Onward Nation

Master message coach and copy expert Lindsay Hotmire loves to work with coaches and leaders who know there's nothing formulaic about authenticity. To date, Lindsay has helped 200+ clients (and counting) ditch one-size-fits-all frameworks and formulas so they can simply and genuinely align their message with their beliefs, their values, and (ever-so-importantly) their audience. She believes that the power of telling stories can change lives and create in-depth connections, which is why this will be the topic of focus in this podcast episode.

Once upon a time (before Google changed the world), Lindsay was a high school English teacher. And while she still gets a bit nerdy over sentence diagrams, she adamantly refuses to take sides on the Oxford comma. These days, she unapologetically geeks out over introducing a little bit of woo to a whole lot of science, and she's used her intuition, creativity, and slightly dusty math skills to help her clients create $10,000 to $1M campaigns all without losing sight of their true, authentic selves.

• How Lindsay began as a high school teacher before working on a variety of projects, and how she got into her current work helping entrepreneurs tell their stories in new ways
• Why Lindsay believes that the power of telling stories can change lives, and why stories can create authentic human connections
• What a "validating circle of inquiry" is, and how it relates to a concept called the "phenomenological nod", and why this is the goal of storytelling in marketing
• Why assumption bias, leading with what we think we know, is a real problem in modern-day marketing
• Linsday shares examples of costly assumption bias marketing mistakes from major brands Pontiac and Walmart
• Why many entrepreneurs and business owners are being forced to pivot because they didn't put in the time to do the values work pre-pandemic
• Where Lindsay recommends you begin doing the important value work, and how a tool called the Authenticity Inventory can help determine what work you need to do
• Why your behavior must align with your beliefs, and why too often we think we're aligned when we really aren't
• How the global pandemic has changed people's needs and has altered the world of business coaching as a result
• How a staggering 86% of consumers are looking to brands to fill the gaps that the government doesn't fill
• How real diamonds and fake diamonds differ, and how that applies to your company's right messaging
• How you will take advantage of the power of telling stories and apply it for your next campaign

• Download Free Authenticity Guide at https://lindsayhotmire.com/
• Website: https://lindsayhotmire.com/
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/lindsayhotmire/
• Instagram: @lindsayhotmire
• Harness the power of telling stories by downloading these free resources

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Listen to this related podcast about the power of telling stories from our guest, Nic Natarella

Jennifer Peek provides clients with key strategic insights while helping them develop plans to profitably execute their visions. At Peek Advisory Group, she consults with business owners identifying business gaps and strategic business opportunities to increase value and prepare them for the next stage of business evolution from growth to varied exit strategies.

• How Jennifer left her corporate career ten years ago and started her own company, Peek Advisory Group, bringing corporate experience to small and midsized companies
• Why the type of economic and social recovery we will see in a post-COVID world is impossible to anticipate
• Why developing the right mindset, seeking out strategic business opportunities, and doubling down can help you through this crisis
• How the lens you view the world through determines your outlook, and why the widespread belief that businesses are all in survival mode isn't always the case
• Why the Harvard Business Review's article Roaring Out of Recession is worth reading, especially during this challenging time
• Jennifer explains her "opportunistic mindset" and shares the importance of expanding your social outreach efforts
• Why you don't want to be losing ground or staying stagnant during this crisis, and why you want to work to position your business to capitalize on opportunities in the future
• Why recognizing your clients' or customers' changing habits can help you develop new product and service offerings in the future.
• Why this is the ideal time to be doubling down on content and on reaching out to new potential clients with helpfulness as part of your strategic business opportunities
• Why the most important lesson Jennifer learned from a mentor over the course of her career is the need for a willingness to shut everything down and start over

• Harvard Business Review's Roaring Out of Recession: https://hbr.org/2010/03/roaring-out-of-recession
• Website: http://businessvaluequiz.com
• Website: https://peekadvisory.com/
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferjpeek/
• Read this blog and achieve growth through strategic business opportunities

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Listen to this podcast with David Baker on his journey in finding strategic business opportunities

Want to learn how to find the right clients? Then it's time to learn from Jeff Koser, who is a successful entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience in executive sales management, consulting, and business strategy. He wrote a book on it. Actually, an award-winning book, Selling to Zebras. Jeff has appeared on some of the largest B2B sales podcasts over the past couple of years and he always leaves listeners with something that increases their sales effectiveness.

• Jeff explains what a "zebra" is, and he shares why working for a foreign-owned company with no prior sales in the US became the foundation of the zebra philosophy
• How to find the right clients while making the process easy and recognizable as spotting a zebra
• Why zeroing in on the ideal client helped Jeff and his team close a deal with 90% of the new clients they pursued
• Why recognizing critical business problems for potential prospects and focusing a content strategy around those pain points is the best way to survive challenging times
• Why your content should revolve around seven key attributes, and what those important attributes are
• How Zebrafi is beta-testing software that connects to Salesforce and will show you how to find the right clients that match the profile of your existing top customers
• Why focusing on pipeline close rate, average deal size, and length of sales cycle are the three key metrics that will supercharge your sales
• Why Jeff believes that focusing on a high volume of prospects is actually detrimental to the success of your business and a waste of your money and time
• How your proven success with customers like your zebras can help you land business with your zebras

• Connect with Zebrafi for a special offer to Onward Nation listeners for six months+ of unlimited free usage of the Zebrafi Salesbot, an AI-driven application that identifies prospects that are similar to the user's best customers. The offer to be part of the beta program is good for 6 months or more and it's FREE!
  • https://zebrafi.com/salesbot/
  • https://zebrafi.com/
• Email: [email protected]
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-koser-4a3911a0/
• Time to learn how to find the right clients with the help of the Zebra Salesbot

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Listen to a similar podcast on how to find the right clients from Predictive ROI

Stacey Kehoe has worked in digital marketing and brand development for the last ten years. She is also a podcast host and chief editor of the small business magazine, The Vault, which has gained her countless media features and award nominations. Since establishing her first purpose-driven business, Brandlective Communications Ltd in 2012, Stacey has built over 500 websites, brands, and marketing campaigns.

As a highly-sought-after expert, social media trainer, and speaker, Stacey has developed the one-of-a-kind Gamechanger Six-Step Digital Marketing Methodology after being approached by client after client who were dissatisfied with other agencies. She published this methodology in her newest book 'Get Online: 6 Simple Steps to Launching a Digital Marketing Strategy For the Non-Tech Savvy'. The method also forms a core part of Brandlectives services, facilitating campaign development and enhancing the speed at which its clients gain stellar results.

Stacey believes those with an entrepreneurial spirit should have the resources to rise above the noise, stand out from the crowd, and show their audience who they really are. These beliefs tie-in with her commitment to equality. She currently leads a movement called #1MillionDays: an initiative to reduce inequality through social, economic, and political inclusion of all people.

Originally from New Zealand, Stacey lives in London. She loves to travel and spend time with her family and friends.

• How Stacey and her team at Brandlective Communications launched their #1MillionDays initiative to align their purpose-driven business with the UN's global goals
• How Stacey's own experiences with inequalities after moving from New Zealand to the United Kingdom in 2006 informs her passion for reducing inequality
• What global projects Brandlective has become involved with, and how they have aligned their efforts with their work
• How Stacey and her team traveled to some of the destinations they have been supporting to meet the organizations on the ground, and why taking the team with her matters
• Why Brandlective doesn't reveal their efforts as part of their marketing strategy but rather discusses their social work with clients in their welcome packet
• How the #1MillionDays initiative and Brandlective's global efforts have had an impact on the company's culture
• How the team at Brandlective proved they're a purpose-driven business when they navigated the challenge of the global pandemic, and how they have worked to support their clients through the crisis
• What digital strategies and key advice Stacey would offer to business leaders, and why identifying and reaching out to your ideal client is key
• Why identifying the problems and pain points your ideal prospects are experiencing and then creating content to help solve those problems can be powerful
• Why Stacey recommends focusing on four key types of content: visual (video/graphics), audible (podcast/audio snippets), written (blogs/articles), and actionable (interactive)

• Website: www.brandlective.com
• Website: www.brandmag.co.uk
• Website: www.thegamechanger-scorecard.com
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stacey-kehoe-b8b25319/
• Read about how Brandlective became a purpose-driven business by making a difference

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Listen to a related podcast with John Dame on how you can lead with your purpose-driven business

Craig Cody is a Certified Tax Coach and the owner of the New York City based accounting firm, Craig Cody & Company. Craig belongs to a select group of tax practitioners who've undergone extensive training and continued education on various tax planning techniques and strategies. Craig is passionate about helping business owners understand which option is best by teaching the difference between tax planning — and tax paying — by helping them save significant money. Craig is also the co-author of the Amazon bestseller, "Secrets of a Tax Free Life."

• How the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan has changed recently, and what you need to know about the program
• What further changes Craig anticipates the government making to the PPP loan and forgiveness requirements
• How the government has created new options for partnership business that could result in those businesses getting still more money
• How to reach out to Craig if you have any other questions or need clarification on these new changes and know which option is best
• Why additional money for business partners may not have any cap, starting at around $40,000 for the first partner and going up
• Why Craig sees the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) as "cheap insurance" to help protect against whatever may happen in the near future
• What changes Craig believes might happen to the EIDL, and why it is taking a while for small businesses to get approved for EIDL
• How the use of the EIDL funds can potentially increase your business tax liability due to the use of EIDL funds cutting into your tax deductions
• How many of Craig's clients are operating under business-as-usual with relatively minor changes, with the exception of restaurants which are still struggling
• How to access Craig's free course "The Five Simple Ways to Save Thousands on Taxes and How Business Owners Can Start Today"
• How to know which option is best for your business and why you need to take advantage of it now

• Free Course: www.craigcodyandcompany.com/course
• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.theprogressivedentist.com
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/craigcodycpa
• Know which option is best by signing up for a free analysis with Craig Cody

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Learn from Craig Cody about which option is best for your tax savings

Greg Dickerson has the ability to lead others wherein he works as a serial entrepreneur, real estate developer, coach, and mentor. Over the past 20 years, he has bought, developed, and sold over $200 million in real estate, built and renovated hundreds of custom homes and commercial buildings, and started 12 different companies from the ground up. Greg currently coaches some of the top entrepreneurs, real estate investors and syndicators in the industry today.

• How Greg has always had big entrepreneurial ideas starting from a very young age, and how he found his way into construction and then real estate development
• How Greg has the natural ability to lead others when he built a $30 million real estate development business in just seven short years
• Why leading, delegating, motivating, effective marketing, and a focus on developing his employees have been critical components of Greg's success
• How Greg "leads by numbers," relying on KPIs to measure progress throughout the organization to ensure that the company is always moving the needle
• Why Greg sees his thought leadership efforts as a naturally occurring, organic extension of his business leadership
• How Greg has broken into thought leadership and content creation, and what important lessons he has learned about creating a competitive business edge
• Why being generous with your expertise can position yourself as an authority that your audience knows, likes and trusts
• What benefits Greg has received from his thought leadership efforts, and how he is building out his platform
• Why Greg tackles each day with intentionality and immediacy, and why a sense of urgency is vital for business leadership
• How developing yourself as a leader and understanding the people around you can help you improve your interactions with them and provide you with the ability to lead others

• Website: www.DickersonInternational.com
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/agregdickerson/
• Nurture your ability to lead others by applying for a one-on-one coaching and mentorship with Greg Dickerson

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Unlock your ability to lead others by listening to this podcast with Yigal Adato

Sara Taylor earned a master's degree in Diversity and Organizational Development from the University of Minnesota. She served as a leadership and diversity specialist at the University of Minnesota for five years and as director of diversity and inclusion for Ramsey County, Minnesota for three years.

Sara is the founder and president of deepSEE Consulting and has worked with companies as large as Coca-Cola, General Mills, 3M Company, AARP, and numerous others. She has a new book, "Filter Shift: How Effective People See the World," that explores how our unconscious is actually making choices and decisions for us, all without our knowing — and how to change that. On top of that, she also knows how to address racial disparities and we'll be talking about that in today's episode.

• How Sara's own experience as a white woman in a mixed-race family has helped drive her passion for diversity, equity, and inclusion while also allowing her to know how to address racial disparities
• Why Sara created a recent episode of her podcast around what she wishes she had known earlier about racial injustice, in an effort to process her own pain
• Why Sara struggled with some of her own stories, and why we as humans naturally hold onto our pain and trauma
• Sara shares an exchange she had with another small business owner that led to racist comments directed at her husband
• How microaggressions can build up over time to create painful traumas that have lasting repercussions in our lives
• How an episode of John Quiñones's "What Would You Do" series titled "The Bike Thief" highlights how we all experience the world differently
• Sara shares some of the shocking disparities and inequities that people of color experience in the United States
• How our societal systems have created these inequities and have done exactly what they were designed to do
• Why "equality" and "equity" aren't the same thing, and why we should be pursuing equity, not equality
• Sara explains and defines cultural competence, and she shares the five distinct stages of cultural competence
• How to address racial disparities and what steps business owners can take to create a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace within their organizations

• SEEing the Difference Online Course: https://deepseeconsulting.thinkific.com/courses/seeing-the-difference
• What Would You Do's "Bike Thief" Episode from John Quiñones: https://youtu.be/ge7i60GuNRg
• Dos and Don'ts Checklist: https://www.deepseeconsulting.com/shop/dos-and-donts-checklist
• Websites:
  • www.deepseeconsulting.com
  • www.filtershift.com
• Filter Shift by Sara Taylor: https://amzn.to/2N2QWJL
• Email: [email protected]
• Podcast: https://whatsthedifferencepodcast.com/
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/sarajanetaylor/
• Learn how to address racial disparities in your organization by scheduling a consultation with Sara Taylor

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Listen to something similar with how to address racial disparities by joining JT McCormick in this podcast

Brian Gill is a computer scientist, entrepreneur, and angel investor. Brian currently serves as Chairman of Gillware, which provides cyber risk assessments, data recovery, incident response, and digital forensics services. He is a co-founder of Phoenix Nuclear Labs and served on PNLs board from inception to when it decided to spin-off SHINE Medical Technologies. Those two companies have raised over 100 million dollars of venture capital and employ hundreds of people in Wisconsin.

In this episode, Brian will be talking about the dangers of ransomware and how it can affect your data security if you don't do anything about it. It's important that online threats like this must be prevented to ensure no one becomes a victim ever again.

• How Brian first began a successful data recovery business before getting involved in funding nuclear science technology research
• How the rise in ransomware attacks has helped position Brian's data recovery business as an industry specialist spinoff of the main business
• How the dangers of ransomware is used by criminals to can gain access to your network, and how "social engineering" scams are the keys they use to get in
• How criminals will encrypt all the data in your network and then blackmail you into paying large sums of money to release your own data
• Why many of these criminals work for state-sponsored criminal syndicates and aren't even breaking the law in their local jurisdiction
• Why too many business owners are reticent to spend money on security systems, leaving their businesses vulnerable in ways they may not even understand
• How to avoid the dangers of ransomware by investing into your data security and prevent or minimize costly financial disasters later
• Brian shares some of the early challenges he encountered and mistakes he made and discusses the key lessons he learned
• Why choosing your investment partners to raise capital for your business is vital, and why the right investors can bring more than just money to the table
• How Brian uses both internal and external marketing and thought leadership as a powerful way to repurpose content and connect with existing and new audiences

• Website: www.gillware.com
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/brian-gill-68997a38/
• Read about an in-depth look into the dangers of ransomware

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Apart from the dangers of ransomware, get to know all about the other cyber threats

Darren Virassammy is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of 34 Strong, a team that believes everyone deserves a great place to work and that any workplace can be great. He believes that once you can identify your strengths and weaknesses, your organization can reach even greater heights.

A leading expert in the global employee engagement community, the 34 Strong team leverages the Strengths-Based approach to human development to create massive shifts within organizations, both culturally and on the bottom line. He and his team have created sustainable change in small microbusinesses, all the way up to large organizational teams at the FDA, Bank of America, American Licorice, and The California Department of Public Health.

Recently, Darren has served as keynote for Hitachi Global Women's Conference, The Rotary World Peace Conference, The Professional Grounds Management Society, and Author Mike Michalowicz Profit Con (where he also closed down the conference by performing a solo bass guitar piece he composed titled Metamorphosis as a tribute to the journey of entrepreneurs) Darren's 34 Strong Business partner, Brandon Miller is the co-author (with his wife Analyn Miller) of a Strengths-Based Parenting book titled: Play to Their Strengths due out in July of 2019.

• How a transformational moment with his young daughter awoke Darren to his own potential and forced him to reevaluate his life and goals
• Why Darren's personal experiences feeling simultaneously engaged and disengaged between two different jobs helped to inform his work today
• Why Darren chose to name his company 34 Strong after being inspired by Gallup's Clifton StrengthsFinder 2.0
• Why business owners too often minimize or devalue the power of their own strengths, and why leaning into your top strengths is the key to success
• How learning to identify your strengths and weaknesses can make yourself even more worthy as a leader
• Why as much as 70% of an employee's level of engagement or disengagement is tied to their manager
• Why 82% of promotions into management roles are based on technical skills and tenure but neglect the importance of talent and training
• Why playing to your strengths and managing around your weaknesses can help improve engagement across your organization
• How Darren's "Grind, Greatness, Genius" cycle can help you identify your strengths and weaknesses and determine where to focus your time
• What key lesson Darren learned from a Grammy award-winning bass musician mentor that can be applied to daily habits within your business
• Why joining a mastermind group can be a powerful resource to give you a fresh perspective on your business

• 34 Strong Overview video: https://vimeo.com/300826565
• Darren's Creating Excellence Through Strengths: https://youtu.be/EkLUn9Vpfxs
• 34 Strong website: www.34strong.com
• Strengths-Based Parenting Blog: https://www.analynbrandon.com/blog/
• Free Exercise Download: https://www.34strong.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/GeniusZone.pdf
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/strengthsfinder/
• Continue to identify your strengths and weaknesses by listening to our podcast episodes

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Listen and identify your strengths and weaknesses by tuning-in to this podcast episode with our guest, Lolly Daskal

Gideon Shalwick is a serial entrepreneur who knows how to create engaging video content in the online video space for over a decade. His entrepreneurial journey started about a decade ago, when he felt unfulfilled in his career. He had a wonderful job in New Zealand, but felt that something was "off." After leaving his job to work for himself, Gideon and his wife decided to start over, and on a whim they moved from New Zealand to Australia. With this fresh start, they found a renewed energy to focus on their life as an entrepreneurial family.

After learning a few lessons from The Entrepreneurial School of Hard Knocks, Gideon found his niche in video marketing. He honed in on his passion for video content creation, learning all he could about leveraging exceptional video content to reach the right audience in today's increasingly-noisy digital world. Since then, Gideon has kept his finger on the pulse when it comes to trends in social media and content marketing, and he knows how crucial it is for brands to connect and engage with their online communities through video.

When Gideon realized that 85% of viewers watch video content on silent mode, he realized the importance of captions — and not just native captions, but real, personalized captions that add value to video content. So he launched Splasheo, a video captioning service where his team of real people manually transcribe the videos of brands and influencers, and burn those captions directly into the video using engaging layouts. Because of the human touch, the result is exceptional: appealing videos, free of distracting typos/grammatical errors, to create engaging video content while making an impact.

• How Gideon's entrepreneurial journey began by being stuck in a job that wasn't making him happy, and how he and his wife decided to immigrate to Australia and start a business
• How writing a successful book taught Gideon the importance of learning to run a business, and how chance and good fortune led him to beginning his work in the video space
• Why video is a unique and empowering medium that allows people to share their message like never before in history
• What issues Gideon recognizes that often holds business owners back from making the jump to video, and why great video content is about authentic messages and connections
• Why Gideon believes we are all motivated by four core drivers: connections to others, feeling significant, the need for freedom, and feeling in control
• How Gideon and his team built the four core drivers into their business model, and why helping clients build significance is the company's main focus
• How Gideon's realization that 85% of viewers watch video content with the sound off was important for the success of Splasheo
• How Splasheo users have seen significant gains in their engagement statistics by adding captions to their video content
• Why video captions trigger mental images in viewers, adding an entirely new level of visual element to viewers' experience
• How video content can be sliced and diced and repurposed for many different uses, and how to create engaging video content with ease

• Free Trial of Splasheo: www.splasheo.com/onwardnation
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/user/GideonShalwick
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/gideonshalwick/
• Learn about the features of Splasheo and then create engaging video content today!

• Sell With Authority by Drew McLellan and Stephen Woessner: https://amzn.to/39y7x13
• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• Stephen Woessner's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Learn how to create engaging video content and make it your own cornerstone content