Changemakers Collective

There is a lot of uncertainty about the economy right now and how it will impact people personally and in their businesses. Some good news: you still have control over your financial future. In this episode, we discuss the ways you can take control of your financial future through intentional tax planning, building up savings accounts, and making smart (emphasis on smart) investments that will set you up for future purchases and retirement.

Some key takeaways from this episode include:

• Paying taxes as a W-2 employee vs. a self-employed individual

• The importance of financial recordkeeping (and having a finance team)

• Making strategic investments with the money you have left over

• How to discern if an investment is putting your financial future at risk

• Balancing living on a budget with enjoying some of the finer things in life

You started your business to solve a problem and leave a lasting impact in the world, but now the inertia of your business has taken over and you’re too busy and burned out to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you accelerate growth and multiply impact through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: 

• Website

• Silverback Ventures LinkedIn

• Scott Woods LinkedIn

• Steff Thomas LinkedIn

• YouTube

Talking about money can be difficult, especially if you grew up in a family that never talked about it. That’s why we’re running a financial literacy series on the podcast to help you understand the basics, starting with our money stories, how (and why) we tend to rack up debt, and our own experiences of financial hardship and how we worked through it. This series was inspired by Scott’s young adult mentees and their questions, but you might be surprised by some of the insights we cover!

Links mentioned:

• Budget spreadsheet

In this episode, we cover:

• Calculating your assets and liabilities, and personal cash flow

• How our upbringings affected how we viewed finances as an adult

• Shifting your money mindset to planning for the future instead of living for right now

• Getting clear about your financial priorities

• Making a budget that feels empowering instead of dreadful

• The right way to use credit cards for rewards without racking up tons of debt

• How Steff and her husband paid off debt and changed their relationship with money

You started your business to solve a problem and leave a lasting impact in the world, but now the inertia of your business has taken over and you’re too busy and burned out to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you accelerate growth and multiply impact through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: 

• Website

• Silverback Ventures LinkedIn

• Scott Woods LinkedIn

• Steff Thomas LinkedIn

• YouTube
  

Team inefficiencies can be incredibly frustrating for you, your customers, and your team members. In this episode, we’re sharing how to spot those team inefficiencies and remedy them through strategic operational shifts. If you’re ready to get your team aligned on their roles, responsibilities, and processes so you all have more time and less frustration, this episode is for you!

Links mentioned:

• Ready to stop being the bottle neck? Watch Episode 5: How to Be a Problem Solver, Not a Problem Identifier

• No-Fail Meetings by Michael Hyatt

Some key takeaways from this episode include:

• The sneaky signs of inefficiencies in your operations

• Who’s at fault for inefficiencies in your organization

• The importance of getting systems out of someone’s head and into a document

• How to get started with documenting your processes

• Reducing time spent in meetings for more efficiency

• Planning for scalability instead of scrambling during growth seasons

You started your business to solve a problem and leave a lasting impact in the world, but now the inertia of your business has taken over and you’re too busy and burned out to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you accelerate growth and multiply impact through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: 

• Website

• Silverback Ventures LinkedIn

• Scott Woods LinkedIn

• Steff Thomas LinkedIn

• YouTube

Entrepreneurship and leading a company is such a fun ride, but man… It gets lonely sometimes. In this episode, we’re speaking directly to that feeling. Whether you’re just now starting your business, or you’ve led a company for decades, you’ve probably felt that loneliness at one point on your journey. In this episode, we’re talking through how to cope with those feelings, surround yourself with people who "get it," and put your mental health first as an entrepreneur.

Links mentioned:

• Silence the Imposter by Gary Frye

In this episode, we cover:

• Why entrepreneurship - and leadership - can feel so lonely

• The difference between networking groups and coaching environments

• Avoiding unloading your stress onto your staff

• How to find fellow business owners that you trust to help you

• Why you need several business confidants instead of one default person

• Recognizing the value of having diverse perspectives on your business challenges

• The impact of good ideas vs. good leadership

You started your business to solve a problem and leave a lasting impact in the world, but now the inertia of your business has taken over and you’re too busy and burned out to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you accelerate growth and multiply impact through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: 

• Website

• Silverback Ventures LinkedIn

• Scott Woods LinkedIn

• Steff Thomas LinkedIn

• YouTube
  

Figuring out what to charge for your products and services is one of the trickiest tasks for many entrepreneurs. Looking at what your competitors are charging is just one piece of the puzzle - and not even a helpful piece at that! In this episode, we dig into exactly what to include in your pricing, how to factor in unexpected expenses, and raising your prices with existing customers in a way that feels good for everyone.

In this episode, we cover:

• Why being the cheapest on the market is hurting your sales

• Everything you need to factor into your pricing

• What to do when unexpected costs of supplies come up

• Structuring offers that truly address the wants and needs of your customers

• Learning to see the value of your time and expertise

• Confidently asking for what your product or service is worth

• The best way to raise your prices for existing customers

• Getting real about when your product is cost prohibitive

You started your business to solve a problem and leave a lasting impact in the world, but now the inertia of your business has taken over and you’re too busy and burned out to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you accelerate growth and multiply impact through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: 

• Website

• Silverback Ventures LinkedIn

• Scott Woods LinkedIn

• Steff Thomas LinkedIn

• YouTube
  

Faith can be a very divisive topic, but it is a core value of our business at Silverback Ventures. It doesn’t have to be in yours, but if you’re curious about what it looks like in our business, we’re sharing how we balance being open about being Christian without becoming street preachers, why surrounding ourselves with people with different beliefs is important, and how you are bringing faith to work whether you know it or not.

Some key takeaways from this episode include:

• Everyone is welcome at our table, regardless of your religion. Not only is that exactly what our Christian faith tells us to do, we genuinely believe that coming together leads to more positive impact.

• We are unapologetically Christian, and our faith is clearly stated in our values and vision statement. But the true embodiment of those words is in the compassion we infuse into the work we do with our clients and community.

• You are bringing your faith to work with you whether you’re intentional about it or not. The question is whether you are exemplifying your faith’s teachings while you’re at work.

You started your business to solve a problem and leave a lasting impact in the world, but now the inertia of your business has taken over and you’re too busy and burned out to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you accelerate growth and multiply impact through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: 

• Website

• Silverback Ventures LinkedIn

• Scott Woods LinkedIn

• Steff Thomas LinkedIn

• YouTube
  

As a consulting firm specializing in impact-driven businesses, we work with a lot of nonprofit organizations to help them scale their mission. Nonprofits tend to get really good at doing more with fewer resources, so in this episode, we’re passing some of those skills onto you as a for-profit business owner. If you feel held up because you don’t have enough team members, capital, or some other tangible resource, this episode is for you!

Links mentioned:

• Episode 10: The Nuts & Bolts of Starting a Business

Some key takeaways from this episode include:

• What non-profit owners must STOP doing to be successful

• Finding channel partners to collaborate with

• Scott’s story of securing a game-changing contract without a huge marketing budget

• Why managing less money now will serve you well once you have more

• Our “multiply without addition” philosophy explained

• Building an infrastructure for your business while you’re small, so you’re ready for growth when it comes

You started your business to solve a problem and leave a lasting impact in the world, but now the inertia of your business has taken over and you’re too busy and burned out to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you accelerate growth and multiply impact through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: 

• Website

• Silverback Ventures LinkedIn

• Scott Woods LinkedIn

• Steff Thomas LinkedIn

• YouTube
  

Starting a business can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. In this episode, we break down the most critical - and commonly missed - elements of starting a strong business. We use concrete examples throughout so you can see exactly what each step looks like in practice. We cover a ton of strategies in this episode, but we created a free resource for the logistical steps so you’re fully covered with action items!

➡️Click here to download our free Business Formation Checklist to save time, money, and stress so you can start making an impact today.

Links mentioned:

• Todd Greene, CPA, PLLC

• Scarlett’s Web | Website Design & Development

In this episode, we cover:

• Things to consider before you choose a business name

• When to spend money, and when to do things yourself for free

• Where and how to register your business

• Business banking must-haves

• Beginning with impact and problem-solving in mind

You started your business to solve a problem and leave a lasting impact in the world, but now the inertia of your business has taken over and you’re too busy and burned out to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you accelerate growth and multiply impact through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: 

• Website

• Silverback Ventures LinkedIn

• Scott Woods LinkedIn

• Steff Thomas LinkedIn

• YouTube
  

If we asked you what your vision statement is, could you tell us right this second, or would you have to look it up? If your vision statement isn’t strong enough that you have it ready to share at all times, it probably isn’t strong enough to align your team on the impact you want to have. In this episode, we share how to overcome the common pitfalls of crafting a vision statement so you can maximize your impact through a shared company vision.

In this episode, we cover:

You started your business to make an impact in the world, but now you’re too busy and burned out on the day-to-day operations to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you to accelerate their growth through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: 

If there’s one thing we can agree on about work-life balance, it’s that it doesn’t exist. That being said, prioritizing time for family and self-care shouldn’t always feel like an uphill battle. In this episode, we discuss the unique challenges entrepreneurs face when it comes to spending time with their family while growing their business. We cover strategies from time blocking to boundary setting to help you avoid burnout and strengthen your personal relationships while you scale your business.

In this episode, we cover:

You started your business to make an impact in the world, but now you’re too busy and burned out on the day-to-day operations to serve your community. That’s where we come in! Hosted by Scott Woods and Steff Thomas, the team behind Silverback Ventures, the Changemakers Collective podcast is here to help impact-driven business owners like you to accelerate their growth through servant leadership.

Connect with Us: