Years Since 2016) Since the Beginning of Our Business. We've Grown from a Startup to Over $1,300,000 of Annual Sales." Learn More About Thomas and His Business www.FullPackageMedia.com Learn More About Josh Wilson and his business Living Water Irrigation HERE: Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ See Thousands of Case Studies Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/does-it-work/

Business Podcasts | Learn How Clay Clark Helped to Coach SierraPoolsAndSpa.com from a Startup Into a Multi-Million Dollar Business Website: www.SierraPoolsAndSpa.com Business Podcasts | Clay Clark Success Stories | "I've Worked with Clay Clark (for 7 Years Since 2016) Since the Beginning of Our Business. We've Grown from a Startup to Over $1,300,000 of Annual Sales." Learn More About Thomas and His Business www.FullPackageMedia.com Learn More About Josh Wilson and his business Living Water Irrigation HERE: Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ See Thousands of Case Studies Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/does-it-work/

Business Podcasts | 13-Year Clay Clark Client and Success Story Shares How Clay Clark Coached Him Into SUPER SUCCESS Website: www.ClayStaires.com Business Podcasts | Clay Clark Success Stories | "I've Worked with Clay Clark (for 7 Years Since 2016) Since the Beginning of Our Business. We've Grown from a Startup to Over $1,300,000 of Annual Sales." Learn More About Thomas and His Business www.FullPackageMedia.com Learn More About Josh Wilson and his business Living Water Irrigation HERE: Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ See Thousands of Case Studies Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/does-it-work/

Business Podcasts | Clay Clark Case Study | "I've Worked with Clay Clark (for 7 Years Since 2016) Since the Beginning of Our Business. We've Grown from a Startup to Over $1,300,000 of Annual Sales." Business Podcasts | Clay Clark Success Stories | "I've Worked with Clay Clark (for 7 Years Since 2016) Since the Beginning of Our Business. We've Grown from a Startup to Over $1,300,000 of Annual Sales." Learn More About Thomas and His Business www.FullPackageMedia.com Learn More About Josh Wilson and his business Living Water Irrigation HERE: Clay Clark Testimonials | "Clay Clark Has Helped Us to Grow from 2 Locations to Now 6 Locations. Clay Has Done a Great Job Helping Us to Navigate Anything That Has to Do with Running the Business, Building the System, the Workflows, to Buy Property." - Charles Colaw (Learn More Charles Colaw and Colaw Fitness Today HERE: www.ColawFitness.com) See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Coached to Success HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Learn More About Attending the Highest Rated and Most Reviewed Business Workshops On the Planet Hosted by Clay Clark In Tulsa, Oklahoma HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/business-conferences/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire See Thousands of Actual Client Success Stories from Real Clay Clark Clients Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ See Thousands of Case Studies Today HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/does-it-work/

Many investors become inclined to settle for an unoptimized lifestyle because they never realize how uncomfortable they truly are until they step outside their perceived “comfort zone.” Our guest today was the same—he didn't know how better things could be until he started actually exploring his options.Matt Theriault is a real estate investor and mentor at Epic Real Estate Investing and also hosts its podcast. For a long time, he lived deal-to-deal and experienced financial issues to the point of nearly retiring, but after learning about and implementing the Profit First approach, he regained hope and grew his business to the success it is today.This episode is going to hit home for many. If you find yourself in a similar situation, let this episode inspire you into taking the same steps! Join us!Key Takeaways:[00:43] Introducing Matt Theriault and His Background[04:18] Matt and the Profit First Message[07:46] Matt's Business Before Profit First[10:19] The Effect of Applying Profit First for His Business[12:51] Matt on Nearly Retiring[15:49] On How Profit First Helps Open Up More Options for His Business[17:23] On Developing His Involvement in the Financial Side of Their Business[21:01] The Habits that Helped Him Succeed as an Investor[22:51] Advice for Investors: Implement Profit First ASAP[24:30] Connect with MattQuotes:[08:54] “Once you get out of your comfort zone, you'll quickly realize that you weren't that comfortable.[16:11] “I have been able to tap into it, and go ahead and see some opportunities that I might not have otherwise been able to, just because I [implemented Profit First]'”[22:58] “I want to say [implement Profit First] ASAP. If I were to go back in hindsight, when someone [asks] what's one of the first things…that [I would] do…at the very least get a QuickBooks thing set up, get a bookkeeper set up just because to go back and fix all that stuff retroactively is very complicated, very time-consuming, and very expensive.”Connect with Matt Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8ZYmCweKD2x-wy8PDEiFogTired of living deal to deal? If you are a real estate investor or business owner who is tired of living deal to deal, and want to double your profits, head over here to book your no-obligation discovery call with me. Either myself or someone from my team will hop on a short call with you to get clear on your business goals, remove any obstacles holding you back, and map out a game plan to help you finally start keeping more of the money you work so hard to make. - David 

Now is an excellent time to start investing no matter where you are, no matter what age you are. We've got Mark Podolsky, a land geek sharing his knowledge on conquering the fear of investing and financial insecurity to move forward to achieve the tri-factor of life: Money, Health, and Time. Listen as Mark shares how Profit First impacted his business and gained knowledge on how he transforms lands into a passive income now!Key Takeaways:[01:00] Introducing Mark Podolsky[01:54] Mark on What Excites Him the Most about Real Estate Investment[03:49] Financial Struggles He Experienced in the Past[08:24] Mark's Insight on Why Most Investors Live Deal to Deal[12:07] Profit First's Impact on His Business[15:26] How His View of Money Changed Over the Years[20:51] One Key for Mark's Success in Life[23:08] Hardest Lesson Mark Learned in His Real Estate Investing Career[25:04] Mark's Advice to Real Estate Investing Community[28:03] Connect with Mark PodolskyQuotes: [05:54] "Stuff is great, vacations are great, cars are great but that doesn't make me happy."[18:27] "There will never be better times of your life when you have the tri-factor of life: Money, Health, and Time."[21:43] "Many people are spending so much of their days, life, and energy on this thing called money that doesn't fulfill them, doesn't light them up, isn't their true purpose."Connect with Mark:Website: https://www.thelandgeek.com/Tired of living deal to deal? If you are a real estate investor or business owner who is tired of living deal to deal and want to double your profits, head over here to book your no-obligation discovery call with me. Either myself or someone from my team will hop on a short call with you to get clear on your business goals, remove any obstacles holding you back, and map out a game plan to help you finally start keeping more of the money you work so hard to make. - David

Tyson Smith, a 24 Year Old Self Made Real Estate Investor/Wholesaler. His Business generates 6 Figures a MONTH and on this episode he shared where he began, the habits that hindered him along the way and how he has managed to make his wholesaling business such a success! For anyone looking to get into wholesaling-- Tyson is a great example that you can start by just picking up the phone, being hungry and being persistent! Enjoy the Show!

Investing in the integrity and structure of your home is very important. It goes beyond just complying with the building code standards but also there lies the reality of making sure it can withstand any unforeseen calamities. Take it from our guest today, who has over 27 years of cumulative experience in building homes and structures. Pablo Arnaud, the owner of ARNA Builders is a Puerto Rico-native but has been in the service of the locals in Palm Harbor for over 2 years now. Having taken high project positions in companies such as Universal and Disney, Pablo gives us his years of expertise all in this podcast episode. Surely, you don't want to miss it! IN TODAY'S EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT: How His Career in Construction Started. Starting up His Business from Scratch. What he enjoys most about his business. Why is it important to invest in proper home inspection for your property. Favorite Spots in Palm Harbor. CONNECT WITH Pablo:LinkedIn: Send a Connection RequestPhone: (407) 802-8762Email: ARNAbuilder@gmail.com CONNECT WITH DONNIE: Follow Donnie: @donnie.hathawayFollow Palm Harbor Local: @PalmHarborLocalFor more real estate information - www.thehathaway.groupJOIN THE LOCALS  for exclusive discounts and specials from our local business owners and stay up to date on what's happening in Palm Harbor.Together, we keep Palm Harbor local. 

Joe Specializes in Helping those who need to move quickly and clients from out of state who need to relocate.Brooklyn Born, Joe Moved to Miami in 2014 and has Never looked back since! His Business is built onDedicationCommunication Determination & Trust. Joe has the unique ability to cater to and adapt to all of his client's specific needs. You will be delighted with how smooth it will be! In this episode, Joe and Jay discuss what Joe's experience and tactical movements have been in his career that shares his success today.Follow Joe: @gottacalljoe on IG and @JoeBrikman everywhere else.Check out Joe: JoeBrikman.com

Want to watch the Tribe of Millionaires? YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbczkBHANH9ULLQiSt56bQA/ Todd Dexheimer purchases and syndicates real estate investments in Multifamily, senior housing and light industrial. His specialty is buying distressed properties, renovating and re-positioning the assets. He specializes in locating and analyzing properties, along with bringing private investors into his deals. Todd's companies provide its investor's with great investment opportunities through private equity investments. Todd Dexheimer is also the host of Pillars of Wealth Creation, which is a podcast that talks about financial freedom, with a special focus on business and Real Estate. He interviews successful business leaders and investors on a bi-weekly podcast. To contact Todd Dexheimer, email him at todd@venturedproperties.com Todd's Business http://www.venturedproperties.com/ Todd's Podcast http://pillarsofwealthcreation.com/ Powerful Moments From The Episode 00:00 - Gaining Experience & Learning From Your Mistakes 00:49 - Todd Dexheimer Introduction 01:46 - Big Takeaway From The Utah Winter Adventure & Mastermind 03:36 - Todd Dexheimer's Personal Background Story 05:04 - The Most Influential Book On Todd's Career (The ABCs of Real Estate Investing, Ken McElroy) 05:40 - Why Todd Became A Teacher 07:30 - How Todd Educates His Children 08:54 - Early Education With Real Estate Investing 10:03 - How Todd Acquired His First Real Estate Properties 13:21 - Enrolling Your Significant Other Into Your Vision 14:20 - Quitting Teaching For Full-Time Real Estate Investing 15:28 - The Journey Back To Flipping Houses 16:25 - Implementing Good Systems 18:52 - Gaining Experience & Learning From Your Mistakes 20:13 - Todd's Key Systems For Success 21:57 - What Todd's Business Looks Like Today 23:36 - Finding Motivated Sellers In Assisted Living & Senior Housing 26:37 - Todd's Upcoming Business & Personal Goals 28:01 - Motivation To Start Contributing More 30:13 - GoBundance Card Game Question 31:34 - Where To Learn More About Todd, His Business & Podcast 32:21 - What are your 3 pillars of wealth creation? Learn More About Our Tribe! https://www.gobundance.com $150m Net Worth In Under 2 Years! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGzZSEofyGk Want to connect with our community? Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gobundance Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gobundance Twitter: https://twitter.com/GoBundance Tribe of Millionaires Podcast by GoBundance is the podcast for healthy wealthy generous people who choose to live epic lives. Each week we connect with featured guests and GoBundance members to bring you the best in our community.

What is up, Masterminders! We offer a New Episode full of GEMS and Revealed Strategies to help you take your life to the next level through Real Estate investing. Real estate is a great investment for many reasons. You can enjoy an excellent rate of returns, amazing tax advantages and leverage real estate to build your wealth. So, if you are hungry for Success and has been thinking how you can start with Real Estate Investing, do not let this flop and start listening right now!From an Employer, to a FULL TIME Investor! Our guest for today is the amazing Jason Hopkins - a full time Real Estate Investor and the CEO of Star Level Real Estate, LLC.Jason went to college and had a good 9-5 job that paid well. But, the long hours on top of working weekends and on the holidays began to take their toll. And he realized that he would never become wealthy in time and money by working for someone else. That is when he started to explore Real Estate and got himself a MENTOR to guide him along the way.He built his own empire which is a local real estate investment company that invests in Memphis and its surrounding areas. Jason take great pride in helping property owners alleviate unwanted properties and teaching aspiring entrepreneurs/investors to do the same!Listen until the end of this Episode to LEARN HIS STRATEGIES!- Deep dive to Entrepreneurship- Importance of Investment- How To Get Started Investing In Real Estate- How Start a Car Rental Business- Importance of MENTORSHIP- And so much more!Do not be afraid to take risks and DO NOT let yourself miss out! Start learning about Real Estate Investing by listening to this episode until the end now.Do you have any questions? Feel Free to Connect With us!Check out Jason's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thememphisrealestateshark/His Business: https://www.thegiftsofthegab.com/sales-page1641838142114My Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tolu.owoyemi/My Website: https://go.mastermindyouragency.com/site

Art Harrison is the Co-Founder and Chief Growth Officer at Daylight. He's an experienced entrepreneur and leader with over 20 years of experience developing and delivering production grade solutions. With a background in computer science and software development, Art was previously Vice President at iNTERFACEWARE and previously founded MXD Communities in 2001.   Questions   Could you share a little bit about your journey, how did you get to where you are today? Could you tell us a little bit about Daylight? And what Daylight does and how Daylight is helping their customers achieve their goals? Could you share with us how is it that consumers or organizations are able to increase their overall customer satisfaction and brand loyalty by offering positive and engaging Omni channels CX at scale? Could you share with our listeners what low-code is for those listeners who are not familiar with that? And why do you believe it's disrupting the CX landscape? You're in the CX space, as well as the design space, could you share with us maybe one or two things that you've seen emerge in the last few months that you will see as an ongoing trend, at least for 2023 in this space? Could you also share with us what is the one online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely can't live without in your business? Could you also share with our listeners maybe one or two books that have had a big impact on you, it could be a book that you read a very long time ago, or even one that you've read recently, but it still left a great impact on you. Could you also share with us what's one thing that's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about? Either something you're working on to develop yourself or your people. Where can listeners find you online? Now, could you also share with our listeners, do you have a quote or saying that during times of adversity or challenge, you will tend to revert to this quote, it kind of helps to get you back on track if for any reason you get derailed.   Highlights   Art's Journey   Art shared that like most people, it's been an interesting journey, it's not one that he would have mapped out in advance. But he'd say he's always been passionate about using technology and building things. And he thinks that's been really the guiding principle of his career. So, he started off very entrepreneurial in the social networking and online dating space when he was in university. And really what he found from that led him to marketing and ultimately led him back to being a founder again, here at Daylight.   And it was just a passion to build things that people want to use, and to find ways to delight customers and end users along the way. And even though his career has spanned technical and marketing and other kind of lanes, the common thread has always been, “What do people need? And how can we make their lives better and delight them along the way?” And so, it's been an interesting journey. But he's always excited about where it's going to lead him next.   About Daylight – What Does Daylight Do and How Daylight Helping Their Customers Achieve Their Goals   Art said absolutely. And kind of an interest of this podcast, Daylight is kind of in the space of customer experience, in that they're a platform that helps large enterprises primarily, but really any organization that knows how they want to improve the experience they're providing, not just to their customers, but to their employees as well.   And they're a platform that allows them to rapidly design, build and deploy solutions that really touch on that interaction between people and process. So, the simplest example he can give you is the TurboTax type of example, where you have the IRS and the United States, the CRA in Canada, any other tax agency, they have a business process, but it's a terrible process for most people to interact with.   And TurboTax and the tax industry exists to create a better on ramp that'll guide people through that process in a way that's intuitive to them and is the way they're used to working with other solutions, not just paper forms and addendums. Daylight is a platform that lets organizations build that kind of an experience for any interaction that their customers or their employees are having and to do it at scale across the entire organization. So, they're touching more places, and then proving that experience at every interaction that people are having with the business and their services or processes.   How Organizations Increase Their Overall Customer Satisfaction and Brand Loyalty by Offering Positive and Engaging Omni Channels CX at Scale   Me: Now, one of the areas that we would love to discuss with you, as we have you on our podcast is could you share with us how is it that consumers or organizations are able to increase their overall customer satisfaction and brand loyalty by offering positive and engaging omni-channels CX at scale? Could you share a little bit about that with us?   Art shared that it's a broad question, but he does think there's a lot of ways. Part of the thesis and a hypothesis when they were starting Daylight was this understanding that most organizations are primarily invest in the major touchpoints that they have with their clients.   So, you think about any lifecycle of a client, there's the research and acquisition phase or the signup phase, whatever you want to call it. So, how are we going to bring this customer in and most people are investing a lot of money to try and make that experience as pleasant as possible.   And then there is the renewal or upsell phase, a lot of investment goes in there. But everything that happens in between that is actually what leads to their satisfaction, their probability of churning or abandoning or leaving that organization and so when you can start thinking about what are all the ways that they need to interact with us, it may be that they're just looking for information, they're looking to change some basic information about themselves, their family, their account. And so, when you start thinking about how do we improve the CSAT scores or the NPS for the employees, it's really looking and saying, “Okay, we know we've got the book ends really well.” But there are dozens of times where that friction, they're leaving friction in place, or they're creating friction for someone just to talk to someone to understand, “Hey, can I change the payment date that I have?”or “I've just got married, I want to update some of my information so that my family is included in my account.”or whatever it may be.   When they can look at that and say, “What are all those touch points? How can we make a bigger impact and improve the experience across all of those areas?” And furthering that to like, how do they want to have that experience? It's one thing to say we're going to make everything available online and self-service and there is a core group of customers that care about that. But you need to also think about, well, sometimes there's a lot of information there, or it's someone that doesn't want it, they just want someone to take care of it for them.   You have to look at the entire lifecycle and all of the interaction points and find ways to create a more natural experience in any of those.   But one of the key things that they talk about at Daylight when they're talking with customers, is changing this mindset of, “I have a business process, I have something that I want to accomplish and so I'm going to push it on to the customer in the way that I need it for them to give me their information.” So, you think about a bank, they have a process for anything, you want to open a new checking account, this is how they need the information. And historically, they would even if they were digitizing it, they take their process and put that online. But that's not how we think, as consumers, we don't think about their business process, we think about the outcome we want to have or the experience. So, you have to kind of evaluate all of those touch points from the perspective of the person doing it and try to make those improvements.   What is Low-Code and Why is it Disrupting the CX Landscape?   Me: Now, in preparing for this interview, I noticed that when you were introduced, it was introduced that you were a good candidate to speak about how low-code is disrupting the CX landscape. Could you share with our listeners what low-code is for those listeners who are not familiar with that? And why do you believe it's disrupting the CX landscape?   Art shared that typically, a low-code, it can mean a lot of things for a lot of people but the simplest description of that is historically, anything that you were building new, a technical task required software developers, designers, people on the technical side of the spectrum, to understand your needs, and build that solution for you to the best of their understanding. And what low-code does is it changes the paradigm so that by reducing the technical bar to build new solutions, you're shortening the distance between the person who actually knows the problem, and most likely even knows what the solution would be. And that solution getting built.   So, low-code exists in just about any category, any industry, he'll think of some brand names he has no affiliation with but, whether it's GoDaddy or Squarespace, or any website builder, 10 years ago, 20 years ago, you had to learn HTML, you had to learn how to code a website.   Now, you can go on to a low-code solution where you're dragging and dropping and building something that is professional grade, that looks amazing, that works on any device, that's low-code transforming, who can build websites. And when you think about the experience realm, whether that's digital experiences, the employee experiences for someone that works in a branch, the tools that are going to make your call centre more effective, any area that typically was relying on a service like an integrator or an SI, or a technology team within their own organization, they were waiting in the queue, depending on the size of their budget to get work done, they might have to wait months and months, they get something done eventually, but it's not what they wanted.   Low-code really changes that because now that person that is on the front line, who knows this is where it's always problematic with a customer, “I wish that I could just automatically do these couple of tasks or I wish I knew what to do when they said that they want to purchase this product or change their account in this way.”They understand that problem and low-code empowers them to build if not 100%, 80%, 90% of their solution directly, and keep changing it when they actually use it in the field. And so, it just means the iteration, the time to value and the bar or the barrier to making these better experiences is dropping. And that means you're going to continue to see improved experiences that are really meeting the needs of employees and customers across all kinds of organizations.   Me: All right, so basically making things more accessible to the average person. And I guess it really boils down to as you were saying, as I was listening to you, it really boils down to, I believe, also ensuring that everybody can have access to do the exact thing. When you were speaking just now, I was thinking of Canva. And I was thinking of back in the day, if you wanted to do a flyer or some form of publication for marketing or advertising, you typically get a graphic artist or even an advertising agency who have the talent in house to get it done. But I mean, you can become your own designer with Canva, they've made it so easy. And I thought of that when you're talking about making the design process and the coding process so easy.   Art stated that that's a perfect example. And he'll tie it back, again, he spends a lot of his time talking to these large enterprises that literally have 10s of 1000s of processes that are happening across the organization and insurance company has all different types of claims and policies and managements and call centres and issues that they're dealing with. The bank has branches and wealth products and everything else, they have so many. And going back to that TurboTax analogy, a lot of them are stressful. Like doing your taxes is inherently a stressful thing. You're worried if I do it wrong, am I going to get audited? Am I going to make a mistake? You kind of feel adversarial, like the person that I'm providing this information to doesn't actually have my best interests at heart.   When you can take all of those processes and reduce the cost to actually make something that's more intuitive, more delightful, you're enabling the people on the business side who know that we can improve the experience, our satisfaction scores, to make that improvement. You're improving the lives of the people that need to provide the information in.   As he said, often stressful experiences, it's like taking a test, you're really changing the dynamic of what can be addressed, how easily, how cost effectively it can be and then dramatically changing the types of experiences that can be built, you can take something like taxes, and turn that into something where it's more conversational. “Hey, did you change jobs this year?” “Great. Tell me about your new job.” “Did you get married?” “Great, there might be a tax benefit for you.” You took something that was previously just here, fill out box 66 and made it into something that now feels like, “Hey, this is working with me, this is a very different emotion, a very different experience that I'm interacting with this organization or this business process.”   In the CX Space and Design Space, What Are Things That Have Emerged in the Last Few Months that Will be an Ongoing Trend in 2023?   Me: So, we're approaching pretty much the end of 2022, I can't believe that we're almost in the final quarter of the year, like it just started. And you're in the CX space, as well as the design space, could you share with us maybe one or two things that you've seen emerge in the last few months that you will see as an ongoing trend, at least for 2023 in this space.   Art shared that for him, and he's only one perspective and as he says to his own clients, the clients of Daylight, he's in the vendors mindset. So, as much as he works hard to stay neutral or to be very open and really help people find the best solution for them, regardless of his organization, he still only sees it from his perspective, so always a grain of salt. But what we are seeing, not just in the last couple of quarters, but really for the last few years, particularly during the pandemic, it's escalated, and it continues to grow, no one is stopping work on the customer experience. But some of the same teams and technologies and approaches that people have really heavily invested in to improve customer experience is shifting to include a lot more on employee experience.   As we've all been remote as we have, as consumers, we are seeing these better experiences, it's really hard to have an amazing experience shopping online or interacting with your Robo Advisor account for your investments, and then going to work and using the worst technology or being stuck to deal with terrible processes, terrible communication channels. So, we're seeing a really increasing push on the need to improve employee experiences to do their job, whether they're directly supporting customers, or whether they're doing internal things, HR, anywhere else.   Because it's becoming essential to retain the teams that you have, people just don't want to, they have the flexibility to work anywhere, because the barriers of geography are kind of breaking down. So, the importance of improving the quote, unquote, customer experience of your employees seems to be always increasing and we're really seeing some exciting changes to how people are supporting their teams across the board.   App, Website or Tool that Art Absolutely Can't Live Without in His Business   When asked about online resources that he cannot live without in his business, Art shared that that is a tough one, he would say it's not a glamorous tool by any means but for him, it is probably, he would say any video conferencing. For him, he spent so much time just talking to people, understanding what their objectives are, what their goals are, whether that's his team, whether that's their customers, whether it's just peers in the industry. And if they didn't have access to that, and the ability to still make connections, even when they're geographically dispersed or kind of on locked down with a pandemic.   He feels like this last couple of years would have felt really isolating, he wouldn't have made the connections and the growth that he's made personally, professionally with his team. So, there's a lot of other way cooler tools that he uses kind of in with his marketing brand, or his technology brand. But if you took away his ability to just connect with people, see their faces and still build meaningful connections, he doesn't know what he would do. So, he thinks that still to him is the most valuable app.   Books that Have Had the Biggest Impact on Art   When asked about books that have had the biggest impact, Art shared that he's going to give a weird one here and it's just because he consumes a lot of information. A lot of it is articles and long form. But there's a book, when you asked him that there's a book, a professor recommended when he was young, and this is not for everyone to read. But it made a big impact on him just opening his eyes in the numbers way.   So, it's not about CX or UX, but there's a book called the One Two Three…Infinity: Facts and Speculations of Science (Dove Books on Mathematics) by George Gamow. And it was a computer science professor that at the time basically said, “If you can read this and understand this, then I want to work with you on some side projects.” So, it became a motivation for him to just expand what does infinity even mean? And for him, the keener in him to want to get in the good graces of that professor. So, that just had a big impact on him. And his wife actually recently purchased that one for him, because he had talked about it. Something that I had read in my university days.   Then the other book that comes to mind, and he's just beginning it right now. And he's had it on his shelf for a long time, someone handed it to him before, it's called The Book of Business Awesome/The Book of Business Unawesome by Scott Stratten. So, that's another book, he can't see the impact it's made on him yet but that's next up that someone has recommended, and he's going to be reading next.   What Art is Really Excited About Now!   When asked about something that he's excited about, Art stated that one of the things he's really excited about, well, he's always excited about his family. He's got two kids that are going through transitions of kind of where they are in life. They did their first year away at a sleepaway camp this year, they're in middle school, one of them is in middle school. So, the keeping up with them, his son actually recommended a podcast to him, a business podcast, he's 11 years old, that he's actually loving.   He's really excited about the changes of, they're giving him interesting things that are stretching his mind now. So, that's pretty cool. And one of the things, he's excited about, it's a little cheesy, but they made a big investment at their organization in a communication framework. It's kind of under a selling framework. It's a little plug for the group there called The Value Selling. What he really likes about it is it really gives a framework for how to have conversations, to understand where people want to go, what's stopping them from getting there? And then what they believe the solution would be and how to attach to that.   Now, usually that's used to sell or to do better by your clients and be aligned, he's really excited about what it's been doing for his organization, for the one on ones. Something he's wanted to get better at is how does he mentor and provide one on ones and coaching to the team? And using that same framework of them saying, where do I want to go? You want to be promoted? You want to get to this point in your career? Well, what's stopping you? And what do you think you could do to further that, and then being able to have them know where they want to go and support them is putting a lot more direction to the one on ones he's having.   And he's really excited about how that's going to make him a better manager, a better leader, and how he's going to help the people on the team that he directly interacts with get where they are ultimately wanting to be in their lives, because that's what breeds a great culture, a great team, and just great people across the board, whether they stay with them or not. So, he's really excited about that.   Where Can We Find Art Online   Website – www.daylight.io LinkedIn – Art Harrison   Quote or Saying that During Times of Adversity Art Uses   When asked if he has a quote or saying that he tends to revert to, Art shared that he does and he's going to overshare a little bit. It's not a famous quote, it just comes from his dad, and he's the third Art or Arthur, the third, his son is now the fourth. They've been the Harrison family line, they've kept that tradition going and just from an early age, his dad would just kind of like no matter what adversity they were in, no matter what they're going through, he's like, “Don't worry, it would either be intermix, you're either a Harrison or you're an Art, it's going to work out, and it's going to be fine.”   And it's not that he was some wild success, it's just that he really managed stress well, and just knew that life would work out the way that it was supposed to. And it really just embedded in his DNA. And so, whether it's the hardest day, professionally or personally, whether he's struggling with something, whether he's excited about something, it's just in there, and it's kind of repeating in his brain all the time that like, it doesn't matter if it's going to work out, he's going to prevail.   And he would say just to anyone listening, like that was the same philosophy even when he had the new-born babies, he and his wife were stressing about they're not sleeping, he just had that same mantra, it's going to work out, he's going to figure out what it is that's making this baby upset and he's going to prevail. And so, that simple phrase of like it's going to work out is what drives him and it makes you be willing to take on any challenge, knowing that at the end of this, there's a solution. It's going to work out even when it seems like it didn't work out, that is it working out, it's still leading you where you needed to be. So, that is the kind of quote or mantra that is always with him.   Me: I love that, amazing. And I think at some point in our lives, we all need to kind of give ourselves those kinds of affirmations. Because life can become overwhelming and daunting and sometimes it does feel like all the doors are closing around us. But if you do have that mindset, as Rhonda Byrne from The Secret says, “Thoughts become things,” then if you believe it's going to work out, it will work out.   Art agreed that it will and it really lets you look differently at the things that seem to be the roadblock or seem to be the setback is that it's still going to work out, he doesn't know how yet, but he then tends to look back at all of those negative points and know that he wouldn't be where he is today if he hadn't been there. So, you change your perspective on everything when you just know that it's working out the way it ideally can. To him it is his superpower because it really does make everything seem possible.   Please connect with us on Twitter @navigatingcx and also join our Private Facebook Community – Navigating the Customer Experience and listen to our FB Lives weekly with a new guest   Grab the Freebie on Our Website – TOP 10 Online Business Resources for Small Business Owners   Links   One Two Three…Infinity: Facts and Speculations of Science (Dove Books on Mathematics) by George Gamow The Book of Business Awesome/The Book of Business Unawesome by Scott Stratten   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience   Do you want to pivot your online customer experience and build loyalty - get a copy of “The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience.”   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience provides 26 easy to follow steps and techniques that helps your business to achieve success and build brand loyalty. This Guide to Limitless, Happy and Loyal Customers will help you to strengthen your service delivery, enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the customer experience and provide tips and practical strategies that you can start implementing immediately! This book will develop your customer service skills and sharpen your attention to detail when serving others. Master your customer experience and develop those knock your socks off techniques that will lead to lifetime customers. Your customers will only want to work with your business and it will be your brand differentiator. It will lead to recruiters to seek you out by providing practical examples on how to deliver a winning customer service experience!   Big RYG Customer Success Leadership Summit October 12-13, 2022 Washington DC Sign Up

Matt Swain is a recognized Customer Communications Industry Thought Leader. From delivering keynotes around the world to defining best practices, hundreds of well-known companies have relied on Matt's expertise and research for their current and future omni-channel communication initiatives.   As Managing Director and Practice Lead for a Broadridge Communications Consulting, Matt brings in valuable market research and consulting expertise to clients relative to benchmarking, as well as for communication strategy, design and execution across print and digital channels.   Prior to joining Broadridge, Matt spent more than a decade at Keypoint Intelligence - InfoTrends, where he was a member of the senior management team with global responsibility for business development and customer communications advisory services. Matt is a graduate of Rochester Institute of Technology and holds a Master's degree in print media.   Questions   We always like to give our guests the opportunity to share in their own words, a little bit about their journey. How did you get to where you are today? The fourth annual CX and communication survey that your company had done, where you studied 3000 North American consumers, highlighting some of the major points and gaps in the customer experience two years into the pandemic. Could you tell us a little bit about the survey and some of the results that that survey created? What are some of the most interesting research that you have seen are conducted in the customer experience space, and could you share with us also maybe what are some of the things that have surprised you the most in that research? Now as it relates to personalization, the report says 65% of consumers would prefer to receive fewer, more tailored communications through their preferred channel. What has your research shown in terms of, do you still find companies all over the place? So, you said that consumers were looking for a more engaging digital experience, could you share with us maybe one or two things that you think a company could employ or put in place to make their digital experience more engaging? What are your thoughts on organizations, because digital, it's been accelerated because organizations who weren't even fully digital or were looking to put digital as part of their strategy definitely had to do some quick acceleration because of the fact that we're all stuck at home. How do they bridge that gap? Because people I think still want human interaction? Could you share with us what's the one online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely can't live without in your business? Can you also share with us what's the one thing that's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about, either something you're working on to develop yourself or your people? How can listeners find you online? Do you have a quote or a saying that during times of adversity or challenge, you'll tend to revert to this quote if for any reason you get overwhelmed or challenge? And the quote kind of helps to get you back on track or just get you back refocused.   Highlights   Matt's Journey   Matt stated that he was listening to that bio and he was thinking, he actually didn't realize Yanique read the whole thing. So, thank you for doing that. As where you ended was that he holds a Master's in print media and that's a very specific degree, especially for a master's degree. And many of the people that went through that programme, were going back to run print operations, they might have had a family business or otherwise.   And he was actually interested in print as one of the media channels that we now use to communicate. And so, actually, he did his Master's Thesis on the shifting spend of companies across different media. So, print was a starting point for him but he spends a lot of time now helping clients transition from print to digital communications and look specifically at how to create better experiences with the communications that they send.   The fourth annual CX and Communication Survey Results Highlighting Major Points and Gaps in the Customer Experience 2 Years into the Pandemic   Me: Now, in preparing for this interview, I was looking at the fourth annual CX and communications survey that your company had done, where you studied 3000 North American consumers, highlighting some of the major points and gaps in the customer experience two years into the pandemic. Could you tell us a little bit about the survey and some of the results that the survey created?   Matt shared that this was a passion project of his when he first started it, which was in 2019 and he has a really strong marketing and support team that helps execute on it. And what's really been interesting watching the data over the last four years of conducting the research is, there have been some notable shifts, specifically relative to customer experience. So, for instance, in 2019, they found that 35% of consumers thought that most of the companies they did business with needed to improve the experiences they provide. So, let's say you know, roughly one in three had that position.   In 2022 now that we've gone through, we're well into a pandemic, depending on which way you look at it, they now find that 65% of consumers, so an increase of 30 percentage points, 65% of consumers think that most of the companies they do business with need to improve the experiences they provide. And that is quite a jarring shift from his perspective.   And he thinks it speaks to the increased expectation that we as consumers have on the companies that we do business with, but also it shows a separation of the leaders from the rest of the pack when it comes to customer service and customer experience.   Research Done in the Customer Experience Space   Me: Very true. And so, a big part, we're all going through the pandemic, as you said, I guess it depends on how people want to look on it. But what are some of the most interesting research that you have seen are conducted in the customer experience space, and could you share with us also maybe what are some of the things that have surprised you the most in that research?   Matt shared that the research covers customer experience, but then also goes into specifics around what consumers are looking for from the companies they do business with. So, they found a lot of trending data around customer service, wanting better experiences when they needed that service experience. And at the same time, they're also asking for the use of technology, AI, chatbots to be a first line of defence to answer easy questions. And he thinks this is actually tripping a lot of companies up because there's technology out there that can reduce the cost to service a customer.   But the challenge is that companies are becoming too reliant on the technology, and it's resulting in reduced customer satisfaction, because they're not getting flipped to a live agent when they should be in that process.   So, a lot of the negative feedback that they see in the research is that people are looking for a sense of humanity or empathy, or “Let me speak to the Operator or make sure that I can understand the person that I speak to.”   And he thinks that that component is so critical, when you think about where somebody is in the journey when they need to contact you, there's usually some challenge in the communications that you've sent, or they're dealing with something very personal, and they need to be serviced in a more personal way. And so, it's a really delicate balance.   So, they look at the impact from a customer service perspective of new technology it being incorporated into that journey. But then they're also stepping back and saying, “Well, why did that person had to have to reach out in the first place?”   So again, through his lens, from a communication standpoint, it is, “Well, if you sent a bill or a statement to your customer….. Was it summarized? Was it easy to understand? Was it written in plain language? Did it have relevant content?”   Because ultimately, what they're hoping that they can help their clients get to is a very seamless experience and that they send a communication whether it's in print, or digitally, and the recipient can quickly digest the information and understand what action they need to take, review my account, pay a bill, sign a waiver, whatever that next step is, that's what they're hoping that they're going to be able to do efficiently and hopefully reduce that aspect of call centre volume.   Personalization – Consumers Prefer Fewer, More Tailored Communication Through Their Preferred Channel   Me: Agreed. Now, in the survey that was done, you focused on customer experience omni-channel approach personalization. Now as it relates to personalization, the report says 65% of consumers would prefer to receive fewer, more tailored communications through their preferred channel. What has your research shown in terms of, do you still find companies all over the place? Or are they more taking a more centralized approach?   Because I do agree, I think it's really great if you could generally get everything in one place instead of you're looking up information here but that information that's located on that platform is not located on this one, is just like you're all over the place.   Matt stated that there's another aspect to that, which is who are the 30 something percent of people that don't want that right?   From a personalization standpoint, actually specific to that, they do find people that want to remain somewhat anonymous digitally and they don't want companies to use their personal data in any other way than they should be using. And they actually asked a separate question around sharing of personal data, so additional data that you as a company don't need, but would the consumer provide it to you if it enhance their experience, created a better experience?   And they found that about half of Gen Z and Millennial respondents said that they would be willing to provide that and that dropped off for a Gen X and baby boomer audience that was less willing to provide incremental information.   Going back to Yanique's original question around centralization. He thinks they find one of the biggest challenges in a lot of their clients, especially their larger clients is they've grown through acquisitions, they have different lines, each line of business has its own underlying systems. And each head of the business might kind of operate their own fiefdom to some extent, which from a business owner perspective, can be advantageous or easier.   But from a consumer or investor or recipient perspective, that can be really painful because he's having to log into different systems, or he doesn't have a total view of his relationship with that company in one centralized location.   And he thinks that is an area that really needs to be addressed. But it comes back to the underlying systems that the people, the processes and the technology supporting that ecosystem that needs to be simplified and addressed before you can deliver on that better experience that the consumer is asking for.   Me: Agreed. Sometimes I think organizations take simple and make it complex when it really should just be so easy. And I'll give you an example. I'm currently doing some market research for a client and in the midst in the market research training that we did with persons yesterday, we forgot to ask them if any of them were existing customers of that particular company. So, I kind of just wanted to send out a quick google form to capture that information so we had it on file. And so, we jump on Google Forms simply asking one question, and I literally spent like probably about 15 minutes, just trying to Google, how do you get multiple responses in a Google form?   And there was like, no clear answer, because it has multiple choice, but then when we did the test, and we clicked on it, we realized that the respondent would only be able to select one answer. And there may be cases where they are a customer of the company, but they're not a customer of all business lines.   And so, there are three business lines that we're doing the market research for, and we just wanted to find out if these persons were one customer of a business line, or no customer, or multiple customers have a business line. And it took me so long to find it.   And I said to myself, Google usually makes things so simple. Why in their form did I have to do so much digging to figure out that instead of selecting multiple choice, I should have selected checkbox, because checkbox acts like a multiple choice, but it allows you to select multiple responses or answers. And that came to mind a while ago, just because of what you said.   I find that sometimes we think the technology is there to help us, it's not supposed to be rocket science, I'm not supposed to be trying to figure out, okay, where do I find this information.   It should be there, quick and easy, either in settings or as a drop down so that you can know that that's an option that you can exercise on us. Would you not agree?   Matt shared that we would and he thinks the irony, there is part of ensuring that you've delivered on that better experience is doing that voice of customer that surveying much like you would use the Google Form to do surveying of your audience, right?   So, they find that often where, again, through his lens they'll work with a client and say, let's conduct some voice of customer research and they use a platform where they'll enable a customer of theirs to go in and navigate their online account. And they'll say one of the common prompts is navigate to your most recent statement.   And it's really interesting to watch people try to find that statement and it's usually in a drop down, the third or fourth drop down over which isn't really that intuitive to know that a statement is going to be the eighth line on the drop down. And it's one of those where for those people that were building it, they know exactly where it is because that's how they built it and that's the approach they took. But for the consumer to navigate to it, that helps expose may be an opportunity to improve or streamline that experience for consumers that are looking to get access to that document.   Me: Yeah, I agreed. Totally agree. I guess as you said, that's why it's important to test it because then you get to see multiple approaches as to how different people will navigate on that platform. In customer service, we have this thing, this example that we use that we normally say, a school or a university, they basically wanted to see what the path was of the students as they were walking on the campus. And so, they waited until it snowed, and then they kind of watched people's pattern to see where they walked and that's what they use as a guide to make that the actual pathway.   Because you might create a situation or a building where you've created a pathway for people to walk but maybe that's not where they naturally gravitate to walk. And so, if you look on it from an online perspective, if someone goes on a site, maybe because of how they're trained, because of other platforms that they've used, or just genuine human interaction or intuition, they may go to the right of the page, or to the top of the page thinking that's where they're going to find that particular item. But maybe that's not where it's supposed to be. And if you look at the pattern of how people operate, it would indicate to you if the structure that you're putting in place is really the best place to place that.   Are people going to be able to find it easily? Is it going to be frustrating for them? Are they going to have to be reaching out to your support team to find out how to get that information?   How easy is it for them to find this information, and it should be easy enough that I think a five or six year old should be able to find it.   Matt shared that he loves the analogy with the snow on the surface, he immediately goes to that visual that we've all seen where you see the trampled trodden and dirt path that cuts the corner, the concrete path, or whatever it is the cobblestone. But he also thinks there's also a component of this, that when we think about what the company is trying to achieve, and then looking at what the experience is, so he uses that statement navigation as an example.   These are the same companies that are very aggressively asking their customer base to go paperless. So, take the paper out of the process, because it saves us money, we don't have to print and mail it. But then when you look at the value proposition for the consumer, it's not there, right?   Like what's in it for me to go paperless?   Now I have to go to your website and navigate and try to find this and the experience is no better, usually it's a static. And he's generically saying this, not all of their clients are this way. But it points you to a static document, not an interactive digital experience that provides more value than he would have gotten in paper.   And that was actually a really interesting takeaway from the research, which was 71% of consumers that had not gone paperless said that they would do so if the company provided a more engaging digital experience. And that's like the “big aha,” which is if we're creating better experiences, we're improving customer experience, but we're also achieving these operational goals of reducing print and mail and otherwise.   Consumers Looking for a More Engaging Digital Experience   Me: Amazing. So, you said that consumers were looking for a more engaging digital experience, could you share with us maybe one or two things that you think a company could employ or put in place to make their digital experience more engaging?   Matt shared that one of the weakest links of many companies' communication strategy, and again, through his lens, right, so those that are sending a bill or a statement, is that bill ready or statement ready notification.   So, think of the banks, the insurance companies, the telecommunications companies, utilities that you work with, they'll send you that note that just says, “Your statement's ready, click here to view and access.”   And sometimes it doesn't look anything like the rest of the brand that they've invested heavily in, it's a monthly communication. So sometimes it's the most frequent touchpoint that I have with that company, is this this generic email.   And one of the things that they do with clients, there are two approaches. One is an enhanced email where they're able to deliver more content directly within the email. So, instead of just saying it's ready, let me provide some value that directionally shows you how you did this month versus last or things to think about or other actions they're hoping you'll take.   Or they can redirect you to a microsite. So, instead of having to go back to the portal and log into the website, that way, you can authenticate through the email and get the full details in a microsite or a personalized experience that's specific to that statement or bill that he's asking you to look at.   Organizations Looking to Put Digital as part of Their Strategy – How do They Bridge That Gap as People Still Want Human Interaction   Me: And what are your thoughts on organizations, because digital is definitely I know it's been accelerated, I would say 10 times since the pandemic because organizations who weren't even fully digital or were looking to put digital as part of their strategy definitely had to do some quick acceleration because of the fact that we were all stuck at home. And of course, this was the only way that they could ensure that there was some continuity of business with their clients. But let's say you use digital, I'm all for digital, I believe that it's really important, technology is great.   But I do also believe that you should make yourself accessible if I do need to speak to a live human being. And I find that sometimes, the companies, they take on these technology tools, and when they take the technology tools on, and hopefully the technology should help you. So, for example, let's say I wanted to reach out to my utility company, and they have this chatbot on your website. And the chatbots name is let's say, Ella, I say, “Hi, Ella.” And Ella is able to answer very standard questions. But of course, because I know Ella can't answer me, I'm going to say to Ella, automatically, please connect me to a representative. So, she can transfer the call to somebody, the conversation to somebody who can actually help me. But that in itself doesn't work very well, because nobody actually is able to be connected to. And when you try to call them on the phone, you're not able to get through to them, because you're on hold for very long periods of time, 53 minutes, 60 odd minutes.   How do they bridge that gap? Because people I think still want human interaction!   Matt sated absolutely. And that's the challenge that he's seeing now. It's coming through in the research that they're doing and some of the client discussions, which is that the jump to embrace the technology from you could say it's customer experience led, oftentimes it's cost cutting led, there's an operational savings to implementing that chatbot.   Hopefully, that there is a balance that there is the improved customer experience of getting something answered quickly, like, “Where should I mail my bill to or what are your hours of operation?” Or those types of things that somebody might get value out of the chatbot.   But your comment about that hold time, where you then go on the phone, and you have to listen to a rotating one minute message that keeps telling you go online, you can conduct everything there yet, that's where you started, and you weren't able to achieve what you needed so you came to the phone, but you still have that hour wait.   He thinks it does speak to the need to have the capability of flexing the staff. So, you might have your full-time utility staff, and then you can tap into a third party that might charge you a bit of a premium, but they can help you during those surge times as well.   App, Website or Tool that Matt Absolutely Can't Live Without in His Business   When asked about online resources that he cannot live without in his business, Matt stated that he would say it is the Voice of Customer Research Tool that they use. And it is so efficient to be able to go in and get, he wouldn't call it real time feedback, actually, he can do real time if he sets it up that way.   But if he's looking to that, a new concept, or go into a client meeting prepared with feedback from their customer base, so it's not just, “Here's what we're hearing from generic surveys but here's what some of your customers said about you. And I know that you know a lot of this already, but we just wanted to come prepared to the meeting.”   It's such a valuable tool in that way. So, whether it's AB testing, or a quick poll or survey, or getting feedback on a new concept or design, it can be a really valuable way of bringing data and analytics to the discussion with the client or to make a more robust solution if they're building something on their own.   What Matt is Really Excited About Now!   Matt shared that Broadridge is a pretty large company, they have 14,000 Associates across 21 countries, they also support a lot of clients. So, they have actually sent 7 billion communications a year on behalf of their clients. So, that results in a little bit of practicing what you preach.   So, they have a client success team at Broadridge and he's a member of the client satisfaction and engagement work stream and in that work stream, they're gathering perspective from their clients about what Broadridge does well, where they can be a better partner, how they should be thinking about their products or services, their technology offerings going forward. And that's all in the hopes of best positioning themselves as their partners of the future.   So, they encourage their clients to do that voice of customer research to make sure that they're taking a design thinking approach and a customer first approach to the way that they support their clients and consumer.   In many cases, they're doing the same within their organization, he thinks it's incredibly important to always keep that in perspective that you need to have your finger on the pulse of what's happening within your organization, the trends that are influencing outside forces, and then ultimately, how that can help better position you to be a better partner going forward.   Where Can We Find Matt Online   Website – www.broadridge.com LinkedIn – Broadridge Communications Consulting Twitter - @Broadridge Twitter - @AskMattSwain LinkedIn – Matt Swain Podcast – Reimagining Communications with Matt Swain   Quote or Saying that During Times of Adversity Matt Uses   When asked about quote or saying that he tends to revert to, Matt stated that it's funny, as Yanique was asking the question, he had all these quotes just going through his head and the one that kept kind of pushing its way to the front was, “Do no harm.” And he thinks the do no harm approach is a really critical one, especially when you're thinking with a customer service lens or a customer experience lens, that if you can live by do no harm mantra, he thinks you're going be in a good position.   Please connect with us on Twitter @navigatingcx and also join our Private Facebook Community – Navigating the Customer Experience and listen to our FB Lives weekly with a new guest   Grab the Freebie on Our Website – TOP 10 Online Business Resources for Small Business Owners   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience   Do you want to pivot your online customer experience and build loyalty - get a copy of “The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience.”   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience provides 26 easy to follow steps and techniques that helps your business to achieve success and build brand loyalty. This Guide to Limitless, Happy and Loyal Customers will help you to strengthen your service delivery, enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the customer experience and provide tips and practical strategies that you can start implementing immediately! This book will develop your customer service skills and sharpen your attention to detail when serving others. Master your customer experience and develop those knock your socks off techniques that will lead to lifetime customers. Your customers will only want to work with your business and it will be your brand differentiator. It will lead to recruiters to seek you out by providing practical examples on how to deliver a winning customer service experience!

Andrew Ou is an award-winning UX strategist, designer and author based in Vancouver, BC. He helps SaaS companies increase their revenue and profitability by reducing cost of support and while building a better customer experience. His past clients include HSBC, Rosetta Stone, and Asurion.   Questions   Can you share in your owns words, a little bit about your journey, how did you get to where you are today? Now, customer experience, SaaS products, support services, can you share with us maybe some trends that you see emerging or have emerged since 2022 as it relates to this part of service delivery or customer experience? From a UX strategy point of view if you're building a product, how does the client or the customer travel through the journey that you are taking them through in a digital way, while still holding all of the same principles and values that you would if it was a face to face interaction, or even over the phone? So, how can we translate that in a positive way? And if it's not done positively? Why would it impact our revenue and profitability? One of the other things that we do get asked a lot is, how can we reduce the cost of customer support? So, what's one way? Would the strategy, putting something in place that eradicates that complaint from coming forward again be one way to reduce customer support? And are there any other ways? Could you also share with our audience maybe I would say 1 to 3 tips that you believe will help organizations build a better customer experience? Could you also share with our audience what's the one online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely can't live without in your business? Could you also share with us maybe one or two books that you have read, it could be a book that you read recently, or maybe one that you read a very long time ago, but it has had a big impact on you. Could you also share with us what's one thing that's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about? Either something you're working on to develop yourself or your people. Where can listeners find you online? Do you have a quote or saying that during times of adversity or challenge, you will tend to revert to this quote, it kind of helps to get you back on track if for any reason you got derailed or you got off track.   Highlights   Andrew's Journey   Me: So, we always like to give our guests the opportunity to share in their own words, a little bit about their journeys. So, how did you get to where you are today? I know we read like a brief bio, but it's always good to get in guests own words, a little bit about their own journey.   Andrew shared that he started off in UX design, he's been doing that for he thinks over around 8 to 10 years now. And like Yanique mentioned, he used to work for companies like HSBC, Asurion and fit brains Rosetta Stone. And now he's just sort of running his own consultancy where he helps SaaS founders build beautiful products that impact the world. And a lot of that has to do with creating an excellent customer journey and a good customer experience.   Customer Experience, SaaS Products, Support Service – Trends Emerging Since 2022 as it Relates to Service Delivery and Customer Experience   Me: Now, customer experience, SaaS products, support services, can you share with us maybe some trends that you see emerging or have emerged since 2022 as it relates to this part of service delivery or customer experience?   Andrew shared that he thinks there's a very interesting intersection between customer experience and user experience, mainly that, both of the words and with experience and so it's a very interesting intersection, because they sort of do affect each other. And a lot of the overarching trend is that we're always moving towards a better user experience and what he noticed is that when there's a customer experience issue, it typically always comes back to something related to sort of the design of the product and that's where users get stuck.   So, one of the things he noticed is that when there's a support issue, and you can actually fix it and make the product better from a user experience standpoint, and by getting to the root cause, it actually improves the product by a lot and there are a lot of benefits to it.   UX Strategy – How Does the Customer Travel Through the Journey and its Impact on Revenue and Profitability   Me: A lot of our listeners are also interested in the direct correlation between revenue profitability and customer experience. From a UX strategy point of view, how are you going to use an experience? Because whereas customer experience probably talks to the more tangible, user experience is probably more talking about the digital experience? Like, if you're building a product, how does the client or the customer travel through the journey that you are taking them through in a digital way, while still holding all of the same principles and values that you would if it was a face to face interaction, or even over the phone? So, how can we translate that in a positive way? And if it's not done positively? Why would it impact our revenue and profitability?   Andrew shared that the thing you have to realize is that, like, when a user is using your product, they sort of have an idea of how to use the product and that's sort of like a customer's intuition on how the product should work. So, when you're designing a product, you should always keep that in mind and also set the expectations so that the users know where they are in the journey.   Now, a big part of where customer experience comes into play is that, with a good product experience, for example, like Google, and most of the time he thinks like, if you never had like most of those users never probably have to contact Google because their product, they're just so easy to use.   Now, the opposite of that is you're contacting a product for support, because experience is bad, and that's what happens, right? That's because somewhere along the way, you were trying to do something, and you couldn't do what you needed to do so then you need to contact support to get it done. So that's primarily what happens and that means there's a cost to support associated with that, that means you got to spend the resource into fixing that issue.   So that's how like a bad customer experience makes a direct impact, or has a direct impact on the revenue and profitability. Because you shouldn't rely on customer support to help your users navigate the product. And if you're seeing a really high cost of support in that aspect, that means there's a really sort of like a gap in the user experience.   Me: So, dovetailing off of what you just said Andrew, what about those companies or products that don't have an avenue for you to get through to customer support. So, I've bought products already and as you mentioned, I've bucked up on a roadblock, and I need to get some assistance, and I go to their website, and the only avenue that they have for me to get through to someone is to send an email, they have no live chat with live agents, there is no telephone number there for me to actually call a number and get through. And sending an email, of course, is clearly not going to have my issue resolved in the next 5 or 10 minutes. What are your thoughts on companies that take that approach?   Andrew shared that well, that means they definitely have a gap in the product experience, because you're in a situation where you need to contact support, but it's not there. So that means you must feel kind of frustrated, or you wanted to get your problem solved, but it's not available, right? Is that how you're feeling at that moment?   And he would always like to say that it's really crucial that a company focuses on building a good customer experience, because that's how you get loyal users to come back to you and raving fans that love your product. So, if you sort of like have that cut off for customer support, and people are having trouble reaching the company where they actually needed, he doesn't think that's a really good strategy and users like you will get frustrated and that might negatively impact your relationship with that company.   Me: So, then your recommendation is they should have an avenue by which you can actually get through to someone, a live human being who can answer your question, correct?   Andrew stated that that's actually one of two strategies. So, yes, like talking to a human helps, but on the other hand, you can also look at when these problems occur, like why did they happen, and from a company strategy point of view, if you're having these issues come up pretty often, they should look into solving that so that it doesn't happen again and that will actually be a better strategy for improving the user experience.   Reducing the Cost of Customer Support and Eradicate Complaints From Coming Forward   Me: One of the other things that we do get asked a lot is, how can we reduce the cost of customer support? So, what's one way? Would the strategy, putting something in place that eradicates that complaint from coming forward again be one way to reduce customer support? And are there any other ways?   Andrew stated absolutely. And that's coming from like a UX strategy point of view. So, he'll sort of tell you like a lot of what companies do when they have these issues, because he's experienced it himself.   Andrew shares a story, he was using this product, it was like a LinkedIn outreach tool. And he was having trouble using it because he was expecting the software to function a certain way, but it didn't. So, then he had to contact support and then support was explaining to him like, “Oh, no, that's not how our product works. You got to use it this way, or do this and that. And then then you won't run into this issue.” And he's thinking like, if he's having this issue, there must be a lot of users who are also having it because the way that he had envisioned it to work was actually really, really different.   So then, what's happening is these companies are training their customer experience reps to explain the product should function a certain way. And they have to do that over and over again, and it's not solving the root of the problem.   So, what companies should actually do is, when they encounter these issues, and these issues, they're likely frequent, they should actually look at it from a design point of view and see how they can solve that because once they do, it leads to a lot of benefits downstream, like when you eliminate the root of the problem, you eliminate the cost of training and the cost of support and documentation for that problem, because they no longer exist.   So, he thinks companies, when they face a situation where they're seeing the same support issues over and over again, they should look into solving that and getting to the root of that problem and solving that directly. And that will actually ease up the support volume, and also reduce the cost of support.   Tips that Will Help Organizations Build a Better Customer Experience   Andrew shared that he thinks number one, is you got to be really customer centric and that means doing your best to make sure that you give the customers the best experience in whatever avenue. So, if they're having troubles, become human and try to help them solve that problem directly, instead of being so strict or so robotic, and your policies.   And he'll give you one example. He was using a software a while ago, and he had forgotten to turn off my billing, and they just billed him without even telling me and they didn't even send out emails or anything. So, he sort of felt like a complaint because he was not happy with the way they were doing things.   And they actually responded and there's two ways that they could have gone, one is they just say, “Well, sorry, according to our policy, we don't actually offer any refunds.” But the support rep was really, really human and sort of talked to him in a way that was human and really nice and she actually helped him solve that problem. And he actually appreciated that, that gave him so much more like hope and happiness, because he really appreciated the fact that they were customer centric. And being that, it makes him want to become more of their customer. So, he thinks that's definitely the most important tip.   Because if you focus on just giving value to your customers, he thinks your customers will really appreciate that. And he thinks the second thing is, again, sort of similar. But again, it's focusing on the user experience side of things because if you really focus on building a great customer experience, you'll have like an amazing product and the benchmark of a really amazing product is that it doesn't require so much support for the user to navigate the product and learn how to use it.   App, Website or Tool that Andrew Absolutely Can't Live Without in His Business   When asked about an online resource that he cannot live without in his business, Andrew stated that that's a sort of interesting one. He thinks from like a business owner's perspective, he thinks tools that helped him eliminate time, like, count Calendly, for example, definitely helps just clean things up. He definitely thinks he can't live without that, because organizing all his meetings and becoming aware of them. Getting like a good email is also good because, again, it helps him organize his time and everything. He guesses that's coming from more of like a business owner perspective. Getting all your tools done, the main idea is to cut out all the little things, all the little distractions, and any tools that will help you do that, it's something that you want to look into.   Books that Have Had the Biggest Impact on Andrew   When asked about books that have had an impact, Andrew shared stated that this is going to sound interesting, because this book isn't really like a design book, it's actually a martial arts book from Bruce Lee called the Toa of Jeet Kune Do. But what he really appreciated from this book was just the philosophies in there were just so eye opening, it talks a lot about like, simplicity and everything. So, it talks about like a lot of principles of simplicity, economy and efficiency when it comes to martial arts and it's totally different, he gets it. But he's adapted a lot of that principles in his design. So, that means, like a lot of his design principles actually come from that, simplifying things when it comes to designing interfaces, so on and so forth. And it's really just mind opening.   What Andrew is Really Excited About Now!   Andrew shared that right now he's helping tech founders build amazing products. And he thinks just the whole idea of, he's the kind of person where he really likes to improve things. So, when he's working on these projects, he thinks about how much they can impact users in the world. And so, he's also making it efficient for himself to help other tech founders do that. And that to him is really exciting to help a lot of tech founders build amazing products, and really seeing a lot of their ideas and then talking about ideas, working through them and then coming up with solutions that really help other people.   Where Can We Find Andrew Online   Website – www.andrewou.com   Andrew also shared that he has a gift for all the listeners here, it's an 8 page like super easy to read PDF that you can consume in 8 minutes or less. And it's about the 5 ways UX can help SaaS companies increase revenue and profitability. And that's on www.andrewou.com/guide   Quote or Saying that During Times of Adversity Andrew Uses   When asked about a quote or saying that he tends to revert to, Andrew shared that through his challenging times, there's one quote that keeps coming back to him and it's by Winston Churchill, and he thinks it goes something like this, it's like, “Out of immense complexities, immense simplicities emerge.” And for some reason, that just sticks with him, like if you're going through a really complicated process, or a part in your life, there's always going to be some light at the end of the tunnel and the answer to that is going to be fairly simple.   Please connect with us on Twitter @navigatingcx and also join our Private Facebook Community – Navigating the Customer Experience and listen to our FB Lives weekly with a new guest   Grab the Freebie on Our Website – TOP 10 Online Business Resources for Small Business Owners   Links Tao of Jeet Kune Do by Bruce Lee   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience   Do you want to pivot your online customer experience and build loyalty - get a copy of “The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience.”   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience provides 26 easy to follow steps and techniques that helps your business to achieve success and build brand loyalty. This Guide to Limitless, Happy and Loyal Customers will help you to strengthen your service delivery, enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the customer experience and provide tips and practical strategies that you can start implementing immediately! This book will develop your customer service skills and sharpen your attention to detail when serving others. Master your customer experience and develop those knock your socks off techniques that will lead to lifetime customers. Your customers will only want to work with your business and it will be your brand differentiator. It will lead to recruiters to seek you out by providing practical examples on how to deliver a winning customer service experience!

Matt Young is the CEO of UserVoice, the first (and we think best!) product feedback and research tool for software companies around the world. Matt started his professional career as a software developer, right when web browsers were released. He developed innovative solutions on the web well before SaaS and Product Management were the ubiquitous terms that they are today.   Over his career, he has pushed for better ways to build software. And through all the changes in development methodologies, he has put the customer at the centre of everything his teams have built. This is what attracted him to UserVoice - an opportunity to make sure that teams building complex software solutions have direct access to the intended users - to make sure that the problems any company or development team are solving are actually worth solving.   Questions   Could you share a little bit about your journey with our listeners, in your own words? Could you tell us a little bit about UserVoice? To the average listener that's listening to this podcast, a little bit about the company, what does the company do? And what types of businesses do you primarily service? What about tips for improving feature request responses? Could you share with us what's the one online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely can't live without in your business? Can you also share with us maybe one or two books that have had the biggest impact on you? It could be a book that you read a very long time ago, or even one that you've read recently that has really impacted you in a great way. If you could choose the best customer service or customer experience tip to give to our listeners who are business owners, what would be the most important tip that you would give them to ensure that their business is successful? Could you also share with us what's the one thing that's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about? Either something you're working on to develop yourself or your people. Where can they find you online? Do you have a quote or a saying that during times of adversity or challenge you'll tend to revert to this quote, it kind of helps to get you back on track if for whatever reason you got derailed or you got off track.   Highlights   Matt's Journey   Matt shared that he had a pretty ordinary software development career starting off as an individual software developer, and then moving into management. The thing that he had experienced while doing all that was that he would notice that product teams would ask engineering teams, which are big and expensive and complicated to build things and didn't really have a good way to justify the reasoning behind that. He was really interested in hearing why customers thought what they were being asked to build was important, why it was an important problem to solve, why the solution they had in mind was a good one for them. And he just was really passionate about companies being connected to the users that they serve.   So, that's kind of what brought him to UserVoice. He started out as the VP of Engineering at UserVoice but over the years, they've spun out a couple of other products and other companies, so the original founder is now the CEO of a sister company of theirs, it's working on some parallel products, and UserVoice is his to run and build and all the responsibility and fun that comes with that.   What is UserVoice and What Does the Company Do?   Me: Could you tell us a little bit about UserVoice? To the average listener that's listening to this podcast, a little bit about the company, what does the company do? And what types of businesses do you primarily service?   Matt shared that UserVoice is a software as a service product and it's all oriented around making sure that you can gather any feedback that comes your way about your product, and that that feedback is available to the entire organization and can be analyzed and used to make products better. So, you guys have probably seen somewhere in your professional lives, a place where you had the opportunity to tell a team how they could make their product better, and that's evolved over the years and the way that that happens. There are annoying ways to do it, like with pop-up windows and there're really common ways to do it, like with surveys. But whether you've got a system in place or not, like people are providing feedback all the time, they're doing that in the middle of a sales demo, for example, they're saying what they do and don't like about the product, they're showing. They're doing that through support tickets, by asking about a thing they want to try to accomplish that may not be supported yet.   So, UserVoice the product makes it really easy for anyone who's in any position to hear customer feedback, either an employee of the company and support sales or success, or the customers themselves, have the ability to send whatever it is that's worrying them to the company and then gives the product team the ability to aggregate what is usually a pretty big mountain of data into something that helps them relate their product development plans to the goals that the company currently has. So, the short story is they're a software as a service product, but it's a business analysis tool that's built around product feedback.   Me: One of the things I was intrigued in getting your feedback on is, do you think customers should be driving the product roadmap?   Matt stated that that's a question that they get asked quite a bit and the funny thing about that is that a lot of the traditional like stereotypical personality type of a product manager is a very creative type person and he thinks they can feel a little bit threatened by saying, “Hey, your customers should drive your roadmap.”   And they think, “Well, what about me? What about the innovation and creativity that we have to bring to bear?”   He thinks it's a mistake to think of it as a black and white question like, should customers be driving a roadmap? “No.”   Should companies be creating a roadmap without customer input? “No, neither one is quite right.”   They need to use each other to really understand each other and meet to find common ground about the real problems that they're trying to solve. So, he basically views customer feedback as research inputs into a roadmap that's getting created. Not customers, like actually prioritizing things and steering the ship directly but they do have a lot of really valuable information for companies that can help them go to market with much greater success.   Tips for Improving Feature Request Responses   Matt stated that the typical product manager is getting asked to do a lot of things, they're getting asked by their co-workers to change the product to close a deal, for example, customers obviously have a lot of input. One thing that really makes a lot of product managers nervous is the fact that they know that they need to say no to a lot of these things just because of resource constraints, or that what they're being asked for doesn't necessarily fit the vision of the company. But getting comfortable saying no to people, he thinks it's just a matter of being more transparent with them. The customers of software, especially these days are getting more sophisticated and understanding how software is developed, how hard it is to make it perfect and do all the things that you want it to do.   So, he thinks transparency goes a really long way so when you do get feedback about your product, acknowledging the people that you're listening, making sure that they feel valued, and that the time they took to give you that feedback is something that you take seriously and find value in yourself, acknowledging that is important.   But then being very frank with what's the process, what's going to happen next. He doesn't think most customers would expect, “Okay, great, we're going to get to work on this right away.” That's not the way that software gets developed. But if you can explain to people like, “Hey, cool, thanks. I've made a note of this. We're going to talk about it with the team; we're going to keep our ears out for other customers like you who might need a similar kind of thing. And is it okay if we come back to you and have a conversation about this topic later when we decide to dig into it some more and get some more specific feedback from you about how your point of view has changed, about different solutions we're considering and all those things.” So, using customer feedback as an invitation to engage with a customer base, he thinks is a really good way to look at it.   Me: Now, as it relates to product development, a lot of a lot of customers I believe have challenges sometimes trying to identify what's the right type of product that they may need for their business. The customer feedback, it's definitely something you should get ongoing once you actually sold a product, or you've had an idea of what the design is going to look like and how it's going to affect the customer's life. But let's say you're at a developmental stage where you're not sure exactly what the market needs, how do you gather feedback at that point?   Matt stated that the best way to do that is through one on one interviews. And he thinks them being a one on one, he'd say in person, but more often than not, it's something like a Zoom call or a Skype call or something like that, where you're talking to people.   You want to get as high fidelity information as you possibly can from people and that usually requires a conversation, asking people to fill in a form, it's kind of a boring activity. You can't ask follow on questions, etc. And when you're just in that early stage of developing your product, you want to be able to interact with that customer and maybe observe how excited or indifferent they are about what you're building. Are they just eager and jumping out of their seat at the opportunity to use something like what you're describing to them? Or are they more middle of the road.   Most people are very polite, so they're not going to tell you that it's a bad idea or anything like that but they might not be excited about it and that's a pretty good sign that you might not be on to something that's truly differentiated in the market for you. So, they always say like, until you have 100 or so customers, doing interviews in person and not getting software systems in the middle of that connection between you and a customer is really important to do, where once you cross a threshold of a 100 or so customers, you need to have systems that can scale because your time is limited, and you couldn't possibly have conversations with every single one of them.   Me: Agreed. So feedback, your whole solution is built around feedback. And I think feedback is so important. How is it that you handle dealing with some of your clients? For example, here in Jamaica, I found that sometimes when organizations get feedback, whether it's in like in an electronic format, or it is submitted to them in a verbal conversation, sometimes the organizations get defensive and it comes over in their tone and their language.   Matt agreed and stated that if you think about feedback, when was the last time you went out of your way to go tell someone they were doing a great job? “Everything that you are doing, and your product is awesome, and I love it, don't change a thing.” That just doesn't happen. You might occasionally get a compliment about something they do like, but it's always going to come with something that people want to be different.   So, as a company who provides a product to people, get into the mindset that they're not judging you, they're not trying to tell you you've done a bad job, they're trying to express to you what problems they think you might be a partner to them and help solve are and if you view it that way, then it's a whole lot less threatening, you're less likely to get defensive.   It's never going to be all good news, it's mostly like, “Here are deficiencies that I think you have in your product and ways that it could be better.” But don't take it that way, take it to mean like, “Okay, these are opportunities that we have, that are potential improvements that could not only benefit our business, but really benefit these customers and what they're trying to do in their lives.”   They get a lot of people who come to them who are pretty nervous about opening up the door to get feedback about their products, because it does seem like a little bit of a bad news train that's going to come your way. But they always try to coach them that like, “Okay, well, would you feel better just doing this blind, fumbling around, building software hoping that you're right. Or would you rather have actionable real information from people, even if it is a little bit tough to take at times?” And inevitably, when you think about it like, “Yeah, I know need the information, it's just we've been working so hard, and everyone's poured their hearts into it and I don't know if I can take hearing all the ways that people don't like it.” But it's okay, you'll get through it, we're all tough human beings. So it'll serve you well in the long run.   Me: That's really, really good advice. And it's good to know that even though you're an organization that's focused on feedback, you do offer some form of coaching with your clients, to kind of get them in that mindset to change your perspective, because you are correct. If you change your perspective and look at it as an opportunity, which generally speaking, I don't think the customer would come back to give you feedback if they didn't want to continue using your product.   Matt agreed. They wouldn't bother, the fact that they spared some time for you is a really good sign. It shows a degree of passion. As he's thinking about this, he's thinking about the world's most successful companies and you might in your mind, say, “Well, they've got it made, they've got these huge customer bases that are rolling in money.” But if you think about their world, they have even more feedback coming their way that's even more critical coming from all different directions in the world, because they are so popular. So it never ends, you're always going to get advice either unsolicited or solicited about how it could be better. So use it, use it to your advantage, make it a tool, not a threat.   App, Website or Tool that Matt Absolutely Can't Live Without in His Business   When asked about online resource that he cannot live without, Matt shared that the app for him, it's Superhuman, the email client. They, like a lot of companies when the pandemic started shifted to working remotely and so even more than ever, his world is driven by email. So having a very efficient system in place that drives the mountain of email that shows up in his inbox every day, you can pry Superhuman out of his cold dead hands. And one of the things he likes about Superhuman also is that they're very public about the way that they do assess its value and build it. And Rahul Vohra who runs Superhuman, is a really interesting resource to look at from a product management perspective. So on two fronts, it's a great product and the way that they work on it is really interesting.   Books that Have Had the Biggest Impact on Matt   When asked about books that have impacted him, Matt stated that he'll share two because there's just one very old one that he read a long time ago and there's one relatively newer one that he thinks is really important. The older one is an old favourite that he's sure you've all heard of, How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie. And the reason he likes it so much is that he's an introvert. And introverts are not shy, they're not afraid of social interactions or anything like that but it drains energy to have a lot of interactions with people.   And How to Win Friends & Influence People was really to him the beginning of understanding behavioral psychology and learning how to do that on a person to person basis really set the foundation for thinking about how to build software products that speak to the psychological motivations behind what people do and don't do. So to him, it was kind of like the impetus to get started with what turned into a much bigger thing so they study psychology to try to make sure that their products are really good too. And it's a very approachable thing, especially if you listen to the audio book, whoever they got to narrate; it just feels like a warm blanket on a cold day, that guy's voice is great.   The other one he'd recommend, it's along the same lines, there's a book by Yuval Noah Harari called Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind and it's this very interesting discussion about the evolution of mankind and the various phases that it's gone through, even going back to like cavemen. But looking at the Iron Age, the Stone Age, all the different ages that we've gone through, and even more recent history. It even looks at things like religion through the lens of all the different eras. There was a time in history where multiple Gods was the norm. And the days we live in today, one God is the norm. And by looking at things way zoomed out like this, and humankind, you start to see the patterns of what changes and what stays the same with all of us over time and it's just this fascinating, very unusual perspective on humankind that he thought was really interesting.   Important Customer Experience Tips for Business Owners to Ensure That Their Business is Successful   Me: Now, Matt, could you also share with us and this is a bonus question. It wasn't in the conversation flow, but I feel like you give us an amazing answer. So the question is, if you could choose the best customer service or customer experience tip to give to our listeners who are business owners, what would be the most important tip that you would give them to ensure that their business is successful?   Matt stated that he's going to say something that is a variation of like, make sure people aren't just the numbers to you and to put that into very tactical terms, call people by their name, and view them as an actual human being. If you're answering a support ticket, it's very easy to view things as an email that's coming through without a person behind it, who's having an actual problem, or having a good day or a bad day or frustration or excitement about what you're doing.   But if you can always be visualizing the person behind it, and the fact that they go beyond this relationship that you have with them about your product, and they are a human being that is just like you in terms of their hopes and dreams and fears and the lives that they lead, it's going to make you a much more empathetic provider of services and that goes a really, really long way in the success of businesses.   What Matt is Really Excited About Now!   Matt stated that this is actually something he's really, really excited about. They just switched to a four day workweek, UserVoice did. And he thinks it's common in some areas of Europe, Scandinavia, in particular is kind of leading the way on it. But not a lot of American companies have tried this out and he thinks that's born of a few things and it's conjecture on his part but he thinks it's just lack of trust that a lot of companies have in their workforce, which he thinks is a huge mistake. But they're a relatively small company, and they try to be very experimental in what they do. And in doing so, they started a four day workweek experiment about six weeks ago. And they laid out what their goals were, their goals were concrete, they wanted to make sure that their output was just as good as it is with a five day work week. But they wanted to make sure that people had more time to pursue their lives outside of work.   And it's been an epically good experience across the board, he's sent out a survey every two weeks since they started asking people if they would continue if they had to decide today, and then asking about what some of the pros and cons have been. And people will tell you, like, “My days are busy, but they're very engaging. And I feel like this scarcity of time makes me choose my battles really carefully.”   And then, the one thing as an example, a guy named Tori, who's a product manager on their team, he has date morning with his wife every Friday morning, because the kids are at school, and his wife's favourite thing to do is to go have breakfast at a restaurant. And so, they just do this every Friday, it's like, “My marriage is better, my connection to my wife is better, and I enjoy my job more.” So this is something he thinks more companies should look into. It's been great for them.   Me: I totally agree. Lovely, I love that. I really, really love that, I'm sure your employees must be totally excited that the organization is taking this leap forward. And you're doing it in a country or territory where it's not widely adopted as yet, hopefully, it will be eventually, as you had mentioned.   Matt shared that he has a hard time imagining going back to I five day workweek, it's only been a month and a half after working professionally for 35 years.   Me: I've spoken to so many people that said that they don't know what it would be like to go back into the office. And like here in Jamaica, we were kind of emerging out of the pandemic like a lot of other countries are, but there are a lot of organizations who they just can't see and I think it's because they don't have the systems and tools in place, really but they just can't see their business operating with their team members, majority of them operating from home, and some of them in all honesty, really don't need to be in a physical space, in a building, in a business district area to come and get the job done. I think if they had the right productivity tools to kind of measure and as you said, they were able to clearly identify what their goals are, and are still able to achieve those goals with their team members working from home, it's very doable.   Matt stated that it does take trust on the part of the leadership of the organization, that you've hired the right people and that a lot of companies say this, but he thinks a lot of companies, it's lip service that, “I don't care what you do, as long as you get your work done.” There are other companies that if they find out, “I took an hour long walk at lunch, because I wanted to, they might get judgy about that,” which is why if you're getting good stuff done, it doesn't make any sense. So, he agrees. It's very similar to the remote versus office problem, and he doesn't need to watch someone work to know that they're doing a good job; he wants to see the results of what they do.   Where Can We Find Matt Online   LinkedIn – Matt Young Email – matt@uservoice.com   Quote or Saying that During Times of Adversity Matt Uses   When asked about quote or saying that he tends to revert to, Matt stated that he doesn't have a quote; his mind just doesn't work that way. If people ask him about like people that he follows and all that stuff, he tends not to do that, he tends to just assimilate his worldview into something that is influenced in small and big ways by all the different things he's read or all the different people that he interacts with. But he thinks that the most important thing that he tries to keep in mind, especially these days, it was highlighted by the pandemic happening is that your life is not your job.   To him, the most important thing is the positive impact that you have on the earth in the time that you're here. Most specifically, the people around you. He grew up outside New York City so sometimes his language can be colourful, so he won't say it; don't be a you know, what is, the thing that drives him all the time, other people are just as stressed as you are, they're less privileged than you are, just have a bit of empathy for them.   Please connect with us on Twitter @navigatingcx and also join our Private Facebook Community – Navigating the Customer Experience and listen to our FB Lives weekly with a new guest   Grab the Freebie on Our Website – TOP 10 Online Business Resources for Small Business Owners   Links How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience   Do you want to pivot your online customer experience and build loyalty - get a copy of “The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience.”   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience provides 26 easy to follow steps and techniques that helps your business to achieve success and build brand loyalty. This Guide to Limitless, Happy and Loyal Customers will help you to strengthen your service delivery, enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the customer experience and provide tips and practical strategies that you can start implementing immediately! This book will develop your customer service skills and sharpen your attention to detail when serving others. Master your customer experience and develop those knock your socks off techniques that will lead to lifetime customers. Your customers will only want to work with your business and it will be your brand differentiator. It will lead to recruiters to seek you out by providing practical examples on how to deliver a winning customer service experience!

In this week's show, we have Steven Lentz. Steven grew up in an air force, a family moving every two to four years across the United States. He now lives in the Seattle area with his wife and two kids.He loves learning, building businesses, helping others, and being with his family. Professionally, Steven has been an owner and started numerous businesses as well as recently ending a 10-year-plus career as a firefighter and EMT.Steven is a platinum-level business coach with LPW and has his own digital marketing agency. Steven's coaching helps businesses to stop competing on price, to grow their profits and scale their businesses.  His digital marketing agency helps businesses become omnipresent on the internet and dominate organic rankings in the map pack. Steven also hosts his own podcast, subject to change where he interviews business owners and entrepreneurs. Introducing the founder of Steven Lentz Coaching, Steven Lentz.00:01:30 - Talks About Being a Firefighter00:02:40 - Struggles in Applying to Become a Firefighter00:04:28 - Losing His Job00:06:03 - Doing Everything To Make Reality Better00:07:19 - Talks About His Self Reflection00:08:34 - Talks About His Different Business Ventures 00:09:50 - The Importance of Having a Coach in a Business00:11:38 - Shares His Experience in Marketing00:13:19 - Marketing Courses That He Took00:13:41 - Going Back to His Previous Job00:15:00 - Why His Values Have Changed00:16:55 - The Marketing Side of His Business and Leaving His Job00:17:40 - Running Content Marketing00:18:27 - How Content Marketing Works00:21:25 - How We Do Content Marketing00:24:15 - Some Strategies for Content Marketing00:25:14 - This is What Google Wants00:26:41 - Everything You Know is Wrong      00:29:12 - Business Owners Didn't Realize This00:30:41 - The 20% of Activities that Entrepreneurs Should Embrace00:32:46 - Your Network is Your Net Worth00:36:03 - Why Marketing is An Investment00:37:03 - A Walkthrough of the Buyer's Journey00:39:38 - A Customized Business Roadmap for You00:42:02 - The First Step of Growing Your Business Visit Steven's Coaching Website: www.stevenlentzcoaching.com -----Connect with Vijay on Instagram: @RealVijayKailashConnect with Vijay on LinkedIn: Vijay Kailash, CFA | LinkedInConnect with Vijay on his website: https://vijaykailash.com/

Are you looking to get into the real estate game, but don't want to quit your day job?  In this episode, Shane Brooks shares his story of how he made the move to multifamily while maintaining a W2. He discusses how self-education and building strong relationships with like-minded individuals were key steps in making his transition successful.  Shane is a project engineer for a midstream company and a partner at Wild Oak Capital. With his strong technical background, he excels at multifamily underwriting, asset management, and project execution.   [00:01 - 03:40] Utilizing Time More Efficiently Shane talks about his background and starting out with house hacking The changes brought about by the pandemic and how he scaled his knowledge in real estate   [03:41 - 08:47] Finding the Right Fit in Partnerships Shifting from the solopreneur mindset to the partnership mindset The precautions Shane and his partners took before making it official Here are some tips on how to find people to partner with What are you bringing to the table? Doing due diligence   [08:48 - 12:32] Balancing His W2 and His Business in the Long Term Why Shane wants to continue his W2 How he is expanding his network and his knowledge This is what Shane is curious about in terms of investing and taking their business to the next level   [12:33 - 13:47] Closing Segment Reach out to Shane!  Links Below Final Words Tweetable Quotes “We did a few things that I would definitely recommend to your listeners. We did kind of interviews with both Eric and our other partner… just to kind of make sure that our goals aligned, that we had kind of similar opportunities of what we were wanting to do.” - Shane Brooks   “If there's someone that you're really interested in… that you really want to learn from and maybe partner with or at least get into that circle, do your research to figure out what they need.” - Shane Brooks -----------------------------------------------------------------------------   Connect with Shane Brooks directly at shane@wildoakcapital.com or (970)759-6039. You may also visit the Wild Oak Capital website and check out their podcast, The Real Estate Mindset. They would love to share their knowledge and expertise with you.   Resources Mentioned: Raising Capital for Real Estate: How to Attract Investors, Establish Credibility, and Fund Deals by Hunter Thompson The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph by Ryan Holiday Connect with me: I love helping others place money outside of traditional investments that both diversify a strategy and provide solid predictable returns.   Facebook LinkedIn   Like, subscribe, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or whatever platform you listen on.  Thank you for tuning in! Email me → sam@brickeninvestmentgroup.com Want to read the full show notes of the episode? Check it out below: Shane Brooks  00:00 We typically try to sell our properties or investments in about three to five years. And so we've done that five times our iterations now, so very rare in our space. But it's, like I said, follows the same footprint as what we do in the multifamily space, private equity-backed company, small, kind of nimble, where we all kind of wear a lot of different hats. And so I really liked that piece of it because it makes every single day different and exciting. But then there's also keys that W2 to help support what my goals and dreams are for real estate. And so being able to do side by side for as long as possible is only going to help that and expand that even quicker.    Intro  00:35 Welcome to the How to Scale Commercial Real Estate Show. Whether you are an active or passive investor, we'll teach you how to scale your real estate investing business into something big.     Sam Wilson  00:46 Shane Brooks is a Colorado native working in Houston as a project engineer for a midstream company while also running a syndication company focusing in Colorado, Texas, and Oklahoma. Shane, welcome to the show.   Shane Brooks  00:58 Appreciate you having me on Sam. Pleasure to be on.   Sam Wilson  01:00 Hey, man, pleasure is mine three questions I asked every guest who com e on the show. Where did you start? Where are you now? How did you get there? Oh, before you answer that, it has to be 90 seconds or less.   Shane Brooks  01:08 All right, I'll try to make it quick. So yeah, I'm born and raised in Colorado, got an engineering degree from Fort Lewis College. I found out pretty quickly during college, I didn't want to pay campus housing. And so I started the house hack right out of school and a little townhouse with my brother and girlfriend at the time, who's now my wife. And so that's really where I initially began and kind of always had that real estate bug. And now I'm 29 years old and married about three and a half years, living in Houston now, but a lot of my initial growth investing was in Durango and of a small mountain town area, and then into a syndication space where the one deal we have in a contract will put us at 152 units, about 15 and a half million dollars under assets under management, and then also a limited partner in about 494 units in Texas.   Sam Wilson  01:54 That's fantastic. Tell me about how have you balanced working a W2 job and also launching a syndication company? And I guess inside of that the follow-up question to that would be if you figured out early, you know, house hacking right out of school, why don't you just stick with it?   Shane Brooks  02:08 Yeah, so I'll start with the first part. Coming out of school is I knew, I've always been a numbers guy, financial guy. And so I knew that that made a lot of sense. But I know a lot of the metrics behind real estate and how to actually run that properly. So looking back, there's definitely some things I would have done differently, but at least got me into the space. And so educating myself, it really didn't come till I would say early 2020, basically, right when the pandemic hit. It really kind of took off and started self-educating myself and scaling it that sense. So it's been a lot of scaling here recently. But it's all knowledge-based, and I would have done a lot of things differently if I could have. But in terms of balancing, I think part of it goes to the pandemic itself and somewhat of a blessing there. So we started a hybrid schedule with my W2 job. And then during the height of the pandemic, we were actually working from home for about six months, seven months. And so working from home, you don't have that hour commute into town, you don't have two-hour commute back. So you kind of get a lot more time efficiency. And with that, it's like, well, I need something to fill my time and I don't want to be watching TV, I immediately when I get done with the workday. So started just diving into real estate, more podcasts, reading that kind of book that I could to just fill my space and utilize that time more efficiently. So that's really how it started. And we're, like I said, we're on a hybrid schedule. We're doing Mondays and Fridays from home. And so I kind of taken advantage of that. And the times that I'm not in my W2 space, it's all that efficiency goes right to real estate.   Sam Wilson  03:41 Gotcha. How have you scaled this? You're now a part of Wild Oak Capital. How did you discover your partners? How did you guys figure out who's going to do what? How did that process happen?   Shane Brooks  03:52 Yes. So it's actually a pretty organic operation. My mindset was always going to do things quickly. On my own, I really didn't have a partnership mindset to begin with. So I was doing a lot of off-market deals, looking at different creative ways to get into the space in Durango. So Durango is a fairly expensive market. So not something you can just go on the MLS and buy something on and not a lot of multifamily is that are just sitting out there. So I realized that small multifamily was my best option in town. And so I really started getting creative and just doing a lot of different transactions there. And which placed me in Durango, I think six or seven different times throughout that year, even though I was in Houston. So there was a real estate meetup here in town. And every time I was here, it was like that same day I was here. So I just made it a point to go see what everyone else was doing. Be a part of that meetup. And after I was kind of there for the three or four in a row, the host of that meetup, it was actually Eric Nelson, who's my business partner now. He reached out, loved kind of my story, what I was kind of doing and selling, what I was proficient at, which is really the numbers underwriting deal sourcing that sort of thing. So he actually asked me to be kind of a contract person to help them get caught up on their underwriting, since they had just started him and another partner of ours a syndication space in Oklahoma. And so they were getting a few deals kind of in place, they built the broker relationships, but they couldn't keep up with the inflow that was coming in, because they were still working their W2s as well. So that's how I got at least hooked up with them, we realized really quickly that it was a great partnership. And so we created a group there and then actually brought our fourth partner on to kind of help with asset management processes and procedures, a lot of the back office kind of stuff to round out our group of four.   Sam Wilson  05:36 That's awesome. Talk to me about the contract underwriting side of things. You use those two words together. And I want to kind of hear maybe for our listeners, how you went into that initially, to add value to these guys, it doesn't sound like you went into it with this idea that, hey, we'll be partners someday.   Shane Brooks  05:51 Yeah, I'm really looking at apartments, I never even had it in my mind was like, we could be part owner that we could be in this space. And so large multifamily space was never on my mind. But I knew what I was really good at. There's almost like a weekly amount that my business partner Eric was willing to pay to kind of get help cut up into the space. And it was his idea, I didn't reach out, kind of didn't know what they were looking for exactly. But I kind of took it as an opportunity, is like I know enough in this space. It's intrigued me. And I think I can really excel. And so I kind of just took that opportunity. This is more of a handshake contract basis. But like I said, it turned really quickly into something that we knew we could form down the road. And we took all the kind of same precautions. So we did a few things that I would definitely recommend to your listeners to is we did kind of interviews with both Eric and our other partner that was already in the group. So we did multiple interviews, just to kind of make sure that our goals aligned, that we had kind of similar opportunities of what we were wanting to do. But they also had our specifics that we were good at. And we can kind of piggyback of the other partners in the group. And then we actually did a small deal in Lubbock, Texas together, just as the three of us to really gauge how we operated together. And there was three duplexes, so wasn't a huge burden on the capital side. But it really kind of helped put in place where each other was strong and proficient, where we wanted to focus and then helped us really solidify that we wanted to form a group together.   Sam Wilson  07:18 That's really cool. Yeah, I love the idea of starting small and really getting the kinks worked out, that's certainly a valuable way to go about it. That's an interesting way to get in, you know, I know that there's contract underwriters out there, there are people that hey, you know, I get, you know, emails all the time, who said, hey, help out with underwriting for a fixed fee per deal? Or whatever it is, but bringing that skill set to the table? Is there anything else you would recommend that people do? If they are out trying to form a partnership? Or if they are looking at their skillset, saying, What can I bring to the table? What's a good way to go out and really find other people to partner with?   Shane Brooks  07:52 That's a great question. And I think really just doing your due diligence. So if there's someone that you're really interested in, maybe their level above you, that you really want to learn from and maybe partner with, or at least get into that circle would be doing your research to figure out what they need. A lot of these operators, they may have an area that they're lacking, or they may need help on, but they don't maybe know it right off the top of their head. And they get asked that all the time, you're going to hear that people get asked how can I add value to you, where the people that actually stand out is people that come to you and say, hey, I've been following you, I've seen some of the properties or projects you've been doing. This is where I think that you're maybe lacking or this may be where I can kind of help in and take something off your plate. But if you do that initial research, show them that you're committed, you're going to be way more successful to kind of get into their loop and have them kind of get some feedback into whether that's a partnership, or at least getting into that space to kind of breach their circle and see where they're going at. That'd be the biggest part for me.   Sam Wilson  08:48 Got it. Man. That's absolutely fantastic. Let's talk about your W2, how long are you going to work that? And what's the long-term plan?   Shane Brooks  08:55 Yes, I've been at my W2 for about eight years, actually the same company I got with right out of college, and great company, I mean, love everything that I do there. And so that's really why I've run both of these side by side for so long. And plan to continue that. It's a great company that actually acts very similar to a syndication in the real estate game. So we do the same type of process, we'll go into kind of an underdeveloped area, and really build these midstream assets, operate them, get them stabilized, staff them and then we'll operate for a while until we put them on the market to sell. And so we typically try to sell our properties or investments in about three to five years. And so we've done that five times our iterations now, so very rare in our space. But it's, like I said, follows the same footprint as what we do in the multifamily space, private equity-backed company, small, kind of nimble, where we all kind of wear a lot of different hats. And so I really liked that piece of it because it makes every single day different and exciting. But then there's also keys that W2 to help support what my goals and dreams are for real estate. And so being able to do side by side for as long as possible is only going to help that and expand that even quicker.    Sam Wilson  10:04 As a limited partner, how have you gone and found the people that you wanted to invest with yourself?   Shane Brooks  10:09 Yeah, so a couple of ways would be podcasts and meetups or conferences. And so I listened to a lot of different podcasts. And if there's a guest that kind of comes on that I connect with, maybe they've got a similar story, or maybe they're doing a little bit bigger deals in my area, there's one of my focuses is being in Houston, I wanted to find an operator that was very transparent, I wanted to see what they were kind of doing being allowed maybe on the properties, being a little more involved as a limited partner, and not just to invest as a limited partner, but to also take their knowledge and be able to apply that to our business to make our syndication company even better. So I really wanted to focus on someone local that I could visit, and then someone that was transparent and open about what they're doing. So we can share and kind of hands our business as well. So a couple of those from podcast, I've reached out, obviously, they always leave their contact information. And I would say 95% of the time, you're gonna get a response. If you reach out to someone on a podcast.   Sam Wilson  11:08 That's for sure. That's a great tip, there's so at the end of this, obviously, you get a chance to leave your contact info. And usually people give you a direct way, a direct line on a podcast says, Hey, this is exactly if you want to get straight to me, here's how you do it, which I think is really cool way to do things. Tell me something you're curious about right now.   Shane Brooks  11:25 Yeah. So curious, on my end is really some of the larger deals, that larger value add multifamily complexes in some of these Texas markets that are outside of your main cities. And so right now, our focus has really been about 30 units, 125 units for various different reasons, but really wanting to break into that next larger space. And so that's, our curiosity is really peaked so far there to really understand some of the nuances that are different from the smaller complexes and to the larger, and some of the challenges we overcome to be able to take some of those projects down. So I try not to get object syndrome, because you could go down that path really quick. But right now, I think, at least on a focus level, that's where our curiosity lies.   Sam Wilson  12:08 Fantastic. What's the book you're reading right now?   Shane Brooks  12:10 Lot of different books, we actually have a little kind of book club in our group just to make sure keep us accountable for always kind of expanding. But Raising Capital by Hunter Thompson is one that we're focusing on right now as capital is a huge part of this business. And that book is an amazing book. Obstacles is The Way as another one, which huge mindset piece. So those are two probably currently that we're focused on.   Sam Wilson  12:33 Love it. I love the book club inside your little group that's always learning. Absolutely critical to success. So fantastic, Shane, I've enjoyed this. Thanks for taking the time to come on today. If our listeners want to get in touch with you, or learn more about you, what is the best way to do that?   Shane Brooks  12:47 Our group is called Wild Oak Capital, but we also have a podcast as well. The Real Estate Mindset, we focus a lot on mindset. And then big part of our business is education. We love to teach and kind of bring that knowledge to others. No charge at all. On our end, we just we love talking about real estate, so anything that we can share, we would love to do so. So wildoakcapital.com is our website you can reach me directly at shane@wildoakcapital.com, or even on my cell at 970-759-6039. And we'd love to connect with any of your listeners and help out in any way we can.   Sam Wilson  13:18 Thanks, Shane. Have a great day.    Shane Brooks  13:19 Thanks, Sam.   Sam Wilson  13:21 Hey, thanks for listening to the How to Scale Commercial Real Estate Podcast. If you can do me a favor and subscribe and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, whatever platform it is you use to listen, if you can do that for us, that would be a fantastic help to the show. It helps us both attract new listeners as well as rank higher on those directories so appreciate you listening. Thanks so much and hope to catch you on the next episode. 

Ernie Harker is a creative branding mastermind. He recently published “Your Brand Sucks,” a book that reveals why most companies get branding wrong and reveals the step by step formula he has used to assist dozens of companies define a clear image and personality for their brands. One of his greatest successes was to help revitalize an old-western retail chain into a $3 billion high-energy adventure brand. He leads workshops, gives presentations, and offers an online masterclass to help organizations define and develop remarkable brands.   Self-diagnosed with Hyperactive Productivity Disorder, Ernie loves to draw, trail run, compete in triathlons, wake board, do yoga, lift weights, camp, mountain bike, watch movies, eat junk food, and spend time with his family and 7 brothers. Asked him what his real life allergies to exercise on the TV travel show he hosted.   Buckle up because his dynamic personality and passion for brand development will have you racing to build your brand. His friends call him Ernburn, so call him Ernburn!   Questions   Could you share little bit about their journey and how you got to where you are today. Could you share that? Could you maybe share with us three important things you think our company needs to have in order to really have, at least gives off the impression of being a brand that is for their customer? Are there maybe two or three personality traits that you think an employee or a leader needs to have in an organization in order to really develop a brand that is highly associated in a positive way? Could you share with us what's the one online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely cannot live without in your business? Could you also share with us maybe one or two books that have had the biggest impact on you? It could be a book that you read a very long time ago, or even one that you read recently, but it has a great impact on you. We have a lot of listeners who are business owners and managers who feel sometimes that they have great products and services, but they lack the constantly motivated human capital. If you're sitting across the table from that person, what's the one piece of advice that you would give them to have a successful business? Could you share with us what's the one thing that's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about? Either something that you're working on to develop yourself or your people. Where can listeners find you online? Do you have a quote or a saying that during times of adversity or challenge, you'll tend to revert to this quote, it kind of helps to get you back on track or get you back focus if for any reason you get derailed.   Highlights   Ernie's Journey   Ernie shared that like most of our guests, they always start on the path that never seems to be like, if I were to rewind my life; I never would have thought I would have ended up where I'm at. He wanted to be an illustrator or an animator when he was a kid. And so, he was an illustration, he drew all the time, and studied illustration at the university. And when he got out of university, he got a job for an Ad agency. And he was doing concept development and that's just pre visualization of either TV commercials or print ads, or online ads or whatever. He would sketch out what a creative director or an art director would have in mind and then they would show those drafts, those pieces of art to the client.   And what he learned is that he learned to become really good at visualizing language. He wasn't a writer and so he had to clearly communicate and very quickly communicate an idea visually. And so illustration led to storyboards, which led to TV commercials, radio commercials, interactive design, then print design. And so, now he was all over the place doing all kinds of creative development stuff. But that led him into brand development because branding is such a visual experience, we often think of branding as like colours, and logos and graphic design and things like that. But it's also a lot more personality conveyed through language, visual language, and verbal language, tone, vocabulary and things like that. And so, that's kind of how he started as an illustrator, and developed into a branding guy. So it took a while.   Three Important Things a Company Needs to Have That Gives the Impression a Brand is For Their Customer   Me: Now, branding is very important to customer experience and your brand as you said, it's not just from a marketing perspective, the image that comes out in your advertisements, or any form of posts that you put up on any social media platform, but could you maybe share with us three important things you think a company needs to have in order to really have, at least give off the impression of being a brand that is for their customer?   Ernie shared that he's so grateful that Yanique is championing the customer experience because so many businesses focus on their business and not the customer experience, their business will be fine if they just focus on the customer experience. And so, congratulations and thank you for doing that.   There's a singular lens. Every brand should have a singular lens that they use to focus the customer experience and those are all the touch points that a customer would see, hear, read, notice, anything like that. So, those are all touch points. Well, the customer experience is a conscious decision to filter all those touch points to reinforce a specific personality of the company.   So really, we're trying, with all these customer experiences, we're trying to engage and attract a customer, make them fall in love with a business, you can't make anybody fall in love with the business unless there's a personality associated with that business. And so, defining what your brand lens or personality is really about, will then help you choose the visual elements, the pictures, colours, textures, all those kinds of things.   And the verbal elements, the language, vocabulary, the tone to give that customer the glimpse into the organization's personality, they go, “Oh, my gosh, I love this company,” not just “Oh, I recognize the company.” which is a lot of branding oftentimes, as he can differentiate between one company and another company, visually, but it needs to be more than that, it needs to be more of a personal, emotional connection, like “I really am attracted to this company.” And that's done like for a convenience store chain.   He was in involved a convenience store chain business for a long time. And what's neat about the convenience store business is that it's one of the very few businesses that have customers come in on a daily or multiple times per week. Like banks don't do that, retail locations don't do that. Even McDonald's, well, maybe some people that go every day, but convenience stores like they're buying fuel, customers are buying fuel, they're buying snacks, they're buying drinks, whatever.   And so the environment needs to be inviting. What is it about the walls, the floors, the interior design, the extra design that reinforces the personality of the business? And then of course, you have the person behind the counter, that Maverik, the convenience store that he was developing a brand for. They called them adventure guides because they had an adventurous personality; they wanted to make it feel like people were going to the great outdoors when they would come to a store. And so, they'd call them adventure guides.   So titles, the way customers were greeted. So you have this visual experience when people come in and then you have the vocabulary of like a greeting and you meet somebody who is an adventure guide instead of a clerk, or a teller, or a whatever. And then of course, all the marketing and advertising goes on top of that customer experience. I hope that answers the question in a roundabout way.   Three Personality Traits an Employee or Leader Needs to Have in an Organization in Order to Develop a Brand   Me: Oh, definitely it does. So there are quite a few things that you mentioned that I am definitely 100% on board with. I think sometimes also when people hear the word brand, it's like brand is highly associated with marketing, not necessarily customer experience. Are there maybe two or three personality traits that you think an employee or a leader needs to have in an organization in order to really develop a brand that is highly associated in a positive way? Because your brand can have a negative image and your brand can have a positive image. But what are some key things that you would need to ensure or would you say it should be linked to your core values? And if that's the case, what should be your strategy where recruitment is concerned?   Ernie stated that there are 3 things he's going to say off the top of his head. One is Humility. And what he means by humility is oftentimes organizational leaders or employees think they know best. They have their own personal opinion and they think their personal opinion is stronger than anybody else's opinion or research. So, humility.   Curiosity is the second one. Like he wants to know what their customers really think. He wants to learn as much as he can. So, humility gives us opening in our brains and our hearts for change and curiosity leads us to find the material to fill in that empty space that's relative, that's applicable.   And then the third thing is, he thinks Passion. There's so much boringness going on in the world today. He wants to be surrounded by people who are enthusiastic about what they do. It doesn't matter what they do, he could care less, but he cares about the enthusiasm and the passion by which they're engaged. So, there's too many retail locations or retailers, with employees who are completely disengaged, they are there counting the minutes between breaks, can't wait to get home and so the customer experience is a huge, like empty space in those locations, those businesses. So enthusiasm, he just wants to feel some love, some passion. He doesn't care if he's ordering a Big Mac, he wants someone to be excited about it for him. So those are the three things humility, curiosity, and passion or enthusiasm.   App, Website or Tool that Ernie Absolutely Can't Live Without in His Business   When asked about an online resource that he cannot live without in his business, Ernie stated that Photoshop. He's learning to use HubSpot because he's been terrible as a CRM guy. He needs to do a better job with that. But he does so many things in Photoshop, because he's image oriented, whether it's illustration or even graphic define online, banners, video thumbnails, and all those. If he didn't have Photoshop, he'd be a stick in the mud.   Books that Have Had the Biggest Impact on Ernie   Ernie shared that the book that has had one of the most profound impacts on him is The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss, and he has referenced it so much that his wife gives him a hard time about it. On his nightstand, he has a set of Scriptures, the Bible, this is his go to, that's his big go to book. So, he got his scriptures, and he's a faith based person, very religious. But next to that for years was Tim Ferriss' book, The 4-Hour Workweek and so he would wreck ideas from The 4-Hour Workweek and his wife would say, “Oh, are you quoting brother Ferriss again?” Because it's like he's almost like a prophet. But some of the things that he talked about that are profound to him is the Pareto principle, the 80/20 rule, becoming more efficient with your time.   He also talked a lot about multiple careers instead of retirement, and working for the future, we're designed to be very creative people. So, why do we work like crazy in one career, and then hope one day we'll retire and not have to work, that's crazy. He doesn't ever want to stop working; he wants to keep doing fun, cool stuff. And so, the idea of multiple careers and mini retirements. Well, he could talk for a whole hour about Tim Ferriss and his teachings. But that was the most profound book.   Advice for Business Owners and Managers to Have a Successful Business   When asked about advice he would give to business owner or manager to have a successful business, Ernie shared that he would love to be able to incorporate employee compensation with customer experience so that the employees are rewarded, their compensation is structured on  how much the customers enjoy their interaction, how much they appreciate the interaction. So that instead of like sales based, like always commissioned based, play the long game of, “I want to hire people that are compensated when customers or potential customers have a really good experience with them.” And then also provide that employee with the resources to wow their customers. Like being able to send a note, being able to send a very small inexpensive gift, things like that. So they're empowered and they're compensated based on their customer experience, because he knows that there will be people, that the customers will always come back to a really good experience.   What Ernie is Really Excited About Now!   Ernie shared that he has been going bonkers over a YouTube channel that teaches kids to draw. So he created a YouTube channel, he spends way too much time on it. But he gets to produce, he gets to do the drawing, he does the lesson. And then he edits the video. And so all the fun things and creative production that he enjoys, as well as kind of inspiring and igniting the excitement of drawing which is affordable to everybody. It's within the reach of the poorest of poor people, get a piece of charcoal and a log, and you can draw. Pencil and paper, it's super, super inexpensive. But the ability to express creativity with pencil and paper, and an iPad and procreate or whatever is just so empowering for him. And so, he's done 100 episodes in the past 2 years and the channel, it's like 4000 subscribers, it's not very big but it has been so much fun to make these videos and just have fun being creative in the YouTube world.   Where Can We Find Ernie Online   LinkedIn – Ernie Harker   Quote or Saying that During Times of Adversity Ernie Uses   When asked about a quote or saying that he tends to revert to, Ernie shared that he was writing his book, Your Brand Sucks, which was very, very hard for him, he has ADD and so kind of staying focused on that was really, really challenging. And he'd often want to give up. He'd been involved in multiple businesses, a lot of entrepreneurial businesses, and none of them met the financial goals that he had, like he wanted to build these businesses and have it sell millions of dollars worth of product or whatever, but most of the time, they just kind of broke even.   And while sharing his disappointment, his frustration with a co-worker of his, an executive with him. He was listening to him (Ernie) talk about like his TV series didn't work out; he took longer to run his iron man than he thought he should, his children's book didn't sell very well. He like looked at him like, “Dude, you get credit for trying.” “You get credit for trying.” And what he thinks is impactful to him about that little mantra is that it kind of reshapes his definition of success, of not relying on success of things he can't control.   Like, for example, if he wrote a book, he has very little control whether or not it sells a million copies, if it gets popular, if Oprah loves it. But he has 100% control whether or not he finishes writing the book. So, if he were to focus his success, his definition of success on things that he can control, then he could be very productive, he can write the book. Because the temptation is he's going to give up because nothing that he's done so far has met his definition of success so why even try? Instead, he did that. And so, he can do it again. Even though the sales or whatever, the financial numbers aren't spectacular, he can look back on his life and go, “I did a lot of really great stuff that I was passionate about whether or not it made money or not.” So, you get credit for trying.   Please connect with us on Twitter @navigatingcx and also join our Private Facebook Community – Navigating the Customer Experience and listen to our FB Lives weekly with a new guest   Grab the Freebie on Our Website – TOP 10 Online Business Resources for Small Business Owners   Links Your Brand Sucks: How to ignite a brand that doesn't by Ernie Harker The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience   Do you want to pivot your online customer experience and build loyalty - get a copy of “The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience.”   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience provides 26 easy to follow steps and techniques that helps your business to achieve success and build brand loyalty. This Guide to Limitless, Happy and Loyal Customers will help you to strengthen your service delivery, enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the customer experience and provide tips and practical strategies that you can start implementing immediately! This book will develop your customer service skills and sharpen your attention to detail when serving others. Master your customer experience and develop those knock your socks off techniques that will lead to lifetime customers. Your customers will only want to work with your business and it will be your brand differentiator. It will lead to recruiters to seek you out by providing practical examples on how to deliver a winning customer service experience!

Gadi Shamia is the CEO and Co-Founder of Replicant, a conversational AI platform founded on the belief that machines are ready to have useful, complex conversations that will transform the way they interact with the world. Prior to Replicant, Gadi helped take Talkdesk, a $10B contact centre software market leader from a seed-stage company to a Unicorn startup as its COO, and played a key role in architecting and executing its 20X growth in people and revenue.   Questions   Could you share with our listeners a little bit about your journey? Can you share with us a little bit about how organizations are using AI to enhance customer experience? And have you seen that change more drastically, especially in the last 2 to 3 years? Could you also share with us how the intelligent voice automation is helping to improve business outcomes for companies who don't have enough manpower to keep up with demand? What's the one online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely can't live without in your business? Could you share with us maybe one or two books that have had the biggest impact on you, it could be a book that you read a very long time ago or even listened to, or one that you have engaged with recently, but has really left a big mark on you. Could you also share with us what's the one thing that's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about? Either something you're working on to develop yourself or your people. Where can listeners find you online? Do you have a quote are saying that during times of adversity or challenge, you tend to revert to this quote, it kind of helps to get you back on track if for any reason you got off track, or you got derailed? Do you have one of those?   Highlights   Gadi's Journey   Gadi shared that he likes this question because it gives him an opportunity to share with people that a lot of one's journey is luck, and maybe early smart decisions. But some of them in some cases no way to predict how one decision will lead to the next opportunity.   He got into tech as an accident actually, he studied accounting and economics. The tech industry at the time in the 90s was not really evolved actually even studying computer science was one of the easiest degrees to get to. And accounting economics management type degrees were really hard to get to at the time, really reverse from what is today.   And he got into tech because his university was on strike, because their tuition was increased. So, all the students went on an almost a semester long strike. And back in Tel Aviv, and a friend of his said, “Hey, you seem bored. Somebody's looking for a quality assurance person, a tech company.” He said, “I don't know what quality assurance is, don't know exactly what tech is but let me give it a try.”   And he jumped in, he really liked it and they really liked him and his journey in technology really started because he was bored during a strike in university, he could have been an accountant by now.   And then from there one thing led to the other, joining a tech company was great, it later on split into two. I stayed was one of the two sides is a Co-Founder and build an ERP and accounting software that is still used today. It's called SAP Business One it was acquired by SAP back in 2002. Had a chance because of its acquisition to spend 6 years as senior executive at SAP. And really one thing led to the other in a way that eventually led him to do what he does today. So, some luck, some hard choices, some easy choices, and you can find yourself in a great career.   Organizations Using AI to Enhance Customer Experience   Me: Now you have a lot of experience working with AI. And of course, there's a growing demand for it globally. Can you share with us a little bit about how organizations are using AI to enhance customer experience? And have you seen that change more drastically, especially in the last 2 to 3 years?   Gadi stated that yes, they actually at very beginning of wider adoption of AI in organizations, AI has been here as an option for several years, but we're just seeing it become more mainstream because in any area, any new technology, the first generation tend to not be great.   If you've compared Google Maps to some of the older versions of navigation software, in almost all cases, the first generation paves the way to better products that are using more advanced technology and some of the learnings of the previous generation. So he thinks we're in the first era of wide adoption of AI because it finally works.   And we see AI used across multiple use cases. The first adoption of AI was actually for quality assurance and call analytics. Traditionally in contact centres, calls were this black box and you record them for quality assurance and training purposes but really no one ever listens to them because the time it takes to listen to a phone call, the time the call takes. So it's pretty hard to listen to call especially on mass.   So what we see is more and more companies were adopting call analytics as a way to listen quote unquote, to many calls at the same time and derive insights but also training materials back to the agents. And this is really helpful because it allows us to train agents and help them learn faster. But it actually doesn't solve the fundamental issue we see today in the customer service space, which is lack of agents.   So it's great that we can train agents better but over the last couple of years, we've seen a problem, it used to be pretty bad becoming almost catastrophical. Agent availability was always an issue in the contact centre space and the pandemic made it much worse. We all heard about the great resignation, where more and more people choose not to participate in this type of job, tends to be entry level, mundane and repetitive. So the available pool of agents decreased quite dramatically.   And an added disruption that the pandemic added was childcare, was people becoming sick themselves, people caring for maybe older parents, and agent availability dropped even further.   So if you talk with customers today, the question they're asking is not how we train agents is how we hire more agents if it's even possible. And then can we train them and onboard them faster, but more importantly, can we start using AI to automate some of the most mundane and repetitive work of those agents, so we can free up these agents to do more meaningful work.   And the reason he's so excited about this change is that it's a triple win to everyone. If you can take away from the agents the most menial, repetitive tasks, their work is going to be more rewarding, companies are going to be inclined to pay them more, they're more likely to stay longer in their jobs, and customers are less likely to wait hours to speak with an agent. So it's a pretty interesting intersection where AI can really create a relief for the first time in a meaningful way. Intelligent Voice Automation Helping to Improve Business Outcomes for Companies   Gadi shared that this is the core of what Replicant does. And they have many, many examples of what the impact of that and he'll give a couple of examples. As he said, they hear constantly from their customers that hiring became their biggest challenge. And they hear quotes like, “I now try hiring 9 people for every five roles because I know that in the first two months, 4 will leave.” So you have to hire more people for the same exact number of openings. People stay for a shorter period of time, it used to be a year to year and a half. Now agents will call it quits after 6, 7 months. So that's an ongoing problem.   And couple of interesting examples. One of them was one of their customers ECSI in a financial service area. So they deal with student loans and other payment products and their hot season is somewhere between January and tax time, which last year was May, this year, hopefully will stay April.   And the first four months of the year, they get the majority of their calls around student loans, tax forms, and so on. So every year the ritual was similar, you have to go and hire extra 20, 25, 30 agents to just help with the seasonal increase and this is a very hard task. Everybody high season agent knows that you have to hire people for a short period of time, they're less committed to the business, they come there to plug a hole, if you train them but then the whole thing goes away at the end of the season and you have to repeat the whole thing every time you have a predicted increase in call volume.   So, for ECSI, this is the first year when they don't have to hire seasonal agents to deal with the tax issues because they're able to automate a majority of their simple calls and repeatable calls around tax and tax forms, “I didn't get the form, please send it again to me.” And so on.   It's created a really interesting experience, for the callers, it used to be or this is the hot season, I have to wait more to speak with an agent just to get the form I probably lost in the mail. Now they get an answer within seconds and the solution was in 2, 3 minutes.   For the company, they don't have to go through the rigmarole of starting somewhere in October to identify, interview agents, hire them in December, train them over the holidays, and make sure they are ready to take calls in January, just to let them go in April.   So, the win here is both on the customer side where the calls don't have to wait on hold anymore. But also on the company side that doesn't have to go through this process which takes a lot of time, effort and energy from management, instead of focusing on continuous improving of customer service. So, that's one example where it's really helpful.   Another one, which he really likes is one of their customers in the roadside assistance space, they are serving large areas of Canada, Canada has a pretty hard winter this year and literally they told them they could not have answered all the emergency roadside service calls they got in some of the coldest days.   Because as you can imagine, a cool day and people try to start that car and they can't and they need roadside assistance and when a day like this happen, all of a sudden, instead of getting X number of calls, 100 calls, you get 300 calls and it's really hard to summon up enough agents in a day like this. Also, because the agent might be stuck at home with a dead battery.   So, the ability to answer any number of calls that came their way and be able to help all their customers in the coldest, hardest days was a big, big change from previous years for them, where some calls had to wait for 20, 30 minutes on hold, sometimes stuck out of the car in 5 degrees weather.   App, Website or Tool that Gadi Absolutely Can't Live Without in His Business   When asked about an online resource that he cannot live without in his business, Gadi shared that he thinks for everyone it would be Google. He really forgets how he looks for information and either way, Google became this notepad that allows you to really get quick answers for questions. But then also got kind of deepen your research. This is one that comes to mind first, but he will say that it's so much easier to consume information today that he can't really name one tool, he thinks if he had to, it's Google.   But he learned a lot from Twitter because of the randomness of that. He follows an interesting selection of people that covers a lot of areas of his interest. And it helps you learn from a less structured way, in Google, you go and seek an answer to a question, in Twitter in a way, you stumble upon topics you may have not thought of often and kind of open a new way of thinking for you. So, he likes the randomness of Twitter, but also a huge fan of audiobooks and podcasts.   And he constantly listened to at least one audiobook and maybe a couple of podcasts that he's excited about and it's interesting. His style of doing that, he likes to walk the dog and listen to a podcast and it helped him think freely about some other areas which may not be directly related to what he does, but can lead to interesting thoughts and solutions at work. So, just a way to provoke thinking much more than maybe learn something new. So if you look at what he's using every day is Twitter, Audible, Google and whatever his favourite podcast platform. Currently, he's using Spotify, but it changes over time.   Books that Have Had the Biggest Impact on Gadi   When asked about books that have had the biggest impact, Gadi shared that he wants to give credit to Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers by Geoffrey Moore, which was one of the first technology books he's ever read. And he's not sure that if the impact of this book, the book is amazing and impactful, he will explain why. But also it was one of the first books that he read so it may have been the transformation he went through was more impactful because it was just one of the first books like the first call you may have had on cell phone in the middle of the desert, it's always more impactful than the new version of the iPhone that seems a little bit more of the same.   But he read the Crossing the Chasm, he worked on his first ever product that eventually is the one that was acquired by SAP and now turned to BSAP Business One. And they had this classic crossing the chasm problem. They launched this product and the first day they launch it, it literally was on DVDs, this is this was mid 90s and literally, they couldn't print enough DVDs to deal with the demand they had. And 30 days later, everybody returned the product, not everybody but 80% of the customers use the 30 days money back guarantee and return the product. And it became much, much harder to sell to mainstream customers and it took them 3 years to kind of crack the code of what a robust ERP product needed to look like until they're able to get to the mainstream and start getting wide adoption that eventually led to SAP acquiring a company and taking this product globally.   And he thinks the reason the book was so impactful was one, it came at exactly the right time, he was in a chasm was his company unable to move from early adopters to more mainstream buyers. The second is, it provide reusable useful tools that he use actually across his career. There's a concept of nine point checklist of product launch that he's still using today even as Replicant, one of the first exercise they've done as a leadership team is use the nine point checklist from this book that he read in 1995 to define the target market, the focus customer, the problem they're trying to solve. So having a reusable tool in the book that you can use 25 years after you read it, is just unique. There are so many books that just talk about small specific topic and they're really no more impactful than an article. And he thinks this book having this long lasting impact on him, is very unique. Now, he has read hundreds of books after that, each one of them left a small mark but this is definitely the most impactful book he has ever read in a business sense.   What Gadi is Really Excited About Now!   Gadi shared that it's a really interesting time when it comes to people development; it's something that he cares about greatly. So, as you said at the beginning, people can start calculating his age just by his years of experience and work in different companies. And his perspective, not shifted but evolved to really believe that the most important thing we can do as business leaders is be accountable and responsible to help our own team develop and grow. When you work in technology, especially when you're young, at least his perspective was that was really cared about the product he built and technology he built and he got a lot of traction from building a product that sold a lot of customers, like he still gets a lot of traction from it. But when you look in retrospect, he doesn't miss the products and now own and run by other people, he misses the people he works with and he feels most rewarded by seeing their career.   The intern that worked with him at ASAP and now CEO of a company that is probably going to be lasting for generations. Or the product manager that he hired 20 years ago and now is a Senior VP in a large public company running their entire product line and she's now by the way, a consultant and helping Replicant as kind of part of the give back programme in the Silicon Valley. So, if this is the most rewarding thing for him, he wants to make sure they as a company, continue to help their team launching their careers and make their stay at Replicant maybe 5 years or 10 years or 20 years a meaningful stop in their career.   So a lot of what he's focused on right now as they kick off 2022 is how do they provide this type of support to their team, being a remote company having people in Canada, in the U.S, some people in Europe. How do they create a platform that allows everybody to launch and improve their career and find Replicant to be a learning and growing experience.   Another area where he's really excited about is finding ways to support people in a more personal way. Companies traditionally stayed away from anything mental health or too personal especially in the U.S culture, we supposed to kind of keep things separated, you only work here, let's not talk about your emotions. And he thinks now, and maybe the pandemic helped with that, it became more normal to talk about mental health in the workplace and the impact of the pandemic and the impact of isolation and the impact of working remotely. So, he's excited to kind of tackle this relatively new problem and find ways to define a new SAT score between companies and its employees, about how might they support people also in their mental health journey and in their mental well being, maybe better than mental health, but their mental well being.   Me: All right, sounds good, very good, very forward thinking of an organization because you really have to take care of the person as a whole.   Where Can We Find Gadi Online   Twitter – @gadishamia LinkedIn – Gadi Shamia Website – http://www.replicant.ai   Quote or Saying that During Times of Adversity Gadi Uses   When asked about a quote or saying that he tends to revert to, Gadi shared that he doesn't have a quote, but he has a story. Early on in his life, he served in the military and he was in several situations that were really complicated, it's not necessarily a matter of life and death, as much as they were just complicated, where it looks like everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong, and then another time over and another time over and another time over. And the stress was real, and impactful and physical.   He used to remind myself a story a lot when he was younger, and just the fate memory of the story is very helpful by just remembering being stuck in the mud without being able to move at night far away and having series of issues happening one after the other. And then after a couple of days of intense work being able to get out of this mess. And he just reminds himself that, “Most of the issues he faced today are not at the scale.” And they're not really life and death and they could be resolved in different ways.   So, when he feels like he's overwhelmed mainly, he remembers the feeling of being overwhelmed when he was 22, much less experienced with much more severe consequences of a mistake. And he just says, you know what, we can just go through it and just having this peace of mind that he will be able to navigate it because it's not going to be as bad as that helped him a lot, especially early in his career.   Please connect with us on Twitter @navigatingcx and also join our Private Facebook Community – Navigating the Customer Experience and listen to our FB Lives weekly with a new guest   Grab the Freebie on Our Website – TOP 10 Online Business Resources for Small Business Owners   Links Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers by Geoffrey Moore   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience   Do you want to pivot your online customer experience and build loyalty - get a copy of “The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience.”   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience provides 26 easy to follow steps and techniques that helps your business to achieve success and build brand loyalty. This Guide to Limitless, Happy and Loyal Customers will help you to strengthen your service delivery, enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the customer experience and provide tips and practical strategies that you can start implementing immediately! This book will develop your customer service skills and sharpen your attention to detail when serving others. Master your customer experience and develop those knock your socks off techniques that will lead to lifetime customers. Your customers will only want to work with your business and it will be your brand differentiator. It will lead to recruiters to seek you out by providing practical examples on how to deliver a winning customer service experience!

Stuart Leo is the founder and CEO of Waymaker.io – an intelligent business management platform that helps leaders build a better business in 30 days.   Stuart is a global thinker in strategy, systems and leadership development. As a founder of Waymaker.io, he has led the creation of Waymaker's Leadership Curve - a revolutionary way of building clarity, alignment and remarkable results for any organization.   Questions Could you take maybe one or two minutes just to kind of share with us a little bit about your journey, even though I did read a very short piece on you, it's good when we ask our guests to express in their own words, how they got to where they are today. What are three keys to growth for any organization? Now, strategy is very important for business. Why do you think for some businesses strategy tends to be confusing? And how can leaders become more strategic in their decision making? Could you share with us what's the one online resource, tool, website or app that you absolutely can't live without in your business? Could you share with us maybe one or two books that have had the biggest impact on you? It could be a book that you read or listen to many years ago or even one that you've engaged with recently. Could you share with us what's the one thing that's going on in your life right now that you're really excited about? Either something you're working on to develop yourself or your people. Where can listeners find you online? Do you have a quote are saying that during times of adversity or challenge, you will tend to revert to this quote, it kind of helps to get you back on track if for any reason you got derailed or you got off track.   Highlights   Stuart's Journey   Stuart shared that the journey is much like many other startup founders. He loves business, he loves working with people. He loves serving others in business, that's why we all do what we do. And for a very long time, he worked in corporate life and jumped out of corporate life to get out and do his own thing as you always are inspired to do.   And then for about 10 years he ran a consulting company, working in strategy and brand and sales tech and mar tech. And obviously, customer experience was a huge component of that. And then, along the way, they started seeing and observing problems that their clients would have, that they realized could be best solved with some software, as opposed to just some advisory services.   And so, they ended up pivoting which is always a fun journey, and developing a platform they call Waymaker.io, which at the end of the day is there to help you build a better business, and they help people get unstuck in their business, they help people find breakthrough and they help leaders put the leadership and management operating systems in place so that they can step back from their business and enjoy all the things that their business should provide them in terms of lifestyle and freedom.   So, a very traditional way of doing a startup, the more he listened to other startup founders, everybody comes from another business, you see a problem and you jump in, and you want to get in there and solve it. And that's really his journey.   Three Keys for the Growth of any Organization   When asked what are the three keys to growth to any organization, Stuart shared that number one, you must, must be clear on the problem you're solving and if you're not, then you would have lost focus. So number one, what is the problem we're solving, and that is the ultimate underlying purpose of the organization.   There is no other purpose outside that organization but to solve the problem, you exist to solve for your customer. It's very easy for organizations to get lost when they lose focus on their purpose and their purpose is their problem, we exist to solve X problem for a customer. And that's number one.   Number two, you must build people by building skills. Fundamentally there are two things you must build in every organization. The first is skills and the second is systems.   So number three, the third key to growth is the implementation, development of systems. There's a bit of a myth sometimes out there in business world that he thinks exists and that is that you must systemize everything. And he thinks that's actually a fallacy, you're only telling half the story.   You must build people who can be supported with systems and as we build people through skills and leadership development, and then support them with great systems and process then they can do amazing things.   So three keys to growth, number one, must, must, must be really clear on the problem solving, never navigate away from that. Number two, build people. Number three; build the systems to support those people.   Me: Do you think one is more important than the other, people versus systems?   Stuart shared that he always thinks people are more important than systems when it comes down to an organization and he thinks that's a philosophical answer versus a practical answer.   We should value a system for the return it makes on a business and we should value a human because they're human. And he thinks often we get that bit round the other way and systems become more important than humans. And so, that's when he thinks humans feel like they're cogs in a machine, whether they be a customer or an employee.   And he thinks that's that the underlying secret. He's a big believer that that skills, which is ultimately building people far more important than the systems. Because the systems won't work if you don't have people with the skills. He always say this, there's no point putting in amazing systems, they're like Ferraris in your organization and sticking learner drivers in them, all they're going to do is crash on the first corner.   Leaders Becoming More Strategic in Their Decision Making   Me: Now, strategy is very important for a business. Why do you think for some businesses strategy tends to be confusing? And how can leaders become more strategic in their decision making?   Stuart stated that that is such a good question. He actually wants to step back and really challenge this idea of strategy. And he's a big fan of big thinkers and one of the biggest thinkers in the world in this space is Michael Porter from Harvard, who wrote the book on it.   And he loves his statement that everybody in the world thinks that strategy is a set of actions. In fact, if you Google the word strategy, Google's going to tell you, it's a set of actions. And that's in a business context, that's actually wrong, that's not what strategy is.   And strategy is a position that we hold in the marketplace. And it's psychological first, and practical second, and he thinks that's the big mistake we all get wrong in business.   If we get the strategy right, i.e., the position we hold in the market, this is why the customer aspires to buy from us, and to experience our product. If we get that right, then the practical actions fall into gear.   So, strategy is first and foremost, a psychological moment, it's a position in the mind of the customer, in the mind of the marketplace that we pursue or hold and defend.   And then it's a set of actions to either build it, hold it, defend it, or grow it. And that's what strategy is, strategy isn't an action plan and we've got to get that thinking out of our heads in the business world, and go, our strategy is to be this kind of business, for this kind of customer, for these reasons, that's strategy.   And when that's really clear in an organization, you can be strategic at every level of the organization; a frontline customer service person can go, yeah, I get it. I know that this is who I'm meant to be, because this is what the customer expects of us, the brand. Boom, great. They're now strategic. Does that make sense?   Me: It does definitely. So there's a book as you were talking about strategic thinkers, because there's a book, it talks about what kind of thinker you are. I'm trying to remember, the book is actually called What kind of thinker Are you? Have you ever heard of that book before?   Stuart stated that he's going to plead ignorance. He's not exactly sure but give him some more information.   Me: In the book it talks about like strategic thinkers, bottom line thinkers, possibility thinkers, it's a really, really popular book, but he has a workbook for that book that you would do with leaders to kind of figure out their thinking style. I use it a lot sometimes, especially when I'm training leaders because I find some people think that everybody thinks the same way. And I think in an organization, we all can't be thinking strategically, right?   Stuart shared that if we put it in that context, of course, yes.   Me: So I just wanted to know what your thoughts were on the different thinking styles. I can't remember the name of the book, it's going to come to me before I finish this conversation with you but it popped in my head just now when you said it. The book is by John Maxwell How Successful People Think.   Stuart shared that he loves John Maxwell. He has inspired him in so many occasions, wonderful guy. To answer your question, can everybody be a strategic thinker?   Well, it comes down to the context of the roles and responsibilities. But everybody thinks differently and that's a good thing. If we're not thinking well together, then we're not working well together.   And in fact, if he's remembering rightly, one of the great things that John Maxwell says about thinking is that when we think we connect facts and feelings, and we pursue the truth out of that process. And he actually love that statement coming from John Maxwell. And he thinks if we just dwell on that for a moment, we can't do that as teams, if we don't have a diversity of thinking styles and that's just really obvious, if we're all thinking in the same way, the same thoughts, from the same context, and not critically challenging each other around what is the objective truth in the situation, then, groupthink will set in and groupthink is cancerous to any strategic thinking. And we've got to get that out of our organizations.   And so, he thinks, absolutely, they want that constructive thinking. It reminds him actually of an old CEO he had when he was in corporate life, which he's talked about on podcasts before.   As a very young guy growing up in business in the corporate world, a big urban renewal, an urban development company and the kind of work they did was very complex, redeveloping town centres or master plan communities and neighborhoods. And so, around the table, you had engineers and planners and finance people and social community development people and marketers and sales people and lots of different types of thinkers. Engineers are very analytical, logical, rational, marketers, crazy, conceptual, off the wall, community people are touchy feely, social kind of minded, there's a catalyst of different types of thinkings in that room, and you've got to come together, and you've got to agree on a plan, what's this neighborhood going to look like? What's the urban design, what's the layout? What's the look and the feel?   And he remembers he embedded into that organization, this wonderful principle of working together, which he called “Arguing gracefully.” He's carried it with him for 20 years ever since. And the big idea he was really trying to get into the culture of the business was that when you get into that boardroom and you're a bunch of people sitting around a table, you want to fight for the best outcome, you want to create a place that's worth living in, something that's special.   And to do that, you've really got to let the sparks fly, nothing great happens without a little bit of friction. And you can either walk out of that boardroom hating each other, which is not conducive to great teamwork. Or you could walk out of that boardroom after a really challenging workshop, still friends and colleagues.   And so, he instilled this wonderful principle of culture of arguing gracefully, which meant, go for it, when it comes to the debate, die in a ditch and go for a challenge, bring new ideas to the table, argue your point, debate. But do it with a measure of grace so that you argue the point, not the person, and so that when you walk out of that room, you're still a team, and that team can execute.   And that's always stuck with him. And he thinks that really hits on your point. People with different thinking styles, can they think strategically? Absolutely. Because when we think strategically together, it requires those different thinking styles to come together and argue what matters most, to come up with the best plan, walk out of the room and still be a team and be better for the argument. And he thinks that's a skill lost, not just in business but in society, that's a very precious skill to hold on to in building teams in today's world.   App, Website or Tool that Stuart Absolutely Can't Live Without in His Business   When asked about an online resource that he cannot live without in his business, Stuart shared that he would be wrong if I didn't mention Waymaker.io right now. It is a daily tool in their business because it not only helps them think strategically, but execute on a daily basis towards the goals that they're going to hit. But hey, enough of the shameless plug.   The other number one software tool that he can't live without, gosh, man, there's so many. He doesn't know if it's a device. He couldn't live without his iPhone and iPad, that kind of runs his world. But on top of that, he thinks the number one thing he just could not live without, he's going to be really, really boring now. And he's going to say Apple Notes because that is where everything goes. And it's the most simple, practical note taking tool you're expecting, that is where everything goes, and everything lives. And it's so practical and helpful.   Me: I use Apple notes a lot too. And it has really come out far away over the years. You can literally dump anything into it and then because the Apple ecosystem is also integrated and connected, it doesn't matter which device you're on, you can pull up the note wherever you are and kind of just continue that conversation.   Stuart shared that he used to be a prolific user of Evernote, and because he didn't think Apple notes was that great when it first came out. And so, for about six or seven years, everything went into Evernote. And it just got bloated; it just got too big and too complex. And he loves the simplicity. So, it's one of those classic things, he and his wife, they run their renovation at their home through it, they captured notes in his work account. With some activities if they go camping, they're going to put up a camping list and organize, they will share stuff with friends and families and colleagues. Beautiful, simple and powerful.   Books that Have Had the Biggest Impact on Stuart   When asked about books that have had the biggest impact, Stuart shared he will give two. He was given a book by a really good friend of his when he first went into business by a guy called Guy Kawasaki called The Art of the Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything. And he just loved that book. He loved it because it was at a time in his life when he was starting something and you've got to start it, you got to pitch it, you got to grow it. And so, that book, he thinks was just one of the best books of the last 10 or 15 years for anybody starting something, it's a great inspirational book, gives you some really good practical tools. And Guy Kawasaki is just one of those really simple but very insightful business leaders. Have you have you read that?   Me: I haven't heard of it. But I know Guy Kawasaki. But that's definitely one I'll be putting on my list to check out.   Stuart stated that it's an oldie but a goodie. More recently, his favourites has been Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink, which is the story on how U.S. Navy SEALs work together with discipline and achieve amazing results or whatever the subline is, but Extreme Ownership is the idea of owning your team, owning your outcomes, being accountable and responsible and leading others effectively through this discipline of extreme ownership. He has given that to almost every person in his world, he thinks it's a great book.   What Stuart is Really Excited About Now!   Stuart shared that they're a classic startup, so they're in a startup journey. What's the one thing going on that he's super excited about first them and their people; it's the foundational steps they're taking as a business as they put in place the things that he knows are going to be here for years to come.   They spent about 12 to 18 months working on their product and business, doing some testing and pilot work and MVPs. And they really only launched their product six to nine months ago, they're very young. And so now they're securing their first customers around the world and working with them and seeing the company come alive.   And so, the most exciting thing that's happening for them right now is learning how to deliver excellence to their customers. They don't always do it perfectly and when they don't, they want to learn and they want to know we want to get it right. And secondly, how do they develop that employee experience well, and how do they build team well. So those two things are the two really exciting things going on in their world right now, growing customers and growing team members.   Where Can We Find Stuart Online   LinkedIn – Stuart Leo   Quote or Saying that During Times of Adversity Stuart Uses   When asked about a quote or saying that he tends to revert to, Stuart shared that might give two. One in business is the realization or the saying is that, “The business you start is never the business you run.” And he thinks that's a really healthy thing to remember because businesses grow and mature and adapt and tweak and sometimes we have an idea of the business we're building and we get frustrated sometimes because it's not what we wanted originally. But it's not what we want in a business; it's what our customers need. And so, more often than not, the business we start is never the business we run and that's a really healthy thing to remember if we're feeling frustrated, or have some kind of dissonance or friction going on in the business. And we've always got to come back to:   What's the problem we're solving? Are we solving effectively? Are our customers getting value from the way we're solving it? What do we have to think about changing in ourselves and in our business to make that more effective?   And that's a really healthy thing to come back to.   The other is one he and his wife always say to each other which is, “Life is an adventure.” And life is an adventure and it's just that recognition that in an adventure, you have a lot of fun, you have a lot of challenges, you get a bit muddy, you get a bit wet, sometimes you fall down the hillside, you get to have great campfires, and look at the starry nights.   And life is an adventure it. It has some surprises around the corner. And when you kind of just step back a little bit, not try and control the world, but kind of fall in line with God's good design and order, you realize that life is a wonderful adventure and it's there to be enjoyed. And we're tatting but life is an adventure and it's a wonderful thing to be a part of.   Please connect with us on Twitter @navigatingcx and also join our Private Facebook Community – Navigating the Customer Experience and listen to our FB Lives weekly with a new guest   Grab the Freebie on Our Website – TOP 10 Online Business Resources for Small Business Owners   Links The Art of the Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything by Guy Kawasaki Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience   Do you want to pivot your online customer experience and build loyalty - get a copy of “The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience.”   The ABC's of a Fantastic Customer Experience provides 26 easy to follow steps and techniques that helps your business to achieve success and build brand loyalty. This Guide to Limitless, Happy and Loyal Customers will help you to strengthen your service delivery, enhance your knowledge and appreciation of the customer experience and provide tips and practical strategies that you can start implementing immediately! This book will develop your customer service skills and sharpen your attention to detail when serving others. Master your customer experience and develop those knock your socks off techniques that will lead to lifetime customers. Your customers will only want to work with your business and it will be your brand differentiator. It will lead to recruiters to seek you out by providing practical examples on how to deliver a winning customer service experience!

God reveals Himself by the various covenant Names: Jehovah-Jireh (“The Lord will see” or “…will provide”), Jehovah-Rapha (“The Lord heals”), Jehovah-Nissi (“The Lord my banner,” The Lord gives victory”), and others. These Names tell us more about God than what is obvious. They not only tell us what God does: they are names. A name also tells us who a person is. God does not merely give provision: He IS provision. He does not just give healing: He IS healing and health. He doesn't only give victory: He IS victory. In other words, God's DOING is the fruit of His BEING. His “Is-ness” is His Business. Even so, the professional's DO-ING is the fruit of his or her BE-ING. The doings (the professional behaviors and achievements) attest to the being. Therefore, we must always present with excellence, because the excellence of our doing reveals the excellence of our being. And we need not fear that excellence in presentation is not appropriate in a context where there is no excellence in compensation. In other words, “They don't pay me enough for that level of excellence!” is an unacceptable excuse for ineptitude among professionals. Two things: first, a lack of quality in my performance does not speak of my employer, aka “they;” it is a commentary on me. Secondly, excellence in presentation can make any vocation lucrative. If “I” (the professional) effectively manage my excellent product/presentation/commodity, no one external to me can limit my profitability. Again, doing is the FRUIT of being, and Jesus said, “By their fruit ye shall know them.” The performance is how you will know THEM – not their boss, not their company, not their salary --- THEM. In this case, THEM is ME. If my doing reflects my being, I must strive to ensure that my work will always convey Kingdom excellence. Like God and for God, “My ‘is-ness,' and HIS, is revealed in my business.”  New podcast episodes are available on Fridays everywhere you listen to podcasts. The Fellowship of Kingdom Professionals meets every Monday live with Michael A. Blue at  11:30 AM via Facebook and Youtube. Stay connected to all things Fellowship of Kingdom Professionals and connect to other Kingdom Professionals by joining our Facebook Group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/MABlueFKP To bring FKP to your locale, ministry, school, business, etc., or to learn more, contact us by email,  FKProfessionals@gmail.com

Here's a snapshot of a few things we talked about…·    Introduction [00:00:00]·    Who is the Clark Kent, When it Comes to Bryan Clayton? [00:01:42]·    His Background and When Did He Start His Entrepreneurial Journey? [00:02:33]·    What was the Motivation that Kept Him Going after Accomplishing His Goals? [00:05:26]·    Where Did He Derive Motivation from During the Early Days of His Business? [00:07:38]·    How Did the Sale of His First Business Come About? [00:11:29]·    What Did the Process of Selling His Business Look Like? [00:14:08]·    Why Did He Decide to Get Back into Business? [00:15:53]·    What Does He Think about VC? [00:24:00]·    When Should You Start Looking for a VC? [00:26:16]·    What are his Future Plans for GreenPal? [00:29:35]·    One Thing He Wishes He Had Implemented Sooner to Accelerate His Journey? [00:31:14]·    Where to Find Bryan Clayton [00:33:47]In This Episode You'll Learn:In this episode, Casanova talks with Bryan Clayton. He talks about his entrepreneurial journey, how a lawn mowing gig led him to develop a successful landscaping business, how he was able to sell that business to one of the largest landscaping conglomerates in the United States, what was the motivation that kept him going after accomplishing his goals, how he consistently worked to scale his business over the years, why he decided to sell his first business, why did he decide to start a second business and how that entire journey unfolded, and much more. Have a listen.Key Quotes:·    “What I like to say is anybody that watches an interview that I've done or read some stuff that I put out, I want them to come away with – If that guy can do it, I can do it…”·    “Owning your own little business or even having a job when you're young, teaches you all sorts of life lessons that you'll never learn any other way…”·    “It's funny as you're starting and growing a business, I think your motivation and your why kind of evolves over time, and it certainly has been the case for me as I started and sold my first company…”·    “I guess the business kind of exposed me to people who we're not any more smarter than I thought than I was, that could, that we're doing big things, and I thought, okay, this can be, this business can be the vehicle that can carry me to places…”·    “One of my favorite quotes is Mark Cuban; the least you can live on, the greater your options…”·    “You can be proactive about these things, acquire the knowledge before you start a process like this and be in much better shape than I was trying to sell my company…”·    The book [The Lean Startup] about launching something, getting it out there, getting it in the hands of customers, meeting with them, and getting the feedback to bake into your next set of iterations, to improve it and using that customer feedback to guide how you develop the product is really like, it's the lifeblood.·    “If you can get a shitty product in a customer's hand, you will learn more from five of those people, then you will a five years of just reading books and taking courses…”·    “Business is the same way; you have to get a product in somebody's hands, get the feedback, get that experiential wisdom 'cause that's the only way you're going to learn if you're on the right track or not, and where you got to take it…”·    “When you know you can sell your mom's house and spend the money and return her three times the money in five years, then it's time to raise venture capital…”·    “That's one thing like a lot of successful founders they're on their second or third attempt a lot of these things, the only way to learn them, it's just to do them wrong…”·    “You didn't miss it. It's not too late. If you think software's going to be here a hundred years from now, we're in like year 10 or 20, so you didn't miss it. It's going to get bigger. Get in the game. Because only if you're in the game, can you win…”Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy