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Episode 167 – K.I.S.S. Doesn’t Stand For Keep It Simple, Stupid!

KISS
Kiss me!

I live in Texas where we claim everything is bigger.

Bigger can be better, but not always. Waistlines, debt, dirty laundry…well, you get the idea!

Life is full of contrasting ideas.

Abundance vs. Minimalism

Vast vs. Cozy

Big vs. Small

I admit that many small business owners struggle with limiting their growth or opportunities because they think too small. I’m not encouraging that behavior. Today’s show isn’t about small or restrictive thinking. Rather, it ‘s about embracing what suits you best. It’s about not allowing your business or career to be defined by what other people think.

What’s wrong with keeping it small? 

Nothing, if that’s what you want. This is the time to be selfish and chase what you want…how you want. Not every small business owner wants to build the next global business. Just like not every home buyer wants an 11,000 square foot house. Some people prefer the tiny houses available today. Nothing wrong with that – it’s just a matter of preference.

For instance, I don’t want employees. I’m not opposed to employees. I’ve just had them most of my career…spanning the last 30 plus years. Been there, done that. I don’t want to do it any more, but I know people who would love nothing better than to build a business that needs lots of people. That’s fine…for them. Not for me.

What’s your end game? Do you want to start and build a business that you can sell? Do you want to build a business with others that can solve some big worldwide problem? Do you want to build a business around something you personally find gratifying?

It matters how you answer those questions. It’s very personal, but I’ll warn you to avoid letting somebody else’s dream or desire affect your own. It may be wise to think small. That doesn’t mean being ineffective, unsuccessful or unprofitable. Some of the wealthiest people I know do work they really care about by going it alone and dropping most of their revenue straight to the bottom line. They intentionally keep their lives simple, flexible and small.

Keep it small smartypants!

They love being small. Is it for everybody? Nope. But then again, what is?

Randy

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Episode 166 – What Do You Want To Do?

question markTrue confession: I’m a middle-aged guy who began seeking my “encore career” about 4 years ago. And like many men my age, I fell into an occupation as a young man. As a teenager really. Thirty-five years later I came to a place in my life where I asked, “Now what?” The real question was, “What do you want to do…now?”

You know how it is when a big group wants to go out to eat, but it’s not a pre-planned affair. You ask, “Well, where do you guys want to go eat?” For the next 15 minutes it’s like you’ve asked the group to solve world peace. It just seems impossible to figure out where to go. You either get tons of indifference – “I don’t care” – or you get very opinionated responses – “No, I hate Mexican food.” Well, asking yourself what you want to do is tougher than that.

Yep, world peace might be easier!

I don’t know why it’s so hard, but rare is the person who says, “I’ve always known I wanted to (fill in the blank).” Don’t you hate those people. Life isn’t fair. Why do they have such clarity while I’m over here in the mud puddle stomping around trying to find my way?

I’m here to tell you that YOU can figure it out. How long will it take? I don’t know. Truthfully? It’ll take as long as it takes. So the good news is, you can start today. The sooner you start, the better. The bad news is, it might happen for you right away, but it’s much more likely to take a long time.

That’s okay. It’s very worthwhile work. I’ll share with you one little idea that I used to help me find my way. It might help you, too.

Check out ChasingDFWCool.com – it’s a project I’m preparing to launch within the next month or so.

Randy

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Bula! Minute 002 – The Value Of An Outside Voice

microphone on stand
The credibility of an outside voice can grow our business

The value of an outside voice can mean a couple of things.

One, it can mean the objective appraisal of how we’re doing. “Hey, can you tell me what you think of this?”

The other can mean the value of having somebody else tell our story. It can be in the form of a recommendation. These can be very personal where we tell our next door neighbor about this great experience we had when we bought a new car, a new backyard grill, or a new pair of shoes. It can be far less personal, but equally powerful in the form of an Amazon review where complete strangers read what we say and put stock in it.

Businesses have long sought after having loyal customers who will tell everybody they know. Faithful, happy customers are the most effective sales teams. From casual conversations with all their friends to passing along our business card, loyal customers help evangelize our business.

The Internet affords us multiple ways to get the word out about our business. The value of an outside voice now has some new meanings. It’s commonly called “content marketing.” That simply means we try to make meaningful connections with prospects and customers by giving them valuable information. There’s nothing new about it really. Sales has historically been all about educating, answering questions and providing free information.

When I was a teenager working in a stereo shop, people would come in everyday seeking information as they navigated the prospect of purchasing stereo equipment. “What makes those speakers $200 more expensive?” Shoppers had questions. Lots of questions. A big part of my job was to answer their questions while I guided them through the process of making the most of their stereo buying dollar!

Back then my value as an outside voice was limited to people who walked into the stereo shop, or people who may have called on the phone. Today, we can all tell our story and have it broadcast 24/7/365 via the Internet.

I hope you enjoy today’s Bula! Minute.

Randy

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Episode 165 – Two Big E’s: Enterprise vs. Ease

David LIndley
David Lindley is an accomplished musician

This is David Lindley. I took this picture with my phone when I saw Jackson Browne and David play together. For years he has played with Jackson Browne. If the instrument has frets or strings, he can play it. He’s a remarkable musician. He’s been working at the craft of music his entire life. You don’t become a world-class musician like Lindley without spending hours and hours practicing. When it comes to music, enterprise has ruled his life.

Rocky snoozing
Rocky enjoys a life of ease

Contrast David with Rocky, one of my White West Highland Terriers. Rocky lives a life of ease. This is his daily posture. He sleeps about 23 hours a day. The richest people on the planet don’t have it any better than Rocky. Of course, they earn a lot more money than he does. I’ve never figured out a way to monetize Rocky.

Today’s show is about two big E’s:

Enterprise vs. Ease

While they’re not mutually exclusive, it seems people prefer one over the other (usually ease trumps enterprise), or they pursue one (enterprise) so they can enjoy the other (ease). Too many people want the rewards of enterprise, but they want to pay the price of ease. For good reason.

The interwebs are full of people who claim the ability to teach us all how to do it. Cha-ching, money making passive income – resulting from passive workload. They’ll often site the recording or publishing business model. Write a hit song, record it once – get paid over and over and over. Yes, that’s a terrific business model, but it’s not reasonable for most people. Besides, it’s a lot of work to just be a one-hit-wonder!

We mock them, but how many of us have one hit? And like most things that we don’t understand, we under estimate the amount of actual work done…even by a one-hit-wonder. Just this morning I exchanged emails with a longtime professional acquaintance who is doing as well as he’s ever done. Books being published, speaking gigs lining up nicely…he started his company 20 years ago! I jokingly told him his overnight success only took 20 years! A lifetime of enterprise paying off after taking longer than expected and filled with failures along the way.

I’m not sure we should compartmentalize enterprise and ease. They may be like living a balanced life, fictitious! And I’m pretty sure ease isn’t everything it’s cracked up to be.

I cite this YouTube video in today’s show.

Thanks for listening!

Randy

P.S. Yes, I called Jack Bauer, Kiefer Sullivan! Listen for it. I even think I did it TWICE. Kiefer Sutherland.

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Episode 164 – Show ‘N Tell Your Way To Success

Showing and telling a grandchild
Showing and telling a grandchild

In 2nd grade I used an opportunity afforded during “show ‘n tell” to tattle on my neighbor. We lived on some acreage with horses, ducks, a cat and a dog. Our neighbor would ride his lawn mower around – not mowing necessarily, but using the mower like you might an ATV – drinking beer and tossing his empty beer bottles over the fence onto our property. I’d watch him through the woods. I don’t think he ever caught me catching him.

My mother was horrified that I shared that with my entire 2nd grade class, but it seemed noteworthy enough to me. I don’t remember any reaction from my teacher or the class. But it was off my chest and I know I felt better for telling on our beer swilling, bottle throwing neighbor.

Show ‘n tell is cool. And fun!

I still love it. I’ve got one neighbor still who is very show ‘n tell worthy, but it’s not quite as becoming to tattle on adults as it once was.

Businesses desperately need to learn how to show ‘n tell. It’s not much different than me reading “I Love School” to my granddaughter. It’s a story. With pictures. And everything. When you’re not quite 2-years-old, you need more than words to keep your attention. And Kinsley, my granddaughter pictured in my lap, won’t let me linger on any single page for much more than 5 seconds. Thankfully, I’m a speed reader (and page flipper) so I can maintain her interest.

Your customers and prospects have very similar attention spans. Then again, don’t we all? I guess we’re all battling the ability to maintain focus. We may be smarter than 5th graders, but most of us aren’t able to concentrate any better than a 2-year-old.

This makes the skill of storytelling even more valuable. Many businesses, especially what many called “traditional” businesses, don’t do enough work in crafting their story. I didn’t say in manufacturing a story…but in crafting a true, genuine story that is worth telling.

In the 2nd grade I knew I had a story that I really wanted to tell. It was interesting to me. My classmates were much like me so I assumed they might enjoy it, too. It had some classic elements. A main character – my neighbor. An illicit behavior – drinking beer. Another illicit behavior – tossing empty bottles into somebody else’s yard. That made the main character, an adult, the villan. Even better when you’re a 2nd grader!

Let’s talk about telling a more compelling story so our prospects are engaged enough to do business with us! Jay Leno’s Garage is a YouTube channel that does a great job of telling stories about the cars.

Randy

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Episode 163 – Don’t Live One Way In Your Head And A Different Way In Real Life

balanceSomething must give.

It’s less of this so we can grab more of that.

It’s saying “no” so we can say “yes.”

Choices, choices, choices.

Many choices aren’t easy. Instead, they’re confusing, conflicting and agonizing. People chase balance, but there’s no such thing. Work, life, pleasure, faith, conviction, philosophy, family, friends. It’s all a big mashup of everything that makes us who and what we are.

It’s about more than fictional balance. It’s…

Time To Embrace Congruency

Today’s show is about regret, risk, opportunity, but most of all – it’s about being congruent. Don’t live your life one way in your head and a different way in real life. It’s high time to make the two come together. Stop fantasizing about what might be. Take a chance and try to make it reality.

So what if it doesn’t pan out exactly like it does in your dreams. It might be better. It might not. Either way, you’ll be better for the effort. You’ll also be spared the agony of wondering what might have been.

It’s time to venture out to create a better – a different – future. It’s time to make it real.

Randy

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