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John Francis With Next Level Franchise Inc.

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johnfrancisJohn Francis, the CEO and Founder of Johnny Franchise, is not your average Franchise Advisor, Speaker, or Consultant. He has over 30 years of real-world, first-hand experience in franchising businesses, having been a Franchisor, Franchisee, and Supplier, with multiple brands. With more wins than losses, His goal is to help others achieve meaningful success that benefits everyone.

He helps franchisor executives and franchise owners reduce risks and improve results by providing level-headed expertise.

His approach is to take the time to get familiar and connect with his clients. He likes to know the situation and context and personalities involved in any business. He is known for being a good listener, and asking good questions, then offering thoughtful advice and typically a range of options for his clients to consider as possibilities. He likes to help other people do their job better, rather than doing the work for them – more of a coach or advisor.

Connect with John on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

  • Working with franchise brands
  • Working with the franchisees

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: [00:00:07] Welcome to Franchise Marketing Radio, brought to you by SEO Samba comprehensive high performing marketing solutions for mature and emerging franchise brands. To supercharge your franchise marketing, go to seosamba.com. That’s seosamba.com.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:32] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Franchise Marketing Radio, and this is going to be a fun one today, we have with us John Francis or as you may know him, Johnny franchise with next level franchise. Welcome, John.

John Francis: [00:00:46] Yeah, thank you. I’m good. Good to be here, Lee. I appreciate it. Thank you.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:50] Well, before we get too far into things, for those who don’t know, tell us a little bit about next level franchise. How are you serving folks?

John Francis: [00:00:58] Sure. Well, next level franchise is just me. I’m an independent consultant. I used to call myself a reluctant consultant, but I think since covid, I gave up the reluctant part of it and I’ve been a little more proactive and done a little more promotion of myself. But next level franchise is really who I am and what I like to do with clients. I work independently, usually as more of an advisor than than than a consultant in franchising. Consultants sometimes get confused with brokers or what I call matchmakers, people selling franchises. I don’t do that. I’ve done that work and it’s not my thing. So I’m more of an adviser sometimes called a coach. I oftentimes wind up on a board, a board of advisors or board of directors. That seems to be something I’ve got a niche for. And I just like to help people take their franchise business to the next level, whether it’s a franchise or who is growing fast or growing slower or struggling with some other challenge or a franchisee who is kind of stuck somehow or not seeing the results they expected, or we’re trying to get to the multiunit or multibrand or whatever it might be. And even suppliers I work with supplier companies who are trying to figure out how to how to do what they do better and get get into the franchise community, which, you know, there’s there’s a lot of different ways of doing things. And so I just try to help people when I think I can and I try to add value and and I’m pretty straightforward, no nonsense kind of guy in most cases. You know, I get to the point where it’s either not a fit or I don’t think I can help. And I’m glad to get out of the way and and try to use my network. I’ve got a great network and I’ve been around franchising forever. So if I can’t help you, I probably know someone who can. So I like to be a resource to to people.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:53] So and this show, we talk to a lot of franchise owners and a lot of emerging franchise owners as well. Can you maybe share a little advice for those folks who are trying to either, you know, kind of create that escape velocity for a new franchise to help them maybe not make some of the mistakes that you’ve seen being made over the years?

John Francis: [00:03:17] Well, you know, I could talk for hours on just that, but I’ll give you a couple of highlights. Obviously, we only have a few minutes. But so the fundamental truth in franchising is there are no new mistakes in franchise. I think someone I heard that recently and I think it’s good advice and everything that you’re going through as an emerging brand, a lot of other people have done the same thing and gone through the same kind of issues and challenges and frustrations. Now, things move a little faster these days than they did, say, 10 or 15 or 20 years ago. You know, technology has certainly accelerated a lot of things and changed a lot of dynamics, but a lot of the same issues are the same thing. I see them over and over and over. So so the advice there is don’t be afraid to ask for help. And whether it’s me or hundreds of other people out there who do want to help. You know, there’s lots of lots of places to go to get get the help. You don’t have to struggle alone. Franchising is kind of fun in that most people like to really share what’s worked for them because you’re not seen as a competitor. If I’ve got a tire, a tire franchise and you’ve got a dry cleaning franchise, we don’t see each other really as competitors, even though we’re we’re selling franchises, but it’s not the same. So a lot of the stuff and a lot of the experience in franchising is freely shared because, you know, when franchising does well, that that helps all of us. So it’s unique that way.

John Francis: [00:04:39] So don’t be afraid to get help, I guess, is number one and keep asking for help, because there are a lot of people out there with a lot of ideas and some may fit better than others at certain phases of your growth. So don’t be afraid to to build your network and surround yourself with other resources and people who might have good information to share. Number two is the most critical part is, you know, those first five franchisees in a brand really set the pace for the rest of them. And I know this is kind of a cliche, but those first few franchisees really, they can make or break your life in terms of level of frustration, you know, down the road. So be a selective as you can, be as careful as you can and make sure that those people are the right fit and the right people and properly qualified and have the resources. Sources and follow the system and do all the things they’re supposed to do, because if if your first few are successful, that will really set the pace for the rest of the brand. And if your first few really struggle, you’re going to have a lot of other challenges later on down the road. So you’ve got to be ready to franchise and then you’ve got to be prepared for the people factor, because that’s just the nature of franchising. It’s all relationships and people, and that means challenges. So be careful and seek for a lot of help. I don’t know if that may be too generic, but but those are what’s coming to mind right now.

Lee Kantor: [00:06:07] Now, how are you helping your clients kind of deal with this maybe once in a generation disruption of covid?

John Francis: [00:06:18] Very good question. And I’ll tell you, I see it in a variety of ways. For some brands, this covid thing has been wonderful. It’s actually helped them push them to do things differently and find a lot of efficiencies that they didn’t know they had. So a lot of cases, it’s it’s been good. In some of my clients, it’s been terrible and it’s really being shut down and forced to shut down. It had a huge economic impact. And, you know, a lot of other factors were impacted, just people’s attitudes and psyche and everything. So how are they dealing with it? I think it’s a matter of if you’re an established brand and you’ve got franchisees, if you survived it and you’re at the side now, we’re most optimistic. We’re mostly over the hard part of it. But the. You know, you have to have had adapted your brand and what is happening now is, is with what I’ve seen called the great resignation, a lot of people who are employees out there are sick and tired of working for somebody else. And usually that is a good indicator for franchise because those people want to take control of their situation and they’re more more interested in a franchise investment than some other kind of startup. And so generally, franchising, I believe, is picking up kind of everywhere I look, people are seeing leads and and success and the rebound is kind of happening.

John Francis: [00:07:38] So you should be seeing that. If you’re not seeing that, you should understand why and what what’s missing or what what needs to change. I’m seeing a lot of momentum out there right now. And one of my clients just this morning, we were talking and they’re having a record year. And this is a brand that was was affected negatively by a covid. But it’s come back and it’s come back well. And they did some things while they were down with covid. They retooled their development process and the franchise sales and everything around it. And they’re seeing record sales. It’s working. So they were they did the right things at the right time for the right reasons. And now it’s it’s starting to pay off. So so I guess the answer is with covid, it’s going to force some change, try to figure out where that change really is important and what can you do about it to turn it into an advantage for your brand and for your franchisees. If if you have them, you’ve got to take care of them first. I think that’s critical

Lee Kantor: [00:08:38] Now for the franchise owners that are going to market. Are you since you’ve been doing this for a minute, have you seen an evolution on how franchise owners, especially emerging franchise stores, attract franchisees? Has the methods of attracting franchisees changed dramatically throughout the years you’ve been doing this like or the same kind of things working like they were 10

John Francis: [00:09:04] Years ago changed? Well, yeah, I think society has changed. And so, of course, maybe it’s maybe I’m looking at it from too far of a term, too wide of a term. But I think people get in the business these days for a different reason and maybe with different expectations. And maybe it’s just the nature of the pace of things have certainly sped up, but. You know, a lot of people looking at franchises, part of part of the fun of of awarding or selling franchises is getting into their heads as to why. Why do you want to do this now? Why now? Why this brand? Why do you want to be a franchisee and having those kind of conversations? I’m hearing different answers in the old days, I guess, or in the past it was, well, I’m sick of my job or, you know, I inherited some money and I want to do something different or whatever their circumstances where now I see it as people have more just raw ambition. They want to do it because they think they’re they’re capable of doing it. They’re not motivated externally. Something didn’t happen to them. Now it’s something internal where they want to do it for themselves. So I think there’s maybe kind of a shift in motivation. And I think that’s real. I think it’s good, frankly, because those people, if they’re self starters and self-motivated, you know, they’re probably going to hopefully going to stick with it and make the commitment to be successful and do whatever it takes, which is better than something that changed that happened to you. And of course, life goes on. Things are going to change again, and maybe that changes your motivation. So I think if that answers the question, the motivation of the franchisee buyers has shifted a little bit. I think you still see a lot of things out there. But in a general sense, I see more people coming at it for their own reasons, internally motivated, which I think is probably a good thing.

Lee Kantor: [00:10:55] Now, are you seeing more? I call them kind of professional franchisees, ones who are like kind of building a portfolio of complementary brands and they really are kind of building empires rather than that person that may be retired and then says, OK, now I’m going to open this thing and then maybe it’ll grow to a couple more. Are you seeing kind of a shift in that type of person being attracted to franchising?

John Francis: [00:11:20] Yeah, I see it. I see a lot of stuff out there. I see a lot of people that that think it’s easier than it is. You know, they it looks easy on paper and it sounds easy when someone’s telling their story. I mean, I tell my story and it probably sounds easy, but it’s never easy. And so what I think what happens is I see a trend. I guess like everyone, the multiunit multibrand franchisees, they’re all over the place, especially in food categories. You know, that’s kind of common. But I see it in other industries and service and retail and even B2B models. But I think it’s it’s just never as easy as it looks. And I think the reality is a lot of people come at it. Maybe they read a book or they see a magazine or they hear somebody on some interview like this, I suppose, and they think, well, I’m going to go do that. And how hard can it be? I’ve already done this, so I should be able to do that. And I’m here to tell you it’s just not that easy. And I’m more comfortable, I guess, seeing people expand and go deeper into a particular brand. If you’re already got a unit and you like the company and you’re doing well with that business, I would say go deeper and add more units in the same brand. And even if it’s different geography, you’re more likely to have success than you are to switch and go to a separate brand, a second different concept, unless there’s some other strategic reason that I’m seeing more meaningful success when people stick with a particular brand and go deep into that brand.

John Francis: [00:12:53] I’d rather see you have 10 or 15 units in one brand. Even if they’re across three or four states, then you have three or four brands and have two or three or four of each one. You’re going to drive yourself nuts. I mean, I understand diversification and geographic and, you know, minimizing risk and all the rest and leveraging your infrastructure and all the same. But I see more success with people who stick with a particular brand than than going into the multibrand route. I mean, it just it’s a it’s another level of complexity when you add a different a different brand. So I see more of that. And I guess my my my frustration is that I think people come at underestimating the commitment, the time and the energy and the likelihood of success. I think they think it’s a lot easier, a lot faster and more likely they’re going to make it. And when they get to reality, it costs more, it takes longer and it’s much more difficult. And and they probably wish they wouldn’t have done that in the end. So I think it’s unusual when someone is successful at that level. And I wish most people would understand that it’s probably a risk. You shouldn’t really you know, you should very carefully consider those things before you do them.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:07] Now, can you share a story? You don’t have to name the brand name, but a franchise that you worked with that maybe were struggling, maybe explain where they were struggling and how you were able to come in and help take them to a new level.

John Francis: [00:14:21] Yeah, I can think of several, I guess let me think of one that’s maybe universal. Here’s a story about a brand that was this might be good for an emerging brand. I think, you know, there’s an awful lot of emerging brands out there, and I guess there always are. And that’s a good thing. I think there’s always room for another good one. Right. This brand was doing their thing and they were doing pretty well. The system was up and running and I think they were over one hundred units at the time. But it was a small unit level economics. So these are smaller businesses, but nice business, good people, good brand. They’re rolling along and we got inside of their stuff. And I came on as an advisor and started looking through things and ask them questions. And one of the first things we recognized is they did not have an ad fund, a brand advertising firm. And we’re going through their numbers and again, we’re allocating the resources and trying to figure out what’s where’s the where’s the bottleneck here? And I said, well, you’ve got an ad, where’s your ad fund? And they’re like, well, no, we don’t have one. And it became very clear that that was an opportunity that they just needed to pursue. They couldn’t ignore it anymore. I said, well, if you if you had an ad funded network like this and we kind of did a blueprint of how it might make a difference, and sure enough, it it made a huge difference for that brand. So they it was very difficult. This was not easy. It took a lot of planning, a lot of effort and a lot of, I’ll say politicking because, you know, you’re making a big change. Right? It was in the agreements, but nobody had really thought much about it.

John Francis: [00:15:57] So they very carefully rolled out an ad that fund. And I think it was like one percent or two percent or some kind of dollars. They came up with a formula that that seemed appropriate and reasonable. Anyway, a few years later, it has made a big impact on that brand. So, number one, the franchisees learned they could afford it. It really wasn’t it wasn’t any material impact to them. It created efficiency in their buying, which which everybody enjoyed. And it really streamlined the advertising campaigns and the quality of the materials and the systems that they could accommodate because now they had a budget they could plan for. And really what it did for that franchise is alleviated a lot of their cash flow issues because they were paying for staff and managing that and it just was a disaster. So adding the ad fund early in a brand. So the lesson is, I think if you’re out there and you’ve got maybe 20 or 30 units you’ve got in your agreement, we have the right to activate an ad funded if you have it yet. I would really consider it now. Do it before you wish you had done it. This brand had waited probably two or three years too late, and it was more difficult because they waited that long. They did it and it worked. But I think it would have been a little easier and it would have had a lot more benefit had they done that sort of on time, I would say earlier than than they had done so. So that’s one one good example that I think is applicable to a lot of startup early stage franchise orders.

Lee Kantor: [00:17:30] Now, you mentioned the variety of kind of places in the life cycle of a franchise where you insert yourself or where you can be useful. Is there a favorite place? Do you have a sweet spot? Do you prefer them to be brand new and not have kind of unlearned things? Or do you have prefer them to be kind of have a really kind of got over the hump?

John Francis: [00:17:50] I like it when they’re really in trouble. Frankly, the more complicated and I don’t want to say desperate, but I’ll just say motivated that the owners are. You know, when they really struggled, something went wrong here. We used to feel good about this. We used to have whatever momentum and growth and now we’re struggling. Now we have new competitors. Now we have different issues internally. You know, we’ve outgrown ourselves and we need a different approach. So I like honestly, I like to help brands that really have complicated problems because then it’s worth fixing. I can I can go in there and do my thing and they’ll pay for it because it’s it’s valuable when it I generally don’t engage one on one with early stage brands because they they can’t afford to pay anything. They’re already struggling to make ends meet. And I’m not a development sales guy, so I don’t need any kind of commission structure. I’m not interested in that. You know, I like to do my thing and really help them do their work. So sometimes I’ll work with early stage. I mean, I’ve got a few clients now that are early stage brands that are are trying to figure it out. But they you know, I guess they’ve impressed me enough that they’re willing to listen and do some of the things we we come up with. Right. If they’re not willing to implement new ideas, what’s the point of bringing them new ideas? So so I’ll work with really anybody when they’re ready to make changes. I guess the qualifier for me is, are they good people? They have integrity. They’re they’ve got you know, I I’m not going to bother with people that they don’t have integrity and then can they afford it in a meaningful way and not just the dollars, but can they do what we talk about doing? Because if they’re not going to bother and if I just keep bringing ideas and they keep rejecting them, then that’s no fun for anybody. I don’t need to waste my time or theirs, so. I guess I don’t know if that answers your question, but that’s that’s what I’m thinking about.

Lee Kantor: [00:19:47] Well, if there is a franchise or out there that is struggling and, you know, is frustrated, what is the best way to get a hold of you to have a more substantive conversation with you?

John Francis: [00:19:59] Yeah, thank you. My my website is Johnny franchise dot com. There are a lot of information there. I’ll throw out my phone number. I don’t mind. People call me all the time at six one two eight six eight zero seven four or five. I answer the phone when I’m available and if not, leave me a message. But I’ll talk to anyone for a few minutes and try to point them in the right direction. And I can ask questions to get people thinking really quickly. I’m pretty good at assessing the overall situation. If I think I can help, I’ll try. And if I don’t think I can help, I’ll generally give them two or three good ideas that might be a better fit. So find me on the website. I’m out all the social media and you know, I don’t mind a phone call or text or whatever. Whatever is easy, I guess. Don’t be afraid to reach out. I mean, this is this is I’ve discovered my purpose in life, I think is to help people get their franchise business right. I don’t want to own it. I don’t want to work there. I don’t want a job or I don’t need to buy anything. I don’t need to sell anything. I just like to help people get where they’re going.

Lee Kantor: [00:21:08] All right. Good stuff. Well, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing important work and we appreciate you.

John Francis: [00:21:14] Thank you, Lee. I appreciate the opportunity to share my story and share some ideas. I really do appreciate it. Thank you.

Lee Kantor: [00:21:21] All right. That was John Francis Johnny franchise dotcom. That’s Joe H and then Y franchise dot com. To learn more, this is Lee Kantor. We will see you all next time on Franchise Marketing Radio.

 

Dolly Stearns With AlignUp Coaching

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alignup

DollystearnsAlmost 20 years ago, with a willing but inexperienced heart, Dolly Stearns began her entrepreneurial journey. Many years, ups, downs, and a few scraping bottom experiences later, she can sincerely say, “I’ve been there, I know, and you’re not alone.”

It doesn’t have to be the uphill, agonizing journey of the lonely. Your work and your life can be inspirational, invitational, and successful – at the same time.

As a person with responsibilities, you have goals. You want to reach them faster, and you want to do it with balance.

Whether you’re a leader, entrepreneur, chief child wrangler, or all of the above, she can help.

Like combing the beach for the perfect shell, it’s faster with two, and as a Success Coach, she partners with her clients to figure out the stuck and get out of the muck.

Let her experience accelerate your success. AlignUp your business, relationships, life, and priorities. Schedule your FREE Discovery Call and Coaching Session here.

Connect with Dolly on Facebook, and LinkedIn.

What You’ll Learn In This Episode

  • How can a client bust through the noise in their head to move to success
  • Clear away the Stuck to make room for Success
  • How relevant is the internal dialogue to someone’s success
  • The story isn’t as important as how you want the story to end

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: [00:00:02] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for Coach the Coach Radio brought to you by the Business RadioX ambassador program, the no-cost business development strategy for coaches who want to spend more time serving local business clients and less time selling them. Go to BRXambassador.com to learn more. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:33] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Coach the Coach Radio, and this is going to be a fun one. Today we have with us Dolly Stearns with AlignUp coaching. Welcome, Dolly.

Dolly Stearns: [00:00:43] Thanks so much for having me.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:45] Well, before we get too far into things, tell us about a lineup coaching, how you serve in folks.

Dolly Stearns: [00:00:50] I am a specializing in working with leaders, entrepreneurs, teams, those who are wanting to move from stock to success faster and also hit their goals and do it with balance, which seems to be a hot ticket right now.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:04] So what’s your back story? How’d you get into coaching?

Dolly Stearns: [00:01:07] Oh, my gosh. I have had an almost 20 year career in direct sales and have the the blessing, an opportunity to work with some amazing coaches throughout that time and just got inspired with how they helped to motivate and make things clear for me. And I thought, oh, my goodness, could I do this in a broader way and serve more people by transitioning into becoming a successful leadership coach? And so this has been one of the most rewarding periods of my life working with clients in this way.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:39] So talk about what it’s like to work with you. What is the challenge that this individual was having, like like you mentioned, being stuck? Are they just frustrated? Like, what are some of the symptoms of stuff like what is stuck look like for someone? Yes.

Dolly Stearns: [00:01:54] What does stuck look like? That is a fantastic question. So the theme that I’m hearing right now is that so many people are trying to juggle not just their business, because we know life isn’t just about our business. We have other habits that we’re wearing. So being a parent, being a spouse, having endeavors outside of work, and how do we make all of those things work and come together and serve our bigger vision for our life? And so stuck is looking like, oh my gosh, I feel like I’m putting all of my eggs in this basket and I have nothing left to bring to the table for family and friends and this bigger idea of what I want my life to be like. So how do I balance that and still be successful in the areas that are important to me? So stucks seems to be the big word that I’m hearing right now. And it does look different for everybody.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:43] So now when you were coaching and then when you say, you know what, I’m going to be a coach, that mental shift of, you know, taking on that responsibility. How did you kind of go about coming up with this? I don’t know if it’s a philosophy or if it’s a strategy or some of the tenets of how you’re going to deliver this coaching. Like how did you build the coaching program?

Dolly Stearns: [00:03:12] That is a fantastic question. So I think a lot of it taking from my own experience. So initially started working with a lot of women because that was the field that I was working in and especially coming into the pandemic where people were having to put multiple hats on. Kids are at home, families at home. And so using that as the launching pad to really acknowledge and validate what it was that they had going on with trying to be all things to all people. So as I was stepping into really focusing on full time coaching, I thought, what is the thing that people feel like they’re not getting right now? One of them was I feel like I’m not being able to be successful in any lane. And so really stepping up to be that person to acknowledge what it was that they were struggling with, to let them know that I was hearing them, because that was something I felt as a single mom for so long trying to build a business. It’s like I don’t have any connection. Nobody’s hearing what’s really going on with me. So bringing that into my coaching and making sure that that’s the very first thing that we cover is, oh, my gosh, I hear you. And while my experience may not be exactly like yours, it makes total sense that you’re having this feeling of feeling stuck or you’re having this feeling of feeling frustrated. And so by doing that acknowledgment at the front and making sure that they really know that I am hearing what’s going on with them, it really paves the way for us to do some significant work together to find out what’s important to them and help move them closer to that goal.

Lee Kantor: [00:04:44] Do you find that a lot of times your clients are kind of self sabotaging themselves or they’re not aiming high enough? They’re kind of settling like, what are you? Is there a threat of kind of common challenges that you see when you’re working with folks?

Dolly Stearns: [00:04:58] So self sabotage? That is definitely something that I’m hearing. And it’s it’s not even so much that they’re making conscious decisions to do that. It’s really unconscious. There’s a dialog that’s often happening in their head. That’s it’s almost like poking the balloon and watching the air come out of these goals that they have because the voice can be so loud in their head. I refer to it kind of like having Darth Vader in one side of your head telling, you know, this is too big. Nope. You shouldn’t go after that. Here, let me show you all the evidence of why this isn’t going to work or you’re not good enough. And so I focus on supporting them to tune in more to the sage, that Yoda part of their head. And I know that sounds kind of crazy, but it really does make such a difference. And to be able to almost put imagery and be able to label it helps them to start differentiating it, especially demurrage differentiating it from who they are. So now it’s oh my gosh, this saboteur in my head is saying X, Y, Z versus this is who I am.

Lee Kantor: [00:06:01] And then once that kind of aha moment happens, then things become a lot clearer. Right. Then the next step becomes a lot more obvious.

Dolly Stearns: [00:06:10] Yes. And we we often when I’m working with a client, check in with their older, wiser selves. So when we are in those moments of stockroom, my gosh, I don’t know the choice to make or it seems like I have so many options, then it becomes OK. So if you were to sit down with your older, wiser self at the end of your life and have a conversation about what’s important about this moment right now, what would your elder wiser self say? And most often we know and sometimes it’s that we know, but we’re afraid to act. And so we again go back to that elder wise yourself. What are they going to say is important about what you need to do right now? And I operate from the position that my client really knows the best answer for themselves most of the time. It’s not that they don’t know what to do. There’s something in the middle. And so by really touching base that they’re elder wise herself, it helps them to get unstuck and start moving forward. There’s a lot of clarity that happens around that

Lee Kantor: [00:07:09] Now when a person is kind of looking at it from the perspective of how they want the story to end. And I’m guessing that’s what that elder wiser self is telling them. Right. Like, if you want to achieve this, this is how the story can end if you want to to end this way. Then they know kind of then they can see what the end looks like and then they can see what the step before the end looks like, and then it kind of draws a path for them where they are today to start kind of working towards that end goal.

Dolly Stearns: [00:07:41] Absolutely. And it’s it’s kind of like the carrot versus the stick. So if you can identify how you want the story to end, it does you set it, it pulls them forward, which is a whole different energy than the stick, which is, you know, the pushing and trying to get away from the thing that’s going to be painful. And so, you know, the stick will work. It’ll get you to where you want to go. But the peace and the happiness in the balance that somebody is looking for along the way may not happen. Whereas if we’re operating from this being pulled to this amazing thing, hold to how we want the story to end. You can have both the goal and the achievement and the mastery and the peace and the joy and the balance along the way. And who doesn’t want that as their journey?

Lee Kantor: [00:08:27] I think everybody wants that. But there sometimes for folks there’s a fear or something they’re afraid of that might be causing kind of this paralysis where they’re afraid to take that next move. And that next move might be a scary next move, then. It could be difficult, but it could be something that they can it’ll kind of reveal that maybe that isn’t really what they want or that they feel deep down that they’re not good enough to to take that next step. Like fear kind of rears its head in a lot of different ways for a lot of different people. And it prevents them from taking the action. They they say they want to. At least

Dolly Stearns: [00:09:05] That’s true. Absolutely. And so the question becomes, you know, if you don’t move forward with this. Right. So we want to look at all the pieces. So if you don’t move forward, what’s the cost like really? What’s the cost to you? And are you OK with that? Because sometimes we’re like, all right, well, maybe it wasn’t as important. And then the other side of the coin is what are going to be the benefits? And sometimes it’s as simple as the ones they’ve identified. The cost is higher than I want to pay. I can see the benefits are going to be amazing. Then the question can become, what do you need to believe in order to move just just a moment forward, just the next best step. What do you need to believe? And and so sometimes we’re taking little incremental steps. It’s not always about the big leaps. It’s about those incremental steps. And how can you how can you be confident and knowing that this next step is going to take you to the next thing and the next thing and also be OK with if you need to take the side road? Because sometimes that happens, like how many of us have set a goal for ourselves? And then we’re like about halfway there. We’re like, I don’t know if this is exactly the way I want it to look. And so what do we need to be OK with to take a little bit of a detour? I know I’ve experienced that in my life and with so many of my clients, they’ve experienced that as well. So what do we need to believe and and what do we need to know to be OK with with making the side step?

Lee Kantor: [00:10:31] Yeah, one of my favorite books is called The Obstacle is the Way. And a lot of people try to spend their life avoiding obstacles. But if you just realize that obstacles are just part of your journey and that going around them are over or under them or through them is just part of the journey and not kind of use them as an excuse or as an insurmountable hurdle, you’ll find that the journey you did, like you said, just take that next step. What are you going to do in one second from now? Just incrementally, just improve a little bit and then, you know, amazing things can happen.

Dolly Stearns: [00:11:06] Yes, yes, and another word that comes up a lot between stuff is stress, right? So I’m feeling stressed about this decision or stress about this thing that’s happened. And the thing is, and this is such a bigger concept, even I have to sit with it for a minute, is that stress is created either by thinking of things that are coming, the potential things that are coming or things that have happened. It’s really not about being in the moment. So if we can just recognize that really, yes, we can pre plan for things that are coming, but we’re really just in this moment. So how do we want to experience this moment and those obstacles that could happen? Absolutely they could. But if we’re going to make up stories, why don’t we make up some good ones, too, as opposed to the oh, my gosh, this obstacle is going to be so big I can’t surmount it. Yes, that could be true. And what’s the and what are some other possibilities now?

Lee Kantor: [00:12:02] Do you find that? I don’t know if this is just a human nature thing, but when people imagine a future, a lot of times they go negative and they think about all the negative ramifications of it and they don’t kind of play out all the positive outcomes. Is that something that you see in folks who work with.

Dolly Stearns: [00:12:23] Yes, I. I think you’ve hit it on the head with that is that human nature thing. And I think that goes back to caveman days where, oh my gosh, if I wasn’t planning on this worst case scenario, I would get eaten by the lion kind of a thing that Bush wrestling over there. It’s got to be something bad on the other side of it. And I don’t think that we’ve necessarily developed over time sometimes to recognize that that rustling of the bushes. Yes, it could be the lion. It could also be a lot of other things. And so I think it’s a protection mechanism and that can make life feel hard. It can make our life experience hard, not just for ourselves, but the people who are closest to us. And it feels like a struggle. And so I think one of the things that I love doing is exploring all the possibilities, not even all of the possibilities, because we don’t know what all the possibilities are. But inviting somebody to go, OK, yes, this could be it. And what else could it be and what else could it be? And when I have a client who gets stuck, it’s one of my favorite things to do is to say, I want you to think of the most ridiculous thing that this could mean, because that really helps to get us unstuck. And then we lighten the mood and we’re laughing and exploring all of the possibilities and not evaluating it. Is that really possible? But just what could it be? And it really creating this large list of possibilities and then choosing the one or two that allows us to move forward as opposed to. Well, it’s got to be the worst case scenario. It could and it could be something else

Lee Kantor: [00:14:04] Now in your practice. How important is kind of building this community of entrepreneurs and leaders, is that part of what you offer the people that you work with it? This is kind of a safe place for folks that are like minded to get together and really help each other get to the to get to a new level.

Dolly Stearns: [00:14:26] Yes, actually. So I do a lot of one on one work and I also do a lot of group work. And I love the group work because we have so much more in common than not. And so it does provide that safe space of knowing that, oh my gosh, somebody else might be experiencing this. And then everybody gets to bring their collective wisdom to the table in a safe environment where things are held sacred and they can be just 10 percent more vulnerable and that 10 percent more vulnerable is how relationships and trust is built. And so I love the collaboration because I learned in the process as well, and I am the consummate student, but it just it creates a connection and a thread where I think we’re not feeling so isolated. And as entrepreneurs and leaders, often it can feel isolating, like we’re on this path by ourselves instead of bringing people together in a group where they’re recognizing, oh my gosh, somebody else is walking the same road as I am or somebody who’s done through this thing and they’re on the other side. And what’s the wisdom that I can take from what they have going on? So I think there’s a time and place for both one on one and for group collaboration, and it’s exciting for both of those pieces.

Lee Kantor: [00:15:41] Now, if somebody wants to learn more and have a more substantive conversation with you or somebody on your team, what is the website

Dolly Stearns: [00:15:50] They can go to w w w a line up Alija, end up now dot com. And if they put forward slash free, they can set up a 90 minute discovery and coaching call with me. I’d love to collaborate.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:06] Wow. That’s very generous. 90 minutes to really kind of dig in there and see if there’s some help you can give somebody or to just see if it’s a right fit. That’s very generous.

Dolly Stearns: [00:16:17] Thank you.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:19] Well, thank you so much for sharing your story today

Dolly Stearns: [00:16:22] And appreciate the time with you. My pleasure.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:26] And one more time, it’s a line up now. Dot com is a website, allegan up, A.W. dot com. And if you do slash for free, you can get on Dollis calendar. Thank you again for sharing your story. You’re doing important work and we appreciate you.

Dolly Stearns: [00:16:43] Thanks, Lee.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:44] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you next time on Coach the Coach Radio.

 

Thomas Strehle With Focal Point Coaching and Training

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FocalPointlogoFeb2017-7735557

ThomasstrehleThomas Strehle is a seasoned and experienced leader, with demonstrated successful impact at every level. He has served in a myriad of leadership roles during a distinguished career in both corporate and military sectors with demonstrated success in building world class teams and helping to strengthen individual leadership capabilities.

In the corporate sector, Tom has held executive leadership assignments in both Business and Human Resources to include Head of College Relations and Head of Global Staffing at Raychem Corp; HR Director and Director of Facilities and Engineering at Genentech (Fortune’s 2006 #1 Company); Vice President of HR at Charles Schwab and Company; Head of HR for Williams-Sonoma stores; Vice President of HR at Campbell Soup Company; and SVP/Head of HR for Commercial at US Trust (a premier wealth management company) and VP of HR at Beam Suntory.

During Tom’s 10 year tenure at Beam Suntory, he held every senior HR leadership role supporting all commercial and support functions, to include Head of HR for Beam Suntory International out of Madrid, Spain. Tom also served as CHRO/SVP HR at Moen/Global Plumbing Group/Fortune Brands and has led Global/Internal Communications functions and Diversity and Inclusion initiatives in all of his senior roles.

A graduate of West Point, Tom served on military active duty for 12 years and in the reserves for an additional 12 years. He served in such premier assignments as Aide-de-Camp to the Commander of the elite U.S. Army Berlin Brigade; Commander and Senior Staff officer in the 82nd Airborne Division; and as a leadership instructor at the United States Military and United States Air Force Academies.

As a reservist, he acted as the West Coast liaison officer overseeing West Point admissions for over 10 years working closely with candidates, the Academies, and the Congressional and Senatorial offices across California. He is also qualified as a US Army Ranger and a Master Paratrooper.

Tom served as a leadership instructor at West Point and the United States Air Force Academy for over 15 years and brings a unique combination of cutting-edge leadership philosophy and corporate experience to the table.

Tom is currently a High-Performance Business and Executive Coach at Focal Point.

Tom holds a BS degree from West Point; an MA in Public Relations from the University of Florida; and an MBA from Webster University and is a proud member of the National Cherokee Indian Historical Society and The LGBTQ community.

Tom has served on the Advisory Board for Instant Autographs.

Connect with Tom on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

What You’ll Learn In This Episode

  • How does someone determine if they would benefit from a coach, and what kind of benefit can they expect coaching to produce

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: [00:00:02] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for Coach the Coach Radio brought to you by the Business RadioX ambassador program, the no-cost business development strategy for coaches who want to spend more time serving local business clients and less time selling them. Go to BRXambassador.com to learn more. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:33] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Coach the Coach Radio, and this is going to be a good one. Today we have on the show Thomas Strehle with focal point coaching and training. Welcome, Thomas

Thomas Strehle: [00:00:44] Lee. How are you? It’s great to be with you today.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:47] Well, I’m excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us a little bit about so-called focal point coaching and training. How you serving folks?

Thomas Strehle: [00:00:55] You know, Focal Points starts with Brian Tracey, who’s our founder, who I would encourage our listeners to Google him. Very interesting guy, world class motivational speaker over 80 books. And what I really like about Focal Point is, you know, our mission is to change the world through business leadership and training. And we have a metaphorical pebble on the pond where we like to impact the world through clients, then their families, you know, the businesses with which they’re operating in the communities. And it kind of permeates from there. So we have a very engaged clientele and a very engaged list of coaches. And I’m really proud to be a franchise owner for focal points. Fantastic.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:40] So now what’s your back story? How did you get involved in a focal point? Like what were you doing prior to Focal Point?

Thomas Strehle: [00:01:48] Well, it’s you know, it’s interesting. I’ve had the fortunate opportunity in my life to serve in the military. So I’m a retired lieutenant colonel. I then served 30 years in global, mostly HRR positions in business with some terrific companies and, you know, with some terrific leaders. And, you know, at the end of that 30 years in the corporate world, I wanted to go off and do the fun part of what I used to do and H.R., which is to influence leaders, have an impact on businesses. And I’ve just been able to, you know, I think capitalize on all of that kind of lifelong experience and working with some really, really outstanding clients.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:31] Now, when you were in H.R., you said you spent quite a few years in H.R. was coaching an executive coaching and leadership coaching with that kind of a thing when you started or did it start to become a thing maybe towards the tail end of your career? Where was coaching kind of seen from the perspective?

Thomas Strehle: [00:02:50] You know, it’s a great question. And I would even say going back to my days as a lieutenant in the military, were you always influencing leaders? And I mean, that’s really what coaching is about. It’s not providing a solution. It’s having, you know, the individual kind of analyze the situation and come up with the solution for themselves. You know, just I’d like to just describe a couple of the people that I’ve had a chance to work with that I have believe I have influenced significantly through my both the military and the corporate career. I mean, I’ve, you know, had a chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who I was on his staff and I believe provided a lot of input to his leadership. The current leader of the of so. Com, which is the Special Operations Command, as somebody that I’ve kind of mentored throughout throughout the evolution of his growth into a four star general back to kind of the corporate sector. You know, I’ve been a senior leader on the staff of the current CEOs of Constellation Brands, Beams, Country and Bank of America. And I’ve also been on the staff of the guy who, again, you can Google and I won’t mention his name, but he’s the current chief of, you know, chairman of the board of Apple. So all of these individuals I described, these kind of cool, high powered individuals is only to say that it was a journey, a different journey with each of them. And, you know, part of it was them influencing me and my leadership style, certainly. But almost in every case, I was in a position to help influence something about how they developed and about the decisions they were making to impact their business. And just very, very fulfilling. I mean, I was I’ve kind of been coaching my whole life, to be honest with you.

Lee Kantor: [00:04:42] So now when you’re working with folks, is it something that you believe that everybody has this kind of leadership within them and it just needs a little coaxing to come out? Or is it something that you believe that people are kind of born leaders and that those are the people that you really got to maximize their talents?

Thomas Strehle: [00:05:04] You know, that’s that’s really a great question. When, as you’re describing this, I’m thinking of, you know, Vince Lombardi, who said leaders are made, they are not boring. And I like to always go back to, you know, a lot of coaching organizations. They’ll kind of take on anybody. One thing I like about Focal Point is just as the clients are very selective about who they pick to work with at focal point. We’re very selective on who we pick to work with as well, and, you know, there’s this kind of adage in the coaching business that you try and focus and identify, you know, during my certification, it’s like, OK, straight to figure out who is your ideal client. And when I look at my list of people I’m either currently coaching or I’ve recently coached, you know, I’ve got everything from a professional sports agent, multiple CEOs, entrepreneurs of very small businesses who just have an idea. And they’re working through this idea to figure out how to bring their business to life. Startup companies. I’ve worked with a bunch of small business owners in the Boca Raton area who are actually just looking at the cycle of their business. Where is their cycle and the evolution? Are they in a growth cycle or are they in a stagnant cycle? And how can I help them kind of get through all that? I also work with individual leaders and teams.

Thomas Strehle: [00:06:34] So I’ve got individuals who are saying, man, you know, I just can’t get my team motivated and I can’t get them to communicate. And then maybe their teams are struggling. And especially in this environment, on the work from home, it’s just there are some incredibly new components to the whole leadership challenge. That’s very interesting. You know, and then again, just again, maybe a couple of examples on the military side. You know, I served the Z to camp for the commander of Berlin and this was back. I’m dating myself a little bit, but during the Cold War, when the wall was still up. So we had lots of challenges around soldiers and motivation and being on an island in the middle of the, you know, the Cold War and also served. You know, this is an interesting one. I think about it. I had a chance to serve as the head of riot control for the second airborne division at a presidential election. And this was a few presidents ago, not a recent one. And I as I watched things unfold on January six, I thought, man, the challenges, the leadership challenges that those guys have on the ground are much different than I faced back, you know, back a while back. So it’s just, you know, many problems remain the same and many, many things change. So it’s just a very dynamic time.

Lee Kantor: [00:07:58] Now, can you talk about the decision that you went through when you were leaving corporate and you were kind of starting this new act in your career? Why did you just kind of say, you know what, Thomas has lived a wonderful life, a very life with a lot of diverse experiences. I’m going to do it. The Thomas method of doing coaching. But you decided instead to buy a franchise, the focal point franchise. What was kind of the thought process there of going it alone rather than kind of joining forces with focal point?

Thomas Strehle: [00:08:34] You know, that’s that’s another great question. Lee and I had had a few iterations through my career where I did did coaching on my own, which was a fantastic experience. But when I looked at focal point, what focal point provides me, first of all, is all of the philosophy that Brian Tracy philosophy and all of the tools and resources that I need to bring the best product to the client. I mean, literally, you could present me with any any issue. And if I’m not an expert or haven’t been exposed to that in my personal career, I can tap either one of our two hundred focal point coaches to help me or look at a library of of resources available on uncertain topics. And, you know, it’s just it’s a terrific foundation to do that. Further to your question on the whole franchise. But, you know, I came down to Florida where I had a second home, and my my idea was to buy a franchise I hadn’t really focused on on being a coach. And I looked at many of the different. I thought, you know what, I want to do something different after this. Thirty years of corporate life. So I looked at everything from fast food to pets.

Thomas Strehle: [00:09:55] I’ve got two beautiful weimaraners, big dog lover. So I thought, wouldn’t that be cool to do something you’d really enjoy? The focal point opportunity just kept passing by my way. And and then I thought about what do you really enjoy doing? And that is influencing people. I like to joke that in my my career I was always the first stop was the complaint department, you know, in about about 10 percent of what I did was being able to do the true coaching, sitting with executives, influencing the business. And I thought. You know what? There’s a reason focal point keeps crossing my path. This is an opportunity to have the power of a structure and an organization behind me, but also to tap my my strengths and my experience and what I’ve done, you know, and I continue to learn from focal point. And that’s that’s the neat thing. So I’m not out there as a coach, just kind of winging it and going straightly. Did this. This might work. He did that. This might work. I’ve got the power of just a tremendous amount of experience behind me and the philosophy and the tools to help me with my clients.

Lee Kantor: [00:11:09] Well, walk me through what it looks like when you’re beginning a relationship with a new client. Like what is the pain that they’re having? Are they frustrated? Have they never had a coach before? Or are they like like what’s usually that point of entry when you start working with them and then walk me walk me through what that kind of maybe initial conversation or first few kind of action points are?

Thomas Strehle: [00:11:33] You know, we have a I probably would spend normally I would have probably four different conversations with the client before we would mutually agree to work together. We spend a lot of time getting to know the client. What other challenges, what are their financial goals? What what is their team like? How does their team operate? How do they communicate? And then we we really look at the client herself for himself, for example, if there a small business owner don’t know what are their long term plans. So do they want to divest of the business eventually? Do they want a growth model? What cycle in the business cycle are they in? And we can go through, like I say, probably starting with a very casual conversation. Then we take it to the next step where we’ll do a phone call to kind of get to know each other more. Then I do what we call Strategic Business Review, where it will be an in-depth, probably a 90 minute conversation with that with that leader or business owner to really get to know them in depth. And we’ll get into very, you know, ask in that second, third and fourth question to kind of peel back the onion on on on what it is about this client that that I feel that I can contribute. That’s going to to be a success. One of the things I know many of our listeners have probably heard of, you know, some of the behavioral assessments and many of you have probably taken, you know, the meeti, the Myers Briggs or the predictive index at focal point.

Thomas Strehle: [00:13:17] We use a talent insights assessment, which is called The Desk. And I love the desk because the business really allows us to get to know the person. So once that once the client is signed on to your question and maybe what are the first steps, I would then ask the client to take this risk assessment, which is about a 30 minute online assessment and the depending on which iteration of it. For example, we’ve got a very, very quality aspect of the deaths that surround emotional intelligence, which is so important, such a great important characteristic of leaders and business owners. You know, the report is about I don’t know, I’ve seen reports that are, you know, a couple of hundred pages, which is just overwhelming. But then I distill that down and try and further get to understand, you know, what are the behavioral drivers and motivators of the leader and what what is their level of emotional intelligence by using a behavioral assessment. This will then help me to get a better understanding of the client, what their needs are. But most importantly, how are they wired as an individual? And again, it’s just a window of insight into how I can help them as a coach to meet their fundamental needs and improve whatever areas they’re looking to improve.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:54] Now, how much self-awareness does it require for someone to really benefit from coaching, because it sounds like if I was working in a company and my boss said, hey, you need a coach, my frame of mind may not be in the right place in order to take advantage of that opportunity. Does it take a level of humbleness, a level of vulnerability to even be open to getting a coach or benefiting from a coach?

Thomas Strehle: [00:15:25] You know, that is an absolutely critical factor. I mean, I get clients all the time, and as an H.R. senior, H.R. leader and CSIRO, we often encouraged and presented opportunities for employees to get coached. It really depends on the individual, some of them are completely resistant. Some are absolutely enamored that you’re investing money and getting them developmental opportunities. I’ll be honest, if I had somebody that called me today and said, you know, you know, Tom, my you know, I just had my review and I’ve been ordered to get coaching to improve, you know, X, Y and Z, I would certainly have an intake conversation with this individual. But it’s very likely that I would not accept this person as a coaching client, because I’ve I really have been in this movie before, both as a role and as a leader and as, you know, an executive coach where the person is just going through the motions and if they’re not committed to coaching. And one of the things, again, I think that’s unique, a focal point. You know, we actually take them through, call it a forum, but we ask them to sign a commitment that they’re going to do the prep, for example, that they’re going to take the assessments, that they’re going to commit to the times, that they have a schedule.

Thomas Strehle: [00:16:59] Because to your to your point, I mean, it’s exactly right on. There are many people in the corporate world, they’re saying, you know, Mary or Jim, you know, we’re requiring you to get a coach. Those are generally not good candidates for coaching. And I’ll be honest from the selfish part of me, because I’m doing this because now I want some sense of satisfaction out of what I’m doing. If somebody is just going through the motions, I mean, I had a recent client that was just going through the motions and I was like, you know what? You’re not getting your money’s worth because because you don’t want to be coached. And I’m fine to sit here on a call and just chat with you and have a have a have a good ole time. But, you know, it’s our sessions are demanding that we require homework and preparation and insight, you know, and we require a degree of humility and and self-awareness in order to have a successful coaching relationship.

Lee Kantor: [00:18:00] Now, if you were giving advice to anybody that maybe was in your shoes focal point and they’re, you know, they’re exiting kind of their corporate life with their enterprise life and they’re entering this new world of coaching, is there any kind of dos and don’ts when you’re making the leap into a coaching practice that you can share?

Thomas Strehle: [00:18:20] Well, I think, you know, I’m coaching is a challenging career and there’s a lot of competitors, first of all, there’s a lot of independent coaches, there are a lot of coaching franchise type of models. And I would say, one, there really has to be a passion around it from your end. And and I think it really you know, it’s really helpful if you’ve had experience coaching before. This is not a profession, you know, as as easy as it may be described sometimes as well. You know, you can just sit down and use your experience to help somebody Coach the Coach through. You know, we were a lot of different hats. And in our certification, we’re always told, you know, don’t be a psych psychologist or psychiatrist or psychologist or, you know, don’t be you’re not a life coach. You’re more of a business coach and a career coach. And you know what? Inevitably, you end up kind of being all of the above, because if you have a strong relationship with the client, you know, you’re going to talk about what they do in their in their off time. You’re going to encourage them to balance their lifestyle. We even have an assessment that I give as part of this intake that I talked about, you know, where we try and understand what are the important motivators outside of the office in terms of their personal relationships and in terms of their physical fitness. And because all of these things really are part of the whole person concept. So, you know, I guess the advice I would give is make sure you’ve really explored it. You understand the not only the satisfaction pieces, but the implications of it. You know, we’re not here to give advice. We’re here to help people develop their own solutions to real issues that are that have implications on their personal life, their family, their business and employees and their communities. So make sure you understand the full plethora of of responsibility that you have before you dove into this as a profession.

Lee Kantor: [00:20:31] Well, Thomas, if there’s anyone out there that wants to learn more about your practice and get on your calendar, what is the website are the best way to reach you?

Thomas Strehle: [00:20:42] Yeah, I’m at you know, my website is Thomas Strelley, that’s to show him as Astarita Ellie Dot focal point poaching dot com or by email is T straley just my first initial Strelley at focal point coaching dot com and I’d be happy to talk to anyone that is exploring. Coaching is an opportunity or someone that has heard something I’ve said and will be interested in exploring whether coaching is right for them.

Lee Kantor: [00:21:16] Good stuff. Well, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing important work and we appreciate you, Leigh.

Thomas Strehle: [00:21:21] It’s fantastic. And I appreciate you guys this program and the emphasis you put on a very important aspect of growing businesses and people.

Lee Kantor: [00:21:31] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you next time on Coach the Coach Radio.

 

Eric Seropyan With This Is My South Bay

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Eric Seropyan is the President of This Is My South Bay, a digital marketing agency located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles.

His agency specializes in helping small to mid-size businesses gain exposure online with a variety of digital marketing strategies. It is an agency that focuses on driving traffic to our clients website utilizing the power of search engines and optimizing websites to be ranked organically. This practice is called Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Book an appointment now to speak with a representative on how to drive potential clients to your website.

Connect with Eric on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

What You’ll Learn In This Episode

  • What is Search Engine Optimization
  • How does SEO help businesses
  • How do you know what keywords to target
  • Which keywords my competitors are ranking for, and how high they are ranked

Janine Monize With Gem Revealed and Leaders Who Prosper

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JaninemonizeJanine Monize is the founder and CVO of Gem Revealed, Self mastery to Soulmate, a boutique Matchmaking organization that focused on your best self-journey. She’s been studying human behavior and self-development for over 2 decades. She is a life strategist and relationship coach. She led an incredible life of triumph and victories overcoming many situations that may have crippled others.

She’s been working in the corporate world, coaching thought leaders, executives, and CEOs throughout the country and now focusing on building healthy long-lasting relationships.

In addition, She is the co-founder of a mastermind group called Leaders Who Prosper, a faith-based gathering a powerful Christian executive woman who desires to use their life, both personally and professionally, to leave an imprint in the world for God’s Kingdom.

Connect with Janine on Facebook, and LinkedIn.

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: [00:00:02] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for Coach the Coach Radio brought to you by the Business RadioX ambassador program, the no cost business development strategy for coaches who want to spend more time serving local business clients and less time selling them. Go to brxambassador.com to learn more. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:33] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Coach the Coach Radio, and this is going to be a fun one today on the show, we have Janine Monize with Gem Revealed. Welcome, Janine.

Janine Monize: [00:00:44] Hello. How are you today?

Lee Kantor: [00:00:46] I am doing great. I appreciate you coming on. But before we get started, can you share a little bit about Gem Revealed? How you serve in folks?

Janine Monize: [00:00:54] Oh, my goodness. I would love to talk about Jim Revealed. It’s definitely a passion. Point for me, so just revealed is it’s your company, it’s it’s about 18 months old and it is what I would describe as a boutique matchmaking company, but more so it is really a relationship coaching and life coaching company to really help people focus on themselves and the growth that’s needed to really fall into a healthy relationship. And I use matchmaking as sort of the carrot and just don’t tell anybody that piece. Let’s not share that. But yes. So matchmaking, boutique matchmaking, really focusing on your personal journey.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:36] Now, what’s your back story had to get into this line of work?

Janine Monize: [00:01:39] Yeah, you know, I think I’ve been in the human development self mastery for almost 20 years, which is certainly significant to showing my age there. But it’s been quite a fun journey. And I would tell you that if we really dove back where I probably learned the most in my people skills came from being a hairstylist, the hairstyles for 18 years. And I absolutely loved it. And that is really where my people skills kicked in. And then I went to a Tony Robbins seminar to change the trajectory of my life. I went back to school and I first I went back to college, is more mature in my life to the night the night school thing, and got a degree in biblical counseling. And from there, that wasn’t enough. Kourou in education. And I went and got certified from Coaches Training Institute in relationship coaching, business coaching and life coaching. And I fell into the best corporate job for the Julius Group is just an incredible company. And it was a tiny little company back then. And I met the owner, John Julius. And today, today he is considered probably the authority on creating a world class customer service organizations, really focusing internally and externally clients and team members. How do we really make them breathing fans? How do we create loyal fans? And I absolutely loved that job. I was behind the scenes at Starbucks and Disney and Lexus, Harley-Davidson really figuring out how we create reading sales for these companies. And that is a big gig. It was a great gig. And going through a really hard divorce, I couldn’t travel anymore, and I wound up with AC close doors and that is the number one brand in furniture in the world.

Janine Monize: [00:03:34] So I was able to become our franchise. I was really able to create help create them, become the number one franchise in in all of the eight hundred different locations. So that that was a really great gig as well and really was focusing on how we created unbelievable leaders within the company and that toolbox that I created to really help people become their best selves throughout the company. I transferred it out into the field and it’s the same exact toolbox, really focused on how do we as individuals really look to become the best version of ourselves and thus was revealed was born. And the reason Jim revealed was born is because this is a staggering statistic. One out of every two marriages today are failing and that it creates complete havoc, havoc in our communities, with our children, with our finances in our homes. Every two marriages are failing. Why is that? Why why are we OK with disposable relationships? And so when I left the corporate world and I was building Somerfield, I really thought, well, where do I want my most passionate about? What do I really want to do? How do women want to make a difference in the world? And it really took the same exact toolbelt creating great leaders and really pushed it into this whole matchmaking relationship coaching company. And I have to tell you, it’s making a significant difference out in the world.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:09] So now do you find that the folks you’re working with, they have the skills to have a quality relationship, but they’re doing something to either not make the the wisest choice when it comes to partner? Or is it something that they’re doing to self sabotage? Like what are the kind of the mistakes that you’re seeing being made by folks?

Janine Monize: [00:05:31] Yeah, that’s a vast question. It’s big. It’s a big question. So first, I would just share my target audience is usually between 40 and 60, and that is more than likely. It’s women and a few gentlemen really coming out of divorce. And it’s some point what people are doing is just falling into a relationship. And most of the time it’s physical attraction that’s pulling us in. And then we take this robotic approach and we start getting to know people and there’s intimacy is created and there’s other things that start creating this emotional connection before we’re taking the time to get to know somebody. And that’s the key problem right there. And whatever is in your past, if you haven’t dealt with that yet, you haven’t really learned a really strong ability to communicate or if you’re somewhat of an insecure person, all that baggage is going to come forward into the next relationship. But more importantly, what I would point out, and this is this is really this is the money the money spot right here is most people don’t know themselves well enough and they’re just compromising. They want the relationship. I’ll even maybe use the word desperate to be in a relationship. And they don’t know themselves well enough. So they just, again, get pulled in by some sort of emotional connection or physical connection without really taking the time to find out is the true alignment with this person or are we really are we really going to have a relationship that is filled with fulfillment instead of friction and compromise? And so the first thing that we do in general reveals, of course, we’ll get to the matchmaking piece, but that’s way down the road. The first thing we want to do, and this sounds trite or trendy, we want to find your purpose.

Janine Monize: [00:07:24] But if you really think about it, if you stand firm for a moment, what is your purpose? What is it that light you up? What gets you out of bed in the morning? And if you’re not running after that dream, if you just got the nine to five job and you’re just showing up to get the paycheck, then your relationship becomes what you’re living for and you don’t have anything that’s driving you. And if you don’t have that, that’s going to make your relationship the savior. And that’s too much pressure for anyone. Every person listening you need to be going after. What is that purpose? What are those big ambitions? What is it that’s driving you and exciting you? That should be the main thing, because honestly, that makes you more exciting. It makes you more interesting and it makes you more confident. And it you’re bringing something to the table that gives you that. It just allows you to have more personality and character. Once you have that now, when you meet that person, that potential soulmate, when you come together, you’ve got a mind and have organic conversations to see. Is there a line that was my purpose and where this where this person is headed? Because if not, once again, you’re going to slip into this relationship. Claimant deemed us. This is my partner. She’s my partner. And you wake up one day down the road and it could be a year or two or three years later and go home again. How do I get here instead of taking the time to know yourself and what you want? And that’s only one piece of a larger toolbox. But that’s just one example. Before I go any further, I’d love to know your thoughts on that.

Lee Kantor: [00:08:58] Yeah, well, I think that, you know, you have to get yourself right in order to find the right partner. Absolutely. 100 percent in agreement there. Now, do you find that folks are. Like you said, maybe they’re focused too much on the other person and maybe they get hypnotized by some of the superficial things rather than more, you know, exploring layers deep before they really get involved in the relationship. Is there work that they can be doing on themselves to make themselves? You mentioned, you know, kind of understanding your Y and your purpose in order to get yourself ready to almost be found by that soulmate rather than you out there kind of lifting up every rock, looking for the soul mate, but to create something that’s more like a magnet, that the right person is kind of coming to you.

Janine Monize: [00:09:51] Wow. So, Lee, you you actually nailed it. You said it so beautifully. So that’s why I allow matchmaking to be the part, because most people think matchmaking is the answer. And it’s not because I’m willing to walk with you in that journey, but not before we do the true inner work. Because exactly what you said, once you do the inner work, I’ve seen it and I’ve seen it over and over and over again, you would try something radically different into your life when your confidence is secure, when you’re when you’re communicating from a place of trust and value and self worth, your life becomes totally different. And this might seem like unicorns and rainbows to some people, but you got to go and do the hard work. You got to make sure that you’re doing what is the purpose? Look at your mindset. Look at the limiting beliefs. Hire a qualified coach to really help dig in and create the achievable action plan. Create it. So you’re moving towards that. Now you’re going to find yourself with like minded people. And the next piece that we’re moving towards, like, what can people do outside of really zeroing in on your purpose? You really need to identify your core values, your life principles, these are critical to a healthy relationship. Most people don’t know what off the what are my core values.

Janine Monize: [00:11:17] But intrinsically, there are far girls. They should be the decision makers for our life. So what’s an example of that? So for me, one of my very, very deep and strong core values is my faith. So my faith is a pillar. It’s a cornerstone. It’s a non-negotiable. So for me, if I’m looking at I’m out and I’m focusing on my faith and being the best person to be, that’s so important to me that that I would have to make sure I know when I’m looking for a relationship that’s going to show up first. I’ve got to on and have again a conversation and see is there an alignment there? There’s alignment there. And that’s an easy example. But let me give you one that might not be so easy, but so important to understand and know yourself, maybe knowing those top five non-negotiable core values that you demonstrate every day. And if you fall out of it, it becomes chaos, confusion of friction. So another one for me is an incredibly spontaneous, maybe real big adventure. And that doesn’t mean that I have to find somebody exactly the same. But I would have to know that they would be OK with somebody like myself who goes to Africa and comes back. And I adopted a child without, you know, hey, I’m divorced.

Janine Monize: [00:12:34] But I went to Africa as a child. That’s a big deal. Went to Cancún. I brought back a dog. These are the things that show up in my life intrinsically. So if I met somebody, they would want to know that that that’s something. If they value security and peace, we not we might not be a great fit. There might be a limit to right now, but you got to be able to zero in on these things ahead of time before you open your heart, before you allow intimacy, before you get that great deep connection, make sure the core pillars, your core values. Another one for me is health and wellness. It’s so strong in my life. It’s not just like I like to get up and go for a walk in the morning, but it’s a deep, deep value maker. It’s it’s my decisions for my life, therefore, that would have to show up in somebody else’s life. So knowing your core values and knowing if there would be alignment with your core values with a potential soulmate, you want to do that organic conversation up front. Not an interview, not an interrogation, but you maintain a friendship until, you know, there’s true alignment that you could see a deeper, bigger and more mature commitment when there’s true alignment and beautiful communication.

Lee Kantor: [00:13:53] Now, it makes sense to me that you would have at least got some of the foundation of this kind of philosophy that you bring to the table through your business work, because I envy you a lot of business folks that are coaches’ around business. And it sounds like that’s the same kind of strategy when they’re looking for their ideal customer, ideal client that you want to have a match, you want to you’re doing more curating than you are of choosing and you’re making sure that you’re kind of matched with the right client so that you can serve them to the best of your ability. So I think there’s definitely a thread that goes between the business world and your world when it comes to matchmaking, because to me, that’s sales 101 is what you’re describing. You might be describing a poor person’s individual, you know, their life partner, but it works just as well as your client or your even your business partner.

Janine Monize: [00:14:54] Would you believe me? I never change one ounce in my toolbox. My leadership and sales tool toolbox is exactly the same. And that’s what I was able to do for twenty years and having incredible, incredible successful career and exactly what you said, how do we really sales one to one? You want to really make sure you get to know that person in front of you. You’re asking them really deep questions until you realize there’s no energy left and you understand the pain, you understand the pleasure, and then you focus on the pain to really make sure you give them the solution. And it’s really no different. There is no difference in what I’m doing. I’m really helping people understand what is the pleasure being with this person, what’s the pain of being with this person, and have you vetted out where those core values align of your purposes? The most of people, especially in the ages of 40 and 60, they desperately want to be in that relationship and they add in all kinds of stuff up front. They’re blaming people. They’re blaming their spouse. They allow the sexual intimacy to come into the relationship.

Janine Monize: [00:16:01] Way before the relationship was ready, and then it becomes a disposable relationship, and today you could just see it everywhere in our society. Relationships are falling apart. There’s no framework for success. And this is really blowing up our our community. It’s blowing up our children and it’s blowing up the work force. Because if you’re not really secure at home, if you’re if you’re in pain, if you are being verbally abused, if you think your loved one is cheating on you, if you think somebody doesn’t care for you anymore, that’s going to show up in the workforce. So unless you’re really secure looking in the mirror and doing the self work and I need to say it over and over again, it is not pie in the sky. This is deep down. Listen to the books, the podcast, get the right books, get the coach is going to pull you from where you are now to your best self journey. These are really important character traits and action steps that every person needs to go through. Yeah, you’re in a relationship. You need to enhance the one that you have.

Lee Kantor: [00:17:10] And, you know, it’s choose wisely because there are ramifications of not getting this right. This is probably choosing your partner is probably the biggest decision you’re going to make. And if just choose wisely, because the mistake here has ramifications, like you said, the ripple effects down the road for, you know, for the rest of your life.

Janine Monize: [00:17:33] Well, yes. So two quick, very quick stories. And I want to make the story more of a snapshot is I am divorced. And if I had known this tool box back then, I can comfortably and confidently say I wouldn’t be divorced. My marriage just felt it was salvageable. But yet I didn’t have the tools. I did not have the tools. I was married at twenty two and I was divorced by the time I was in my early 40s. And that said, it was sad for my children to settle around. And if I look back, I’m certainly not taking all the blame. That’s not what I’m doing. But all I would say is if I knew what I do today, I would not have been divorced. I went into a marriage thinking that man is supposed to make me happy and that’s not what happened. And therefore, I did not have the tools to really figure it out. And the wanted the grass to be greener and left. I still live an incredibly blessed life. But now to move forward without having the tool box that I have today, I allowed myself to be in a relationship that was really focused on that person. Exactly what I was saying before. I love this person. I care about this person is incredible friend, just a wonderful human being.

Janine Monize: [00:18:53] But our core values are not aligned and I love that relationship. Are you ready for this? Ten years. Ten years. I stayed in that relationship going back and forth, knowing that the core values weren’t aligned line until I finally was able to say, what am I doing? What am I doing this? Why am I not worth having what I wanted? And so it took a lot to walk away from a beautiful human being is not this is not about abuse or anything like that. It’s a beautiful human being. But I was living in compromise. I was not living in fulfillment. And I would ask everybody is listening, are you living in fulfillment or are you living for your your significant other and if you’re living for your significant other, if you’re married, you need to work it out. But if you’re just in a relationship, I encourage everybody, do your due diligence, get to know who you are and live for a purpose. That’s that’s big, big, lofty ambitions. There are coaches out there, qualified coach that could help you live such a beautiful, fulfilling life. And then, like we said earlier, then, you’re a magnet for somebody else who’s going to come along and light your relationship on fire.

Lee Kantor: [00:20:07] Well, if somebody wanted to learn more about your practice and have a conversation with you or somebody on the team, what’s the best way to get a hold of you?

Janine Monize: [00:20:14] Well, several ways. So Jim revealed is on every social media platform as revealed then. Also my name to me, Moniz, find me on all social media platforms, on Facebook, on Instagram, on LinkedIn. And then they can also just email me at the level at GM. That’s G m revealed are a B a movie dot com. Hello. I can reveal dot com. They can email and just say I’d love to know more and we’ll get back to you within twenty four hours for sure.

Lee Kantor: [00:20:49] Well thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing important work and we appreciate you.

Janine Monize: [00:20:54] This was a pleasure and a privilege.

Lee Kantor: [00:20:56] All right. This is Lee Kantor worth your next time on Coach the Coach Radio.

 

Dennis Pierce With Intelligent Leadership Executive Coaching

by

ilec

Headshot-Slider-DanPierceDennis Pierce is a truly blessed individual, with incredible energy, optimism, and a passion to make the world better than He found it. He had the unique experience of growing up in the neighborhood his parents grew up in, with both sets of grandparents within a stone’s throw of his home. From this, he learned early on to tap into the wealth of others’ knowledge and experience to make your journey in life more fulfilling. Wanting to see as much as he could in life, he booked a one-way plane ticket around the world and spent a year solo backpacking the world.

Dennis is an experienced leader with 30 years of managing multi-national enterprise account relationships and the teams that support them. He collaborated with top executives across all vertical markets to design, implement and support transformative workflows serving millions of customers. He is a passionate leader achieving business results through focus on the human side of business. Resilient in the face of change, he has successfully managed through the evolution of a Holding Company to Operating Company through successful merger and re-launch.

Key to his success is the ability to connect on a visionary level with cross-functional stakeholders to advance comprehensive organizational initiatives. He is a thought-leader promoting a culture of inclusivity and a platform of open expression without judgment, yielding results beyond expectations. Teams thrive where they feel valued, seen and heard which in turn fosters high levels of retention beyond the immediate productivity. Collaborating across various departments, teams expand their emotional intelligence while gaining a deeper understanding of and respect for their peers’ roles and responsibilities.

Connect with Dennis on Facebook, and LinkedIn.

What You’ll Learn In This Episode

  • Startups/Integration
  • Dynamic industry and competitive marketplace
  • What is Executive Coaching, and how might it differ from other types of coaching
  • Business is all about RESULTS, Executive Coaching is no different
  • Design Development Plan and ROI with all of my clients

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: [00:00:02] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for Coach the Coach Radio brought to you by the Business RadioX ambassador program, the no cost business development strategy for coaches who want to spend more time serving local business clients and less time selling them. Go to BRXAmbassador.com to learn more. Now here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:33] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Coach the Coach Radio, and this is going to be a fun one. Today we have with us Dennis Pierce and he is a master certified executive coach with Intelligent Leadership Executive Coaching. Welcome, Dennis.

Dennis Pierce: [00:00:47] Thanks, Lee. Thanks for having me.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:49] Well, I’m excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us a little bit about your practice, how you serve in folks.

Dennis Pierce: [00:00:54] Terrific. Well, thank you for the opportunity. This is as an executive coach, my role and my responsibility. My wife is all about building mentors and helping to develop mentors. I’ve got a long, successful career inside of corporate America, 30 years in a variety of different sales and operational leadership roles. And my my goal is to share those tools, share that experience with others, to develop the type of workplace that I would want my children working in.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:25] Now, when you are working in your corporate job, did you have coaching with coaching available to you or your team?

Dennis Pierce: [00:01:33] It was it was also training was available. And I went through a variety of different types of training programs. And I think what was really missing in those, I was very fortunate and very thankful, but there was never that follow up that followed through. That’s where coaching comes into play. It really promotes that accountability, builds that rapport, and then designates a true result that you’re looking to achieve together with your coach.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:57] So now talk to me about how you differentiate some of these kind of terms. You mentioned training, training versus coaching versus maybe even consulting. How do you kind of define each of those?

Dennis Pierce: [00:02:09] Great question. So you look at training, there’s a variety of different training programs available out there, and all of them are very effective, specific to a particular type of niche. And with executive coaching, what we’re building is really working through the individuals that we’re coaching, the organizations that we’re coaching to really get to the core, understand their inner core so that we can take those strengths and build on those strengths and at the same time experience the ripple effect that we see with coaching and the impact that their organization is able to experience from as a result of this transformational leadership journey.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:50] Now, in your coaching practice, are you working primarily with folks in your in the industry you previously working in, or is the kind of coaching you’re doing kind of industry agnostic?

Dennis Pierce: [00:03:01] Now it’s industry agnostic, and I’ve had, as I mentioned earlier in my course of my corporate experience, I worked in a variety of different roles with everything from enterprise and global accounts to small and medium sized business. And throughout that, I was able to learn so much and apply different experience, different techniques to really consult with my customers, as well as leading a wide, diverse teams. And so this is at this point in my career, in this point in my coaching, I’m working with a wide variety of clients across all industries and at the same time working with both individuals as well as the teams they’re responsible for.

Lee Kantor: [00:03:45] Now, is your coaching primarily to folks that have never had a coach before you their first coach, or is it something that they’ve tried other coaches and are just kind of trying to find the right fit?

Dennis Pierce: [00:03:58] Well, a little bit of both, right, so it’s really the folks that I’m working with want to be coached, and so that’s most important. You don’t sell coaching it really there needs to be a connection with a coach. And at the same time, there needs to be that that vulnerability. There needs to be that propensity and that willingness to recognize and realize and truly want to unlock the potential inside each and every one of us. Right. So it’s a matter of once somebody has reached that point in their career, they know that they’re capable of more and they’re looking for someone to work with them throughout that process. Now you have, I’ll say, the perfect client, but really somebody who’s looking to to up their game and move it to the next level.

Lee Kantor: [00:04:43] Now, are you working primarily kind of with their mindset to help them kind of, you know, mentally be in the right space to achieve these goals? Or are you kind of in the weeds of, hey, I need to get my sales numbers up?

Dennis Pierce: [00:04:58] Definitely the former, not the latter. So it begins with an inner core assessment and really understanding their mindset where they’re at and then where they want to go. But ultimately, through the assessment process, the the the inner assessment process, I’m going to look to find and identify their strengths, those dominant traits that they’ll be able to then utilize as they’re managing the group of individuals that they work with, they’re responsible for, at the same time, looking for areas of development as well as maturity, making sure that I’m helping them to develop those areas that they’re not as strong in, but helping them in that process to identify others on their teams that may possess that very skill set so that together they’re greater than the sum of the parts.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:45] Now, when you’re working with a firm, are you kind of getting to work at kind of a macro level where the leadership brings you in? You kind of talk to all the leaders or maybe high potentials, and then you work out a plan that helps each of them kind of be the best them they can be. Or are you primarily working with kind of the senior leader?

Dennis Pierce: [00:06:06] So it is with all organizations, the higher the engagement, the higher the commitment, then the bigger the impact, right. So I’ve worked with people that are contracting on an individual basis, wanting to unlock their potential at the same time have been brought in by leaders who are looking to augment the leaders that they have in place today or possibly even identifying those emerging leaders, a talent pool that they’re looking to develop along the leadership path.

Lee Kantor: [00:06:37] Now, in your career, what was that transition like for you, working in a fairly large organization that probably had a robust team around you and a lot of resources to kind of being, you know, your own boss, entrepreneur, taking on the world? Was that a difficult transition for you?

Dennis Pierce: [00:06:56] Not at all. It’s so I grew up in the office services office equipment space, very competitive, very much a grinder type of mentality. So we were restacking a reorg every 12 to twenty four months. And during the course of that, when I first began, I began with a holding company where I was allowed to. I was really encouraged to unlock that entrepreneurial spirit. Treat your business as your personal business. Right. And I’ve never really lost touch with that. However, what I learned in the process of becoming a much larger operating company and then ultimately working through a merger and an integration of two large companies, two large organizations, I realized that all this change, while people talk about change and change management, I lived it for the course of almost 30 years, the same organization just constantly evolving as a result between my experiences in my own company as well as all those companies that I worked with. I realized that there’s so much out there, there’s so much potential with all these organizations. And there’s a very small group that are selected as the best places to work as a result of their culture every year. I want to nurture more of those. I want to help to create, take my experience and then make those places that pay that much more powerful. And that really comes down to the individual and the organizations and wanting to get to that level. So for me, that that wide variety, while at the time it may have seemed frustrating early on, I realized that really that’s what that’s what the business world is all about. And that’s really what is more demanding than ever right now in this in this point in time.

Lee Kantor: [00:08:39] Now, if you would, walk me through what it looks like if somebody say if you’re onboarding somebody if somebody raises their hand and go, you know what, I’m going to take a swing at this. This sounds just what I need. I’m struggling. I’ve hit a plateau. Maybe I’m frustrated a little bit. I’m going to call Dennis and his team. I want to kind of work through this. What is those first conversations look like when you’re, first of all, maybe seeing if it were the right fit to work together and how to get me going and what those initial kind of coaching sessions look like.

Dennis Pierce: [00:09:15] Absolutely. So every one of these engagements has begun with one or two meetings where we’ve tried to establish is there a connection? First and foremost, once you’ve unlocked or you’ve determined that you do want to pursue professional support, at that point, you need to find a coach that you can trust, a coach that you feel there’s a connection with much the same as the team that you’re responsible for managing. Right. So that journey begins with that connection. Once we’ve established that connection is there, then we will the focus becomes one hundred percent on my client and what they’re looking to achieve. As I mentioned before, we’ll go through an assessment process and really looking to unlock their why. What is it that they’re looking to accomplish, not simply from a business standpoint, but ultimately what motivates them, what are their drivers? And then building that into taking that purpose statement, that core purpose statement and then really working together. And any individual development plan which will set the milestones, set kind of a course work and set the grounds that we’re going to develop over the next six to nine to 12 months and really its course correcting where necessary, but at the same time celebrating those successes as we hit each one of those milestones.

Lee Kantor: [00:10:35] So you set up milestones that said this is very kind of results oriented work. This isn’t just like, oh, it’s it’s always nice to talk to Dennis. You know, it’s not like kind of a feel good. I think I’m making progress. You’re really trying to measure some some success?

Dennis Pierce: [00:10:54] Well, I hope that they feel good throughout the course of the journey, but it will be tough. There will be points. Every high points, there’ll be low points. But absolutely. This is this is you know, I respect life coaches and wellness coaches, all of that. There are there’s value to every single one of these particular professionals. But as an executive coach, I understand that there needs to be a return on investment. There needs to be a definable result at the end of our journey together. And so for me and its being from the business world and being all about achieving, quote, achieving results, I’m looking at building something that at be and they’re going to feel great about, but at the same time have some quantifiable victories, if you will.

Lee Kantor: [00:11:41] Now you mentioned in your previous life every 12 to 24 months, there was some sort of a reorg or kind of maybe a pivot in the plan. What is a reasonable amount of time to tell if you’re executive coaching is working or not?

Dennis Pierce: [00:11:56] Well, you should begin seeing that over the first 60 to 90 days. My goal is that in working through that inner core assessment, my my clients and I have established that connection to define what the status quo and where they are and at the same time, what they need to achieve in order to get greater fulfillment, greater satisfaction from the workings of their team and the mission that they’re working on together. Right. So I expect that as we begin our series of bi weekly or monthly sessions that they’re experiencing incremental improvement, incremental satisfaction right from the get go.

Lee Kantor: [00:12:40] And can you share a story? Don’t name names, but maybe set up what kind of challenge that the person you were coaching was going through and then how you were able to help them get to a new level.

Dennis Pierce: [00:12:53] Absolutely. So I have one particular client where I’m working with their senior leadership team and within that team, you have a terrific visionary at the top of the organization who’s created this this institution from scratch and achieved all of her goals in getting to this particular point, has a tremendous following, has grown their organization, I think even beyond her expectations and has in the course of this, has found tremendous leadership. Talent is trying to figure out what do I do with this talent? Where do we go? So her idea is very scalable in terms of going out and replicating this type of of an organization and this type of an institution throughout the country, throughout the world. But first, she needs to feel comfortable with succession planning, understanding that the senior leadership team has the capabilities, has the instruction and has the direction to really continue building on the foundation that they’ve all constructed together. And so that’s that’s probably the most satisfying that I’ve been working on recently, simply because I’m watching these folks grow. This is really a first leadership role for each of these three individuals. But at the same time, watching this, this powerful director, executive director, now move her game to the next level. So for me, that’s been I’m experiencing this ripple effect and it’s in the educational sector. So I’m also knowing that the impact and the ripple effect will be felt throughout the the students that they work with and their impact on the world as they go on.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:38] Now, having kind of now been on both sides of this table in terms of being in kind of a corporate environment now entrepreneurial environment and looking in and serving corporate environments, are you seeing coaching and executive coaching specifically at one time maybe was a nice to have or only for a select group of people, but it’s now being kind of almost built into people’s benefits packages because it’s so valuable and the results are so. Obvious, I think that for people who have gone through it, it really does make a dramatic difference in a lot of people’s lives. Are you seeing organizations kind of lean into this and embrace this as just part of this is part of what you get when you work at this firm?

Dennis Pierce: [00:15:22] I am most certainly and for those organizations that have maybe thought about it but haven’t taken steps, they’re behind in the process, you really now more than ever, I think it’s easy to point back to the pandemic and talk about transformation. Talk about pivoting. Right. But for literally my entire career, I’ve been talking about transformational transformation, digital transformation and so on and so forth. But really now, more than ever, I think you have more experienced executives retiring early. You have this tremendous amount of talent coming up through the ranks. And at the same time, you have probably the lowest loyalty and the lowest retention in my career as far as retaining, attracting and retaining quality employees. Right. And I think there are several factors to this, but I believe that the up and coming workforce and the generations to come are looking for more from their from their employer. They’re looking for more from the organization where they’re investing up to a third or more their of their lives. So it’s critical that we’re making we’re nurturing the type of culture and the type of setting that people want to be a part of, that they want to contribute. They can rally around, grab on to that mission and really own it. And it begins with the Y. And so I think that it’s been maybe a little taboo in the past. Don’t bring personal into the workspace, but it’s inevitable and more so than ever over the last 18 months. Right. You say you’ve got a separate business and personal, but people are working from home. So I think people are looking for that connectedness and whatever organization they’re working for. And it’s incumbent on us as leaders to really build that type of a platform where they feel safe, where they feel that they’re heard, they feel that they’re seen and they feel that they’re valued. And that begins with coaching. That culture begins with leadership. And that’s why we’re seeing more and more demand around executive coaching.

Lee Kantor: [00:17:28] Well, Dennis, if there is and business leader out there that is looking for some transformational leadership help and they want to get a hold of you or somebody on your team, what’s the website?

Dennis Pierce: [00:17:40] Thank you, the my website is Dennis Pierce, that intelligent leadership, X.com, again, that’s Dennis Pearce, that intelligent leadership, X.com. And if there’s anything that they heard today that may have struck a nerve may have resonated. I encourage you, you can schedule time with me through my website, but I’m happy. I’m very excited to to have a conversation, see if there may be a fit and see if there may be something there for you and for your organization.

Lee Kantor: [00:18:11] Good stuff. Dennis, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing important work and we appreciate you.

Dennis Pierce: [00:18:17] Thank you, Lee. I feel the same way about you and Stan.

Lee Kantor: [00:18:20] All right, this is Lee Kantor Wilson next time on Coach the Coach Radio.

 

Dirk van der Vaart With Intelligent Leadership Executive Coaching

by

ilec

DirkvanderVaartDirk van der Vaart has 30 years of experience in the defense and security industry and has served in executive, operations and business development roles throughout his career, including overseas projects in more than 22 countries.

Dirk most recently served as President of a US subsidiary of global defense and aerospace conglomerate, Ultra Group. Prior to Ultra, Dirk held the position of Chief Operating Officer (COO) at an advanced technology company dedicated to the development of intelligent optical inspection systems. He previously served as President of GardaWorld Government Services.

Earlier in his career, he served in senior business development and strategy roles at Global Group, Raytheon, American Systems and ManTech. Dirk’s start-up experience includes a role as vice president and general manager for an Israeli tactical radar innovator. He also formed a company in Iraq, spending nearly two years in Baghdad at the height of the conflict there. Before entering the defense industry, Dirk served 11 years as a special operations officer in the Intelligence Community and was also a Port Security officer in the Coast Guard Reserve.

He is fluent in Italian, Dutch, French, German, and Spanish; and is currently studying Hebrew and Arabic. Dirk holds a BA degree in journalism and political science from Messiah College and an MBA in international business from The George Washington University.

When not riding horses, he shoots in the Precision Rifle Series and competes in the Kayak Bass Fishing regional circuit.

Connect with Dirk on LinkedIn.

What You’ll Learn In This Episode

  • When a position opens up, almost always someone from outside is hired to fill the position
  • For most people, they need to leave to take the next step in their career

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix.

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: [00:00:02] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for Coach the Coach Radio brought to you by the Business RadioX ambassador program, the no cost business development strategy for coaches who want to spend more time serving local business clients and less time selling them. Go to BRXAmbassador.com to learn more. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:33] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Coach the Coach Radio, and this is going to be a good one. Today we have on the show Dirk Vandervoort with Intelligent Leadership Executive Coaching. Welcome, Dirk.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:00:45] Thank you, Lee. It’s good to be here. Glad to be on the show.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:48] Well, I’m excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us a little bit about your practice, how you serve in folks.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:00:54] Sure. I spent about 30 years in the defense and aerospace industry mostly focusing on national security and government contracting. And as I approach the the end of my career, so to speak, I was president of three different companies and had spent quite a few years in the in the executive suite and was looking for a way to sort of give back to the community. And as I looked at my options and the covid pandemic kicked in and we all started working from home, I was introduced to the concept of executive coaching and I found that it really kind of resonated with who I was and what I wanted to do. And in that process of discovery, I learned about intelligent leadership, executive coaching, and the rest, as they say, is history. It really worked out well. It was a marriage made in heaven, so to speak.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:43] Now, when you were deciding how to kind of leap into this second act of your career, what were some of the other choices you were kind of playing around with and exploring?

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:01:58] I had contemplated getting into some kind of retail, so some kind of a franchise, perhaps looking at a number of different options there as well as, you know, the typical what we do here in the Washington, D.C. area, we call Beltway bandits, the typical consulting kind of career where you kind of hang out a shingle and say, I’m a gun for hire.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:21] And so you were exploring that. And then at some point you said, you know what, I would like to serve and help maybe other executives or business leaders that are struggling with an aspect of their business that maybe I was good at while I had my first career.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:02:40] Yeah, you know, it was it was it was an interesting thing. I had reached a point where I was looking back at my career and sort of who I was and what I’d become and what I’d accomplished. And at that same time was exploring these various options and learning more about executive coaching. And at the core of intelligent leadership, executive coaching is the philosophy that in order to be the best executive or the best leader that you can possibly be, it requires a fairly high degree of self-awareness. You’ve really got to understand how you tick and how you then show up as a leader. And as I kind of went through that process and explored it a little bit more, I realized that for most of my career I was really good at delivering results. Companies like me and companies promoted me because I got things done. But as I look back at that, I realized at the same time I wasn’t really good at bringing people with me on that journey and leaving people better off for having known me than they were before. I realized there was a lot of broken people in my in my wake and that that really kind of weighed heavily on my conscience.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:03:49] And I said, you know, I was really good at at at the numbers game, at performance, at outcomes. But somehow I missed out on that that truly critical part of leadership, which is really motivating, energizing, inspiring and building up future leaders. Beneath that, I hadn’t done very well. And I wanted a chance to correct that. I wanted a chance to go back and say, how can I make myself the kind of leader that actually builds new leaders under me and leaves people better off than when they started? And that’s kind of what fuels my my coaching process today and what fuels my passion today is that chance to say, hey, there is a better way in this industry and across multiple industries, particularly in this post pandemic environment, where leading from the heart and leading with empathy and understanding, the whole person plays such a big part of what the new work reality looks like. And so that’s kind of really what drives me as a coach.

Lee Kantor: [00:04:47] Now, when you were in your career, did the firms you work for encourage getting a coach or provide coaching?

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:04:56] No, they did not. And that was one of the big things. That was one of the big sort of aha moments for me when I started when I had made the decision to become a coach and actually pursue certification as a master certified coach during my training period and the things that we learned and the exercises that we went through and sort of the coaching that we did as part of that training really kind of served as that aha moment for me. And I said, boy, why didn’t these companies ever invest in me in that way? And what a better leader I might have been if if I had known that there was a such thing as executive coaching that I could tap into and use. And how much better could I have been at the people game if I had been working with an executive coach?

Lee Kantor: [00:05:40] Now the folks are calling on nowadays. Are they are they kind of getting coaching for the first time like you would have been if you were still in your career? Or is it something that they’re kind of veteran coaches so that they’re just kind of going from one coach to another?

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:05:58] Really, you know, I’m finding for the most part, it’s it’s first time Koichi’s it’s it’s people that for the first time are realizing, hey, there’s there’s a new dimension that I don’t know how to do as a leader. There are new things that I’m confronting today as a leader that I’m not fully prepared to confront. And I and I don’t know how to do that. The other thing that I see quite a bit in my practice is folks that have been in a position or in an industry for a while have have risen up through the ranks and suddenly they’re feeling a little bit stuck. They’re saying there’s got to be something more. How do I where do I go from here? What more can I do? How do I have more impact? How do I grow as a person and as a leader and get unstuck from this position that I seem to be in? So I see those two things most commonly.

Lee Kantor: [00:06:50] So now when you’re having these conversations to kind of educate folks on the benefits of coaching, is it something where they’re like, wow, where has this been all my life? Or was this like they’re hesitant to be vulnerable or hesitant to maybe be this kind of introspective, introspective ness that would give them kind of this self-awareness to, hey, maybe I should look in the mirror a little bit and work on some of my own stuff.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:07:17] Yeah, that’s a great question, Leigh, and and really, I kind of see two very distinct groups emerging in my experience so far, the first group are those folks that kind of have a sense that, hey, I’m pretty good, but I could be better. And there are some things that I realize I need to work on and I just don’t know how to do that myself. And so I would like someone to guide me and walk me through that process. That’s that’s one set of people. The other set of people are those people that say, hey, I’m really, really good at doing this, but I really want to go next level and I really want to be the best that I can possibly be. And they have a mindset, a lot like elite athletes, if you think of any athlete that’s at the top of their game. But LeBron James is of the world, the Tiger Woods of the world, Olympian athletes, all of them have a coach right there at the pinnacle of success. Yet they still work with a coach. And there are there are certain executives that kind of fall into that mindset that say, hey, I know I’m an athlete, I know I’m really good, but I also know that I need to work with a coach to continue to refine and hone my skills. So I kind of see two different aspects of that. They kind of come back to the same thing ultimately. But there’s two different approaches now.

Lee Kantor: [00:08:37] Are you finding that from an organizational standpoint that the organizations are becoming kind of appreciative of coaching to say, you know what, I’m going to assign a coach to all my leaders or my, you know, high potential younger folks that I think could be leaders? Or is it something that every individual has to kind of shell out the money on their own for a coach because it is about them ultimately and their own kind of career?

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:09:08] Yeah, I think the first is what I’m seeing more I’m seeing more and more organizations come to the realization that we need to do something different in terms of our leadership development, in terms of our succession planning, in terms of our employee experience and corporate culture. All of these things tie back to how you recruit, groom, develop and retain top flight leadership. And many, many companies now are coming to the realization that, hey, working with an external coach or developing an internal coaching program really is providing that return on investment. So we’re starting to see that emerge more and more. It used to be that executive coaching was kind of the domain of the problem executive. It would be something that boards reached out to a coach and said, hey, this CEO isn’t quite making it and we either need you to fix them or give us enough evidence to fire them. Right. And that’s probably not the best scenario for executive coaching. I think today the environment is very different. And again, this pandemic that we’ve all lived through for the last year and a half has really changed a lot of perception of what it means to work, what is the workplace and what is a corporate and what is corporate culture really in this hybrid environment that’s beginning to emerge. And in order to successfully navigate that and really grow outstanding leaders to deliver a top flight employee experience and really retain those people that we want to retain and the organization, more and more human resource officers and other boards and leaders are realizing executive coaching plays a big part in making that possible.

Lee Kantor: [00:10:57] Well, I would think that kind of the forward thinking organizations would really lean into executive coaching in terms of not only retention of their leaders that they have now, number one, but also attracting up and comers. If the up and comer knows there’s built in leadership coaching and executive coaching when they’re deciding which company to to partner with. I think that would be definitely persuasive for me if I was taking on a role and I knew that it was going to come with some type of coaching. That’s a bonus that I’m going to benefit not only just to do my job, but that organization. But going forward, no matter where I went.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:11:44] Yeah, absolutely, that’s very much a part of what what I see emerging in the field today, I’ve started partnering with a lot of executive head hunters and boutique search firms to sort of bundle those two things together as a as an organization is recruiting for and attempting to retain new leaders and bring new leaders into the organization to bundle that onboarding experience with a period of executive coaching does a couple of different things. One, it really eases that transition for both the new leader and the company that they’re moving into. But it really also sets everyone up for success. It sets the team up for success. It creates that sort of dynamic that that is likely to to keep that person on board for longer and really deliver the kind of results the organization is looking for. So that’s one way that the industry is changing a little bit, is now looking at executive coaching right from the start, the minute a person comes on board and sometimes bundled in with the onboarding process. So there’s there’s a lot of innovation surrounding this. But, yeah, absolutely. That’s the trend.

Lee Kantor: [00:12:54] Now, are you finding that because there is this race for talent and it’s getting more and more competitive, especially with this work from home element to a lot of jobs now that the candidate is becoming more and more selective? Is it something that having a coaching plan in place can become a competitive advantage? It can be part of the offer. And I know you’re doing this bundling with the executive search team, but I would imagine that a lot of organizations, when they’re recruiting for the C Suite, have to really be creative in terms of the opportunities now, because people it seems like the employee is is more and more curating choices maybe, which is different than historically.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:13:45] Yeah. You’re one hundred percent correct. And that trend was already beginning before the pandemic took place. The pandemic has really accelerated that into into hyper speed, really. And think about it, what we’ve all learned during this period is that work can be done from virtually anywhere that you’re no longer tied to a location. The idea of going into an office and sort of being in the office, what I would term activity as being a central item that’s judged and evaluated as a person, as a as opposed to true performance and outcomes. So the culture and the mindset of employees is rapidly changing. In a lot of recent surveys, you’ll see numbers that suggest somewhere between 40 and 60 percent of employees today would prefer either a fully remote or some form of hybrid employment arrangement where they can work partially from home and partially from the office. Whereas if you look at surveys of top leadership and organizations, they’re still sitting somewhere between 60 and 80 percent, preferring employees come back into the office full time. So right there there’s a big disconnect. And what’s happening is, as you said, in this race for talent, a lot of employees and a lot of potential leaders are sizing up opportunities not just for title and pay, but really thinking about it in terms of what is the organization willing to invest in me and how am I going to grow and how am I going to be developed during this experience that I have with this organization. And so you’re very right to suggest that. And it is a trend not seeing it exactly built into offers yet. However, that conversation is starting to come more and more to the front. And I think we’re going to see a lot more of that in terms of organizations being creative and thinking about how do I really create a top flight employee experience for my C Suite leaders, as well as my emergent leaders. And investing in coaching as opposed to training is really a big return on an investment.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:00] Yeah, I’ve got the pleasure of interviewing lots of leaders. And one of the things that stuck with me a long time ago, somebody said their fear was, what if we coach them and they leave? And then somebody said to that person, well, what if you don’t coach them? And they say, yeah, you know, it’s one of those things where it’s kind of a leap of faith that sure, you’re giving them this coaching and hopefully as a culture that’s showing them that you want to help them. And there’s something in it for them to stick around, because the alternative is you don’t and you hope they. Figure it out, but you’re not getting the best out of them, so I think companies nowadays have to take that leap of faith and really invest in their people, because there was a time when people just, you know, went from job to job to job. And if you have it in a culture that makes it worth staying, you’re going to get better people there longer.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:17:04] Yeah, you’re absolutely right. And a lot of that and perhaps I’ll comment briefly on on what has changed, you know, prior prior to this and sort of the old way of doing things. We talked about training all the time, leadership development, training. And if you were an emergent leader or a newly appointed leader in an organization, chances were of that organization whether they had an in-house, you know, Company X University, so to speak, or whether they sent you externally. But they’d send you to some class how to be a better manager, how to be a better leader, how to think like an owner, you know, those kinds of things. And that was a prepackaged curriculum. So you’d go to this class and you’d receive whatever information they decided they were going to impart on you. And then you were expected to take that back to the organization and figure out how to use it and adopt it. Coaching is very, very different in that coaching starts with the premise saying, let’s explore you as a leader in whatever context you’re leading in in your organization. What is it your organization is paying you to do? What do they expect from you? And now let’s see, what are your inner core drivers? What are the things that compose your worldview? How do you form opinions? How do you interpret events around you? Because how you think determines how you feel and how you feel determines how you behave. And so in order to understand how you’re actually showing up as a leader, you kind of have to unpack all of that, starting with the inside.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:18:39] And so rather than beginning with here’s a curriculum I’m going to push on you coaching turns that around and says, let’s explore together. And my role as a coach is not really to tell you or to prescribe to you what you must do. My role as a coach is to help you down that path of self discovery, prompter prompt and and proctor some of the difficult questions to ask and say, hey, have you thought about this? And why do you think you might be reacting this way or why do you think you feel this way? And how might other people perceive that and go through a journey like that, combined with some scientifically proven diagnostic tools that can help us unpack that a little bit further, but then say now that we understand a little bit about the inner workings of you, the leader. Now let’s see how we can take that and use that to our advantage to shape how you would like to show up as a leader. And we’ll develop an individual plan around that and then we’ll engage the stakeholders, whether those are people that work for you, above you, around you, et cetera. And we’ll measure that performance. So very, very different from training. And again, the outcome, I think, is much different than what you get from training, executive coaching across the board. Most industry surveys tend to show somewhere between seven and thirty times return on investment for executive coaching. So it definitely works when done properly.

Lee Kantor: [00:20:10] Can you share a story? Don’t name names, but of maybe an executive that was facing a challenge that you were able to intervene and help them get to a new level?

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:20:20] Yeah, absolutely. I was working with an individual in the finance industry and this individual was extremely data driven. In fact, the person held the title of chief data analysis officer and so was really kind of a facts and figures, numbers driven person. This person’s inner voice would constantly say, I’m right until you prove me wrong. And so the challenge for this individual was like saying, hey, I’ve arrived at a certain station in my career. I’ve arrived at a certain level, and I see people around me being advanced and going on to higher positions with greater responsibility. Yet even though I’m really good, I don’t seem to get those same chances. And why is that? So we kind of spent some time unpacking. How does this person think and how does that inner voice really influence how they behave and how they show up as a leader? And so if you think about that, that inner voice that was constantly saying, you know, that data driven, data fueled voice that says, hey, I’m right until you prove me wrong, you’ve got to show up with facts and figures for me to change my opinion. How might someone at the other side of the table perceive that that might be perceived as arrogance, sometimes as indifference, maybe even obstinance, inflexibility, all kinds of different ways that it’s perceived that this individual had no idea and had never really thought about it that way. So we worked on some exercises and we worked on some thought, some thought journeys to sort of flip that equation and say, what if you could change that inner voice from saying, I’m right until you. Prove me wrong to when somebody tells you something, may be forming a question saying, well, that’s interesting, tell me how you arrived at that opinion or that conclusion and does that conclusion build on what I’m what I think is right? Does it contradict what I think is right? Or do I maybe need to reevaluate my own conclusion and see if I can incorporate this new data? And so as we started to work on it that way and sort of change the inner voice to saying from sort of that adamant, strident, I’m right until you prove me wrong, too.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:22:39] I’m curious. That’s interesting. Tell me more about that. Why do you think that or how did you come up with that particular conclusion once we got this person thinking that way? Suddenly their perception in the workplace and how people receive them as a leader really flipped one hundred and eighty degrees. Right. And they became very popular. And suddenly some of those opportunities for advancement and greater responsibility came down the path for this individual. So it really, again, comes down to sort of really taking a detailed look at the inner core of the person. What makes you think the way you think? What is your inner voice saying to you in in most interactions? And is it productive or nonproductive? Do you have hidden talents that you don’t even know you have that we can really bring to the forefront? Or maybe you have some things that are derailing you a little bit that you’re not that you’re not even aware of? That’s the role of a coach, is to sort of work through that process and guide the coach on that journey of self discovery and then work to say, OK, now that we’ve learned this, what things can we do to develop the positive aspects so that you continue to grow and show up the way you want to show up as a leader?

Lee Kantor: [00:23:55] Now, you mentioned that your career was spent in defense and security. Is your coaching in that industry as well, or is your coaching kind of industry agnostic?

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:24:06] Well, you know, as as as I build up my practice, obviously the first the first place for me to go is those people that know me well. And over the course of a 30 year career, I’ve developed a pretty big circle of influence or a pretty thick Rolodex, if you will. So I’m tending to work mostly in that. However, the example I just gave you was a person in the finance industry, an industry that I have really no knowledge of and don’t come from. So the the the fundamentals of coaching are applicable to all forms of leadership, whether that’s in government, whether that’s in business, church leadership, civic leadership, even to a certain extent in the family. I don’t brand myself as a life coach. I’m really, really narrowly focused on executives and those people in a leadership position that have to build up their their leadership capabilities. But that said, yes, the the the the tenets of executive coaching are applicable across all industries and all applications.

Lee Kantor: [00:25:13] And if somebody wanted to learn more and have a more substantive conversation with you or somebody on your team, what’s the website?

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:25:20] The website is Dirk van der Vaart, D I R K V A N D E R V A A R T, DirkvanderVaart.com or Google Intelligent Leadership Executive Coaching, and that’ll bring up the ILEC website. And from there you can navigate and find all the coaches that are ILEC certified. We come from a diverse set of industries and a diverse set of backgrounds, and part of the success formula for executive coaching is really finding that coach that you can establish a rapport with and a and a relationship of trust, but also someone that shares perhaps a little bit of a similar background or at least has stood in a leadership role similar to the one that you’re in. So again, Dirk Vandervoort, Dotcom or ILEC, Intelligent Leadership Executive Coaching Dotcom, either one of those will get you ultimately to to to connect with me. And you can see a little bit more about my background and the kinds of things I’ve done and where I’m going as a coach and what I’m all about.

Lee Kantor: [00:26:23] Well, Dirk, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing important work and we appreciate you, Leigh.

Dirk van der Vaart: [00:26:29] It’s been a pleasure to to talk with you and and to your listeners out there. And again, I wish everyone a happy and healthy recovery. And let’s see where this journey takes us.

Lee Kantor: [00:26:40] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you next time on Coach the Coach Radio.

 

Paula Shepherd With The Courage Blueprint

by

PaulaShepherdPaula Shepherd is an ICF certified and credentialed Business Confidence Coach & Brand Voice Strategist, certified Tiny Habits Coach, Certified Program Management Professional, and host of The Confidence Sessions Podcast. She helps visionary entrepreneurs increase their confidence and their business’ bottom line by using the power of the voice to stand out as the go-to expert.

Paula spent 20 years in Corporate America before leaving a six-figure management position to pursue her mission of creating the company she always wanted to work for. She built a 6 figure business in her first 9 months and has helped over 60 people start or reinvigorate their businesses through her signature system, The Courage Blueprint®.

Paula has been featured in the online publication, VoyageAustin Magazine and been a guest on numerous podcasts. She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband and 4 children.

Connect with Paula on Facebook, and LinkedIn.

What You’ll Learn In This Episode

  • Why staying quiet is stunting your growth
  • The importance of genuine human connection in a virtual world
  • Values-Based Leadership and reframing what is important in life, relationships, and business
  • Authentic Business Design – alignment with your strengths vs. a cookie cutter method

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix 

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: [00:00:02] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for Coach the Coach Radio brought to you by the Business RadioX ambassador program, the no cost business development strategy for coaches who want to spend more time serving local business clients and less time selling them. Go to BRXAmbassador.com to learn more. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:33] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Coach the Coach Radio, and this is going to be a fun one today, we have with us Paula Shepherd with The Courage Blueprint. Welcome, Paula.

Paula Shepherd: [00:00:44] Thank you for having me. I’m really excited about being here.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:47] Well, I’m excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us about the courage blueprint, how you serve in folks.

Paula Shepherd: [00:00:53] So the courage blueprint really started as a means of helping people to get out of their own way. After 20 years in corporate, for me it was about building a business that I always wanted to work for, and that meant not serving people on my own, but really having people and their unique talents and zone of genius coming together to create something really beautiful that inspired and helped other people to live out their dreams and their passion.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:26] So what’s your back story, you mentioned corporate, but what roles did you have in corporate?

Paula Shepherd: [00:01:32] So I spent 20 years in corporate America. I did start in non-profits and of course, I loved my job, but I didn’t make a lot of money. So I did what everybody did. Right. I, I chased the the dream of having a bigger income. And in corporate America, I eventually climbed the corporate ladder and was a corporate leader. And so I was managing other people for a Fortune 500 company in a smaller office. And it’s it wasn’t always the best environment. Right. There was a lot of toxicity and a lot of seniority and patriarchy kind of played into. That space, I was the only female manager in that location and I was only one of five females on the program that we were serving. So it was it was really difficult to feel like your voice could be heard and to also feel like there were certain standards that had to be met in order for it to be important enough for you to speak up.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:41] Now, when you were going through that, were you getting coached at that time, like we’re not coaching kind of become a threat in your career?

Paula Shepherd: [00:02:51] Yeah, so this is such a fun story and really glad that you asked, because I the first time I hired a coach, I really, honestly didn’t know what I was doing. I had gone to a networking event and it was filled with entrepreneurs. And I just looked at them with such like loving, inspiring, envious eyes because I was in corporate and I hated my job, but I couldn’t get out of it because I was literally making so much money. And as the breadwinner in my family, I couldn’t get out. I was holding the benefits. I have four kids and I just felt really trapped. So someone introduced me to a career coach. And to be quite frank with you, I thought that the career coach was going to revamp my resume and help me find another job. And what actually happened with something so much more profound during the course of our working together over a few months, she actually said, hey, I don’t normally do this, but I think that you’re a natural coach. Have you ever thought of becoming one? Well, of course, I didn’t even know what that meant. So I did what I do best and started digging into the details.

Paula Shepherd: [00:03:58] And I wound up signing up for a program and thought, of course, I need to have this coaching certification. I want to be the very best coach for my clients. And after that, I really drew a line in the sand about when I was going to be done with my job. And it was for about a year later that I had said, OK, by August 31st of twenty twenty, this was pre pandemic. Of course I’m going to leave my job and and I wound up doing it and all because I hired a coach that I thought was really actually going to do work for me. I started doing the work for myself, got my certification. I am ISEF certified and now credentialled. And in July of the beginning of July of twenty twenty in the middle of the pandemic, I left my job and I actually gave my notice in May of twenty twenty. So it was really honestly kind of an interesting story. I, I put my blinders on and realized that I was going to make this happen no matter what.

Lee Kantor: [00:04:57] Now are your clients, people like you started not have ever having a coach or maybe not really understand what a coach can and can’t do, or are they people who have had coaches that are now, you know, just trying another one?

Paula Shepherd: [00:05:12] When I first started, it was more of me educating people about what being a coach really meant. And I was bringing in some new people. Now I have people either starting businesses, people who have been in business for about a year and have made a little bit of money, but really haven’t made a ton of traction and are ready to give up. And then the third group of people that I work with are people who have worked with other coaches in particular around business and honestly felt like they were wronged or bait and switch and didn’t feel the support or that they were treated as a unique individual. So those are really kind of the three types of people that I serve right now in my business.

Lee Kantor: [00:06:00] Now, when you started, did you start out with this vision of I’m going to be in this business confidence coach, I’m going to be a brand voice strategist? Was that clear to you at the beginning or was that something that’s evolved?

Paula Shepherd: [00:06:13] It has evolved because we all kind of start out and we don’t really realize our strengths because they’re built into us. We have this unconscious expertize and we’re running on autopilot. So for me, it was about people being able to be confident enough to apply sales and marketing to their business. But more than that, it was all about emotional intelligence and helping people learn how to network with other people to build and leverage relationships not in way, but in a really genuine way. Because it came so naturally to me. I didn’t really realize that that’s what I was doing in my business. So as over time, it’s gone from really focused on helping people become more confident to this evolution in a program of really understanding who you are aligning with, that which then develops your confidence and then building your business in a way that feels really, really good to you, and then being able to shout that from the rooftops. I like to call it using your outside voice so that you can learn and grow and develop relationships with people who always have your best interests at heart.

Lee Kantor: [00:07:32] Now, do you find that people kind of forget that? I think that this is a phrase that you use, that we’re humans serving other humans, that that things aren’t as kind of black and white and just very machine like that, that we’re just human beings. Just trying to we’re all just grinding, we’re all just trying to get through the day and do the best we can, and we’re looking for other people like that to have those kind of authentic relationships to so I can learn what you need, you learn what I need, and we can see if it’s a fit and we can help each other where some people are like, well, I, I have this persona I got to get in front of and I got a machine that gets me in front of this and they look at it almost like a machine and not human beings to human beings.

Paula Shepherd: [00:08:18] Yes, and I think that kind of over the course of the last year, when a lot of people have, you know, they lost their jobs, so they were getting into online businesses. A lot of the coaching industry blew up. A lot of people were getting into coaching without even really understanding what that meant. And you had people that really didn’t have the experience coaching other people and cookie cutter ways to essentially do the same thing that they were doing. But what was happening was people were losing themselves in that because it became about making more money and not about their vision, their purpose, their mission and why they were doing it in the first place. So people that wanted an online business so they could then have more freedom to spend time with their family. Actually, we’re now spending less time with their family and feeling much more disconnected from themselves. I do think that there’s a little bit of a shift right now happening happening in the industry. But I also do feel like so many people have been in really unfortunate situations with these programs that have promised things that really were never in alignment with them or sold them into things using thing, you know, psychological manipulation and didn’t really treat them as human, that there’s a lot of concern when people are now when they come to me or when they go to other coaches about whether or not they are going to have success. Right. And so the leaning in on the relationships and helping people really see and serving them in a way that makes them feel. And not in a manipulative way, but makes them feel like the person that they are is incredibly important, it is to me and to the people that I surround myself with as well.

Lee Kantor: [00:10:10] Now, is that something that you have to work with your clients on, really maybe identifying what their superpowers are, trusting those superpowers and building their service or business around those superpowers rather than kind of pushing them away or ignoring them and focusing on other things that they think are more business friendly or more relevant to business?

Paula Shepherd: [00:10:37] Yeah, I think there’s there’s a little bit of of both in there. Right. Because as a coach, it’s not my job to tell someone what to do. It’s my job to ask them pointed questions to help them come to their own conclusion. So I take a holistic point of view and I really do look at the whole person. And if they have an idea, I want them to really look at it and and decide if that’s really what they want to do or if they’re doing it because they’ve consumed something either on social media and an article that has made them question the way they’re going about their business. Maybe they think that it’s not going fast enough. So there’s opportunity there for them to discover more of who they are and to become really the person that they were always meant to be. And and in that is a lot of deconditioning, a lot of deconditioning where they came from. So maybe it’s, you know, things from the past. Maybe it’s, you know, that corporate mentality or that nine to five mentality and helping them to learn how to ask themselves the same questions so that when I’m not around, they’re still moving forward.

Lee Kantor: [00:11:51] So now let’s walk us through what an engagement with you or somebody on your team looks like like what is what is the pain I’m having where Paula and her team are the right solution, number one. And number two, once we have a conversation or decide this is a good fit, what what is some of the things that you ask your clients to do? What some of the homework or some of the kind of the early interactions look like?

Paula Shepherd: [00:12:16] Yeah, OK. So the first thing that that we do and we really identify because when we’re when we’re talking to people, we’re really pre qualifying them. Right. This isn’t about selling them on our service. This is about making sure that they’re right, because we have a very curated community. We’re serving less people in a more meaningful way. And and so what I want to do is find out what’s been stopping them from starting in the first place or what’s been stopping them from showing up as themselves. Most of the people that we work with are really nervous about putting themselves out there, about being the face, about taking up space. And those are the people we want to work with. But they also have to be ready and willing to identify who they are and start to take really uncomfortable steps forward, not jumping in a cesspool full of snakes. But, you know, finding what’s that one thing, if they don’t want to if they don’t want to do video on social media, are they more comfortable being a guest on podcasts? Are they more comfortable sharing their voice in another way? And what is their message? So the people that we’re working with are really not comfortable being in the spotlight, not comfortable taking up space, don’t see themselves as the expert, and it’s about digging out those stories for them. I think the second part of your question remind me what that was, because now I’ve gone off on a tangent here.

Lee Kantor: [00:13:51] Well, once the I’m just trying to get a feel for when someone when you and the and the prospect say, you know what, this is a good fit. I’m trying to get give them a taste of what it’s like to work with you. And it sounds like it’s very interactive, collaborative. And you’re looking you’re not looking to sell anybody anything, really. You’re just trying to find out if it’s a good fit or not.

Paula Shepherd: [00:14:14] Yeah, that’s the first step. And then once they are in our program, so we have one signature program, Elevated Voices Academy, and it’s a six month engagement. It is a high value hybrid. So it is a combination of both one on one experience with myself and support coaches and then also. Some group community engagement, so there’s, you know, office hours for them to come to you and really get to integrate. We also have a private community completely off of social media for them to collaborate and get accountability and really share and learn how to step into their own power and their confidence in a space that feels safe at first. And so it’s very highly curated. For that reason. We want to make sure we have the right fit and people and we’re only bringing in five people every single month. We don’t take any more than that because we care very deeply about developing a relationship and not kind of grinding people through the machine. It is a very bespoke process. So it’s all about identifying who you are. It’s a five step process. We go through five voices, it’s inside voice, passive voice, active voice, conversational voice and outside voice. And there’s a variety of different things that happen through there. But it all starts with self discovery and really understanding, believing who you are and and being able to describe yourself in a way that’s not a role or a way that you care for someone else. And so hopefully that answers your question. But it is such a personal journey for so many people, depending on where they’re starting and honestly, their mindset as they’re beginning the process.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:07] And so the service is kind of a group coaching service. It’s not like one on one with you, but

Paula Shepherd: [00:16:13] It’s yes, it is. It’s it’s a it’s a hybrid one on one and group. So there’s opportunity to have both one on one’s with myself. There’s one on one call with my human design expert and alignment coach. And then we also have a copywriter that is on our team who provides feedback so that when people are writing in their own voice that they can just get better at doing that. So we have a variety of team members to support because again, like going back to the whole courage blueprint concept is I want it to build a business that was the business I always wanted to work for, which was allowing other people to shine in the talents that they have and helping people to learn how to do things without leaning into a template.

Lee Kantor: [00:17:05] And if somebody wanted to learn more about the program, what’s the website?

Paula Shepherd: [00:17:09] Yeah, so you would just go to theCourageBlueprint.com and click on work with me. All the information is there to to learn more about the program, to be able to connect with us and to check out options to be able to enroll.

Lee Kantor: [00:17:26] And it’s the word that is at the beginning of that, right? It’s the career blueprint. Dotcom.

Paula Shepherd: [00:17:31] That is correct.

Lee Kantor: [00:17:32] And then your podcast.

Paula Shepherd: [00:17:35] Yeah. So my podcast is available on Spotify, Apple podcast, Amazon, anywhere that podcast can be found. And it’s called The Confidence Sessions. And I have both solo episodes that are bite size, easy to digest and also amazing guests to help people do anything from learn how to start running ads to creating amazing copy to building relationships.

Lee Kantor: [00:18:07] Good stuff. Well, congratulations on all the success, Paula. Thank you so much for sharing your story.

Paula Shepherd: [00:18:13] Absolutely. Thank you for the opportunity.

Lee Kantor: [00:18:15] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We will see you Next time on Coach the Coach Radio.

 

Michael Harris With Harris CMO Partners

by

Harris-CMO-Partners

Michael-harrisMichael Harris’ industry and consulting experience spans Fortune 100 companies to emerging and growth firms in manufacturing and technology. Many of his clients have been acquired. Mike is the Founder of Harris CMO Partners.

As an executive at west coast technology companies for many years, Mike worked throughout the U.S., Europe, Latin America and China. He has served variously as the top marketing, business development, and investor relations executive for both private and publicly traded companies. He has also served as a corporate officer for a NASDAQ:NM company.

He is a former management consultant with PriceWaterhouse Coopers and holds a B.S. from the University of Tennessee and an MBA in Marketing from the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University.

He has long been active in community service and has served on the boards of Operation For HOPE Foundation and Kids Included Together. For several years he served as a mentor to entrepreneurs as a member of Connect San Diego. He has also served as a guest lecturer, student mentor and program chair at The Rady School of Management at the University of California San Diego.

Connect with Michael on LinkedIn.

What You’ll Learn In This Episode

  • The Nashville tech community vs. Silicon Valley tech community
  • The changing nature of sales and marketing
  • The emergence of the global platform economy

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix 

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: [00:00:02] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for Coach the Coach Radio brought to you by the Business RadioX ambassador program, the no cost business development strategy for coaches who want to spend more time serving local business clients and less time selling them. Go to BRXAmbassador.com to learn more. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:33] Lee Kantor here, another episode of Coach the Coach Radio, and this is going to be a fun one. Today we have with us Michael Harris with Harris CMO Partners. Welcome, Michael.

Michael Harris: [00:00:43] Hey, Lee, how are you doing today?

Lee Kantor: [00:00:45] I am doing well. I’m excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us a little bit about Harris CMO partners. How are you serving folks?

Michael Harris: [00:00:52] Yeah, sure. We work with CEOs of technology companies. Our clients are usually in the 10 million to one hundred million dollar range and I would say most of them for the last few excuse me, most of them for the last few years have been SaaS companies. We have clients in Silicon Valley, the West Coast, Washington, D.C. And since I’ve moved to Nashville not too long ago, we picked up a couple of clients here. So what we do is we provide interim CMO services or just general CMO support to the CEO or the actual CMO themselves.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:27] So what’s your back story? How’d you get involved in this line of work?

Michael Harris: [00:01:31] Yeah, sure. It’s it’s a good story. When I got out of business school in the 80s, I, I took, you know, one of the glamorous jobs of so-called glamorous jobs with the consumer products company. And that led to a stint with Philips Electronics in the Netherlands. And I wound up running about one hundred billion dollar division of that company based here in the United States. And somewhere along the way, I got a call from a data storage company in California, and they had seen some of my turnaround background and asked if I would be interested in joining them. It was a 500 billion dollar company and they were in a bit of trouble and took a leap of faith and left the southeast and moved everything out to California. And that’s how I got started in technology. That was in the 90s. And I served as a top level executive for West Coast tech companies for many years. Usually that it was a chief marketing officer role or head of sales and marketing something in that nature. And then when I got my my last job out of high school and off to college in twenty eighteen, I decided to return to the motherland, Nashville, Tennessee. And I moved, moved back here, moved my company here and and really enjoy it. Things are going fine.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:48] So now talk a little bit about kind of the tech ecosystem in Nashville versus Silicon Valley. Obviously Silicon Valley has the history and the kind of the depth of companies there. And Nashville is more of an emerging tech hub. Can you talk about how they compare and what you see in the future for Nashville?

Michael Harris: [00:03:10] Oh, sure. That’s a topic I love to talk about. I think that anybody that’s been immersed in the West Coast tech scene or Silicon Valley develops a certain sense of a sense of style and operating certainly a deep, deep level of knowledge about what’s going on with the investors, what’s going on with new ways of technology. And then when I moved to Nashville, I really set out to learn the technology community here and reached out to tech CEOs and wanted to establish a beachhead here, because I really my vision was to serve the Southeast. I knew the technology was coming our way and I knew that there were a lot of companies in the southeast, especially Tennessee and Nashville, that could use Silicon Valley expertize. So here’s the difference. The Nashville technology ecosystem is still it’s still in its infancy. And the reason that I say that is because the investment community here is not the same as the investment community that I observed in California. So people who have made a great deal of money here typically made it in health care or excuse me, health care and banking and commercial real estate. And so those are those are what we would call more old world industries, even though they’re very much alive, very much thriving.

Michael Harris: [00:04:39] People still make a lot of money in them. But the mindset of these investors is is is not evolved enough to be able to understand what new waves of technology mean and how investing in those new ways of technology could create wealth for them. So it’s still a little bit of a reluctant atmosphere here in Nashville. But in the three years that I’ve been here, I’ve seen really, really good progress. So I think Nashville is well on its way. And of course, we see all the time these news articles of California companies, tech companies that are picking up and moving to Nashville. And they’re moving here for very, very good reasons. So so Nashville has the foundation. And I think as these new companies move in and at new blood comes in, that’s already been immersed in Silicon Valley, that is going to. You don’t spread across Nashville, including the investment community, including the universities and colleges and even high schools and in Nashville is poised to grow, I think, tremendously in what I call the technology ecosystem.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:50] Now, do you find I think I mean, I deal with a lot of I interview a lot of folks in all parts of the startup, the tech startup world, from VCs to private equity to angels to CEOs and entrepreneurs. One of the advantages of Silicon Valley is if you’re a startup in Silicon Valley and your thing explodes, you can jump to another, you know, startup pretty easily. And there’s kind of a deep like that’s OK to do that. And the investment community there has a different kind of sense of urgency when it comes to investing and the different kind of expectation of an investment. Whereas like you said, in some of the southern cities, if their wealth was made in real estate, it’s one of those. Well, we’ll just hold on to it. And eventually it’s going to make us a lot of money. And the time, kind of the condensed time period that people are looking to get in and out of the investments are different. You know, the time moves differently in Silicon Valley than it does maybe in some southern cities.

Michael Harris: [00:06:54] Yes, I would definitely agree with that, I would say from the two clients that we had here, we have had so far in Nashville and both were successfully acquired after we started working with them. So that’s, you know, that’s good news. But from my observance of those two companies versus the clients and see on the West Coast, for instance, things tend to move a little slower here because there’s a learning curve that’s already been achieved by most of the people on the West Coast, that it’s still being achieved by the people who do the work here in Nashville. So I do spend more time educating Nashville clients than I would with clients on the West Coast or in Washington or something like that.

Lee Kantor: [00:07:38] Now, what about have you seen? Because I think this is another part of the growth and the maturity of a of a southern city when it comes to this is having some successful exits where you have some entrepreneurs that have gone through kind of the process and they’ve exited and then want to reinvest back into the community. Are you seeing any of that or any kind of hint that that’s on the roadmap?

Michael Harris: [00:08:02] Oh, yes. Yeah, there are definitely good examples here in here in Nashville. One of the companies that I helped was a med tech company, and it was part of the portfolio of a another company here in Nashville that that funds several medtech and health care startups. And I know they’ve had the entrepreneur who founded it. His name is Jim Saw. I know he had a really successful tech exit. And after that, he began to pull together this portfolio of new companies to fund and to and to nurture. So that’s a great example that you and I have heard and read about several others, which are excellent stories.

Lee Kantor: [00:08:46] So now let’s talk about kind of your day to day work in sales and marketing. Can you talk a little bit about, you know, what you’ve learned from coming from that technology base from Silicon Valley and how that that translates to the tech companies you’re dealing with in Nashville now?

Michael Harris: [00:09:05] That’s a that’s an excellent question. So what’s going on in sales and marketing now? Is that the the distance between what’s being sold and who’s going to buy it has been dissected into about a million pieces. What I mean by that is know back in the day and I’m going I’m going to go back in the day, a sales guy at IBM or HP or whatever could have a name and a phone number and get in front of somebody to make a sales pitch. And today there is about I mean, there’s just dozens and dozens of places that you have to populate with some kind of a message before you even get the attention of a prospect. And I think the interesting thing is today that any prospect for a new solution is going to spin. They’re going to get 70 percent, 80 percent of what they want to know about you and your company and your solution before they’ll ever agree to even have an introductory phone call. And so that all falls back into what is historically traditionally called marketing space. And it’s it’s required that marketing, especially B2B marketing, technology, marketing, become very, very short with content messaging, what we call buyer personas, which is, you know, who am I targeting? What are their what are their hot buttons, what are their pain points and so forth. So I think the net net of all of this is that sales and marketing has become much more sophisticated. And in addition to that, we’re starting to see a merging of the sales and marketing functions because the technology, the platforms that they’re using are merging. And so they have no choice but to start moving these part departments closer and closer together. And so I’m thinking that at least in my lifetime, in my career, we will see sales and marketing become just one operation.

Lee Kantor: [00:10:58] Now, are you seeing any of the. I know I’m old, too, so I know that there was. Kind of a line in between sales and marketing at one point where it was always like sales are saying like, oh, marketing is not giving me the good leads. And then and then marketing is like, well, sales isn’t closing the glades. And I’m saying, you know, it was kind of I don’t want to say adversarial, but maybe their incentives weren’t aligned. And marketing becomes like more of a support role for sales and not like a partner. Are you seeing any of that change or is the blurring of the lines between sales, marketing, advertising, PR, social media, all the kind of kind of the tools that are out there? Are they all kind of, like you said, merging into one, you know, kind of client acquisition department?

Michael Harris: [00:11:48] Yeah, yeah. The people who perform those functions across the board, the ones you just mentioned. Yes. They are merging into one one department. And I think a good example of that, Leigh, is that, you know, like in my company, we use we use a software platform that’s that scores prospects for clients. And it’s up to the marketer. Business usually resides in the marketing department, but it’s up to the marketer to decide what those attributes, the attractive attributes of a prospect are, whether it’s from static information on LinkedIn or whether those attributes are gathered from interaction with social media, post advertising, whatever, whatever is out there in the in the WebSphere. And so it’s up to a marketer to create that model. And then the marketer has to interact with the salespeople who will be selling this to make sure that model is is tweaked correctly and that the attributes have been have been prioritized school correctly, because ultimately it’s the salesperson who’s going to be using that model, but it’s the marketing person that’s going to be doing all the attributes.

Lee Kantor: [00:13:03] Now, what about I mean, in a lot of these tech B2B sales especially, there’s a lot of kind of fingers in the pie and these decisions are made necessarily by one person. It’s a committee or group of people that have to sign off on it. And you don’t know who is the person that’s got the the power to kind of blackball something or veto something. How do you help your clients kind of navigate the politics of the sale?

Michael Harris: [00:13:33] Well, that’s another that’s another good question. You know, I always advise clients to to put one person in charge, whether it’s the S.R.O., whether it’s the CMO, you know, hopefully you walk into a situation where they have a very good relationship and they and they work as one. That’s not always the case because, you know, salespeople are driven by a set of metrics. That is it’s very you know, right now, right at this minute, oriented marketing people tend to look much further into the future. And sometimes it’s hard to get those two viewpoints on the same table. So it’s it’s a it’s always an issue where I walk into a client. I’d say 90 percent of the problems that I find in a client is are people problems. You know, either the skill sets and capabilities aren’t present at that senior level or they haven’t built the underlying infrastructure to putting people correctly, or that just a general level of distrust between those two organizations. And I’m starting I’m starting again. I’m starting to see that mitigating itself as time goes on. But it used to be a pretty big problem in a lot of companies. And now I think it’s a more manageable problem than most companies.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:52] Now, how has the pandemic impacted your business? I don’t know if the pandemic precipitated your moved to Nashville, but it’s obviously kind of expanded people’s where their employees are located, where their clients are located and working from home or working. Has any of this impacted your business? And if so, how have you helped your clients navigate through this?

Michael Harris: [00:15:18] Mm hmm. But, yes, it’s it’s impacting my business positively. So when I set out to build this company several years ago, I decided from the outset it was going to be a virtual company because I had spent many, many, many years managing a lot of people in big organizations. And I just didn’t want to do that anymore. So the people that I hire are all contractors. You know, they’re all too many lines. They’ve all been with me for a long time and they love the work that they do and I pay them very fairly. So in that sense, it hasn’t interrupted it. And on the on the revenue side, revenues actually gone up because so many employers have had a chance to look at what’s going on in sales and marketing and decide that they want to make changes. And they love the idea of having somebody having an On-Demand professional come in, get the work done and then get out. Right. That’s very different from the old consulting model. So back in my early years, my younger years, I was a consultant for a predecessor of PricewaterhouseCoopers. And the mantra then was, you know, go out and play to the base and then dragging its feet on for years and years. So that’s that that is no longer the case, at least with companies my size. And we like to we like to do a good job. Our our pay is actually tied to whether we get that job done right and get it done on time. So everybody in the organization is incentivized to to to work and to do it right the first time and to do it on time.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:50] So now what is the pain that your prospective clients are having? Are they kind of struggling? Are they in a crisis or are they kind of frustrated because of a plateau? Like where where are they at when it’s time to call a CMO partners?

Michael Harris: [00:17:08] Yeah, it’s usually one of the few places they want is that they’ve lost their CMO. They need they need somebody to come in and steer the ship for a few months until they can get their search done. As you know, in today’s hiring environment, it’s getting pretty tough to find the right qualified people who will also fit into that company’s particular culture. And so they like the idea of not losing any momentum. The second the second biggest issue is the CEO is really frustrated at marketing. So he or she is not liking what they’re seeing. They’re not liking what they’re hearing. They’re they’re really questioning the value of the money they’re spending. And they want somebody with a with a very strong budgeting background and a financial perspective on sales to come in and help sort through what’s going on and get everything realigned with the marketplace in a way that that shows exactly what’s happening with every dollar spent on marketing. So those are a couple of situations. Is that enough for this call?

Lee Kantor: [00:18:10] Well, what is the frustration like? What are some symptoms that a firm might be having that, hey, maybe it’s time to make a change in the CMO suite?

Michael Harris: [00:18:18] Oh, gosh, declining revenue. It’s a tough one. Yeah. So I had one client that was in a market really hot market space. The market space itself was growing tremendously and with companies of that particular. Lion size, it was on average, companies were growing 12 percent a year and this particular client was declining 10 percent a year and they just couldn’t, you know, they just couldn’t figure out what was going on. So that’s that’s a very classic example of a frustration.

Lee Kantor: [00:18:49] Now, any advice for the person that is maybe in an enterprise position right now and wants to go out on their own and start their own firm? Anything that you would do differently?

Michael Harris: [00:19:01] Yeah, you know, I I got very lucky right off the bat and landed a couple of big contracts, but when I when I when I decided I wanted to grow the business, I really floundered a lot with the operational side of it. And when I say operations, I mean really the sales process, the paperwork, et cetera, et cetera. And I luckily found a book called Million Dollar Consulting by a guy named Alan Wise. And I later took some personal training from him and he was able to cut through all of the noise for me so. Well, and his mate has made the selling process for my company so easy. You know, we don’t use we don’t use PowerPoint or pitch decks. We don’t do proposals. We don’t do anything. You know, we just work straight with the CEO and we work on it. We work on a term sheet by email. And, you know, this is what we’re doing. This is what we’re going to get done. This is, you know, how long it’s going to take. The it’s going to this is the methodology we use. This is how we measure the success of the project. And then once that once once that term sheet is completed in that manner, we just crank out a simple like two or three page letter of agreement and the CEO signs it. We’re off to the races.

Lee Kantor: [00:20:13] Yeah, I’m a big fan of Alan Weiss. I mean, a long time reader of pretty much everything he puts out there. He’s a smart guy. It’s got a lot of that figured out. And I recommend his books, his newsletter to anybody out there that is kind of to who wants to make sure they’re getting the value they deserve.

Michael Harris: [00:20:32] You bet. You bet.

Lee Kantor: [00:20:34] Now, Michael, if somebody wants to learn more about your firm or get on your calendar, what is the website?

Michael Harris: [00:20:42] It is HarrisCMOpartners.com, or you could Google Mike Harris marketing either one.

Lee Kantor: [00:20:51] Good stuff. Well, Michael, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing important work and we appreciate you.

Michael Harris: [00:20:56] Thanks for having me. It’s so great to hear about what your your company is doing. I only recently heard about National Business Radio, and I’m pretty excited about it because, you know, Nashville really needs to have stronger business reporting, especially on the tech side. And so I’m happy to make your acquaintance and hopefully was able to contribute a little something today.

Lee Kantor: [00:21:18] Definitely did. Thank you again. You bet. Take care. All right. This Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on Coach the Coach radio.

 

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