Committed: The Entrepreneur Marriage

SHOW NOTES:

This episode with Sue B. & Roger Zimmerman was so fun. I went through Sue B.’s “Ready Set Gram Pro” coaching course this past spring. Not only did I learn a ton about Instagram, but I became part of an amazing community that she and her team have developed. Sue B. is a fireball of energy and passion when it comes to coaching her students. She truly is @theinstagramexpert.

Today she’s joined by her husband, Roger.  Listen in as we hit the highlights of what has kept their 30-year marriage fun and fresh.

Where to connect:

Sue B. Zimmerman can be found mostly on Instagram (duh!) @theinstagramexpert

Roger Zimmerman–LinkedIn

Kathy’s Instagram handle: @entrepreneur_marriage_coach

Full transcript here.

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Today’s interview with Matthew & Jen Brown falls into the category of “early-stage” entrepreneurs. The idea for Chimney Trail came after Matthew’s multiple deployments as a Naval officer. He observed that the reunification process after deployment is challenging for many military families. In 2018, Matthew & Jen, along with Matthew’s Naval Academy roommates launched Chimney Trail, with the mission of helping families build resilience in their children through outdoor adventure. Though the pandemic has limited their travel offerings, they have a lot of great resources that families can use right now.  I can’t think of a time in our history when the need for building resilience in our children has been greater. 

After 15 years of active service in the Navy, Matthew continues to work with Seal Teams as a  Reserve Naval Officer, 1 of his 3 current job descriptions. Jen & Matthew now live in Ft. Collins, CO, where Jen can realize her dream of teaching in ONE school long term.

This episode has some real gems inside, especially if you are a parent. Matthew & Jen were so fun to visit with. Join me as we meet them now.

Click here for full transcript.

Mentioned in the podcast:

Chimney Trail

Chris Kyle foundation

If you enjoyed this episode, check out Brad & Jooyoung Voeller’s episode.

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I’m joined today by Drew & Sarah Hiss, empty nesters who recently moved to Colorado, where 2 of their adult children live. 

Drew & Sarah started a payroll and HR technology solutions company from their basement with 2 little kids. They bootstrapped this business and knew they had to make it work when Sarah lost her job soon after. 

They added 2 more kids, and Sarah transitioned to full-time mom, as Drew focused on growing Checkdate Solutions. Though there were many challenges, the company was one of Kansas City’s top100 fastest growing companies 9 years in a row.

The company was twice named one of the Greater KC Chamber of Commerce Best Businesses.

Checkdate Solutions merged with a payroll industry leader in 2008. Drew stepped away from the day to day operations but remained on the board for 8 years. 

As almost every entrepreneur does, Drew started another venture in 2015, with his business partner, Dan Cooper. Acumen was started with “the desire to help business owners leverage the influence of their business platform for eternal impact.” (from Amazon bio for the book, Sharpen: A Guidebook for Business Ownership and Adventures in Leadership, by Dan Cooper and Drew Hiss).

Drew and Sarah give us a glimpse into their entrepreneurial journey and insights into ways they have made their marriage a priority.

This was “take 2” of the interview. We spent a wonderful evening at their new home just before the world shut down, and did a live interview. Seriously, I don’t know what happened to the recording, but Mark tells me now I’m a “real” podcaster, because everyone he listens to has had that happen at least once. I was so relieved that Drew & Sarah agreed to a do-over. Thanks, guys. Now let’s get to this interview. 

Contacts:

acumenimpact.com

[email protected]

[email protected]

Mentioned in the podcast:

His Needs, Her Needs by Willard F. Harley, Jr.

The 5 Love Languages, by Gary Chapman

My 5 Husbands, Kathy Rushing

Full transcript here. 

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This episode highlights important takeaways from my interview with Dorcas in Episode 8, for those of you that don’t have time to listen to a longer episode or just want to get right to the heart of the episode. In these shorter episodes, I’ll add my insights through my lens as a Marriage Coach and entrepreneur spouse.

Dorcas is the author of “Start.Love.Repeat: How to Stay in Love with Your Entrepreneur in a Crazy Start-up World”. Her new book, “Let There D.Light: How One Social Enterprise Provided Solar Products to 100 Million People” is the story of the start-up and growth of d.light, the international social enterprise founded by her husband, Ned, and his Stanford Graduate school classmates in 2006. The book releases on Amazon, July 21, 2020. No doubt this will be a valuable resource of inspiration to anyone thinking about launching a business, or is in the thick of scaling a venture.

You can find more information about Uniquely Us, the assessment package I offer couples here.

The post The Takeaways: Dorcas Cheng-Tozun’s interview appeared first on .

I’ve been looking forward to today’s interview with Dorcas Cheng-Tozun for over a year. I reached out to her last year, but she and her family were living in Nairobi, Kenya, one of several international moves they have made while growing d.light. 

Dorcas is the author of Start, Love, Repeat: How to Stay in Love with Your Entrepreneur in a Crazy Startup World. She will be releasing her new book, Let There d.light: How One Social Enterprise Brought Solar Products to 100 million People, on July 21, 2020. (Available on Amazon)

Our conversation weaves an overview of the startup and growth of d.light, with the personal challenges she faced as the company grew. d.light is the business her husband, Ned, and his Stanford Business school cohorts started in 2007. They began this social enterprise with the goal of bringing inexpensive lighting options to some of the poorest areas in the world. It has been a challenging journey, but Dorcas and Ned have creatively found ways to thrive in the midst of growing d.light.

You can reach Dorcas through her website: https://www.chengtozun.com, as well as Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter.

Full transcript here.

The post Dorcas Cheng-Tozun: Author & Entrepreneur Spouse, Hard-Won Perspective from Life in an International Social Enterprise appeared first on .

I’m joined today by Bekah & Adam Voglewede. Bekah’s evolution as a small business owner has a unique twist, reminding us that not all entrepreneurs are big risk takers.

I met Bekah several years ago when I started seeing her for facials. Bekah is passionate about sharing her knowledge of healthy skin with her clients. Over time, I recognized that Bekah’s passion for health extended to all areas of her life. As I’ve listened to her talk about their marriage and plans for her business, Vōg Skin Care, I knew they would be a good fit for the podcast. This is another episode recorded during the Great Shutdown of 2020. (Is that a term? I think I just made it up.)

Listen in as we hear their remarkable story. 

vogart.org  (Adam’s website for his limestone sculptures)

vogskincare.com (Bekah’s business website)

The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What To Do About It by Michael E. Gerber

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My guests today are Tony & Felicity Dale. In 1987, they packed up the biggest suitcases they could find and moved their 4 young children across the pond from London to Austin, TX. They didn’t know a soul, but they were following the Lord’s direction to continue a ministry they had been part of as medical doctors, serving the poorest part of London.

Now married 49 years, Tony & Felicity share their story of walking faithfully, even when they couldn’t see where the path was taking them. Tony started the Karis Group in 1996 after he injured his knee & successfully negotiated down a medical bill that was much more than he’d been quoted. The Karis group negotiates medical cost savings for groups that share medical expenses. Initially, they saw this business as a way to support their house church ministry, something that Tony & Felicity have shared leadership and passion for since their early days of marriage. But later, it became clear that they should offer medical cost-sharing to anyone that wanted it, not just Christian groups. Sedera Medical Cost Sharing Community was started to fulfill this mission, and last year (2019) it was noted as the fastest growing small business in Austin.  

Felicity is also the author of several books about starting and leading house churches and the role of women in the church. 

This interview was done in May 2020, in the midst of the Covid-19 shutdown. Their story is a much needed reminder of God’s faithfulness when we can’t see what the future holds. Join me now in meeting this delightful couple. 

*

Where to find Tony & Felicity:

Tony: [email protected]

Felicity: felicity@felicitydale.com

Books by Felicity Dale: 

The Black Swan Effect: A response to gender hierarchy in the church

Getting Started, A Practical Guide to Church Planting

An Army of Ordinary People

Other books:

The Rabbit and the Elephant: Why Small Is the New Big for Today’s Church by Tony Dale, Felicity Date, George Barna

Simply Church, Co-authored by Tony & Felicity Dale

Full transcript here.

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What does an egalitarian marriage look like? I didn’t know that Bill & Sarah Woolsey would illustrate this so beautifully, but in this episode, they share about the give and take to make both of their dreams a reality. Their story includes navigating a serious illness only a year into marriage, putting together the puzzle of identifying their career paths, and a hard lesson about the importance of staying connected and moving towards each other. 

Sarah is the brainchild behind The Impact Guild, a co-working space united around the idea of work engaging with the community. She is a social entrepreneur, passionate about the intersection of faith and work.

Bill recently left another law practice to start his own law office in partnership with his father. And since recording this podcast, they have welcomed another baby girl to their family.

Definitely in the thick of growing their family and businesses, they share some ways they intentionally work on their marriage in this season. Their story reminds us that it is possible to have a life-giving relationship while building your business. 

The Impact Guild: https://www.theimpactguild.com

Typology, a podcast by Ian Cron (https://www.typologypodcast.com) “a podcast that explores the mystery of the human personality and how we can use the Enneagram typing system as a tool to become our most authentic selves.”

4:07 Met in 6th grade, dating, marriage

5:46 What did they want to be when they grew up? Neither had clear direction

11:04 Took off on motorcycle after college, stayed in Boulder

15:12 Wanted meaningful work, back to Texas, Residential Foster Care

16:34 Bill becomes very ill, no clear diagnosis, bonding time for marriage

21:12 Both start new jobs. Bill goes to law school. Sarah gaining experience that led to interest in social enterprise–The Impact Guild launched

31:16 Did Bill know Sarah was an entrepreneur? Does he see himself as an entrepreneur?

35:16 Seasons in their marriage, taking turns to achieve their dreams

43:15 Talking about work at home, understanding each other’s work stresses, healthy communication, “circle up”

51:09 Healthy mentors for their relationship

53:43 hard season, choosing to take steps back toward each other

58:45 navigating conflict

59:24 Have you done any personality type exploration?

1:02:49 What do you do to increase intimacy, fun & friendship in the relationship?

1:07:41 final words of wisdom

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Today’s episode picks up a conversation between me and my serial entrepreneur hubby, Mark. We talk about his career progression from pastor & church planter to serial entrepreneur. We explore his “aha” discovery in his mid 40’s, several years after launching his company.

We discuss the benefits of personality profiles & mentors in discovering our truest selves.

Stay tuned to the end for something just for listeners of this podcast. 

Referenced in this episode:

*DISC profile—used for personal & professional growth

*Every Good Endeavor, by Tim Keller

*Link for Marriage Discovery (DISC assessments & personalized feedback): Marriage Discovery 

*Rebate (only good until 3/31/2020): After purchasing the package, just type “episode004” in the subject line to my email: [email protected]

Topics:

1:07 Mark’s early ideas about work

6:53 Ten years out of college: seminary, ministry, & starting over

10:42 Self-perception: “I don’t fit”. Square peg

11:22 Changing careers, discovering business acumen

13:45 2008, starts AlzCare (Assisted Living for Alzheimer’s patients)

16:22 Still doesn’t call himself an entrepreneur 

20:08 Mark’s “aha” moment. Affirmation of how he’s wired

25:57 Impact of creating meaningful work

28:08 Advice to someone considering entrepreneur venture

31:53 Benefits of assessments in finding life’s work

36:21 Knowing your strengths & weaknesses as a leader; bringing in team members to accomplish the company’s mission

38:49 Advice to his 20-year-old self

The post Mark Rushing: From Pastor to Entrepreneur: How He Uncovered His True Life’s Work appeared first on .

Being married to an entrepreneur can be challenging, especially when that isn’t how you’re wired. I’ve heard many spouses voice frustration when it’s taking longer than expected for a startup to become profitable. “why can’t you just get a job?” Is a common question asked when month after month, savings dwindle, along with  the hope of a real vacation anytime soon.

Now, imagine that you grow up in a culture where entrepreneurs are rare, and the security of a government or teaching job is the extent of your occupational options?

That is the setting for today’s interview with Brad & Jooyoung Voeller. Since 2001, Brad has launched a series of non-profits and for-profit organizations that facilitate online learning. In his early 20’s, he moved to South Korea to expand his concepts, launching online academies for Korean homeschool families. When he and Jooyoung met and began their relationship, Jooyoung had no idea what it meant to be an entrepreneur. Ever the educator, Brad did his best to inform her, but understanding the ups and downs of the entrepreneur life only came through experience.

At the time of this interview, Brad was in the scaling phase of DCI—Digital Creative Institute. He started the company in 2015 to provide apprenticeships for recent marketing grads, allowing them to gain the experience needed to launch their careers. 

Brad & Jooyoung were so gracious to take the time out of their busy schedules to sit down with me and share candidly about their journey in marriage and startup life. Listen in now as they share the story of their evolving partnership and shared passion for changing lives through education.

Mentioned in the podcast:

The Dip, Seth Godin

C12 Group: https://www.c12group.com

To connect with Brad:

[email protected]

DCA: https://digitalcreativeinstitute.com

Topics discussed:

4:46 What in the world is an entrepreneur?

12:20 Entrepreneurship requires great teams

18:04 Becoming a team

21:25 Brad feels Jooyoung support & validation

26:08 Hard reality—canceling vacation

31:33 Current business

42:08 What it would mean to “get a job”

46:17 Lessons learned 

49:30 Business premortem and postmortem

52:42 Role of advisors

56:25 Fun, friendship, intimacy

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