Roanoke Podcast For Good

Roanoke Podcast For Good

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Roanoke Podcast For Good episodes

  • 30: How to Make Leaders Better Leaders | Lynda Foster | Cortex Leadership

    Lynda McNutt Foster, the Chief Executive Officer of Cortex Leadership Consulting, has more than twenty years of speaking and training experience and more than seven years experience as a leadership coach. Looking at her impressive resume, she has been an entrepreneur since she was twenty years old, owning several different types of businesses, working in several executive positions, and she has authored two books.

    43 min
  • Episode 030: How to Make Leaders Better Leaders | Lynda Foster | Cortex Leadership

    Be Inspired | Do Good:

    Work is not a bad word to me, [. . .] it becomes part of who you are and the way you communicate who you are. – Lynda Foster

    Lynda McNutt Foster, the Chief Executive Officer of Cortex Leadership Consulting, has more than twenty years of speaking and training experience and more than seven years experience as a leadership coach. Looking at her impressive resume, she has been an entrepreneur since she was twenty years old, owning several different types of businesses, working in several executive positions, and she has authored two books. She currently runs Cortex Leadership Consulting, a firm that uses scientific-based assessments to train and coach leaders to be more effective and efficient in their business, GoMonti, an interactive texting platform for leaders, and she is a weekly contributor to Virginia at Work on WFXR News and Good Day Virginia.

    Lynda has not always lived in Roanoke; she grew up in Miami, Florida with her two siblings and entrepreneurial family. Her parents were entrepreneurs, her grandparents were entrepreneurs, and her uncles and aunts were entrepreneurs. It was only natural for her to continue and establish her own business. After graduating from college, she relocated to Roanoke with her husband, Dan, and they began Best Pest Control and Best Pressure Cleaning.
    She now works as the Chief Executive Officer of Cortex Leadership and is privileged to inspire and motivate leaders to have more effective communication skills that ultimately transform their personal lives and the way they run their business. She also feels privileged to facilitate conversation that may never had happened before for others to openly express themselves, their vulnerabilities, and their intelligence.
    Lynda’s favorite component of doing business in Roanoke is the people. This Southwestern Virginia city is a wonderful area to start a new business because if you treat the people right, they will show their support and their loyalty to your business. It is a great place for a small startup to begin, grow, and expand. Smart people choose to live in Roanoke, they are intentionally living here and intentionally doing business here.
    For leaders, Lynda shares three things that can be done today to help achieve peak performance for themselves and their teams:

    * Work on Yourself First: Before you can start to help your team, you will need to help yourself and work to be a more effective communicator. Leaders are not perfect, they will need to apologize their actions, ask what was missed, and realize they are not the smartest person in the room.
    * Learn about Millennials: Millennials are very different to manage than other generations because they thirst for purpose and meaning; learn about how to talk to them and how to manage them to make your organization more effective.
    * Avoid Burnout: Working hard is very important, but so is managing your life and making sure you devote the right amount of time to eating, sleeping, running, relaxing, and enjoying time off. There should always be someone with you who will ask how you are doing and make sure you are taking necessary time off so you can avoid burnout.

     
    On her LinkedIn page, Lynda frequently posts advice for business leaders. In a post entitled How to leaders spot the elephant in the office?, Lynda shows leaders how to acknowledge what is causing productivity and growth to slow.
    “The proverbial “elephant” in the room. You’ve experienced it, I know you have. The topic that everyone was talking about before the meeting for days and sometimes weeks isn’t being brought up in the meeting. It’s the only thing that really matters to anyone, and yet, no one says anything about it. You dare not be the one to bring it up. Maybe you’ve been the one to bring it up before.
    43 min
  • Episode 029: Good Writing Matters for Small Businesses | Nanette Levin | Roanoke Revealed

    Be Inspired | Do Good:
    Nanette Levin, who has several years of experience in marketing and communications, has always been an champion of the underdog for small businesses. When she started her marketing firm in Rochester, NY in the 1980’s, small businesses were disrespected frequently if they were not financially strong and were thought of as “mom and pop” shops, but they deserved more respect. She began to provide consultant support, copywriting, and other services that were more affordable by delivering them in small pieces. She has served clients both nationally and internationally.
    Recently, Nanette relocated her life and business to the Roanoke area in pursuit of a lower cost of living and longer growing season. She is helping more local and small businesses through her company from Rochester with marketing, promotion, and communications. She offers copywriting services with strategic development, marketing plans, ghost writing, speeches, short nonfiction books, and editing support. In addition, she established a new business that takes advantage of the growing season which provides chemical-free customized packages of fruits and vegetables to a small number of clients.

    Nanette has also worked for publications like The Catholic Virginian and she currently publishes Roanoke Revealed, a blog about the cultural attractions of Roanoke. She started the blog after moving to Roanoke to keep her accountable of exploring the area more and help share her knowledge of small businesses with others. The blog shares small business issues and resources, attractions in the area, and helps to show more of what Roanoke offers.
    For small businesses, Nanette shares secrets for getting their message out there:

    * Be Specific: find a tight niche to serve, instead of trying to be general and making products for everyone since these general products may actually appeal to no one
    * Good Writing Skills: the written and spoken words of businesses are the first impression for a new customer and it will impact their decision to use your business; if you are not good at writing, find someone who is
    * Focus on Your Identity: do not neglect the presentation of your business’ identity package (letterhead, logo, and business cards), these will also create an impression long before you even talk to your customer
    * Have Fun: if you do not enjoy your business, you will not have the stamina and mindset to get through difficult times and your customers will catch on; they will go somewhere else to someone they enjoy being around
    * Serve Others: doing business and looking at it from a serving perspective is key
    * Network with a Few Others: at networking events, do not focus on handing everyone your business card; instead, identify a few people who are most significant to your goals and spend more time with them and make sure to follow up afterwards

     
    Nanette Shares More About Networking in Roanoke Revealed:
    While I sputtered at first, I’m now finding Roanoke to be an easy small business networking town. Most cities are. Unless you’re moving to a metropolis like New York City, Los Angeles or Chicago, you’ll discover those active in the community show up repeatedly. This presents great opportunities for an owner willing to participate and deliver.
    My first stop after landing in Roanoke was the Small Business Development Center (SBDC). I met with Director, Bart Smith. He helped me get a lay of the local land shape my branding strategy. If you’re a business owner looking for objective perspectives or an individual considering entrepreneurship, this is a good place to find free (technically you’re paying for this with your tax dollars) counsel.
    I looked into chambers in Roanoke.
    44 min
  • Episode 028: Businesses Can Be Successful and Thrive in Roanoke | Drew Arney | Wingman Outfitter

    Be Inspired | Do Good:
    Drew Arney, a Financial Advisor by day and a business owner by night, created a new accessory for canoes that will help stabilize them on the river and add extra storage.
    Drew grew up in Roanoke, graduated from Longwood University, and moved to Washington, D.C. to begin working for an international firm. He passed his Certified Public Account exam after a few years and requested a transfer to move back home to Roanoke. When his wife became pregnant, he decided to switch jobs to become a Financial Advisor in order to provide more for his family.

    He joined with a friend to create Wingman Outfitter, a canoe outrigger that utilizes coolers to provide stability, storage, and safety on the river. The team initially made thirty products, which quickly sold out, so they double their manufacturing process to create sixty outriggers and are in the process of selling them now.
    Drew’s favorite part about owning a business in Roanoke is the amount of resources the city has to offer with CoLab, Roanoke Outside, ScaleUp Roanoke, and Star Tank. There are also a lot of rivers around Roanoke for the team and customers to use the canoe outrigger.
    If you are starting a business, Drew shares tips for business owners to successful:

    * Exceed Customer Expectations: provide a product or a service better than what the customer thinks they are going to get
    * Be Grounded Spiritually: before Drew takes on a challenge, he looks to God for answers and it allows his mind to stay calm as he moves forward
    * Have A Good Relationship With Your Spouse: your spouse provides support and motivates you since they believe in you
    * Follow A Morning Routine: prepare your body and mind for the tasks at hand each day so you can be more effective in your work
    * Work Smarter, Not Harder: take extra time to plan ahead; this will create less stress and cause you to not waste time as you try to figure out what you’re doing as you’re doing it

    The Wingman Outfitter has been reviewed Canoe & Kayak Magazine, DeadDrift Outfitters, CanoeVibes, and Pythom.
     
    LINKS AND RESOURCES FROM THIS EPISODE:
    Wingman Outfitter Website
    Wingman Outfitter Facebook
    Email Drew
     
    LIKE WHAT YOU’VE HEARD? SHARE WITH OTHERS TO INSPIRE THEM TOO!
    Thanks for joining me again this week. If you have any tips, suggestions, or comments about this episode, please be sure to leave them in the comment section below.
    If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons below. Thank you!
    29 min

About Roanoke Podcast For Good

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Our mission for the podcast is very simple: to help share  the stories of the trendsetters, innovators, givers, and best providers in Roanoke, Virginia. You know, the thought-leaders, entrepreneurs,…