Lou Diamond is a master at putting great people in touch with other great people. He has over 25-years of experience in sales, relationship management, business development and executive coaching. Lou’s authenticity, energy, and enthusiasm, along with his unwavering passion and desire for helping people achieve their dreams, is unmatched. He has been a top producer at every firm he’s ever worked, has led teams at Accenture, Deloitte, Omnicom, Merrill Lynch and Bank of America to achieve record revenues year after year. And he is now the Founder & CEO of THRIVE, a leading consulting and coaching company focused on making the most incredible leaders and top performers even more amazing.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- How sales is the result of what we do – not the process
- The events that led up to Lou writing his book “Master the Art of Connecting”
- Why a portion of your day always needs to be focused on business development
- Making sure that your target sees the value in the service or product that you’re providing
- Why picking the right client is just as important as saying no to the wrong ones
- Mastering the skill of connecting to manage & grow your business
- Why you need to focus on getting to ‘no’ faster
- Having a structured game plan when you’re first starting out
- Identifying who you will connect with that will most effectively add to your world
How to best connect with Lou:
- Website: thrivepartners.net
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/thriveloud
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/ThriveLouD
- Podcast: Thrive Loud
- Book: “Master the Art of Connecting”
Cole Fox is a passionate believer in sales and entrepreneurship. He started his career in the wine industry and then immediately founded a vodka company. Then during the 2008 economic meltdown, he shifted his career into sales…full-gear…he sold office supplies, door-to-door. And that wasn’t easy Onward Nation…so he soon discovered the magic of technology and was lucky enough to be among the first hired at LinkedIn. From there, he became passionate about startups and has recently been a ‘resident sales hacker’ at many venture-backed tech startups. He now runs sales for a sales hacking tool called LeadIQ.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- How bio-hacking can contribute to your success
- How LeadIQ works
- The top preparation and time-saving tools that Cole uses and highly recommends
- A tough lesson that taught Cole to take logic into play
- Mastering the essential skill of sales in order to thrive in business today
- Filling in the holes in your business development and sales pipeline
- The main challenge that business owners face
- Why you should focus on continually improving yourself a small amount every single day
- The importance of implementing a list-building tool as part of your business development plan
- Getting outside of your head and the way you view the world
How to best connect with Cole:
- Website: leadiq.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/colejfox
Aaron Walker is without question a veteran entrepreneur. Starting his first business at 18 and selling to a Fortune 500 company nine short years later demonstrates Aaron’s passion for succeeding. Unwilling to rest on past success Aaron started, bought and sold eight successful companies over the past 37 years. Having a strong desire for personal development has kept Aaron in a weekly mastermind group for more than a decade with Dave Ramsey, Dan Miller, Ken Abraham and seven other notable Nashvillians. Aaron has enjoyed a 36-year marriage with his wife, Robin. Today Aaron spends the majority of his time HELPING MEN GROW IN SUCCESS AND SIGNIFICANCE as President and Founder of VIEW FROM THE TOP, a premier life and business coaching resource. Aaron’s new book, View From The Top is guaranteed to motivate and inspire you to live a successful and significant life.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- Aaron’s new book, “View From the Top” and why it almost didn’t happen
- The benefits and power of being in a mastermind group
- Being true to yourself and having the ability to stand alone
- Why you need to be willing to have conflict in your life in order to make a stand
- How significance differs from success and how to be significant in the life of others
- A place where businessmen struggle today
- Being available to others when it’s not convenient for you
- Contentment vs. complacency
- How fear of the unknown is one of the biggest hurdles for business owners to overcome
- Having people in your life that are willing to tell you the truth
How to best connect with Aaron:
- Website: www.viewfromthetop.com/onwardnation
Scott Dubois is the co-founder of Pidalia, a digital agency in Boston, that provides clients with solutions to their challenges in advertising, software design, and business process management. Scott specializes in media selection, campaign strategy, and analytics and applies his knowledge of business processes through consultation with clients. His consulting focuses on enhancing his clients’ relationships with existing audiences and helping them reach new audiences. Scott is also an internationally recognized speaker on the topics of marketing strategy, user engagement, and cross-media communications.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- The tool Scott uses to prioritize and organize his daily thoughts
- Creating a habit of starting the day at Inbox Zero and how Scott achieves it
- A great learning experience that taught Scott to always do right by the client
- Mastering the skill of short-term patience
- An important lesson that Scott learned on how to view things in the proper perspective and why not to overreact to conditions
- Implementing a project management system sooner rather than later
- The benefits of looking at other companies in the same vertical and applying the same successes that were achieved with other companies
- The importance of pitching and communicating value
- Why you shouldn’t try to be all things to all people
How to best connect with Scott:
- Website: pidalia.com/onwardnation
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/scottdubois
- Twitter: @ScottDubois
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/scottdubois
Jocelyn Jones is an Instagram expert, international speaker, international bestselling author, and online marketing consultant. Her socializing strategy for connecting businesses with their perfect audience is second to none. Her simple “3 Step Formula” teaches you how to attract followers, build your list and convert them to customers in as little as 15-minutes a day allowing you more time to do the things you love.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- How to use Instagram to build your list and relationships
- The importance of having a morning routine to get you focused and prepared to handle the day
- Taking the time to focus on yourself and your needs first
- Knowing what skills you are good at and mastering those
- Speaking with authenticity
- Getting clear on what it is that you want to do
- The importance of engaging and having conversations with your followers on social media
- The calls to action that work best on Instagram
- Cutting your learning curve by working with a mentor
How to best connect with Jocelyn:
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/jocjones75
- Instagram: @theigmama
- Free Guide: Rockin’ Instagram
Kelly Hatfield has been in the Recruiting / HR field for 20 years as a successful business owner and entrepreneur. She is co-founder of the firm Enginuity Advantage and the host of the top-rated Absolute Advantage podcast. Kelly believes people are the greatest asset any business has, and to be successful, business owners must cultivate the talents of their team. Because of these core values, Kelly has created an outstanding referral-based network that has built and continues to build her businesses.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- Where bad hiring decisions live
- Using the best practices of marketing and sales to attract talent vs. clients
- A recruiting method that can constrain the growth of your business
- Strategies that business owners can use when it comes to recruitment marketing
- Why Kelly defines success as progress
- The importance of having clarity of your self-awareness when it comes to fear and challenges
- What makes an A-player an A-player
- Why it’s vital to attract people who are going to be a good fit for your organization and repel the ones who aren’t
- The importance of painting a clear picture around your culture
- Understanding and having clarity around the direction you’re headed in and why you’re headed there
- Taking a close look at the processes and structure you have in place in order to take you to the next level
How to best connect with Kelly:
- Email: kelly@enginuityadvantage.com
- Website: www.enginuityadvantage.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-hatfield-2a2610a
- Podcast: absoluteadvantagepodcast.com
Lee Caraher is the CEO of Double Forte, a public relations and digital marketing firm based in San Francisco with offices in Boston and New York City. Lee is an acclaimed communication strategist and known for her practical solutions to big problems. Double Forte works with some of the top consumer and technology brands in the country. Lee has a reputation for building cohesive, high producing teams who have fun together at the same time. She is a straight talker who doesn’t hold too many punches, although she does her best to be pleasant about it. Her big laugh and sense of humor have gotten her out of a lot of trouble and her latest book is entitled, “The Boomerang Principle.”
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- What Lee has been up to recently, including the launch of her new book, “The Boomerang Principle”
- What Lee believes is the missing piece in business
- How ‘The Boomerang Principle’ works and how it came about
- Why bringing people back to a job that they left can be so powerful
- How all companies are always competing for the top ’25%-ers’ and why you need to keep them in-house if you have them
- Why companies need to shift from being employer-brands to being talent-brands
- How the top ’25%-ers will propel your business forward regardless of the size, industry or location of your business
- The Netflix Culture Deck and why it’s considered to be one of the most important documents to come out of Silicon Valley
- How boomers, Gen X-ers, and millennials can all thrive in the same environment
- Why organizations where people feel more appreciated perform at a higher level
How to best connect with Lee:
- Website: leecaraher.com
- Twitter: @LeeCaraher
- Book: “The Boomerang Principle: Inspire Lifetime Loyalty from Your Employees”
Roberta Matuson is the president of Matuson Consulting, and for over 25-years, she has helped leaders at General Motors, New Balance, The Boston Beer Company, as well as small to mid-size businesses, achieve dramatic growth and market leadership through the maximization of talent. Roberta is the person that Monster.com and Staples turn to for advice on talent. She is the author of the newly released, “The Magnetic Leader: How Irresistible Leaders Attract Talent, Customers and Profits.” She is also an expert blogger for Forbes and Glassdoor.com and a former columnist for The Boston Business Journal.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- How maximizing talent in an organization is hard but at the same time, easy
- Why leaders need to work on themselves and relationships with employees
- Providing the best value that you can to your clients
- Why you need to be a master marketer to thrive in business today
- Marketing elements that should be applied to your business to attract talent
- Why it’s vital to be intentional and not just sit back and hope for something to happen
- The benefits of having a strong online platform
- The process of writing a book proposal and doing it in a way that works
- Why you have to keep producing intellectual property
- Being really clear on what market you are trying to serve
How to best connect with Roberta:
- Website: www.matusonconsulting.com
- Email: roberta@matusonconsulting.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/roberta-chinsky-matuson-51a5a
- Twitter: @matuson
- Book: “The Magnetic Leader”
Scott Beebe is the founder and head coach of MyBusinessOnPurpose.com, and the host of the “Business On Purpose” podcast. He liberates Small Business owners from the chaos of working IN their business and helps to get their lives back by articulating and implementing intentional Vision/Mission/Values, Systems, and Processes. Scott is the creator of the “Four Steps To Business Freedom,” a 6-month group coaching experience exclusively built for small business owners to help guide them through building the systems and processes they need to get their businesses and lives back on track.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- The daily habits that help Scott to focus and prepare daily
- Why the vision story is the most underutilized and most powerful tool in your personal and business arsenal
- A challenging time that was a turning point in Scott’s professional life
- The importance of having someone to confide in and boost your confidence when you need it most
- Why you need to document the next you’re going to do like it’s the last time you’re going to do it
- Why systemization has to be imbedded into the world of small business
- Scaling faster with people
- Putting in the work to learn and grow
- Living out your disciplines
How to best connect with Scott:
- Landing Page: www.mybusinessonpurpose.com/onwardnation
- Website: www.mybusinessonpurpose.com
- Website: fourstepstobusinessfreedom.com
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/mybusinessonpurpose
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/scottebeebe
Vera Fischer is founder and CEO of 97 Degrees West — a rock solid awesome agency in Austin, Texas. The agency has been the recipient of 15 international creative and marketing awards. Vera is a member of the Advisory Board for the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Texas State University and a mentor at Capital Factory. You may remember Vera and the wisdom she shared during Episode 204 of Onward Nation.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- What Vera has coming up in the next 12-18 months
- How programmatic media buying works and why it should be important to business owners
- The benefits of geo-targeting ads
- The number of times it takes for someone to see your ad before they take action on it
- How programmatic can be leveraged in your marketing program
- How programmatic fits into the B2B niche market
- The power of changing ad creative based on keyword searches
- Why it’s easier to target to a very specific niche market
- Tools to help you become successful with programmatic
- Focusing on doing one or two marketing strategies really well
How to best connect with Vera:
- Twitter: @VeraFischer97
- Email: vera@97dwest.com
- Podcast: systemexecution.com
Corey Jahnke is the Chief Imagineer at Mind*Star Academy, a Best-Selling Author, Speaker, Coach, Community Pharmacist, Lifelong Learner, and Enthusiastic Dog Lover. Corey has devoted his life to helping people re-engineer their confidence levels so that they can explode their businesses, expand their influence, and live the kind of magical life that he gets to live on a daily basis.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- How to re-engineer your confidence levels
- The ways Corey combatted emotional, financial, and physical struggles
- How to stop thinking inside the box
- Why you should stop feeling sorry for yourself
- Why you shouldn’t discount your community
- Why you should admit your weaknesses and fill in the gaps
- Not letting fear keep you from reaching your goals
- Strategies for improving as a business mentor
- Why being a better person can make you a better boss
- Steps you can take to get to the next level in business
How to best connect with Corey:
- 12-week group coaching program: www.twelveweeksfree.com
- Book: “The Successful Thinker”
- Website: www.MindstarAcademy.com
- Email: CoreyWJahnke@gmail.com
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/coreywjahnke
- Twitter: @cwjahnke
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/cwjahnke
Nikki Fogden-Moore is known as the Mojo Maker. She specializes in working with Fortune 500 CEOs, entrepreneurs, and their highly-driven organizations to create the business and life they want. The true 1 percenters. Her decades of experience blend both business with personal high performance for ultimate success. She divides her time between her private coaching business called, Corporate Vitality, retreats, workshops, and speaking. Her Vitality Coach Podcast has listeners in over 80 countries, she is the author of a blog with subscribers around the world, and Nikki is an author of two books, her latest is entitled, “FITPRENEUR – how to be the CEO Of Your Business and Your Life.”
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- Nikki’s background and why she’s known as the “Mojo Maker”
- How Nikki’s eclectic experience contributed to her expertise
- The three ways people end up losing their mojo
- Why striving for agility can be a problem
- The difference between working hard and hard work
- What “winning weeks” are, and how Nikki uses them to succeed
- Building “me time” looks into a healthy schedule
- How Nikki organizes her weekly task lists
- Figuring out your best times for creative thinking
- Why leaders must do chemistry checks in their businesses
- Growing your skills over time
- Why honesty is important to finding the solution
- The way integrity and transparency can build trust
- Why staying calm is always better than focusing on the drama
- What you can find in the “Nikktionary”
- What people do wrong in weekly meetings
- How to schedule “one percent” meetings
- The one thing that separates successful people from people who just want success
- The importance of taking time to learn more
- Why work and life aren’t a balance
How to best connect with Nikki:
- Email: nikki@thevitalitycoach.com.au
- Website: thevitalitycoach.com.au
- The Vitality Coach podcast: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/vitality-coach-podcast-nikki/id752922884?mt=2
- Twitter: @nfogdenmoore
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/nfogdenmoore
- Instagram: @nfogdenmoore
- Fitpreneur, by Nikki Fogden-Moore: thevitalitycoach.com.au/fitpreneur-book
Vinnie Fisher is an entrepreneur, author, husband, and father. Vinnie left a successful law practice as a corporate and tax attorney in 2007 to drive his passion as an entrepreneur. After a few successful businesses in the digital space, Vinnie discovered a much needed service for business owners, so in 2014, he launched his next venture called, Fully Accountable, an accounting solution called ‘Your Back Office’ that provides owners and accounting professionals with the tools to excel at accounting, human resources and legal. Vinnie is also the author of two books, “The Best Investment: A Better You” and “The CEO’s Mindset: How to Break Through to the Next Level.”
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- The #2 reason small businesses fail and how to avoid it
- The key fact 5.9 million businesses need to hear about
- Why sometimes the first step to being profitable is cutting revenue streams
- Vinnie’s “game changer” habit that helps him practice simplicity and focus
- A practical tip to discover where chunks of time are going
- How devotional time and daily prayer help Vinnie focus
- What a multimillion dollar loss taught Vinnie about himself and how that’s changed how he sees problems in his company now
- The difference between being content and being complacent
- Why understanding “wealth has wings” is integral to success
- The critical skill all entrepreneurs should have regarding time
- An important lesson Vinnie learned from the Spiritual Discipline Handbook: Practices that Transform Us by Adele Calhoun
- Why 71% of business owners leave their accountants
- How “toilet bowl marketing” is the primary reason small businesses fail
- Marketing tips based on Breakthrough Advertising by Eugene Swartz
- Why “knowledge is power is a lie”
How to best connect with Vinnie:
- Website: FullyAccountable.com
- Website: VinnieFisher.com
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/vincent.fisher.984
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/vinniefisher
- Demo: go.fullyaccountable.com/demo
Jesse Kay is a 16-year-old junior in high school and the host of the 20 Under 20s Podcast where he interviews successful entrepreneurs in their 20s or younger from around the globe. Jesse’s obsessed with sharing practical lessons and stories from some of the best minds on the planet to help inspire young men and women to become tomorrow’s entrepreneurs. Jesse was born into an entrepreneurial family and started his first business at 9-years old flipping sneakers on eBay. Jesse also plays tennis for his high school tennis team and will be applying to colleges next fall.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- The importance of giving rather than taking in business relationships
- Jesse’s passion for inspiring and educating the next generation of entrepreneurs
- How you can build a network without any contacts
- Habits that Jesse attributes to his success
- How overbooking can lower your value
- Why communication and persistence are critical skills
- How Jesse uses Attention Deficit Disorder to his advantage
- Why the best time to start your business is now
How to best connect with Jesse:
- Website: 20under20s.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/jesse.kay11
- Twitter: twitter.com/jessekay811
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/jessekay811
- Email: jessekay811@gmail.com
Drew McLellan is a 25-year marketing veteran who helps clients create authentic love affairs with their customers. Drew has run his own agency, the McLellan Marketing Group for over 20 years and helps the owners of over 250 small to mid-size agencies a year learn how to take their business to the next level through his consultancy, the Agency Management Institute. Drew has appeared in the New York Times, Entrepreneur Magazine, Businessweek, and Fortune Small Business. The Wall Street Journal calls Drew one of 10 bloggers that every entrepreneur should read. You may also remember Drew and the wisdom he shared during Episodes 32, 167, and 292 of Onward Nation.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- Drew’s latest endeavors and what he’s bringing to the community
- How Drew helps agencies improve their work
- What prompted Drew to start his podcast
- Why it’s critical to delegate tasks
- What to think about first thing in the morning for time management
- What business owners need to let go of in order to grow
- How fighting fires all day can hurt your business in the long run
- How constant reinvention slows development
- What thought leadership really does for businesses
- The value of sharing without arrogance
- How rapid growth can kill a business
- Why developing your business by referral can be a problem
- The importance of planting seeds every day
How to best connect with Drew:
- Website: agencymanagementinstitute.com
- Email: drew@agencymanagementinstitute.com
- Twitter: @DrewMcLellan
Michael Papanek is the author of “FROM BREAKDOWN TO BREAKTHROUGH: Forging Resilient Business Relationships In The Heat Of Change” and is the principal and founder of Michael Papanek Consulting. Michael has over 30 years of expertise leading successful large-scale initiatives and increasing the performance of people and organizations in complex, competitive markets. Michael works with senior leaders facing new challenges, due to either an expanded role, new business targets, new strategies, or other key change initiatives, mostly in large organizations and fast-growing high-tech companies in complex global markets.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- How Michael went from a people-averse programmer to a leadership mentor
- The lessons Michael learned from starting a business in 2008
- How working with a team and having a coach helps Michael get things done
- Why Michael believes that “no one’s done anything significant by themselves”
- Michael’s surprising daily practice that helps him to focus
- Michael’s takeaway lesson from his biggest professional challenge
- A definition of perspective to help you stay true to your values
- What “Action Learning” is and the benefits it has
- The important business asset to have when times are tough
- How scarcity thinking can prevent you from having the business you want
- Why the universe does not react well to ambiguity when beginning a business
- How a CFO would have gotten him to his goal 50% faster
- Definition of “resilient relationships” and how to develop them
- Strategies and advice for new entrepreneurs
How to best connect with Michael:
- Website: michaelpapanek.com
Carl Gould serves as the emcee for “EO Nerve” and “Facilitator of Breakthrough the Barriers” and “The Firewalk Experience.” Carl is a business growth expert, mentor, and entrepreneur. He built three multi-million dollar businesses by age 40, has mentored the launch of over 5,000 businesses, and has trained and certified over 7,000 business coaches in 35 countries. Carl has written three best-selling books on business strategy and growth, with the most recent entitled, “Biz Dev Done Right.”
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- An evaluation checklist if you’re looking for a coach
- How advance preparation can lead to big wins in all areas of your life
- Carrying strong physical and mental energy throughout your day
- The critical skill of persuasion: the most important skill you will ever learn in life
- A never-ending role and function of your business that you need to master
- How a garden hose is like a sales cycle
- Why you need to spend at least 90 minutes a day on marketing
- The biggest accelerant of your business
- The importance of creating the systems that help you get sales/leads before you scale
- Knowing who your ideal client profile is and what they are passionate about when it comes to your product/service
How to best connect with Carl:
- Email: carl@carlgould.com
- Twitter: @carlgould
- Website: carlgould.com
- Book: “Biz Dev Done Right”
- Book: “7 Stages of Small Business Success”
Karla Nelson has built several businesses and has learned that in business and in life, “Relationships Are Everything.” And now she had put it all in a form that’s easy to learn and use: The People Catalysts which is also the name of her super-awesome podcast which I highly recommend that you download. Karla and her team have used Who-Do Method with 25 of the Fortune 100 and dozens of mid-market companies and startups. Typically, they cut 50-80% off cycle time and produce better results with happier people. The Who-do Method’s client list includes Target, Best Buy, Disney, Comcast, 3M, Amazon, General Mills, HP, Coca-Cola, Deloitte, Cargill, Chase, US Bank, State Farm Insurance, IBM and many other corporate market leaders.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- The Who-Do method and a breakdown of the four roles that make it up
- The constraints to grow within a company and getting everyone properly aligned with their roles and responsibilities
- The importance of making relationships a priority on your checklist
- The two things that can cost your business the most
- How every challenge can always be brought back to a people or leadership problem
- The importance of connecting with other human beings
- Why you need to be coachable even as a leader
- Empowering other people to be the leader of their work and owning their space
- Speaking in context, not content, when speaking to your team
How to best connect with Karla:
- Website: thepeoplecatalysts.com
- Podcast: karlanelson.com
- Email: next@karlanelson.com
Aaron Agius is one of the world’s leading digital marketers according to Forbes. He is CEO of Louder Online, one of the world’s leading digital and inbound marketing agencies and works with clients such as Salesforce, IBM, Coca-Cola, Intel and scores of leading brands, showing them how to optimize their sites, perform influencer outreach and link acquisition and produce and distribute content that drives significant lead generation and ROI. Aaron is a highly sought speaker at Search, Content Marketing and Growth Hacking conferences around the world. He is also a regular contributor to some of the world’s largest editorial publications including Entrepreneur.com, Hubspot.com, and many more, with thought leadership on marketing and business growth.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- Aaron’s first online business paycheck
- The importance of spending time writing guest articles and blogs
- How to take baby steps to build your brand
- Building credibility
- Increasing efficiency
- Why a supportive team is essential to success
- What Aaron has gained from other leaders in the industry
- Why there is no such thing as overnight success
- The kinds of jobs lead to commitment and happiness
- What Aaron wishes he had done more of earlier
- Building a brand: the key to success
- The importance of sharing knowledge
- Why both personal and professional brands are necessary
- How regular content creation affects your business
- What information should be in your content
- How to find the answers people are seeking
- The best way to focus your efforts
How to best connect with Aaron:
- Louder Online: louder.online/onwardnation
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/aaronagius
- Twitter: @iamaaronagius
Nick Snapp is building the most effective, action-driven accountability platform for entrepreneurs on the planet, Real Accountable. He is the owner of Inspire Me Solutions, where he consults with organizations to remove bottlenecks, save time and increase profitability through productivity and project management. He obtained Lean/Six Sigma and Project Management Professional certifications and worked 14-years in the nuclear and phosphate industries, where he led teams as a capital project manager, responsible for multi-million-dollar projects. Nick leverages his leadership and technical background in everything he does. He is best known as the atypical-engineer host of The Make it Snappy Productivity Show podcast, and all things “snappy,” for that matter.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- What Nick did when he felt like his entrepreneurial spirit was squashed
- The story behind Nick’s first business that he started as a kid
- Why soft skills are more important than technical knowledge
- The importance of paying attention to where people are in the process of things to make sure they follow through
- How Nick harnessed his skills as a connector to bring people together and keep them accountable
- The importance of having a flexible mentality
- Nick’s number one tip for being productive and staying focused
- Why it’s important to learn to say no
- How decision fatigue can have a negative impact on your productivity
- A story about Nick Saban and how he avoids decision fatigue
- How Nick learned that you need to be on the same page with the people your entrepreneurial endeavors affect
- Why you should focus on agreements and eliminate all expectations
- An anecdote that proves that doing the same thing over and over again really does make a difference
- Why healthy eating, sleeping, and exercising are all essential for productivity and effectiveness
- Why it’s not sustainable to have an 80 hour work week
- The importance learning from mentors and actually applying what you learn
How to best connect with Nick:
- Podcast: www.makeitsnappyshow.com
- Twitter: @thesnappyshow
Lyndsay Phillips is a serial entrepreneur, self-professed organizational freak, client-appointed task master plus project ninja, and warrior content marketer for life & business coaches, accountants, and other online entrepreneurs across the globe. As the CEO & Founder of Smooth Sailing Business Growth, she leads a rock star team to support entrepreneurs who are seeking fast-paced business growth but finally have come to the realization that they can’t do it alone, do it all, and do it well. She is also the host of Sailing To Success Podcast and Smooth Sailing Online Support TV – – and loves sharing practical tips, business building & content marketing strategies so that you can be more productive and attract more customers faster.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- What inspired Lyndsay Phillips to go from a part-time job being paid $11/hour to founding a six figure business
- 4 key signs you need to off-load some of your work
- Lyndsay’s top two secrets to tackling your priorities every day
- A surprising daily habit to help you get more done in less time
- The unexpected challenges Lyndsay’s seen when growing her business and how she overcame those challenges
- Recognizing when you need to change your process so you can scale and accept growth
- Two critical skills every business owner must have to succeed
- How joining a Mastermind group propelled Lyndsay’s business forward
- The one system Lyndsay wishes she put in place sooner
- 4 (new) tools Lyndsay loves right now
- The 3 strategies new business owners need to ensure success
How to best connect with Lyndsay:
- Podcasts: SailingtoSuccesspodcast.com
- Videos & Blogs: www.lyndsayphillips.com
- Website: www.smoothbusinessgrowth.com
Karim Bishay helps companies become insanely efficient. His purpose at Living Orgs is to empower organizations towards a clear, agile structure, and stronger purpose. He is an industry leading consultant and blends a variety of approaches such to help companies find a system that works well for them. Over the past few years, Karim has companies restructure how they organize their teams. While most companies rely on the standard top down style of management, Karim introduces new organization styles that create more clarity and accountability throughout the organization — and — a stronger culture that helps them adapt quicker to the changing marketplace.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- The three prong approach that Karim uses with every organization that he works with
- The importance of organizing around the work, instead of the people
- Stepping out of the victim mentality and becoming the hero of your own story
- Creating clarity and structure that gives people the power to step into their best selves
- Using the power of the group and the collective to keep each other honest and disciplined
- How to enforce positive behavioral change with discipline
- A painful lesson that taught Karim to look inwardly instead of blaming other people
- The importance of knowing how to strategize and say ‘no’ to things
- Making the implicit explicit
- Appreciating the ingenuity and creativity of having different people with varied ideas on your team
- How having objectives and key results in place can lead to big wins
How to best connect with Karim:
- Website: www.livingorgs.com
- Website: www.livingorgs.com/speaking
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/livingorgsconsulting
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/karimbishay
Rob Greenlee is the Head of Content at Spreaker.com and Adore.fm. He was inducted into the Academy of Podcasters Hall of Fame in 2017 and served as the EVP / CTO at PodcastOne.com — and — formerly as the Content and Business Manager of Podcasts / TV at Microsoft’s Xbox Live. He currently hosts the “Spreaker Live Show.com” podcast. He is also former lead host of WebTalk World Radio Show, which is recognized as the first nationally syndicated radio program in the world to begin podcasting on September 15th, 2004.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- Rob’s background and how he got started in live radio
- The growth of the podcasting medium and how it is perceived
- How podcasting is fundamentally different from radio
- Some things to consider if you’re considering starting a podcast (including duration and content)
- Why every business can benefit from having a podcast
- How the way we consume content is going to change
- Why verbal communication is a critical skill to master
- The benefits of working with a mentor who has experience and a background in areas that you aren’t strong in
- Why it’s critical to lead by example
- How to get more people to say “yes” to your business approach
- The three key principles to success
How to best connect with Rob:
- Twitter: @robgreenlee
- Twitter: @spreaker
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/spreaker
- Email: rob@spreaker.com
- Website: www.robgreenlee.com
- Website: www.spreaker.com/start-your-podcast
- Website: www.spreaker.com
- Website: blog.spreaker.com
- Podcast: SpreakerLiveShow.com, Weds at 3 pm PST
- Podcast: NewMediaShow.com/live, Sat at 9 am PST/Noon EST
Marc Vollenweider is co-founder and Chief Strategist of Evalueserve, an industry-influencing global research, analytics, and data management solutions provider known for its mind+machine™ process that combines a global network of expert analysts and best-in-class technology. A former partner at McKinsey & Company in Zurich and India, he has extensive consulting experience in such industries as telecommunications, banking, and pharmaceuticals.
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- Why it’s become mandatory to create & build lots of machines to work alongside analysts
- Marc explains why he wrote his book, “MIND + MACHINE” and how the mind will be supported by machines
- How artificial intelligence & machine learning has a big role to play in business
- The value-added food chain and the different layers that make it up
- Why business owners need to be careful about not getting sucked into non-value adding activities
- Using key performance indicators to measure where you are spending your time at on a daily basis
- The importance of being with your clients & serving them even if you are in a CEO role
- Marc’s fundamental belief that if you are happy at home, you will perform well in business
- Having a constant balance between short, medium, and long-term decision-making
- How no business is going to be successful without taking calculated risks
How to best connect with Marc:
Dr. Diane Hamilton is a speaker, nationally-syndicated radio show host, author, and educator. She focuses on emotional intelligence, engagement, generational conflict, and other common business success-related issues. Forbes and other top companies have hired her to speak to groups to improve employee relationships, increase engagement, improve productivity, and reduce conflict. Diane’s extensive background includes nearly four decades of working in pharmaceuticals, banking, social media, and education. She has authored three books including, “It’s Not You, It’s Your Personality.”
What you’ll learn about in this episode
- When a painful experience can lead to something that is better
- Why you should just take action instead of overanalyzing something
- The benefits of finding a mentor who is super efficient & does things differently than you
- How effective leaders create leaders from the people that they lead
- Staying true to your personality when having conversations with people
- Treating people how they want to be treated
- The problem with having a team that is not diverse
- Why personality tests can be extremely beneficial
- Some of the biggest issues Dr. Hamilton is seeing with soft skills in business settings
- Learning everything you can about what it is you want to do
How to best connect with Dr. Hamilton:
- Website: drdianehamilton.com
- Radio show: drdianehamiltonradio.com
- Book: “It’s Not You It’s Your Personality”