Sketchy Ideas

By Sketchy Ideas Show

Sketchy Ideas is a video podcast where Michael and Brad illustrate and debate concepts surrounding leadership, business, and personal achievement in a way that'll make you think twice before you imple... more

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FAQs about Sketchy Ideas:

How many episodes does Sketchy Ideas have?

The podcast currently has 95 episodes available.

Sketchy Ideas episodes:

April 02, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 36: Upgrading Your Team
1:36 Intro
Intro/Opening remarks

The topic is: Upgrading Your Team
2:30 Sponsors
SPEARity (SPEARity.com)

Cream City Marketing (creamcitymarketing.com)
4:15 Diving in
Upgrading your team → Talent development

How we got here:
How to grow your business through things like process, delegating, leadership, responsibility vs. accountability

Don’t send your employees to class
Traning is only the answer when one of these things is true
Can’t
Skills issue

Won’t
Motivation issue

Don’t know how
Training and development

“Training isn’t always the answer” -M
7:08 Ways to develop your people
**Things we won’t be talking about**
Classroom training

On the job training

Structured/Fixed

One time/checkbox

Just like a VHS tape, training wears out and becomes outdated

Buddy System

Simulators (Will touch on this in a future episode)

Throwing in the deep end

Different ways to mentor/teach (Will touch on this in a future episode)

Training shouldn’t be a beginning and end process
More of a mindset thing

Iterations of process will need iterations of training

“You want to develop your internal people consistently” -B
12:25 Michael’s additions to the list
Learnability

Learning agility

“We sketch about the sketchy ideas that we’re going to sketch about on the Sketchy Ideas show” -B

Hire for less and reinvest

“Less of a ‘go do this’ thing, but more of a ‘see if they work for you’ thing” -M
15:48 Talent Mindset
You need to think about the talent of your team more than just the people on your team

Old school mindset
Training those who you think will be there the longest

That thinking is flawed!

You are no more loyal to your employees than they are to you

If your company is known for exporting good talent, what do you attract? TALENT

Top talent wants to be taken care of and get better

“Calculating how much money you’re spending in training is missing the point” -M
18:25 The Buddy System
When you hire, you hire in two
Doesn’t have to be the same position

Part-time split or contract work

When the training starts, they start to ask each other questions and become self-reliant on each other

You can then challenge them by throwing them in the deep end together

People in classrooms are more likely to ask classmates for help instead of asking a teacher - same concept here

Starting together creates a learning bond

Accelerates the ability to learn and become part of process

One of the top engaging things in the workplace is having a friend at work
Helps people stay longer too

If you can’t hire two people, a temp job may be a better route

Show notes can be found here
...more
34min
March 26, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 35: Skills Pay Bills
0:22 Intro
Intro/Opening remarks

The topic is: Skills Pay Bills
0:52 Sponsors
SPEARity (SPEARity.com)

Cream City Marketing (creamcitymarketing.com)
2:22 Diving into the topic
Want to make sure that your processes are aligned with the right skills and the right roles

Michaels favorite red flag = TTWWADI (That’s The Way We’ve Always Done It)
TTWWADI is not a process

TTWWADI’s are often the source of roles and job descriptions
Operating by default and not strategically

“I’ve never liked using job descriptions, especially when there isn’t clarity in that position” -B

Clarity of function within the process

What is this person’s direct contribution to the success of the overall output
10:27 Notice of tech problem :)
Never went live

It was recorded, so no big deal

Episodes since tech prob goes from 6 to 0 :(
12:20 How to get clarity in the function
1. Strategy

2. Process

3. Structure (order)

4. Metrics + Rewards

5. Competencies

6. People

Easier to implement these changes for new businesses

Small incremental changes to get the most clarity
16:40 Candle example
Cut a big candle into equal-sized smaller candles

Being able to see all of the candles burning at the same time lets you see how and where you need to make these iterative changes to make your process better
18:53 Metrics and Rewards
Making sure you’re measuring the right things and reinforcing the right behaviors
19:30 Competencies & People
When looking for something to get done, you normally look at who you have on your team
Unknowingly, this is a constraint (ttwwadi)

If you’re able to dig into the process, you’ll be able to see where things can be systematized and automated
Cut your process into smaller chunks of a candle

Easier to outsource parts

By defining processes down to the smallest possible logical component, you can get a more critical understanding of the crucial competencies for that process
Helps you understand what need or skill is needed

25:00 skills and competencies
Split your process into different functions

Different functions can fall under different roles
Do you need all of those functions, or can you find different options?

When buying a drill bit, you’re actually buying the hole
The outcome you’re looking for

Sell the OUTCOME, not the ITEM
Use this when defining roles as well

29:30 Closing remarks
The podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, & Anchor

Check out SketchyIdeasshow.com

If you have any sketchy ideas, email us at [email protected]

Just because it’s a sketchy idea, doesn’t mean it’s not worth exploring!

Full Show notes here
...more
33min
March 19, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 34: A Team of Delegators with Michelle Penczak
0:39 Intro
Intro/Opening remarks

The topic is: Team of Delegators with Michelle Penczak
1:30 Sponsors
SPEARity (SPEARity.com)

Cream City Marketing (creamcitymarketing.com)
2:35 The origin of SquaredAway
Michelle Penczak is today’s guest
Her background story:
1. Can’t get hired

2. Took a temp job

3. Deployed husband

4. Pregnant

5. Employer goes bankrupt

6. Crazy business partner

7. Growing a human and a company

8. Move base to Hawaii

9. Woke up early (3 am Hawaii time to work with EST clients)

10. Do it again…

Business origin story, “Failure + an idea that’s crazier than mine” -Michael
Sometimes it takes someone with a crazier idea than yours to get you out of your comfort zone

CEO and Cofounder of SquaredAway
170 Assistants

All virtual

“Michelle was doing virtual before everyone was doing virtual” -B
“I was virtual before virtual was cool” -Michelle

10:25 Growing her team to meet demand
They treat the client/assistant relationship as a partnership
Always 2 steps ahead

The majority of the assistants are military spouses

Internal collaboration constantly
“A professional, with a team of other professionals behind them” -Michael

Hire one or hire 170 for the price of one… smart investment ;)

If an assistant needs to leave or take time off, a new assistant is up to speed and ready to jump in
15:55 How the delegates receive their information
Most times, clients look for a PA if they are:
Overwhelmed

Frazzled

End of the road

“Help me please”

Steps to get your life back on track:
Get on the call with your assistant

Pick weekly call times

BRAIN DUMP
Not typing it all out or giving it to them in any way besides the call or voice memo

“You don’t even have to hop on a call, send it in a voice memo” -Michelle

Everything is now handed off to the assistant
They are responsible for:
Tracking it

Organizing it

Helping you prioritize it in a living document that gets updated weekly during/after weekly brain dump calls

**Counterintuitive to last weeks episode**

B & M said to document and make it clear so you can delegate

At some point, you will get where you can’t/don’t know where to start and that’s where executive assistant come in

“Your job is to literally give it away to someone else to take care of it for you” -Michelle

Show notes can be found here
...more
34min
March 12, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 33: Delegation
2:09 Intro
Intro/Opening remarks

The topic is: Delegating - how to make other people do your stuff
2:52 Sponsors
SPEARity (SPEARity.com)

Cream City Marketing (creamcitymarketing.com)
4:10 Overview of working smarter, not harder
Finding a way to delegate work to others on your team, while making sure they are being done with high quality

Following the next steps
What it means to be a great leader

Who’s responsible/accountable

Process Documentation

Delegation

“Documenting your processes and having a plan is like delegating to your future self” -M

Documenting processes means you are ready to delegate to someone else

There are things that you can’t delegate

Being busy doesn’t always mean you’re being productive

You shouldn’t feel like you’re stuck running on a hamster wheel - take a hamster vacation

“Without delegation, I was running myself ragged working 18-20 hours a day, sleeping 4 hours a day, not eating, not taking care of myself.” -B
Running a business means everything has to get done

9:08 When do I need to delegate?
“It’s like planting a tree. The right answer is yesterday and the second-best answer is today.” -M

Task Triage
Do it now *NOW*
Important and high priority

Do it later *LATER*
Important, but not urgent

Above line = YOU ------------------------------------- Below line =OTHERS
Delegate it *NOW*
It needs to get done, but not by me

Urgent, but not important

Dump it *LATER*
Not urgent, not important

Deconstruct the task if you’re not clear where it falls on the task triage
Break the task into smaller parts and see where it fits in the triage

YOU don’t always need to do all 7 steps - only number 4 - delegate the rest

“The magic of delegation and prioritization comes in when breaking it down” -M

KISS rule
Keep

It

Simple

Stupid

13:45 Segmenting to the triage
Use the 80/20 rule
Do it now = 20%

Do it later = 80%

20% Above line = YOU ------------------------------------- 80% Below line =OTHERS
Start with email inbox management
An email is not a thing, it’s a container for a thing

80% of your inbox are things that you don’t need to do
Delegate it

Start small and find what works for you

Documenting your process isn’t meant to add more work to your load.
Back the truck up

This will allow you to delegate it out and lessen your workload

Full Show Notes Here
...more
35min
March 04, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 32: Sausage Making with Brad and Michael
0:34 Intro
Intro/Opening remarks

The topic is: How Sausage is Made (the process of process making)
1:35 Sponsors
SPEARity (SPEARity.com)

Cream City Marketing (creamcitymarketing.com)
2:19 Digging into the details
Americanism concept: If you want to enjoy the sausage, don’t ask how it gets made

“You lose your appreciation for laws and sausages if you learn how they are made” -M
" Laws... like, sausages, cease to inspire respect in proportion as we know how they are made" - John Godfrey Saxe 1869

Most people don’t pay attention to their processes
As a business owner, you NEED to pay attention to them

“Your business is made up of many processes, whether you think it or not” -B

Processes can be delegated as chores for your kids at home

The more you work on a process, the better you will get
5:18 Two main reasons to solidify your processes
The ability to make things better
Process → Repeatable → Measurable → Can be improved

Your processes shouldn’t be different every time you do them…
Can have minimal changes, but shouldn’t be drastically different each time

“People have anxiety if they can’t find the consistency on how things get done” -B

Outcomes can have predictability if you follow a process

**Chick-fil-a Story** Processes to create scalability
Michael mentioned to the manager that they probably need to work very efficiently to hand the volume they were handling

He gets invited to the back

Everything was documented

Whiteboard above drive-thru window with guest times, number of guests, etc.

Monitors running live time stats
Twitter feed

Cookie station
Visual chart showing what a cookie looks like when it’s baked perfectly, when it’s underbaked, and when it’s overbaked

You don’t need a lot of money to document your processes

Your processes are essentially your playbook for winning

“Document things as you are doing them, especially as a solopreneur” -B

Creating a process is not difficult, most people just overthink it

19:15 Steps to create your process
Step 1: Start with your end deliverable
Vision and expectations

Step 2: Don’t overthink it

Step 3: Write it down
Your documentation doesn’t need to be perfect the first time

This is your rough draft - it can be refined

Step 4: Run the process
Run it in your head or the physical steps

Make notes as you run the process

Step 5: Iterate the process
This step will be done multiple times

Step 6: Measure the process
Where are places that I can measure the process

The more processes made = better quality

Step 7: Train it and name it
Train others on your process - delegate it out

Step 8: Apply technology
Full Show Notes Here
...more
35min
February 25, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 31: That's Not My Job
3:35 Background of today’s topic
The difference between responsibility and accountability

In Lithuania, “accountability” and “responsibility” translate to be the same word
They are NOT the same thing

Some cultures also do not define the word “entrepreneurship”

“There are 300 different words for ‘snow’ in Eskimo because it’s everywhere” -M

“If your brain doesn’t have a word for it, then you have no framework for it” -M
No word for it means you’re starting from square one

7:20 Diving into the topic
Responsibility vs Accountability
Responsibility: Duty to deal with (Deal with it)
Process/Action

Accountability: In charge of results (Results of it)
Outcomes/Goals

Doesn’t always need to be two different people, but they need to operate as two different functions

Definitions Matter
For your team and for yourself to measure the effectiveness of those who are responsible and those who are accountable

11:53 RASIC Model
Responsibility
Which role is responsible for it (in charge of doing it)

Has to do it, but “accountable” takes the heat

Accountability
Which role is accountable for it (in charge of results)

Making sure that “responsible” does it

Supports
Who supports it (who helps)

Has work to do

Inform
Who’s informed (all they need to know is what’s happening)

Consulted
Who’s consulted (They don’t do the work but they might have some knowledge and can tap in if needed)

“If you find yourself making the same decision over and over, it might be time to look into a framework like RASIC” -M
Volleyball example: If two teammates keep running to hit the same ball or if both teammates are watching the ball hit the ground

“What have been the hiccups to getting the projects done consistently?” -B

We need to start looking at the option of working remotely 40-60% of the week instead of coming to the office 80-100% of the week.

“More role clarity is never a negative thing” -B

“Clarity and seamlessness, I’m in” -M
25:00 Real-life example
Sketchy Ideas Producer, Brian Oemig (also referred to as ‘Voice of God’)
Responsible and accountable for most of the SKE social media presence

Brad and Michael are mostly informed and only sometimes consulted

“But you always have my support” -B

26:00 Giphy
If you want to use our gifs/stickers, search #SketchyIdeasShow or @SketchyIdeas on the Instagram/Tiktok/Slack gif function (or anywhere that uses the Giphy database)

Tag us so we can reshare!

“I think highly gifable is a compliment these days” -M
26:48 Back to the framework
Don’t do this for your entire business right away

Take a segment and work your way through

When growing and scaling, you need clarity

Show notes can be found here
...more
34min
February 18, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 30: Leading By Definition
2:37 Diving into today’s topic - Brad’s attempt
Attempt to define what leadership is

“Defining leadership has a whole bunch of grey area” -B

A spectrum w/ layers

“It’s important to define leadership for yourself” -B

The book that Brad references: “Leadership Challenge” by Kouzes and Posner

Studying leadership helps you become more self-aware
4:57 Michael’s thrust into leadership
Took on a role at a company
Supervisor (of everything)

Managing supervisor vs. Leading by example (coaching, mentorship, inspiring)

People are internally motivated
“As a leader, you need to tap into someone’s internal motivation to align with the company to produce great outcomes” -M

People often fall into the mindset where they separate how they want to be lead vs how they lead others

“Great salespeople tend to make bad sales managers” -B
In sales, you lead customers

That doesn’t mean you’re good at leading salespeople

Who is a leader to you?
Why do they come to mind?

“We realize what great leaders are because we’ve experienced being lead by a great leader” -M

We can define leadership in reflection more easily than theory
9:00 Step further
It’s important to be able to grow as a leader

Without leadership growth, the company doesn’t grow

Ways to define leadership:
By experience - being led by a great leader

By outcomes - a great leader making your life better/successful

As a business owner, you want great leaders to make better outcomes for your company

Leadership is not the ONLY way to grow a business, but it is definitely not the easiest nor hardest way to do so

Great leaders need to have self-awareness
Know yourself, the situation, and how to adapt the two together

Leaders have a preferred style and a default style
16:44 Basics of defining leadership (Choosing to follow & more success & got what they need from you)
“If you don’t have any followers, you’re not a leader” -M

A great leader has followers that are choosing to be there

You don’t choose to follow your manager, but you choose to follow a leader
It May look the same day to day, but you’ll notice the difference when pressure is applied or in high-stress situations

19:40 Future topic?
Are social media influencers considered leaders?

Followers are choosing to follow them and can push their “leader” to better successes
24:00 Servant Leadership
Asking people if they need help
Car troubles - do you need a ride somewhere?

25:00 Styles of leadership
You need to define what leadership looks like at your company

Too many styles of leadership can cause problems
Not necessarily bad leaders, just different styles of leadership

Results-driven

“If everyone were robots, management would be awesome” -B
More consistency

No feelings/emotions

No work/life balance

32:12 Closing remarks
Check out SketchyIdeasshow.com
Full Show Notes Here
...more
34min
February 12, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 29: The Meta Session: The Framework of Building Frameworks
3:10 Diving into today’s topic
CEOs and business owners are looking for processes or a way to package information on how to do things, without a way to do it

They don’t know what they’re lacking, but they know they’re missing something

They are looking for a framework or defined process

“Frameworks are a simplified version of standard practice” -B
Or a solution

Or a way to teach others

“Framework” is not just a marketing term
6:25 Michael draws it out
If it’s a framework, then: (Is it a framework?)
Easy to share

Enables scale

Aim to a goal

Repeatable + measurable

Operates across contexts (can be a part of other frameworks)

Recognizable

Principled

Frameworks have a beginning and end (or it’s a cycle)
Always having an end goal

9:05 Beepods example
The hive and the equipment is one part of the framework

Others include:
Education

Training

Support

Outreach

Data

11:30 Debating their views
“Run your framework a few times, then measure it” -B

“The scientific method is a framework of a framework” -M

The goal of a framework is to be able to explain complex processes to help make it clear to others

“If you’re a one-person show, you’ll struggle to grow” -B
That doesn’t mean it’s not helpful

Can cause a lot of strife when looking back at your time

“Flowcharts are not frameworks” -M

Frameworks are NOT:
Single-use

Exceptions

FLowcharts

SOP’s

Instructions (?)

“A framework is a map of simple terms to get to the flag at the top of the mountain” -B
17:45 Remote frameworks
Many frameworks were designed to work in a single room

Due to COVID, those have needed to shift to accommodate remote working

General frameworks build problem-solving
18:34 Bigger picture
You’re probably using frameworks without even realizing it

High-level pieces of a framework:
Gather information
Categorize

Organize by relationship

Define the function of the framework

Create the story

“If you have to micro-manage, it’s not a framework” -M
The framework should explain itself

23:40 Frameworks can go wrong
Frameworks started going bad when Powerpoint created SmartArt
2007

Bullet points started getting visual
25:45 Recap
Don’t be concerned if it’s not perfect the first time

Everything we’re creating lives in a digital place

Build out your framework
Put it into words that are teachable to others

Helps simplify your methods

Helps simplify training

Helps save time

Full Show Notes Here
...more
32min
February 04, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 28: Why Your Content Sucks
3:08 Diving into content
Brad has been working in the marketing field for around 15 years

Helped produce a kid’s Triathalon training program

The content was guided towards the parents letting their children join the training for this Triathalon with teen-aged kids
Local content marketing

5:15 Content Structuring
Many people say, “my content isn’t doing what I thought it would be doing”
Probably because they aren’t structuring it properly

Content growth has been exponential
The internet has been evolving

Content has become much more important throughout the years

Content doesn’t need to be perfect

63% of companies don’t have a content strategy

Relevancy shifts on social media

4 C’s of content
Create

Captivate

Community

Convert

8:25 How content/social media has evolved
SEO was frowned upon

Mobile was thought of last

Multiple platform content

Magazines coming every quarter instead of monthly

“Content is so critical to the mainstay of a business” -B
10:30 Content Measuring
62% of business don’t know how to measure their content

“Content is just a math equation” -B
12:07 Three major areas
Is it timely?

Is it entertaining?

Does it drive value to your company?
13:22 Diagram Brad likes to share with people
Your business has layers (Main core - sole of footprint)
Storefront

Office

Website

15:45 Funnel content
Using drivers to get customers into the funnel

TOFU (Top of funnel content)
Just finding out about your business

Surface level

Gaining their interest (entertainment value)
61% of google searches are on mobile devices

MOFU (Middle of funnel content)
Beginning to learn more about your business

Understanding the framework and traffic to see if it works for them

BOFU (Bottom of funnel content)
18:15 Beepods Example
Internal client

Beekeeping Company

TOFU
Content showing how bees are cool

MOFU
Get them to subscribe along the way to our email list

Get them interested in bees

Will it work for them?

BOFU
We have solutions for you

Let us help you get started

19:15 How to build content
There are 4.66 billion active daily internet users

“There is a supercomputer in everybody’s pocket that has the answers to their burning questions” -B

How do you make your content stand out?
No simple answer, but there is a process

23:30 How to get topics
What is the goal of your company?

You probably have a topic that fit the goal that you talk to your clients about

Main goals of your topics
Does it add VALUE?

Will it be ENTERTAINING?

Full Show Notes Here
...more
36min
January 28, 2021Sketchy Ideas Episode 27: Owning the Room w/ Consuela Muñoz
2:07 Guest Introduction
Consuela Munoz
CEO of Own Your Confidence

Founder of the C-School
Professional women owning the room

“If you own your strength, you’ll own your confidence, and then you can own the room.” -C

Also known as the ‘Confidence Queen Next Door’
She wears her crown, at the request of Michael

Brad and Michael can get their crowns over on Consuela’s Podcast

Story of the crown
She is more than a confidence coach, she’s a confidence queen

Women have earned the respect that comes with crowns for their daily activities of working and taking care of their family

Women are expected to act a certain way to make it far in their career
Sit “lady-like”

“With a crown, the queen is always respected” -C

7:25 Why did Consuela get into this field?
“Every woman should be excited to go to work every day” -C

10:22 The Strength Program
Changes the way you look at the work you’re doing

You don’t have to wait for someone to tell you what to do

Pursue your passion

Performance goals and life goals sometimes need to be separated
12:55 Switching their mindset
Strengths are a starting assessment

Strengths:
Identify

Learn/understand

Sell/apply them

Develop/Plan

Identify the strengths and apply them to their growth and stop the weaknesses

Use them in a more purposeful way

Apply your strengths to help find your passion for work

American Mindset:
If the team needs help, we volunteer to help

But shouldn’t we help only if it’s something we’re good at?

19:20 Digging a little deeper
If you use your strengths as a tool, you should know how to use it along with the risks

The best way to resolve a complaint is to bring a proposed change with you
26:26 Technical Issues
“It wouldn’t be a Sketchy Ideas episode without a few technical issues” -B
27:00 We’re back
If you see others struggling to do something that you excel at and you’re getting angry about it, you are on the verge of finding strengths about yourself
31:14 DOPE Test (Assessment based on birds...)
Dove

Owl

Peacock

Eagle

Does your assessment pass the DOPE test?
38:00 Visit Consuela
Full Show Notes Here
...more
43min

FAQs about Sketchy Ideas:

How many episodes does Sketchy Ideas have?

The podcast currently has 95 episodes available.