Podcast appearances and mentions of pamela slim

Pamela Slim (author, speaker and agency owner) about discernment, resilience, self-knowledge and ways to amplify our impact in the world, even during challenging times, by leveraging our value as intellectual property and IP.In season 12 of the Creating Cadence Podcast, Mich Bondesio is talking to professionals working both inside and outside of traditional sustainability sectors, to garner their thoughts on effective ways that we can better support the triple bottom line of people, planet and profit in the way that we work. References and resources mentioned on the show are shared in the podcast episode transcript page, which you can find at https://creatingcadence.co.The Creating Cadence Podcast is hosted on Acast and is available wherever you listen to your pods. It's edited on Descript and this season's podcast music track is OneEightFour by Blue Dot Sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Time to Thrive, host Bethany Meadows interviews renowned author, business coach and entrepreneur Pamela Slim. Known for her bestsellers Escape from Cubicle Nation and The Widest Net, Pamela shares invaluable insights on building a sustainable business by leveraging the power of community, aligning passion with purpose and using consistent small marketing actions to drive growth. Discover how to surround yourself with a network that supports both your personal and business success, and learn practical strategies for turning your passion into profit. Whether you're just starting or looking to scale, Pamela's advice will inspire and guide you toward long-term success. Don't miss this engaging conversation filled with actionable takeaways!Tune in now to learn:How to build a community ecosystem that supports your business growthWhy aligning passion with a clear business purpose is essentialThe importance of "Tiny Marketing Actions" for consistent growthListen to the full episode and start thriving today!00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction00:42 Random Questions Segment01:37 Key Characteristics for Business Success06:13 The Importance of Community08:56 Aligning Passion with Purpose10:59 Supporting Underserved Entrepreneurs15:48 Mindset Shifts from Corporate to Entrepreneurship20:04 Navigating Uncertainty in Business20:50 The Role of Entrepreneurs in Society24:06 Choosing the Right Tools for Your Business29:12 The Power of Storytelling in Business33:10 Common Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make36:27 Key Takeaways for Business Success37:52 Where to Find More from Pamela Slim Discover the strategies, systems and skills that lead to success in business. Visit TimeToThriveInBusiness.com to learn more.

Author, speaker, and certification expert Pamela Slim covers the contentious topic of whether or not switching jobs and companies regularly REALLY makes a difference to your appeal in the job market, and towards your goals overall.Hear Pamela's full interview in Episode 44 of The Action Catalyst.

Author, speaker, and certification expert Pamela Slim addresses the “new world of work”, including what makes it so unpredictable, what is considered THE meta skill throughout all of history, and how to talk to our kids about what we do professionally.

“The relationships that you build with others, your clients, and how you make them feel is going to be just as important, if not more important, than what it is that you are actually delivering.” ~ Pat Flynn   In this episode of The Widest Net Podcast, Pam is joined by Pat Flynn, a seasoned entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and bestselling author residing in San Diego, California. With over 100 million views on YouTube and 80 million podcast downloads, Pat is a highly influential figure in the digital marketing landscape.  As the host of the Smart Passive Income and AskPat podcasts, and an advisor to companies such as Convertkit and Circle, his expertise in community building and effective digital marketing strategies is widely acknowledged. Pat's commitment to inclusive community development and his proven track record in online business have positioned him as a leading authority, providing invaluable insights for entrepreneurs seeking to enhance their digital presence and drive active engagement.   Here's what you can expect from this episode:  Uncover the secrets to building thriving online communities that keep members engaged and active Unlock the key contemporary digital marketing strategies that will take your business to the next level Discover how to monetize your podcasts through lucrative sponsorships  Learn the art of creating valuable and exclusive content for your membership community that keeps members coming back for more Accelerate the growth of your email list with powerful and effective strategies that drive engagement and conversion   Resources mentioned in this episode:  Smart Passive Income - Podcast Resource Pack  Check out the Smart Passive Income Community to work with Pat and Pam Want to Become a Pro like Pam - Click here to apply! Pat Flynn - LinkedIn Pat Flynn - Instagram The Widest Net Book by Pamela Slim    Connect with The Widest Net Podcast If you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast. Published episodes will come directly to your favorite podcast app.  If you enjoyed the show, please rate it on Apple Podcasts with a short review. Doing so will help me reach more entrepreneurs and small business owners just like you.  Connect with Pam directly on LinkedIn

#788 There's nothing wrong with building an empire around your brand. But why aren't more entrepreneurs with complementary skills teaming up to create ecosystems? What if this was a better way to serve our audiences? Let's explore that with our newest SPI Pro Expert in Residence, Pamela Slim! Like all of our EIRs, Pam is here to serve our community members with next-level knowledge and support. She has a serious track record, having spent three decades helping entrepreneurs scale their businesses and IP! Today's chat covers everything from creating a certification program around your workflow to advice for young people considering college. Join us to tap into Pam's expertise in networking, marketing, and leveraging social platforms. You'll also learn about the top skills to build up and focus on in the Age of AI. If you're a parent, these golden nuggets will also help your kids achieve their dreams. Enjoy! Show notes and more at SmartPassiveIncome.com/session788.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

“I think sometimes we just need to make a decision, go with it, and do our best at it.” ~ Madisun Nuismer   In this episode of The Widest Net Podcast, Pam is joined by Madisun Nuismer, the creative force behind the scenes of the Remarkable People podcast. Madisun brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the production process. With a BA in public health from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and certification as a holistic health coach from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition, Madisun's diverse background adds depth to the podcast's content.  Based in the vibrant setting of Santa Cruz, California, her role encompasses everything from managing guest pitches to meticulously editing each episode, ensuring that every aspect of the podcast reflects the team's dedication to delivering high-quality, engaging content. Madisun's collaborative efforts with Guy Kawasaki demonstrate her commitment to creating an exceptional podcast experience for listeners.   Here's what you can expect from this episode:  Discover the behind-the-scenes secrets of producing a podcast that captivates audiences and leaves a lasting impact Uncover how Guy Kawasaki has influenced and shaped successful careers, and what you can learn from his insights Explore the unique and vibrant surfing culture in Santa Cruz, and how it has influenced the local community and beyond Learn about the collaborative process of writing and publishing a book, and how it can lead to new opportunities and connections Embrace growth, grit, and grace as essential elements in personal development, and how they can propel you towards success Remember we all need each other - life and work is better together.   Resources mentioned in this episode: Madisun Nuismer - LinkedIn Email - madisunnuismer@gmail.com Remarkable People Podcast Book - Think Remarkable by Guy Kawasaki w/ Madisun Nuismer The Widest Net Book by Pamela Slim   Connect with The Widest Net Podcast If you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast. Published episodes will come directly to your favorite podcast app.  If you enjoyed the show, please rate it on Apple Podcasts with a short review. Doing so will help me reach more entrepreneurs and small business owners just like you.  Connect with Pam directly on LinkedIn

“We look at legal protections proportionally, both to the size of your business and to the risk” ~ Autumn Witt Boyd   In this episode of The Widest Net Podcast, Pam is joined by Autumn Witt Boyd, a legal powerhouse who shifted from battling copyright and business issues in courtrooms to founding The AWB Firm in 2015, whose mission is to empower entrepreneurs to build, protect, and scale their businesses without the legal headache.  With her extensive legal expertise, Autumn simplifies complex legal jargon and provides actionable advice to help entrepreneurs navigate the intricacies of copyrights, trademarks, and licensing. Autumn's straightforward approach in this episode and wealth of knowledge make legal protection accessible, ensuring that entrepreneurs can safeguard their businesses with confidence.   Here's what you can expect from this episode:  Discover how copyright and trademark protection can safeguard your business's unique creations and brand identity Uncover the nuances of creating online courses while navigating the intricacies of copyright laws Explore the significance of licensing agreements in protecting and monetizing your intellectual property Differentiate between licensing and franchising to make informed decisions for your business expansion strategies Find out how using AI and trademarking work together…or not Remember we all need each other - life and work is better together.   Resources mentioned in this episode: 2024 Online Business Legal Report The AWB Firm Website The AWB Firm - Instagram The AWB Firm - Facebook Autumn Witt Boyd - LinkedIn The Widest Net Book by Pamela Slim   Connect with The Widest Net Podcast If you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast. Published episodes will come directly to your favorite podcast app.  If you enjoyed the show, please rate it on Apple Podcasts with a short review. Doing so will help me reach more entrepreneurs and small business owners just like you.  Connect with Pam directly on LinkedIn

Today our guest is Pamela Slim, celebrated author and small business expert who has dedicated decades to shaping and enhancing the entrepreneurial ecosystem.  She is a co-founder of the KEH community lab in Mesa, Arizona, alongside her husband, Darryl. This innovative hub serves as a grassroots, community-based think tank dedicated to accelerating small business growth. Pam's insights and expertise frequently grace the pages of esteemed publications, including The New York Times, Forbes, and BusinessWeek. She has written several books including "Escape from Cubicle Nation," which was recognized as the Best Small Business and Entrepreneur book in 2009 and her follow up, Body of Work. Her latest book, "The Widest Net," helps you grow your business by connecting with customers outside your usual field of view.

“The reason marketing feels so bad so often is because instead of going for the truth of is this a fit? We're taught to go for the close, go for the sale.” ~ Tad Hargrav   In this episode of The Widest Net Podcast, Pam is joined by Tad Hargrave, a pioneering conscious business marketing coach, renowned for his unorthodox and ethical approach to marketing. With a background that includes navigating both manipulative and authentic marketing methods, Tad embarked on a journey of unlearning and redefining marketing practices. His commitment to sustainability and ethical business has led him to become a leading voice in the industry.  Through his engaging workshops and 16 books and workbooks on marketing, Tad has empowered entrepreneurs to embrace marketing strategies that not only work but also align with their values. With a focus on the belief that marketing can feel good for all involved, Tad's influence has extended across Canada, the United States, Europe, and online platforms, shaping a community of conscious entrepreneurs and green businesses dedicated to ethical and impactful marketing practices.   Here's what you can expect from this episode:  Learn how to build trust and loyalty with your audience while staying true to your values Discover how to grow your business in a way that supports the environment and the community Explore the power of bringing people together and creating meaningful connections through engaging workshops and events Uncover impactful methods to promote your business authentically and ethically Streamline your services to ensure the best experience for your clients and customers Remember we all need each other - life and work is better together.   Resources mentioned in this episode: Marketing for Hippies - Starter Kit Marketing for Hippies - Website Tad Hargrave - LinkedIn Tad Hargrave/Marketing for Hippies - Instagram Marketing for Hippies - Facebook The Widest Net Book by Pamela Slim   Connect with The Widest Net Podcast If you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast. Published episodes will come directly to your favorite podcast app.  If you enjoyed the show, please rate it on Apple Podcasts with a short review. Doing so will help me reach more entrepreneurs and small business owners just like you.  Connect with Pam directly on LinkedIn

In our latest episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with the incredibly insightful Pamela Slim, an expert in creating impactful certification programs for service-based businesses. We covered a wide array of topics, from legal considerations to the ethics of leveraging intellectual property (IP). It's jam-packed with wisdom for any entrepreneur looking to scale their business or safeguard their creative assets. Key Takeaways:Crafting Certification: Discover the power of developing certification programs that expand upon your unique skills to ensure reliable outcomes for your clients and add a new revenue stream to your business.IP Essentials: Understand the significance of trademarks, and the delicate balance of creating competitors through certification programs, especially in the B2B space.Community Impact: Learn from Pam's hands-on approach to economic empowerment in Arizona, preventing gentrification and supporting BIPOC entrepreneurs during challenging times.Don't miss these invaluable insights! Tune in to "Hourly to Exit" now and equip yourself with the tools needed to transform your intellectual property into a lasting legacy.Resources Mentioned: Let's put Thumbprint, renamed "Productize Your Service Business" https://maven.com/pamelaslim/discover-your-thumbprint-methodMore About Our Guest:Pamela Slim is an award-winner author, speaker, and agency owner who has spent three decades helping business owners scale their businesses and IP. Pam's agency specializes in the design and development of certification and licensing programs. Pam is the author of Escape from Cubicle Nation (Penguin Portfolio, 2009), Body of Work (Penguin Portfolio, 2014) and The Widest Net (McGraw Hill, November, 2021, winner of Best Sales and Marketing Book of 2021 from Porchlight Books). Pam and her husband Darryl co-founded the K'é Community Lab in Mesa, Arizona, where they host scores of BIPOC entrepreneurs and contribute to the local social, health and economic development of their community.Connect with Pamela:WebsiteLinkedInFacebookCharity Mentioned: https://railcdc.org/Connect with Erin to learn how to use intellectual property to increase your income and impact. hourlytoexit.com/podcast.Erin's LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erinaustin/Think Beyond IP YouTube Page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVztXnDYnZ83oIb-EGX9IGA/videosMusic credit: Yes She Can by Tiny MusicA Team Dklutr production

Caleb and Adriele are joined by Pamela Slim, award winning author, and a small business and licensing IP expert who has spent three decades helping people scale their business. They chat about community work that she's doing with BIPOC entrepreneurs and how to be “architect of liberatory change.” [25:41] But first, they dig into the outcome of Trump's New York civil fraud trial, a new suit brought by New York City against social media giants, including Google, for not protecting children from the harms of their software, and their reactions to the demo of OpenAI's text-to-video software, Sora. All that, plus Mark Cuban's online pharmacy is partnering with Bayer to make contraceptive drugs more widely available and Peanuts' Franklin gets an origin story! [59:26] Guest: Pamela Slim Hosts: Caleb Gardner & Adriele Parker Producer: Dave Sandell

While the title of this episode, The Framework Framework™ is tongue-in-cheek, I'm pulling this out of the BFF bonus vault because it's one of the community's favorites. I'm sharing the first steps to how you can set up a framework to help bolster your IP and your business; either by scaling through programs like certification and licensing, and to make your material more memorable and accessible to the groups you care most about reaching. I shared this in June 2023 as a follow-up to the fantastic workshop that Pamela Slim did for us on Certification and Licensing. You can access over 100 bonus episodes and that workshop by joining Free Time as a paying subscriber. You'll get instant access to Stephanie Huston's How to Batch Create and Customize Your Annual Content Calendar, with an epic multi-tab template in Google Sheets. Be sure to also check out the resources below, including Wes Kao's detailed LinkedIn post on how to turn your ideas into frameworks.

What do you do when you lose your biggest client? If you haven't already, listen to part one for some answers—264: What to Do When You Lose Your Biggest Client— and save these links for a rainy day :) The next time you're going through something challenging in your business, remember: you are not alone! I hope you find comfort through the voices of some of my dearest friends, former podcast guests, and favorite Heart-Based Business owners who are speaking from experience about how they've handled situations just like this. If you want the full scoop on what founding BFF member Leanne Hughes calls “business reality TV” on how I have been handling losing my biggest favorite client, I encourage you to check out the full series of posts at Rolling in D

Are you struggling to gain visibility and be seen as an authority in your field? Do you feel like you have important knowledge and expertise to share, but you're not sure how to package it up into a compelling narrative that attracts your ideal audience? In this episode of The Recognized Authority podcast, host Alastair McDermott interviews Pamela Slim, author of the award-winning book Body of Work: Finding the Thread That Ties Your Story Together. They have an enlightening discussion about the power of developing a coherent body of work over the course of your career to build up recognized authority and become known as a thought leader. Learn why niche expertise is essential for standing outDiscover how to shape your personal narrative deliberatelyGet tips for creating Authority Content that demonstrates your knowledgeUnderstand the key consistent touchpoints to focus on If you want people to see you as an authority, you need to learn how to connect the dots and communicate clearly all the value you offer. Tune in now to pick up strategic advice from Pamela Slim on crafting your unique body of work.

What do you do when you lose your biggest client? That was my Spotify search query for podcast episodes on this topic in the summer of 2023. It came up empty—there was not a single podcast episode on this topic. Of course not. Who wants to admit out loud and in their archives that they've lost their biggest client? In the past, I probably wouldn't have fessed up to this either. Except for the fact that now it's what I wish I could see, read, and hear. Today's compilation episode is here to fix that! If you've been reading Rolling in D

You've built a successful consulting practice using methods, tools and frameworks you've developed and road-tested with clients—is it time to ratchet up your impact and revenue? Award-winning author, speaker and certification expert Pamela Slim walks through the practical and strategic considerations of scaling your IP.Pam shares her from-the-front wisdom:The benefits of deliberately codifying your intellectual property: your approach, method, tools and frameworks.Why B2B programs are often an easier sell (and far more lucrative) than B2C programs.How to tell if your business is a good candidate for developing licensing or certification programs.One wildly successful real-life example of practitioner certification.The value of building your marketing engine (spoiler alert: it doesn't have to be big to be mighty).LINKSPamela Slim Website | The Widest Net | Books | LinkedIn | Instagram | FacebookRochelle Moulton Email List | LinkedIn | Twitter | InstagramBIOPamela Slim is an award-winning author, speaker and agency owner who has spent three decades helping business owners scale their businesses and IP.Pam's agency specializes in the design and development of certification and licensing programs. She is the author of Escape from Cubicle Nation (Penguin Portfolio, 2009), Body of Work (Penguin Portfolio, 2014) and The Widest Net (McGraw Hill, November, 2021, winner of Best Sales and Marketing Book of 2021 from Porchlight Books).Pam and her husband Darryl co-founded the K'é Community Lab in Mesa, Arizona, where they host scores of BIPOC entrepreneurs and contribute to the local social, health and economic development of their community.BOOK A STRATEGY CALL WITH ROCHELLERESOURCES FOR SOLOISTSThe Soloist Women Mastermind (Apply January 2024) A structured eight-month mastermind with an intentionally small group of hand-picked women soloists grappling with—and solving—the same kinds of challenges. 10 Ways To Grow Revenue As A Soloist (Without Working More Hours): most of us have been conditioned to work more when we want to grow revenue—but what if we just worked differently?The Soloist Women community: a place to connect with like-minded women (and join a channel dedicated to your revenue level).

“I am great in the early, messy days and I know that about myself, so I designed my business around serving others in that stage.” In this conversation with business strategist (genius!) Michelle Warner, we cover the three growth stages most relevant to tiny business owners, how to fix broken business models, validating product-market-founder fit, the difference between traffic-based versus relationship-based sales and marketing, borrowing aligned audiences, leading a free monthly Q&A to “catch” their interest afterward, imagining sales as a downhill snowball, and how to scale while still staying Delightfully Tiny. More About Michelle: Michelle Warner designs tiny companies that are built to last. With an MBA from one of the world's top business schools and 15+ years experience growing small businesses, Michelle focuses on layering real world experience on top of classic business fundamentals to design businesses that are sustainable and scalable in the long term and resilient and adaptable in the short term. It's the way she grew her first business to 7+ figures, and it's what she's used to help 300+ CEO's create businesses that work for the important stuff: profit, energy, passion + time. She's also the creator of Networking That Pays, the introvert-friendly, always awkward-free connection system that brings in reliable leads, consistent referrals and meaningful connections for your business - in 5 minutes a day.

Pamela Slim is an award-winning author, speaker and agency owner who has spent three decades helping business owners scale their businesses and IP. Pam's team specializes in the design and development of certification and licensing programs.   Pam talks about her journey to becoming a certification expert, her books Escape from Cubicle Nation, Body of Work, and The Widest Net, managing prospects, and much more!

Finding and connecting with your audience online has become a huge challenge for small businesses because the social media landscape has become so bloody fragmented!Which is why this week's guest, Pamela Slim, advocates that you create a primary communication channel - a process she calls 'lighting your beacon.'So, what's your beacon? And how do you light it so that it shines a light on the mission of your work? Listen up, because Pamela's sharing exactly how to choose which beacon to light in ways that will amplify your message and build an ecosystem for your business.Pamela Slim is an award-winning author, speaker, and business coach who works with small business owners ready to scale their businesses. She's the author of 3 books:  'Escape from Cubicle Nation', 'Body of Work', and 'The Widest Net'.Takeaways:Identifying the perfect 'watering holes' - places where your ideal clients are already congregating and seeking solutions to their problems.Selecting the right beacon for your message - whether it be an email newsletter, blog or a podcastThe importance of choosing a medium that resonates with both you and your ideal clients.Crafting content that tackles the problems your business is designed to solve.Episode ResourcesConnect with Pamela SlimBecome a Standout Brand 1-Minute at a time! Watch this new bingeable set of 1-minute videos:  Stand Out In 60 SecondsIf you're enjoying what you're hearing, please consider recommending it to others. They can sign up  here.

In this podcast episode, I introduce Pamela Slim, an award-winning author, speaker, and business coach who specializes in helping small business owners scale their businesses and intellectual property. Pamela Slim is an award-winner author, speaker and business coach who works with small business owners ready to scale their businesses and IP. She is the author of Escape from Cubicle Nation (Penguin Portfolio, 2009), Body of Work (Penguin Portfolio, 2014) and The Widest Net (McGraw Hill, November, 2021). Pam and her husband Darryl co-founded the K'é Community Lab in Mesa, Arizona, where they host scores of diverse community leaders and regular small business programming. After traveling to multiple cities for her book tour, she realized the lack of visibility for Native American business presenters in the entrepreneurship space. This led her and her husband to establish a space that not only houses their offices but also highlights the often underrecognized leadership in the community. Pamela emphasizes that there is a vast pool of underrecognized entrepreneurs who are capable but have been systematically made invisible. She advocates for focusing on visibility rather than assuming these individuals need to be taught how to become leaders or entrepreneurs. She believes that building relationships and highlighting existing leadership can enrich businesses and communities. Learn more: https://pamelaslim.com/  ------ Jennifer Longmore, Forensic Investigator turned international Soul Purpose and Money Mindset Expert, is a sought after media personality, 5-time best selling author, and creator of the #1 spiritual development training school in the world.  For over 17 years she has been helping people remember who they really are through over 30, 000 life purpose sessions, including the who's-who of actors, professional athletes, CEO's of leading companies, and other influential luminaries.      When she is not running her soulful empire, and playing adult monopoly with her various investments, you can find her exploring crystals and making essential oil blends with her son, enjoying out-of-the-box adventures with her husband, and breathing in fresh air with her fur baby on long hikes.     To learn more about how to thrive on your purpose, visit www.souljourneys.ca

An awarding author, speaker, and small business strategist, Pamela Slim works with thought leaders to scale their impact and income thought the intelligent design of IP.  Join Beth and Dianne this week while they speak with Pam about helping BIPOC business owners develop their platforms, replacing harmful corporate structures, and finding the purpose of work in the new world of work.Check out this episode and Pamela's wider work for great insight on career and workforce development.Join the Community!CSweet.org

In 2021, I paid nearly a thousand dollars to hire a plumber to fix something that wasn't absolutely necessary and that no one would ever see. Why did I do that? And what on earth does it have to do with running your business? More on that in today's episode, along with twelve examples of tiny things to celebrate in your business operations, even if they forever remain a secret to the outside world. Outside of big launches, awards, and accomplishments.

Struggling to get your coaching brand noticed? Discover how expanding your reach could be the game-changer you need to connect with your ideal clients and transition successfully from your day job. Pamela Slim, business coach and author of The Widest Net, emphasizes the importance of catering your work to your ideal client. Luisa Zhou, business and entrepreneurial coach, shares the catalysts for her shift from her 9-to-5 job into coaching. 

“Sometimes entrepreneurship is ugly, it hurts and it's frustrating and confusing and you feel like you are in a crowded room screaming and nobody is paying attention." - La'Vista Jones   In this episode of the BOSS™ Talk podcast, host La'Vista Jones opens up about her frustration and disappointment when her business milestone goes unnoticed, highlighting the challenges of running BOSS™ Talk for the past 5 years. Listeners get to eavesdrop on the mastermind conversation between La'Vista, Dr. Nadia Brown and Pamela Slim as they dive into the importance of vulnerability, resilience and community in entrepreneurship.   Here's what you can expect from this episode:  Recognize the critical role of community support and camaraderie in the entrepreneurial journey Gain insight on how to handle business disappointments constructively and use them as launchpads for growth Discover the transformative power of unwavering dedication and commitment to your vision in overcoming entrepreneurial hurdles Grasp ways to adapt to communal dynamics and their relevance to your business Delve into the complexities of running a future-oriented business and prevailing through subsequent challenges and emotions Remember you can do what you love in the marketplace without sacrificing yourself to do it. So until next time, be sure to subscribe to the show and continue to battle your overwhelm with systems and self-care and walk out your own boss talk. Resources mentioned in this episode: 31 Marketplace Website  Need Podcast Support? Click Here! BOSS™ Talk Podcast Dr. Nadia's Podcast: Straight Talk About Sales with Dr. Nadia Pamela Slim's Podcast: The Widest Net Podcast Order "The BOSS™Shift"   Connect with BOSS™ Talk If you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast. Published episodes will come directly to your favorite podcast app and if you are not subscribed, there is a good chance you will miss out.  If you enjoyed the show, please rate it on Apple Podcasts with a short review. Doing so will help me reach more entrepreneurs just like you - ready to leverage systems and self-care to do life and business on their own terms. Connect with La'Vista personally by sending her a DM on Instagram or on LinkedIn At the crossroads of vision and overwhelm right now? Schedule a complimentary Connection Call with La'Vista Jones - you have the capacity to fulfill the vision and take care of the visionary and she wants to show you how to do both.

Are you searching for your coaching niche? Finding your niche can hep you attract the right clients and truly make your coaching business stand out. Pamela Slim, a business coach and author of the book The Widest Net, reminds coaches that the internal stuff like labels and marketing can bog down a coach in the early stages of developing their niche. Angelique Rewers, CEO and Founder of Boldhaus, shares her story of becoming a coach after spending years working with Fortune 500 executives.

Society often tells us (especially women) that we must be humble and not speak about our accomplishments, but how can that serve us in getting what we want? Author and speaker Lisa Bragg shares why waiting for someone to notice your work is just not enough in today's noisy world and how to brag the right way.     ~ WE'LL DISCUSS ~ How she fought against the conditioning to hide her successes in order to fit in Why bragging should be viewed as self-love and expressing pride in your work and not self-aggrandizing  The difference between wanting a spotlight only on yourself and encouraging everyone to shine How to view competitors as collaborators   Lisa's book recommendation, Widest Net by Pamela Slim and Wonderhell by Laura Gassner Otting    ~ ABOUT LISA BRAGG ~ Living with the name Bragg, Lisa has had to master the art and science of self-promotion. She's seen when being too humble has cost international deals and when bragging right has unlocked opportunities leading to untold fortunes. Lisa helps high-achievers of all sorts to be seen, heard and share their value with the world. She then takes it a step further to show leaders how to help less visible people on their teams to do the same.   Book, Bragging Rights: How to Talk about Your Work Using Purposeful Self-Promotion Website, lisabragg.com Instagram, @thatlisabragg LinkedIn, Lisa Bragg   Get on the waitlist for the Advocate with Elegance membership!   Stay Connected with Heather: To schedule a call with Heather, click here  To follow Heather on Instagram, click here To subscribe to Heather's newsletter, click here To request a transcript of this episode, email: operations@heatherhansenpresents.com     ____________ Disclaimer: The Elegant Warrior Podcast is presented solely for educational and entertainment purposes. It is not a substitute for the advice of a physician, a lawyer, a professional coach, a therapist or other qualified professionals.

“Getting comfortable with rejections is one of the most effective things we can do for our marketing efforts, especially our outreach efforts.” ~ Alice Draper   In this episode of The Widest Net Podcast, host Pamela Slim is joined by Alice Draper, podcasting publicist with Hustling Writers, where she shares her expert podcast pitching strategies for women entrepreneurs, highlighting the challenge of rejection and the ultimate goal of landing a podcast interview. Alice's experience as a high-end copywriter led her to master the art of pitching, which she now utilizes to help others gain the visibility they deserve. As the driving force behind Hustling Writers, Alice specializes in creating powerful podcast publicity strategies for progressive coaches. Her hands-on approach has resulted in many of her clients landing interviews on prestigious podcasts and media outlets.   Here's what you can expect from this episode:  Master innovative ways to showcase yourself in podcast pitches  Transcend doubt and rejection by using the power of community Harness the impact of genuine and straightforward communication in your podcast pitches Pinpoint your unique podcast market and audience Remember we all need each other - life and work is better together.   Resources mentioned in this episode:  Podcast Pitch Templates Hustling Writers Alice Draper - LinkedIn Alice Draper Email - alice@hustlingwriters.com The Widest Net Book by Pamela Slim   Connect with The Widest Net Podcast If you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast. Published episodes will come directly to your favorite podcast app.  If you enjoyed the show, please rate it on Apple Podcasts with a short review. Doing so will help me reach more entrepreneurs and small business owners just like you.  Connect with Pam directly on LinkedIn

Today's episode is the second half of an in-depth Licensing Q&A prompted by BFF Al Dia, host of the MBA Insider podcast. If you haven't already, listen first to 140: How to Licensing Your IP (Intellectual Property), followed by 186: Licensing 201 — Q&A (Part One) on Product Development, Attracting Clients, and Sales Process. Al submitted a series of wonderful questions that span five categories; in this episode I'll be addressing the latter three: selling and packaging, delivery (including Train-the-Trainer), and legal considerations. A caveat, as always, when it comes to this notoriously opaque arena: this is not the way, it's just what I've learned along the way in nearly a decade of setting my mind to licensing as a revenue stream.

IN EPISODE 129: To build a business or an organization, you need an ensemble. And the best way to do that is to find your watering holes. In Episode 129, Pamela Slim helps us identify our ideal customers and partners through a systematic approach. By creating the "widest net," we can operate within the right ecosystems, forge strategic partnerships with the right people, and nurture relationships the right way.  ABOUT PAMELA SLIM: Pamela Slim is an award-winner author, speaker and business coach who works with small business owners ready to scale their businesses and IP. She's advised thousands of entrepreneurs as well as companies serving the small business market such as Keap, Progressive Insurance, Constant Contact and Prezi. Together with Susan Cain, Pam has  helped build and launch the Quiet Revolution that's changed the whole conversation on what it means to be an introvert. She is the co-founder with her husband Darryl of the Main Street Learning Lab in Mesa, Arizona, a grassroots, community-based think tank for small business economic acceleration, and is the author of three books, most recently, The Widest Net: Unlock Untapped Markets and Discover Customers Right in Front of You. LINKS: Website: https://pamelaslim.com Book, The Widest Net: https://pamelaslim.com/the-widest-net Main Street Learning Lab: https://pamelaslim.com/ke

I'm so excited to share my new website!You know how when you look back at life and suddenly all the steps along the way make perfect sense? Jo ChunYan created a gorgeous cosmic visual reflection of that: past, present and future.Check out the new www.ezziespencer.com here.You can link to the three individual websites of my body of work from the above “temple” site. Clarity around my coherent body of work emerged through working with the wonderful Pamela Slim.I share all in depth on today's podcast!Oh also, check out these announcements on this podcast episode:  the revamped re.love program coming soon: pure magic!Unconscious Vows workshop on 4 May: join interest list.brand new Lunar Abundance creations: say what?!xo Ezzie P.S. I recently sat with Kylie Patchett on her brilliant show. She's an intuitive interviewer and I shared the back story of my body of work there too: big initiations, vision, mission. Listen in here.  BODY OF WORK:www.ezziespencer.com1:1 re.love:www.ezzie.loveCheck out the self-study program LOVEABLE here:https://www.ezzie.love/loveableEzzie's IG: @ezziespencerFree quiz, attraction elixir, love-notes and other resources here:www.ezzie.loveMusic composed and produced by Nathaniel Koenig ©

Riches in Niches and How to Attract High-Paying Clients I'm excited for you to meet our special encore guest expert today — Henry DeVries. If you're meeting Henry for the first time — he's the CEO of Indie Books International. He's the former president of an award-winning “Ad Age 500” marketing agency — and — Henry is also a weekly columnist for Forbes.com. Henry was my guest for Episode 15 of the podcast, where he shared his expertise around strategies and tactics for writing a book — and then — how to use the book as your primary marketing strategy — or, as Henry likes to say — “Marketing with a Book.” We'll be sure to add a link to Episode 15 to today's show notes.  Okay — I invited Henry to join me for this encore interview so we could focus our time and attention on Chapter 5 of Henry's latest book entitled, “Marketing with a Book for Agency Owners.” He titled Chapter 5 — “Riches in Niches.” If you've been listening to this podcast for a while now — or if you've read our books — or attended any of our open-mic Q&As or live workshops — you know that here at Predictive ROI…we're big fans of building a riches in niches strategy. I'm going to quickly quote Henry from Chapter 5… Henry writes, “To attract high-paying clients, agency owners must be clear on their ideal prospects. But a target market with a problem is not enough. Agency owners also must find target clients that can afford to pay what you want to charge.”  Okay — it's here at the intersection of these two points that Henry and I focused our riches in niches discussion. How to find right-fit prospects who are willing to pay what you want to charge — and I would argue that when you do this work correctly and your content strategy is on point and generous — your right-fit prospects will be EAGER to pay your premium price. To help us get there — I asked Henry to walk us through what he calls the “10 filter questions” that you and your team can use as you work through the process of niching down.  In my opinion — Henry's 10 filter questions are critically important to the process of seeking riches in niches because if we don't get it right at the beginning — HOLY BANANAS — it's most likely not going to feel right 2-3 years into your “niche” strategy.  I promise you — if you take and apply Henry's advice and build a strategy around riches in niches — and then — have the courage to build an authority position deep in the niche (instead of being sort of committed), you consistently create helpful cornerstone and cobblestone content that shares your smarts with your audience. If you do this work — you'll not only be seen as the AUTHORITY in the niche, but your sales pipeline will go from being dry to being filled with a steady stream of right-fit clients from within the niche who are eager to work with you — AND — willing to pay your premium price to do it.  That's the recipe for riches in niches.   What you'll learn from this episode about riches in niches: Why your riches in niches strategy needs to include stories that matter and where you ought to share them Why it's so important to share the right social proof with your prospective clients How to find prospects in niches who are willing to pay what you want to charge How to identify and then properly step into the right pond within the right niche How to work through the 10 filtering questions to do the right work up front to help ensure you tap into the riches in niches     Speaker 1: (00:03) Welcome to the Sell With Authority podcast. I'm Stephen Woessner, c e o of predictive roi. And my team and I, we created this podcast specifically for you. So, if you're an agency, agency owner, a business coach, or a strategic consultant, and you're looking to grow a thriving, profitable business that can weather the constant change that seems to be our world's reality, then you're in the right place. You want proven strategies for attracting a steady stream of well-prepared right fit prospects into your sales pipeline. Yep. We're gonna cover that. You wanna learn how to step away from the sea of competitors, so you actually stand out and own the ground you're standing on. Yep. We're gonna cover that too. You wanna futureproof your business so you can navigate the next challenges that come your way. Well, absolutely. We'll help you there as well. I promise you. Speaker 1: (01:02) Each episode of this podcast will contain valuable insights and tangible examples of best practices, never theory from thought leaders, experts, owners who have done exactly what you're working hard to do. So I want you to think practical and tactical. Never any fluff. Each of our guests have built a position of authority and then monetized that position by claiming their ground, by growing their audience, by nurturing leads, and yes, by converting sales. But all the while they did it by being helpful. So every time someone from their audience turned around there, they were with a helpful answer to an important question, so their prospects never felt like they were a prospect. I also promise you every strategy we discuss, every tool we recommend will be shared in full transparency in each episode. So you can plant your flag of authority, claim your ground, and fill your sales pipeline with a steady stream of right fit clients. Speaker 1: (02:09) So I am super excited for you to meet our very special encore guest expert today, Henry DeVries. If you're meeting Henry for the first time, he's the c e o of Indie Books International. He's the former president of an award-winning ad age 500 marketing agency, and Henry is a weekly columnist for forbes.com. Henry was also my guest for episode 15 of the podcast where Henry shared his expertise around strategies and tactics for writing a book, and then how to use the book as your primary marketing strategy, or as Henry likes to say, marketing with a book. So, we'll be sure to add a link to episode 15 to today's show notes to make it super easy to find. It's a great episode. Okay, so I invited Henry to join me for this encore so we could focus our time and attention on chapter five of Henry's latest book, which is entitled Marketing with a Book for Agency Owners. Speaker 1: (03:09) He titled Chapter Five, riches in the Niches. And if you've been listening to this podcast for a while now, or if you've read our books or attended any of our open mic q and as or live workshops, you know that here at Predictive roi, we are big fans of itching. So I'm gonna quickly quote Henry here, uh, from chapter five of the book, Henry writes, to attract high paying clients, agency owners must be clear on their ideal prospects, and then he goes on to write, but a target market where the problem is not enough agency owners also must find target clients that can afford to pay what you wanna charge. Okay? So it's at the intersection of these two points that Henry and I will focus our discussion today, how to find right fit prospects who are willing to pay what you want to charge. Speaker 1: (04:05) And I would argue that when you do this work correctly and your content strategy is on point and generous, your right fit prospects will be eager to pay your premium price. To help us get there, I'm going to ask Henry to walk us through what he calls the 10 filter questions that you and your team can use as you work through the process of nicheing down. Because in my opinion, Henry's 10 filter questions are critically important to the process of seeking riches in the niches. Because if we don't get it right at the beginning, well, holy bananas is most likely not gonna feel right two to three years down the road. I promise you, if you take an apply Henry's advice and seek the riches in the niches, and then have the courage to actually build an authority position deep in the niche and not be kind of committed to the niche, so you're consistently creating helpful cornerstone and cobblestone content that shares your smarts with your prospective clients, clients in the niche, you'll not only be seen as the authority in the niche, but you will fill your sales pipeline with a steady stream of right fit clients who are eager to work with you and who are willing to pay your premium price to do it. Speaker 1: (05:29) So without further ado, my friend, welcome back to the Sell With Authority Podcast. Henry, Speaker 2: (05:36) Thank you for inviting me to talk about riches niches. You're very welcome. April, 2022, the place, Oceanside, California. I'm celebrating the eighth anniversary of Indie books. Okay? We've published over 150 authors. Life is great. I'm not happy. Okay? I'm at a crossroads. Sounds like there's a story there. You're gonna start a hospital. There's a story there. I'm at Crossroads and I go, I teach this riches and niches and I've helped so many people, and I don't feel that we've really found ours, huh? Because I had focused on consultants and coaches, okay? And there was just something missing. And the, the ponds and the groups that I, the watering holes and Pamela Slim of the Whitest Nets language, you know, the, they just weren't feeling totally right for me. Okay? So I did a, I did an exercise. I, I went on a retreat, just me in a car to a motel to think of this through, okay? Speaker 2: (06:45) Made a list of all our authors and divided them into groups, okay? And there was this one group that I liked to work with the most agency owners, because I was an agency owner. And matter of fact, indie Books International is an agency. It's a marketing agency in disguise, as a publishing company, okay? And we, we help people get speaking, but part of it was this training aspect where we train you to give speeches, get on podcasts, do these things to amplify your work. That's my word for the years, Steven. Amplify. We need to amplify our work. That's a good word. Talk about that. So I went and, and the agency owners were, and I said, well, where could I go meet agency owners? So I researched, and there were 10 places where they gather that I found, and one was called the Baba, b a b summit, build a Better Agency Summit. Speaker 2: (07:44) Uhhuh. . And it was over $2,000 to attend a little problem. I didn't have an extra $2,000, but I do cover marketing for forbes.com. I've been a paid columnist for five years. So I contacted the Baba Summit people into my surprise, they said, yes, you can have a media credential come cover us, um, at the Western in Chicago. Mm-hmm. . So meanwhile, I start to call some of these agency owners that I'd helped do their books. And I said, you know, whatever happened as a result of the book. And Tom Young, uh, one of my authors said, oh, you helped us get to the million dollar level. And then we, we leveraged that book, and now we're at 2 million a year. Um, I talked to another person and she said, oh, I didn't have any Fortune 500 companies when we started. I've tripled my revenues, and now I'm working for the one of the top five banks in America, one of the top five financial houses in America, a a billion dollar Japanese technology company. Speaker 2: (08:51) As a result of this, I'm going like, well, those are some, I said, would you, would you put that in writing? Could I put that in writing? Well, of course. Would you tell other people? You know, could I put you on video? Oh, yeah. Send anybody my way. I'm going like, okay, check. We, we've got something going here. Right? Also, they were the, um, most willing to pay. Some of them told me, uh, you know, you, you're not charging enough. This is what the agents, this is what the agency owners were sharing. They were telling me that I wasn't charging them enough, right. Uh, for what they were getting from me. Okay? So I go to the, the Baba Summit. I did not know you were involved, Steven, I knew you from being in a, a couple of appearances on Onward Nation. Um, I, I think I had written about a couple of your clients and Forbes, so that was our relationship. Speaker 2: (09:39) But I see you were one of the sponsors there and involved, and that was great. Within an hour of being there. Everything I've been teaching for the last 15 years in writing about, but unwilling to do as a service, you were preaching at, at Baba, the p baba speakers were preaching, and they had people there to do it. You know, if you wanted podcasts, you could go to predictive roi. If you wanted a, um, a proprietary research study, you could go to audience audit. So it was like, these are my people. Mm-hmm. , uh, this is so great. And I had decided then, okay, I'm going all in. Now. Let me tell you, fear never sleeps. To go all in on a target niche is a scary proposition. Um, you're worried that by declaring I work for these people, your referral sources are gonna dry up Uhhuh, . Speaker 2: (10:35) I can assure you, they do not. Right? The the other thing that happens is you're, you're afraid that somebody will read your website and go, oh, well, that's not for me. I can assure you it's not. I have people call me up and say, look, I, I know I'm not an agency owner, but, uh, I run this consulting company and could I please convince you to work with me? Right. You know, go on . I'll say, you know, and, and, uh, some have and have done wonderful projects. Meanwhile, , so I, I commit to this. This is May and I, I think I've gotta write a book. I've gotta write a book about this, but I am very busy. When am I gonna have time to write another book? So, um, and we all have different faiths, and I respect that. And, um, in, in California, I have to say the universe or the universe will manifest when I'm, when I'm out in, uh, the Midwest with you, I can say God helps those who help themselves. Speaker 2: (11:35) So, but I, I prayed on it and I prayed for time to get this book done. Be careful what you pray for . I was give, in August, I was giving five workshops for CEOs on how to persuade with a story. Mm-hmm. , uh, that's what I'm paid to speak on. I've written books on that. And on, uh, day five, I contract covid. So I'm in Memphis, Tennessee, um, thousands of miles from home. Nobody there. I have to check into this, uh, cheap motel to quarantine for a week. Yep. And, uh, my healthcare got right on it got me into a doctor who prescribed the drug, PAX Lobin for me. Mm-hmm. . So I'm on a, a five day protocol of Pax Lobin. Well, it knocked it down right away. And I thought, well, I don't wanna watch TV and I'll just start writing the book. Five days later, the book was written, you know, thank you. Speaker 2: (12:38) I'm grateful for that time, . I wish it could have been like a little more enjoyable, but I got the book done and started rolling. I know I needed refinements. So, uh, signed up with predictive roi. We did the, the 90 day program, really refined it. Um, Eric, on your team, uh, I, I love Eric dearly because he challenged me on everything. Um, he gave me pushback on everything. It wasn't like, oh, great, this, like, no, this and that. What happens if this happens? And like, oh man, that would've been a huge mistake if I'd gone that way. So, very grateful to predictive roi. And then I saw, um, workshops by you and Drew McClellan of AMI in, in Florida. Um, didn't have the money for that. Went to the board and said, we need to personally borrow money, uh, so I can go to Disney World for a conference in December and January. Speaker 2: (13:34) Um, and then when I explained it, all my wife said, a hunch. Henry had a hunch. And we bet on the hunch. And the hunch worked. So, um, I've been picking up agency clients. You told me I needed to double my prices and hire better people. I went out and did that. Yep. Um, and then when people would call me, I would give that higher price, and they didn't blink. So it all came back to what we're gonna talk about today, these filter questions. Yep. Um, agency owners pass the filter questions test for me, and I hope the filter questions help the listeners today. Speaker 1: (14:15) Awesome. Well, so let's, I, I want to tease out just one piece outta outta what you just said about the, the workshop and not, and not, and not like promoting the workshop or advertising the workshop, but your recognition about how the Baba Summit and how the workshop and how you participate in our community, how you participate in the Agency Management Institute community and, and so forth. And how you've been very strategic in, uh, aligning partnerships and friendships and all of that, because those are efforts to get deeper into the niche. And, and I'm not saying that those are not great relationships and personal relationships and turning into friendships and that kind of stuff. I, I'm, I'm not saying that those are like surfacey, they're, and they're not genuine because I know that they absolutely are. What I am saying is that they are, excuse me, that they're also indicative of when you go deep into the niche, it's about really understanding the people in the niche, really understanding the pond, really understand who is in the pond, swimming around and all of that, and developing those relationships. That's part of getting deep into the niche. Would, would you agree? Speaker 2: (15:26) Oh, absolutely. And I have to do a shout out to Susan Byer, a member of the Community of Audience Audit. And I heard you and Susan speak at the Baba Summit, and I shook her hand and, uh, gave her my card and said, I'd like to interview her for forbes.com. And, uh, she's the world's busiest woman who's going at mock five with her hair on fire. So that wasn't happening, but I, I was on, uh, a call with you and there were other people, you, you had me, I think, on a q and a talk about the book mm-hmm. , and Yep. Susan was there, and she calls me up afterwards and said, we have to talk, says this. I was where you were at a few years ago. I know who you are. Uh, and I know where you're at, and I just get deep into this. Speaker 2: (16:13) Do this, this is what you need to do. Yep. And I said, thank you. I appreciate that. Uh, what is the best piece of advice you have for me right now? Okay. She said, go to the workshops in December and January, you know, beg, borrow Steele, do whatever you have to. She says, I went from having eight clients to 40 when I went into this niche, uh, really strong. And so go there. And she says, you're gonna learn things. Mm-hmm. from the content that Drew and Steven teach, you're gonna learn more about your target audience, because you're gonna listen to them. You're gonna hear them. You're gonna have a drink with them, uh, you know, breakfast with them, and you're gonna be this listening machine at one of the agencies where I cut my teeth. Um, I was the head of research too. I was the head of creative services and research. That's a, that's a schizophrenic kind of person. Speaker 1: (17:09) I'm like, that's a bit of a juxtaposition, but o okay. Speaker 2: (17:11) Yeah. Right. Sounds and research. So I, I know about depth interviews and research and, and, uh, you know, listening. And that was so true, because you're amongst them and you can relate to them, of course. And when they tell a story, you can go, oh, I understand that. Yeah. You know, um, I've been there, done that. Um, so that's important to, you've gotta go where your target rich audience is. Um, not so much that, oh, I'm gonna find clients. I did, I will, but I wanna understand their worries, frustrations, doubts. Mm-hmm. . Um, I need, you know, the fear, uncertainty and doubt, the FUD factor. You need to know their FUD factor. And that's the number one thing they want to know. Do you understand my pain? Speaker 1: (18:07) Yeah. The, not only do you speak my language, do you speak my dialect? And when, when, when we talk through the niche deep dive, you know, like in our q and a's and in the, the WHO framework and so forth, that, that part of that starts with the first two ingredients in that are what are the problems, hence the FUD factor that you just mentioned. Then what are the stories? How can you speak to those problems within a story? Because we're just d n a wired to receive stories, right? How can we talk about the FUD factor in the form of a story? And then to your earlier point, how can we step into the right ponds to tell the stories, right? Because then they feel appropriate and, and, and, and they land correctly. It feels weird to step into a non-agency owner pond, if you will, and start talking about agency owner stories. Speaker 1: (19:01) It, there, there's incongruency when that happens, right? So like, all of this is part of the, the great recipe. You've done a great job of stepping into the pond and finding the rich in the niche or the riches in the niches. And I know that they're, you're, you're actively mining that. Let's start going through the 10 filter questions, because I think they're, not only do I think that they're smart, um, but I, but I also think that they're smartness, if you will, , uh, in the layers, right? So some of the questions are multi-layered. Some of the questions are deeper than maybe what somebody might think as they're quickly going through them, and that, oh, I don't have to answer that one. I could just bypass that one. Or I'll just, I'll focus on, you know, question two, six and 10. And that should be good. Speaker 1: (19:46) And it's not good. The 10 filtering questions are 10 filtering questions on purpose. So, so let's, let's go through them first. I'm, I'm just gonna go through them, uh, quickly and then, and then we'll go back and slice 'em apart. So, question one, are you interested in solving the problems this group has? Question two, have you worked with any already? Three, can they afford to pay you four? Are they willing to pay more for better service? Five, do they already know they need an agency like you? Six? Are they numerous? Seven, do you, uh, do you have only a few real competitors? Eight. Can you find them easily enough through listen associations? Uh, nine, can you find a target rich environment where they gather? Uh, and then 10, will you or will some make marquee clients advocates and references? Okay. So let's slice all of these apart and go through them in depth. So walk us through, number one, are you interested in solving the problems this group has and why you put that first? Speaker 2: (20:53) Okay. So first let me grab my book, my 17th book. Amazing. And Stephen, my books are my children. Hmm. And like my children, I expect them to take care of me in my old age. Okay. So let's go to chapter five and that first one. Um, are you interested in solving the problems if solving their problems doesn't energize you? It's a non-starter. Um, when I was looking at the different groups, I've done a lot with technology services companies, okay. Speaker 2: (21:24) And I thought, huh, do I wanna spend all my time with technology services companies? Um, I had a chance once to buy the agency I'd started at and worked my way up to president. And, um, I didn't know this strategy, it was just instinctive and I followed it. And we were the leader in real estate, community marketing, you know, new home communities, master plan communities throughout Southern California. Okay. Um, we had all the top people, and and you eat on that whale for years, you catch a whale, like a master plan community that's a eight, seven, you know, seven, eight year project. You bet. Um, but I didn't buy, and one of the reasons was I didn't wanna spend the rest of my life talking about cathedral ceilings and low flow toilets. You know, it was just like, uh, it didn't excite me. Yeah. So, uh, I went out on my own and formed my own lemonade stand and went looking for the, for the right niche. So agency owners, I love the problems they have. Oh, by the way, research. Yep. Number one problem for two outta three agency owners is, and you know it, Steven, the dry sales pipeline, not enough qualified prospects in that pipeline. Yep. And business development is their heartburn, it's their pain. Second problem for, uh, 50% of agency owners, not enough time to do business development. Um, should we move to two? Have you worked with them already? Speaker 1: (23:03) 1, 1, 1 more piece to to number one. Speaker 2: (23:05) Okay. Speaker 1: (23:07) Because if we don't get right what you just said, you know, that, that we're interested in solving the problems that's gonna come through also in the content. When, when, when you know that Drew and I, uh, teach the point of view piece, right? So, predictive roi, we believe, like in our core, we believe, uh, that most agencies, business coaches and strategic consultants go about business development in the least effective, most painful way possible. There's a better way we call it. So with authority methodology, yeah. That is our belief system. It is our truth. So if you're just kind of like, eh, on point number one here, which is why it's an important filter that's gonna show through in your content, that's gonna show through how you show up in the pond, right? Speaker 2: (23:51) Right. We have an energy meter. Yeah. Everybody has it. And they can tell if you have energy around this topic or not. Are you just there? Oh. Because you're trying to serve that, you know, it's like if you're not genuinely energetic about it mm-hmm. , um, nor, uh, was famous author about, uh, you know, the power of enthusiasm. You know, so if you don't have enthusiasm, right? Um, it comes across and you can't fake it. Speaker 1: (24:26) No, Speaker 2: (24:26) You can't fake sincerity. Speaker 1: (24:28) No. Cuz cuz then you look like you're trying to get rich in the niche and Right. And then that, and that feels a whole lot of yucky to everyone in the pond. So, um, okay. So let's, and Speaker 2: (24:37) By the way you just said that Yeah. The riches are not just money. Yeah. Um, there are 12 different riches, uh, that you get from a, a money finishes 12th on the list. Um, when you're, one of the riches is you love to work. You love to work because you love solving their problems. Uh, you love these people. So that comes through Speaker 1: (25:03) 100%. Yeah. When, when, when somebody goes to the Baba Summit, the builder Better Agency Summit, this May, um, as the previous two summits, when, when Drew McClellan gets on stage to do his keynote, like he has the previous two, there will be there, there will be tears, there will be shouts of joy, there will be, it's an emotional delivery of a keynote. Why? Because everyone, all 300 and plus whatever number of people who are going to be there this year will know that he is there for them. And that he not only speaks their language, his stories align with that. His passions all about helping them. It, it is clear through his words and actions that he is their guy. And, and, and that rings through. If he was there to just be playing niches in the, or riches in the niches, it, it, it, it, I mean, it would fall flat, right? It would be easy to suss out and see the difference. Speaker 2: (26:03) They were yelling, we love you, drew. It was like a rock concert. I was thinking like, what's going on Speaker 1: (26:10) Here? Right? And that does not happen by accident, right? Speaker 2: (26:12) No. And it comes across and Drew is an agency owner. Yep. And Ami is this other thing he's doing to help other agency owners. Eric, from predictive ROI stepped on my toes and said, you don't talk in any of your materials, that you're actually an agency owner right now. And, and that you know this and you know, when you get up in the morning, you have to worry about your pipeline and, and you have to worry about the clients and the billing. And I says, you don't tell 'em that you're walking the same journey. So that's important. Speaker 1: (26:48) It is important. Okay. So now, now let's move to number two. Speaker 2: (26:52) Well, have you worked with them already? And, and I've coached a thousand people on this, and we'll come up to this and they say, well, I'd like to work with, you know, maybe hospitals, healthcare. I heard there's a lot of money there. Um, or I could work with financial advisors. I said, well, you know, how many hospitals have you worked with? None. How many financial advisors have you worked with? Dozens and dozens. I said, okay, here's our answer. . You know, it's like, uh, uh, yes, you could pick a niche you've never been in and worked to get in there, but you're swimming upstream. Uh, there's a German proverb I like to quote, and it i'll, it translates like this. It doesn't matter how fast you're going if you're on the wrong road. Speaker 1: (27:40) Amen. Speaker 2: (27:42) And in fact, it's actually worse because you're getting farther away from where you need to be. Um, so you need to get the right road. And the right road is people who you've already helped you have some credibility with. There needs to be a story there that you, as you said, the stories you tell. Yeah. They need to be your stories. Your stories matter. Human brains are hardwired for stories. So you need to be telling stories for that target group. Speaker 1: (28:10) Amazing. Okay. Perfect. Uh, how about three, can they afford you? Speaker 2: (28:15) Can you, they afford you? Um, I always say money isn't everything. The author Zig Ziegler said, money is not the most important thing, you know, oxygen, but it's next to oxygen. So we need money to keep going. It's the fuel that keeps the, the rocket ship going here. And, um, some people just don't have the money, right. For you to have abundance, the abundance you need for your team members, uh, for causes you wanna support. Mm-hmm. , um, all the things you need to do requires filthy luer. No. It requires money. Yeah. Speaker 1: (28:53) Well, and that ties into number four. Are they willing to pay more for better service, uh, so that you're not having a race to the bottom right. That you can actually afford to invest in delighting your clients? Am I on the same page with you? Speaker 2: (29:05) You, you're absolutely right. So they have to see the value in the investment. Okay. So when we were in the real estate niche, um, they saw the value and they'll pay more. There was a quick story. This, um, one, one client wanted to talk to us. And I have to say he was a little shady. You know, they were, they were big, burly people, uh, outside his office and, uh, you know, so let's just say shady. And so I made the mistake as, as agency president, I said, just double the amount that we normally charge, and that way he'll kick us out is too expensive, you know? And he said, but what happened was he said, okay, you charge twice as much as anybody else. Must Speaker 1: (29:53) Be good. Speaker 2: (29:53) Well, obviously you're good . So okay, you're hired . And then, then he gave us some secret information and said, if it ever gets out, you're gonna have to look over your shoulder all the time. Do you understand what I'm saying? And I said, I understand. I walked out and my, uh, my, my account executive young sweet woman said that threat, do you really think he could cause us to lose other clients? I said, Linda, he was threatening to kill us. He would've us murdered if this got out. She was like, . Like, thankfully the campaign went well, and, and, uh, we moved on. Yeah. Okay. Speaker 1: (30:38) . Well, so I, I, here, here's, here's one of the reasons why, uh, I feel like number five is multi-layered. Um, so do they already know they need an agency like you? When, when I read it now, it could be just my lens and my bias, um, that when I read it, I think, oh, okay. It's because, you know, we've planted a flag of authority. We've, you know, become the authority in this space, in the niche and, and all of that. And you say you must educate the prospects that need an agency like yours. Um, so, so tell us all about five, because when I read five, I'm like, that's pretty meaty. Number five, Speaker 2: (31:12) Five is meaty. So you're looking for clients who hire agencies. They've worked with an agency before. They know the value proposition of the agency. They're not that people go like, eh, I could hire somebody in-house, or I could hire an agency. Yeah. You don't want those people. Hmm. Um, because they're asking the wrong questions. You know, an agency buys time by the year, sells it back by the hour, and gives you top talent. Yep. You're competing for the bottom talent who's willing to work for you. It's like the old joke about you're an astronaut. Are you comforted by the fact that your rocket was built by the lowest bidder ? You know? And, and, uh, so so you don't want that. So you want something they, they hire agencies. Yeah. And, uh, I, I landed a million dollar account when I was president of someone else's agency. Speaker 2: (32:15) Okay. And I got it from teaching. And, and somebody took the course and brought me in and, and they talked about their business for 45 minutes. I understood nothing about their business or what they did. Hmm. And then they said, our current agency is Manning, salvage and Lee, but, um, we've had a little falling out, so we need a new agency. Well, that was the first thing I understood, because I knew that agency wouldn't touch an account for under a million dollars . I thought, oh, um, I said, give me a week and I'll come back with a proposal. So I educated myself on this, uh, industry. Nobody was a specialist in it, and, um, won the account. Mm-hmm. . Um, another time I was brought in by a, um, fortune 500 company, and they had this project, and it, it, you'd say, this wasn't in my niche, it was about energy and gas and electric and new things like this. Speaker 2: (33:16) And I talked to 'em and I said, you know, I really don't think we're the agency for you, uh, because I have no background in this area. And they called me a week later and said, you had the account. And I, I went in and I said, and it was a, it was a great account. I said, um, why, why did you hire me? But I don't know this area. He said, actually, nobody knows this area. We were looking for something else. We were looking for somebody who could come in and completely dissect a problem and then explain it to our people how to implement it. Hmm. And we talked around and people said, oh, these are the four magic words in English language, by the way. They said, I know a guy, Henry DRIs mm-hmm. . And that's how he got it. So sometimes you'll be brought in for a certain skill you have that people recognize for, and, and that can work for you too. I give you permission to work for anybody. I want to stress you should market to one target niche, niche in Canada, niche in America, as in, you know, there's riches and niches, witches. Uh, so, uh, we don't even know how to pronounce the word, but we know that it works Speaker 1: (34:38) Well, it is, it is kind of funny. Uh, you've mentioned Eric a couple of times and he, he too says, uh, pronounces it as niche. But when, when you said, I know a guy that, that, uh, reminded me of something that I thought about mentioning, but then just forgot in the fact of how that that is actually an ingredient of how Drew and I define niche. And so if, if anyone listening, um, has heard, uh, Eric and I teach niche before, um, you know, yes, it could certainly be industry that's one of the ingredients in the recipe. Two, it could be your superpower as you just described, skill, right? It could absolutely be a superpower. Uh, three, maybe it's a business issue or challenge, uh, that, that you solve better than anybody else. And you're, your certain skill example was kind of teetering into that. So you're putting a couple ingredients together, which is awesome in, in the fourth. It, it could be an audience, maybe, you know, an audience better, maybe you know, an audience better than the client or your perspective client. So like when we, we knit all of those ingredients together, it becomes a pretty, a pretty strong recipe. So let's move into number six, which is, are they numerous? Speaker 2: (35:47) Ah, and, um, I'm a big fan of David C. Baker. I've written about 'em for years. Mm-hmm. , uh, wrote the, uh, the business, let's see, the business of expertise. Mm-hmm. . And in the business of expertise, he says, you need to have 2000 to 10,000 prospects in the area to really consider it. Less than that, it's, uh, too small of a fishing pond. Too much you're trying to drain the ocean. Um, so you, you find that for me, there are 7,800 small to medium sized agencies in America. That's a pond I can fish in for the rest of my life. Yep. And, uh, still have prospects I couldn't get to. Um, so that's what you're, you're looking for. Okay. Some other people along the way, they, uh, one chose pest control companies. Hmm. Um, and they became the pest control agency for America. And when people say, oh, I need an expert in pest control and, and marketing and all this is, I know a guy this works for our female listeners, I asked some of them and they said, yeah, we, we get called guys too. So it's okay. So I know a guy, you know, if you need an, an, uh, a research study for a agency, I know a guy Susan Byer out of Arizona audience audit. So it works that same way. Speaker 1: (37:12) Okay. So, so let's, let's go to, uh, seven. Um, do you have only a few real competitors? Speaker 2: (37:21) Yeah. So it's, um, if somebody says, I have no competition, I'm really worried. Yeah. Now, now as far as I've researched and, and we keep mentioning Eric Jensen, you know, helped me with this. There are no agency book guys other than me. The per is like, they're like, their whole thing is doing agency books. Yeah. Now, there are other ghost writers, there are other publishers. Sure. Those are still viable choices. Somebody will look at them as they look at me. I might have an edge that I specialize in the niche, um, but that doesn't mean I don't have competition. Um, so, but I don't have tons of people who can do the soup to nuts for planning a book, preparing, you know, I'm a ghost writer. Uh, I'm an developmental editor publishing the book mm-hmm. . And then what happens, our motto at indie books is publishing the book is not the finish line. Speaker 2: (38:24) It's the starting line. Right. It's about the journey that happens after that. And it's a marathon. Uh, because no author gets discovered. I, that's a myth out there. I'm gonna write this book and people discover me. You don't get discovered. I, I love the actress Margot Robbie, if you, if you know her, um, I do. And, and she was being interviewed and somebody said, what would've happened if you moved from Australia to America and you weren't discovered? And she said, I'm sorry. Well, what's the question says, well, what would you have done if they didn't, if you weren't discovered? She says, you thought I was discovered. I knocked on every door in Hollywood, every agent, every producer. And I kept knocking until somebody let me in and finally give an addition. I was not discovered. So as an author, you're not gonna be discovered either. You need to slice and dice that content. You need to go on podcasts. You, I have a magnificent seven things you have to do. There's a great book, 1,001 Ways to Market your book. That's the problem. There's 1,001 Way Ways to Market your book. Uh, I'll give you the seven most pragmatic things to do that are gonna get results. Speaker 1: (39:37) So is, is that something that we can, uh, either link in the show notes or share with our audience, or maybe point them to a blog post? I, I know you teach on the seven, but is there, Speaker 2: (39:47) I didn't teach on the seven and I've had articles on it, uh, in Forbes. Uh, okay, great. And, and we could link to it. Okay. Speaker 1: (39:54) Perfect. Um, so I will link to one of your forbes.com articles on that for some additional insight. Thank you for that. Um, the, the discovery thing is, is is really great. Like people think that, um, who don't know the backstory of Sylvester Stallone, he did the same thing in New York and went to every agent, uh, and, you know, did it multiple times, uh, until finally he wrote the script. And it's a really interesting story, but it's all about perseverance. So eight, Speaker 2: (40:21) The Rocky story is interesting because he also didn't know what he was worth. And one of his first meetings when they asked him how much for the screenplay, and he gave a number, the meeting was over because they thought he was an amateur. Yeah. I'm sorry, we're going to eight. Right? Speaker 1: (40:36) . All right. Can, uh, and this really speaks to your, uh, builder, a better agency example that you mentioned from, from last year. Can you find them easily enough through lists and associations? Speaker 2: (40:46) Right? You're looking for places where they go to get smarter. So the Baba Summit, they go to get smarter. The David C. Baker has a mind your own business conference where they go to get smarter. Um, there's, uh, you know, the, what is it, tan, t a a and, uh, agencies get together and they go there to get smarter. So where are these places? Pamela Slim and the whitest that calls 'em the watering holes or the ponds? Yes. So can you find them? Sometimes people come to me, there's this group they want, they're describing this psychographic, and there's, I go like, yeah, we can't buy a list of those people. They don't have any meetings where this psychographic all gathers. Hmm. Uh, so, uh, this is, this is a dry hole, uh, as they say in, in the, all this down in Texas. You got a dry hole here. Um, and no amount of fracking is gonna help you get anything out of that hole. So, uh, gee, that was probably politically incorrect. . Um, so, uh, what we need to do is find where they gather, and there's this amazing tool I have, if I could share, can I share it, Steven? Of Speaker 1: (41:56) Course you can. Speaker 2: (41:57) It's called Google . You Google, where does, you know, agency owners gather? Where do agency owners meet? Where do agency owners, uh, you know, what do agency owners read? Yeah. And, and the Google machine as one old timer called it to me. So yeah, the Google machine will, will spit out your answers there. Speaker 1: (42:20) Yeah. Well, here, here's, here's what I love about eight and nine. Um, so, so nine is, can you find target rich environments where they gathered? And you mentioned Baba, you mentioned some of the other agency centric associations when, when I think of eight and nine, I see some real cool interdependency between eight and nine. Eight. Can we buy a list of the 7,800 that you mentioned before? Yes. Uh, can then we use that list to maybe do some strategic prospecting, if you will. I wonder if this person's gonna be at the Baba Summit this year. I wonder if that person's gonna be a sponsor to the Baba Summit. And then you can start sort of pre-planning so that you can take your list and then head to nine the pond, and then make sure you're meeting the right people while in the pond. Right. Speaker 2: (43:07) Right. And there are all kinds of strategies, and you've used them, um, that there might be some pre-event, you know, a cocktail party or, uh, I know we're kicking around some kind of donut party morning donut excursion, Speaker 1: (43:21) But no running If Car Cunningham, Carly Cunningham, if you're listening to this right now, donuts Yes. Long distance running through the streets of Chicago. No, no, Speaker 2: (43:30) No. Have you seen Henry and Stephen? Do we look like marathon runners, or do we look like donut eat? Speaker 1: (43:37) I have two tight hips for peace sake. I, I'm not running. Come on. Speaker 2: (43:42) . My doctor did say that I've already eaten my lifetime supply of donuts, and I should let other people have the donuts now. But, uh, for Carly, I might, I might consent to have one in Chicago. No, the point of that is you can get together, uh, I do Q and as, uh, modeled after your campfire q and as for authors and agency owners, and I encourage people to be part of the community, come there, ask questions, to get to know other members. I, I call the 150 authors, uh, the family. Yep. And my word is I want the family amplifying each other's work. It's, it's not a quit pro quo or anything like that, but it is the law of reciprocation that the more people you help, the more you will get helped to amplify your work and share it with others. And as we said, where these gatherings are, you can do extra things. David Maister, Dr. David Maister, I recommend him. Former professor at the Harvard Business School. Mm-hmm. . Uh, he let me take one page from one of his books 20 years ago and make a career out of it. A and he always said, this is what you need to do and you need to gather, and you just don't come in and out. Um, you need to be part of the community and contributing to that community anyway. You can. Speaker 1: (45:06) Right. 100%. I I know that we're, uh, quickly running out of time. So, so bring us home with number 10. Uh, will some make marquee clients advocates and references? Speaker 2: (45:17) Well, right. If, if you have some group where they say, what would be your client, but here's the condition, you can never mention that you worked with us. Uh, this is not a good place because prospects want social proof. They want several things. They want, they wanna know that you have a proprietary problem solving process, that you're not winging it. Uh, they want to know that you have experience. Uh, they wanna know some marquee clients. They wanna be able to talk to some people that you've worked with. Um, they need all these social proofs because they can't really judge how good of a service our agency provides. Um, and everybody says the same thing. Oh, I've done focus groups with people who hire agencies. Don't say these things. Don't say how long you've been in business. Uh, they laugh at you for that. I've been golfing longer than Tiger Woods. Speaker 2: (46:09) It doesn't make me a better golfer. Okay. The other thing is, don't say we're just the right size, big enough to get the job done small enough for personal attention. They, they laugh at us for that. They say firms with five people say that firms with 500 people say that. What they wanna hear is research about their peers. Not you naming peers. But, you know, we've worked with, you know, this many people or we've done a study and, uh, our research shows, like I shared that two outta three agency owners. And the number one pain is a dry sales pipeline. Not enough qualified prospects. Yep. I surveyed over a thousand people to learn that. So they wanna learn about themselves. They wanna know that you know about them. They want to be able to tell somebody, oh, well, we hired the agency that worked for A, B, and C, and they go, oh, they're good. Um, so that's why this is important. Speaker 1: (47:07) A hundred percent love that and great way to, to, to bring us home and, and emphasizes, uh, when, when we kicked off going through that list, or actually in the introduction, um, I, I've mentioned the, the, the, the piece that you use as your bottom line to close out this chapter. You, you, you say, so I'm gonna quote Henry again here, um, what he wrote, bottom line, the more quality thinking you do upfront meaning through these 10 questions, the easier business development will be 100%. Well, well said, Henry. So I, before we go, uh, before we close out and say goodbye, um, any final advice, anything you think we might have missed? And then please do tell, uh, our audience, uh, the best way to connect with you. Speaker 2: (47:52) Thank you for asking. Sure. If anybody ask you a good question like that, you're to pause three seconds for dignity and say, thank you for asking . The, the main message is stay on the journey. And then when you do a book, is the number one marketing tool. Talking about the book is the number one fill your pipeline strategy. Yeah. So you get on podcasts, you, you give speeches, you talk about the book, the book opens the doors to do that. And also, as you taught me in Sell with authority, you can't spell authority without the word author. An author is an authority and people get your best thinking in the book. So share that with them. So for anybody in the predictive ROI world, if they wanna have a no cost, no selling zone strategy call with me on this. I'm happy to do it. Speaker 2: (48:51) Yeah. So you can just contact me at henry indie books i ntl.com. Steven will put it in the show notes, and, uh, we'll have what I call a book chat. I'll help you get clear on the goals for doing a book, what hidden assets you have to get a book done. A lot of people don't realize they're already have these assets. Uh, three, what are the roadblocks, uh, roadblocks. Don't stop agency owners, but you gotta figure a way around them, over 'em, through 'em. And then, uh, four, I'll tell you how others have gotten from where you are right now to where you want to go, because the path and the plan of others leaves the clues you need for your journey and your quest to sell with authority. Speaker 1: (49:36) Yeah. A a good friend of mine and one of my accountability partners, Don Yeager, um, often says this, this quote is not his. I just can't remember the, uh, person who originally said it. But anyway, Don often says, success leaves clues. And, and I think that that's a hundred percent correct. And Henry, uh, thank you very much for saying yes to come back to the show for this encore. And everyone, uh, no matter how many notes you took or how often you go back and re-listen to Henry's words of wisdom, which I sure hope that you do, the key is you have to take what he's so generously shared with you, the 10 filtering questions and all of the story in stories in each of those. 10, take them and apply them. Because again, the bottom line, how much work you put into the front end of this is what will determine the success. Success leaves clues, and he just gave you a bunch of them. Take it and apply it. Because when you do that through application, that's where the results will come. And again, Henry, thank you for saying yes, we all have the same 86,400 seconds in a day. And I'm grateful that you came onto the show to be our mentor and guide, uh, yet again. Thank you so much my friend, Speaker 2: (50:46) As they say at Chick-fil-A. My pleasure.

My guest today is Jillian Vorce. For more than two decades, Jillian has been helping professionals make connections and attain their business goals. With a focus on networking and relationship development, she works to open doors and create opportunities. Her trustworthiness and highly positive energy have inspired senior-level executives and business owners across the globe. In 2003 she founded The Jillian Group, Inc., where her team provides strategic relationship development and management consulting services. Jillian's previous work includes her first book "20/20 Mind Sight: Refocus, Reignite, & Reinvent Your Life From the Inside Out" and the TEDx Talk “The Lens of Connectivity.” In today's episode, Jillian and I address the following topics: The importance of relationships in business If networking works and whether it's enough How to build a community and why it matters How communities are different from networking groups Jillian's secret recipe for nurturing relationships And so much more Jillians's Resources Complimentary 30-Minute Brainstorm Session Jillians' Website The Widest Net Connect with Jillian on: LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Sarah's Resources Watch this episode on Youtube (FREE) Sarah's One Page Marketing Plan (FREE) Sarah Suggests Newsletter (FREE) The Humane Business Manifesto (FREE) Gentle Confidence Mini-Course Marketing Like We're Human - Sarah's book The Humane Marketing Circle Authentic & Fair Pricing Mini-Course Podcast Show Notes We use Descript to edit our episodes and it's fantastic! Email Sarah at sarah@sarahsantacroce.com Thanks for listening!   After you listen, check out Humane Business Manifesto, an invitation to belong to a movement of people who do business the humane and gentle way and disrupt the current marketing paradigm. You can download it for free at this page. There's no opt-in. Just an instant download. Are you enjoying the podcast?  The Humane Marketing show is listener-supported—I'd love for you to become an active supporter of the show and join the Humane Marketing Circle. You will be invited to a private monthly Q&A call with me and fellow Humane Marketers -  a safe zone to hang out with like-minded conscious entrepreneurs and help each other build our business and grow our impact.  — I'd love for you to join us! Learn more at humane.marketing/circle Don't forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes or on Android to get notified for all my future shows and why not sign up for my weekly(ish) "Sarah Suggests Saturdays", a round-up of best practices, tools I use, books I read, podcasts, and other resources. Raise your hand and join the Humane Business Revolution. Warmly, Sarah Imperfect Transcript of the show We use and love Descript to edit our podcast and provide this free transcript of the episode. And yes, that's an affiliate link. Ep 157 [00:00:00] video1868460104: hey, Jillian, so good to speak to you today. Hi there, Sarah . Look forward to this conversation. Yeah, it's been on my calendar for a while. I'm excited that today's finally here. Yeah, and we have Kelly to thank for the introduction, so thank you, Kelly. If you're listening, . Yeah, thanks Kelly. She's great. She's wonder. [00:00:19] She's a great one. Yeah. All right, well, we're gonna talk about relationships. Um, in business, I guess, because that's the purpose of this podcast, but mm-hmm. overall relationships are important, right? So mm-hmm. , I gonna be focusing on, uh, a few types of business relationships, and you call them relationships. [00:00:41] I, uh, in the seven Ps of humane marketing, I also call them, uh, partnerships. So to. It's the same thing. I don't know, maybe you mm-hmm. can say if you see a difference, but, but kind of let's start with you and why, why I got you on the podcast for this topic. Right on, on your [00:01:00] LinkedIn profile, you say that you are the chief handshaker of the gym group. [00:01:04] Yeah. So what's a chief Handshaker do? Tell us about your role and kind of what you do in, in. Sure. So that I had to kind of, uh, reevaluate during covid times. Right. Chief Handshaker wasn't happening too often, right. Um, in the physical sense. So then we went the digital handshake route. But, um, in any case, so the Chief Handshaker title came to be a few years ago, several years ago, um, when, you know, getting, I think it was when I was getting my LinkedIn profile set up and thinking about what would my title be, and it felt like everybody was a c e o. [00:01:40] It felt. . Mm. That's not really the image that I had of myself. It wasn't really, it just felt not in alignment with who I was. And so I went through a whole host of different ideas and then thought about what do I actually do and what I actually do, what I have always done and what I love to do [00:02:00] is to shake hands and create opportunities. [00:02:03] I was. Chief Handshaker, let's go with it. And it was a little bit like, I'm not taking myself too seriously. It was kind of somewhat tongue in cheek, but also literal. So I went with it and then lo and behold, it's like, I don't know, a year or something later, a couple years later, LinkedIn featured me in one of their articles talking about how to optimize your profile and utilizing the title. [00:02:26] And I thought, well, look at that. You know, it's like kind of, kind of funny how it worked out that way. Certainly that was not. expectation or intent. Um, I like it. But anyhow, yeah, that's really what I do. Um, mm-hmm. . So I've been, that's the one thing, uh, when I look at the arc of my career, um, and even beginning as a late teenager, I started building relationships. [00:02:49] Um, and that has carried me throughout my career to the point that every single piece of business I've ever done is a direct result of a relationship or a. , [00:03:00] um, period. Mm-hmm. . So it's, um, not really theory for me, it's, um, it's what I believe in my core. It's all to, it's to me, everything is about relationship. [00:03:10] Um, And so, and I love how you, that's my high level. You're not really calling it networking, you know, like, it, it, yeah, you can get into that, how it's different, but yeah, I can feel that it's somehow different than, than just networking. It is, to me it is. Um, but it's tricky. It's like this idea of a brand or, you know, as a brand who we say we are or what other people say of. [00:03:36] Right. And so sometimes language is what, you know, the collective people use. And so the word that a lot of people utilize is networking. I get that. Um, and I understand strategic networking, I understand all that. But you know, just for a moment, you know, one of the, the, um, consistent offers or requests I've had through my career is, ah, Jillian, will you come [00:04:00] train my sales? [00:04:01] It's like, mm. I'm not really a sales trainer and, and, and everybody always tries to put me in sales. Uh, great at sales. I never tried to sell anything, ever. I never, I don't like that. And that's the thing about networking piece, it's, it always felt like doing something to get something. Yeah. Uh, whereas for me, my whole framework for the way I show up for relationships, and therefore the way I show up for business and life is about planting. [00:04:31] um, and thinking of relationships as assets, not personal assets per se, but indirect assets for, uh, opportunities to help other people. And so I continuously have been building relationships and planting these seeds and nurturing them for 10, 20, 25 years. Um, so it's, that's, I don't know if that makes sense. [00:04:54] Maybe it's semantics. It makes a lot of sense. And maybe it kind. . You know, it's similar to my [00:05:00] selling, like we're human book, right? Mm-hmm. where when, when I, I'm in marketing, but when people ask me, well, what about selling? You know, can you create a write a book about selling? I'm like, I'm not a salesperson. [00:05:12] I hate selling, right? Yeah. Right. But then I'm like, well, I do sell, uh, like I, you know, do make money and have clients, so, right. Um, I can share that. And I, right. And I think selling, like we're human is actually about these relationships. A lot of, a lot of it, right. That's what you're saying as well. For sure. [00:05:33] It's like the idea as you're talking about, well of course you are doing business, of course sales are happening. Right. But I think of it as in terms of relationships not being transactional. Right. And so that, I like that as the idea for it's partnerships. It's, it's, Kind of, um, reciprocal. It's not, it's not just a singular transaction. [00:05:53] And so, um, that's what networking feels like. It feels like, let me find you. And so I understand sometimes [00:06:00] there's a time and place for that, but by and large, you know, kind of day in and day out, I don't kind of operate in that way. So I think that much more in the, you know, the humane, the human realm. [00:06:11] Like we're actually doing people. Actual people. Yeah. So we should treat them like people . Exactly. Right. Yeah. I love that. Yeah. So good. All right, well we start, we decided to kind of pick some of the areas that you were saying that there's 10 vital, um, kind of types of relationships in the business. And we, we picked out a few that we are gonna focus on here in, in, uh, in this conversation. [00:06:38] So, , maybe before we go there again, just kind of like in general, maybe you can give an example of what relationships did for your business. Um, sure. I just wanted to show the importance and we just talked before we started recording, like all the people that we know in common and Right. How, you know, like maybe just to [00:07:00] give people an understanding of what that does in business. [00:07:03] Like how does that help? Sure. Something like tangible. Yeah. Sure. So, let's see. Um, relationships, well, I had alluded a few moments ago to every piece of business, everything I've ever done is a direct result of relationships that were built along the way. Um, . And that's, that's quite true. So, uh, an example, um, is my, the, the TEDx talk that I did years ago, um, was a relationship. [00:07:34] I just, I was, uh, chair of a board and, uh, we had a strategic consultant come in and was, you know, presenting and I was, um, doing this thing I call being professionally human. I was paying attention to him and, uh, paying like a lot of attention to him and taking notes and, um, was completely engaged with his presentation. [00:07:57] So afterwards, he said, you know, Jillian, he said, I've [00:08:00] been doing this for decades, and he said, you paid such close attention to me. It was almost distracting. He said, I'm. Curious to get to know you more. Can we meet for coffee and talk? And so that was, you know, the germination of a relationship such that a month or so later he emailed me and he's like, Jillian, I'm on vacation in Switzerland. [00:08:20] There we go, . Um, but I just found out that there's a TEDx coming up and I think that you should be, you know, included in it. So I, I have a relationship with the woman that's producing it, so I let her. Um, that I, you know, advocate for you and she would like to talk to you. Mm-hmm. . And so there I was doing a TEDx three weeks after that [00:08:39] Um, and this was back in the day when it was like very new. Mm-hmm. . Um, so that's an example. Um, there's so many. I have, you know, I met somebody else through a local public library. I pay attention. I. I'm a huge fan of local libraries, public libraries. So I saw on the bulletin board what's going on. I always check it out. [00:08:58] And there was a talk [00:09:00] coming up, so it was of interest and I was like, personal finance or something. So I went and I was like 50 years younger than everybody in the room. Um, which was so puzzling to me. But that's like my life. Uh, anyhow, and I met the, the, um, the author afterwards and we chatted a little bit. [00:09:17] Kind of exchanged cards. And one of us followed up a month or so, two months later, and we just connected and began to meet regularly. And he would write to me and say, I need a Jillian fix. Can we get together? And so doing that for the sake of building a relationship and just showing up and being present without an agenda. [00:09:38] Mm-hmm. , um, in, in really, Showing interest and just being, again, professionally human. Mm-hmm. , um, eventually, turns out he became a professor at Boston College. So then he invited me in to come and teach networking, so applied networking for young professionals as a course that I created. And so I lectured at at Boston College for six years.[00:10:00] [00:10:00] Um, and then he came and said he was working on his ninth book, uh, and he would like to collaborate with me on it, so I was able to get my first book up and out through collaboration with him. Wow, what a great example. I just love the sentence, you know, I wrote it down like, being professionally human. [00:10:19] That is such a good phrase. Um, it just, yeah, it shows what you, exactly how you described it, like you pay extra attention. Kind of like in a human and humane way. Yes. But you make the specific choice of saying, I'm gonna pay extra attention here because I like the human and L, and I guess I like what? The human is saying, right, professionally, like intellectually, right? [00:10:47] You're like, sure. We, we connect on an intellectual level, we connect on a value level. Yes. And I wanna be closer to this human right. Yes. And the other thing I think is about the [00:11:00] respect level, because this idea of like, people do business with those they know, like, and trust, right? That's true. But I also sometimes wonder if the word like could be traded for respect. [00:11:11] Mm-hmm. because, . Um, you know, the people that I work with and the people who choose to work with me, they may like me, but I hope they respect me in. Conversely, the people that I work with, they may not be my favorite person. I might not want to go hang out with them, but if I respect them, I know them. I respect them. [00:11:31] Chances are I will trust them. I will also work. So I don't, so I feel like those words are kind of maybe interchangeable. Mm-hmm. . Um, so this idea is like the, the people, but, um, the. Thing I'll just throw in for a moment. I think that anchors all relationships, um, is something that's can be hard at times. Um, but that's to have patience. [00:11:53] Um, you know, relationships are not magic seeds. You know, I, I often, it's like Jack and the Beanstock seeds, I often [00:12:00] say that, and I believe cuz it's been true for me, that one handshake can change a life or a business. We just don't know which handshake that's going to. . So we have to show up for each one as if this might be the one. [00:12:14] Um, uh, and so yeah, I think it's about building relationships, um, and being patient. Um, but really the one relationship can lead to a harvest that far exceeds your wildest dreams. Um, and that's certainly happened for me time and time again. Um, but in any case, to kind of tie that into the, the 10 relationships piece, that that came about after just years of just feeling frustrated or just like having this moment of like, not epiphany, but just realization that in all the years I've been doing business and I've been an entrepreneur for. [00:12:57] you know, I've been saying like 10 years or [00:13:00] 20 years for a lot of years. So it's like just about 25 years at this point. It's like, see, see all the white hair . Um, anyhow, and the thing, you know, so I've worked with startups, I've worked with, uh, established companies and healthcare, tech, finance, you know, in politics and entertainment, all kinds of things. [00:13:18] Um, but the one consistent thread. always, all they, all of them have been looking for is, you know, new business. They're always looking for new business, it's always looking for sales. And I feel like that's so cliche and it's so obvious. And so finally I just dialed it back and I'm like, it's not only about getting sales, they're all these other relationships that should be treated equally and should also, you know, have attention paid to them. [00:13:47] Um, and that's also why I don't love, I don't know what the. The new phrase would be, but this idea of customer service, um, to me, building relationships is service. That's, that's [00:14:00] how, that's what the relationship is for me. It's service of how I can help somebody else, help them or somebody else later. Um, but it, it's not. [00:14:09] It's not just the customers. There are all these other relationships that influence a business. And so I just drew those out and just, you know, have lots of examples and just realizing that these are all relationships that do, that are present in some capacity in, I would say every business. Um, you know, whether or not they're aware of them or pay any attention or deliberate or strategic or authentic in any of them remains to be seen. [00:14:35] And so that's kind of the. that I work now is really through this specific lens of relationships with business. Yeah. So let's, let's look at some of them. Um, sure. I was gonna start with the obvious one, which is current customers or clients, right. . Mm-hmm. . Um, which, yeah, I guess you're, you're right. That's what everybody is looking for and that's kind of mm-hmm. [00:14:58] the one that stands out. And [00:15:00] that's, to be honest also, I think the one that most people do networking for. Right. And that's right of course's. Personally, I'm kind of like, really? Uh, like mm-hmm. . Yeah. I don't like it . Mm-hmm. because it feels like I'm just on display to basically be sold to, um, yeah. And it's all trying to get, it's what we're trying to get. [00:15:21] Sorry, I'm like over talking, but I'm like, yes, yes, yes. Because when we're trying to, like, trying to get new, well, that's it. We're trying to. when it's about, you know, new business or it's new customers. We're trying to get new customers. Mm-hmm. and um, which I understand that. Um, but I just think there are so many other ways to influence the success of our business. [00:15:40] Um, that, you know, maybe we could go there. Um, so maybe the community piece. Yeah, let's start there. That might be an interesting one. That's my favorite actually. So let's start really cool. So community is an interesting one, um, because just, you know, your definition of community versus [00:16:00] mine. Um, so I think starting there, um, so in general we have, you know, first is looking at the, you know, what is your community? [00:16:10] So is it. , is it offline? Right? If it's offline, you're looking at your neighborhood of where your business is or where your home office is. You're looking at your town, your city, or your region. So you ha we all have that. Even if we have an online business. We also have a local community as well. Um, and then the online space, we have, um, you know, obviously the communities that we are building for, you know, ourselves, we're building and we're facilit. [00:16:39] as well as the commu, the larger communities that we're also a part of. Mm-hmm. . So it's just looking at, you know, all the communities. Um, and it reminds me, there's a, a great quote from the Harvard Business Review, and I might butcher it a little bit, um, but it's to the tune of, um, building a community is not about what the [00:17:00] organization can achieve, it's about what the organization plus an engaged in, enthusiastic group of people can achieve together. [00:17:07] So it's not. What one can get. It's like the hole is greater than the sum of the parts kind of idea. Mm-hmm. . Mm-hmm. . Um, and so, again, so with community, it's about being visible and being seen as a, you know, a respected or dependable, visible. Um, You know, good positive force in the community. So it's, you know, making sure you're who you are is represented in the community. [00:17:31] So, um, a couple ways to approach this, um, is just, first of all, um, I'm, aside from the relationship piece, I'm also really heavily, um, a strong proponent of sustainability and process. Um, so always looking for, because I think sidebar, approach relationships properly, and you can deliver exceptional service consistently, then you don't have to do a lot of marketing [00:18:00] because it should be built into the way you treat all of those relationships. [00:18:03] Mm-hmm. . Um, but, um, if we don't have sustainable processes, You'll probably either burn out or go broke. So it's important that when we showing up for relation relationships, we also have things like baselines to pay attention and quantify what we're doing and that kind of thing. Um, so in any case, so starting off with your baseline, right? [00:18:23] So c communities like identifying, like probably writing down what community, what does your community consist of? Like who's in your community, what are these people, what do they represent, who are they, et cetera, et cetera. And then what communities are you a part. and just look for, you know, who do you belong to? [00:18:40] What groups are you in? Um, think about how do you want to contribute to those communities, right? So think about, um, you know, how do you, or how would you like to be able to contribute to those communities? Um, think about, um, identifying, um, you [00:19:00] know, the existing values, um, within the community that you're facilitating or the one that you're growing. [00:19:07] Um, The, you know, I would say the benefit of having an online offline, um, is I think under realized by a lot of people who think, oh, I just have an online business. Mm-hmm. , I just do my thing. Or I have a local brick and mortar business. I don't do the online thing. I think that there are a lot of opportunities to kind of leverage each other, to strengthen each other, right? [00:19:33] Mm-hmm. . Um, so there, for example, if you have an online. , there's, you know, opportunities to look at your local community and either do an in-kind workshop, or it could be, you know, a fee for service kind of thing. Um, but look for either your local public library or, um, the Chamber of Commerce or the Rotary Club or something, a way that you could provide the service that you're providing online to help a local. [00:19:59] [00:20:00] Group in your area. Um, and on the flip side, if you are doing something locally at teaching a cooking class or you know, whatever it could be, um, there's opportunities for you to share some of that online as well. Um, another example that I feel like might be obvious, um, but I think. Um, there's opportunity to expand on it and to be, I think it, it's, it, it justifies having a little bit of time and attention paid to it is things like, how does, um, how do the, the activities that we are engaged in locally, How do those enhance our skillset? [00:20:39] Um, our experience, the things that we can share, the stories, the people, we can introduce all of these things. So, um, you know, so being able to, to really not look at them as two separate parts of ourselves. , um, or like that they don't touch each other. Um, there's, there's a lot. It's like, um, they're both parts of who you [00:21:00] are and therefore have, uh, assets to offer to each other. [00:21:03] So your, your online community and your kind of offline community, so to speak, your local community? Yeah. Yeah. I think that there's a lot of opportunity to be compliment, I mean, All kinds of ideas and suggestions. Um, with, with that, I can break that down. We could do a whole day on that, but yeah. Even as an, I kinda have a follow up question regarding Yeah, sure. [00:21:24] Sure. And, and, and networking groups. Yep. Because that's, again, that's kind of what I s. See out there, especially on, in the online world, it's like, oh, uh, you know, I'm in this many networking groups. Sometimes they call themselves communities. They really are, is is networking groups. So I guess the question that I have, two, two questions. [00:21:45] The first one is, how is the community different from a networking group? What makes a community, I guess, and the second question is, is. A benefit of being in a lot of [00:22:00] communities versus being really engaged in one or two communities. Yeah. Great questions. I'm about to be really direct in my answer, so here we go. [00:22:10] Um, so the first one about, uh, what is a community? How does a community, um, like similar or different to a networking group? immediately. It reminds me of, um, in the US there's this, I'm not sure if it's international, I probably should know that, but business, well, I guess it is bni, business Networking International. [00:22:31] See how quick I am ? Yes. So I. In my, I don't know, early twenties. I was asked several times to to join one of those chapters and to be a part of it. But at the time, I already knew most of the people, cuz I had been invited by several of them. I'm like, well, why would I do that? I already know all of you guys. [00:22:50] I wanna build new relationships. So if I have referrals, I'm already gonna share them because it's. Not because I have to, it's because I, I want to, so I [00:23:00] don't ne, I used to tell them, I don't have to show up at eight o'clock on a Tuesday morning and give you guys referrals. I would rather have soup in the afternoon and chat and do the same thing. [00:23:09] So I, I never, for me personally, I wasn't into. , that type of a networking group per se. However, I recently participated in some online networking groups, which is how I met the woman who introduced US , and it was delivered in a way that I. at first was kind of frankly a little bit judgmental about, I thought, I don't know about this. [00:23:33] It feels very commoditized. I don't know. It feels like we're trying to just slam it through too many, too much. However, I really tried to be open for and be curious about what the experience would be, and it was overwhelming. But it was, you know, I was pleasantly surprised by the experience and actually met some really great people as a result of it. [00:23:54] Um, so I think. that, you know, that's two different answers to like, uh, two different exa ex uh, [00:24:00] experiences of a networking group. Um, but in general, I would kind of default back to what I said earlier. To me, the idea or like the definition, kind of the vibe of what networking is. Um, it implies that you're looking to get something. [00:24:16] It's like it's looking for a specific connection or looking to, to receive. Whereas the idea of a community is more of like, belong. . Um, there's more of a sense you don't necessarily show, you know, show up in a community to go get stuff, right. It's more about how we can give and receive. And so I, um, I jive with that a bit more. [00:24:37] Um, but there's nothing wrong with participating in a networking group for sure. Mm-hmm. , um, your second an answer your question about, you know, participating in a lot of networking groups. Um, you know, I think just speaking candidly, um, I think. can easily, um, become kind of, [00:25:00] um, something we can hide behind to tell ourselves that we're really, we're, we're so busy with our business, we're doing so many things. [00:25:08] Um, and it creates this like, kind of hollow vanity metric thing. It's like we, you know, there's a lot of potential so, , it's like, you know, harboring a lot of potential. Um, but what are we not getting done? Or how could we better utilize that time? Um, and then maybe it would be prudent to spend some time to think about, you know, what are the groups that we're participating in? [00:25:34] Why are we participating in each one and what are we kind of, um, you know, how well are we able to contribute to that group? And then honestly, what is the result? What do we get from that group? Um, and I. Necessarily mean how many new customers or whatever. I think of it in terms of you might participate in a networking group because it gives you a lot of energy. [00:25:56] You might feel, you get great ideas and you know, [00:26:00] great collaboration, it comes from it. So, um, you know, that can be the case too, but I think it makes sense to take inventory of, you know, all of our business activities, including the number of networking groups that we're in to see are we really able to. [00:26:16] you know, what are we able to part, how are we able to contribute to those groups? And it's probably difficult if we're in, you know, more than, you know, one or two. It's probably difficult to continue to be a, um, you know, a, a, a very active, um, you know, contributor. I would say that on an ongoing basis, you dry out. [00:26:38] I, I totally agree with you. What I would say is that I think, I guess you could be in several networking groups because they're, again, it has nothing, it doesn't have so much to do with belonging and contributing. It has more, again, to do with the, you know, I show up and I, I talk to people. I want to get something. [00:26:58] But I also agree with [00:27:00] you that oftentimes that just contributes to the hustle and busy mode. . Yeah. It's like, right. You should really sit with yourself and say, look, am I really right? You know, getting quality conversations and co and contacts from here. Right. And I feel like also that. There's a lot of community, uh, owners or hosts who I think kind of struggle with the quality of the community because people are, are spread so thin, they're in so many different things and they kind of expect community and belonging to happen on its own. [00:27:37] Mm-hmm. , which it doesn't because if. Want to be belonging to something, then you also have to contribute to something. Right. Right. And that's how the community is different. It it really requires personal responsibility of each of the member. It's not the same as a membership site or a, a networking [00:28:00] group, right? [00:28:00] So there, there's like, we kind of interchangeably use the same terms, but it is completely different in terms of different, they're, they are completely different. Yeah. I agree with you wholeheartedly and yeah. Um, and both are true the online and, um, You know, local, it's the same thing. You have to contribute, have to be a part of. [00:28:20] And the more I feel like if you're, if you're in a, you know, in a community or in a networking group, um, and there are other people that are contributing. It's going to also make you want to contribute more, and then it gets richer and richer and richer, and then it attracts more and more people as opposed to the opposite when everybody's trying to pick the last bit of meat off the bone kind of thing. [00:28:42] You can feel that too. And when, you know, I think, you know, it's, it's, there's this sense of, you know, you kind of mentioned about, you know, people who, um, are quite proud of the number of networking groups they're in. Um, you know, numbers can be spun lots of [00:29:00] different ways. Um, and it's like, is it better to go to a networking event in, you know, kind of old school but come home with 50 business cards or to have two follow up coffees booked the night you, you're at the event. [00:29:13] It's like to be able to have something that kind of crystallizes those relationships that are tangible, um, and be present with them and. Not try to just skim code everything, like a just fire hose. It's not the way anymore. It's really about, um, creating. Impressions with people. Um, and I said, like I said, being, being patient. [00:29:35] But in any case, yeah, I think there's opportunity with, uh, for companies, uh, for business owners to look at the communities, the community communities that they facilitate, that they're a part of, and then really take inventory of them, your baselines. What are you currently doing? Which ones are you in? . Um, and then how could you add more value? [00:29:53] Mm-hmm. . Um, so what else do they, what else is it that they're looking for? Um, and then the opportunity to leverage [00:30:00] the online and the offline communities to help each other. Um, so your, you know, your local community affiliations and, you know, volunteer things and whatnot that you do can be. , um, kind of repackaged to help your online community, et cetera, um, and vice versa. [00:30:18] So I think, you know, we could go on about that, but, um, I think that that's awesome. And, and like I said, it's my, my favorite kind of out of all 10. But the other one that I really picked out that I'd like to, uh, kind of have you talk about is the strategic partners. Sure. Cause I think that's a key one as well that probably is often overlooked and. [00:30:41] And I mentioned to you the, the book, the Widest net by uh Yes. Pam Slim. Yes. That just came out and Yes. And that I really also think she talks about these strategic partners. quite a bit. That that is how you are gonna, you know, [00:31:00] yeah. Expand your business if that's your goal. Mm-hmm. , but also just yeah, kind of reach different audiences that you'd never mm-hmm. [00:31:09] thought of, um mm-hmm. reaching otherwise. So Yeah, for sure. More about these strategic partners. Yeah, so I love, like I was saying, I love that you brought her book up cuz that was on my list of suggested resources actually. Mm-hmm. , um, specifically around the strategic partner section. So, um, and I love, um, the part how she talks about ecosystem. [00:31:30] Mm-hmm. , I think that fits in really nicely with the idea of building strategic partnerships. Um, so straight away I. This is an easy one for smaller businesses like micro or smaller solopreneurs, uh, smaller businesses to think That doesn't apply to me. Mm-hmm. . Um, but I think it absolutely does. As I said earlier, I think all 10 of these relationships really in some capacity, um, are true for all businesses regardless of the size. [00:31:57] Um, if you're a solopreneur, then [00:32:00] your relationship with the ceo. Is yourself. So that still matters, you know? Right. Um, so in any case, strategic partnerships. So, um, the idea here is, the action word to me is collaboration. Right? And it's creating influence, right? So again, same as previously. Starting off with taking a baseline, establishing your baseline. [00:32:22] um, you know, what do you currently do in the way of building strategic partnerships? Do you have any in place or not? Where did they originate? Um, what was the result? Um, you know, would you say it was a successful partnership or not? And how did you measure it? How, how did you, or how could you measure that partnership to see if it was, um, healthy? [00:32:45] Was it successful and was it mutually beneficial? . I think that's a really important piece, again, to not show up in a relationship as a transaction, not for what you're going to get, but also what you're going to give, um, what you can contribute to [00:33:00] this partnership. Um, so the first point is, is there, so to look at, you know, where, what you're starting point, where you starting from? [00:33:08] The second part of strategic building, strategic partnership, I think is about that collaboration. Um, so starting. , you know, making a wishlist. Are there people or companies or organizations that you'd love to be able to collaborate with, um, and just kind of make a, you know, good old fashioned if you could have anything or if you could work with anybody, who would it be and why? [00:33:32] Um, and so kind of thinking through that, I think, and again, I'm a huge advocate of documenting things because we often have a lot of things in our. , but getting it down on paper helps us to take action and be able to look at it a little bit more objectively, perhaps. . And then, so thinking about, you know, why would you want to, uh, collaborate with these people? [00:33:54] What is the experience you're looking to ascertain? Or what is the result you're looking for and [00:34:00] what are the reasons? Um, so, you know, you might wanna collaborate with somebody to create some new content, maybe to produce an event, um, maybe to do a po, you know, to create a podcast with them. Um, maybe it's to better serve your own customer. [00:34:15] right? Um, it might be that, it might be you, you've, you know, found out or you've done some research and found out that your, you know, your customer base has a specific interest, so you wanna bring that person or bring that expertise in. So it can be just a matter of, of adding value to your ex, your existing customer base. [00:34:34] Um, it can also be to tap into a potential new customer. Um, it can be for co-marketing purposes, it can be to share data on something. I mean, there are lots of different reasons to collaborate, um, you know, to co-create on things. There's, there's lots of reasons. So to actually spend the time thinking about who you'd like to collaborate with and, and why I think is a good place to start is a good exercise.[00:35:00] [00:35:00] And then from there, probably you want to collect some intel and start to research a little bit. Um, you know, I would recommend doing things like looking at some of these people, these people, organizations, et cetera. You know, check them out on social media, see what they're about, what are the things that they're looking for, what is it that they're offering? [00:35:19] Um, , you know, list, look them up on podcasts. That's a, I think, um, highly underutilized kind of search engine, if you will, is to certain people that you'd like to connect with or learn more about, see if they have, either have their own podcast or have been, uh, interviewed on others. You can learn more about them, et cetera. [00:35:38] Um, you know, so online communities, et cetera. So start to collect the information to see what kinds of things so you can educate yourself a little bit on the things. Of these people that you want to collaborate with the things that they're doing, so you can start to look for the overlaps, the things that you know, that you, you are doing, how you wanna serve your, your community, what things you're looking for in a [00:36:00] partnership, the people you'd like to contribute or work with. [00:36:03] and then how, you know, start to have some ideas about how you might collaborate together so that when you do reach out to these people, you have already put some idea, some thought into it. So you already can, you know, say you've spent a little bit of time, I mean, obviously you don't wanna go crazy. [00:36:19] You've got, you know, you wanna make sure time management is in check. Um, but it's, it, it really speaks well of us and I think demonstrates our brand. Um, that we are human and we. , um, being thoughtful and deliberate so that when you reach out to somebody and say, you know, I'd love to have a conversation with you. [00:36:39] I have some ideas. If you're open to collaborating, or at least you know, I'd like to, to share these ideas with you, to see what you think, um, then you can be thoughtful about it and you've already kind of come up with a rough draft, so to speak. Um, certainly you wanna give them room to be able to contribute their own ideas or feedback and contribute to that. [00:36:58] But I think. . [00:37:00] Um, again, it just speaks well, rather than showing up with a completely like, oh, I'd like to collaborate with you, which can be you. Code word for do you have any business? I can get , right? So it's kind of like, I've actually spent some time on this and I really like that you're doing this and I've been doing this, and I think we can potentially explore that overlap. [00:37:21] Um, so I think wouldn't you spend wouldn't say maybe that that's like almost a step too fast. Uh, like if I don't know this person from scratch Sure. And they're like approaching me, oh, I have this great plan and here's what we could do together. personally, I'd be like, whoa, you know, can we slow down and go back to dating a little bit first? [00:37:44] Sure, sure, sure. So, of course, I mean, you, you, great point. Obviously I went too fast down the kind of the sequence because that, that was like the end of the sequence, right? Yeah, pretty much. Because across the board always it's like goes back to the patient's thing and how no [00:38:00] matter who it is or what you're looking to do and how to. [00:38:04] How to build relationships, how to build trust, um, period. And it's not really build trust online cuz we live in an online world these days and we're going to be utilizing online tools in some capacity. But how to do that? Um, so, um, Yeah, so we do a lot of that in the media section too, but it's the same thing here. [00:38:22] Um, so, uh, for sure, depending if you know this person or the group, or if you don't know them, um, you know, there's certain, you know, kind of low hanging fruit things that we. Probably ought to be doing anyway on a regular basis, which is, you know, aside from, you know, publishing our own stuff always is to look at other people's stuff and to be able to contribute to theirs by liking things, commenting, sharing things, making introductions, you know, looking for ways to add value or contribute to those people. [00:38:53] So if there are, um, you know, on your wishlist, if you started off with, you know, 25 and you've whittled it down to maybe [00:39:00] five to. So those are the people, the organizations you begin to focus on and observe what it is that they're doing. And generally speaking, if, I mean, depending. the size of the organization and there are lots of factors, but generally speaking, if you, it doesn't take a long time to start to show up on somebody's radar. [00:39:21] Um, if you like things or comment, if you're, if you're engaging with their content, people are going to take notice. Mm-hmm. Um, and then, um, again, if we're using things, tools available, like linked. , it's then they're generally, so it's probably better if you do this ahead of time to know. Do you have any connections in common with them? [00:39:40] Like where are they in your kind of network? Um, it's nice to know that, um, I don't generally reach out immediately. I don't always go and find somebody that says, oh, can you, can you refer me to so-and-so? I, I handle it a little bit differently. Um, but in any case, so to, to reach out to them like that. [00:40:00] But after I feel. [00:40:02] after doing that for a little bit, if you ha you'll often get some feedback. Sometimes they'll be proactive and shoot you a message, you know, on LinkedIn or Instagram or something. Um, and just comment like, thanks. Or you'll start to see things like, I mean, this is like social media stuff, but after you comment for a while, at first you might get nothing, and then you might get like a, like, and then eventually they might thank you with your. [00:40:27] and then eventually they might add a little bit more. So you're kind of rising up the level of their, you know, top of mind awareness kind bit. Yeah, yeah, the awareness for sure. Um, so that, I feel like some of this there, it's an art and a science. Um, it really is an art and a science and, and that's why I, I, Gave myself permission to interrupt you because I, yeah. [00:40:47] I think for, for you and maybe myself, it's kind of like so obvious, those tiny steps. Yeah. But I know that people would hear that on the podcast and, and go, you know, [00:41:00] oh, I can just send them a message and, and say, here I am. because I'm, I'm saying that because I did that as well. Yeah. Like a couple of times. [00:41:09] Yeah. Because you get so excited and then you're like, like this just happened. Um, in the past few weeks I saw a summit and I'm like, oh, you know, great summit. I'd love to be speaking at this summit. And so I, I looked up who's hosting it and uh, and then I'm like, okay, I'm gonna reach out to her. . The summit actually just finished, but I looked up that she's been hosting this for several years. [00:41:35] I'm mm-hmm. Okay. I'm gonna connect with her, not mentioning it at all. Yeah. You know, I'd like to be a speaker on your summit at all. Just kind congrats on the Great summit. I hope it was a great success. Mm-hmm. success and so now we're connected on LinkedIn and that was gonna be gonna be my job to do those small things. [00:41:53] Mm-hmm. those small seeds that mm-hmm. so that hopefully in a year from now, or eight months from now, Will [00:42:00] have some kind of relationship, uh, right then go, Hey, how about, you know, being on your summit? Yeah, it's definitely true. It's a really valid point. I appreciate you interrupting me for that. Cause I think it matters a lot. [00:42:11] Um, and I think, you know, here's the deal, um, I think intention, um, is something that we can often feel, right? It's like we can tell when someone. . I mean, it's harder to do online or through email. Tone is optimist. I get that, but I think. , if our intention is, is true and we are showing up and we, we really do care, we are present, we do wanna contribute and we're not just simply looking to check a quick box and try to get something, um, I think that that can resonate. [00:42:45] People can pick up on that. So sometimes, um, it can be, Hey, listen, you don't know me at all. I know this is really strange. Like, and sometimes it's just. honest about it, and just like being professionally human, we've all had [00:43:00] those situations. And so sometimes, and that's why it's the art and science and the only way to get good at that, which is not really getting good at it, it's becoming more confident in trusting ourselves is by doing it a lot. [00:43:14] And so I will do that sometimes now, reach directly out to somebody that's a, you know, uh, a high level person because I, I trust my instinct. . Um, because I know how I'm showing up and because I'm not desperate, it's okay. And I've had the experience where I do that and it's crickets. I don't hear from them. [00:43:34] But the universe is funny. In three months, six months or two years later, I end up standing next to them in an elevator. It's like, oh my gosh, ah, whatever. And then they go on LinkedIn, they're like, oh, I'm so sorry I left you hanging. I'm like, yeah, lunch is on you next time, . So it's like that. Right? So there are situations like that, but your your point about the. [00:43:54] I think makes sense. And it is, that's why being kind of organized, um, and being consistent with it and [00:44:00] being patient all matters. Um, yeah. But yeah, so I think that is a good point. I, I appreciate you slowing me down. So, um, yeah, so you have kind of, um, the, the people that you would like to collaborate with, um, you know, what you can potentially offer to them, but then going a step further, and this is the, the part that I got that I liked that Pamela Slim talks about in her book, which is the E. [00:44:24] Um, and I think this is, there's huge opportunity again, for any company, any size, to spend a moment in more than a few moments, but spend some time kind of mapping out what your ecosystem is in terms of your consumer, your consumer, uh, your customer base, your clients, um, who else do they interact with, what other complimentary businesses, um, you know, who, who else is there, who are your competitors? [00:44:49] All of it kind of mapping it out to look at. Who are the, the people that influence your customers, and then even bigger is who has the potential to [00:45:00] influence? So it's like, you know, if it's um, you know, Google has the potential to influence them, it's like, great, good luck. Go wait in line. Everybody wants to get to Google, but who has the potential to influence? [00:45:12] Yeah. So you start to look at that next tier. Yeah, the next tier. Um, so I feel like there's far more opportunity in that next tier than the, the top level cuz that's played out and it's packed and it's, it's bloated and kind of. Right. Um, so in any case, I think, yeah, I love how she talks about the ecosystem and exploring op. [00:45:32] This is a great opportunity to explore potential opportunities to collaborate. And, um, and it's just, I think again, it, yeah, when, when you're looking to develop strategic partnerships, it's, um, believing and knowing that what you do, what you have to offer can help. , you know, other networks, other organizations, other groups, other companies, other people too. [00:45:56] And so if that's how you're showing up, that will be [00:46:00] understood. I mean, certainly we're not just, you know, handing out stuff for free everywhere, but if we are genuine, genuinely looking to serve people, you will probably resonate with other people who also have that value. And then that's when magic happens. [00:46:15] Really. Yeah, I, I'm looking at the time, I'm like, wow, we only just, you know, kind of went over two of the 10 vital relationships. So yeah, we are gonna have to have you back, but, but I'll definitely link to that block post. And like you said, the, um, the book, the widest net is a great resource. You, you have any other resources on, on your end that you want to bring up? [00:46:40] I do. Um, because, I realize, um, this can be really overwhelming, um, for. , you know, for any small business it can be overwhelming to think about, you know, how much time does this take? You know, where do I even start? How can I, where do I even begin? Like, what tools should I use? All of these things, it can be [00:47:00] very overwhelming. [00:47:01] Um, so for that reason, um, if any of your listeners want to spend, you know, 30 minutes with me, I would love to be available to kind of talk this through or to brainstorm. One of the 10 relationships, um, the media section we didn't really get to, but, you know, can be that one or any, any of the 10 to just talk about what it might look like for their business. [00:47:24] Um, and just brainstorm some of the ideas or, you know, anything that would be helpful. Sign me up. I, I'm, yeah, I think it's helpful. Much. It's a great offer, so it's just, um, I'll give you the link. Um, but people know you don't have to sign up for anything. Mm-hmm. just, it's just schedule, um, schedule time with me. [00:47:41] So it's just a, a 30. Complimentary chat that I would love to do for your listeners, so hopefully that will be helpful. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's amazing. I, I think you're right. It, it sounds so trivial. It's like, oh, yeah, obviously I love relationships, but if you start to think on the strategic level and on [00:48:00] that ecosystem level, It does take, like I tried to do it, um, with my husband and, and he is like, he doesn't know my world, right? [00:48:10] So, yeah. Not actually you have to be in the same kind of world, otherwise you, he's like, yeah, what about like, no, that doesn't make sense, . I'm like, get it? So, so yeah, it does take some kind of sitting down and going, okay, what's the strategy here? How are we gonna approach this? . Yeah. And I love that you, you keep kept saying the art and the science. [00:48:31] Yeah. And it's almost almo, what comes up is also the mind and the heart, right? Yeah. Sure. Strategy is the mind. It's like, yeah, there is kind of a mm-hmm. plan behind it, but then I'm gonna bring the heart once it goes into the relationship building. Yes. Yes. And that's really what I, yeah. What I like about you, how you approach it. [00:48:50] So thanks so much for coming on. This has been brilliant. I, I really love it. Um, I have always one last question that I ask, and that's what are you grateful [00:49:00] for today or this week, Jillian? Um, grateful for I, my life has far exceeded what I ever could have imagined for myself. I woke up this morning and I had two legs. [00:49:12] I got out of bed in my own bed with a roof and. . Um, and that was in the first 30 seconds. Um, so, you know, I have a healthy boy. I have lots of things, but straight away I, I woke up in kind of one piece in a home today. So I feel like that's the starting point and there's just layers of gratitude upon that. [00:49:33] So. Mm-hmm. , that's my answer. Sure. Thank you. Thanks so much. And I'm grateful for the opportunity to talk about relationships. I, it's, um, a challenge sometimes cuz there's so much I. I wanna, there's a lot to it. Um, so I, I really appreciate, you know, having the opportunity. Thanks for inviting me to talk about the thing that I'm most passionate about is, is building relationships. [00:49:57] So thank you. Yeah, thank you. Thanks for [00:50:00] coming on this show. We'll talk again soon. All right. Take it easy.

Leaving the cool shade of a corporate tree with a great salary and benefits to start a business is never easy. But making the call mere months before a global pandemic hits seems on the surface to be ill-timed—to say the least. Or perhaps cosmic.  Don't feel bad for Tony McGaharan, who is a pro at finding the silver lining in any situation. Suddenly the market for his budding business went from Belfast to global through virtual events, and his business is thriving because of it. In this conversation, we cover how he knew it was time to give his two-weeks notice (and not just pivot internally), how he addressed financial fears of leaving a six-figure salary, navigating the first few months of the pandemic as a new business owner, and how he builds relationships to generate new business—including Google still a key part of his client roster. As his coach says to him, “Be careful what you do because what you do, you do more of.” More About Tony: Tony is a Leadership Development expert who previously worked for Google's People Operations in Dublin, Singapore, and London. He is an experienced leader, effective facilitator, and qualified coach on and off the basketball court. He founded People Playbook in 2020, host of the Three Points podcast, and has partnered with a diverse range of organizations across the globe to design and deliver purpose-built leadership development programs.

Welcome to The Partnered Podcast Episode 129 with Pamela Slim, Author, Speaker & Small Business Strategist. Pamela discusses how partnership skills will build the future of ecosystems and your company.Early-bird tickets are now available for Crossbeam Supernode: the conference for ecosystem-led teams and companies. Supernode is June 5th to 7th in San Diego, California.   Here's what you'll get at Supernode:Several tracks of sessions for all maturity levels - including a track dedicated to ecosystem-led sales.Results only. We curate each session to make sure the speaker brings the goods and shows what is working and why.Most importantly, it'll be fun. Several parties, plenty of social activities, and lots of chances to meet with the heavy hitters of the ecosystem world.Last year at Supernode we had a great time, we also announced that Partnered was joining Crossbeam. This year will be even better!Supernode is June 5th to 7th in San Diego California. Be sure to grab a ticket at the lower early bird rate at crossbeam.com/supernode. Topics Covered:Recycling Before It Was CoolThe Birth of the EcosystemBuilding the Skills of the FutureGrowing Your Skills and Sharing Your WorkPartner with Pamela:Pamela's LinkedInSponsors:Partnership LeadersPartneredSubscribe at www.partneredpodcast.com.Interested in joining the podcast? Reach out to hello@partnered.com. 

Licensing your IP to companies can be lucrative and a tough nut to crack. Pricing is opaque, deliverables and tracking can get complicated, and companies with a smaller Learning and Development function may call it by another name (such as Train-the-Trainer).  After many years working with a small handful of joyful clients—bolstered by many mentoring sessions, lessons learned the hard way, and a whole lot of experimentation—today, I'm sharing a few pointers on how to get started. I am not an expert, but I do believe in the power of licensing to help your ideas reach even more people who can benefit without you being the bottleneck.  Because I get the “can I pick your brain” question often on this, more than any other topic: I no longer work with clients one-on-one, so if you are interested in learning more about licensing and implementing it in your business in 2023, I invite you to join the BFF community. Keep an eye on Pamela Slim too, who will also be releasing more resources on this in the year ahead.

Pamela Slim is a writer, a speaker, and a business coach who works with small business owners ready to scale their businesses and intellectual property. She's the author of Escape from Cubicle Nation, Body of Work, and, most recently, The Widest Net. Pam and her husband Darryl co-founded the Main Street Learning Lab in Mesa, Arizona. In this episode of the Leading Learning Podcast, co-host Celisa Steele talks with Pam about the need for businesses to adopt an ecosystem point of view; how to find your ideal clients and customers; and the importance of using problems, challenges, or aspirations to identify ideal customers. They also discuss four categories of obstacles that typically prevent customers from solving their own problems; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and more. Full show notes and a transcript are available at https://www.leadinglearning.com/episode328.

In this episode of the Community Strategy Podcast, you'll hear an interview with Pamela Slim, an author, business coach, and co-founder of the Main Street Learning Lab in Mesa, Arizona.Since 2005, Pam has advised thousands of entrepreneurs as well as companies serving small businesses. Pam has written three books: Escape from Cubicle Nation (named Best Small Business and Entrepreneur book of 2009 from 800 CEO Read), Body of Work (2014 with Penguin Portfolio), and her latest The Widest Net (2021 with McGraw Hill).In 2016, Pam launched the Main Street Learning Lab in Mesa, Arizona, a grassroots, community-based think tank for small business economic acceleration.Please visit FindCalmHere.com for the show notes. Support the show

Emily Roh is an anti-racist life coach and facilitator for people of color and organizations who want to make the world a more just and equitable place. Emily works with her clients to unpack internalized white supremacy and transform their relationships with themselves through courageous self-compassion. And I can personally attest to her magic! This episode may change the way you look at yourself and the way you show up in your social impact work. Emily and I talk about getting out of our heads and tapping into the wisdom of our bodies, marketing our businesses by being rooted in our values, acknowledging our influences, building collaborative, relationship-driven businesses, and much more.“My work is really about healing and liberation. So, whatever white supremacy is doing … whatever capitalism and colonization are doing, I'm interested in looking at what's the opposite of that. Right? So white supremacy culture is about perfectionism. So my antidote is, “How do we play in this space?” - Emily RohWe discussed:[02:19] Emily's story of becoming an anti-racist life coach[09:47] A coaching framework to get back in touch with your humanity[16:03] Shifting your relationship with your inner critic(s) or parts[20:13] A meaningful way to build relationship-driven businesses[28:47] Getting out of our minds and tuning into our bodies[39:55] Emily's big dreamy vision for the futureTo read a full transcript of the episode, visit: LUMOS MARKETING Resources from this episode:Emily mentions an awesome book about marketing: The Widest Net by Pamela Slim. You can learn more about the book here.On her website, Emily acknowledges the many teachers that have influenced her. She also hopes this list serves as a resource for folks interested in healing from the traumas of living in capitalistic white supremacy through somatic practices and embodiment.Build your thought leadership, show up for your target audience and grow your know-like-trust factor with your professional audience on LinkedIn. Download the 14 LinkedIn Content Prompts here.Connect with Emily Roh: LinkedIn: Emily RohInstagram: @myinvisibleknapsack Website: myinvisibleknapsack.comConnect with Tania Bhattacharyya:LinkedIn: Tania BhattacharyyaInstagram: @taniabhatWebsite: lumosmarketing.coDemystify LinkedIn and Thought Leadership with TaniaThe people who can make your social impact dreams come true are on LinkedIn. They've probably even connected with you already! Our LinkedIn VIP Day is a 1:1 intensive for purpose-driven women who are ready to take their place as the trusted, go-to voice in their niche. To become an approachable expert. To stand out as you stand up for your mission. Learn more at: https://lumosmarketing.co/linkedin-vip-day 

Do you shy away from marketing and metrics, or have trouble figuring out more of your ideal clients? If so, this conversation will give you just the boost you need! Join me and longtime friendtor Pamela Slim (the one who gave me the courage and encouragement to leave my comfy corporate life back in 2011) as we discuss shifting out of empire culture toward ecosystem culture, identifying watering holes for your ideal community members, working with “PB&J partners,” being the weirdo in the room, and prioritizing outreach even if you're introverted. More About Pam: Pamela Slim is an award-winning author, speaker and business coach who works with small business owners ready to scale their businesses and IP. She is the author of Escape from Cubicle Nation, Body of Work, and The Widest Net: Unlock Untapped Markets and Discover New Customers Right in Front of You, and TEDx speaker on Finding Purpose in the New World of Work. She also hosts The Widest Net podcast where she shares the many ways entrepreneurs and small business owners can build a thriving business.

When you experience something that elicits an emotional response at work, you respond according to the extent of the emotional burdens you carry.Our burdens come from our past traumas combined with the real-time heart-wrenching news–on repeat–we are moving through right now in our country. And our places of work can also be ground zero for some really painful experiences or where we relive difficult life experiences. When we can connect the impact of our traumatic and difficult life experiences to how we lead, that builds the foundation for a trauma-informed culture. It also moves us out of an individualistic lens to a collective approach to healing and change.And when we can name the traumatic experiences that happen in our places of work without retribution and move to accountability and repair, this also builds a trauma informed culture that moves us beyond pathologizing pain and struggle to normalizing. Even healing it.When the whole community is moving forward together guided by principles that foster safe and brave spaces, this is where we can cultivate change individually and systemically.My guest today has an approach to leading that supports workplaces to be thriving businesses that build the kinds of communities that heal and push back on the power over approaches so many of us were raised in and trained in.Pamela Slim is an award-winner author, speaker and business coach who works with small business owners ready to scale their businesses and IP. She is the author of Escape from Cubicle Nation, Body of Work, and The Widest Net. Pam and her husband Darryl co-founded the K'é Main Street Learning Lab in Mesa, Arizona, where they host scores of diverse community leaders and regular small business programming.Listen to the full episode to hear:What her years as a management consultant taught Pamela about over-identifying ourselves with the organizations we work forWhy leaders need to cultivate cultures of safety, trust, and openness in order to respect their employees' needsHow leaders can engage their employees in transparent, participatory decision-makingWhy an ecosystem approach to entrepreneurship is more sustainable than empire-buildingLearn more about Pamela Slim:PamelaSlim.comK'é Main Street Learning LabTwitter: @pamslimFacebook: @pamela.slimConnect with Pamela on LinkedInInstagram: @pamslimLearn more about Rebecca:rebeccaching.comWork With RebeccaSign up for the weekly Unburdened Leader EmailResources:What is Trauma-Informed Care?Lizzo - GrrrlsSanditonMoonstruck

In this episode, I'm excited to be joined by my good friend and mentor, Philip VanDusen, whose been on the podcast with me two times before. Philip comes back to join me for this 5-part series on Building a Work Life after Corporate Life. How do you leave corporate and move into self-employment or starting a business? Our intent with this series is to create a guide to going out on your own.This became a topic for The Sustainable Ambition Podcast based on a listener request, and I thought who better to discuss this with than Philip. Both of us have had 25+ year careers in Corporate and then went out on our own and even have a shared journey on our post-Corporate path that will share along the way.The series will be aired here on The Sustainable Ambition Podcast, as well as on Philip's podcast, Brand Design Masters.In Part 5 of the series, the final episode, we talk about getting your brand and new business going: the launch and beyond.We cover some similar ground yet go deeper exploring how to build your visibility, activating your connections, other approaches for sales and marketing, being prepared to demonstrate your credibility, and the importance of doing great work. Throughout, we offer power tips and set expectations to embrace the journey of work life after corporate life.And that's a wrap! Thanks for the fun and informative series, Philip! Always great to be in conversation with you.Resources MentionedTara McMullin: https://explorewhatworks.com/Pamela Slim: https://pamelaslim.com/Philip's Brand Design Masters Podcast: https://podcast.branddesignmasters.com/subscribePodcast Series - Episode #1 on Building Your Personal and Professional Brand: https://bit.ly/sapodcast57Podcast Series - Episode #2 on Recognizing it's time to go and how to go: https://bit.ly/sapodcast59Podcast Series - Episode #3 on What to do before you pull the plug and jump ship: https://bit.ly/sapodcast61Podcast Series - Episode #4 on Getting resourced for going out on your own and running your business: https://bit.ly/sapodcast63Thanks for Listening!If you liked this episode, please rate, review, and share the episode. Thank you so much!Get show notes for this episode at https://sustainableambition.com/podcast I'd love to hear what's on your mind! Take the Sustainable Ambition Listener Survey: http://bit.ly/sapodcast-survey Submit a question or comment for future episodes at podcast@SustainableAmbition.com Get my curated bi-weekly Sustainable Ambition Forum newsletter. Sign up https://sustainableambition.com/subscribe

Brand Strategist & Business Growth Accelerator Karley Cunningham takes businesses from overcrowded, competitive spaces out into blue ocean territory where they can confidently stand out and thrive as brand leaders in their sector. Companies that want to be distinct in their marketplace retain Karley to sharpen their positioning and differentiation strategies to cut through the noise. Karley's international client-base benefits from accelerated growth, increased profit, and stability as her innovative Surefire Method™ provides them with a sure-fire strategy and toolkit that enables them to charge a premium, attract and retain ideal clients, develop a great company culture, and outpace their competitors. Having built three successful businesses, Karley knows what it takes to start, develop and lead a company that delivers results. Her entrepreneurial success story is featured in the awarded book: The Widest Net by Pamela Slim. In addition, she's a sought-after mentor and speaker for national and international business organizations and the host of The Made Possible Podcast. Believing deeply in the practice of givers gain, she is well-known and networked and rarely goes a day without making a referral or connection. As a former pro athlete, Karley is performance-driven. An avid mountain athlete, she is a two-time finisher of the BC Bike Race, a seven-day, 325 km mountain bike stage race, and is always looking out for her next trail running adventure. When not focusing on the business or expanding her network, she can be found somewhere in the mountains of the Pacific Northwest with her wife and dog in their 4×4. On this episode of Destination on the Left, I talk with Karley Cunningham about how branding can help a destination, attraction, or business in the tourism industry stand out from the crowd. Karley breaks creating your brand down into three simple sections — uncovering our fundamental beliefs, understanding the markets we serve, and showcasing our differentiators. What You Will Learn in this Episode: When Karly became interested in marketing and communications The importance of resonating with your audience How her background as a competitive athlete has impacted her career in branding Why a tighter box often enhances creativity The importance of inner reflection when drilling down into your brand story Why a 3-5 year time period helps you set an achievable strategic plan and vision What ‘the people become the place' means for destination marketers How your branding can help solve the retention and recruitment problem Creativity in Branding As creatives, we constantly push the boundaries, but when the boundaries shrink, we're forced to think more creatively than ever about the challenges we face. When defining their brand destinations, services, and businesses need to reflect on their ‘why' to pin down what makes them unique. Karley joins us on the podcast to discuss how to peel back the layers to understand what's different about your offering because amazing branding is about the nuances. She describes the process as going fishing — if you drop the line and then go deeper and deeper and deeper, you'll eventually hook on to something special. Authenticity in Your Brand Story Karley explores why it's essential to start from the inside out when developing your brand. She shares her insights on why it's all about being authentic as people when you're creating a company brand. Karley also discusses how she helps businesses who have moved away from their true purpose to pivot back to their axis and reinvigorate them. When your brand story comes from the inside out and is genuinely driven by your purpose, who you are, the things that resonate with you, and how you show up in the world, it creates an innate sense of alignment and power. Recruitment and Retention in the Travel Industry Recruiting and retaining employees is a huge struggle in the travel and tourism industry right now. Karley gives her perspective on whether the current staffing challenges relate to how valued and cared for people felt before the pandemic and how that relates to standing behind your brand values. On the show, we discuss how to solve the problem of recruitment and retention, and Karley gives her advice on how branding can help businesses in that regard. She shares how your brand ties into your promise to your staff in terms of supporting them in their everyday roles and challenging situations. Karley outlines why the key question in reframing the retention issues is, are you willing to deliver your staff the quality that you deliver your guests or service users? Resources: Website: https://www.bigboldbrand.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karleycunningham/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrandMaven Downloadable Surefire Audit: https://www.bigboldbrand.com/surefireaudit/ We value your thoughts and feedback and would love to hear from you. Leave us a review on your favorite streaming platform to let us know what you want to hear more of. Here is a quick tutorial on how to leave us a rating and review on iTunes!: https://breaktheicemedia.com/rating-review/

Welcome to an incredibly special episode because this week, I've got a returning podcast guest. Not many women founders have been featured on the podcast more than once, so you already know you're in for a jam-packed episode full of amazing nuggets of wisdom that will help you take your business further faster.  Keep reading Pamela Slim is an author, business coach, and co-founder of Main Street Learning Lab. Her newest book, The Widest Net is based on a fascinating approach to what she calls ecosystem marketing, and since my work is all about helping founders like you create seven-figure ecosystems, I think you'll find our work dovetails beautifully.   In this day and age where there's a massive demand for constant production of content and having face time with your people, you're not alone if your company's marketing feels exhausting and depleting. Ecosystem marketing is the key to creating a growth model that feels nourishing and that is truly sustainable for the long term, and Pamela is walking us through it in this episode.  Tune in this week to discover how there's nothing that will help you grow more strategically and quickly than looking at your marketing through the lens of an ecosystem. Pamela is offering her insights on the future of ecosystem marketing, how she applies this framework to her own business and the power of looking at the totality of your network and making intentional decisions about community engagement.  Today on the Power + Presence + Position Podcast: Why there is nothing that helps business owners grow more strategically and quickly than ecosystem marketing.  How Pamela has applied the ecosystem marketing lens on her own business.  The power of looking at the people who are already congregating in your orbit. Why ecosystem marketing is the antidote to your marketing feeling exhausting. The principles of really effective partnerships.  How you can leverage the power of tiny marketing actions to up-level your business.  The difference between empire mentality and being an ecosystem upholder.  Resources Mentioned: To receive weekly written gold in your inbox, make sure you sign up for my email newsletter. Connect with me on LinkedIn. Learn how to nail your niche, clarify your message, and scale your business in the Power + Presence + Position Business Accelerator! Learn how to build a seven-figure foundation in The Incubator. Get the free course, Selling with Story, here! Click here to apply for one of my programs. Pamela Slim: Website | Learning Lab | Podcast  The Widest Net: Unlock Untapped Markets and Discover New Customers Right in Front of You by Pamela Slim  Escape from Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur by Pamela Slim Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole by Susan Cain Free Trait Theory - Brian Little Sean Blanda Love the show? Let us know!   Are you a fan of the Power + Presence + Position? If the tips and interviews we share in each episode have helped you gain the confidence and inspiration to become a better, more powerful leader, head on over to Apple Podcasts, subscribe to the show and leave your honest review to let us know! What are you waiting for? Head on over to Apple Podcasts, subscribe, and leave a review to enter your name into this month's drawing!

Today I sit down with Pamela Slim and hear about a very important moment in her life, one that got her to a better place. She gets very personal about a bad situation she was in much earlier in life, and how she managed to escape it, and build the new life she leads today. She reminds us that in business and in life, power imbalances create toxic environments. These relationships founded by dominance prevent organizations from growing to meet their full potential. Pamela also talks about her work as an author and consultant. She provides tips and her thoughts on what makes a good work, and how best to approach topics one is interested in writing about. She goes into detail about her help supporting organizations and entrepreneurs that work to dismantle systems of power in business and the world at large. Read the show notes here: https://bwmissions.com/one-away-podcast/

Pamela Slim is an award-winning author, business coach and speaker. She spent the first 10 years of her business as a consultant to large companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Charles Schwab and Cisco Systems, where she worked with thousands of executives, managers and employees. In 2016, she co-founded The Main Street Learning Lab with her husband Darryl, where she works with business owners to remove obstacles to small business success and test and try new business ideas. In 2005, Pam started the Escape from Cubicle Nation blog, which is now one of the top career and business blogs on the web. Through her blog, Pam has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs to start successful businesses. Her first book Escape from Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur was released in the Spring of 2009 and won Best Small Business/Entrepreneur Book of 2009 by 800 CEO Read. Pam's book Body of Work gives a fresh perspective on the skills required in the new world of work for people in all work modes, from corporate to non-profit to small business. Pam's latest book, The Widest Net, delivers a method for building an engaged and mutually beneficial network. The Widest Net won Best Business Book of 2021 in the category of Sales & Marketing by Porchlight Books. Pam is frequently quoted as an expert in publications such as BusinessWeek, The New York Times, Money Magazine and Psychology Today. Read the show notes here: https://bwmissions.com/one-away-podcast/

B2B marketing has been adopting B2C trends, and one of the biggest trends is customer-centric marketing.Basically, marketers are asked to build relationships at scale.But most people fail to understand the shift in mindset and strategy this takes.That's why we brought, Kelly Maloney Shermerhorn, a champion of customer-centric marketing to help you understand:- what it takes to move from company-centric to a customer-centric marketing culture- how to measure your level of customer centricity- ways to start becoming more customer-centric in your copy on LinkedIn and email exchanges- and much more!Kelly is a 15-year veteran in the marketing and communications industry that heads regional ABM efforts for the healthcare and life-sciences sector of Pegasystems, a low-code software platform that crushes business complexity.  Let Kelly help you crush the complexity of your marketing efforts by focusing more on your customer than yourself.  You know, how relationships are built.Come be a part of the show!https://tinyurl.com/B2BCBSeason5Connect with Kelly!On LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellyschermerhorn/Connect with ME!Learn to produce internet talk shows and build your own Relationship Flywheel. Find out more about the Bootcamp HERE.Also, I'd love it if you connected with me on LinkedIn or Instagram.Or shoot me an email at youshould@connectwithpablo.com with the "Heard B2B's Pamela Slim" in subject.This that's a genius email address?  Me too, but I didn't come up with it.  It was the idea of my good friend, and super talented web designer, Nathan Ruff.If you want your website redone, updated, and managed with unlimited updates for just $250/month (CRAZY GOOD DEAL RIGHT??), go to Manage My Website and hookup with one of the smartest, most talented guys I've ever met- THE Nathan Ruff.Support the show

Markets are built on competition. They are races to the bottom for all but one.  Ecosystems are built of co-dependence.  Each individual member contributes in a unique way, strengthening the whole.  That's probably why the category ecosystem is front and center in the category design Bible, Play Bigger.But Play Bigger doesn't give you the playbook for finding and creating the ecosystem.Pamela Slim's mind-blowing book, The Widest Net, does that.That's why we had Pamela on the show to help you understand: - how to go to market in a sustainable way to grow by leveraging partnerships, Ecosystem Marketing- what you need before you can truly engage an ecosystem to build a community- where to find and nurture the relationships you'll need to build your ecosystem-innovative strategies in commercial real estate to become the watering hole of your market- and much more!!!Pamela Slim is an award-winning author, speaker and small business strategist.  When I read her book, I immediately implemented parts of it into the strategy of the Relationship Flywheel, and am teaching them to our clients.This call also served as the kickoff to our second co-hort of the Relationship Flywheel Bootcamp so after the interview, so the attendees were free to stick around, and met the rest of our community that has taken the course and is enrolled in the next one!Come be a part of the show!https://tinyurl.com/B2BCBSeason5Connect with Pamela!On LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pamelaslim/ Connect with ME!Learn to produce internet talk shows and build your own Relationship Flywheel. Find out more about the Bootcamp HERE.Also, I'd love it if you connected with me on LinkedIn or Instagram.Or shoot me an email at youshould@connectwithpablo.com with the "Heard B2B's Pamela Slim" in subject.This that's a genius email address?  Me too, but I didn't come up with it.  It was the idea of my good friend, and super talented web designer, Nathan Ruff.If you want your website redone, updated, and managed with unlimited updates for just $250/month (CRAZY GOOD DEAL RIGHT??), go to Manage My Website and hookup with one of the smartest, most talented guys I've ever met- THE Nathan Ruff.Support the show

How does your agency show up in the world? As agency owners, we have a responsibility to know what's going on — with our business, our employees, and our clients. There's a lot going on in the world, and understanding how these things affect the worldviews of others in our space is the first step in deepening our agency relationships, elevating our business, and making sure we go beyond the “one-word” values our industry seems to be riddled with. In this episode of Build a Better Agency, Karley Cunningham of Big Bold Brand joins me to talk about ways agencies can actually implement their mission, vision, and values into their processes in order to leverage them as strategic branding tools. She also offers expert insights into identifying the worldviews of the audiences who matter most to you, knowing when to take a stance on the important issues, and what to do when your worldviews no longer align with those of your clients. Brand Strategist and Business Growth Accelerator Karley Cunningham takes businesses from overcrowded, competitive spaces out into blue ocean territory where they can confidently stand out and thrive as brand leaders in their sector. Having built three successful businesses, Karley knows what it takes to start, develop and lead a company that delivers results. Her entrepreneurial success story is featured in the awarded book: The Widest Net by Pamela Slim. In addition, she's a sought-after mentor and speaker for national and international business organizations and the host of The Made Possible Podcast. Believing deeply in the practice of givers gain, she is well-known and networked and rarely goes a day without making a referral or connection. As a former pro athlete, Karley is performance-driven. An avid mountain athlete, she is a two-time finisher of the BC Bike Race, a seven-day, 325 km mountain bike stage race, and is always looking out for her next trail running adventure. When not focusing on the business or expanding her network, she can be found somewhere in the mountains of the Pacific Northwest with her wife and dog in their 4×4. A big thank you to our podcast's presenting sponsor, White Label IQ. They're an amazing resource for agencies who want to outsource their design, dev, or PPC work at wholesale prices. Check out their special offer (10 free hours!) for podcast listeners here. What You Will Learn in This Episode: How to proactively influence the way your agency shows up in the world Why it's important to understand our client's worldviews, how they align with our own, and what that means for our business Ways to implement your mission, vision, and values as strategic branding tools How to accelerate your business, improve employee retention, and deepen client relationships by taking your mission, vision, and values “off of the page” When it's important to take a stance on important issues, and how to start those conversions with clients What your consumers want to know about where you stand How to identify and align the worldviews of the audiences who matter most to you

How to improve your Self Worth. What is YOUR Value? The first step to living to your value is understanding what you are worth. You must know your worth and understand that you deserve a life of dignity, meaning, and purpose. It is important to have a clear understanding of what you want in order to live a life that aligns with your values. This will help you make decisions that will be aligned with the life that you want. Join the conversation with your host Michael Gebben, as we talk about how to live to your value and understand your worth. I also share the importance of living in alignment with your values and how that can help you move forward in life. Understanding your worth is crucial in determining what we are willing to accept from others.   Tune in!   During this episode, you will learn about;   [01:00] If you owned a million-dollar car, how would you take care of it? [03:47] Now, replace yourself with the million-dollar car [07:54] Your value is not based on any external factor [13:29] How often do you service yourself [17:34] Get better through collaboration with people who are better than you [22:15] Become the trailblazer by choosing the right opportunities around yourself [40:30] You have to choose your reality and maintain your uniqueness [53:47] Walk with value and dignity because you are   [56:40] Coaching Session with Catherine [57:50] What Catherine wants help with [59:44] Her hobbies and the things she likes doing [01:01:39] Things that she has been experimenting with but does not feel right [01:02:17] Trying too hard to make things work bore no fruits for Mike [01:15:50] How she currently gets her money [01:24:03] Consistency is the secret to making anything work [01:27:20] How you can follow Cate's journey and support her work [01:32:31] The best channels that she could use to pass information [01:40:03] Most coaches use similar approaches that don't work [01:43:08] Positive affirmations to take action when in doubt  [01:50:30] Episode wrap up and calls to action Notable Quotes    Sometimes those who don't like you are the wrong people who don't share the same values as you do (10:14) Successful entrepreneurship is through collaboration with people who are better than you (17:34)  Doubt is often the shadows caused by fear and criticism (26:15) Surround yourself with people that will lift you, support you and encourage you (32:43) Own who you are and what you look (01:22:03) If you keep planting seeds and then reaping them before establishing new seeds, nothing will grow (01:29:13) When in doubt, take action (01:43:54) The best way to do something regularly is to find something that works for you, and you have passion for doing it (01:48:00) Resources; Choose Yourself by James Altucher: https://www.amazon.com/Choose-Yourself-James-Altucher/dp/1490313370. Body of Work: Finding the Thread That Ties Your Story Together by Pamela Slim:https://www.amazon.com/Body-Work-Finding-Thread-Together/dp/1591846196   Connect with Michael Gebben   Coaching: http://themindmechanic.net Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/gebbs86  JOIN LIVE: http://mindtuneuptimelive.com   http://takemia.com to get my Audiobook for Creators on how MIA can transform your life!. *****Thank you so much for listening to MIND TUNEUP TIME!  Get your mind tuned up LIVE every Tuesday at 2 pm CST.     Register at http://mindtuneuptimelive.com!    Please consider leaving a review and sharing it with your friends and family!