In this episode of Real Small Business with The McGraw Council, John Beaman discusses our most recent podcast, our upcoming seminar series, and a new certification course that small business owners can take to create structure in their businesses. In a nutshell, John discusses the podcast with Bruce Fain and why it resonates on a deeper level. John also talks about Bruce’s upcoming seminar series with Turtle Creek Financial Group and why it relates to the small business owner. The six-part series starts on June 3rd and you can watch live on Facebook and YouTube!

Also, John briefly discussed The McGraw Council’s new program in which small businesses can earn a Certificate of Excellence. In this program, small business owners build and create structure with help in a supportive environment so that the business can become a successful system that works beyond one or two people. Visit www.TheMcgrawCouncil.com to learn more and subscribe for more great, helpful content!

In this episode of Real Small Business with The McGraw Council, Bruce Fain of Turtle Creek Financial Group shares his business journey and his insights for small business owners! Sign up at www.TheMcgrawCouncil.com for small business support, resources, and more!

Pray

Bruce is truly devoted to his faith and integrates into his lifestyle and business practices. Bruce starts every day with prayer and ensures that his faith is always a driving force for his business to keep it on the right course!

Plan

Plan, plan, and then plan – having dreams is a wonderful thing but they do not come to fruition without planning. Make a good plan, and then take action! However, remember that you are not writing a dust collection; use your plan and leverage it!

Persevere

Life will always have a moment or two when it tries to keep you down. When this happens, push through and persevere! This is where the faith and planning come into play – with the right foundation you can push through!

In this episode of Real Small Business with The McGraw Council, Tim Cypert of Cypert Insurance shares his life journey and how he ultimately became a small business owner. Tim shared the highs, the lows, what inspired him to be a business owner, and then he also shared his three tips for small business owners! Sign up at www.TheMcgrawCouncil.com for small business support, resources, and more!

Make Sure Your Spouse is On Board

Before you start a business, make sure your spouse is 100% on board before you start. Owning a small business is exhilarating and can be incredibly rewarding, but it will also have its great challenges. If you have a spouse, it is imperative that you make sure you are both 100% supportive of the endeavor because it will impact both of you as well as your family.

Have a Work Ethic

This should go without saying, but it is a common problem. Word hard on the little things and all of the big things will come together. Simple things like returning phone calls quickly (within 24 hours) can do wonders but you have to work it because it won’t happen by itself.

Give More Than You Receive

Always strive to give back more than you receive. Why? For one, it’s simply a good thing to do to serve and help others as we have been called to do. Secondly, it always comes back to help you accomplish your goals. Give back and watch the magic happen!

In this episode, Dr. Asa Hadsell joins us as he shares his small business journey and his experience in business ownership! Dr. Asa is a former Big 4 tax consultant and is now a small business owner! Dr. Asa shares his tips for small business owners which are below but, if you want the full context, listen to the podcast above! For more free help and support, sign up at www.TheMcgrawCouncil.com!

Focus on Serving Others

When you focus on serving others, success follows; it is a very common pattern in humanity. That being said, serving others does not inherently mean being a martyr. Lead through service, give back, but realize it does not inherently mean being the martyr.

Get a Mentor

There is a saying, “the best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago… the second best time is now.” This applies to finding a business coach and/or mentor – surround yourself with good people you can trust and watch yourself grow!

Control Your Personal Finances First

If you cannot manage your personal finances, you are not yet ready to manage a business’s finances. Once you have control over your own finances, then you can start to think about starting a business but until then, ensure you have control over your own finances first.

Be Willing to Grow – Personally

Yes, growth is a part of business, but this also includes personal growth. You must be willing to grow personally, and you must seek growth. If you do not grow personally, you cannot grow your team, which means you cannot grow your business.

In this episode of Real Small Business with The McGraw Council, Mike Ross of 91 Media joins us to share his business life story! Mike is an entrepreneur who helps small businesses communicate and build relationships with their customers but, as of late, Mike has expanded into the world of apps which he discusses! Mike also shares his insights for small business owners and if you want to get more of this applicable help, sign up at www.TheMcgrawCouncil.com!

Build Processes

Mike stresses the importance of building processes – not only does this make your business scalable and a real business, but it also saves you massive time. If you do not have your business built on processes yet, you should begin to build your processes immediately.

Delegate

Whenever you can delegate tasks and responsibilities that others can do without compromising quality, do it immediately. This will allow you to focus on building your business, which is a role that only you can perform and perform well. Delegate whatever you can so that you can put your time and energy towards growing your business.

Implement Agreements

Although it may seem unnecessary at times, if you provide a service, be sure to implement clear and enforceable agreements. Not only will this help you collect payment but it will also help you avoid various legal issues. Implementing clear agreements will support your processes around product/service delivery and will help you keep your business moving forward!

In this episode of Real Small Business with The McGraw Council, Gerald Hendrik of Rockwall Wealth Advisors joins us to share his business journey and his tips for small business owners! Gerald started his small business during the pandemic but was building it years in advance! Watch the full podcast to learn how Gerald did it successfully! For more insights and guidance, sign up at www.TheMcgrawCouncil.com!

Enjoy the Grind

As Gerald says, if you want to succeed as a small business owner, you must enjoy the grind. Why? Because it is going to be a grind each and every day. If you enjoy the grind, you will enjoy your business! If you enjoy your business, you are more likely to succeed!

Just Start

As Gerald notes and discusses throughout the podcast, when the stars align, pull the trigger and get going! Yes, have a plan in place with a very clear vision, but when the stars align and everything checks out, overcome any potential fear and pull the trigger!

Be an Expert

Gerald says this should go without saying but, sadly, too many small business owners start before they are an expert and what happens is that they end up losing their dream. If you are consistently one of the most knowledgeable people about your craft, that’s a great sign. If, however, you disproportionately find yourself asking for help or advice about your specific craft, you may want to wait to start your own business. Patience is a virtue!

Small business owner Colin Clemitson of www.growcashflow.net joined us on our podcast to share his small business life story, how his business helps other businesses, as well as his insights for other small business owners. To get more insights on business, best practices, insights, and more, sign up at www.TheMcgrawCouncil.com and get started today! Again, thank you to our sponsors who made this podcast possible!

Build Your Customer Avatar

If you do not have a customer avatar built for your business yet, start building it as soon as possible. This customer avatar does not limit your ability to serve others outside of the avatar but it gives you a very good reference point to target as your ideal client.

Differentiate Your Offering

You must differentiate your offering in your customers’ eyes. This differentiation must be something truly unique otherwise you will enter commodity space. When this transpires, you enter a price war, and that is not profitable space for small businesses.

Test Your Productivity

For one day this week, test your productivity by measuring your revenue-generating activities. Start off by measuring what you accomplish every 15 minutes for one workday (eight hours). If you find that less than 20% of your time is spent on revenue-generating activities, you likely need to adjust your schedule. Your efforts must contribute to revenue growth or your business will not thrive.

In this podcast, Zac Wilcox with Wilcox Consulting joins us to discuss his business life story and his business journey! Zac owns a young business and shares what it looks like to own and operate such a young consulting business while also sharing his three tips for small business owners! For more great content and other small business support, sign up to receive our newsletter at www.TheMcgrawCouncil.com!

Institutionalize Your Purpose

If you wish to achieve your vision and take it to its maximum potential, you must institutionalize your vision. You must make it part of the fabric of your business as this will ensure you live your vision throughout your business! Note, however, that this does not mean bureaucratizing your business – list to the full podcast to learn the difference.

Don’t Overwork

Yes, you must be willing to put in the long hours and long days to succeed but identify what you mean specifically when you say success. It will take time and effort to get where you want to go but realize that operating at a sustainable pace will be important for your success.

Align Your Values

If you have not recently done so, do a quick evaluation within your business to see if it is truly aligned. If your stated values and the values your employees act out do not align, you must seek to remedy this right away. An aligned business is secure, whereas a misaligned business is vulnerable.

In this podcast, Dr. Shah Khan shares his small business journey in the startup mode! Dr. Shah is in the middle of starting his business and he shares a glimpse into the process of starting a small business. Moreover, Dr. Shah also shares his tips for small business owners! Remember to sign up at www.TheMcgrawCouncil.comto receive great content like this as well as how you can incorporate it into your business!

Find Good Mentors

Dr. Shah shares how important good mentors are to an individual’s and business’s success. Surround yourself with people you want to become; by doing so, you will empower yourself to grow and thrive!

Feel the Pain

When you are experiencing pain, know that it can actually be a very good thing. As people, we don’t grow when we’re comfortable but rather when we’re uncomfortable. If you are experiencing pain, strive to use it for your growth and how else you can use it for your success!

Discipline

Discipline is essential to success and it must be implemented across your business. One prime example of using discipline to succeed is ensuring you consistently enforce your standards and procedures; this produces consistency in your business. Discipline will not only help you grow and improve as an individual but it will also help you thrive!

In this podcast, small business owner Savannah Hill shares her experiences in small business and how she built the business of her dreams! Moreover, Savannah also shares a few tips for small business owners and what it meant for her, especially during a crazy year like 2020. Below is the summary but definitely listen the full audio for a great story! Thank you to a sponsors Acciva, JobFormance, McGraw Capital Partners, and Merchant Masters for making this podcast available! Sign up to get free business help at www.TheMcgrawCouncil.com! 

Network

Regardless of your business, Savannah notes the importance of networking, especially in your local community. Even if you serve a large geography, you will have a local home base so-to-speak, so definitely network in various groups and especially the local groups!

Set Goals, Especially for Your Education

Set goals for yourself and your business but especially for your own education. It is imperative that you continually learn so that you can be in the best position possible to succeed! However, this is does not happen by itself; set goals for yourself to learn so that you will continually improve and grow!

Hire the Help

It is difficult to do at times but, as a small business owner, you must be willing to hire help that you can outsource. This will allow you to focus on what only you can do and will help you scale your business.