Mads Singers Management Podcast

Today's guest for the Mads Singers Management Podcast is Julia Starzyk! Julia runs a Project Management and Construction Consultancy specializing in refurbishments ranging from £3-6M. 

Julia initially worked in central London's high-end residential market for the past decade, delivering some of the finest, perfectly tailored homes.

Julia started as a junior project manager for a construction company, or as we call it today, as an assistant to the site manager. She was in charge of the people management, order taking, and ensuring everything around them was working, whatever it may be.

Unlike most roles, being a manager usually puts a person in a tight spot because they rarely receive guidance or training, which sets most for failure. However, regardless of what type of management you will be doing or where the best way to be, a good manager communicates effectively. Communication, though, can mean two other things sometimes. There will be a battle of personas and even ego; some may not even care if the project will go well or not. 

To overcome this, you need to understand who's who, how they think, and how you approach them to get the results you want; in fact, you will be surprised how communication effectively and clearly can help that employee perform better and deliver excellent results. 

Key Learning Points:

1. Despite their differences, Julia shares that she has learned a lot from the tradespeople while working as a site manager in the construction firm. - 03:24
2. Despite the misconception that management in the construction world is easy, Julia says it's the opposite. There are many things to consider to make things run smoothly, just like in a corporate setting. - 04:32
3. Julia says that effective communication helped get things done during her time as a site manager. - 05:13
4. Julia says that when people know that they can come to you, no matter small or irrelevant their problem may be, they will never forget that. - 05:33
5. Mads agrees that communication is essential, not only in management but also in life itself. - 09:11
6. Julia says to be a good manager in terms of people skills. You have to be able to see the best in people and pull that out of them.- 11:41
7. Mads says that management is also about lifting other people. He adds that most people become positively surprised most of the time when they are given the responsibility and ownership.- 12:18
8. Mads says that people will support you when they see your value and willingness to do the right thing. - 14:37
9. Mads says that it's okay to make mistakes because we learn more from failures than we do in success- 18:56
10. Mads says that when you build a good relationship with your staff, they will most likely go the extra mile. - 22:45

Connect with Julia Starzyk:

LinkedIn

Facebook

Instagram

Joining me on today’s episode of the Mads Singers Management Podcast is none other than Skye Barbour. Growing up with entrepreneurial parents, Skye knew she wanted her own business. Still, unlike her parents, she didn’t want to follow in their footsteps where she had to give up something to pursue her dreams. Skye wanted the best of both worlds. Skye wanted to earn great money and be a present and great mother to her children. Because of her experiences, Skye was able to see what real-life leadership was like, complete with challenges in handling people and operations. She even got to make all the mistakes under the sun, but Skye could grow a long-term sustainable business despite all these. Skye knew she had to leap after experiencing burnout and being pregnant with her first child.

While the allure of being a freelancer or being able to work on your terms will never stop, to balance those things and live the life you want, you’ll need to have discipline and roll up your sleeves from time to time to get things done. But to reach your goals, you’ll need to get some people on board as well because you can’t be the only one doing everything as this will only hinder the growth of your business.

As Skye pointed out, people can be so frightened of what might be the future that we stay stuck in the doing, and although you can automate and delegate a bunch of things in your business, it takes time and needs development.

While everybody is replaceable, as it should be, because businesses need fresh brains and hands from time to time, having a throwaway culture in outsourcing can cause problems for your business. Hiring a VA can help solve many things for you, but if you don’t have systems or SOPs in place, they will struggle too; sometimes, the problem doesn’t lie with the VAs you hire but within yourself. 

Management doesn’t necessarily need to take an extended period. However, you will need to have the right person or the right people to get things done for this to be successful. Once implemented, your business will be smooth sailing in a month or two!

Understanding your core strengths and having a growth mindset will help you become a great leader.

To make sure your business is successful, you’ll need to be able to write down your recipe and pass it on to people so they know how to run your business. This is especially true when your business is your brand. Hire experts that can lighten your burden so that your business can grow and flourish, and ultimately it’s about moving you from doing the tasks in the business. 

Key Learning Points:

1. Skye says that to grow a long-term sustainable business, this is what she calls the missing link who want to - 01:58
2. Skye says she is an advocate of applying herself and doing the work. This means that you’ll need to roll your sleeves up and work 03:32
3. Mads shares that he has been living remotely since 2014, and while it has its perks, he says that to work from the beach or to live the life you want will require discipline. - 06:16
4. Mads says he asks people if they want to build a business or build themselves a very glorified, well-paid full-time job because the difference between those two is vast. - 08:08
5. Mads says that once business leaders and managers get the mindset right, they realize that they shouldn’t be doing unnecessary work- 11:50
6. Mads says that when it comes to hiring people when you treat your staff as a cheap resource, they will also treat your work as an affordable resource. - 18:54
7. Skye says that regardless of who you bring into your business, you should invest time and resources in them if you want to get the best out of them. - 20:54
8. Mads says that anyone can be a good leader as long as they understand their core strengths- 26:36
9. Skye agrees that there isn’t a silver bullet solution. If you don’t understand your people and what resonates with them, then they will not be able to do a good job- 30:16
10. Skye shares her analogy where business is like a car where people parts of a vehicle and to get to the destination, many leaders and business owners expect and assume that their staff don’t need to know, she asks how people will do their best when they don’t know what’s going on or what the whole things for - 32:31

Resources Mentioned:

Full Freedom for Entrepreneurs with Skye Barbour

Connect with Skye Barbour:

LinkedIn

Website

Instagram

YouTube

LinkTree

Joining me in today's episode of the Mads Singers Management Podcast is none other than Louise Ledbrook. Louise is a Productivity Specialist, High-Performance Executive Coach, Innovator, Speaker, and Author. She loves helping people transform their lives to achieve their goals in life or their business by fulfilling their dreams. 

As pointed out by Louise, distractions are the number one cause of stunted growth in businesses. Still, it is not always the fault of the business leaders and managers, but rather it is because most of them are not equipped with the knowledge and skills to manage or know the tips and tricks. This often sets many business leaders and managers to fail. And with how society is made up today, where many of us are constantly on our phones, we are constantly bombarded with beeping notifications. We tend to lose our way from important work that needs to be done. 

The illusion of being available makes us unproductive, causing us to get fatigued over time. Not everything needs to end up on your to-do list, but rather learn to set rules and boundaries to be more productive in both your personal and work life. While we all have our tasks to work on, we need to remind ourselves if it will actually be moving the needle to help us accomplish the goals we set for ourselves, or are we simply making ourselves look busy? To do this, we need to constantly remind our brain subconsciously to work on the critical tasks we need to achieve our goal; learn to delegate the small and mundane tasks you have on your plate to someone else and be amazed at how much more you can accomplish! 

Organizing doesn't need to be complicated by doing the small things because it makes you do something intentionally. This helps you become more productive, feel refreshed, and think more clearly about the next day and your upcoming tasks. We must constantly choose ourselves for it to happen and have boundaries to be more intentionally productive. 

Key Learning Points:

1. Louise's goal is to help business owners get their shit together without sacrificing their lifestyles- 02:30
2. Louise says that many businesses don't scale because leaders and managers don't have adequate time management. - 03:32
3. Mads shares that he likes to keep his phone on silent so that he won't get distracted and will get work done. - 04:54
4. Mads says that it's not about the hours we work but rather the output. - 06:57
5. Mads says, If you're sitting doing things that could be done by someone getting paid, half of what you are born, you are significantly wasting company resources and, more importantly, actually hindering company growth.- 10:34
6.  Louise shares her simple system where she organizes her day the day before to make her more productive. It can take her as little as 10 minutes to plan out her day. - 15:18
7. Louise says it's essential to have blocks of time to do purposeful and uninterrupted work rather than stretch it for eight or ten hours and not get anything done. - 21:18
8. Doing little things such as preparing your workout clothes at night or preparing food the day before will help you become more productive by getting more things done. Removing those small decisions by being organized is a big one. - 22:53
9. Louise says it's vital that we learn to say no to things that are not related to our goals- 24:00
10. Louise adds that it's essential that we choose ourselves and have these rules and boundaries. - 27:16

Resources Mentioned:

The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth About Extraordinary Results by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan

Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport

Connect with Louise Ledbrook:

LinkedIn

Main Website

ProSmart Website

Company Twitter

Personal Twitter

Instagram

Company Instagram

Today’s guest on the Mads Singers Management Podcast is Jessica Eastman Stewart. Jessica is a coach, consultant, and the founder of Joyfully Managed Family. This community helps make the day-to-day management of home and family life a little easier and more joyful. A former co-founder for a non-profit organization for ten years and coached leaders, Jessica now creates content where she helps anyone in the world manage their home and family. An intentional manager, Jessica first became a manager back in 2009, and since then, she has loved talking about it, coaching others, and even writing blogs about it.

Contrary to popular belief, management doesn’t have to be complicated. Management doesn’t need several steps and processes to make things work. Having simple techniques that work well is much more effective than having several complicated functions. It can be as simple as declaring email bankruptcy, where an email from a month ago is rendered useless and archived immediately because anything important will find its way to you or back to you. However, for this to happen, leaders and business managers should make space for their team and staff to be productive. One of the ways you can do that is by incorporating fun and even a bit of game with your staff. This can also work if you have a remote team, schedule a Zoom meeting, pop in some music while everyone works on their tasks. Also, rather than setting up a calendar block for meetings or 1-on-1s, it’s essential to check in with your staff so you can have a hearty and meaningful conversation rather than a one-sided conversation. Something simple as a Word document or a spreadsheet where you can put all the information and tidbits of your employee can help a lot! 

Being a manager or leader isn’t about the power to boss around people and pass your job to them. At the same time, you rest your feet on your table or go somewhere to relax and unwind; instead, it’s about building relationships with people in your company or organization. Having a good relationship with your staff and employees can help you in the long run, especially if they decide to leave to pursue better opportunities or when they land their dream job. This gives you ample time to prepare and train for their replacement and focus on your business.

Key Learning Points:

1. Mads says he is a firm believer in having a few processes that work well compared to having complicated ones to manage your team effectively. - 02:25
2. Jessica and her team have what they call a ‘’Polish Week’’ where they take time twice a year and pause what they are doing to polish up their systems. Jessica says they do this during the slower times of the year, usually the last week of December or the first week of July. - 03:14
3. Jessica admits that taking some time off may seem daunting. However, it is worth doing it because it pays dividends every single day when you take some time to clean up things that are slowing you down - 04:40
4. Jessica says we have things we are good at and not so good at. For example, a person can organize their desk but is not good at managing their digital files. She recommends that we incentivize it and have something to look forward to, such as eating your favorite lunch - 09:48
5. Jessica says that it’s essential for leaders and managers to make space for their staff or teams to be productive. - 13:00
6. Jessica shares her tip on using reminders, whether it’s on your phone or computer, so you can be reminded of your team’s starting dates and birthdays and appreciate them. This can also work for setting reminders for yourself on things you want to improve on.- 15:08
7. Mads says that the best way to give feedback is to look for critical thinking and connect it to behavior. - 22:06
8. Mads admits that he still finds it challenging when a good employee resigns to pursue their dream job. However, he says that managers and leaders should still appreciate their time and contributions to your company and be happy on their behalf. - 26:10
9. Mads adds that when employees leave you, especially great employees, it means you are doing a great job as their manager because you have developed and grown your staff. - 27:08
10. Mads says that if you don’t know until the last possible day of resignation, then it means that your relationship with your staff isn’t that strong. - 29:56

Resources Mentioned:

Polish Week Checklist

Connect with Jessica Eastman Stewart:

LinkedIn

Website

Twitter

Links

Instagram

Facebook Page

Joining me on today's episode on the Mads Singers Management Podcast is none other than mompreneur TaJuanna Taylor, and we're going to talk about my favorite topic - management. TaJuanna is the D.O.N.E. Lady who loves helping you get things done using the D.O.N.E. Formula™ to equip business leaders & entrepreneurs with a more straightforward, more approachable way to adapt project management. She is also very passionate about leadership and helping small businesses flourish. 

Contrary to popular belief, starting a business is more than just earning some extra income to fill your pockets; instead, it is about investing in human beings, people like you and me, who have their hopes and dreams. It is through proper management that one's business can succeed. Coming from this context, the importance of listening comes to play because most performance issues come from the home or internally rather than from the workplace. Once you listen to your employees, they feel valued and cared for, thus making them your greatest ally.

When employees are heard, you will see a change in their momentum and energy because we human beings will always strive to be good, heard, and seen as an essential asset. However, to do that, one needs to listen - now, this may be hard for some people, especially if listening isn't their strength, but listening can be worked on like all skills. However, you'll need to learn to be quiet and take time to pause no matter how excited you are.

We all come with our wavelengths. Some may be easily excitable, while some may need extra motivation; however, regardless of what wavelength they belong to, learn to gauge your employees and see things from their perspective.

Take care of what you own, take care of what tasks have been assigned to you or what you have assigned to otters - nurture it so that there is quality. A plan is a roadmap, not a guarantee, and if one path doesn't work out, there are many other ways to get there.

Key Learning Points:

1. TaJuanna says that management, leadership, project management is not just for big companies or big, big teams - it's for anybody who wants to move something forward; their extraordinary ideas, turning it from nothing into - 01:43
2. By reminding yourself that you're not in it by yourself, TaJuanna says when we permit ourselves to allow other people to come in, seek out what you know you do not have. - 03:03
3. TaJuanna stresses the importance of listening - 03:41
4. TaJuanna shares how you can be a good listener or learn to be a listener, especially if it is not your strength: To be quiet and pause no matter how excited we may be in a room with one or more people.- 06:38
5. Mads shares his two golden rules as a manager: 
6. 1.) Speak last, 2.) Speak the least. He adds that you can become a practical (or more effective) leader if you follow these two things. - 09:00
7. TaJuanna says that regardless of whether you're an entrepreneur or solopreneur, everyone has a role to play so that you can free yourself to bring in other people. - 12:51
8. TaJuanna says many people and even things can become your bosses if you don't manage yourself or something you are doing well. - 15:28
9. Mads shares his trick: try and cut every day down to just 4 hours and ask yourself: 
10. What are the most important things? What are the things that move the company forward the most? What are the things that only I can do? - 16:39
11. TaJuanna says that she had to learn quickly to minimize her enthusiasm because not everyone is on the same wavelength as you are. However, this doesn't mean they have less value. - 19:52
12. TaJuanna says that project management is about delegating tasks to people, giving them autonomy and the freedom to do jobs at their pace. - 24:00

Resources Mentioned:

D.O.N.E. Formula™

Connect with TaJuanna Taylor:

Website

LinkedIn

Instagram

LinkTree

Today's guest for the Mads Singers Management Podcast is Todd Kuckkahn, a keynote speaker, executive coach, and fellow DiSC practitioner.

Although Todd has had several experiences under his belt, it wasn't until a couple of months ago that he decided to take the leap of faith and become a full-time entrepreneur. Much of Todd's work involves aiding, developing, and creating businesses; he was also a high school basketball coach, where he also taught in high school and even in colleges. Although entrepreneurship can be quite a challenge, it has its highs when you seal the deal with a client and its lows when you question yourself if you can eat next month. The rewards that you can reap are worth it! It's not always set in stone because some may become an entrepreneur early on while others may have it later in life, but regardless of when you will be taking that leap of faith, it's essential to keep in mind the lessons you pick up learning along the way.

While there are apparent differences between big corporate companies to small and medium businesses and startups, regardless of where you belong, it's essential to stay focused on your purpose and why: What's the reason behind it? Why are you doing it? 

I cannot stress enough how important communication is because often, when high-performing managers or anyone on your staff starts performing poorly, it could be they have problems at home. Instead of waiting around for things to worsen, it's essential to approach them and help them get them back on track. 

One of the easiest ways to do this is with the use of DiSC in your workplace or organization; this allows you to discover a person's communication style and meet them halfway rather than dragging them through the mud. 

We are all bound to make mistakes. However, because we have self-awareness, we now know what to do in the future to avoid repeating that mistake. But to know oneself, one must practice what they absorb from reading books or listening to podcasts, and these don't happen overnight! These habits take time, so allow yourself lots of room for improvement. 

Be mindful of what you are feeding yourself, regardless of its platform; rather than binge-watch a show, you can spend that time exercising or reading.

Key Learning Points:

1. Mads says that he has observed that most teachers make good managers. - 01:32
2. Todd says that being an entrepreneur doesn't need to have a timeline. To some, it may happen when they are as young as 22, while others may achieve it later in life. - 03:36
3. Drama and conflict will always be part of the business, your family, and even your relationships. Still, Todd says that conflicts can be a good thing when you know how to handle them, and that's why he says that you must have your base value and continue to build on that and develop your communication skills.- 05:39
4. Todd adds once you develop your communication and people see that you're an honorable person because you live up to your values, then the trust grows, and by trusting each other, you can have constructive conversations around that conflict because the faith is there.. - 06:04
5. Mads says that people don't understand people who are different from them. That is why he advocates the importance of learning about DiSC and applying it in life or your workplace. - 10:36
6. In building your company culture, Todd shares his 3-prong mantra: Dream Big, Know How to Have Fun in the Work Place, and Get Stuff/Work Done.- 15:13
7. Todd recommends reading as a tool for personal development, whether by yourself or within a company, that you can then use and relate with people by having conversations. - 17:50
8. Taking a cue from Simon Sinek, Todd shares how exercise and love are similar because you don't instantly fall in love with somebody, but rather it's a process when taking on a partner. - 21:59
9. Todd says that we all make mistakes, but we must have self-awareness so that we won't repeat that mistake in the future. - 23:22
10. Todd says that it's vital for business owners and leaders to detach themselves from their business and nurture relationships with people, regardless of whether it's done over a Zoom meeting or in person if they are nearby. Have an inner circle where you can discuss your challenges so they can help you solve them- 27:08

Resources Mentioned:

FISH! philosophy

I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King

The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You (10th Anniversary Edition by John C. Maxwell

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable by Patrick Lencioni 

Connect with Todd:

Website 

LinkedIn

Schedule a Meeting

Email

Twitter

YouTube

Facebook Page

Today's guest on the Mads Singers Management Podcast is Dr. Erika Michalski, also known as The Consultant Barbie. She is the founder and Chief Encouragement Officer of Strategically Authentic, which loves helping people bring their vision and goals to life. With her unwavering passion for authenticity, she empowers people to show up as they are, see what they can do, what they are capable of, and leverage their skills so that they can move up to their next big thing. Dr. Erika will surely liven up your party as she loves strategic planning and is excited to share it with the world. 

Strategic planning - a fun party trick that Dr. Erika loves to death, is often put on the backburner by companies and business owners until the very end or when their problems start popping up because they have been ignored for too long. 

Although it's become a buzzword, being authentic will allow you to impact the people around you and the things you do, while chasing the same carrot as everyone else may seem ideal and more accessible. However, many will not feel satisfied when they reach their end game and feel like they wasted time and effort on something unworthy. 

Rather than giving in to what society dictates as a measure of success, we should focus on our direction. Often, we look up to other people we admire and try to emulate them, and while there isn't anything wrong with that, we would make much more impact when we show up as ourselves rather than imitating someone else. 

To be authentic, one needs to show up as they are, don't let others define your success, and while it's not wrong to grind for your goals, ask yourself these questions: 

1. Are you pushing because you want to?
2. Are you moving because you're supposed to?

Investing in your people is a must because they are the ones who will drive your business or even sink it. Regardless of whether they decide to stay or leave, it's essential to make people feel valued. 

Don't fall for trendy and generic professional development that you see being paraded around. Instead, spend time with your staff and see where you can take them from there. But before promoting someone, make sure that you will be able to communicate why you are doing that to provide them value and an opportunity to grow. Even the least interested leader will take up the mantle when given clarity on why they are granted that role. The same goes with delegation. Being given clarity and acknowledged will allow people to flourish more.

Key Learning Points:

1. Although it's not new, despite becoming a buzzword today, Dr. Erika says that your contributions will be most effective, and your existence will be most impactful when you show up as yourself, not as a deluded version of someone else. - 03:31
2. Dr. Erika says that authenticity invites you to be more reflective and intentional about your choices in your personal and professional life. - 04:09
3. Dr. Erika says that you are the owner of the direction you are going. - 05:21
4. Dr. Erika adds that authenticity is the decision to learn from other people but not necessarily emulate them. - 05:41
5. Dr. Erika says we have become weirdly obsessed with the idea of not being content with the things we have. - 09:43
6. Dr. Erika shares that if you cannot train your brain to the here and now, to be present, you will only be pursuing and not be content with what you have. - 13:32
7. Dr. Erika says that unhappiness comes when you no longer know who you are because you rely on other people's success metrics rather than your own- 19:34
8. Dr. Erika says that if your identity is tied to a singular point (being an entrepreneur or being someone's significant other), then it is not sustainable- 27:40
9. Mads highly recommends that businesses and entrepreneurs invest in their people, especially managers because most people don't develop their managers because they are not provided with the proper training and guidance. - 28:06
10. Contrary to the famous saying that the best salesman won't make the best sales manager or the best engineer won't make the best engineering manager, Mads believes that if someone has the skills and the personality to learn how to be the best engineer or salesperson, then they can also learn how to become the best manager with the proper training, tools, and support.. - 34:44

Resources Mentioned:

First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Boffman 

The Molecule of More: How a Single Chemical in Your Brain Drives Love, Sex, and Creativity―and Will Determine the Fate of the Human Race by Daniel Z. Lieberman and Michael E. Long

Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know by Adam Grant

Connect with Dr. Erika

Website

LinkedIn

Instagram

Today, my guest today in the Mads Singers Management Podcast is none other than Melissa Maulini. Melissa is the CEO and founder of Maulini Creative, a small boutique marketing agency, starting as a freelancer specializing in social media management and influencer marketing until she eventually settled down with personal brand marketing. Initially working alone, Melissa grew a team that she calls her marketers; and what journey it has been, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic where many brick-and-mortar businesses had to switch up their marketing to keep their business afloat during those challenging times.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, many traditional ways of doing things were turned upside down, from digital marketing, social media marketing, social media management, and even operations had to be delegated. Despite these new challenges, the pandemic has brought on new opportunities for everyone, whether a restaurant in an old city or a small store set up in the middle of the town. Although there are many things to consider when hiring employees, especially when you're starting, such as taxes, laws, and other benefits in the country you are planning to set up your business. It would be best to skip hiring the right people because having the right staff will help you grow your business in no time. 

With our interconnected world, it's easier than ever to find the right people to do the job for you. However, one of the common mistakes new entrepreneurs and business leaders make is not making enough connections because many tend to set aside the networking aspect of their businesses. Rather than wait for a miracle, it's best for business owners and managers to take advantage of the tools they have at their fingertips, such as Facebook groups, LinkedIn, forums, and other social media platforms. Make connections along the way because you'll never know where your next adventure will be if you don't make connections with the people you meet along the way.

Like Melissa, I highly encourage exploring new tools and software once released because it allows you and your team to learn new things. However, while exploring is fun, it's essential to stick with those that work well for you. Often, it's not the number of tools, apps, or software that ruin productivity in a company or business but instead failing to implement it all over your staff or company, so it's essential to consult everyone before jumping ship. Being an entrepreneur is not an easy journey; there will be bumps and even roadblocks along the way. However, having a mentor who you can turn to for advice, gain feedback, or help solve problems will benefit you.

Don't be afraid to cast your net and let your voice be heard, especially during challenging and difficult times. Also, ask for feedback from your clients or anyone you work with. This gives you a fresh perspective on things, so you can also learn how to pivot according to their needs.

Key Learning Points:

1. Melissa shares that she started with interns. However, she then realized that she needed to bring in people with specialties in their respective fields rather than a person who knows a bit of everything. - 04:33
2. Melissa realized that hiring people who don't necessarily have the skills to do the job could be costly and time-consuming because you'll need to take a chunk of your time to train and teach them. - 06:01
3. Mads says that most companies and managers struggle with hiring the right people because they don't know what they need until the problem becomes more apparent. - 06:46
4. Mads continues that many business owners and managers are reluctant to pay their employees the proper salary, especially those specializing in a specific niche. - 07:00
5. Melissa says she learned to hire people who know what they are doing rather than bringing on someone that you have to teach, and promote from within as much as possible because they are the ones who can fill the spot as they already know you and your business. - 08:53
6. Mads stresses that rather than hiring people who resemble you, business owners and managers should look at the most critical piece needed in their business and how they should be finding someone who is excellent at that work/role. - 11:45
7. Melissa's goal is to grow her team in the industries that she likes while also learning new things and taking the best practices.. - 18:17
8. Melissa stresses the importance of having a clear structure for your business to be easy onboarding, training, production, and even offboarding. Having a system will also allow you to improve or change things quickly if you face difficulties. - 20:57
9. Melissa shares that she and her team have tried several project management tools and software but have settled on what works well for them. She encourages you to try new tools and software once released to help you and your team learn new skills and knowledge to attract more clients and build your portfolio. - 22:42
10.  Melissa stresses the importance of having a mentor and guiding you in your entrepreneurial journey while also learning, gaining feedback, and even seeking insights into problems you may have. - 25:05

Resources Mentioned:

Asana

AirTable for content calendar and paid advertising

Slack

Connect with Melissa:

Company Email

Personal Email

Instagram

Company Instagram

Website

Twitter

LinkTree

Facebook Page

Today's guest for the Mads Singers Management Podcast is none other than Dana Kaplan, all the way from New York City. Dana is an emotional intelligence and education consultant, coach, and the pioneer of DEIAB in ACTION from the womb to 12th grade (*Diversity Equity Inclusion Access and Belonging- IN ACTION). She is an educator who believes that learning is more than the four walls. Following her dream and passion for teaching at-risk children, Dana realized that more should be done in teaching emotional intelligence and bringing diversity, equity, inclusion, access, and belonging into action. Because of this process, Dana discovered that it doesn't matter what the curriculum is or the assignments are if we don't have a strong sense of self. Believing who we are as individuals like our own personal hero led her to develop Empathetic Education with Dana.

Despite being at the top of their game, many leaders, business owners, and managers often struggle with emotional intelligence and understanding themselves and the emotional state of the people around them. As Dana pointed out, we are aware of our emotions most of the time. However, we don't know where we create meaning with our emotions most of the time. This is where Dana brings up our childhood experiences, where we associate them with negative experiences, but rather than blame and shame our negative experiences, Dana says we should use those negative emotions as reference points on why we are feeling that way. Having a rich self-awareness allows you to become this rich leader, an even richer participant, and an active listener that will enable us to be engaged in a community.

The more you are aware of yourself, the more you understand about yourself, the more you can take action and utilize it for your day-to-day activities. Through playing, one can discover more about ourselves, and when we are willing to play, we are not so focused on the outcome or process but rather on what we can do to play the game; this is something most of us forget once we become adults. 

While we may all come in and bring different things to the arena, each of us has something to share with others and a role to play, and in a world of diversity, we should always have spaces where people are not afraid to speak up or share their stories. 

The most challenging conversations we will have will often be with ourselves, and what may be hard for you won't be hard for another person. The raising of voices, the passive-aggressiveness, hiding from feedback, and pointing the finger at other people can be prevented when we allow ourselves to open up what other people have to share with us and take the opportunity to sit and absorb it.

Key Learning Points:

1. Dana aims to create cultures filled with compassion, curiosity, and courage because, ultimately, we all want our voices to be heard, listen to learn, and build a space where we feel a strong sense of belonging. - 02:16
2. Dana says that while we are aware of our emotions, we often don't know where we create meaning with our feelings- 03:31
3. Remembering negative emotions from bad experiences doesn't mean we need to relieve them but rather use them as a reference point for what upsets us. - 04:40
4. Dana says that emotional intelligence can be summed up as knowing who you are as a human and then knowing who you are in an ample space. - 05:41
5. Mads says that he has always been keen on understanding one's himself because, for him, that is the most effective way to get the most out of yourself and live your best life.. - 06:13
6. Dana says that when we create a space that invites curiosity, we create opportunities for ourselves, whether in management, leadership, or even just life in general. - 11:28
7. When asked about what play looks like for adults or people in the corporate world, Dana says it's all about perception; what we do with your object (toy) will be different from what another person will do to their object (toy)- 13:36
8. While there may be people who don't want to play with you, things can change when they see their leaders roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty and play. - 16:23
9. Dana says the most challenging conversations we will have will often be with ourselves. - 21:13
10. Dana says that we should be more open by focusing on the good things that happened around us rather than focusing on that one bad thing and dwelling on negativity to create a culture that propels the people around us and allows them to use their voice again. - 27:52

Resources Mentioned:

Adam Grant

Brené Brown

Connect with Dana Kaplan:

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Work with Dana Kaplan

Today's guest on the Mads Singers Management Podcast is Tarush Aggarwal. Tarush was a software engineer who quickly realized that ranking high on Google was not just for him because no one talked about data. Tarush saw this opportunity and was able to work with a manager who showed him the ropes. This led him to Salesforce and put data engineering on the map. He also led a team for WeWork that supported 1500 employees. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tarush found himself on a 10-day vacation in Bali, Indonesia, and while the world was going on lockdown, Tarush founded 5x.

According to Tarush, data is on the rise, and it is not a trend that will fade away and shape the future of the world. But what makes data exciting is its many uses, from Facebook ads, digital marketing, affiliate marketing, Google ads, and even compiling data on your customers and employees to automate business processes and make things easier for everyone. Once we focus on the data gathered, we can ask better questions to improve our current operations, implement better ones, or even replace them with something much better to help make our business better.

Data can be both intuitive and data-driven; some may be more inclined with their intuition. At the same time, some may be inclined to see the technical side of data. Still, regardless of where you belong in the spectrum, it's important to note that you shouldn't go to the extremes, especially when your vision, goals, and even niche do not have firm foundations.

Data is here to stay for the long run, although we may not see and feel it immediately, and data will continue to evolve to serve both businesses, companies, and the people. 

Although there are tools out there, and more new tools and software will emerge in the coming months or years, data will always be a people-focused business.

Key Learning Points:

1. Tarush says that spending time in the weeds and being in different levels allowed him to see how the sauce was being made, allowing him to stress-test everything, which allowed 5x to do it today. - 04:33
2. Tarush says that data application is helpful for Facebook ads, affiliate marketing, digital marketing, and even for customers. - 07:22
3. Understanding your customer lifetime value, how it's made up, and even why it's critical because this is one of the most significant issues Mads sees in small businesses, especially when they start investing in ads or marketing.- 09:26
4. Tarush says that while everyone uses data in different ways they like, once we give it our full attention, it is only then that we can ask better questions and improve our processes.- 10:46
5. Mads says it's essential to break down data when investing in different segments, so you are not simply focusing on one number or platform.- 12:40
6. Mads continues that while most companies have a lot of data, they must look at the correct data at the right time. - 16:00
7. Tarush says that data can be both intuitive and data-driven. However, depending on where you fall on that spectrum, we must keep in mind and be aware not to go to the extremes but instead use the data we have as our guide to making decisions rather than using it blindly.. - 20:03
8. Mads stresses that businesses should review their vision, concept, and niche, especially when it's not very good - 21:03
9. When asked about his 80/20, Tarush answers that 80% will always be your most challenging client.- 23:02
10. With the rise and popularity of data, Tarush says that businesses and companies will need to eventually treat data differently and learn how to use it effectively.- 26:00

Connect with Tarush Aggarwal:

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Data Engineering Podcast

10 Million Journey Podcast

Data Science Conversations Podcast