Peter Evans got his first business lesson — the importance of listening to customers — while working the front desk at a Howard Johnson in Skokie, Illinois at age 16. From working at HoJo, Peter went on to become an accountant working for Deloitte Touche then as a controller for a bank. Then the entrepreneur bug bit at age 34. Peter joined partners to form a hotel ownership and management company until 2001. He now co-owns and co-operates Balar Equipment, a provider and servicer of municipal equipment. Peter shares the lessons he’s learned from his background including: what personality traits lead to success, the struggles managing impatience, the importance of cash flow and capitalization, and why he avoids being over leveraged. Lots of business gold in this discussion.

Every aspiring entrepreneur starts with an idea. Ideas are wonderful things and generally in plentiful supply amongst those of us with a biz forward mindset. In this episode we discuss the (mental) steps of business creation and then cap it off with straight talk about what it takes to succeed. Hint: It’s not complicated but it is personal!

It’s been a challenging year, to say the least, for many small businesses. Beginning in March of 2020, government lockdowns shuttered businesses and altered consumer behavior overnight. Some estimates show 30% of small businesses won’t survive or have already failed due to Covid response. So, what’s a smart, resilient entrepreneur have to do to survive this grenade that’s been tossed onto his or her marketplace? Friend of show, Brad McDonald joins me to discuss just that. We discuss survival strategies, entrepreneur mindset, where to invest money and time during a slowdown, and other habits that’ll help you prosper through turmoil.

Nic DeCastro started his company — LandTrust — because he saw an opportunity based on his own need. He’s two years into piloting the Bozeman-based tech company, and still growing. He shares his entrepreneurial story, the reality of raising money via investors, lessons learned about management, and a lot more wisdom and experiences.

Tom Cunningham left his job as a fireman/paramedic in Lake Tahoe to raise his kids on a farm in Tennessee. After making a few mistakes and observing a few opportunities, his entrepreneurial juices began flowing. He’s the co-founder of Grazr — a startup aimed at making locally raised meat easier to sell, process, and acquire. Listen to Tom explain his vision, his lessons, and what advice he’d give to anyone starting their own venture.

If you’re in business, you’re in sales. More importantly, your success depends greatly on your ability to persuade. You persuade prospects to become customers. You persuade employees to do the work you need done. And you persuade the world that you’re the person or company they should do business with. Todd Thurman joins me to discuss the three rhetorical appeals — ethos, pathos, and logos — and how you can use them for your own success.

When you pilot your own business, the only guarantee is that there will be uncertainty and unpredictability. While those issues are real enough in normal times, the uncertainty and unpredictability is even greater during a pandemic. After a couple restless nights at year end, I came up with five methods to help manage during times of great uncertainty and unpredictability.

We make decisions all day every day when we pilot our own ship known as small business. Sometimes we also make decisions by avoiding them — as I always say, no decision IS a decision. So it goes with those you employ and those you do business with contractually. Be honest: would you re-hire your employees or contractors today based on their credentials? This is a good topic but a hard topic and I was inspired to cover it after watching It’s A Wonderful Life. Many small businesses employ their family and friends who they’re not too keen on firing. But as George Bailey learned, the comfort of keeping your incompetent uncle employed might be the difference between life and death.

↻ In Queue

The more business I do the more I realize how some folks are missing out on the simple steps to success. Like for instance, analyzing desired outcomes before marching into a situation. In this episode we discuss the effectiveness of plotting outcomes and objectives from both your perspective and the customers'. To get what you want, you first need to determine what you want. And to get it, you likely need to achieve a desired outcome for your clients too.

Tab Pierce decided entrepreneurialism was in his future after he said something he wasn’t supposed to say and his employer did what he calls “a layoff of one.” He had success, then went sideways, then downward four years into his businesses operation. Faced with debt of $750,000 — one third of which was to the IRS (which means bankruptcy wouldn’t clear it) he began the build back. Tab shares his story and the story of creating then re-creating Caliber, a cybersecurity company, which is thriving once again. And like all entrepreneurs, the founder has vision to quintuple his company and no plans for retirement even at age 56.