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In this conversation, Justin pulls back the curtain on what actually makes a business last. Not hacks. Not virality. Not chasing quick wins. He talks about learning to solve real problems—the kind that keep people up at night—and why most “good ideas” fail because they never go deep enough. He shares how he tracks progress, how he thinks about money and energy, and why optionality matters more than speed.You'll hear why action creates momentum, why saying “yes” changed the trajectory of his career, and how building a runway, relationships, and clarity gave him the freedom to reinvent himself—again and again.This isn't an episode about getting rich fast.It's about building something honest.Something sustainable.Something that still works when the hype fades.And if you've ever felt like you're meant for more—but can't quite name what that is—this conversation might help you take the next step.Chapters:0:00 — Introduction1:31 — The “brewery dream” + why you haven't started (yet)4:29 — Why Justin shifted from tactics to deeper storytelling8:21 — Rapid Fire kickoff8:48 — Rapid Fire #1: Most valuable KPI (visitors to intended place)11:13 — Rapid Fire #2: Fear (irrelevance… and who you are after)14:38 — Rapid Fire #3: Meeting he never misses (weekly money meeting)16:23 — Rapid Fire #4: Mentor (Cyrus + the ZocDoc “yes to everything” story)19:07 — Rapid Fire #5: Fortune cookie message (get in rooms with opportunity)23:07 — How to quit smart: runway, pipeline, relationships (risk reduction)28:22 — Support at home: panic attack, burnout, and getting his life back33:28 — The unlock: life is a video game (reinvention > expertise)36:10 — The 3 pillars of a real business: pain, attention, offer40:01 — Finding the “bleeding neck” problem (how to dig past surface-level pain)45:08 — The long game + first action step: 15-min customer interviews (use AI to extract language)About Justin:Justin is a former startup executive who helped build two startups past valuations of $1B, teams of 150+ people, and raise over $300M in venture capital. After building his own one-person business past $10M, he's helping 100,000+ experts turn their expertise into income with his masterclass, The Creator MBA.Find Justin Online:Website: https://justinwelsh.meMasterclass (Creator MBA): https://justinwelsh.link/the-creator-mbaTwitter: https://twitter.com/thejustinwelshLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinwelsh/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejustinwelsh
Most teams are capable of far more than they are currently giving, but the gap is rarely about effort or attitude. Dr. Stephen and Dr. Pete break down why discretionary energy is the true driver of performance and how leaders unintentionally suppress it by failing to connect people to the business model. When team members understand how their daily work influences revenue, profit, and opportunity, alignment replaces compliance and energy rises naturally. By shifting focus from motivation to measurement, leaders gain a clear framework for evaluating managers, strengthening team capacity, and creating sustainable growth without burnout.In This Episode You Will:Identify where discretionary energy is being lost inside the teamRecognize which people metrics reveal leadership effectivenessSee how manager performance shows up through team resultsEvaluate when team capacity is approaching a breaking pointApply clearer financial alignment to increase focus and engagement Episode Highlights01:33 - Discretionary energy is introduced as the hidden gear inside every team member that leadership either activates through alignment or suppresses through misalignment.02:19 - Financial alignment is framed as the missing link between daily responsibilities, revenue, profit, and why team members should care about business performance.03:17 - The four requirements of a world-class team are clarified as right people, right seats, right work, done the right way.04:46 - Employee stickmo begins, revealing how long A players actually stay and how turnover often exposes management or cultural breakdowns.06:38 - Employee net promoter score is introduced as a leadership diagnostic measuring whether team members would enthusiastically refer others to work in the organization.09:39 - Internal patient referrals from staff are positioned as a real-time indicator of engagement, belief, and cultural buy-in.12:22 - Direct report goals completed is identified as the most powerful KPI for evaluating manager effectiveness and team performance.13:26 - The 80 percent goal completion standard is defined as the benchmark for healthy management and accountability.14:43 - Labor cost begins as a COO-owned metric directly tied to profitability, cost of services delivered, and operational stewardship.17:03 - Revenue per employee is introduced as the key indicator for identifying $250,000 growth breakpoints before capacity strain causes the business to stall or break. Resources MentionedLearn more about the TRP Remarkable Business Immersion March 6 - 7, 2026 in Phoenix, AZ and March 20 - 21, 2026 in Brisbane, AUS - https://theremarkablepractice.com/upcoming-events/ To learn more about the REM CEO Program, please visit: http://www.theremarkablepractice.com/rem-ceoBook a Strategy Session with Dr. Pete - https://go.oncehub.com/PodcastPCPrefer to watch? Catch the podcast on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/@TheRemarkablePractice1To listen to more episodes, visit https://theremarkablepractice.com/podcast or follow on your favorite podcast app.
Most entrepreneurs don't struggle because their offer is bad. They struggle because they're trying to scale without understanding the real leverage points. In this episode, I'm sharing Part One of a live Q&A I did at Scaling Online - where real entrepreneurs brought me their biggest growth bottlenecks, and we broke them down in real time. We talked about certifications, continuity, high-ticket vs. memberships, regulated industries, health offers, and how to generate cash fast without burning money on ads. This isn't theory. These are tactical, practical shifts that can completely change how you look at scaling - especially if you're mission-driven and trying to grow without losing your identity. Key Highlights: ◼️Why getting someone to pay is often the most powerful way to actually serve them - and how commitment changes everything ◼️How to structure high-ticket + continuity together to reduce churn and create compounding revenue ◼️What to sell first when you already have an audience (and why you should grab the pile of cash in front of you before trying to scale) ◼️How to create a powerful “myth” or lead-in offer - even in industries where you don't control the core product ◼️The smartest way to generate $10 - 20K in 30 days without relying on ads ◼️How to separate lead generation from regulated services while still building authority and desire ◼️The real KPI you should track daily if you want predictable long-term growth This episode is about understanding leverage. It's about realizing that scaling isn't always about more complexity - it's about making and keeping commitments, increasing volume strategically, and structuring your offers so your business compounds instead of resets every month. In part two, we'll go deeper into additional Q&A, more advanced scaling questions, and the next layer of strategic decisions that separate businesses that plateau from businesses that truly take off. ◼️If you've got a product, offer, service… or idea… I'll show you how to sell it (the RIGHT way) Register for my next event → https://sellingonline.com/podcast ◼️Still don't have a funnel? ClickFunnels gives you the exact tools (and templates) to launch TODAY → https://clickfunnels.com/podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Spencer Jakab is an award-winning Wall Street Journal investing columnist with 30 years of finance experience who transformed from emerging markets research director into a financial journalist exposing how everyday investors repeatedly get fleeced by Wall Street's latest schemes.Episode Sponsor: Fiscal AI is a modern data terminal that gives investors instant access to twenty years of financials, earnings transcripts, and extensive segment and KPI data—use my link for a two-week free trial plus 15% off: https://fiscal.ai/talkingbillions/03:00 - Spencer's origin story: Growing up in Queens as son of Hungarian refugees, discovering investing through Peter Lynch's "One Up On Wall Street" in college, despite his late father's unsuccessful attempts to spark his interest earlier.08:00 - The accidental career path: Taking every finance class at Columbia, landing in emerging markets analysis covering post-Iron Curtain privatizations, then pivoting to Wall Street Journal journalism after a chance plane conversation led to same-day writing test and job offer.15:00 - GameStop reality check: The meme stock phenomenon wasn't the democratizing revolution portrayed on social media—it was another example of retail investors getting manipulated while believing they were "sticking it to the man."25:00 - The casino-fication of investing: How Robinhood and app-based platforms gamified trading with confetti animations and frictionless execution, making speculation feel like a mobile game rather than serious wealth-building.35:00 - Why passive beats active: Spencer explains the brutal math—only 11% of active fund managers beat the market over 30 years, and individual investors perform even worse due to fees, taxes, and behavioral mistakes.45:00 - The finfluencer trap: Social media rewards reckless investing behavior because outrageous bets generate more engagement than boring, sensible advice—creating dangerous incentive structures that harm followers.60:00 - Bots and manipulation: Modern markets face new threats from AI-generated social media campaigns pumping meme coins and stocks, making it nearly impossible to distinguish genuine sentiment from coordinated manipulation.67:00 - Defining success: Spencer's powerful reflection on career choices—turning down potential hundreds of millions to do work he loves, echoing Warren Buffett's definition of success as having people genuinely care about you when you're gone.Podcast Program – Disclosure StatementBlue Infinitas Capital, LLC is a registered investment adviser and the opinions expressed by the Firm's employees and podcast guests on this show are their own and do not reflect the opinions of Blue Infinitas Capital, LLC. All statements and opinions expressed are based upon information considered reliable although it should not be relied upon as such. Any statements or opinions are subject to change without notice.Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed.
Send a textDr. Kathy Weston is one of the leading national experts on parenting, family life and parental engagement in children's lives. In 2018, she established Tooled Up Education, a holistic bank of evidence-based resources for whole-school communities. Tooled Up supports 166 schools in 8 countries, delivering bespoke CPD for educators as well as 'on tap' resource support for parents.
Send a textJoin hosts Alex Sarlin and Ben Kornell as they unpack a fast-moving week in education. From AI-native curriculum battles and literacy leadership shifts to voucher surges and national AI pilots reshaping special education. ✨ Episode Highlights:[00:01:48] ASU+GSV preview and the expanding global EdTech ecosystem[00:06:25] The 2026 EdTech AI Map launches with 240+ companies[00:07:14] Brisk introduces AI-powered curriculum integration[00:09:04] The race to own the AI layer in schools[00:13:10] Data ownership becomes the key AI battleground[00:16:59] Kira 2.0 expands into a full AI-native LMS[00:21:16] Texas ESA applications surge past 61,000[00:30:20] UK launches $23M AI pilot for special needs[00:33:40] Microsoft invests in AI teacher training[00:34:59] Google expands Gemini in education[00:35:57] UX emerges as EdTech's new advantage[00:36:43] The AI grad profile prioritizes human skills Plus, special guests:[00:38:33] Karl Rectanus, CEO of Really Great Reading, on literacy outcomes, science of reading implementation, and scaling impact [01:02:22] Dan Meyer, VP of User Growth of Amplify on AI skepticism, social AI in math classrooms, and keeping learning human-centered
Vidéos mentionnées : https://youtu.be/f8wUiUNT2dE?si=CaG-4amyLGhBgua5https://youtu.be/A1RpsJWAwXc?si=S6meCXi9ulbfGyfEhttps://youtu.be/8f1Gi1nI9H4?si=BBSqEGVZiXHXgl73https://youtu.be/cii7wsarBDI?si=pyL3vA169Cia2cWhDevenir meilleur sur Facebook Ads (et le rester)https://j7academie.com/Pour toute demande de gestion Facebook Ads (annonceur)https://www.j7media.com/frNewsletter : https://j7media.com/escouadeCHAPITRES : 00:00 – Une méthode d'analyse qui traverse les années01:10 – Les 3 familles de KPI à maîtriser04:20 – Le PACTO expliqué simplement08:30 – Cas concret : quand le coût par achat augmente11:30 – Mise à jour 2026 : où se joue vraiment la performance
Jeff and Jason, from the Investing Unscripted podcast, stop by the show for some general investment banter. Decent laughs, hopefully some smart thoughts, and a fun convo. Hope y'all enjoy!Sponsorship InformationThank you to Trata for sponsoring the show.If you're listening to this podcast, you'll like Trata. Trata is buyside to buyside conversations on individual stocks. Trata makes finding a bull or bear on any stock as easy as clicking two buttons. Over 125 funds globally contribute that collectively cover 2000+ tickers. Trata raised over $3mm coming out of Y Combinator. Before you would track 13Fs, now you can understand what funds are actually thinking. You can join as a lurker or you can join as a contributor and Trata will pay you hundreds of dollars per call. For a free trial, go to trytrata.com/brew OG Sponsor Shoutout!Thank you to Fiscal.ai for sponsoring the show. DISCOUNT INFO: If you use the affiliate link fiscal.ai/brew, you will automatically get 2 weeks of Fiscal Pro for Free and if you find that you want to upgrade, my link will get you 15% off any paid plans. About Fiscal.aiFiscal.ai is the complete modern data terminal for global equities.The Fiscal.ai platform combines a powerful user experience with all the financial data capabilities that professional investors need. Users get up to 20 years of historical financials for all stocks globally that they can easily chart, compare, or export into their own models. And unlike legacy data terminals where it can take hours or even days, Fiscal.ai's data is updated within minutes of earnings reports. Fiscal.ai also tracks all the company-specific Segment & KPI data so you don't have to. Like to track Amazon's Cloud Revenue? They've got it.How about Spotify's premium subscribers? Or Google's quarterly paid clicks?They've got all of it.
Send a textThe Season 3 opener of Money Majlis puts you right in the cockpit of Dubai's aviation story, with Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports, as your guide. He isn't just running DXB and DWC; he is shaping how a city's ambition takes flight, turning runways and terminals into engines of GDP, jobs and global connectivity.Across this conversation, Paul unpacks the now-famous mandate he received from Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum on day one: “never constrain the growth of aviation in Dubai.” That single KPI becomes the spine of the episode, as he explains how Dubai has grown into the world's busiest international hub, while constantly pushing the limits of what its land‑constrained infrastructure can do.We go behind the scenes of DXB's quiet revolution in operations, where real-time data and AI help aircraft turn around like Formula 1 pit stops and passengers glide through terminals with fewer queues, less friction and more time to enjoy the airport as a hospitality experience rather than a stress test. Paul's philosophy is simple but powerful: treat every guest as an individual, respect their time, and design every process around the journey, not the bureaucracy.From there, the conversation widens to the next big leap at DWC, where Paul imagines a network of human-scale terminals that feel less like an airport and more like a sentient city: natural spaces, seamless biometrics, invisible security and dwell zones that combine lounges, retail, dining and entertainment into one fluid experience. The future airport, in his telling, is a calm, intuitive environment where the technology disappears into the background and the traveller remains firmly at the centre.Sustainability and leadership add a deeply human dimension to the episode. Paul talks candidly about the urgency of sustainable aviation fuel, the scale of the challenge, and why aviation must reinvent its energy model without pricing ordinary travellers out of the skies. He also reflects on Covid as a “never waste a good crisis” moment: a time to re-engineer costs, redesign partnerships and prove Dubai's resilience to the world.Threaded through it all is Paul's own story: a classically trained organist turned aviation leader who still sees airports as living orchestras, where frontline teams, Emirati talent and partner organisations have to play in harmony. It's part macroeconomics, part technology playbook, part leadership masterclass—and a vivid love letter to travel itself.Production partner : PoddsterGiving partner: GoodworldAll past episodes and details of the Money Majlis giving movement can be viewed on www.moneymajlis.com.
Compétences miroir entre recruteurs et candidats. Akram Bougrine est recruteur. Il accompagne la société Pictarine sur les enjeux de recrutement et de structuration des pratiques RH, avec une approche très ancrée dans le terrain. Son regard se distingue par une exigence forte : sortir des intuitions déguisées en expertise pour professionnaliser réellement les décisions de recrutement.Pourquoi cet épisode est différentDans cet épisode du podcast RH, on parle de recrutement sans méthodes miracles ni discours théorique. On parle de ce qui se joue réellement en entretien : les projections, les biais, les raccourcis et les incompréhensions qui fragilisent les recrutements dès le départ.Loin d'une vision idéalisée du recrutement, cet échange met en lumière une réalité souvent passée sous silence en ressources humaines : recruter, ce n'est pas deviner, c'est comprendre. Comprendre un parcours, un contexte, un mode de fonctionnement et surtout le travail réel à venir.Ce que tu vas apprendre dans cet épisodePourquoi le feeling est souvent un faux ami en recrutementComment éviter l'interprétation des parcours et des discours en entretienLes compétences clés d'un bon recruteur et leur lien avec celles d'un bon candidatPourquoi l'écoute et la clarté sont des leviers décisifs en recrutementComment prendre des décisions plus lucides et plus responsablesLes thèmes abordés dans l'épisodeRH, Ressources humaines, Recrutement, Management, DRH, Prise de décision, Écoute, Clarté, Compétences, Posture professionnelle, CollaborationPourquoi écouter cet épisode ?Si tu es RH, recruteur ou manager, cet épisode t'aidera à prendre du recul sur tes pratiques de recrutement. Il te donnera des clés concrètes pour arrêter de réparer après coup, sécuriser tes décisions et mieux aligner attentes, réalités et collaborations futures.Cet épisode s'adresse à celles et ceux qui veulent professionnaliser leurs pratiques RH, renforcer leur posture de recruteur et recruter de manière plus responsable.
Als Führungskraft ist es wichtig das eigene Team auch mal aus der Vogelperspektive zu betrachten.Am Ende zeichnet genau das strategisches Denken aus :Abstand vom Tagesgeschäft zu nehmen – und sich das Bigger Picture anzusehen.Show Notes:>> No Zero Days | Buch für Ingenieure: nozerodays.de/buch>> Mentoring für Ingenieure: engineer-alliance.de>> Crashkurs: engineer-alliance.de/crashkurs>> Tim Schmaddebeck auf LinkedIn: Hier klicken>> Buchempfehlungen: mentorwerk.de/buecherStichworte zur Folge:strategisch denken lernen, Big Picture im Job, vom Operativen ins Strategische, als Ingenieur Führungskraft werden, Team besser führen, Team Performance steigern, Team KPI Beispiele, KPI für Ingenieurteams, Output vs Outcome einfach erklärt, Outcome orientierte Führung, Wertbeitrag des Teams zeigen, Management Sprache lernen, Business Denken für Ingenieure, Stakeholder Management Beispiele, interne Kunden verstehen, Team Effektivität verbessern, Prozesse im Team verbessern, Rollen und Verantwortlichkeiten klären, Verantwortungsmatrix RACI, Team Operating Model, Operating Model einfach erklärt, Systemdenken Führung, Team als Maschine, Team als System, Team Analyse Framework, System Audit Team, Team Strategie entwickeln, Strategie im Tagesgeschäft, Prioritäten setzen als Führungskraft, Impact statt Busywork
Most leaders track revenue, growth, and output.Very few track the system producing those results.In this episode of The Obedient Rebel Podcast, we're talking about the KPIs no dashboard tracks—but your body and soul absolutely do.You'll hear about:Resting emotional temperatureStress recovery timeHow quickly you return to peaceThe hidden cost of successIf your numbers look good—but leadership feels heavy—this episode will explain why.
In 2026, small business owners have access to more data than ever—but not all metrics deserve your attention.In this episode of Her Faith at Work, Jan breaks down the KPIs that actually matter for service providers and coaches, especially if you're growing a business with a podcast or blog. You'll learn which metrics drive real growth, which ones are simply vanity metrics, and how to steward your business numbers without letting them steal your peace.This conversation goes beyond dashboards and analytics, starting with alignment—asking the Lord whether the work you're building honors Him—then moving into the practical KPIs you should review weekly, monthly, and quarterly.If you've ever felt overwhelmed by analytics, unsure what numbers truly matter, or caught yourself tying your worth to your stats, this episode will bring clarity, focus, and freedom.What You'll Learn in This EpisodeWhat KPIs actually mean—and how to tell the difference between useful data and noiseThe most important KPIs for service providers and coaches in 2026Which podcast and blog metrics predict growth (and which don't)Why email list growth matters more than followers or downloadsCommon vanity metrics to stop obsessing overA simple KPI review rhythm you can actually stick toHow Jan tracks her KPIs monthly using EnjiWhy alignment with God should always come before analyticsKey TakeawaysKPIs are tools—not a measure of your worthIf a metric doesn't change your decisions, it's not a true KPIConversion and retention matter more than visibilityOwned platforms (like your email list) are critical for sustainable growthClarity reduces anxiety—fragmented data creates overwhelmStrategy and obedience are meant to work togetherResources MentionedTrack your KPIs in one place:Jan uses Enji to monitor leads, conversions, and content performance without juggling multiple dashboards.
How to Build a High-Performance Team That Scales (Without Losing Your Culture) How do you scale a business from startup to millions in revenue — without losing your culture? In Part 1 of this conversation, Mike sits down with Jeremy Jenson, CEO of Encore Search Partners, to unpack the foundational principles behind building a high-performance team. Jeremy shares how he transitioned from running a marketing company to building one of Houston's top executive search firms — and what leaders must understand about scaling the right way. In this episode, we discuss: • How Jeremy went from startup to $12M+ in revenue • The leadership mistakes that slow down growth • Why loyalty without performance can stall your company • Raising performance standards ("raising the floor") • Building a KPI-driven culture without micromanaging • Why growth mindset is non-negotiable in hiring • How to attract A-players through content and visibility If you're a business owner, entrepreneur, or team leader trying to scale your organization, this episode will challenge how you think about accountability, performance, and culture.
Welcome to the Ecomm Breakthrough Podcast, where I document my journey scaling an e-commerce brand and share the systems, strategies, and lessons learned in real-time. This episode introduces a scalable meeting cadence designed to improve business operations, outlining various types of effective meetings including weekly 1:1s, leadership huddles, and quarterly strategic planning sessions. Each meeting type has specific objectives and agendas to foster leadership and team alignment, ensuring your business is always moving forward.
<目次>(0:00) MrBeastの大型調達、クリエイター事業について(3:49) クリエイターと商品の相性の重要性(6:18) KPIをいかにズラすか(11:20) ブランド力を持つと拡大勝負に巻き込まれない(12:36) 日本勢はシリコンバレーの真似をしなくなった説(17:43) 日本の漫画業界が一番アメリカのスタートアップ業界に近い説(19:01) 立ち上げが偉い、新人に与える権利、編集の寿命(21:47) インディーゲームに力を入れている出版社(22:26) 日米のコンテンツ制作プロセスの違い(26:15) グローバル展開を意識しないのが独自性を作る要因?(31:00) 日本の職人性 vs アメリカのマーケティング・営業力(35:29) シリコンバレーはハック文化、日本はオタク文化(41:09) 影響力 vs リーチ vs お金儲け(43:06) 絵本の力、子供向けIP(45:09) 世界観と関係性でIPは出来ている(46:52) コンテンツの寿命が80年なのか?世代を超えるIP(53:57) 人 vs キャラ化、入れ替えシステムPody | 学べるpodcastプレイヤー. AIサマリーや質問履歴をコミュニティで共有しながら、学びを深めましょう。https://pody.jp/けんすう (@kensuu)https://x.com/kensuu<About Off Topic>Podcast:Apple - https://apple.co/2UZCQwzSpotify - https://spoti.fi/2JakzKmOff Topic Clubhttps://note.com/offtopic/membershipX - https://twitter.com/OffTopicJP草野ミキ:https://twitter.com/mikikusanohttps://www.instagram.com/mikikusano宮武テツロー: https://twitter.com/tmiyatake1
In this episode of The Long Game Podcast, Alex Birkett sits down with Josh Spilker, Head of Search Marketing at AirOps, to explore how content teams are evolving in response to AI, automation, and changing search behavior. Josh draws on his background in SEO, writing, and systems thinking to outline why traditional content marketing models are breaking down and what's replacing them.They discuss the concept of content engineering, including how workflows, brand context, and AI-assisted processes change the way teams create, refresh, and scale content. The conversation also covers identity shifts for marketers, the growing complexity of search surfaces, and where real differentiation and business value are created as content production becomes easier.Key TakeawaysContent engineering represents a shift from one-off content creation to building systems that manage, update, and scale content across channels. AI lowers the marginal cost of content, but differentiation still comes from strategy, brand context, and human editorial judgment. Modern content teams increasingly separate roles between content strategy and content engineering, even if one person covers both in smaller orgs. The expansion of search surfaces and longer, more contextual queries increases demand for more specific and tailored content. As traffic becomes less reliable as a KPI, teams need to focus more on conversion quality, brand presence, and downstream business impact.Show LinksVisit AirOps on LinkedInConnect with Josh Spilker on LinkedInConnect with Alex Birkett on LinkedIn and TwitterConnect with Omniscient Digital on LinkedIn or TwitterPast guests on The Long Game podcast include: Morgan Brown (Shopify), Ryan Law (Animalz), Dan Shure (Evolving SEO), Kaleigh Moore (freelancer), Eric Siu (Clickflow), Peep Laja (CXL), Chelsea Castle (Chili Piper), Tracey Wallace (Klaviyo), Tim Soulo (Ahrefs), Ryan McReady (Reforge), and many more.Some interviews you might enjoy and learn from:Actionable Tips and Secrets to SEO Strategy with Dan Shure (Evolving SEO)Building Competitive Marketing Content with Sam Chapman (Aprimo)How to Build the Right Data Workflow with Blake Burch (Shipyard)Data-Driven Thought Leadership with Alicia Johnston (Sprout Social)Purpose-Driven Leadership & Building a Content Team with Ty Magnin (UiPath)Also, check out our Kitchen Side series where we take you behind the scenes to see how the sausage is made at our agency:Blue Ocean vs Red Ocean SEOShould You Hire Writers or Subject Matter Experts?How Do Growth and Content Overlap?Connect with Omniscient Digital on social:Twitter: @beomniscientLinkedin: Be OmniscientListen to more episodes of The Long Game podcast here: https://beomniscient.com/podcast/
THE Leadership Japan Series by Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo, Japan
Coaching is the real work of leadership once you start managing other people. In modern workplaces—especially post-pandemic and in hybrid teams—your job isn't just delivering results; it's building capability so results keep happening even when you're not in the room. This guide breaks down a Seven Step Coaching Process leaders can use to develop team members through everyday, on-the-job coaching, not just HR training programs. It's designed for busy managers in SMEs, multinationals, and fast-moving teams where skills, tools, and customer expectations change constantly. How do leaders identify coaching opportunities in day-to-day work? Coaching opportunities show up through observation, self-awareness, external feedback, changing business needs, and sudden situations. Leaders who wait for formal training cycles miss the daily moments where performance can lift quickly with small, targeted coaching. In practice, there are five classic triggers. First, you notice a gap—someone lacks a skill, hasn't been trained, or is moved into a new task with no reps. Second, the staff member flags it themselves, either because they're stuck or ambitious and want growth. Third, customers, vendors, or outsiders complain or comment, which is often the clearest real-world signal that training hasn't landed. Fourth, the business changes—new technology replaces old ways (think "Telex to email" as the metaphor), so yesterday's competencies become irrelevant. Fifth, situations force change, like promotions, role shifts, or remote work onboarding. Do now: Create a weekly "coaching log" with 5 headings (Boss, Self, Customer, Change, Situation) and write one example under each. What's a real example of a "customer complaint" coaching trigger? Customer feedback often reveals tiny skill gaps that quietly damage trust—especially in service culture. Leaders should treat complaints as coaching gold, not just quality problems. A simple example is telephone etiquette in corporate settings. In Japan, one common frustration is when staff answer the phone by stating only the company name, without their own name—creating awkwardness for the caller if they ask for someone and discover the person answering is that individual. The fix is not expensive training or a big workshop; it's a repeatable micro-skill: answer with "Company name + your name." This is the essence of practical coaching—catch a pattern, define the desired behaviour, practise it, and reinforce it until it becomes normal. This same principle applies across markets. In the US or Australia, the equivalent might be email tone, response time, or how staff handle returns. In B2B environments, it might be meeting preparation or follow-up discipline. Do now: Pick one customer friction point from the last 30 days and turn it into a 2-minute coaching drill. What should the "desired outcome" of coaching look like? Coaching only works when both people can clearly picture success and agree it matters. If the outcome is fuzzy—or owned only by the boss—it becomes compliance, not growth. A strong coaching outcome is behavioural and observable: "They can do X task independently, to Y standard, in Z timeframe." That clarity matters even more in remote or hybrid work, where leaders can't rely on informal monitoring. The outcome should also be jointly owned: the team member needs to want it, not just tolerate it. That means the leader's role is to define what good looks like, show why it matters (customer impact, team efficiency, career growth), and confirm the person buys in. In startups, outcomes often focus on speed and adaptability. In large organisations, they may be tied to compliance, brand, or consistency. Either way, "success" must be visible, measurable, and shared. Do now: Ask: "What would 'great' look like here in two weeks?" Write the answer as one sentence you both agree on. How do you establish the right attitudes for effective coaching? Coaching accelerates when the leader understands the person's motivations and role fit. Without that, even good advice lands badly—or gets ignored. Attitude isn't about pep talks; it's about context. How well you know your team determines how quickly you can judge whether you have the right people in the right roles—"the right bus and the right seats." Some people are motivated by mastery, others by recognition, autonomy, stability, or future promotion. A leader who understands this can tailor coaching so it feels supportive rather than corrective. This is especially important across cultures. In Japan, people may avoid direct self-promotion, so ambition can be hidden. In Australia or the US, staff may be more comfortable stating career goals openly. In both cases, leaders need genuine curiosity: "What do you want to get better at, and why?" Do now: In your next 1:1, ask one question: "What part of your job gives you energy, and what drains it?" Use the answer to guide coaching. What resources do managers need to provide for coaching to work? The scarcest and most valuable resource in coaching is the leader's time. If you demand performance but deny support, you're setting people up to fail. Resources can include money, equipment, training materials, access to internal experts, or backing from senior management—but the key constraint is often attention. Coaching isn't a side hobby; it's core leadership work. Many managers confuse "time efficiency" with effectiveness, rushing tasks while leaving capability undeveloped. The result is predictable: repeated mistakes, avoidable escalations, and a team that can't operate independently. In a post-pandemic world, time investment is even more critical for onboarding. New hires who joined after early 2020 often missed informal learning because there was nobody physically nearby to ask. Do now: Block 30 minutes per week for coaching, not status updates. Treat it like a leadership KPI, not optional admin. Why is coaching "job number one" for the boss? When leaders get coaching wrong, performance problems multiply—and the team becomes dependent, fragile, and reactive. When leaders coach well, talent compounds and the organisation scales. Coaching sits upstream of almost everything that matters: customer satisfaction, productivity, retention, and succession. HR can organise training, but only the direct manager can reinforce it in daily work—correcting small behaviours before they become big issues, and building confidence through repetition. The best leaders don't just solve problems; they develop problem-solvers. This is true whether you're leading a sales team, operations team, or a professional services unit. In high-change environments—new tech, new processes, new market expectations—coaching is how teams keep up without burning out. It's also how you build a leadership bench instead of becoming the bottleneck. Do now: Identify one person you're currently "rescuing" too often. Coach them on the skill that removes the dependency. Conclusion: The Coaching Process as a leadership operating system The Seven Step Coaching Process is a practical way to lead: spot opportunities, define success, align attitudes, and provide resources—starting with your time. The goal isn't to create perfect employees; it's to build capability so people can perform confidently as work evolves. If you treat coaching as a daily discipline, you'll scale your team's competence, reduce recurring issues, and strengthen results across customers, culture, and performance. Author Credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. Greg has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have been translated into Japanese, including ザ営業 (Za Eigyō), プレゼンの達人 (Purezen no Tatsujin), トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう, and 現代版「人を動かす」リーダー. Greg also publishes daily business insights on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, and hosts six weekly podcasts. On YouTube, he produces The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews, widely followed by executives pursuing success strategies in Japan.
THE Sales Japan Series by Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo, Japan
The Five-Phase Sales Solution Cadence: Facts, Benefits, Applications, Evidence, Trial Close When you've done proper discovery—asked loads of questions about where the buyer is now and where they want to be—you earn the right to propose a solution. But here's the kicker: sometimes the right move is to walk away. If you force a partial or wrong-fit solution, you might "grab the dough" short-term, but you'll torch trust and reputation—the two assets that don't come back easily. Below is a search-friendly, buyer-proof cadence you can run in any market—**Japan vs **United States, SME vs enterprise, B2B services vs SaaS—especially post-pandemic when procurement teams want clarity, proof, and outcomes, not fluffy feature parades. How do you know if your solution genuinely fits the buyer (and when should you walk away)? You know it fits when you can map your solution to their stated outcomes—and prove it—without twisting the facts. If the buyer needs an outcome you can't deliver, the ethical (and commercially smart) play is: "We can't help you with that." In 2024–2026, buyers are savvier and more risk-aware. They'll check reviews, ask peers, and sanity-test claims through AI search tools and internal stakeholder scrutiny. In high-trust cultures (including Japan) and high-compliance industries (finance, health, critical infrastructure), a wrong-fit sale becomes a reputational boomerang. The deal closes once; the story travels forever. Do now: Write a one-page "fit test": buyer outcomes → your capability → evidence. If any outcome can't be supported, qualify out fast. What does "facts" mean in a modern B2B sales conversation? Facts are the provable mechanics—features, specs, process steps, constraints—and the proof that they work. Facts aren't the goal; they're the credibility scaffolding. Salespeople often drown here: endless micro-detail, endless Q&A, endless spreadsheets. Yes, analytical buyers (engineering-led firms, CFO-led committees) will pull you into the weeds—but remember: they aren't buying the process. They're buying the outcome from the process. Bring facts that de-risk the decision: implementation timelines, security posture (SOC 2/ISO), uptime/SLA history, integration limits, and measurable performance benchmarks. Then move on before you get stuck. Do now: Prepare a "facts pack" with 5–7 proof points (not 57 features). Use it to earn trust, then pivot to outcomes. How do you turn features into benefits buyers will actually pay for? Benefits are the "so what"—the measurable results the buyer gets because the feature exists. If you can't link a feature to an outcome, it's just trivia. A weight, colour, dimension, workflow, dashboard, or AI model is not valuable by itself. It becomes valuable when it improves a KPI: reduced cycle time, fewer defects, higher conversion, lower churn, faster onboarding, better safety, tighter compliance. This is where classic sales thinking still holds up—think **SPIN Selling and the buyer's implied needs: pain, impact, and value. In a tight 2025 budget environment, "nice-to-have" benefits die quickly; "must-have" outcomes survive. Do now: For every top feature, write one sentence: "This enables ___, which improves ___ by ___ within ___ days." If you can't fill the blanks, drop the feature from your pitch. What is the "application of benefits" and how do you make it real inside their business? Application is where benefits turn into daily operational reality—what changes in workflow, decisions, and results.This is the "rubber meets the road" layer. Don't just say "we improve productivity." Show where it lands: which meetings get shorter, which approvals disappear, which roles stop firefighting, which customers get served faster, which errors are prevented, and what leaders see weekly on dashboards. Compare contexts: a startup may care about speed and cash runway; a multinational may care about governance, change management, and multi-region rollouts. A consumer business might chase conversion and NPS; a B2B industrial firm might chase downtime reduction and safety incidents. Do now: Build a simple "Before → After" map for their week: processes eliminated, expanded, improved—and who owns each change. What counts as credible evidence (and what "proof" actually convinces buyers)? Credible evidence is specific, comparable, and close to the buyer's reality—same industry, similar scale, similar constraints. "Trust me" is not evidence. Bring proof that survives scrutiny: reference customers, quantified case studies, independent reviews, pilot results, and implementation artefacts (plans, timelines, adoption metrics). The closer the comparison company is to the buyer, the more persuasive it becomes. This is also where storytelling matters: not hype—narrative. Who was involved? What went wrong? What changed? What were the numbers before and after? Analysts like **Gartner or **Forrester can help with category credibility, but a near-peer success story usually seals confidence. Do now: Collect 3 "mirror case studies" (similar buyer profiles) and write them as short stories: problem → actions → results → lessons. How do you do a trial close without sounding pushy or sleazy? A trial close is a simple comprehension-and-comfort check that invites objections early—before you ask for the order. Done right, it's calm, not clingy. After you've walked through facts → benefits → application → evidence, ask: "How does that sound so far?" Then shut up. Silence is a tool. If they raise objections, good—interest is alive, and you can add pinpoint proof. If they say nothing (or go vague), start worrying: they may have already mentally deleted you as an option. This is the moment to clarify, re-anchor to outcomes, and confirm next steps in the sales cycle. Do now: Use one trial close per phase. Treat objections as data, not drama, and log them into your CRM as themes to address. Conclusion: the cadence that keeps you credible and gets you paid This five-phase cadence works because it respects how adults buy: they need proof, relevance, and a clear path from "today" to "better." Keep the sequence tight—facts, then benefits, then application, then evidence, then a trial close—and you'll avoid the two killers of modern selling: feature-dumps and wishful thinking. Author credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー). Greg also publishes daily business insights on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, and hosts six weekly podcasts. On YouTube, he produces The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews, which are widely followed by executives seeking success strategies in Japan.
Shaun Belongie is the CEO of New Belgium Brewery. He previously served as VP of Marketing for New Belgium before becoming CMO and then CEO in 2023. Shaun has over 20 years of CPG experience, having managed marketing innovation and brand direction for iconic companies like Nestle Purina and Kraft Foods. He's helped build and maintain New Belgium's human-powered business model as the brand grows and expands, all the while stewarding the brewery's legacy and people-centric culture. Shaun joins Roy to discuss the challenges and opportunities during his journey from CMO to CEO, the differences between working at a large CPG brand versus a smaller, more nimble company, how New Belgium embodies and enacts their foundational values, and much more. Highlights from our conversation include: Shaun's transition from CMO to CEO at New Belgium (3:35)Challenges he's confronted as New Belgium's CEO (6:14)Shaun's experience serving as New Belgium's CMO (9:53)Shaun's perspective on building and shaping culture as CEO (12:09)New Belgium's human-powered business model (14:55)Maintaining authentic values throughout periods of growth (16:16)How his son's health crisis inspired him to think differently about life and leadership (18:35)Leadership lessons that carried over from Shaun's Kraft and Purina days (21:11)How changes in the industry are affecting Shaun's approach to hiring (23:08)Leadership qualities that Shaun seeks in his senior executive team (25:01)How technology fits into his strategic plan (25:48)Guidance he'd offer to somebody early in their career (28:18)What Shaun's most excited about in the future (30:13)Visit HowIHire.com for transcripts and more on this episode.Follow Roy Notowitz and Noto Group Executive Search on LinkedIn for updates and featured career opportunities.Subscribe to How I Hire:AppleSpotifyAmazon
Associates on Fire: A Financial Podcast for the Associate Dentist
In this episode of the Dental Boardroom Podcast, Wes Reed dives into some of the most common and costly business and practice management mistakes dentists make. Drawing from years of experience working with hundreds of dental practices, Wes explains how strong clinical skills alone aren't enough to build a sustainable, profitable, and stress-free practice.He breaks these mistakes into six core areas, covering everything from management systems and PPO economics to lease agreements, partnerships, financial planning, and KPIs. Throughout the episode, Wes uses practical examples and real-world analogies (including agile software development) to show how intentional systems and financial clarity can free owners from burnout and help practices scale intelligently.This episode is a must-listen for practice owners who want to stop managing reactively and start operating with structure, clarity, and long-term strategy.Key Topics Covered1. Not Adopting a Management ProcessMany dentists manage by instinct instead of by process. Without a clear management operating system including defined roles, meeting cadence, accountability, and decision-making frameworks, practices become reactive, inconsistent, and owner-dependent. Wes explains how adopting even a simple system and iterating over time can dramatically improve operations and reduce burnout.2. Not Understanding the True Cost of PPOsPPOs often increase top-line revenue but quietly erode profitability. Wes breaks down how fee schedules, write-offs, chair utilization, and hygiene profitability impact the bottom line. He emphasizes that PPOs are essentially an expensive marketing channel and that growth without profitability can lead to exhaustion, not success.3. Not Understanding Lease TermsA lease is often the largest non-clinical financial commitment a dentist makes, yet many sign without fully understanding the implications. Wes discusses escalation clauses, renewal options, relocation clauses, and why poor lease terms can hurt practice value or even prevent a successful exit.4. Partnering Without Profit-Split ModelingPartnerships often fail not because of personality conflicts, but because of unclear financial structures. Wes explains why production, ownership, expenses, and profit splits must be modeled and stress-tested before forming a partnership and why aligning accounting execution with the partnership agreement is critical.5. Lacking Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A)Most practices rely only on historical financial reports, such as P&Ls, which show where the practice has been, not where it's going. Wes explains how FP&A (or a CFO model) helps dentists forecast cash flow, plan strategically, and turn financial anxiety into financial control.6. Not Using KPIs or KPI SoftwareWithout key performance indicators, practices lack visibility and accountability. Wes highlights the importance of both leading and trailing KPIs, the value of KPI software, and how daily or weekly team huddles around metrics create a culture of ownership and consistency.Key TakeawaysClinical excellence alone doesn't guarantee a successful practice; systems and strategy matter.A management operating system frees the owner from being the bottleneck.PPO participation must be understood at the procedure- and profitability-levels, not just collections.Lease terms can significantly impact long-term practice value and...
" It's never about Paul Nicolaou; it's about other people, because you want to appreciate and show your passion towards them and helping them achieve an end result." In this episode of The Inner Chief podcast, I speak to Paul Nicolaou, the Executive Director of Business Sydney on the 3Ps of building an insanely valuable network, daring to be different, and making people happy.
In our latest Newscast we round up the latest in global loyalty before diving into the metrics that matter . Featuring Caroline Papadatos on KPI lifecycle, CashKick on scaling to 12M+ members, Max Kenkel (ITA Group) on measuring what moves behaviour, and Phil Hawkins myth-busting loyalty's favourite metric.
In this episode, Remo Gerber (SkyCell) and Fabienne Doerig (CFO expert and consultant) discuss the challenges and strategies involved in building and scaling finance functions in fast-growing companies. The two share their experiences from different growth phases, from startups to billion-dollar organizations, and provide insights into the role of the CFO, process automation, successful fundraising tactics, and the importance of team building and system implementations. They also shed light on how CFOs can master the balancing act between being a strategic business partner and an operational gatekeeper. What you'll take away from this episode: The changing role of the CFO: From operational gatekeeper to strategic business partner who not only delivers numbers but also drives growth. Automation and systems: Why it's crucial to analyze the IT landscape carefully and implement the right systems—and how to avoid mistakes in the process. Forecasting and KPI alignment: The art of combining operational and financial figures to make better decisions. Fundraising strategies: How to manage the process, keep multiple options open, and ensure that the money actually ends up in the account. Team building: When to rely on generalists and when specialists are necessary—and how important a motivated and resilient team is for success. ALLES ZU UNICORN BAKERY: https://stan.store/fabiantausch More about Fabienne & Remo: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/remo-gerber-1153a66/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/fabienne-doerig-ch8/ Join our Founder Tactics Newsletter: 2x die Woche bekommst du die Taktiken der besten Gründer der Welt direkt ins Postfach: https://www.tactics.unicornbakery.de/ Chapter: (00:00:00) Introduction: Two Swiss guys in Zug – Why we're talking about scaling finance (00:02:14) How the role of the CFO is changing in fast-growing companies (00:06:32) From startups to scale-ups: The biggest challenges in growth (00:12:20) Systems and automation: Why the right tools are crucial (00:16:33) ERP systems: Build vs. buy – How to make the right decision (00:20:24) Data quality and KPI alignment: Bringing financial and operational figures together (00:24:12) Forecasting: Top-down vs. bottom-up – How to make realistic forecasts (00:30:06) Fundraising: Tips for the process, negotiation tactics, and capital structures (00:36:44) Capital allocation: How to prioritize investments and involve the team (00:42:15) Team building in the finance function: Generalists vs. specialists (00:47:37) Personal resilience: How CFOs deal with change and pressure (00:53:37) External consulting and outsourcing: When and how to leverage networks (01:00:42) The big picture: Data, context, and the question “Are we moving the needle?”
00:00 - Bu bölüm neden can yakacak ve kimler dinlemeli00:44 Hata 1 - Reklam sihirli değnek sanılıyor01:39 Hata 2 - Ürün sayfasını katalog gibi kullanmak02:34 Hata 3 - Herkese aynı reklamı göstermek03:22 Hata 4 - Dönüşüm ve KPI takibinin yanlış kurulması04:54 Hata 5 - Güven unsurlarını küçümsemek05:42 Hata 6 - Sepeti terk eden müşteriyi unutmak06:33 Hata 7 - Kısa vadeli düşünmek ve sistem kurmamakSevgili dostum, bu bölüm biraz can yakabilir. Baştan uyarıyorum.Çünkü bugün ajans olarak neredeyse her hafta, her ay, her projede karşımıza çıkan ve satışları sessizce sabote eden 7 büyük e-ticaret hatasını tüm açıklığıyla masaya yatırıyorum.Üstelik bu hatalar sadece yeni başlayan markalarda değil, milyonluk ciro yapan firmalarda da karşımıza çıkıyor.E-ticarette işler yolunda gitmediğinde çoğu zaman ilk suçlanan şey reklam oluyor.Reklam bütçesi artırılıyor, kreatifler değiştiriliyor, platformlar suçlanıyor.Ama gerçek şu ki problem çoğu zaman reklamda değil, sistemin kendisinde yatıyor.Eğer reklam veriyorum ama satış gelmiyor diyorsan,ROAS düşüyor, sepetler dolup boşalıyorsa,ziyaretçi var ama ödeme yoksa,bu bölüm tam olarak senin için hazırlandı.Bu bölümde ajans olarak sahada en sık karşılaştığımız şu soruların cevabını net bir şekilde veriyorum:Neden iyi reklam kötü sonuç verir?Neden trafik var ama satış yoktur?Neden bazı siteler aynı bütçeyle çok daha fazla kazanır?Ve neden bazı markalar sürekli daha fazla reklam bütçesi yakar?Konuştuğumuz 7 hata, küçük detaylar gibi görünse de bir araya geldiğinde e-ticaret markalarının büyümesini ciddi şekilde yavaşlatıyor.Ürün sayfalarının satış yerine katalog gibi hazırlanması,herkese aynı mesajın gösterilmesi,dönüşüm takibinin yanlış veya eksik kurulması,güven unsurlarının hafife alınması,sepeti terk eden kullanıcıların tamamen unutulmasıve en önemlisi kısa vadeli düşünme alışkanlığı…Bu bölümde sadece “şu yanlış” demekle kalmıyorum.Neden yanlış olduğunu, neye mal olduğunu ve nasıl düzeltilmesi gerektiğini de ajans perspektifiyle anlatıyorum.E-ticarette sürdürülebilir büyüme, sadece reklam vermekle değil;doğru sistem kurmakla, doğru mesajı doğru kişiye doğru zamanda göstermekle mümkün oluyor.Bu bölümü dinledikten sonra sitene, reklamlarına ve satış süreçlerine çok daha farklı bir gözle bakacağına eminim.Eğer bu 7 maddeden en az 2–3 tanesi bizde var diyorsan, yalnız değilsin.Ama iyi haber şu: Bu hataların hepsi düzeltilebilir.Yeter ki problemi reklamda değil, sistemde aramayı öğren.Bu bölüm, e-ticarette neden takıldığını gerçekten anlamak isteyenler için hazırlandı.Dinle, not al, sitene tekrar bak.
Find me on Substack!Tobias Carlisle is founder and portfolio manager of Acquirer's Funds managing two deep value ETFs, acclaimed author of five investment books including his newest Soldier of Fortune blending Warren Buffett and Sun Tzu's strategic wisdom, and host of the popular Value After Hours podcast.Episode Sponsor: Fiscal AI is a modern data terminal that gives investors instant access to twenty years of financials, earnings transcripts, and extensive segment and KPI data—use my link for a two-week free trial plus 15% off: https://fiscal.ai/talkingbillions/3:00 - Tobias shares his unique upbringing in Australian outback where school ended in grade 10 and included animal husbandry—learning to shear sheep and work cattle in what he calls a formative contrast to his later academic life at boarding school.6:00 - Transition to law career: Started at a national law firm in April 2000, peak of dot-com bubble. “I missed out on all of the fun parties on the way up and I just saw the carnage on the way down,” which opened his eyes to the importance of cash flow over hype.9:00 - Early exposure to activist investing: Witnessed corporate raiders targeting dot-coms with cash on balance sheets, killing the business and liquidating or using as platform for acquisitions. This low-downside, high-complexity approach fascinated him.14:00 - The telecom case study: Worked with two entrepreneurs who turned $100,000 each into a $600 million exit by building dark fiber infrastructure and data centers. “They were the best telecom lawyers in Australia and they weren't lawyers”—emphasizing the power of combining financial, technological, and regulatory understanding.28:00 - Philosophy behind Soldier of Fortune: Explores Warren Buffett as risk-taker rather than risk-avoider, connecting his strategic thinking to Sun Tzu's Art of War. The book examines 13 laws of strategic advantage.45:00 - Discussion of key laws: “Attack weakness with strength” and “seize the initiative”—Buffett's approach to investing in moments when he has maximum advantage, like deploying capital during the 2008 crisis.1:08:00 - The surfing analogy: Experienced investors are “not only on the right wave, but at the right spot on that wave”—getting positioning and timing right rather than just working harder.1:09:00 - Impact on his own investing: “Shot selection becomes so much better the longer that you do something...if I'm just a little bit more patient, I know that there is a bigger wave coming.”1:11:30 - Definition of success: “A happy, healthy family and time with my kids...watching them play sport. That's really my definition of success.”Podcast Program – Disclosure StatementBlue Infinitas Capital, LLC is a registered investment adviser and the opinions expressed by the Firm's employees and podcast guests on this show are their own and do not reflect the opinions of Blue Infinitas Capital, LLC. All statements and opinions expressed are based upon information considered reliable although it should not be relied upon as such. Any statements or opinions are subject to change without notice.Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed.
In this episode we discuss Michael Saylor's Bitcoin purchase execution and leverage strategy, and persistent public skepticism toward crypto. We also review MegaETH's launch and KPI vesting, and examine Dan Romero's move from Farcaster to Tempo. Thanks for tuning in! As always, remember this podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely their opinions, not financial advice. -- Follow Blockworks Research: https://x.com/blockworksres Follow Danny: https://x.com/defi_kay_ Follow Boccaccio: https://x.com/salveboccaccio -- Join us at DAS (Digital Asset Summit) in New York City this March! Use the link below to learn more, and use code 0X200 to get $200 off your ticket! See you there! Learn more + get your ticket here: https://blockworks.co/event/digital-asset-summit-nyc-2026 -- Subscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3foDS38 Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/3SNhUEt Subscribe on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3NlP1hA Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ -- Timestamps: (0:00) Introduction (3:55) Saylor and Coinbase Ad (19:53) Token Structures (27:19) MegaETH (42:05) Tempo (52:17) Closing Thoughts -- Check out Blockworks Research today! Research, data, governance, tokenomics, and models – now, all in one place Blockworks Research: https://www.blockworksresearch.com/ Free Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on 0xResearch is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Boccaccio, Danny, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
Many dental leaders make decisions based on how the day feels instead of what the data shows. In this episode, Kirk Behrendt is joined by Miranda Beeson, ACT Dental coach and leadership advisor, to explain why leading from emotion creates reactive leadership and how metrics create clarity, consistency, and confidence for teams. You will learn how data removes emotion from decision-making, how to pause emotional reactions, and how to use key performance indicators to guide smarter conversations and actions. Listen to Episode 1006 of The Best Practices Show!Main TakeawaysLeading from feelings creates reactive decision-making and inconsistency for the team.Metrics reveal patterns over time and provide an objective truth that removes emotion from leadership conversations.Data-driven leadership allows teams to align around priorities and solve problems instead of chasing anxiety.Reviewing metrics consistently helps leaders respond thoughtfully rather than react emotionally.Sharing data weekly builds accountability and ownership across the entire team.Measuring and reporting on a focus area regularly accelerates improvement.Verifying emotional reactions with data builds trust and credibility as a leader.Snippets01:43 Why today's Metric Monday focuses on feelings versus data.02:18 How leading with data creates smarter leadership decisions.03:20 How personal bias disappears when data is introduced.04:38 What reactive leadership looks like in a dental practice.06:05 Why leading with feelings creates inconsistency for teams.07:42 How teams unify when data is shared consistently.08:45 Using weekly reporting to drive improvement.10:18 Pausing emotional reactions and verifying them with data.13:25 Asking which KPI confirms or challenges a feeling.14:50 Using capacity data to validate schedule concerns.15:45 Why coaches help remove emotional stories from leadership decisions.Guest Bio/Guest ResourcesMiranda Beeson has over 25 years of clinical dental hygiene, front office, practice administration, and speaking experience. She is enthusiastic about communication and loves helping others find the power that words can bring to their patient interactions and practice dynamics. As a Lead Practice Coach, she is driven to create opportunities to find value in experiences and cultivate new approaches.Miranda graduated from Old Dominion University and enjoys spending time with her husband, Chuck, and her children, Trent, Mallory, and...
Send us a textAs CEO of ISTE+ASCD, Richard Culatta focuses on shaping innovative learning leaders. He previously served as Rhode Island's Chief Innovation Officer and was appointed by President Obama to lead the US Department of Education's Office of Educational Technology. His book, Digital for Good, helps create conditions for healthy tech use.
You're past the beginner stage. Your business works. You've sold, validated your ideas, built momentum… yet, you're looking around thinking, where is the freedom I left corporate for?This episode is for the woman who's no longer drowning, but not free yet. The phase where your hustle and epic work ethic got you here, but you know deep down that grinding harder is not how you want to scale next.In this episode, I'm sharing the 7 biggest lessons I learned in the scaling phase of my business, the identity shifts, mindset rewires, and strategic decisions that took me from “this works but I'm exhausted” to “this actually feels spacious.”In this episode, you'll learn:Why the scaling phase is the most dangerous place to get stuck and how distraction, shiny strategies, and course-hopping quietly steals your momentum.Why experimenting builds confidence faster than consuming and how to use launches and offers as data instead of proof of your worth.Why freedom has to be the KPI (not just revenue) or you'll recreate a corporate prison in disguise, no matter how much you make.How I changed how I invest in mentorship and how long-term mentorship creates containment, peace, and faster execution.How seasons of womanhood affect scaling and why business, love, and identity can't be separated at this level.Why how you treat yourself directly impacts your sales embodiment, presence, and becoming who you fully believe in.How real scale is built on structure rather than hustle recurring revenue, lifetime value, systems, and choosing one aligned action over overwhelming yourself with unrealistic amounts of to-do's.Apply for the Iconic Woman Mastermind - CLICK HERE
Adam Wilk, Founder and CIO of Greystone Capital Management discusses all things investing. Prior to launching Greystone, Adam worked in scouting and analytics roles with the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets, followed by commercial credit underwriting at a major bank. Those roles emphasized disciplined decision-making under uncertainty and long time horizons, which are central to how Greystone evaluates businesses, assesses risk, and allocates capital.Sponsorship InformationThank you to Trata for sponsoring the show.If you're listening to this podcast, you'll like Trata. Trata is buyside to buyside conversations on individual stocks. Trata makes finding a bull or bear on any stock as easy as clicking two buttons. Over 125 funds globally contribute that collectively cover 2000+ tickers. Trata raised over $3mm coming out of Y Combinator. Before you would track 13Fs, now you can understand what funds are actually thinking. You can join as a lurker or you can join as a contributor and Trata will pay you hundreds of dollars per call. For a free trial, go to trytrata.com/brew OG Sponsor Shoutout!Thank you to Fiscal.ai for sponsoring the show. DISCOUNT INFO: If you use the affiliate link fiscal.ai/brew, you will automatically get 2 weeks of Fiscal Pro for Free and if you find that you want to upgrade, my link will get you 15% off any paid plans. About Fiscal.aiFiscal.ai is the complete modern data terminal for global equities.The Fiscal.ai platform combines a powerful user experience with all the financial data capabilities that professional investors need. Users get up to 20 years of historical financials for all stocks globally that they can easily chart, compare, or export into their own models. And unlike legacy data terminals where it can take hours or even days, Fiscal.ai's data is updated within minutes of earnings reports. Fiscal.ai also tracks all the company-specific Segment & KPI data so you don't have to. Like to track Amazon's Cloud Revenue? They've got it.How about Spotify's premium subscribers? Or Google's quarterly paid clicks?They've got all of it.
Utibe Bassey is a VP of Customer Experience at Dominion Energy and author of Love as a KPI. 5 years ago, Utibe and I worked together in her corporate career and fast forward, she has released her book - Love as a KPI, where she discusses love as the secret ingredient that unlocks unparalleled levels of value, customer confidence and ultimately profits. Through this book, Utibe has modeled so well how to tune into your convictions, within your corporate career, and leverage them in creating a compelling personal brand that changes the game. Here is a short clip. https://youtu.be/RKoid1D4M44 Click to listen in full FREE TRAINING Register for The Catapult Your Career Bootcamp (http://thecatapultbootcamp.com) WORK WITH US Join the Catapult Your Career Program (http://cycprogram.com) GET IN TOUCH Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stellaodogwu/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_intelle/ Email: contact@intelle.us Buy the Book Love as a KPI - https://a.co/d/0gn0fbj9 Connect with Utibe Bassey - https://www.linkedin.com/in/utbassey
Send us a textJoin hosts Ben Kornell and Alex Sarlin, joined by special co-host Mike Palmer, host of Trending in Ed, as they break down the biggest stories shaping AI, K–12 policy, higher education, and the global future of education.✨ Episode Highlights:[00:03:34] SchoolAI study shows teachers using AI for reasoning and inquiry [00:09:58] Denver Public Schools blocks ChatGPT over safety and privacy concerns [00:12:20] SoftBank invests another $30B in OpenAI as ads roll out [00:13:24] Gemini and Anthropic lead the race for AI in education [00:20:36] China launches nationwide AI literacy for K–12 [00:29:58] Most U.S. states still lack formal AI guidance for schools [00:33:13] Phone bans spread rapidly across schools [00:38:44] Higher ed enrollment rebounds but retention remains weakPlus, special guests:[00:46:19] Jeremy Smith, CEO and Co-founder of pega6, on one-year AI-first career accelerators [01:11:29] Stewart Brown, K–12 Computer Science and AI Literacy Leader at Code4Kids, on CS as a core elementary subject
You're tracking revenue, margins, and performance—but ignoring the metrics that are actually running the show.In this episode of The Obedient Rebel Podcast, we unpack the internal leadership KPIs every executive feels but rarely names:• Internal pressure• Self-trust• Joy• PresenceThese aren't “soft” metrics.They're the difference between sustainable success and silent burnout.If leadership feels heavier than it should—This episode will put language to what your system already knows.
In this episode of Manufacturing Hub, Vlad Romanov and Dave Griffith sit down with David for a practical, operator grounded conversation about industrial data, modernization, and what it actually takes to turn plant floor signals into business decisions. David has spent more than two decades in manufacturing across automotive, solar, and electric vehicles, and his story is a familiar one for a lot of us. He walked into a plant thinking he was there for a project, discovered PLCs in real time, and never left the factory world. From early days wiring up a SQL Server to pull line data instead of sending people out with stopwatches, to leading data and analytics and shaping MES and reporting strategy, this conversation stays focused on the messy middle where most factories live.A big theme here is that collecting data is not the same thing as creating information. As tooling has improved, connectivity, historians, SCADA, cloud storage, MQTT, and the modern ecosystem have made it easier to get signals out of machines. The hard part is deciding what matters, aligning stakeholders, and creating context that survives across teams and projects. David breaks down how real progress often starts with simple visibility, what is ruining your day, what is the biggest safety risk, what is the recurring quality miss, what is the downtime story you do not trust, then builds from there using workshops and iterative delivery instead of giant multi year “boil the ocean” programs.We also get into Unified Namespace, why it resonates with people who have been burned by tightly coupled ISA style integrations, and why change management is the hidden cost. If you are exploring UNS, this episode highlights the difference between drawing the box on a whiteboard and getting a whole organization to actually adopt consistent naming, context, and ownership. Then we finish with a grounded take on industrial AI. No hype, no doom. Just a realistic view of where AI helps today, where it breaks, and why context windows, documentation quality, and domain expertise still decide whether results are useful or dangerous.Timestamps00:00:00 Welcome and the month theme on technology modernization00:02:10 David's background from automotive and the Tesla Fremont NUMMI era to data leadership00:05:10 The moment data became “real” and why proactive visibility drives safety and outcomes00:07:10 How Kaizen and Toyota Production System style problem solving creates demand for data00:11:50 Why modern tooling makes collection easier and why budget and commitment still decide success00:16:10 Starting points that work in the real world and the simplest visibility model that scales00:18:20 Unified Namespace explained through decoupling, context, and why the first attempt often fails00:23:50 Who really uses the data, operators, quality, engineering, and the “next factory” teams00:29:10 Defining KPIs when nobody has answers and using workshops to force prioritization00:34:20 What rollouts actually take, machine states, data structures, controls changes, and iteration00:40:10 Industrial AI reality check, where it helps today and why it is not running your factory00:51:10 Predicting the next few years, consolidation, pricing, and better integration with agentsAbout the hostsVlad Romanov is an industrial automation and manufacturing leader with over a decade of plant floor experience across major manufacturers. He is the founder of Joltek, where he helps teams modernize operations through IT and OT architecture, integration, reliability focused execution, and practical upskilling that actually sticks. Joltek works with manufacturers who need real outcomes, not buzzwords, and the work spans controls, data, networking, and operational performance.Dave Griffith is the co host of Manufacturing Hub and works at the intersection of manufacturing operations, technology modernization, and practical delivery. He focuses on helping teams bridge the gap between “we want data” and “we can run this plant better next quarter.”About the guestDavid has 25 plus years of manufacturing experience spanning automotive, solar manufacturing, and EVs. He started in plant floor automation and conveyance projects, then moved deeper into industrial data, MES, and analytics leadership. His recent work includes leading data and analytics, defining KPI strategy, and building the layers required to turn raw plant signals into usable business information.Links from Joltekhttps://www.joltek.com/blog/mastering-unified-namespace-uns-a-guide-to-data-driven-manufacturing-transformationhttps://www.joltek.com/blog/ultimate-guide-mqtt-manufacturingSubscribe for more conversations on manufacturing modernization, industrial data architecture, MES realities, and what works on the plant floor when the budget, people, and legacy systems are all real.
In this episode of the Multifamily Collective, Mike Brewer sits down with Misty Haskins, a seasoned multifamily leader whose journey from leasing consultant to senior executive is rich with lessons about leadership, training, data mastery, and people-first culture.And, a special congratulations for the recent recognition from Multifamily Housing News as a Rising Star in Multifamily - https://www.multihousingnews.com/mhns-rising-stars-take-the-spotlight/ Misty opens up about her early career, navigating the shift from property management to asset-level strategy, and why being active in industry associations earlier would have accelerated her growth.Then she gets into what really makes her leadership stand out:- Leading with humor and humility because connection comes before correction- Tailoring leadership to the individual, not everyone responds to the same style- Listening as a leadership superpower, not just hearing, but understanding- Training that actually builds skills, the story behind her game‑changing Funnel Fridays initiativeMisty's Funnel Fridays started as a way to help teams better use their CRM data — and became a company‑wide learning movement that boosted KPI understanding, strategy, and confidence. It's a powerful reminder that data is only as good as the decisions it inspires.She also shares:- How personal challenges on the front lines shaped her empathy- Why servant leadership is a strength, not a soft skill- The mentors who shaped her, including her dad and a CEO she deeply admires- The importance of ambition, and how you can't fake it- What's next for her professionally and personally Whether you're building teams, improving operations, or searching for broader impact, this conversation is packed with insights that will stick with you.Like, subscribe, and share if you believe multifamily leadership starts with both heart and strategy.MultifamilyCollective Blog: https://www.multifamilycollective.comThe Daily Collective Book: https://amzn.to/3YI6BDaSupport comes from: https://www.365connect.com/?utm_campaign=mmn
What if the success of your business wasn’t coming down to better planning or bigger ideas… but better energy? This episode kicks off a brand new four-part series on the pillars I believe underpin sustainable success in business: Energy, Strategy, Mindset and Identity. I’m starting with the one that underpins everything else: Energy. In this conversation, I explore why energy isn’t a “nice to have” or a self-care add-on, it’s the electricity your business actually runs on. From decision-making and visibility, to leadership, money and pricing, the way you show up energetically shapes far more than most women realise. I also share why treating rest as a reward is one of the fastest paths to burnout, how low energy keeps you stuck in survival mode, and why protecting your energy is a strategic responsibility, not a luxury. This episode is an invitation to reframe how you think about success in 2026… and to ask a different question entirely: what if your energy became your most important KPI? RESOURCES Step Into You, listen for free on Spotify Premium or order a hard copy via Amazon Find out more about my June 2026 Bali Retreat Sign up for my strategy program, The Elevated Strategy Method: link here (Code LMSHOW gets you $50 off) Follow along on Instagram: @lorrainemurphymentor Explore programs & events: www.lorrainemurphy.com.au See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Build trust for sales through relationship selling - not rigid process. In this episode of B2B Sales Trends, Blanca Galletero explains why trust, transparency, and leadership authenticity are the real growth levers in modern B2B sales and channel partnerships. The future of B2B selling isn't about tighter control or more dashboards - it's about relationship selling at scale. In this episode, host Harry Kendlbacher sits down with Blanca Galletero, VP EMEA Channels at SentinelOne, to unpack how trust is built, lost, and rebuilt across complex partner ecosystems. Together, they explore how sales leaders can move beyond old-school tactics, use soft skills in sales as a competitive advantage, and increase results by offering real value and transparency - even in high-pressure moments.
<目次>(0:00) けんすうさんとOff Topic(4:57) ポッドキャストの良さと戦略(7:37) 職人は言葉で言うべきではない(11:22) 日本 vs アメリカ:お金の話(13:37) オープンウェブの危機、日本側も感じているのか?(16:56) サイトに作る意味合い、良いコンテンツ作りの重要性(18:34) ビジネスモデルの変動(19:50) インターネットによる情報の分散化と集権化(22:11) AI時代によるモノカルチャー化、デジタル神様(27:56) AIの文章はわかるのか?(29:07) ビデオ化するポッドキャストの影響(32:11) 摩擦を考える時代(33:39) けんすうさんが作る「Pody」(40:02) ポッドキャストやニュースレターのインセンティブ設計(45:15) Off Topicのフレームワーク(47:03) コンテンツセントリック企業、KPIと今の時代の相性が悪い(51:21) フォロワーの時代が終わりつつある影響(52:50) Off Topicがポッドキャストから始まった理由(54:18) コミュニティを作るのが下手なOff TopicPody | 学べるpodcastプレイヤー. AIサマリーや質問履歴をコミュニティで共有しながら、学びを深めましょう。https://pody.jp/けんすう (@kensuu)https://x.com/kensuu<About Off Topic>Podcast:Apple - https://apple.co/2UZCQwzSpotify - https://spoti.fi/2JakzKmOff Topic Clubhttps://note.com/offtopic/membershipX - https://twitter.com/OffTopicJP草野ミキ:https://twitter.com/mikikusanohttps://www.instagram.com/mikikusano宮武テツロー: https://twitter.com/tmiyatake1
一方面想符合別人期待,一方面又好想自由、好想做自己? 活在傳統價值觀念中,卻又同時接收了新價值,一半新、一半舊,是50+女性面臨的矛盾處境。 這一集賴芳玉律師探討選擇與代價,並拆解「50+女性為什麼會過度努力」:你以為你在追求幸福,其實你可能正被英雄情結+聖母情結+成功主義KPI綁架。 別在討好別人的路上,把自己弄丟了! ✅本集節目重點 1. 50世代女性的矛盾:既想自主、又想被保護? 2. 自由的承擔與代價 3. 學會「能夠不能」:徒勞無功的力量 4. 重思人生下半場,要帶走什麼? 主持人:《50+》總編輯兼副執行長王美珍 來賓:賴芳玉律師 製作團隊:蔣德誼、黃湘婷 《50+學院》熟齡脊椎螺旋嬋柔
No matter what position, no matter how many years someone's been in their position, every team member likes to know that they're doing a good job. Tiff and Kristy talk about why defining duties and responsibilities—and then measuring metrics against those duties and responsibilities—is so critical to "winning" at your job. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello Dental A Team listeners. I am so excited to be here with you today I know I see that every single time but I hope you guys know how much I truly love podcasting it is a time away from like we'll call it work I feel like podcasting just isn't work for us and we love Speaking to you guys. love getting all this information out there for you and we love our time together So you guys afford us that and today I have an all-time fave I actually I know this is gonna make you blush but I get some pretty incredible feedback. Kristy, I have Kristy here with us today. I get some pretty incredible feedback from a lot of our clients and a lot of listeners on the podcasts that we do together. So Kristy, I am here today in your presence and it just makes me feel so good. And I'm here to pick that brilliant brain. So thank you for showing up, bringing it and giving me, we've got an ample amount of time this afternoon together. So thank you, Kristy. The Dental A Team (00:54) Yeah. I always have fun when I'm here with you. You know that. It's just so natural that we can rip off each other. And ⁓ I don't know, you do a good job at picking my brain and pulling it out. So it's always fun. look forward to our time together. The Dental A Team (01:09) Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Kristy. You guys should know something about Kristy. She is an incredible consultant and I know that this is our time that I get to kind of share and spread some light and joy on our consulting team. And Kristy, I think it's imperative for the world to know that, gosh, you have just an amazing list of clients who are really seeing some impressive results recently. We're into the new year. We're like, Now when this releases two months into the new year, which is freaking wild, but that's fine. But so many of your clients saw so many successes last year and in those successes we're seeing systems development and within those systems development, really seeing goals being pushed, being reached, being surpassed. You've got some clients that I know you were looking at the goals that they were setting for themselves and you were like, yes, and that's one of my favorite Kristy-isms. Yes, and, yes, and. I think you can do more. So you like are pushing them outside of their comfort zones and really projecting for them things that I don't think that a lot of your clients even see possible. I just think it's really cool. And today we're talking really about how accountability is gonna help reduce stress within the practice. And I say all of these things that you're doing really well for your clients right now, Kristy, because it takes so much accountability to be able to perform those pieces without an overload of stress. You can grow and not have accountability. You can spin your wheels and cycle in the negative or however you want to say it. But when that accountability piece is also attached to the things that you're implementing, I think that's really where you see the true results. And that's where we've gotten some incredible feedback that Kristy is amazing. And ⁓ you've taught them so many skills that they can then take them themselves. and carry it on. And I think it's really cool. It's just really valuable what you've been able to implement for practices. So my question, my first question to you, my first brain pick is why do you find it so important to uphold the accountability levels that you hold for your clients and that you train them to hold for their teams by proxy? Why is that so important to you and so valuable in the coaching that you do? The Dental A Team (03:31) Yeah, I love that question because even us in what we do, we want to know if we're winning or not. Right. And so every team member, doesn't matter what job you're doing. You want to know if you're doing a good job and if you're winning. And if we don't have KPIs to measure or clarity in our roles, we're just, we're going day by day by default, you know, and we could have a success, but like you said, it's How do we repeat it if we don't even know what we're looking for? So number one is defining those duties and understanding what am I responsible for and how do I know if I'm winning or The Dental A Team (04:15) Yeah, I love that. you said a couple of things there that I keyed in on, but you said duplicate. So making it repeatable and making it so that that system can be driven by anyone. like anyone can do it, it can be duplicated and you can take a same or similar system and copy and paste it into a different department or a different goal. And I totally agree. Now, when you have something that's duplicatable, it's just kind of I don't want to say on autopilot, but it feels more on autopilot because you're not having to put quite so much like thought process on everything, you know? It is kind of on autopilot. When you're able to do that, how does that, what level of accountability does that require? I guess is the question. Like we've got to, we can have all the systems in the world and the clarity and the job roles, we think we have the clarity and we hand it to them and then we walk away. what's the next step? We've got the clarity, we've got the job descriptions. What does the accountability look like for those things and why is it so important to the overall stress of the team? The Dental A Team (05:23) Yeah, again, in everything we do, it's either by default or by intention, right? And I'd rather be intentional. So using those duties and then following up. I'm a firm believer of performance reviews outside of wage reviews. Can they tie together? 100 % they can tie together. But I also feel as leaders in the practice, we have a responsibility to grow our people, not just grow our practice, but grow our people, right? And so having those conversations to measure against their duties and the KPIs, not a feeling, I feel like I did a good job, right? ⁓ Having those to measure against, lets them know, they know before they even come in that they're winning or not. And it also gives us the opportunity to coach them up, right? If they're not winning or, you know, what's getting in the way of it, or really it could be an opportunity to coach them and train them. And it doesn't necessarily mean us as leaders have to be the one to do it, but we can provide resources and we can get commitments around it so that we can measure, again, we don't have to hit perfection, but are we trending in a growth pattern? And the more that we grow our people, the more that our practice grows, you know? The Dental A Team (06:43) Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. So you're tying that accountability measurement, that accountability piece is less micromanaging and oversight and like, are you doing the thing but it's tied into the results being driven. So if we're tracking the KPIs, we're tracking the results that we're desiring and we're seeing, are we on track, off track? Are we growing? Are we declining? That's the accountability measurement and then inspiring our team to want to win within that. that provides that feedback system, I guess, that loop back where they're like, hey, I'm seeing a downtrend. Maybe they're at a point now where they're inclined to speak up and ask for help or they see something that needs to be adjusted or switched and so they're doing it on their own rather than that micromanaged ⁓ over the shoulder accountability. Because I do think, Kristy, that a lot of times the definition of the word accountability can be It's like ASAP, like when can you come ASAP? That could mean anything. Your ASAP versus my ASAP is who knows what that means. So that accountability piece, I think we all have our own definition or our own variation of defining it, but your version here is really looking at the results driving it and then constantly coming back to it. So I love that. are you having your doctors and your practices? look at those results and talk about them because there's the one piece to assume that we're all adults and we're all going to look at them, we're all going to fill them in, we're all going to come to our leadership when we need help. But then that's where I get the phone calls from the doctors that's like, I thought I employed adults and they're not doing the thing. And they're well, we get busy too. So it doesn't always happen that way. So when are you suggesting or having your doctors and your practices really look at those results to bring that fold of accountability measurement into it? At the one-on-ones for sure, is there anything else that you're adding in there? The Dental A Team (08:42) Yeah, for sure. think that truly there's daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly metrics, and they can be broken out. ⁓ Yes, one-on-ones are specific to them, but it's also a team sport, right? And so, again, I think I encourage everybody to be doing meetings. If in a perfect world, I'd love them weekly and they're strategic to work on the business, not just in the business and in the ones that are doing it with intention and having those meetings and dialing in on those metrics. And, you know, they can tell if they're winning or not. It gives you the strategy to be able to course correct sooner than later. And it lets everybody know where they are and we can be support to each other. So to your question, I don't think it's cut and dry, but I do think there's daily, weekly, monthly numbers that we should be having a pulse on. I don't want to wait till November to know I'm $100,000 behind for the year. It gets a little harder to chunk down. So ⁓ the other thing that you said, Tiff, too, is when you were saying accountability, I think that word in and of itself tends to have a negative connotation. The Dental A Team (09:48) Yeah. Yeah. The Dental A Team (10:01) I want to challenge our members and people listening to see it as a positive thing. Like literally it's your time to invest in your people. I literally just got off the phone with one that, and it's funny because our admin team, it's usually where it falls. It's like, hey, I need you to credential this doctor. Okay, I don't even know how to do that. whose doctors don't even know how to do it. So how is that team member going to know how to do it? Right? Where do I start? And in fact, the doctor doesn't know how to do it. So sometimes it's, we can't just leave them out on an island and expect them to win. And if we check in early, we can provide resources. Again, I don't, a doctor, maybe they don't need to know how to do it, but can they guide them? and give them the resource. And in doing that, look how much more valuable they've just made that team member. The Dental A Team (10:55) I think you're spot on there. just that statement there of the team member, like I can picture is we want to talk about how accountability reduces the stress. And that's that scenario you just gave. I can picture the office manager being like, yeah, okay, I'll figure it out. And then all that does is add this underlying unknown stress in the back of her mind or his mind. They're thinking, I got to figure this out. I got to make this work. I got to I gotta do it, but I've got all these other things first. And then dot comes in and is like, hey, did you do that? And they're like, no, like, right? And now we're stressed and we're freaking out. And it's like, there's that unknown space that we don't always know what we don't know. So we don't always know the questions to ask, but just really having that feedback system of accountability within the results, I think is the key there. The Dental A Team (11:45) you one of the things we fail at as leaders is painting that clarity. Again, even if I asked you to do that, did you give me a timeframe? Because you might've wanted it done yesterday. I'm thinking, I could do it in the next month, you know? The Dental A Team (12:00) Yeah, yeah, yeah, which is what I do, right? I'm like, yep, got it, it's on my list. But I've got 60 other things that are also on my list that if I'm not given a prioritization, I'm gonna prioritize it myself, right? And that's, it's gonna fall where it falls. And then you come back and you say, where's that thing? I'm like, well, it's on the back end of my list, because what does it trump? So what does it go above that I can replace? it with, know, whatever. So you're spot on there. I love that, that it all loops together because in the beginning you said, then you just said to you like painting that clarity. And I always tell practices, and I know you do too, when you're building out the job descriptions and the org charts, you need one to three key metrics of results. What are the one to three things that this position is after? We want, you know, a schedule full to daily production goal. That's our schedulers goal. So all of those little pieces that get us there, we don't tackle those until we're not reaching goal. So if we're not reaching that big overarching metric, that's when we say, okay, what system is broken? But I think, Kristy, what tends to happen is that people are like, no, accountability causes stress. Like Tiff, Kristy, you're crazy. The accountability causes stress because we're micromanaging the systems. that get us to the result rather than holding the accountability lever to the result. The Dental A Team (13:31) I agree with you 100 % and truly looking at the person as a human and how can I develop this within them, right? I don't think anybody walks in on any given day thinking how can I make this day horrible, right? They want to please their leaders and it's just sometimes they don't understand how. They don't really have the clarity on how and more so they don't know what The Dental A Team (13:39) Yeah. bright. The Dental A Team (14:00) what winning looks like. The Dental A Team (14:02) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. No, I think you're spot on there and you're making me think that clarity piece, clarity piece and knowing how to make someone happy, right? How do I thrive in this position and make my doctor or my manager, whomever my lead, happy also ties back to when accountability is only held in the negative. It's very easy to start to feel like you're not, you can't win. There's no positive being brought to light. So it's it's celebrating when cause for celebrating and it's tackling system when cause for tackling systems and never tackling the person. Unless it's a personality, personnel issue that's separate, but when it comes to accountability results and driving the practice, it's more about celebrating and tackling as you need to and not only tackling, which in the dental industry, The Dental A Team (14:43) You got The Dental A Team (14:58) Our jobs, I tell practices all the time, patients come here so we can tell them what's wrong with their teeth. They don't come here so we can say, my gosh, that's the best smile I've seen all day. Like we want to say that, right? But when we see that good smell, we're like, you're all good, nothing here, right? That's not a celebration. We're just like, no problems. See you later. And we tend to do that in our KPI meetings too, where it's like, cool, you're good, you're good, you're good. you're not good, let's focus on you today. And it's like, well, shoot, when do I win? I think you keyed on something really big there. I think deducting all of those pieces that you mentioned today, Kristy, it feels like the stress is typically going to be seen in more of an emotional capacity than in a physical can-do capacity. So it's in a mental capacity that turns into an emotional capacity that brings on the stress of the world and really just keying in on how to remove the emotion. from it, bring in the black and white and celebrate those pieces. The Dental A Team (16:02) I agree with you 100%. And I think it's why we always are speaking to right people, right seat, right? And I always joke when I tell my clients this, I almost think it should be right seat, right people instead of, you know what I mean? Yeah. yeah, spot on. The Dental A Team (16:14) Yeah. Yeah, no, that's fair. I love it. If you were to pick two or three things that a practice could do today that might be not like, I don't wanna say surface level, because I don't think it's surface level, but maybe not digging deep and uprooting a whole system. But what are some things that they could implement today or they could take a look at flushing out if they were to try to reduce stress today in their practice? The Dental A Team (16:44) Yeah, I truly, I think the first thing would be, there one or two metrics that aren't where you want them? Let's pull out that system or identify what duties or what things do we do every day that contribute to that number and then pull out those systems and figure out it. It can be process or it can be people, meaning Maybe as a person, I change the recipe, right? I always tell people, you change the chocolate chip recipe for a cup of salt, when it called for cup of sugar, you don't get to say the recipe doesn't work, right? So pull it back out. Let's look at it. Is the recipe, we tailored it and it's not working? Let's just get back to it. know, recommit, recommit as a team or an individual and then remeasure. Is it working? Right? So, The Dental A Team (17:22) That's fair. Yeah. Yeah. The Dental A Team (17:38) That would be my thing and get energized behind it. The Dental A Team (17:42) I love it. Well, thank you. It amazed me. actually just last night I altered I altered a recipe. I make these biscuit things for Brody and I was like, I'll do a gluten free flour because then I can have some too. And I really like bell peppers. So I'm gonna take the bell peppers out. But I didn't change the amount of flour. So they are real dry, you know, and Brody this morning was like, maybe you need a new recipe. And I was like, well, no, it was. because I didn't have enough wet ingredients because I didn't put the bell peppers in there and to it I didn't reduce the flour so it's just funny that you said that because Brody was ready to throw out the recipe and find a whole new recipe but it wasn't the recipe it was me so I appreciate that you say that at home today. ⁓ The Dental A Team (18:22) You I think the with that though, you know, the ironic-ness that you just said that my son has celiac. So in the very beginning, we were learning to cook different. It's funny how you have to transition. I would encourage you to use applesauce in your... It puts it back to nobody's trying to make the day difficult. We're all trying to do our best and, you know, celebrate your people. Try to recognize the wins. The Dental A Team (18:28) Yeah. Yeah. ⁓ smart! Yes, I do forget about that. The Dental A Team (18:55) and the areas that aren't improving, address them as needed. The Dental A Team (19:00) Yeah, I love that. Thank you. Thank you. And thank you for the tip. Everybody has a gluten-free flour tip now as well. We're here for all of the things. Awesome, Kristy, thank you. And I hope you guys can see some spaces in your practice where you can dial in the accountability. I don't wanna say ramp up the accountability. I think it just needs to be dialed in and it just needs to be in alignment with what your goals are. The Dental A Team (19:05) Right The Dental A Team (19:27) And if your goals are to have a stress-free practice, it doesn't mean you remove the accountability. It just means that you find the alignment of the accountability to sit with your goals. take a look. You guys, think you know, Hello@TheDentalATeam.com is where to send questions. We are here for it. And a lot of those questions, just so you know, if they are tailored to specific things like this, they get sent to the consultant team and we are the ones that are providing the answers for them to respond to you guys. So you have us at your fingertips, just like our clients do if you are a client. Reach out to your consultant, she's there to help you. We love what we do. you guys, drop a five star review below. We love hearing what you love. And you know what, when you use that applesauce, let us know how that goes too. So, Kristy, thank you so much for your time today. And with that, you guys, it's a wrap. We'll catch you next time.
#307 Most business owners track revenue. Some track expenses. Very few track the numbers that actually determine freedom and long-term wealth. In this episode, I break down the Top 3 KPIs almost no one is tracking and why ignoring them keeps smart, hardworking owners stuck. KPI #1: Taxes We talk about: The real difference between Schedule C and K-1 income Why "not paying taxes" usually means one of two things: You don't actually have profit Or you're kicking the can down the road in a way that will eventually cost you How taxes are not the enemy but a signal of real progress If you want to build wealth, taxes are part of the deal. KPI #2: Your Sales P&L Most people look at revenue. Very few look at what it costs them in time and energy to create that revenue. We cover: How much time you're really spending on sales and marketing Why "being busy" is not the same as being effective How to think about sales like an investment KPI #3: Personal KPIs That Actually Matter This is the one almost everyone ignores. We talk about tracking: Time with your kids Nights home Weekends off Vacations taken Mental bandwidth and margin Because what's the point of a profitable business if it costs you the life you were trying to build? Bonus KPI: Net Worth Revenue is noisy. Profit is helpful. Net worth tells the truth. I share why tracking net worth changes how you make decisions and keeps you focused on the long game. If you want a business that supports your life instead of consuming it, this episode will hit home.
If you're a physician with at least 5 years of experience looking for a flexible, non-clinical, part-time medical-legal consulting role… ...Dr. Armin Feldman's Medical Legal Coaching program will guarantee to add $100K in additional income within 12 months without doing any expert witness work. Any doctor in any specialty can do this work. And if you don't reach that number, he'll work with you for free until you do, guaranteed. How can he make such a bold claim? It's simple, he gets results… Dr. David exceeded his clinical income without sacrificing time in his full-time position. Dr. Anke retired from her practice while generating the same monthly consulting income. And Dr. Elliott added meaningful consulting work without lowering his clinical income or job satisfaction. So, if you're a physician with 5+ years of experience and you want to find out exactly how to add $100K in additional consulting income in just 12 months, go to arminfeldman.com. =============== Get the FREE GUIDE to 10 Nonclinical Careers at nonclinicalphysicians.com/freeguide. Get a list of 70 nontraditional jobs at nonclinicalphysicians.com/70jobs. =============== Emergency physician–turned–medspa owner Dr. Lisa Jenks explains how she went from the ER to founding Genesis Med Spa in 2007, growing it from four treatment rooms to a highly profitable practice that a private equity group ultimately acquired. Drawing on 17 years of ownership, she walks through what she would do differently if she were starting again today and why careful planning at the beginning determines whether a medspa becomes a sellable asset later. She focuses on practical decisions that matter most: negotiating the lease and build-out, choosing services that don't require expensive devices, hiring lean part-time staff, defining a clear niche, and thinking like a small-business owner rather than just a clinician. From there, she moves into strategies for growth and profitability, including high-ROI services, KPI tracking, inventory control, staff involvement in cost savings, and preparing systems and numbers that make your medspa attractive to future buyers. You'll find links mentioned in the episode at nonclinicalphysicians.com/start-a-medspa/
Most leaders want results — but few build the environment that produces them consistently. On this episode of The Abundance Mindset, Vinney Chopra explains why high-performing real estate teams aren't built by micromanaging results, but by teaching people how to think, rehearse, and improve together. What stands out is the emphasis on practice — not pressure. Leasing success doesn't come from hope. It comes from preparation, repetition, and recognition.
In this episode of HR Famous, Tim Sackett sits down with one of the true originals of the show: Jessica Lee, Marriott's Global Officer of Talent Acquisition and Associate Growth (aka: head of TA + learning… “just a small job” for a company supporting nearly 10,000 hotels). The vibe is classic HR Famous—smart, practical, and just the right amount of banter about being an “OG” (and whether the kids now call you “Unc”). Jessica shares what it was like jumping back into leading a global talent acquisition team after time in broader HR and learning. Some surprises? A lot has changed…and a lot hasn't. Recruiting is still recruiting: hiring managers still want to see every candidate, sourcing debates still rage, and stakeholder management remains the timeless recruiter superpower. But the real energy is in what's new—especially the explosion of AI in recruiting, automation, and the opportunities to make recruiters faster, better, and more human in their conversations. Tim and Jessica get into Marriott's approach to recruiting technology and responsible AI. They talk stack (Marriott is an Oracle shop and layers in Paradox), and why Marriott has drawn a clear line between AI for automation (low risk) versus AI that makes decisions (higher risk, higher scrutiny, higher lawsuit headlines). Jessica offers a refreshingly candid view: it's not always that employers don't trust the tech—it's that they don't trust the world won't sue them for using it. That leads to a bigger conversation on transparency, public perception, and why candidates want to know “what they're being measured against,” even when that measurement has always been a bit of a black box. One of the most fascinating parts: the future of interviewing. Jessica is fired up about “no interview notes” / digital interviewing tools—because when recruiters and hiring managers stop typing, they can start listening. Tim goes deeper on what AI-powered interview capture could unlock: consistency of questions, better summaries for hiring managers, improved quality control, and skill development based on real interview data (not guesswork). Then they head into the realities of high-volume hiring at Marriott. Applications are surging—millions of candidates hitting the career site—so how do you prevent managers from drowning in volume without using AI to “decide”? Jessica breaks down the practical playbook: screening questions, assessments, shortlists, and human eyes where it matters. And yes, hiring managers still push back: “Why these three? I want to see all 200.” Finally, Jessica shares how Marriott measures TA success beyond “faster is better.” Speed matters—especially frontline—but not at the expense of quality. She walks through the metrics that actually matter at scale: time to fill, turnover, retention, internal growth, cost, and a standout KPI: “quick quits” (first 90 days, including no-shows on day one). Plus, there's nuance—luxury hotels may take longer to hire, but see lower turnover and stronger guest service outcomes. If you're leading TA, evaluating AI, or trying to balance speed, quality, risk, and candidate experience, this episode is packed with real-world strategy—and plenty of laughs along the way. Watch or listen, then connect with Jessica on LinkedIn to keep the conversation going.
How do you design a team off-site that actually improves your organization? In this episode, Travis Timmons breaks down the mechanics of a Deming-styled off-site team meeting—from starting months early and setting a clear aim to using pre-work, fishbone diagrams, and PDSAs to drive real change. If you want a real-world example of how Deming leaders create focus, collaboration, and joy in work, this conversation is a practical place to start. TRANSCRIPT 0:00:02.3 Andrew Stotz: My name is Andrew Stotz and I'll be your host as we dive deeper into the teachings of Dr. W. Edwards Deming. Today I'm continuing my discussions with Travis Timmons, who is the founder and owner of Fitness Matters, an Ohio-based practice specializing in the integration of physical therapy and personalized wellness. For 13 years, he's built his business on Dr. Deming's teachings. His hope is simple; the more companies that bring joy to work through Deming's principles, the more likely his kids will one day work at one of those darn companies. Travis, how are you doing? 0:00:35.2 Travis Timmons: Hey, Andrew. Doing well, how are you? 0:00:37.1 Andrew Stotz: I'm really excited. We were just talking about the structure of today's discussion, and the topic for today is the mechanics of a Deming-styled offsite, which I... In today's session, we're going to be talking about the importance of starting early, setting an aim, figuring out and developing an agenda. Also homework, huh? 0:01:05.1 Travis Timmons: Right. 0:01:05.4 Andrew Stotz: Pre-work for attendees. I thought that's interesting as we were going through it. And then you talk about your activities, your outcomes and all of that. So why don't you get into it and walk us through the mechanics of a Deming-styled offsite. And by the way, one last thing. When we say Deming-styled, well, you're certainly getting a lot of support from a true Deming advocate, Kelly Allen, and your understanding of the teachings of Dr. Deming. And so you're doing your best to apply those things in this. Is it a perfect Deming offsite? Well, that's why we say Deming-styled offsite. Maybe the listener or the viewer would add in or subtract some things, but at least we've got the general structures. So why don't you take it away, Travis? 0:01:47.3 Travis Timmons: Yeah, no, happy to, Andrew. So yeah, we have our team offsite. It'll actually be 10 days from now. So from a big picture standpoint, one of the things I've learned is systems, process, organization, and none of that happens quickly. So every time we do an annual team offsite, it's about a three-month work-ahead process for myself and the leadership team. So we start a good three months before the meeting date just to start percolating on what do we need to talk about at this meeting? What's the aim? What do we want the outcome to be? And that doesn't happen with a week of preparation. So we've had to spend some time looking at our KPIs, where do we have an opportunity to have a positive impact on our system? So we have to study our current system, see where there might be opportunities for improvement, understand how do we want the team to engage with that. And for this year's offsite, our big aim... We have two aims for the offsite. One is to make the system visible. Everybody on the team. I've had some learnings through some newer leaders on our team that have been through the DemingNEXT and they've been on our team for a few years. 0:03:04.1 Travis Timmons: But they until going through the DemingNEXT, they didn't fully understand what system view meant. And that kind of hit me over the head like a ton of bricks. It's like, well, maybe that would be a good thing to spend part of our offsite making sure the entire team can visualize and see our organization as a system. And then the second aim from a mechanics, from a KPI standpoint, if you will, is we want to improve arrival rate for our visits. So basically, how many scheduled appointments show up is what we call arrival rate. To have a better impact on patient outcomes, joy in work for our team members, joy in the referral sources that send to us. So yeah, it was about a three-month process. 0:03:49.3 Andrew Stotz: And if I... Just curious, sometimes when I've done offsites or I've attended offsites, it's more general. Here you have a very specific thing, improve arrival rates. Why is it so specific and how do you come to that decision that this isn't going to be just an open discussion about things in our company? 0:04:14.4 Travis Timmons: Yeah. That's a great question. Some years they are a little more general. Like last year we spent quite a bit of time setting a new round of BHAGs, Big Hairy Audacious Goals. This year, looking at KPIs, looking at where the opportunities were to improve, where there were the most breakdowns and frustrations happening in our system that we were hearing consistently across our team. It's like, what's the one thing we can have an impact on that will, if we improve that, everything else will get better. And that was arrival rate. So then we started looking at, all right, how do we dissect that? How do we make it visible to the team so the entire team can work on it together? So that's how we came to that. And it's like, all right, this is a consistent issue. So if you do the control chart, it's like I can almost set my watch to what's arrival rate going to be every week. And until we change something in our system, that's going to be what's going to continue to happen and we need to have an impact on that this year. So that's how we came down to it. It's the one thing we can do that'll have the most impact positively across the entire organization. 0:05:23.1 Andrew Stotz: I often talk about a big company in Thailand that was a Deming-focused company for many, many years, and then a new CEO came in and he made it a different focus company. And the company struggled for years. Whether it's from that or not is a secondary item. But two weeks ago I was giving a lecture and a guy from that company, who is an older guy, was at the lecture. And afterwards we were talking and I said, "What's the difference between the prior guy and the new guy?" He said, "The prior guy set the direction and we all knew it. The new guy kind of has us set it or we go in a lot of different directions. It's not as clear." And so what I was thinking when you were talking about improve arrival rates, I was thinking, yeah, that's leadership. You've identified what you believe is the most critical element at this stage of the business right now, and there's a lot of knock-on effects of fixing that. Whereas if you went into that room and you say, "What's the biggest problem we have right now?" 0:06:35.6 Travis Timmons: Right. 0:06:36.3 Andrew Stotz: Yeah, you're going to get a long list, but as a leader you have to set the direction. 0:06:41.1 Travis Timmons: Yeah. Yeah, and with the leadership team as well. And yeah, where do we... The KPIs and the system, if you study it and look at the outputs through the Deming lenses, it becomes... It's not easy. You got to spend the work and have the tools in place and the discipline to track it all consistently so that you know what your true arrival rate is. I can get in... It's a whole probably different conversation, but tampering and all that kind of stuff. So we know what our data is because of how we've made very clear definitions on our arrival rate and how we don't tamper to get better numbers. But yeah, it's exciting. The team, as crazy as this might sound, we've done these for many years now, over a decade, and the team looks forward to them. And part of that is because we spend the time. I take this very seriously. If I'm going to ask people to come to a meeting for five hours, it better be good. And we better bring... We better have something we can work on as a team to come out of it. And if we don't, that's nobody's fault but mine. So that ownership of the system I take very seriously. 0:07:58.1 Andrew Stotz: A great song, by the way, by Led Zeppelin, Nobody's Fault But Mine. But I would also say that's why I think it's fascinating to continue to go through the structure that you've got, because I think it can guide all of us. So we've learned about starting three months early. I was also thinking about my Crock-Pot. I like to cook slow-cooking food and I put all these different tastes of an onion and a piece of meat, which doesn't really have taste in some ways. And I put them all in a pot and it's eight hours. And if I interrupt it at one hour, there's just, there's not much value there. It needs time to extract the tastes and also bring those tastes into each other until you end up at the end of eight hours. Like, whoa, that's amazing. So... 0:08:51.4 Travis Timmons: Right. Right. Yeah, as you're pointing to, that's kind of how the agenda evolves. So we have an aim of system visibility and arrival rate. Well, how do we put an agenda around that together? So myself, the leadership team, Kelly, we've been working back and forth quite a bit, several iterations of that. So that's part of why you need that three months. You work on it. That sounds great in your head. You put it on some PowerPoint slides and then you share it with folks and they're like, "I don't know really what you're trying to say there, Travis." So there's... 0:09:25.0 Andrew Stotz: It seems like an onion and a carrot. 0:09:27.0 Travis Timmons: Right. Right. 0:09:27.3 Andrew Stotz: But I don't get the taste of it. 0:09:29.6 Travis Timmons: Yeah, so it's just working through those iterations. So miniature, little PDSAs, if you will, of the agenda. But yeah, once we get it to a point where we feel like, okay, we know what we want to work on, then the next big thing becomes how do we get the team involved ahead of the meeting? Because if you... I found very clearly over the years, if the team's not understanding what they're going to be working on coming into the meeting, that you've lost so much opportunity to learn from the entire organization. Because that's where the real learning happens when we do these is stuff that's happening that I don't have visibility of or little workarounds or somebody has a great idea, but maybe didn't feel like it was the right place to bring it up. So just have another opportunity for people to feel very comfortable sharing what breakdowns are happening. But we have homework, right? So that's one of the other big pieces of, if we're going to work on the system, we better know what we're working on that day. And if I don't tell anybody what we're working on until the day of the meeting, we could spend two hours just defining a fishbone chart, which we can talk about later perhaps. 0:11:15.7 Travis Timmons: But the point of the homework is we spend a lot of time, hours preparing the homework booklet that we give to the team about two-and-a-half weeks before the meeting. And it informs them, here's where we're going to be diving deep. We need you to come with the ideas and questions and thoughts already in your head so that we can all just dive in aggressively. Because it's so powerful when they're just bringing the ideas, referencing their homework. You can get so much more done in five hours than if we weren't doing that. So that homework becomes critical and has to match the agenda. If it's disjointed, then you've already lost some trust with your team because they're like, "You had me do all that homework and then we just didn't talk about any of it at the offsite. Like, what are we doing here." So it all has to tie together from a system view, as Dr. Deming would want, hopefully. 0:11:43.5 Andrew Stotz: Yeah. And I don't know, for the listeners and the viewers out there, you probably feel the same way I do, which is kind of like, "Oh, gosh, I should have done more preparing for that last offsite." And also feeling that excitement like, "Oh my gosh, I can unleash a lot from my leadership team, from the company employees through this pre-work and all of a sudden all the mess I have sometimes in offsites of, I don't understand what you're saying by this and what do you mean by that? It could be this." And all of that's gone. And so it makes me... I'm literally thinking about my next offsite and thinking, okay, how am I going to incorporate what you're teaching? So keep going. [laughter] 0:12:26.5 Travis Timmons: Yeah. Yeah, no, it's... And I've learned from some of the best over the years, so it's... I've been very fortunate to learn some of these tools. But yeah, from the homework perspective, it'll accomplish one of our other aims, which is always an aim, but more pointed in this meeting is they start to see the entire system and the complexity that's within it and just start appreciating. "All right, here's everything that has to happen." And, man, we're doing a lot of things really well. And they understand at a deeper level, every piece on our team is critical. There's no silos, no one piece of the equation is more important than the other. If any piece of the equation doesn't happen well, then we're not successful. So that's what with the homework, it just starts making sure from a cultural standpoint and an understanding from the Deming lens, we're all on this together. We have to work on the work together. And the system visibility helps with that, with the homework. And the engagement is so high. 0:13:32.3 Andrew Stotz: Yeah, I'm sure. And that's part of what makes it exciting when I was listening you talk. And I think we're going to need to do a little pre-work on the concept of fishbone, because there are some people that are listening or viewing that may have never even heard of fishbone and fishbone analysis and all that. So maybe as we move into this next part, make sure that you do that pre-work so that we all can figure out exactly what it means, fishbone. And I think you may even have some diagram of that you can share. 0:14:03.4 Travis Timmons: Yeah, I could pull up. If you'd like, I could pull one up to share here. So did that come through for you there? 0:14:12.9 Andrew Stotz: We see it now. 0:14:14.8 Travis Timmons: So this will be... This is part of the homework booklet that we created. So we filled in what we call the main bones. And this is just the patient journey from first contact with Fitness Matters all the way through to a successful discharge. So we have the main bones, I'll call it. If you envision this being, there'd be a fish head at the far right, and then the tail would be at the left. But we just want people to start working on, okay, how does somebody first hear about us at initial contact? Well, they'll write in underneath initial contact, could be website, Google search, could be physician referral, could be my neighbor. So we start penciling in what's all of the ways people first come in contact with Fitness Matters? So we have an understanding of what that looks like. And is it a good first impression? Do we knock that out of the park? And then it just goes through all the major... We look at it as five major bones from first contact to discharge. Second is that initial contact with us to them, scheduling the evaluation. So how many times have they had to call us and leave a voicemail, or can they schedule online, or can they stop in the clinic and schedule, or how did the script come to us, do we capture their insurance data correctly? It just goes how quickly a lot of researching... 0:15:37.0 Andrew Stotz: So many ways to drop the ball? 0:15:39.6 Travis Timmons: Yeah, a lot of research to show if you don't schedule that patient within the first 48 hours of initial contact, the likelihood of them scheduling just plummets. 0:15:49.3 Andrew Stotz: Yeah. 0:15:50.0 Travis Timmons: So a lot of things we have to consider in technology and systems, process, tracking. We have a whole system of how we track how many times we've reached out. We have templates created on how we text message versus voicemail, because some people don't listen to voicemails anymore. Anyway, I could spend an hour just on this fishbone. And then it goes to evaluation day. So when they show up in the clinic, do we have their benefits ready to explain to them? Is the therapist ready for them? Have they looked at their medical history? Do they understand how much they're going to pay? How do they pay? Is it easy to pay? And then the next bone is the plan of care. So all the visits they do, how good are we at scheduling them? How good is the therapist at predicting how many visits they'll need? Is it clear? Do they understand what they owe every visit? So there's not a great experience and then they get this big surprise bill at the end and just ruins everything, right? So we work very hard to be transparent. And then a successful discharge into home exercise and our wellness services. 0:16:52.5 Travis Timmons: So that's what we want everybody to spend some time on with homework. And then at the offsite, this isn't easy to make a patient happy and have a successful outcome. And I think a lot of times in organizations, people don't fully appreciate or see the entire system and understand why this part up here. So if we don't fill out their insurance demographic correctly at the front desk and we rush them back to the evaluation because the therapist is in a hurry, well, now all of those claims aren't going to get paid. 0:17:27.9 Andrew Stotz: Yeah. 0:17:29.1 Travis Timmons: And now we've had a bad outcome for the company. So anyway, that's the fishbone chart. It really helps you diagram at a big level. And then you can dive deep on each one of these bones and turn each of the bone into its own miniature fish, we'll call it, and really dive deeper and deeper, which we'll be doing at our offsite. 0:17:46.8 Andrew Stotz: Yeah. And for the listener out there, think of your own business, what's the chronology of from first contact to delivering this successful experience? Delivering that experience that you're trying to deliver in your business or your school, wherever you are. And this breaks it down into kind of the stages or the phases of that on kind of a chronological order. And that helps you to visualize. And that's part of what you've talked about is the idea of trying to, one of the big goals is visualizing. So that's a great visual of it. Maybe, I think you can probably stop sharing that now. And then also that's, I believe, activity, what I would call activity part one is working on that. Maybe talk a little bit about the mechanics of, now that we understand the fishbone and all of that, what are you asking them to do and then how are they using that? 0:18:51.2 Travis Timmons: Yeah, so the first breakout, we're going to have six tables where they'll use their homework to start filling that in. It's conversation, it's collaboration. It's like, "Oh, this person over here had that on their homework. I didn't even think about that." So that's the goal is that 10,000-foot view, here's the entire system. 0:19:09.6 Andrew Stotz: And are they doing that on a wall together or something like that? Or how is it happening? 0:19:13.4 Travis Timmons: Yeah, we're going to have big newsprint, so it'll be up and big newsprint so everybody can see what's going on. And at the end of the day, we have a very large fish that we're going to have posted and we're going to fill it in with the final product, if you will. That's the entire fishbone. So that's the aim of the first one, is the big picture. Some collaboration, some understanding of the entire system of Fitness Matters and what the complexity looks like. It also allows, one of the things we try to do with this offsite and really in culture in general, Dr. Deming talks about is driving out fear. So newer team members, especially when they start seeing, hey, let's just start talking about stuff, they really start to have a deeper understanding of our culture. And yeah, we do want to talk about stuff. We do want to talk about ways to improve. And then a follow on to that, we're going to do another breakout later in the day. And by table, each table is going to be assigned one of the main bones we just reviewed there. 0:20:20.4 Andrew Stotz: Right. 0:20:21.2 Travis Timmons: And they're going to turn that into a fish itself and do a really deep dive. And what are all the pieces and parts of initial contact? What are all the pieces and parts of eval? So on and so forth. And the aim of that piece is then with that deeper dive into the complexity, the aim is to come away with probably three PDSAs of where do we need to improve our system? Based on that work, we'll have three, maybe four really clear ideas on, okay, we're seeing this as a sticking point. The team's talked a lot about it. How do we improve that? So that's where the PDSAs come from. [overlapping conversation] 0:20:58.5 Andrew Stotz: So how do you end up figuring out? I mean, everybody's going to talk about, "We need to fix this area, we need to fix this area," or something like that. How do you then... Is it a collaboration, a discussion, is it a voting to say these are the three PDSAs we're going to work on? 0:21:16.7 Travis Timmons: Yeah, so we want it to be collaborative. There's little... Everybody will have little sticker dots. And on one of the breaks, once all these fish charts are filled out, we're going to ask team members to go around and put a sticker by the one that they think would be the highest and best use of our time and resources. So that's kind of an internal, quick, on-the-fly voting just to see where the team's heads at. And they can also have an understanding of how this is hard to... It's hard to choose. We can't work on 20 things. So where do you guys think we need to put the effort? And then at the end of the day, at the very end of the day, I have to decide based on all the feedback from the team and what our resources and capabilities are, then we have to pick three or four. But it's super powerful to have the team involved in that. 0:22:08.4 Andrew Stotz: Yeah, and one of the things about that type of voting is that sometimes people are voting on things that they think they understand what they're voting on and then you find out, actually, maybe not. So one of the fun ones to do in that case is say, okay, if you have one of your ideas up there that wasn't voted for, it could be, and you think it should be, it could be, maybe they didn't understand how you described it or how it's up there. And anybody that wants to make a pitch for that, go ahead. 0:22:37.0 Travis Timmons: Right. I like that. 0:22:37.4 Andrew Stotz: And you'll get a couple zealots saying, "I really think that this one should be up there in a higher priority." And then after that and say, "Okay, anybody want to move one of their dots?" And then that's a fun way. 0:22:52.5 Travis Timmons: I might steal that one. I like that. 0:22:55.6 Andrew Stotz: That's a fun way to say, there's always a second chance, but you got to make your pitch and it's got to convince people to move their dots. So, yep. 0:23:03.4 Travis Timmons: Yeah. I like that. Yeah, so that's how we work on the PDSAs. And it just really at the end of our meeting, I feel like the work we will have done with the homework and the how the agenda is laid out, because we spend a lot of time on the agenda and making some... So we have a timetable on each part of the agenda because my experience has been if you don't plan then things are going to go sideways. Like if you don't have a time commitment to it. And it also gives you a hard break on like, "Okay, guys, there's a couple other things we have to tackle today. This is extremely helpful, but we got to move on to the next thing." But at the end of the meeting, I have the agenda structured in a way that I feel like, I hope I'm not wrong, we'll find out next Friday. I feel like we'll have enough data, enough of the voting, enough of the conversation where I'll be able to report back to the team on like, "Hey this kind of aligns with where I think we need to put our energy and resources. Here's the top three PDSAs we're going to do." And if there was something that had a ton of votes, but we're not going to do that. I also want to be able to share with them why. "Hey, I understand that's big, but we don't have the money to do that one this year," or something like that. Because you don't want to do all this work and then just pick totally something different. And then because then you've lost total trust in your team and that's not good. 0:24:35.6 Andrew Stotz: Yeah. And also, one of the things that I learned after working at investment banks over the years and teaching ethics in finance is that there's firewalls between different parts of an investment bank because they don't want the employees communicating because they're kind of doing conflicting businesses. And so a person working in one area, as I was working in research, is different from a person that's working in investment banking. I may be doing research on a company and saying, "This company is a sell." And that that guy may be doing investment banking and say, "I'm going to help this company raise capital." And we have different objectives. And and they're both legitimate activities that are happening. And we're serving different clients. I'm serving the fund manager who's considering investing. And that person's serving in the investment banking, the CEO of the company and the ownerships and the shareholders of the company. We're serving different clients, but the important thing is that we're not really supposed to know, and we generally didn't, throughout my career, know what the other was doing. But as you go up to the next level of management, they are on both sides of that wall. 0:25:49.0 Andrew Stotz: They must be able to understand what's happening on both sides for various reasons, but most importantly, they have to make decisions about the overall organization based upon a level of knowledge that maybe the people at the lower parts of the organization may be extremely excited and confident and happy about what they're doing, but they can't necessarily connect all those dots. So that's the reason why I would explain in your case that you may have to override something and say, "Look, I've listened, but I do think this is a higher priority because what you guys aren't seeing is how this connects to the implementation of the software." 0:26:25.8 Travis Timmons: Right. 0:26:26.1 Andrew Stotz: "And you're not seeing it because you haven't been doing all of this stuff that I've been doing. And so I'm going to override that one and raise that one. But the other two, let's do those," type of thing. 0:26:36.2 Travis Timmons: Yeah. And that's kind of from a... Totally agree. And that's from a Deming, make the system visible. You also have to explain from a transparency standpoint, in my opinion, anyway, if you're going to go through all this work to your point, everybody doesn't fully understand what our budget is to spend on software next year, for example, and don't expect them to, but I need to know that. So just explaining to them why we're choosing the ones we're choosing, explaining that we can't boil the ocean, and then create the PDSA and we'll give them a promise that we'll report back within... Usually, I report back within a month at the end of the meeting, of the PDSAs build out, you know, what's the aim? [overlapping conversation] 0:27:22.5 Andrew Stotz: That was my next question. How do you make sure that those PDSAs get done? Because I've left a lot of offsites. I've left them and thought, "Yep, that was interesting. Nothing's going to happen." 0:27:35.8 Travis Timmons: Yeah, no, that's where you start to lose trust from your team as well. It's like if, you know... So we revisit our meetings from last year. Like that'll be part of our recap. Okay, here's what we set out to do last year. So the beginning of the meeting is like, here's the things we talked about we wanted to do and here's what we did. Here's what we still have left to do. But yeah, with a deliverable like this, man, it would be a huge miss on my part if we didn't follow through with PDSAs. 0:28:05.5 Andrew Stotz: And are you managing those or you have one person in-charge of each one of those and then you work with them or what are the mechanics of that? 0:28:15.4 Travis Timmons: Yeah, I think the two larger ones, one of ours is going to include a software change. So that one will be in my wheelhouse for sure. 0:28:22.9 Andrew Stotz: Yeah. 0:28:24.0 Travis Timmons: But yeah, I could envision assigning a champion for two or three of the smaller ones and they won't really be small, they'll be company-wide. The software is a pretty heavy lift. 0:28:36.8 Andrew Stotz: It's interesting because now I can see you've talked about this driving out fear and sharing all information and all of that. And I think that now that I understand your process, I can see that when you get into the hard work of the PDSA, that's going to challenge assumptions, it's going to push the limits, it's going to be testing things that when you get there, everybody knows exactly why that's happening and where that came from. Maybe you can talk a little bit about this concept of one of your goals being driving out fear and using this event as one of the ways to do that. 0:29:17.0 Travis Timmons: Yeah, no, yeah, that's a big piece that I learned from Deming years ago is, people have a lot of fear. What's going on? We don't know. The transparency of this event in and of itself, my experience has been, like, "Oh, I guess we're just talking about everything here, huh?" Putting it out there just makes people comfortable knowing what's going on, what we're working on, what we're not doing as well as we could be and we're aware of it and where it's at in the priority stack. And then also, for five hours they're going to be seeing people speak up. And we call it, "Celebrate the Breakdowns." So from a Dr. Deming perspective, 96, some percent of issues within an organization are due to system issues, not people issues. So they'll start to see, like, hey, when you talk about systems and processes, you can really talk pretty intensely. Very hard to do if you're complaining about how people do things. Right? Because you're... So that system breakdown, we call it Celebrate the Breakdowns, just allows people to be more free and also understand, hey, everybody does show up wanting to do a good job. 0:30:30.7 Travis Timmons: And Travis probably assumes I show up wanting to do a good job. Let's talk about how to make this place better. So that drives out the fear just by making the system visible. And then with the PDSAs, I think it drives out fear from a standpoint of they know when we're going to make a change. This isn't just us shooting from the hip. It's a very organized, methodical, visible way that we know we need to change something. Here's how we're going to do it, and if we're wrong, we'll change it. So that's another way that the PDSA process, my experience has been it also drives out fears because they have a deep understanding of just seeing this entire process. They have confidence, like, "Okay, this isn't just flavor of the month. I'm just going to throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks. This is a big deal. We're going to work on it together. We're going to try it and if it's not going well, we'll try something different collaboratively." 0:31:29.5 Andrew Stotz: I want to wrap it up there and I think... Do you have anything final that you want to add to the process that we've talked about? Is there anything else that people need to know about as they're planning their offsite? 0:31:40.5 Travis Timmons: No, I think we covered quite a bit. I think the big takeaway is it's more work than I think I realized until I had exposure to Deming and some mentors in my life. And it's been a game changer on how much we can accomplish. So the time investment is worth it. 0:31:57.2 Andrew Stotz: And I think we're going to meet again later and talk, and I think we can get an update from you what went well, what do you need to improve, and guide us also as we think about our next offsite, which is pretty exciting. 0:32:11.5 Travis Timmons: Yeah, I look forward to sharing how it went. My hope is I'll report back on at least three PDSAs that we have ready to engage for 2026. 0:32:21.2 Andrew Stotz: I can't wait. Well, Travis, on behalf of everyone at the Deming Institute, I want to thank you again for this discussion. And for listeners, remember to go to deming.org to continue your journey. This is your host, Andrew Stotz, and I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes from Dr. Deming, "People are entitled to joy in work."
Some Sunday thoughts and an offer from Bill.Sponsorship InformationThank you to Trata for sponsoring the show.If you're listening to this podcast, you'll like Trata. Trata is buyside to buyside conversations on individual stocks. Trata makes finding a bull or bear on any stock as easy as clicking two buttons. Over 125 funds globally contribute that collectively cover 2000+ tickers. Trata raised over $3mm coming out of Y Combinator. Before you would track 13Fs, now you can understand what funds are actually thinking. You can join as a lurker or you can join as a contributor and Trata will pay you hundreds of dollars per call. For a free trial, go to trytrata.com/brew OG Sponsor Shoutout!Thank you to Fiscal.ai for sponsoring the show. DISCOUNT INFO: If you use the affiliate link fiscal.ai/brew, you will automatically get 2 weeks of Fiscal Pro for Free and if you find that you want to upgrade, my link will get you 15% off any paid plans. About Fiscal.aiFiscal.ai is the complete modern data terminal for global equities.The Fiscal.ai platform combines a powerful user experience with all the financial data capabilities that professional investors need. Users get up to 20 years of historical financials for all stocks globally that they can easily chart, compare, or export into their own models. And unlike legacy data terminals where it can take hours or even days, Fiscal.ai's data is updated within minutes of earnings reports. Fiscal.ai also tracks all the company-specific Segment & KPI data so you don't have to. Like to track Amazon's Cloud Revenue? They've got it.How about Spotify's premium subscribers? Or Google's quarterly paid clicks?They've got all of it.
Will Thomson returns! In this episode he has the audacity to suggest oil might be a smarter place to fish than gold. He also discusses copper as a theme. Bill likes Will. You should listen to Will. Will is a solid dude. Sponsorship InformationThank you to Trata for sponsoring the show.If you're listening to this podcast, you'll like Trata. Trata is buyside to buyside conversations on individual stocks. Trata makes finding a bull or bear on any stock as easy as clicking two buttons. Over 125 funds globally contribute that collectively cover 2000+ tickers. Trata raised over $3mm coming out of Y Combinator. Before you would track 13Fs, now you can understand what funds are actually thinking. You can join as a lurker or you can join as a contributor and Trata will pay you hundreds of dollars per call. For a free trial, go to trytrata.com/brew OG Sponsor Shoutout!Thank you to Fiscal.ai for sponsoring the show. DISCOUNT INFO: If you use the affiliate link fiscal.ai/brew, you will automatically get 2 weeks of Fiscal Pro for Free and if you find that you want to upgrade, my link will get you 15% off any paid plans. About Fiscal.aiFiscal.ai is the complete modern data terminal for global equities.The Fiscal.ai platform combines a powerful user experience with all the financial data capabilities that professional investors need. Users get up to 20 years of historical financials for all stocks globally that they can easily chart, compare, or export into their own models. And unlike legacy data terminals where it can take hours or even days, Fiscal.ai's data is updated within minutes of earnings reports. Fiscal.ai also tracks all the company-specific Segment & KPI data so you don't have to. Like to track Amazon's Cloud Revenue? They've got it.How about Spotify's premium subscribers? Or Google's quarterly paid clicks?They've got all of it.
This week on Sinica, I speak with Afra Wang, a writer working between London and the Bay Area, currently a fellow with Gov.AI. We're talking today about her recent WIRED piece on what might be China's most influential science fiction project you've never heard of: The Morning Star of Lingao (Língáo Qǐmíng 临高启明), a sprawling, crowdsourced novel about time travelers who bootstrap an industrial revolution in Ming Dynasty Hainan. More than a thought experiment in alternate history, it's the ur-text of China's "Industrial Party" (gōngyè dǎng 工业党) — the loose intellectual movement that sees engineering capability as the true source of national power. We discuss what the novel reveals about how China thinks about failure, modernity, and salvation, and why, just as Americans are waking up to China's industrial might, the worldview that helped produce it may already be losing its grip.5:27 – Being a cultural in-betweener: code-switching across moral and epistemic registers 10:25 – Double consciousness and converging aesthetic standards 12:05 – "The greatest Chinese science fiction" — an ironic title for a poorly written cult classic 14:18 – Bridging STEM and humanities: the KPI-coded language of tech optimization 16:08 – China's post-Industrial Party moment: from "try hard" to "lie flat" 17:01 – How widely known is Lingao? A cult Bible for China's techno-elite 19:11 – From crypto bros to DAO experiments: how Afra discovered the novel 21:25 – The canonical timeline: compiling chaos into collaborative fiction 23:06 – Guancha.cn (guānchá zhě wǎng 观察者网) and the Industrial Party's media ecosystem 26:05 – The Sentimental Party (Qínghuái Dǎng 情怀党): China's lost civic space 29:01 – The Wenzhou high-speed rail crash: the debate that defined the Industrial Party 33:19 – Controlled spoilers: colonizing Australia, the Maid Revolution, and tech trees 41:06 – Competence as salvation: obsessive attention to getting the details right 44:18 – The Needham question and the joy of transformation: from Robinson Crusoe to Primitive Technology 47:25 – "Never again": inherited historical vulnerability and the memory of chaos 49:20 – Wang Xiaodong, "China Is Unhappy," and the crystallization of Industrial Party ideology 51:33 – Gender and Lingao: a pre-feminist artifact and the rational case for equality 56:16 – Dan Wang's Breakneck and the "engineering state" framework 59:25 – New Quality Productive Forces (xīn zhì shēngchǎnlì 新质生产力): Industrial Party logic in CCP policy 1:03:43 – The reckoning: why Industrial Party intellectuals are losing their innocence 1:07:49 – What Lingao tells us about China today: the invisible infrastructure beneath the hot showerPaying it forward: The volunteer translators of The Morning Star of Lingao (English translation and GitHub resources)Xīn Xīn Rén Lèi / Pixel Perfect podcast (https://pixelperfect.typlog.io/) and the Bǎihuā (百花) podcasting community Recommendations:Afra: China Through European Eyes: 800 Years of Cultural and Intellectual Encounter, edited by Kerry Brown; The Wall Dancers: Searching for Freedom and Connection on the Chinese Internet by Yi-Ling Liu Kaiser: Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes by Tamim AnsarySee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Kiera is here with a gift to make your practice even better: The three most common mistakes dental practices make, and guidance on how to get out of them. Is your practice making one of these mistakes? Delegating tasks without ownership Avoiding hard conversations Flying blind on your numbers Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners, this is Kiera and today is one of my favorite topics of all time. It's how to avoid the pitfalls because I feel like these are costly mistakes that dental practice owners make. We make these costly pitfalls. We go into them. We don't know about them. And you guys, if you know me, I have a mantra and I say, don't lose money. I hate losing money. It's one of my biggest pet peeves and I don't want you to lose money. So I'm excited to talk about it. I hope you guys are excited because... The reality is like so many people talk about like, success leaves clues and it does, but so does failure. And I I talk about this a lot when I present and when I speak and I say like success and failure are truly not radically different. They're not, they're like small little things. It's like successful practices are consistent. Successful practices put systems in, successful practices look at their KPIs, successful practices have team meetings that are effective. Successful practices have CEO time. Successful practices have delegation and ownership. Successful practices ⁓ follow through. They look at their case acceptance. They make their re-care calls. They do their reactivation. They do different verbiage. Like that's what they do. Failure practices don't stay consistent. They always have an excuse. They're always blaming. ⁓ They don't check their case acceptance. They don't track their KPIs. They don't look at their numbers. They don't take CEO time. Like these are just little steps. And like with my fingers, if you're just listening, I'm like, almost like scallops, like if we've got a middle point, success is I checked my KPIs, failure is I didn't check my KPIs. And while that's not like a huge move, it is moving you points away to where you end up either closer to success or closer to failure. And so I think when we realize this, these are the ones, like, how can I help you guys avoid these costs and mistakes? How can I like motivate and inspire you and like, not just motivate, but genuinely change you? So that way it's not this I like, well, shoot, we're on failure row. Shoot, like, I don't really know about this. Like, I just want to talk about three of the most common mistakes that people make and how do you correct course because you're going to make mistakes. But like if I'm doing the scallops again, successful offices realize like we didn't do the KPIs. So we're going to start doing the KPIs and we don't miss those. We're going to hold the meetings and we don't miss those. they course correct before they end up in the failure or the success bucket. They're course correcting constantly. And so this is just like where I'm at coaching hundreds and thousands of offices, team members galore, our team, like literally, I feel so blessed that we get to serve so many offices. I just saw like this really awesome highlight reel of all these doctors that came in person and I was watching it with Jason and I look over and Jason's just the sweetest thing. He's tearing up and he said, Kiera. I knew when you started Dental A Team, it was going to be like, he's like, I never imagined it being what it is today. He said, but all those people's lives, including all of you listening to the podcasts, all of those lives that we've been able to change because of Dental A Team Gosh, that is just such a blessing. It's such a beautiful thing. And I just want to say thank you. Like, thank you for being here. Thank you for being a part of the offices. Thank you for being a part of my Dental A Team podcast family. Thank you for just showing up. Thank you for changing lives through dentistry. Thank you for giving people a gift of confidence. Like, And for me to be able to give you a gift to make your practice even better, that's what I'm here for. That's what Dental A Team's about. So like we're here to help you recognize patterns. We're here to help you avoid burnout. We're here to help you make small changes before they become giant snowballs. And I think like my thought process has always been I'm here to positively impact the world of dentistry in the greatest way possible. We're here to share this podcast message with every single office out there. We're here to help offices realize like running a successful practice. does not have to be hard. It can actually be easy. And let's give you the tools, the tips, the resources, all of that to make your life a grand success. So if that sounds great to you, we'll rock on. So step number one, mistake number one that's very costly is delegating tasks without ownership. So like so many offices, hear them like, Kiera, I listened to the podcast and we implemented it, but like it just didn't work out. And I'm like, yeah, cause you delegated it and you didn't have the structure, didn't have the ownership, you didn't have the accountability, you didn't have the metrics. Like, okay. One of the doctors called this doctor out and they said, this doctor is a walking cheat, like cheat code. Go talk to him, go ask him what he does because he's been able to take his practice for massive success, which is true. When I met them, were doing about 1.5. Now we're clearing five. We're going to be crushing six to seven. And I just like, gosh, the giddiness in me for this office. Like they deserve the sun, the moon, the stars. Like you name it. They're just such good humans. And so when I think about this, like we're talking, this is a practice that went from like 1.5, 2 million up to this six, $7 million practice now, something I've noticed. And like I said, this doctor is a walking cheat code. They, when we go in and we're like, okay, we're going to roll out this new process. So we're going to do a new process on how we do case acceptance, or we're going do new process on how we do cancellations. They don't just go to the team and be like, all right guys, we're going to do cancellations. They are like, we're going to build an SOP. we're gonna have a team training, we're gonna have a metric, we're gonna do it for these four weeks. And they don't take a long time to execute on that. So it's like, perfect, we're gonna have this done in the next three weeks. But they execute, it's rolled out, it's like, it's very, very thorough. And this is a practice of a very large team and they all do it consistently. And when something gets off, they just go right back to the SOP, they update the SOP, where was it missed? What do we need to do? Let's do a team training on it. But I will say I've coached hundreds of offices and this is one office that I watch constantly that is able to delegate, have ownership and be able to have a full team move and stay hyper accountable. So this is just like, you've got to have ownership. You've got to have SOPs. You've got to roll it out to the team, make sure everybody's aware. And then we've got to have the metrics and the check-ins to make sure something's not off. And if it is off, we follow through on it. So people know that when we roll out new processes, they're here to stick. They're not just like a flash in the pan of like, I heard it on a podcast. Let's try it out. No, it's very, very, very thorough. So a quick check for you is like, go back and look at the last three things that you delegated. Did you assign them? Did you own them? And did you have follow up on it? crickets. Yeah, yeah, because you did it. Darn it. But you're going to do it in the future. Or maybe you did. And I'm high fiving you. But most of the time, people don't. And this is so costly because then you can't ever be free. You think you're moving. You're taking one step forward, but you're actually taking like 500 steps backwards because nothing's actually getting delegated. Nothing's actually moving forward. And you're only relying on your A plus star players that are building all these ownership accountability pieces. And people are like, but I want everybody to be that way. And I'm like, human nature is not. Tell me how you're doing on your New Year's. resolutions, probably not great because human nature by default doesn't stay accountable. Why do think I'm in business? because people, they know what they need to do. People are like, Kiera, I pay you to tell me like what to do that you do on the podcast. And it's like, yeah, because human nature is not follow through. Why do I pay a gym trainer? I've got all the resources, I got all the tools. I need somebody to literally hold me accountable to make me show up to work out. So look at the last three tasks. Did you delegate them? Was their ownership? Did you follow up on them? Did they have a metric? If not, it up, fix that and start to delegate with ownership and accountability. So mistake number two, are you guys ready for this? It's avoiding hard conversations. ⁓ man, that's a crowd drop off. This is so real though, because we don't have like Patrick Lanziani has the five dysfunctions of a team. And if you and your team have not read this, I highly recommend it's a very easy fable. Have it as like some like, evening reading. It's so fast, it's so easy and it's very, very great. And I think it's a reread. So if you've listened to it in the past or you read it, maybe do a reread. ⁓ But when we don't have trust and vulnerability and then we don't have healthy debate, AKA hard conversations, what happens is like little small issues become cracks and cracks aren't bad. But if cracks stay there, they actually break and then it becomes toxic and then it arose the entire team. So in leadership, we've got to have, let's like, I coached his office. guys might know him. He's incredible. ⁓ They've got a lot of offices. think I did seven office visits ⁓ in three days. We were hauling booty. And I love this doctor because he pays for me to come in to coach his teams, to teach them how to have uncomfortable conversations, to remind them like this is why we're here. And the more we have just a few of these and we get away from the fear of discomfort. and wanting to keep the peace, which is actually artificial harmony, we like care, we align and we move forward. And we use the sports analogy on this of, can you just imagine like pick your favorite sports team, basketball, baseball, soccer, I don't care what it is. Can you imagine for one second, like we'll just use basketball for instance, or football. Like if the quarterback or the point guard goes in, like let's do football, because they get thrashed. Like if that quarterback gets thrashed because his defensive line is not protecting for him. or no one's open because they didn't follow the play, can you just imagine if that quarterback runs off the field and is like, hey coach, could you tell the defensive line to cover for me next time? Like absolutely not. Or if that quarterback is just like, I'm just so angry with my defensive line. Like they didn't block for me. Like, no, can you imagine? Like, no, they call it out. Like you got a freaking block for me. Like we need to win this game. I need this to happen. And they do it in real time because everybody on the team, is committed to winning and they call each other in real time of their blind spots. Like my brother said, I'll play basketball. I played tennis. You got to call it in the moment. Like my dad is like, you got to call it in real time. You got to say, Hey, I need you to block. I need you to box out for me. I need you to like throw the ball. Like I'm here. Like I need you guys to get open, whatever it is. But like, if we can get a little bit better, that that's our culture rather than a, we sit here pretending to be perfect, but ultimately hating each other. and hate's probably a strong word, but creating gaps. And so what I encourage is we normalize uncomfortable conversations. We normalize and encourage it. We push on peer to peer accountability. We have each other instead of it being up to the coach, AKA office manager or doctor, to each other, peer to peer, to where we talk about it. We wanna get the W, we wanna win. And so helping your team realize that this is going to be the best way for us to win is to have these hard conversations. And it's not, I say it's not confrontation. It's just a conversation. Like let's take that hard out of there, but let's say what needs to happen. And so I would say, doctors, one of the worst things you can do to your great players is to tolerate the poor performance of a lower player. ⁓ Because they're watching you. They're watching to see standards are not what you say. They're what you tolerate. And so when you're A plus players are watching, like, well, doctor is going to do this constantly or doctors are not going to care about that. Now team members, can rise up and you can take care of things too. Doctors, we've also got to make sure that we're encouraging and we're having the hard conversations too. I don't think you know how much I do not enjoy hard conversations, but I know as a leader, as a boss, as a CEO, as a consultant, I have got to have the hard conversations and I'm going to keep having them. They're not easy, but they are my responsibility and I'm going to show up as a good team member because actually that's better than living in artificial harmony. It's so much better. So there's a great quote. If you want it, your success and happiness, that's my add on your success and happiness are directly proportional to the number of uncomfortable conversations you're willing to have. So if you want to grow, if you want to rise, how many of you look at your KPIs or your numbers like, gosh, freaking schedule is not full. Like, oh, like our profitability, like, but I go to my team meetings and I'm like, great job guys, you're doing great. Why don't we call it out? Hey, profitability is not where it needs to be. What are our solutions to get it to where it needs to be? I'm not being a jerk. I'm not sitting here sizzling. Hey, our schedule is not up to goal. What are we doing to get that fixed? Let's have a conversation. Let's fix it. Let's normalize that. That's calling out in real time. Hey, our schedule is not to goal. Like what's our solution? How are we going to get there? It's like it's a huddle. It's a genuine huddle. Think about sports players. Like they get together. Like you need to block. I need you to call that person. I need you to do this. You guys need to call that all the hygienists. If you've got downtime, call seven patients, whatever it is. That's how we get the W. something rude, let's normalize that we are a team. We call each other out. We celebrate when we win. Also like on the flip, like let's go to basketball, let's go to football. When they score a touchdown, the whole team that was just calling each other out of like, I need you to block, I need you to do this. They also go to the end zone and they freaking celebrate. They lift each other up, they're high-fiving. It's both. So let's make sure that we're calling each other out and normalizing that. And we're also celebrating and normalizing that as well. So this is something of, I would just encourage you to have one honest conversation, and also I'd recommend in your next team meeting, let's have this if that's a standard, put it up in the break room. We normalize hard conversations. We encourage hard conversations. We are a company that does not sit in artificial harmony. Whatever it is, plaster that, build that into your culture. This is something you've got to like, if you guys could see, I'm like boxing out, like I'm pushing the defense. Like you've got to push this through all the way for you guys to get this to be that and to avoid that costly mistake. All right, mistake number three. This one should come as a no brainer. You guys know I love numbers and numbers love me. It's flying blind on your numbers. So I think that production feeds the ego, profit feeds the family. So when I look at this, so many doctors are like, well, Kiera, I know you say that the numbers are there, but I don't have any money. And I'm like, yes, but making haphazard, crazy decisions because you're not looking at your numbers and you're not using them as a roadmap, you're just flying by the seat your pants. And so when you look at this, you've got to know like, here's just a, guess, I guess to help you see like, am I flying blind on my numbers or do I maybe know my numbers? Question number one, what's your breakeven number? Now that's twofold. What's the breakeven number on the practice and what's the breakeven number paying you? Two questions, okay? My question is, what is your overhead on your supplies? What percent, what is your current overhead? What is your debt services taken out of your overhead? What is your EBITDA? What is your net profit? AKA cashflow. Of that profit, are you saving your taxes? Hmm, something to think about. Fascinating, right? That's how you know. And if you can't answer those questions right now. I know you're probably flying a little blind. Maybe you even just have like a eye patch on. That's okay. Maybe you're only half blind, not all the way blind. Or maybe you're like, Kiera, I'm walking in the dark. I don't even know any of that. don't even know where to find the PNL. It's fine. Wherever you are, you've got to get this dialed. Like I am a sticky broken record. haven't talked to her. Oh man, I'm so excited. She's going to get on podcast with me. And last year we were chatting and she was like, Kiera, like we were debating. Is she going to join consulting? Is she not going to join consulting? And she's like, I have got to get profitable. And I said, all right, rock on, challenge accepted. We are going to get you profitable. I have been a broken record with this poor doctor for an entire year. It's production, profit, production, profit, production, profit, production, profit. Head down, produce, make sure your team's collecting and make sure we're profitable. That is what we've done all year long. And guess what? Come the end of the year, she's like, Kiera, I have so much money, I got to pay taxes on it. Like we did it. and she did it in 11 months. So production, profit, production, profit. If you're producing, but you're not collecting and you're not looking at your numbers, you're not going to be profitable. If you're not planning for taxes and you're not saving for taxes, you're not gonna be profitable. If you don't know what your breakeven is on the practice and then what the breakeven is and what it needs to produce with you in there, you can't project this out and you can't forecast it and we can't figure out what your daily goal needs to be. And then you're just producing for the sake of producing for your ego. Who was that a rank? Could you tell us there? If you like that email me Hello@TheDentalATeam.com. I might rap it. You guys, I used to have a rapper name Skittlez with a Z so I could wrap with Eminem. Tell Eminem I'd love to wrap with him. I've never gotten that far, but you know, Skittlez, Skittlez and Eminem. I don't know why I just told you that. Email me Hello@TheDentalATeam.com. If you think I should be Skittlez and rap it out. I'd love to hear from you. I genuinely love a good pen pal. So write me. But you've got to know your numbers. You have to. non-negotiable. And this is, think, where accountability as a coach comes into play. I force our clients with our consultants to know their numbers. We call it the yes model. You've got to have your vision. That's the Y. E stands for earnings. You've got to be profitable, non-negotiable, otherwise go be an associate. And S stands for systems and team development. If we know the vision, when we look at the numbers, it's going to tell us the systems and team development we need to do, period. Period. That's the formula. That's all it is. So if you're flying blind on your numbers, like, ugh. Guys, I'm scratching my head over here. This is stress. If you ever see me fluff my hair, it means I'm stressed, okay? My team has told me they're like, Kiera, what you do is it's a little like side fluff. And right now it's both hands fluff. Like I'm stressed out for you because I used to fly blind on numbers. So many clients flying by on non-numbers. They don't look at it. They've got multi-practices and they don't break it down. You guys, these are costly pitfalls. So remember, go back to the success and failure. They're not radically different. It's failure to look at the numbers. It's failure to say like, I don't care if you don't know numbers or not, I don't know numbers either. But guess what? Kiera freaking loves numbers and numbers freaking love Kiera. That is how this works. It is, I'm going to force myself to learn this. You guys, on my goal board, I'm not joking you. I should like take pictures of this so you guys can see it. In my bedroom, Jason and I made this like joint goal board. If you guys wanna get your spouse involved in your life, cause you feel like you're just driving and growing without them. Joint goal board between the two of us has been amazing and it sits in our bedroom. It's not pretty It was built on Canva. It cost me eight bucks. It took us a Sunday to do it together But I literally have this like sign and it says tax expert ahead. I Did not know taxes. I was getting burned every single year I was crying every single December and I was like I am never doing this again I'm going to become a freaking tax expert. I started reading books on it. I called up the CPAs. I started researching it I was like, okay, it's just a formula. Yes, of course. They're like all these ways I can reduce it But at the end of the day, it's really just a very simple formula. Whatever my profit is, whatever my tax bracket is, I know, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, this is a very simplified version. CPAs don't come after me right now. It's just truly like, if I can take that, I'm always gonna have a slush and I'm not gonna cry. And I figured it out. And for you, I want you to take it on like, you're gonna learn taxes. You're going to be profitable. I want your goal for 2026, 2027, 2028, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, forever that you are profitable always. I have a mantra and I say, Kiera Dent does not lose money. And I want you to be the same way. Always profitability, profitability, profitability, get the production, get the profitability. We got to, and again, the way we increase profit, increase production, increase collections, decrease costs. Those are the three levers. So look at the numbers, get your team bought in. This is a costly mistake that I don't want you to make. So commit that by Friday, you will have a KPI scorecard in place, or you're going to call Dental A Team. TheDentalATeam.com go on over, email me, hello, book a call, whatever it is, I will help you out, but you are going to learn your numbers. There's no more excuses. It's not that hard. I promise you, our fee will offset the amount of money you are going to make. Most of our clients are like a two to one, eight to one, 10 to one ratio, meaning we are making that much more money. So a 10 to 30 % increase in production, 30 % would be a three to one ratio. Like you guys, it's insanity what we're able to do for offices. I love it. We usually pay for ourselves in the first couple of months. So it's 100 % worth it. Know your numbers. You just knowing your numbers and tracking and measuring will make you more profitable. So don't be the person that has these costs and mistakes. You gotta take ownership. Like bottom line, the way we had this, mistake number one, delegating tasks and not having ownership. So think back to that. We gotta delegate like that office I told you about. Again, this is a $7 million practice. You wanna be like a $7 million? Do the things today to be the $7 million practice. You've got to have the hard conversations, normalize that, have that be a part of your culture. And number three is you've got to freaking know those numbers. I love numbers, numbers love me. And if you're not great at this, that's why I've got the podcast. That's why we're here. Reach out, Hello@TheDentalATeam.com. Do not do this alone. Do not spend another minute struggling through these costly pitfalls. You don't deserve it. Your team doesn't deserve it. Your patients don't deserve it. So reach out, it's time. Hello@TheDentalATeam.com. But please commit to yourself that you're going to do this. You're not failing. You're not clear over the failure bucket. You're just a few little shifts away from it. And again, remember success and failure are not radically different. They're just small little micro steps. You can quickly make those back and get closer to where you actually want to be. It's not huge. It's not hard. It's not all these crazy things. It's small incremental changes that are going to radically change your life. So make the call, make the changes, commit. You're worth it. You deserve it. And as always, I'm cheering you on forever and ever. I'm here on your team. I'm here in your corner. I'm here in your air pod. Wherever I'm at, just know I'm rooting for you. You deserve it. Let's do this together. Let's have you do this on your own, whatever it's going to be, but commit to not having these costly mistakes be your mistakes. And as always, thanks for listening. I'll catch you next time on the Dental A Team Podcast.