Our special encore guest today is Justin Copie. Justin is the CEO of Innovative Solutions and is leading a bold move forward — instilling growth in employees and inspiring change well beyond the four walls of Innovative. Yes…the 80 people working at Innovative don’t work for him — he works for them. As CEO and leader, Justin provides safety and direction, safety in voicing opinions, trying new things, failing, and direction in where to go on the path to success. Now…you may remember Justin and the wisdom he shared during Episode 584 of Onward Nation. If you haven’t listened to, studied, and applied all he shared during his previous interview…I highly encourage you to add Episode 584 to your list of vital priorities.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How Justin, as CEO, works for his employees, rather than the other way around, and what he does to create a positive working environment
• Principles for success Justin follows himself and teaches to his employees
• The way Justin navigated the most challenging professional experience of his career, and what the results have been so far
• Where Justin gets his courage and inspiration from to make bold moves in business
• Justin’s unique philosophy on business and ways he has improved his business and his employees’ productivity based on this philosophy
• Takeaways Justin got from Zappos Culture Camp and why he decided to attend in the first place
• Ways that Justin mixes employee satisfaction with productivity to benefit both employees and customers
• A story about the passing of Justin’s friend’s father that illustrates what Justin believes to be true success
• What Justin means when he says fear is like a muscle and how understanding this premise can make you a great business owner
• Secrets behind recruiting and retaining quality talent for your business, and what sets A players apart from others
• Why Justin allows startups to share his company’s office for free
• Strategies to help you get past your plateau and on to the next level in your business

Ways to contact Justin:

• Website: http://www.innovativesol.com/
• Twitter: @InnovativeSol
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/innovative-solutions/

Dr. Larry Senn is a pioneer in the field of corporate culture, having conducted the world’s first research on corporate culture in 1970. As chairman and founder of Senn Delaney, a global transformational and culture-shaping organization, Larry has been on a mission to make “culture shaping” an everyday practice of companies around the world. Larry is also the best-selling author of several books, including, 21st Century Leadership, Winning Team Winning Cultures, and most recently The Mood Elevator.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How people are greatly influenced by significant adult figures in their lives and who first influenced Larry.
• Larry’s first entrepreneurial efforts and how they worked for him through school and then through college.
• The reason Larry compares many companies to dysfunctional families (with turf wars, politics, and trust issues).
• Larry’s connection to Walmart and its founder who envisioned bringing low-priced consumer goods to rural America.
• Why leaders have obligations to become their best selves. Hint! It has something to do with organizations becoming shadows of their leaders.
• How Larry developed a passion for helping companies develop a company culture.
• What it means to operate as an effective entrepreneur and why Larry believes it means operating lean, with few inefficiencies or redundancies.
• Why Larry chose “culture shaping” as his career and why it’s so important for businesses.
• Curiosity vs. judgment and why curiosity can help transform the way you approach problems or challenges in life and in business.
• Mood elevators and what they have to do with the way you respond to issues you address throughout the day.
• How riding the mood elevator influences everything in your life from your relationships to your personal effectiveness and even your professional success.
• How you can reduce the frequency with which you visit the lower floors of your mood elevator and to spend more time moving up.

Ways to contact Larry:

• Larry@themoodelevator.com

Danny Schuman is a writer, marketer, entrepreneur, and president of the marketing consultancy, Twist, which specializes in brand marketing as well as product and service innovation. Before starting Twist, Danny wrote and directed marketing campaigns that helped build iconic brands like Quaker Oatmeal, Coors Light, and Gatorade. His bestselling book “The Worst Business Model in the World: A New Kind of Guide for a New Kind of Entrepreneur” is available on Amazon.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How the big economic downturn of 2008 launched a new adventure for Danny.
• How crumbs from agencies Danny worked with in his corporate career become the dough for his business when he created Twist.
• Why Danny believes the economic downtime was actually the perfect time to go out on his own when conventional wisdom suggests otherwise. Hint! The numbers support him.
• Why Danny continues to operate on a “startup” model even though Twist has been in business for 10 years now.
• How Danny came up with the title of his book. Why he almost changed it. And why he ultimately decided to keep it.
• Danny’s belief that each new project is an opportunity to solve a different problem and why that appeals to him.
• Danny’s belief that it’s more important to shift the focus to making friends rather than making money and how by developing those relationships with friends, you’re essentially creating a network that will help you make even more money in the end.
• Why Danny doesn’t prepare for meetings. And, why he thinks you shouldn’t prepare for them either. Hint! It’s more about listening than talking.
• What Danny believes is the most critical skill business owners need to master for success in today’s highly competitive marketplace.
• The most influential lesson Danny has learned from a mentor and how that lesson has shaped the way he operates his business. Not to mention his bottom line.
• Who Susie is and how creative types of business owners need a Susie in their lives and how more business oriented business owners need someone more creative to help with their businesses. It all goes back to that important lesson Danny learned from his mentor.

Ways to contact Danny:

• Website: www.TwistYourThinking.com

Jared Nichols is a futurist, advisor, and faculty member at the University of Tennessee’s Haslam College of Business, in Graduate and Executive Education. He is the founder of The Foresight Academy where he teaches leaders, teams, and individuals, how to think like futurists so they can create the best future possible, for themselves and the people they serve. Jared is sought out by leaders, organizations, and entrepreneurs to help them identify how emerging trends in technology, media, business, and public policy, may fundamentally change society and shape the future.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How Jared responded when he came to a crossroad in his life and in his business.
• The way Jared was able to reach and teach more people by leveraging the tools and technology available to him.
• What Jared meant when he described himself as feeling misaligned in what he was doing before and what it took to realign him and his mission.
• Authenticity. Why Jared believes it’s so important to help you understand your motivations and get them across to others.
• Clarity. Why Jared believes it doesn’t matter what kind of people you want to serve, what industries you want to reach, or who you’re trying to connect with. Clarity is the most important thing you need to have about who you are and how that translates into the business you’re working in.
• Why having the right mentor and the right coach can sometimes help you cut through the noise to help you sort that out and find the clarity you require.
• Identifying the mission became Jared’s first priority. Once he did that, he was able to shift focus to leveraging technology to reach more people for the sake of his mission.
• What a “futurist” is and how thinking like one can help teams create their best possible futures.
• How Jared came up with the idea for the Foresight Academy and what students will learn through the 12-week program.
• Jared’s four Cs. Conscious. Curious. Creative. Collaborative.
• Why Jared believes it’s essential to challenge the norms by asking better questions, like what “else” might be possible.
• Why Jared includes a call to action in each part of his course and why he thinks giving students “quick wins” is so important.
• Jared’s belief that what you think about the future is far less important, in the grand scheme of things, than HOW you think about the future.

Ways to contact Jared:

• jared@thenewfuturist.com

Sue Hawkes helps CEOs and their leadership teams succeed. As a bestselling author, keynote speaker, and globally recognized, award-winning seminar leader, she brings over 25-years of experience to her clients. She is CEO of YESS!, founder of Ideal Coaching international, Inc., and has designed and delivered programs for thousands of people. Her most recent book, Chasing Perfection: Shatter the Illusion, Minimize Self-Doubt, & Maximize Success, is available now.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• Why Sue believes you’re either learning or winning in business and what that means in the grand scale of things.
• Overcoming imposter syndrome and why it’s so important to do just that.
• Why Sue believes it’s important for business owners to get what they want out of their businesses rather than feeling chained to their businesses. Hint! It can cause resentment toward the business. Even leading to fantasies of being employed.
• The importance of being self-aware and understand what we’re not good at, as entrepreneurs because that’s the only way we’re going to solve the problems we create.
• Why Sue decided on this title for her book: Chasing Perfection: Shatter the Illusion, Minimize Self-Doubt & Maximize Success.
• The fact that nearly 80 percent of leaders have moments of excruciating self-doubt. It’s normal. It may even be essential for good leadership. The ones who never experience it are the one’s Sue believes you need to worry about.
• Why Sue believes continuous self-improvement leads to increased freedom and internal and unshakeable excellence for you as a leader.
• The reason Sue designed her book to be read in segments and why that matters so much for her intended audience. Plus, Sue’s instructions for reading her book.
• How “unkind wonderful” words are sometimes the perfect words to hear. Especially when they’re as painful as they are insightful.
• Sue’s belief that every problem is an opportunity for growth. All you need is to figure out how to flip it upside down and why it’s important to be on the front of the pack, leading the pack rather than reacting.
• Sue’s advice to entrepreneurs everywhere, about not giving up because people always seem to quit just before amazing things happen.

Ways to contact Sue:

• www.suehawkes.com
• www.sayyes.com

Dr. Alice Loy is the co-founder & CEO of Creative Startups. She has over 20 years of experience working with entrepreneurs in the creative industries. Widely considered a leading authority on entrepreneurship in the creative economy, Alice built the Creative Startups Accelerator with a vision for catalyzing high growth company formation in the under-served creative economy. Today the accelerator operates on four continents serving over 50 creative companies each year. Alice also co-authored the book, Creative Economy Entrepreneurs: From Startup to Success.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How Alice defines entrepreneurship
• The story behind the book, Creative Economy Entrepreneurs
• How creative entrepreneurs are transforming the global economy
• The startup accelerator for creative entrepreneurs and how it works
• Why startups are a race against time
• Keys to focusing on your vital priorities
• The importance of building discipline in your thinking
• How social change happens
• How mentorship can accelerate success
• The best way to build and scale your business

Ways to contact Alice:

• Website: www.creativestartups.org
• Email: alice@creativestartups.org
• Twitter: @createstartups
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/createstartups
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/createstartups

Bianca Caban is Director of Partnerships and Business Development at Republic, a platform that connects tech startups and blockchain projects with retail investors from around the world. Prior to Republic, she worked on Wall Street for five years and also founded a consultancy, Tai — eeno Capital, where she worked with various entities on new fund infrastructure and business development. Bianca is a member of the World Economic Forum Global Shapers and the Milken Institute Young Leaders Circle.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How successful leadership in Rwanda, where 70 percent of parliament was comprised of women at the time inspired Bianca to invest in revitalization strategies for businesses closer to home.
• Why Bianca is so committed to bringing investment capital to women-owned businesses in areas that are seeking to revitalize (Detroit, Puerto Rico, etc.).
• Bianca’s discovery that women were the fastest growing group of entrepreneurs throughout the U.S. and how important access to capital is to them.
• The importance of scalable technology for driving business growth.
• How Title Three opened the doors wide for crowdfunding and what that meant for Republic and how it operates today.
• Why Bianca is dedicated to helping under-represented groups in business gain access to capital and what it has meant for her organization to do so.
• The importance of diversity, not only in the people operating businesses, but also the businesses and products themselves, is so vital to Republic and the people who invest.
• The five Ts and what they mean to Republic and Bianca.
• How passion factors into the equation and why Bianca is so passionate about her role in helping connect entrepreneurs and startups with the capital they need to get things rolling.
• Why it matters that Republic has access to more than 80,000 investors looking for the perfect opportunities and how that helps ensure the right investor finds the right project.

Fernando Schiantarelli is an entrepreneur, TV and radio producer and creator of “Cómo Lo Hizo”, which translates to “How did they make it?” — a podcast that focuses on helping Latino entrepreneurs in co-production with iHeart Radio in Los Angeles.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• Inspiring stories of creative entrepreneurs who immigrated to other countries and were able to build successful businesses out of pure innovation and hard work
• Two of the most important qualities for an entrepreneur are humility and resilience
• Humility is required, because it’s important to understand your place in the market, how to properly approach new contacts, and where you need to go to succeed, keeping everything grounded in reality
• Resilience is important because there will always be naysayers who try to discourage entrepreneurs from pursuing specific goals or who are sure that an idea is doomed to failure – people you have to press past
• However, passion can only get you so far, and it’s important to not mistake resilience for ignoring the warnings signs and investing too much time or money into an idea that is not properly research
• Once you understand your product idea entirely, where it fits in the market, how it would be made, and how (and at what price) it is likely to sell, then you can start using your passion to drive the idea forward
• “Most of our enemies are inside our own heads,” and entrepreneurs can’t let their own fears or uncertainties get the best of them when building company – and sometimes the inner voices are the hardest to work through
• Intuition and understanding are also important parts of being an entrepreneur: You have be able to listen to the investors and business contacts you’re talking with, and read between the lines to see the things they aren’t saying
• How you can be a successful entrepreneur without a mentor – because part of the process is learning everyone around you, not just a specific tutor or leader you respect
• More information on Latino entrepreneurship, Latina woman in the industry, and many more interesting facts!

Ways to contact Fernando:

• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/fschiantarelli

Good Morning — I’m Stephen Woessner, CEO of Predictive ROI and your host for Onward Nation. I’m excited to share the lessons and the insights of today’s episode with you — but before I do that — I wanted to take you behind the curtain to share some additional context with you around why I have been focusing my last several solocasts as well as my weekly videos on YouTube around the Trojan Horse of Sales Strategy.

My decision to do this has been based on several recent conversations with business owners who are also avid Onward Nation listeners. Each of them took the time to walk me through why they thought it would be helpful if I broke down the Trojan Horse strategy into granular steps…into more detail…and…why it would be helpful if I connected it back to the actual Trojan Horse story so the strategic metaphor that I am making when I say “Your Trojan Horse of Sales” could be better established.

To say that I was grateful for their feedback is a major understatement. I say often how much I value your feedback because it helps us get better each and every day…and here is a perfect example where Onward Nation listeners reached out to me — said hey — could we talk about this — and then they showed me how my team and I could get better. So thank you, Nancy — thank you, Bill — if you’re listening — I appreciate you so very much.

With that said…we are going to take a deep dive into what has been the best biz dev strategy for Predictive ROI — and as you might have guessed based on what I just shared with you — it is the Trojan Horse of Sales. And I am going to walk you through the strategy in two different ways.

First — I am going to share the highlights of the Trojan Horse story so we can get a solid foundation around why the story is, in my opinion, an excellent metaphor to the ideal sales strategy.

Second — I’m going to insert into this solocast the interview where I was a guest on Take the Lead Radio, hosted by Dr. Diane Hamilton. And you may remember Diane from Episode 505 of Onward Nation. After being my guest — Diane invited me to be her guest — and we talked through a number of topics including how the Trojan Horse of Sales Strategy can be helpful to business owners. More specifically, Diane asked me to share…

• How I made that $2 million dollar mistake in 2014 and why it was a powerful lesson
• Why my Predictive ROI team and I decided to start Onward Nation back in June 2015
• How we initially began to “monetize” the podcast — but we didn’t do it by attempting to monetize you…our audience
• How Onward Nation quickly became our best biz dev strategy to grow Predictive ROI
• And how your podcast, your video series, your blog — whatever channel that serves as your hub for cornerstone content — how it, too, can play the role of your Trojan Horse of Sales

Full show notes here: https://predictiveroi.com/podcasts/stephen-woessner-solocast-episode-82

Shannon Miles is the CEO and Co-founder of BELAY, a staffing company serving businesses all over the U.S. Without an office, BELAY has graced the Inc. 5000 list four times — and four years in a row — and was awarded the number one spot in Entrepreneur Magazine’s Best Company Culture. Shannon’s new book The Third Option: Why a Woman Doesn’t Have to Choose Between a Career and Family, but Can Actually Have Both and Succeed is available now.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• The story behind how Shannon and her husband started their business, BELAY
• How having the right help can help you grow your organization
• Why it’s vital to ensure that your team is happy
• Why it’s not wise to satisfy other people’s perceptions of you
• Why business owners need to consider what working remotely would look like for them
• Why Shannon was compelled to write her book, The Third Option
• The importance of having the mindset that you don’t have to do it alone
• Why you need to assign value to your time
• The power that comes from shifting your mindset to owning, not running, your business
• Why you should consider developing and promoting employees from within your organization

Ways to contact Shannon:

• Website: belaysolutions.com
• Instagram: @shannonkmiles
• Book: The Third Option

Our special encore guest today is Jody Steinhauer. Jody is the Founder, President and CBO (Chief Bargain Officer) of the Bargains Group — an award-winning discount wholesale and promotional products company. She is also the founder of Engage and Change — a national charity focusing on “good people working together for the good of people.” — and Kits for a Cause, a social enterprise that helps companies make a positive impact in their communities. Now…you may remember Jody and the wisdom she shared during Episodes 20 and 364. If you haven’t listened to, studied, and applied all she shared during her two previous interviews…I highly encourage you to add Episodes 20 and 364 to your list of vital priorities.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• The rise of social enterprise, or finding out how businesses can help fix problems in society while also being business – a concept that Jody’s company has been practicing for 30 years
• How businesses can help society in specific ways without being a charity and constantly asking for things, like money and volunteers
• Why social enterprise needs to be a part of your marketing strategy, both for your company’s benefit and for organizational purposes
• Why jumping into social enterprise also requires careful planning for budgeting and picking the right cause, as it aligns with the company’s mission statement and interests
• How Jody’s new project has quickly spread from Toronto in the past year and how she has been contact by major companies in other countries that want to take part in specific projects or copy successful events
• Why — if you want to do more charity or volunteer work — you need to find a company that has had many years of experience and done many events
• Why flexibility is important in social enterprise – for example, Jody always contacts the end-user organizations when building kits, and often finds that some components just aren’t needed, so things need to be changed
• The nuts and bolts of how an organization like Jody’s partners with a more traditional company for a big social enterprise event, including first meetings, plans, and getting volunteers
• How to leverage materials like photos and video for marketing purposes and where to send them to let clients know your work in social enterprise
• The power of spotting problems in social enterprise and nonprofit work, and targeting those problems with specific solutions to create truly effective social enterprise profits

Ways to contact Jody:

• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jodysteinhauer
• Website: www.bargainsgroup.org/about-jody-steinhauer
• Website: jodysteinhauer.com
• Website: www.kitsforacause.com

Peter Mehit is the Owner and Chief Operating Officer of Custom Business Planning and Solutions. After a successful career in the Fortune 100, he has helped over 2,500 clients start, grow and expand their businesses and has written business plans that have raised over $160 million. He is also the co-author of Killer Business Plan, a book that can help you choose the business that is right for you.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• The reason Peter stepped away from Fortune 100 and what he decided to do instead
• How Peter’s life completely changed after he said “no” to his boss
• Why small businesses are so important and how Peter helps them succeed
• One of the obstacles to success in today’s day and age and Peter’s technique to overcome this
• Examples of simple systems that can help you make the most out of each day
• What a good, usable business plan looks like along with the most important question you need to answer to guide your plan
• The types of businesses investors are interested in
• How to get your business running when you’re really good at the vision end, but less experienced in running the actual business
• Why it’s essential that you actually write a business plan before you get started
• The reason you can’t lie to yourself about what your strengths and weakness are
• What Peter thinks is the most critical skill a business owner needs to master in order to be successful today
• Reasons it’s essential to be self-educated to succeed in business today
• The most influential lesson Peter ever learned from a mentor and how to get the most out of your relationship with a mentor
• How knowing what you want will get you exactly what you need from your mentor
• Why paying for something makes you more committed to it

Ways to contact Peter:

• Phone: 800-741-8444
• Email: pmehit@custombps.com

Molly Grubb is the President and founder of Grubb Wealth Management, an exclusive wealth management firm that helps business owners gain control of their business in order to allow them to realize their purpose and build personal wealth through a well-defined process. She is one of only 200 Certified Business Exit Consultants and less than 7 percent of advisors that utilize all the fundamentals of wealth management. Molly has been a featured speaker and presenter at many professional organizations and business groups.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How nothing improves you more as a person than being a business owner
• Working with the people you know vs. the experts you need
• How to prepare your business for a market decline
• Key ways to free up your wealth within your business
• Why it’s vital to have a process for everything
• The one question that you should ask yourself, as a business owner
• What you can do to ensure that your business is serving you instead of you serving your business
• Common mistakes that business owners make that can devalue a business
• Why you need to have a clearly defined exit plan
• The importance of protecting your dynasty while building it

Ways to contact Molly:

• Website: www.grubbwealth.com/onward
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/mollygrubb
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/grubbwealth
• Twitter: @grubbwealth
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/GrubbWealthManagement

Sam Silverstein is founder and CEO of Sam Silverstein Enterprises, Inc., an accountability think tank dedicated to helping companies create an organizational culture that prioritizes and inspires accountability. He’s a leadership keynote speaker, business advisor, and author of seven books including Non-Negotiable, No More Excuses, Making Accountable Decisions, No Matter What, and The Success Model. Global Gurus recently announced Sam as one of the World’s Top 30 Organizational Culture Professionals.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How Sam came to the realization that everything comes down to accountability
• Why focus is a vital trait to have in business
• Why you need to pay attention to staying in your lane
• How to make your product even more valuable
• The real problem in organizations today
• Why everything we’ve been told about accountability is wrong
• How all rises and falls with leadership
• The importance of aligning your actions with your words
• The real value of relationships, family, and caring for people
• Why we need to hold ourselves accountable first, before others

Ways to contact Sam:

• Website: www.samsilverstein.com
• Website: www.beaccountable.com
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/samsilverstein
• Book: No Matter What: The 10 Commitments of Accountability (No More Excuses Series)

At age 40, Gary Wilson retired as the corporate vice president of mergers & acquisitions from a national bank — and then embarked on building his wealth in real estate. In his first 6 months after earning real estate license, he created a six figure income by working with investors. He has since traded over 3,000 investment properties, written five books sharing his expertise so others in the business can do the same, and has taught his Path to Prosperity System to over 14,000 agents and investors across the country. Gary has appeared on over 100 national and local media outlets including CBS, FOX News, NBC, ABC, and Business Week.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How Gary got involved in real estate in a small way which quickly grew in a large regional business – which wasn’t entirely satisfying
• How finding passion later in life can be a great way to kickstart your career and become a happier person overall with a little thought
• How important localization is when selling real estate
• Gary’s expertise in scaling real estate businesses effectively and growing a business into different region…by appealing to a rare market, the investors themselves
• The importance of being thankful for your life and what you are able to accomplish at any stage of your life
• Vision exercises: Why everyone should take time to plan out their future successes, not just in the short term but in the coming years, to help orientate their actions
• How helping people, and learning to network in productive ways, is a key tool for success
• Why when working toward success in business, it’s important to start small and carefully prepare rather than aim immediately for explosive growth
• Carefully considering your “inner circle,” your mentors and the people you got to for advice or leads – and thinking about how dependable they are so you can improve your inner circle in realistic ways
• More about the classes and seminars Gary teaches on investment, real estate, contacting investors, and other topics

Ways to contact Gary:

• Personal email: gary@myinvestmentservices.com
• Email for info on Chicago event: info@myinvestmentservices.com
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/thegarywilson
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/myinvestmentservices
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/winteam

John Furth is the President of Furth & Associates where he works with leadership teams to achieve breakthrough performance and growth. He has spent 25-years working with CEOs and their C-suite executives at some of the largest corporations in the world. In 2015, John became Vistage’s Chair for Brooklyn, a role which allows him to draw on his experience and extensive network to coach and advise CEOs and business owners of NYC-based small and medium-sized companies. John is also author of the new book, “Owning Tomorrow: The Unstoppable Force of Disruptive Leadership.”

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• Why you need to first learn how to disrupt yourself before you can disrupt others
• How the things we don’t know can disrupt our lives
• How John came up with the title for his book, “Owning Tomorrow: The Unstoppable Force of Disruptive Leadership”
• Why most successful disruptors make a ton of money
• How, in disruption, more stays the same than changes
• Why there is very thin line between disruption and destruction
• Why it’s vital to understand finance as a business owner
• Why emotional intelligence and having a personal life are important when it comes to success in business
• Why you need to be aware of how you appear to others as a leader
• How all processes look like a failure in the middle

Ways to contact John:

• Phone: 917-626-0065
• Email: johnffurth@aol.com
• Website: furthandassociates.net
• Website: johnffurth.com
• Book: Owning Tomorrow: The Unstoppable Force of Disruptive Leadership

Kirk Deis is the CEO of Treehouse 51, a digital agency based in Newport Beach and the new web app “The Bug Squasher,” designed to simplify and streamline project communication and website management. Kirk has worked with clients all over the world and has been a featured contributor for several sites including Forbes.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• One of the biggest lessons that Kirk has learned on his entrepreneurial journey
• Why having a beginning, middle, and end to a story is so important
• The importance of being confident and okay with failure
• Why you need to always be focusing on business development
• The value of focusing on building a team of talented people and providing an environment where they can grow
• Why you need to strive to always be a student of your industry
• Why you should always be testing your marketing
• Why you shouldn’t underestimate the value of free
• Why it’s critical to take risks when things are tough
• Passing the DUMB test before spending money on something

Ways to contact Kirk:

• Website: thebugsquasher.com
• Website: www.Treehouse51.com
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kirkdeis

Phillip Stutts is the founder and CEO of two startup marketing agencies, “Go BIG Media” and “Win BIG Media” and has been lauded as a “marketing genius” by FOX BUSINESS. He is also the author of Amazon.com Best Seller, “FIRE THEM NOW”, and one of the masterminds behind the curtain of political marketing. Phillip is fighting a rare and incurable disease — so his mission today is to find a cure and pursue a life of constant growth and giving.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How Phillip Stutts entered politics and went on to contribute to many successful gubernatorial, US Senate, and Presidential campaigns
• How Phillip launched his company, Go Big Media, and built it into a $20 million business in just four years
• How Phillip is dealing with an incurable esophageal disease called Achalasia and fighting to manage its symptoms
• Why Phillip decided not only to combat his disease but to work on finding a cure for the incurable
• Why Phillip believes being diagnosed with Achalasia saved his business, his marriage, and his life
• How Phillip has found success in business marketing by applying principles he learned from working in politics
• Some of the key takeaways from Phillip’s book “Fire Them Now: The 7 Lies Digital Marketers Sell”
• Why your marketing firm is probably more concerned with checking boxes than building personal, authentic relationships with your customers
• How to effectively bring the idea of “political attack ads” to comparative advertising
• How to access a free article, “3 Secrets You Need to Know Before You Hire (or Fire) a Marketing Company”
• How to get a free 5-minute marketing audit of your business and its digital footprint

Ways to contact Phillip:

• Twitter: @phillipstutts
• Website: www.phillipstutts.com/offer
• Website: www.phillipstutts.com/audit
• Book: “Fire Them Now: The 7 Lies Digital Marketers Sell…And the Truth about Political Strategies that Help Businesses Win”

Ed Rush is a 5-Time #1 Best Selling author and a former F-18 fighter pilot. His combat career included over 50 missions and two tours to Iraq. While in the Marines, Ed served as one of the country’s leading instructors on aerial dog fighting and recently worked as a key player in the development of the new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. His books and expertise have been featured on CBS, FOX, ABC, and NBC. Ed’s latest book, “The 21-Day Miracle,” is available now.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How Ed’s latest book, “The 21 Day Miracle,” was born and the philosophy behind it
• How the most successful entrepreneurs are the ones who build their lives out of strategic sprints
• Ed’s fundamental philosophy for life
• Why most entrepreneurs feel like they’re not getting enough done
• The importance of setting goals so big that people will laugh at you when you say them
• Why you shouldn’t spend time in the future on mistakes you’ve made in the past
• The single most important thing you can do as a business owner
• Why you need to spend more of your time on things that are important, not urgent
• The benefits of thinking in the long term vs. the short term
• Why you need to be able to communicate, influence, and persuade
• How true mind mastery can give you freedom

Ways to contact Ed:

• Website: edrushbook.com

Good Morning — I’m Stephen Woessner, CEO of Predictive ROI and your host for Onward Nation. I’m excited to share the lessons and the insights of today’s episode with you — but before I do that — I owe you a really big thank you.

I owe you a big thank you, Onward Nation because each and every day you give my team and I the hug or the push we need to get better. Each day — I get to walk into my office and have this amazing privilege of hanging out with you — while you and I both learn from some of the top business owners on this planet. You are right there beside me — as we learn together. And all of the feedback you share — the tweets you send — hitting me up on LinkedIn — and dropping me lines of support on Facebook…I appreciate all of it and am so very grateful.

We are now impacting business owners in 102 countries and I don’t take that lightly. That didn’t happen by accident — it happened because of you finding something here in our episodes and then taking the time to share it with your friends and co-workers.

And because of this amazing journey over the last 800+ episodes — my life has been enriched in so many wonderful ways. I have been invited to write a book, speak at events, and Predictive ROI has grown, too. And all of that — all of that — is because of this wonderful Onward Nation community that you, my friend, are a part of.

So thank you — from the bottom of my heart — thank you! Airing 800 episodes has been a real joy and pleasure — and I assure you — we are just getting started. From our daily Onward Nation episodes, to our weekly video series on YouTube, to our next book being released in 2019, and how we are going to absolutely raise the bar on LinkedIn where the community is now 25,000 strong — we are just…getting…started.

So thank you, Onward Nation — thank you very much.

Full show notes available here: https://predictiveroi.com/podcasts/stephen-woessner-solocast-episode-81

Allison Maslan is the CEO of Allison Maslan International, a global business mentoring company and is the #1 bestselling author of “Blast Off.” Her new book, “Scale or Fail: How to Take the Leap from Entrepreneur to Enterprise Without a Safety Net” hits bookstores this month. Allison’s built 10 successful companies starting out at age 19. Now she pays it forward helping ambitious business owners around the world grow high-revenue businesses and passionate lives. Allison’s been featured in SUCCESS, Fortune, and Forbes and is a regular contributor to Entrepreneur Magazine. She’s also a featured expert on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, and FOX.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• How to preorder Allison’s new book “Scale or Fail,” available for purchase October 16
• Allison’s history, career journey, and how she became a business-scaling expert
• How a near-fatal car accident forced Allison to re-prioritize her life and take a different career path
• Why growing your business sometimes means letting go of responsibilities and old habits when scaling to the enterprise level
• What the five phases of building a team-managed company are and why they matter
• Why employee disengagement is a major problem for most growing companies and what you can do about it
• How to address vision and leadership issues within your company and refocus your efforts
• Why personal growth as a business owner is an important component to scaling your business
• Allison’s recommendations for business owners who want to scale up their businesses but aren’t sure how
• Allison’s advice and strategies for business-scaling success, and why it’s critical to dream big

Ways to contact Allison:

• Website: www.allisonmaslan.com
• Email: support@allisonmaslan.com
• Book: www.scaleorfail.com

Steve Farber is the President of Extreme Leadership, Inc. and the founder and chairman of The Extreme Leadership Institute, organizations devoted to the cultivation and development of extreme leaders around the world. He’s listed as one of Inc.’s Global Top 50 Leadership and Management Experts and is a bestselling author on extreme leadership. His three books include “Greater Than Yourself,” a Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestseller; “The Radical Edge”; and “The Radical Leap,” which was recently named one of the 100 Best Business Books of All Time.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• The framework for extreme leadership
• Why you need to ask yourself how you can become an expert in your field
• How to determine if your point of view is of great value to people
• The value of constantly learning and becoming a student of your mentor’s work
• How you develop your own body of work
• How to apply the LEAP framework to your business
• How the greatest leaders become the greatest leaders
• Why love is such a powerful business principle
• The importance of creating a culture that people love working in
• How it all starts with asking yourself the right questions
• Why doing what you love is important, but not the whole story

Ways to contact Steve:

• Website: www.SteveFarber.com
• Book: “Greater Than Yourself: The Ultimate Lesson Of True Leadership”

Josh Fonger is the owner of WTS Enterprises and an expert in designing and implementing systems to help small businesses grow. The foundational methodology he uses was developed by his business partner — author, Sam Carpenter, in his book, “Work The System: The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working Less.” Josh is also an international business consultant, coach, and speaker and helped fix hundreds of businesses across multiple industries, from start-ups to billion-dollar operations.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• Why you need to focus on working on the systems that produce results
• Why the owner is typically the bottleneck to growing and scaling a business
• How it can be helpful to take an objective perspective of your business
• Why it’s vital to just simplify your business’ systems and processes
• How to calculate the exact time of day that you’re most productive
• The reason you need to master the skill of playing the long-game
• Why you shouldn’t wait for the “perfect” client
• The value of supporting your clients in the long-term
• The importance of focusing on selling when first starting your business
• The importance of writing down a vision for your business and taking ownership of it

Ways to contact Josh:

• Website: www.workthesystem.com
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/workthesystem
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/joshfonger
• Group Coaching: www.workthesystem.com/coaching

Our special encore guest today is Mike Michalowicz. He is the author of “Profit First,” “Surge,” “The Pumpkin Plan,” and his newest release, “Clockwork: Design your business to run itself.” By his 35th birthday, Mike had founded and sold two companies - one to private equity and another to a Fortune 500. Today, he is running his third multi-million dollar venture, Profit First Professionals. Now...you may remember Mike and the wisdom he shared during Episode 361. If you haven’t listened to, studied, and applied all he shared during his first interview...I highly encourage you to add Episode 361 to your list of vital priorities.

What you'll learn about in this episode:

• The story behind why Mike wrote his latest book, “Clockwork”
• The four elements that make up every business
• Why business owners must support all decision-making from their employees when it comes to delegation
• The one thing that entrepreneurs don’t do, but is the most important thing to do
• Why we need to change the reward mechanism from following instructions to achieving outcomes
• Why Mike believes that success comes in stages
• Why it’s critical to identify your queen bee role
• The reason most organizations don’t know the critical function that it should depend on
• Why it’s vital to know the one thing that differentiates you from everyone else
• Why you need to declare a four-week vacation away from your business

Ways to contact Mike:

• Website: www.mikemichalowicz.com
• Book: "Clockwork"