Adventures in Businessing: Entrepreneurship, Small Business, and a Healthy Dose of Humor

While there will not be new episodes of Adventures in Businessing, we are excited to announce a brand new podcast. Here is a sneak peek with our episode zero.

Leading to Fulfillment is a weekly 30 to 40 minute podcast that highlights the impact of People-First leaders and teams where fulfillment is the true measure of success.. In each episode James Laws has conversations with leaders, entrepreneurs, and other thinkers from all walks of life and kinds of businesses to find out how they think & lead differently and make decisions that lead to fulfilling work and fulfilled teams.

• [0:00:38] Intro | Timely Topics
  • Final Episode of Adventures in Businessing!
  • Brief Recap
• [0:04:00] How Do We Walk Away From Partnerships?
  • How do we walk away without resentment?
  • How do you end on good terms?
  • Storytime with Jeremy!
• [0:12:16] The Best Ways to End Well
  • Start well. 
  • Try to keep emotion out of the equation as best you can. 
• [0:17:00] What to do About Toxic Partnerships
• [0:25:30] Parting Words
  • The finality of life ends al partnerships...
  • Last man standing?
    • Likely James
  • Walk through all the what-ifs...including your will.

• [0:00:38] Intro | Timely Topics
  • Last time on Adventures in Businessing
  • Quoting Nacho Libre
• [0:02:34] All Relationships Have Tension
  • How does one get around inevitable tension?
  • Tensions are typically a good sign that you care.
  • Have well-defined roles to alleviate the pressure and stress.
  • You need to be a little thick skinned.
  • Misalignment is the genesis of many tensions.
  • Navigating tension lies in transparency and communication.
  • Fundamental disagreements can happen.
• [0:10:05] If You Want to Navigate Tension Well, You Have to Navigate it Often
  • You have to talk about the business and eachother, the overall feeling, on a recurring basis.
  • If left unchecked, tension becomes passive aggressive tendencies, a lack of empathy for eachother, or outright hostility.
  • Embrace differences.
  • Be open about misunderstandings.
    • It's okay to be vulnerable and honest above being prideful and full of false confidence.
  • Trust above all else.
• [0:22:47] The Decision Matrix & Preemptively Stopping Tensions
  • Motivation
  • Goals
  • Vision
  • Values
  • Objectives
  • All should be heard and considered.
  • Bringing in a third voice/partner can help.
• [0:27:32] Conclusion & Takeaways
  • Communicating is key.
  • Assume the best.
  • Be willing to give and receive constructive critique.

• [0:00:39] Intro | Timely Topics
  • Last time on AIB...
• [0:04:09] Benefits of Starting a Partnership Before You've Started a Business
  • You don't have to be good at everything.
    • You can lean on your partner to fill in the gaps.
  • Look for someone who brings skills to the table you don't have.
  • Feel out the relationship with the potential partner before overcommiting.
    • You ideally want a partner with similar enthusiasms and energy levels.
  • Even if you get along, if you can't agree on the vision...that's a huge red flag.
• [0:20:36] Trust is Essential
  • If you have one thing, let it be trust.
  • Stress equity and sharing the load.
  • Spend time in your strengths.
  • Sustainability is just as essential as trust.
  • Ideally, the people you partner should be of the same calibur of people you'd trust your own child with.
  • Conflict has a greater cost in partnerships and friendships.
• [0:28:21] Parting Thoughts
  • What's the right partner percentage?
  • What's the right number of partners?
  • Evaluate, discuss, be transparent.
  • "A friendship founded on business is a good deal better than a business founded on friendship."

• [0:00:58] Intro | Timely Topics
  • Jeremy is REALLY excited about this one.
• [0:02:30] How to Choose a Business Event
  • The Nitty Gritty: Hotel selection, what to eat? 
  • Is there a way to predetermine things about the event you wish to attend?
    • You must determine what you’re looking for out of a conference.
      • What are your outcomes?
  • “We live in a magical world…because internet”
    • There’s a workshop, virtual and in-person, for everything you can imagine-- technical and rudimentary.
• [0:09:45] You’ve Picked out Your Event..What Now?
  • How to prepare to get the most out of our event.
    • What are the talks or discussions you must hear?
    • Search the hashtag and note the attendees, then energize conversations with those people.
      • Knowing who is going to be there can work in your favor.
    • Look at the schedule.
      • Have a plan.
    • Consider arriving early.
      • ...and leaving a little early?
    • Treat your business events and travel like full-on PTO.
      • Ensure your team knows you won't be available.
      • The event is the work.
    • The "all-in-one" event can prevent headaches and uncertainty.
      • Preventing choice paralysis.
    • Take the time to unpack and process AT the event.
      • Talk to your team or write about it, thus making it less likely to forget the important details you want or need to remember.
      • Compare notes with those who attended the same or similar presentations.
      • If you go alone, that's a great excuse to make a friend...if you're extroverted. 😉
• [0:21:45] Prepare to be Presented with More than You can Rationally Absorb
  • You'll have to exercise your "keep, process, discard" muscle.
  • No one will know or tell if you don't attend EVERY lecture or discussion.
    • You don't have to waste your time if you know something isn't for you, or if you're simply overloaded.
  • Two hours of good content can justify an entire trip.
• [0:27:05] Closing Comments | Last Round of Advice
  • Seat selection is important.
    • If you're unsure about the talk, sit back and/or to the side, to politely excuse yourself.
  • Business events are worth the effort, and if you pick a bad one, try again.

• [0:00:54] Intro | Timely Topics
  • Considerations around hosting video podcasts of AIB on Youtube.
• [0:02:33] Events, Events, Events…
  • How to make the most of them. 
  • Why we recommend them. 
    • Why they’re worth the time and money. 
    • The major benefits of events across the board. 
      • *Brief disclaimer on vaccination and mask wearing while attending events during the COVID pandemic. 
  • Getting out of your typical office or home office comfort zone to induce creativity. 
• [0:08:46] Unpacking Great Events (Location Matters)
  • The Global Leadership Summit
  • The Cult Gathering
  • CaboPress
  • Traffic & Conversion Summit
  • COLLISION
    • If you're one to feel punished by choice...maybe avoid the Collision conference.
• [0:17:41] Advice for Leaders Throwing Events
  • "Conferences with less content and more time to process are arguably more valuable."
    • Elaboration on why this is true, worth acknowledging, and seeking out.
    • Be careful of overengineering.
• [0:25:00] Closing Thoughts
  • Find what works for you.
  • Cost can vary widely, keep that in mind.
    • Typically, you get what you pay for.
  • The ability to disconnect and focus on the event/s.
    • Dedicated time away from the daily grind is instrumental.
  • One of your event attending goals should be reconnaissance.
  • Events give you the opportunities to determine outcomes.
  • Next time on AIB: Getting the Most out of Business Events

• [0:00:46] Intro | Timely Topics
  • A brief recap of our series on culture.
  • Minimal, memorable, and meaningful values.
• [0:02:05] Planting, Protecting, and Propagating Your Culture
  • The power of alliteration.
  • You can plant the seeds of your culture.
    • ...but you can't force it.
  • Culture is something you can determine and discover.
  • Your purpose and values have to align with themselves and your culture at large.
    • You have to check on this regularly, preferably annually.
  • Pruning & What to Fight for
    • Has your organization changed enough to warrant culling or adding a core value?
    • Your mission statement can change as well.
• [0:10:30] How do You Reinforce Your Culture?
  • With action!
    • Culture without action is just aspirational consideration.
  • Memorialize your values and display them for all to see.
  • Every member of your leadership should be reminding, and living out by example, what's important in your company.
• [0:16:30] Reminder: You Already Have a Company Culture
  • Culture is always growing, even if you choose to ignore it.
    • Don't ignore it.
• [0:17:30] Other Ways You Can Develop Your Culture
  • Celebrate and congratulate culture growth publicly.
  • Ask questions based on your values during the interview and hiring processes.
    • Just be mindful that you aren't using this as a way to discriminate.
    • Your company values should impact the questions you ask.
  • Reward those who demonstrate and protect your culture.
    • If someone challenges your leadership or decision based on a core value...GOOD!
      • Acknowledge and reward people for calling out when something doesn't live up to the organization's core values.
  • Be careful of absolutes.
  • Not everyone will be a fit for your organization.
    • But if you have your values well defined, everyone will know what is and is not a good fit.
• [0:26:58] Final Thoughts on Planting, Protecting, and Propagating Your Culture
  • "This is incredibly important work, and your work is never done."
  • If can feel like you're not doing the most important thing when working on and being intentional about culture.
    • ...but it's arguably one of the most important aspects of your business.

• [0:00:58] Intro | Timely Topics
  • Brief Discovering Purpose Recap
• [00:03:03] Thoughts on Values
  • Values are guardrails.
    • "Stay between these lines."
  • Values can be deceptively easy.
  • Values force you to make tough decisions.
• [00:05:51] The Right Number of Values?
  • What's too many?
  • What's not enough?
  • An exercise in comparing and contrasting other company's values
  • Some well intentioned core values could actually be red flags...
    • Avoid the generic and indescript.
    • Value being memorable.
  • Nailing down your core values take time, and could rightfully be a slow process.
  • "Is this a value or a purpose?"
  • Values should have specificity.
• [00:15:47] Making Values Meaningful to Your Team
  • Using values as a motivator and empowering decision maker for the organization and projects.
  • Keep it short, sweet, and meaningful.
  • If you only have one value...that's probably your purpose, and not your value.
• [00:20:00] How to Discover Your Values
  • Sit down, converse, write down the things that are important to the organization.
    • Don't wait till you have 20-25 people to determine your values.
  • Try putting your values in priority order.
• [00:30:19] Closing Thoughts
  • Minimal, memorable, meaningful.

• [0:00:47] Intro | Timely Topics
  • Culture Recap
• [0:03:18] Purpose...is it something you discover, or decide on?
  • Disagreements and opinions ensue!
  • What is THE why?
  • Purposes should align.
  • A manufactured purpose might not fare so well in the long run.
• [0:12:52] The Infinite Game, The Why
  • From purpose to a just cause.
    • The just cause has to be personal and meaningful.
  • Purpose should be authentic.
• [0:15:25] Helping Leaders & Organization Find Purpose
  • Purpose, mission, and vision are the same...or are they?
• [0:17:17] Reviewing Purpose Statements
  • Can you match the statement to the organization?
  • *send us your purpose statements and we'll read and review them on the show!*
• [0:20:01] You Have to Think About the Purpose of Your Customers
  • Do their purposes align with your own?
• [0:22:44] On Starting a New Company to Solve a Problem
  • The Lululemon story.
• [0:24:12) Your Purpose Can be as Inspiring as it Needs to be
  • Critiquing the Lululemon & Patagonia purpose statements.
  • Specificity helps!
• [0:28:45] Final Thoughts | Takeaways
  • "Purpose statements give you permissions to say no."
  • If you don't have a defined purpose, ask your employees what it is, and work off of that.

• [0:00:53] Intro | Timely Topics
  • Previous Episode & Series Recap
• [0:02:36] Bridging the Gap from Uncertainty to Culture
  • The norms and stardards, i.e. the default state of behavior in your organization.
    • When you have these figured out, you can answer the question, "What do I do when I don't know what to do?"
• [0:04:49] "Now we're going to talk about Culture."
  • What is your company culture?
    • It's a BIG umbrella!
    • The textbook definition, the assumed, the implicit and explicit.
    • "Your culture is a combination of who you are, what you value, and how you behave."
  • Creating a great company culture.
  • You don't control all of your company culture.
    • You have leverage and input, but you can't dictate the culture.
    • It's just as much what your team brings to the table.
  • True or False: You can't know what your culture is in the early days, because people make up your culture?
    • There's a weird irony to unpack.
  • Each new hire brings something to your culture.
    • Culture fits & culture adds
    • Diversity
• [0:13:17] The Contradiction/s of Culture?
  • Expand to do more, be more, say more.
  • What's the cultural focus?
  • Sometimes we hang on to the wrong things.
  • It's far to easy to use "culture fit" as a way to discriminate, both consciously and subconsciouslt.
    • Stop it!
• [0:17:16] Examples of Things That Make up Your Culture
  • How do you approach work?
  • What is your stand on work/life balance?
  • How do team members interact with one another?
  • What is your management/leadership philosophy?
  • Challenge: Poll your team.
    • Ask them, "What do you think our culture is?"
  • If you have someone on your team you hope doesn't contribute to your culture...oops, too late, they already have!
• [0:22:31] How Does Your Culture Get Conveyed to a New Hire?
  • Making sure that we convey the culture we know about to other people.
  • Don't be a smoke and mirrors company when it comes to your culture.
  • There's who you are, and who you want to be.
• [0:25:38] Wrap-Up, Takeaways, Parting Words
  • You likely don't have one company culture.
  • Next episode: Purpose...what's yours?
    • Why are we here?
    • Why does it matter?