The Business of You with Rachel Gogos

Rachel Senior believes that your greatest business meetings are happening in your sleep.

In today’s episode of The Business of You, Rachel will inspire and educate us on the power of dreams - for personal, professional and spiritual growth.

Rachel Senior is a Pastor, an Author, a Songwriter, An Entrepreneur, and a professional Dream Coach. She is the Founder of Business of Dreams and The Dream College. Having been a uniquely gifted dreamer from early childhood, Rachel Senior has come into full awareness, through a number of personal dream encounters and manifested dream interpretations, the power of the Dream to create wealth, to build businesses, to advance corporations, and to save lives! She now takes the charge to activate this power all over the land.

Rachel has a Masters in Psychology and an Education Specialist Degree in Curriculum & Instruction. She is the Author of The Business of Dreams: 5 Ways to Maximize the Linear Relationship Between Your Purpose, Your Business and Economic Success, and Your Dreams. She also wrote Hidden Wealth: 4 Things you Did Not Know about the Interrelation Between Wealth and Dreams and  Dreamsmen- The Final Combat. 

Take your gifts seriously

Rachel’s dreams have always been vivid. When she was younger, she felt embarrassed by her classmates’ reactions. 

Especially when she had a negative or ominous dream about them, she hesitated to inform them. But when dream after dream came true, she began to realize that telling them about her dreams could have helpful implications. 

Rachel’s dreams are an important reminder that even if something feels weird or socially awkward at first, our gifts are meant to be shared - and the right people will be grateful. 

She recalls a time when she dreamt about a young woman she had gone to school with…a decade earlier. She saw the woman giving up on her aspirations of becoming a professional makeup artist, throwing away her makeup and supplies. Nervously, Rachel looked her up on social media. Abandoning her reservations, she messaged the woman. She called her immediately. 

This woman had indeed been considering a career change. Depressed and frustrated, she wasn’t seeing results from her business. Discouraged by her lack of success, her light was beginning to fade. That’s when Rachel’s gift changed everything. Rachel talked her off a ledge, convincing her that triumph was closer than she thought. After her call with Rachel, she landed important contracts for her business, became a celebrity makeup artist and gained serious influence in the beauty industry. 

How to become a better dreamer

Rachel takes her dreams seriously - and she wants to convince you to do the same. She is here to tell you that your dreams are a gift, given to you by a higher power. And that a higher power has big exciting plans for you.  After going on her own dream journey, Rachel takes this podcast as an opportunity to help you become a better dreamer. To begin receiving powerful and life-changing dreams, you must first respect, honor and commit to them. 

There are few steps to becoming a better dreamer. First, she recommends treating your sleep like a meeting with God. Regardless of your spiritual beliefs, she encourages you to consider this a time of divine communion. Show up to your meeting with the divine with an open heart, casting aside the worries and cares from the previous day. 

Rachel suggests that you keep a notebook and pen on your bedside table and be ready to take notes in the morning or whenever you wake up. When you commit consistently to recording your dreams, you’re sure to start having more of them. 

What do dreams mean for your business?

While doing research, Rachel discovered that many entrepreneurs use their dreams to make big important decisions about their businesses - not just historically, but currently. Now, she coaches and hosts corporate seminars to teach Executive Leaders how to use their dream life to launch, expand and grow their businesses. 

Using your dreams as a North Star, making intimidating decisions can feel effortless. If you’re stuck on how to write your book, what course to launch this year or how to grow your company, it’s time for you to get into alignment…in your sleep!

Quotes

“God absolutely speaks to me in my dreams.”

“We’ve got to pay attention to our dreams.  We’re asking all these questions, we don’t know what our purpose is, and we have important decisions to make.”    

“There was a time when I was like, I’m not telling anybody my dreams! But over time, I had to embrace that they are a gift I can utilize to help people. Even if the dream isn’t so good, it can help them prepare so it won’t be so bad.”

“It was like God was saying, ‘Let me see how disciplined you’re going to be with these dreams’! Once I showed that I’m going to write them down and study them, it became easier to remember when I woke up. I write them down, record them or make little notes. You’ve got to make a habit of remembering them. Dreams don’t come through our conscious minds.”

“I learned not to ignore my dreams. And in the process of me following my dreams, the downloads became instant. It was happening without me making an effort. I started writing my book. The courses started coming. Just because I said fine, I’ll do it!”

“What greater way to coach, than through God-given information.”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Learn more about Business of Dreams and The Dream College at www.businessofdreams.net 

Connect with Rachel Senior on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-senior-66b619100/ 

Follow Rachel Senior on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/dreamcoachrachel/ 

Find Rachel on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100016230313576 

A great idea can create a better world. Bryan Clayton had an idea he believed in so much that he put it all on the line - and he’s so glad he did. 

Bryan Clayton is the CEO and Co-Founder of GreenPal, an online marketplace that connects homeowners with local lawn care professionals. GreenPal has been called the Uber of lawn care by Entrepreneur magazine and has over 200,000 active users completing thousands of transactions per day.

GreenPal makes finding a lawn care professional simpler than ever. Customers who want consistent and reliable service love GreenPal for access to high-quality professionals. And lawn care vendors love using GreenPal too - because they receive more work, get paid faster and cut down on marketing costs. 

Before starting GreenPal, Bryan Clayton founded Peachtree Inc., one of the largest landscaping companies in the state of Tennessee, growing it to over $10 million a year in annual revenue before it was acquired by Lusa holdings in 2013. Bryan‘s interests and expertise are related to entrepreneurism, small business growth, marketing, and bootstrapping businesses from zero revenue to profitability and exit. 

Always be helpful, no matter what

Before Bryan had the idea for GreenPal, he owned a thriving lawn care business. It was doing so well that they were only taking large commercial contracts - turning away anything smaller than airports, malls and developments. He referred prospective clients to smaller lawn care businesses locally completely for free. 

Bryan believes that we should always be helpful, no matter what. He continued showing up to refer business between vendors and customers - until he realized that he could build a service they would use every day. Seeing an opportunity to make larger and more lasting connections, Bryan developed the concept for GreenPal to make lawn care service seamless.

Don’t cut corners, put the work in

Bryan had never written code in his life. Bryan and his Co-Founders pooled their money to hire an app developing service - which was an expensive lesson.

Despite their vision for the app, the development process was painful and ineffective. They realized that they needed to approach their idea differently and pivot. Not giving up, the three Founders got to work in separate spheres to make the business work - Zach Hendrix spent hours every day in an online software coding class, Bryan worked on front end development, and Gene Caballero worked PR and wrote content. They weren’t going to let their idea fail because of one expensive hurdle, and they knew it would pay off. Living on rice and beans, the Founders spent all of their time learning new skills. 

Bryan discusses how painful but important this lesson was. He emphasizes the importance of skill-building, flexibility and customer feedback. In fact, after spending months wasting time on branding and mascot design, he realized that he could have hustled up a hundred customers instead. 

He encourages entrepreneurs to remember the goal and abandon the fluff. What skills will truly drive your business forward? And are you spending enough time listening to the feedback your customers give? 

Your brand is a promise

When it comes to his approach to brand values, Bryan keeps it simple. He reminds us that a brand is a promise - to keep our word, show up and be helpful always. 

Instead of focusing on lofty concepts and buzzwords, Bryan focuses on what keeps his business moving: Daily habits. His blue collar attitude translates perfectly into his new role as a tech Founder. 

Quotes

“GreenPal is a 10-year overnight success.”

“If we were gonna be in the tech business, we needed to learn how to write code. We needed to literally build it ourselves. If you don’t know what it’s going to be, you can’t outsource it. You have to build it as you’re interacting with users.”

“We had to pass out flyers all over Nashville Tennessee begging people to use this thing. And then we would meet with every one of them that would use it. And they would all tell us everywhere that the thing sucked. It broke and it didn’t work. But they never told us we didn’t need this. They were actually disappointed. And we took that as validation to keep going!”

“In my Co-Founders…I was looking for two people who could live on rice and beans for a long time. We weren’t unicorns, we were cockroaches. You couldn’t kill us. We lived very cheaply.”

“The first hundred or even thousand of your sales when you start a business should be hand-to-hand, should be manual. Then you know what processes and technology you need to build. You don’t know until you hand-crank it.”

“It’s our job to load up the lawn care provider’s schedule with as much work as he or she wants to do. Make their life easier with getting paid quickly, not having to do marketing…basically, it’s a business in a box. They can make more money with less hassle, so that it makes sense for them to do business with GreenPal instead of the old way.”

“We spent all this time thinking about branding…with no customers. We even designed a mascot, Gary the GreenPal. We spent like three months or longer with zero customer feedback. We wasted way too much time. We should have not worried about any of that. We should have hustled up one hundred customers first.”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Visit GreenPal online at https://www.yourgreenpal.com/ 

Connect directly with Bryan Clayton on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryan-clayton-a96b33214  

Follow Bryan on Instagram at https://instagram.com/bryanmclayton 

There is a lot to be learned from Paul Baron. Having been called a “serial entrepreneur” and referred to as “industry agnostic”, Paul is a restless and energetic visionary who recognizes opportunity everywhere he goes. 

Paul Baron is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Wall Printer USA. He is responsible for all executive functions, assuring the corporation's growth and the success of businesses that purchase a Wall Printer. 

Paul’s 40+ decades of business experience span B2B, B2C, retail, manufacturing, distribution, international business, and franchising. He has personally developed and launched concepts and supported successful revenue growth, leading to exits for several start-ups and established businesses. Paul thrives in rapid-growth and high-energy environments and values a diverse culture with good people who like to dream big, work hard, and have fun. He leads with a positive attitude, humor, and humility.

An articulate communicator with outstanding public speaking and presentation skills, Paul is frequently asked to guest lecture at industry events. He mentors business owners and student interns at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) and at UNCWs Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE.) Paul serves on advisory boards at UNCWs Business Schools Entrepreneurship track, at non-profit organizations, and privately held businesses in Wilmington, Atlanta, and NY. PAUL earned a BS in Mathematics with an education minor at the State University of New York at New Paltz and studied advanced Mathematics at the University of New Hampshire.

In 2022, Louis Vuitton’s ‘200 Trunks, 200 Visionaries’ Exhibition Featured The Wall Printer in NYC on the Prestigious Madison Avenue. Passersby observed The Wall Printer constantly printing new designs on the wall behind the Louis Vuitton trunk display, in celebration of the 200th birthday of their eponymous founder.

You'll find The Wall Printer beautifying walls indoors and out across the Western Hemisphere. The Wall Printer is quickly expanding throughout North America, Latin America, and the Caribbean. As Wall Printing businesses grow, the company will support them with tangible solutions, inks, parts, outstanding service, and marketing solutions to expand their successful wall printing services locally.

Entrepreneurship is a mindset

After Paul graduated, he went to work for someone else. He was never truly satisfied. 

After asking for a deserved raise, Paul’s boss looked him in the eye and gave him a valuable piece of advice: When you work for someone else, you’ll never be paid as much as you feel you’re worth. This lesson stuck with Paul. While working to build other peoples’ dreams, we never get to chase our own - and wind up feeling unappreciated. Paul took those words to heart and he decided to go into business for himself. 

Over the years, there were numerous opportunities to work under other leadership. But Paul had tasted freedom, and he loved it. His desire to manage his own time and creativity led to him honing his skills in negotiation, communication and strategy. Paul’s discovery is a powerful reminder to all entrepreneurs to know their worth. 

Entrepreneurs look for exciting opportunities

When it comes to launching businesses, Paul has some sage advice to share: Look for opportunity everywhere you go. He encourages us to keep an open mind. Ask yourself - What problem does this product or service solve? Who is best served by it? Where do I find those people?

When Paul first heard about The Wall Printer, he was excited. But he didn’t jump in right away. He dutifully did his homework, researching ways to make the company successful in North America and beyond. After spending over a year looking into numbers and areas for improvement, Paul decided to take the leap. 

Rather than sticking to a more traditional franchising model, Paul settled on a fresh new concept: The exclusivity model. Exclusivity agreements are a method of controlling the market - In this case, granting each company that buys a printer an exclusive area for growth. Paul doesn’t restrict the marketing or branding for The Wall Printer locations; He provides ongoing support for them as they grow and expand. Buyers can secure their own territory in North America or beyond. His goal is 1,000 territories in the United States - and he’s steadily working towards the mark.

Leaders create opportunities for others

Whether managing teams or building new business owners, Paul fosters leadership abilities in others. 

Refusing to micromanage or obsess over details, Paul learned early in his entrepreneurship journey that his time had greater value elsewhere. He also saw the immense benefits of allowing others to lead - forming bonds between teams, creating opportunities for employees to shine and get recognized. The message is important - When you step back and allow people to use their strengths, they become future leaders. 

Enjoy the lessons of serial entrepreneur Paul Baron on this episode of The Business of You!

Quotes

“I gained a reputation as someone who could take a foreign company’s product and identify high-value customers in the American audience. So, that’s what I did.”

“Somebody once told me, ‘What makes a great leader and CEO is someone who is smart enough to hire the best people for the jobs that are needed… but wise enough to back off and let them do it!’”

“More often than not, when you don’t stay in your own lane, you start doing more than you’re really capable of doing, and not what your time is best suited doing. When you back off… chances are, people will rise to the occasion. Teams will run better.”

“I told myself, if I’m going to make this business a success, and I’m going to make my customers a success, I’m going to give them enough area exclusively to grow a business - with something nobody’s ever seen or heard about before. So that’s why I wanted the exclusivity model.”

“Our community shares videos and success stories. That’s something we do for one another! We share those things because it works for everybody’s benefit.”

“I went in to the owner of the company. I said that I was ready for a raise. He said something that I carry with me to this day. He said - ‘Paul, when you work for somebody, you’ll never earn what you think you’re worth.’”

“A common thread of my businesses is that I’ve always had a partner. I’ve always enjoyed having a person who complements the skills that I do not have.”

“I’ve always believed in cooperation over competition. We can always exchange ideas and work out financial agreements.”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Visit the website for The Wall printer at https://thewallprinter.com/en/ 

Watch The Wall Printer in action in the Youtube video for the Louis Vuitton 200 Exhibition, celebrating the 200th birthday of the eponymous founder. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZkHd_bKsAU 

Contact Paul Baron to become an owner at https://thewallprinter.com/en/contact-us/ 

Connect with Paul Baron personally on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/pbbaron/?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F 

Andy Mowat is on a mission to improve email, for everybody. 

Andy is the CEO and Co-Founder of Gated - an easy, free service to help you reduce unsolicited email and support the nonprofit you love. Gated has been featured in TechCrunch, Protocol, PR Newswire, and Yahoo News. Gated was also listed prominently in Business Insider’s Most Promising Tech Startups of 2023. Gated, which is referred to as “noise-canceling headphones for email,” allows users to gatekeep their email inbox - by requiring senders to donate to their favorite nonprofit. 

After beginning his career in Europe, speaking Czech and managing a finance team at Credit Suisse, Andy decided to dive into the world of email marketing. He built his career developing sales and marketing engines for leading technology companies like Upwork, Box, and Culture Amp. Today, Andy's vision and expertise sets the tone for the entire Gated team - as they build a solution and a movement to fix email, for everyone. 

Andy leads with a business brain, but sets his company apart with a heart for giving. He believes that Gated can change the world through the enduring power of email. 

The inception of an idea

Andy Mowat has sent billions of emails. He admits to being a mass emailer - and causing a lot of pain. Andy and his team were observing a trend of lower and lower reply rates. People were burnt out, annoyed and overwhelmed by their spam-filled inboxes. Nothing felt personal anymore.

Andy was not just tired of being a spammer - he was sick of receiving spam, too. Tired of being part of the problem, Andy came up with a creative idea to stop the send. In a moment of inbox overwhelm, he shot out one more mass email. It said, “I don’t know you. But here’s my Venmo. If you spend ten cents and donate to my favorite nonprofit,  I’ll guarantee that I’ll read your email.” It worked. 

People donated ten cents and got through to him. But more often, people donated $5, $10 or even $20, and they weren’t upset about it. It was a social experiment gone right. 

Andy had figured out that people needed a way to filter emails more effectively. Senders needed to take an action to get through to the recipient, proving that they were real people with a desire to connect. But the icing on top of the cake was the fact that they were giving back, making the world a more connected place and supporting causes people truly care about.

Changing behavior requires risk and curiosity

Andy is very adamant about the money going to charity. After all, he insists that the recipient keeping the money would “come across the wrong way”. 

Asking senders politely to please support important causes creates just the right amount of social debt - requiring an action, creating space for connection and furthering the brand awareness of remarkable nonprofits. He credits this decision for the overwhelmingly positive response to Gated.  Not everyone is on board when they initially hear how Gated works. Andy shares that people often undergo a dramatic thought process when being asked for a donation - Disbelief, sometimes irritation, consideration, curiosity, and then genuine interest. Despite being asked for money, Andy finds that most recipients respond with excitement in the end. Most even end up signing up for Gated themselves. 

Creative solutions for modern problems

One of the most important things about Gated? It works. Since founding the company, Andy has observed trends of behavior changing. Just as users were skeptical about Uber, DoorDash, Venmo and even Google, he believes that Gated will become a household name. 

Gated increases reply rates. When replying, recipients are more thoughtful with their responses and more eager to connect. It’s a service that aims to help everybody - effectively fixing emails for both buyers and sellers. 

Quotes

“Our vision is to fundamentally rewire how marketing is done.”

“I believe email should be personal. It should be one-to-one. How do we create incentives for person-to-person communication? The idea is, if you send an email, you should want a reply.”

“I love helping. But in the past, I had always separated my business side from my giving side.”

“I honestly think Gated doesn’t work if we don’t have a nonprofit. If we’re like hey, pay me money to reach me - it just comes across wrong!”

“I started this to address the fundamental problem of digital noise, which is getting worse and worse. How do we solve this? And nonprofits became part of it.”

“This is a behavioral change model and it’s really interesting. There are a lot of really interesting behavior changes because of what we’re doing.”

“The only way to change the way the world behaves is to give it away for free to everybody.”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Sign up for Gated at https://www.gated.com/ 

Send Andy Mowat a personal email by donating to his favorite nonprofit! Connect with him at [email protected] to get a thoughtful response.

Send Andy a message on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/amowat/ 

Tissa Richards wears cowboy boots to every meeting. Every day, she shows up as her authentic self - and she’s here to encourage you to do the same!

Tissa is a repeat technology founder and CEO on a mission to create a legion of leaders with an unshakable sense of self. As an Executive Coach, she teaches C-Suite professionals how to articulate their value propositions, stand out, be memorable, and get hired.

Tissa has founded, invested in, and run software companies in Silicon Valley. She holds over a dozen software patents and has won awards for her valuable software products. As a keynote speaker and facilitator, Tissa Richards helps leaders and rising stars from high-growth startups to Fortune 500 companies create blueprints that nurture diverse and emerging talent. Tissa works with the world’s largest private equity and investment firms and corporations as well as innovative startups. She speaks globally on topics affecting executives and leaders. 

Tissa’s inaugural business book, No Permission Needed, is a useful guide to a successful career trajectory at the executive level. Designed as a workbook, No Permission Needed is your #1 resource to help you become your own most powerful advocate. She dedicates herself to help foster innovation, engagement,long-term value, and lift up all team members for equal voices and meaningful contributions.

Pivoting is okay - and even necessary

Tissa Richards was a successful CEO and Tech Founder. Frequently the only woman in the room, Tissa created software that she patented. She had caught the startup bug, and launched project after project in a hyper-competitive industry. 

At the height of her achievement, Tissa came to a troubling realization: She was totally burnt out. Exhausted and depleted, she decided to step back. In a culture that glamorizes the grind and rewards obsession, Tissa made the difficult decision to take time away. It may have been the best choice she ever made.

While on leave, she began receiving offers from companies wanting her to consult. Major brands had questions, and she had the answers. She resolved to make her knowledge her next business, and Tissa Richards Executive Leadership Training was established.

Money and values are not created equally

When Tissa began raising capital as a young entrepreneur, she didn’t ask enough questions. If she were to give other Founders valuable advice, it’s this: Get to know your investors. 

Naive and new to asking for large sums of money, Tissa believed that all money would propel her forward. But now, she knows differently. When asked why, she says that a thousand dollars from two different investors has different implications. Her advice is to get to know investors and their motivations. What are their values? What is their mission? Are your visions for the world aligned? By knowing what is important to you, you will ask the questions that will yield the best funding from the right people.

Know yourself, grow your business

Tissa Richards believes in authenticity - not just as a buzzword, but as a daily practice. Her coaching and speaking are founded on the belief that what sets you apart as a person and as a leader, is the secret sauce that adds value to the world. 

Finding your unique value can help you reach your career goals. Whether you’re trying to set yourself apart in interviews, present to your senior executives for a promotion, manage a team effectively or build your brand, showing up as yourself can help you use your strengths to stand apart from the rest. Tissa is an expert at personal and professional branding - and she is here to encourage us to be ourselves in business and life!

Quotes

“If you’re not thriving, your company won’t thrive.”

“I thought I was writing my book for women. But I’ve had a lot of men reach out and tell me that it really resonated with them. I was surprised, because you want to be specific and go narrow. But the premise of the book is, who are you? You want to know that and do that in a really unapologetic way, both about the value you bring to your work and the values you operate with as a leader.”

“We do a lot of talking about what we do and how we do it…and we don’t talk enough about why it matters. Frontloading with why it matters and then using that to activate talking about what you do - that’s a great way to get hired, stand out and have an executive presence. That’s how you accelerate your career.”

“When asked about their values, people like to say - I lead with compassion. I lead with empathy. But I like to go one level down and say, tell me why! Those are great aspirational statements, but if we can’t get to the heart of why that’s important and how it creates results, then it’s empty. If you articulate it, it helps people know the brand and your values.”

“Every day, I look at my calendar and get really excited! That’s when you know you’re really thriving.”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Visit Tissa Richards’ website at www.tissarichards.com 

Connect with Tissa Richards on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/tissa-richards/ 

Take an online course or join a Coaching Cohort with Tissa at https://www.tissarichardsleadership.com/ 

Purchase Tissa’s book, No Permission Needed, on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Permission-Needed-Leadership-Potential-Self-Doubt-ebook/dp/B0BF7G3X5H 

Find No Permission Needed on Audible at https://www.audible.com/pd/No-Permission-Needed-Audiobook/B0BHTWLQ9T 

Kudoboard is a product designed to make people happy. It helps you recognize your employees, celebrate your coworkers and send your friend the most meaningful card they’ve ever received. It was created by Aaron Rubens - a former teacher who dreamed of better ways to communicate positivity in the workplace and beyond.

Aaron Rubens is the CEO and Co-Founder of Kudoboard. Aaron is a Tulane graduate with an MBA from Harvard Business School. His early career was focused on education, having taught high school math at Alta Vista Charter School in Kansas City, joining a highly selective national service corps, Teach for America.

Since Aaron first had the idea to create Kudoboard, the company has added Co-Founder Kyler Deutmeyer and a growing team of 20+ employees. Kudoboard is in use by many of the world’s top organizations including TMobile, LinkedIn, GoFundMe, Airbnb, Shopify and Webflow. Kudoboard has received positive reviews in the media from Harvard Business Review, Lifewire and Business Insider. 

This brand story began with appreciation

It started with a simple idea: Aaron’s colleague at Teach for America suggested that they lead their math students in an appreciation exercise. 

Each student wrote their name on a piece of paper and passed it around. The rest of the class took turns writing notes of praise and recognition. It made a deep and lasting impact. For years after their students graduated, Aaron would run into them - and they would all mention how special it was. Many of them still keep their piece of paper, referring to the kind words whenever they need a burst of positivity and encouragement. 

It sparked an idea for Aaron Rubens - to create a tool that helps people efficiently share appreciation with their friends, families, students and employees. 

Celebrate the moments that matter

Soon after he graduated, Aaron was brainstorming ideas for his friend’s thirtieth birthday. He built the first Kudoboard: A mashup of videos from friends around the country, to celebrate his friend’s birthday with everyone no matter where they were.

It was a magic moment. Everyone loved making the Kudoboard, and his friend loved receiving it. 

Don’t wait to start until you have every piece of the puzzle

Before Kudoboard had software engineers and a CMO, it had Aaron Rubens. He wasn’t a software specialist, but he was going to do whatever it took to build it. 

Aaron started small, by building out Google forms and having people fill them out. He then built them into Powerpoints. The first Kudoboards were made manually by Aaron himself.

When he pitched the idea to his Co-Founder, Aaron had something meaningful to show for all of his work - emotional and compelling testimonials from people who had made and received boards. Passionately, Aaron invited him to explore what Kudoboards could look like if they were more streamlined - making it possible for hundreds of people to spread appreciation to others. 

People invest in what matters to them

When Aaron launched Kudoboard, he didn’t intend to charge for it. After discussing it with his Co-Founder, he decided that it added enough value to make it a paid product.

They expected the amount of users to drop, but the opposite occurred - users began seeing Kudoboard as a high-value gift and the amount of customers exploded. Large organizations began using Kudoboard for quarterly workplace celebrations. Now, companies are also using Kudoboard to celebrate Pride Month, welcome new hires and even share exciting job offers with new recruits. 

There is so much to learn about using authentic encouragement and appreciation in the workplace. In today’s episode, you’ll be inspired to discover new ways of building a positive work culture!

Quotes

“There really is this power in giving people permission to say something positive to someone else. But oftentimes, people need that opening. If you can give it to them, that can be something really special.”

“If not everyone is in the office every day, how do we keep them feeling like one team…but not in a heavy-handed way? This is meant to be one of those light-touch tools that keeps people feeling like part of the greater thing they’re working towards.”

“Kudoboard tends to be for quarterly shout-out boards. Or it’s pride month and there’s a board for that. Kudoboard creates moments in time that matter to an organization, and they pull their employees in to celebrate.”

“It’s not another endless feed of content. It creates moments that matter, that we pull people in around.”

“We’re building out the features to make Kudoboard highly useful for larger organizations. We want to make it highly secure and integrated with their other platforms. Longer term, we’re going to continue to build out the usefulness.”

“In recruiting - when someone gets an offer, they can receive a Kudoboard from the hiring team that interviewed them, telling them that they’re super excited to have them on board. It’s all about those little personal touches. If they get three great offers, it’s a gut call. It can be helpful to set a business apart.”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Visit the website for Kudoboard at www.kudoboard.com 

Connect with Aaron Rubens on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronrubens/ 

Connect with Kudoboard’s Co-Founder Kyler Deutmeyer on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyler-deutmeyer-4739a57?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fkyler-deutmeyer-4739a57 

Follow Kudoboard on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/kudoboard

Discover innovative and culture-building methods of using Kudoboard in your workplace on their Youtube channel. Subscribe at https://www.youtube.com/@kudoboard7945/videos 

Chris Williams and his team are on a mission: To help you get your time back, fully enjoy your life and make more money.

Chris is the Founder and CEO of Group Coach Nation, a company that teaches industry experts how to build high-ticket masterminds. Group Coach Nation has been featured in Heart & Hustle, The Lucky Titan, and 51Blocks. 

Chris Williams is a masterful entrepreneur - who doesn’t have a car, He spends most of his time raising his five kids, exploring world communities, and trying his hand at adventures like shark diving, ice climbing, running ultra-marathons, and riding electric skateboards. He believes in the value of fun, freedom and exploration - and created his business to help you do the same.

Chris has 20+ years of experience building hyper-profitable business models. After leaving his job in finance, Chris launched Senthold, a strategic consulting company that primarily partners with surgeons. After analyzing sets of marketing data for medical practices, Chris and his team noticed trends that stood out. Using data only, they built a highly profitable marketing system. It was so effective that Chris would accept a range of payment options - Up front or on a performance-based, profit-share structure. His clients got the results they wanted and Chris became wildly successful. 

Now, Chris teaches others to build their own masterminds. During this powerful conversation, he will be sharing his expertise on how to find your niche, how to make more money, how to free up your time, and ultimately how to enjoy your life to the fullest.

It all began with a business book

Before Chris was the Founder and CEO of multiple successful companies, he was a burnt-out entrepreneur missing his kids. He realized that he needed to reclaim his time, rediscover what he loved and built systems that served his lifestyle.

Like many entrepreneurs, Chris Williams had heard of the book The 4-Hour Work Week by author Tim Ferriss. After briefly skimming it, he laughed it off. 

Months later, Chris downloaded the audiobook and listened casually while he was raking leaves in his yard. After a few moments, he set his rake down - and opened up his notes app. 

What happened next was a whirlwind journey. Chris created a mind map, essentially breaking down what he really needed to focus on. By cutting out distractions and building better business systems, he could free up more time. He ended up easily doing exactly that - and made more money in the process! In just four months, Chris was only working four hours a day - and quadrupled his income.  

Chris’s advice to entrepreneurs: Follow the data

As busy entrepreneurs, we get overwhelmed with our workload, our visionary ideas and our commitments. It can be difficult to know what to focus on! 

Chris’s advice for us is pretty simple - we need to start following the data. He recommends that we get clarity by writing down the ten most profitable projects we’ve worked on in the last year. Looking at these projects, take note of common threads. Moving forward, you can dramatically increase your income by doing more of the projects that make you more money - and developing systems to simplify and duplicate those projects. 

What could you do to systematize your business? What could you delegate to free up your time? The answers to these questions will help you decide what you should be focusing on. 

If you can teach it, they will come

After Chris built Senthorn, he had people offering to take him out to lunch and pick his brain. After all, he had built a wildly successful marketing company…in a field that was entirely new to him. How did he do it?

He realized that he could monetize this knowledge, making an income by selling this information to others. He encourages you to do the same. 

What are you great at, that brings value to yourself and others? What do people talk to you about, and ask you questions about? You could create a profitable course on that subject in just 8-12  weeks, with the help of professionals at Group Coach Nation!

Quotes

“Anything you can learn how to do, you can teach it to someone else and they’ll pay you for it.”

“Once we get time, all of the sudden opportunities become so obvious. We just need time and space to think.”

“If you’re really focused on what your prospect’s needs are and you truly think you can help them, then taking their money is okay. If you really don’t think you can help that client, taking their money is unethical.”

“Once I was free from the time constraints of work - which gave me opportunities to heal my heart in other ways - I didn’t want to go back. So I wanted to start an information-based business without filling up my calendar.”

“What is the highest profit value thing that takes the least amount of your time? Do that. Cut things out that don’t keep up with that initial project.”

“Niche or no niche? Everybody talks about that. The way to find your niche is to look back at the ten most profitable things you’ve done in the past year. Look at those ten and find the commonality. The next ten gigs you do need that common thread. You’ll get deeper down a path that is more profitable and takes less time.”

“My team and I are on a mission to help you take your knowledge and expertise and actually make a living off it. Ask yourself, how do I sell my information for the highest price?”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Check out Group Coach Nation at https://groupcoachnation.com/ 

Connect with Chris Williams on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/chriswilliamshq/?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F 

Follow Chris Williams on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/chris.williamshq/ 

Get your own copy of the 4-Hour Work Week on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/4-Hour-Workweek-Escape-Live-Anywhere/dp/0307465357/ref=asc_df_0307465357/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312106851030&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=8665366581156340730&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9031326&hvtargid=pla-433366776920&psc=1 

Read more about Senthold at https://www.senthold.com/ 

Carrie Richardson is a successful entrepreneur, having scaled three service-based businesses from zero to seven figures in the last ten years. But she got her start in an unexpected place: In a fitness center, cleaning weights at four in the morning. 

This is the compelling story of how Carrie earned her sobriety, built multiple award-winning companies, met her husband and started a thriving consulting company. It serves as a great reminder that no matter what rung of the ladder you’re on, you can climb all the way to the top. 

Carrie Richardson founded Managed Sales Pros in Winnipeg, MB, Canada in 2013, and Everywhere Managed LLC in Las Vegas, NV in 2016 until its sale in 2020. 

Carrie began her business as a solopreneur making phone calls by herself - and the demand for outbound cold calling quickly surpassed her ability to fulfill on her own. Carrie bootstrapped a home-based business into two award-winning niche-focused call centers.

Carrie graduated from the Eureka Project Technology Incubator in 2016, the same year Managed Sales Pros was named the 25th fastest-growing company in Canada by Profit Magazine. Everywhere Managed was founded in 2016 to support US-based technology manufacturers that required US-based outbound sales development teams.

Everywhere Managed hired almost exclusively out of workforce reentry programs in Nevada. Carrie and her team developed a one-of-a-kind on-the-job training program for technology sales. The Everywhere Managed unique approach to employee development earned Carrie an Athena Leadership nomination for advancing women in the workforce. Everywhere Managed was 100% female owned and managed, and all executive team members were promoted from within after being outbound agents. Carrie was inducted into the Las Vegas Women’s Hall of Fame for the achievement, and to date has been the launch pad for two successful entrepreneurs, four sales development leaders (six figure earners with stock in fast-growing tech firms) and has helped over 50 employees move from social assistance to self-sufficiency. In October 2020, the omnichannel marketing agency EBQuickstart acquired Everywhere Managed.

In 2021, Carrie co-founded Richardson & Richardson with her husband Ian to help small business owners create and execute process-driven, repeatable sales and marketing programs after they have solved for all systemic challenges in their business. Carrie has found that most companies start out believing they have a sales or marketing problem, when in reality they are also experiencing financial, service delivery, staffing, and communication challenges that are impacting their ability to win and retain clients. Richardson & Richardson Consulting helps to identify areas for improvement in those areas and beyond.

Carrie’s journey began with a powerful origin story

Carrie always loved selling. She was self-taught, a natural born salesperson. But when she decided to get sober, she faced unexpected obstacles: Sales jobs usually came with boozy lunches that made it easy to fall off the wagon. 

Being a determined and process-minded person, Carrie saw that her course had to change. She quit sales and landed a job at a gym with a four a.m. shift. 

Carrie had to clean the gym, answer the phones, and stand at the front desk while she worked to become a certified personal trainer. It was hard, humbling work. Setting her ego aside, Carrie meticulously scrubbed the weights clean every morning - and was spotted by the manager. 

Soon after, she was called into the office. Thinking she was going to get fired, she was surprised when her manager told her that she deserved a big promotion - with a massive pay raise. Carrie never forgot that moment. Someone gave her a chance and believed in her. Her work was recognized. It inspired her to build companies that truly support people - no matter what they’re going through. 

When Carrie left her job at the gym, she decided to return to sales. It wasn’t long before she started her own company staffed with telemarketers niched into the world of IT. 

A lesson in giving people a chance

When she started her own call centers, Carrie encountered major staffing challenges. As she jokes herself, nobody grows up wanting to become a telemarketer - and HR was wasting time chasing candidates who did not want the job. 

This challenge led Carrie to think creatively. She decided to begin hiring candidates from economic development agencies. Many were coming to work from jail or rehab, and many were experiencing food and housing insecurity. Carrie saw an opportunity to help them succeed. 

The call centers hired people who needed positive work experience and even provided food and housing support. Carrie got to watch them build better lives - buying their first cars, getting married, having children and even starting their own businesses. Some of her former employees have launched their very own call centers, using systems they learned working at Everything Managed. After being given a chance herself, Carrie handed out second chances to hundreds of individuals, effectively changing the lives of them and their families.

Carrie’s advice to entrepreneurs: Build it better

Carrie Richardson loves numbers, and she hates wasted time. When asked about her greatest advice for beginning entrepreneurs, she recommends that we focus our marketing efforts on things that produce real, tangible results. 

Rather than just shooting out messages on LinkedIn and hoping for a response, Carrie suggests that you take stock of what works for you, and what doesn’t. Is your website working for you? Are your cold calls being answered? Are you getting the results you want? If not, it might be time to refocus your energy - or hire Richardson & Richardson Consulting for professional guidance.

Quotes

“Most IT companies - like most other companies - start their business and grab a couple clients that are low-hanging fruit. They might take a couple from the previous company they worked for, or they build their business initially by supporting their parents’ friends. But they’re only used to closing referral-based sales appointments. They build up their company entirely from word of mouth and referrals. When these leads stop coming in, they don’t know what to do. By the time they call a company like mine, they should have called a year before!”

“I don’t think you should ignore any opportunity to prospect. Try all of it. Measure it and see if you can improve on it! If you see that sending twenty LinkedIn messages means that two will respond, awesome. How do you get three people to respond? But don’t just send out messages all day, willy-nilly. To me, that’s not sales or marketing because it can’t be measured.”

“Your website should translate to dollars out the bottom of your funnel. But most people aren’t measuring it.”

“Work with professionals up front. Make major investments in viability before you start investing in head count.”

“What are you measuring? What KPI’s are you reporting on? What are your accountability checkpoints?”

“We hired people right out of jail, and right out of rehab. They might not have made it past screening for other jobs. Some were experiencing food insecurity or homelessness. We had a food bank in our office. If you were struggling between paychecks, we had resources. We provided breakfast and lunch for everyone. We helped people pay for apartments.”

“We started watching peoples’ lives change. They would come in to work after getting their hair done, for the first time since starting work for us. They would buy their first car, get married, or have a baby. Watching peoples’ lives change was incredible.”

“We worked with economic development agencies. They had people who were like, ‘Help me find a job! I need to work.’”

“Yeah, this is your job today - but let me tell you about my life. Let me tell you where all of this took me! Cleaning the handles of some weights took me to a job that allowed me to save enough money to train with UFC kickboxers in Thailand. I did so many amazing things. And all of them came from being humble enough to take a job that I thought was a little bit beneath me.”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Visit the website for Richardson & Richardson Consulting at https://randr.consulting/ 

Watch on Youtube: “Make Smart Business Decisions with Carrie Richardson”, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CICPia7wA4 

Listen to Carrie and Ian Richardson’s podcast, “What’s Important Now,” on Buzzsprout: https://win.buzzsprout.com/ 

Connect with Carrie Richardson on LinkedIn at http://LinkedIn.com/in/tinfoilhat2

In the second part of our conversation with George Howell, you’ll hear the story of how he influenced the global coffee market, increased quality standards and improved the lives of thousands of people.

George Howell is a passionate coffee connoisseur. His career in coffee began in the 1970’s, when he opened an art café in Harvard Square. Combining his deep love for roasting with his dedication to Mexican indigenous artists, George’s cafés gained a devoted following.

Now, George Howell Coffee shops are expanding across the East coast in the Boston area. As the Founder, George spends his time educating and traveling with his daughter Jenny in pursuit of the finest coffee beans in the world. 

George Howell was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Specialty Coffee Association of America in 1996, for having raised specialty coffee quality standards to a new level through his Massachusetts-based company The Coffee Connection (1974 – 1994). He had grown The Coffee Connection into 24 company-owned stores in the Northeast and sold his high-quality popular coffee company to Starbucks in 1994. 

In 1997, George worked on models of economic sustainability for coffee farmers under the United Nations and the International Coffee Organization. This led directly to the founding of the precedent-setting Cup Of Excellence program in 1999; it established the world’s first international estate coffee competition and international internet auction that mightily contributed to breaking the commodity/price cycle for craftsman farmers in the specialty coffee industry.

George Howell is a pioneer of the fair trade system. Working in partnership with quality producers, George’s company pays top prices for green coffees, far exceeding Fair Trade pricing. 

Giving the people what they want

George Howell wishes we would all drink black coffee. But back in the 1980’s, he realized that crowd pleasing drinks were a hit…and decided to help create one. 

In this episode, George tells the real story behind the frappuccino: He didn’t invent it. After visiting Seattle with a friend, he tried a version of the frappuccino and sought out to create a version of it for The Coffee Connection. He tasked his Manager and Marketer Andrew Frank with perfecting the formula, and Andrew did so much more than that - he coined the name frappuccino. It took off. 

The idea exploded, turning their slow summers into record-breaking profit months. Customers loved the frozen caffeine drink and told their friends all about it. New versions of it popped up around the United States. Not only was America hooked on coffee - we were getting experimental with it.

The quest for quality and the start of a competition

Above all else, George considers himself an educator. After The Coffee Connection was acquired by Starbucks in 1994, he traveled Brazil with The International Coffee Relations Group to connect with coffee farmers. 

He noticed that Brazil was not yet keeping up with Kenya, which was selling their beans at auction for double the usual fee. On a mission to help Brazilian farmers, he started test farms. They started simple, adding a new improvement each year. They designed tests to help prove that production improvements increase quality and profit. 

Their tests were working when the program was suddenly halted. On a mission to prevent their research from being wasted, George brainstormed a solution. 

He created the Cup Of Excellence program, encouraging a quality competition amongst coffee producers. He promised the winners ten cents above the current market value, and he suddenly had three hundred participants. The Brazilian market took off.

Enjoy this fascinating second half of our conversation with George Howell. If you love coffee, you’ll appreciate it even more knowing that every cup you drink was impacted by George himself.

Quotes

“What has sustained me is a need to educate.”

“Our invention of the frappuccino was the name. It took off! It made our summers go from being the least income-producing to being equal to any other quarter…literally overnight.”

“It was in 1988 when I went to Kenya and Costa Rica. I discovered how extraordinary, and how difficult it was to make great quality coffee.”

“I was invited to be part of the International Coffee Relations Group, at the International Coffee Association. We met four times a year, talking about issues, relationships and quality. We talked about what could be done to promote those issues.”

“I would travel and lecture - I would talk about the fast growth of specialty coffee, visiting one farm after the other. We created model farms where we had various farm owners where they would start from scratch. Each year they would add a quality improvement. We would see, was it more profitable at each level? We wanted to make the point that it was more profitable with each improvement we made.”

“We communicated to farmers that if they won the competition, they would get a minimum of ten cents over the current market value. By promising that, we got three hundred farmers to participate.”

“I had learned in ‘88 and ‘89 that Kenya was selling all their coffee at auction! And they were selling at about double everything else on the market. They went through a lot to get that quality.”

Visit the website for George Howell Coffee at https://georgehowellcoffee.com/ 

Follow George Howell Coffee on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/ghowellcoffee/?hl=en and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/GHowellCoffee/ 

If you walk down any American main street, you’ll find a coffee shop or three. If you love coffee, you can thank George Howell: The man that grew the culture behind coffee consumption in the United States and beyond.

George Howell is a renowned entrepreneur and the Founder of George Howell Coffee. He has been expanding the art, appreciation and knowledge of fine coffee roasting since the 1970’s. 

George is a powerful storyteller, telling us how he spent the past 50+ years spreading unbridled enthusiasm for coffee, art and fair trade practices. George Howell was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Specialty Coffee Association of America in 1996, for having raised specialty coffee quality standards to a new level through his Massachusetts-based company The Coffee Connection (1974 – 1994). He had grown The Coffee Connection into 24 company-owned stores in the Northeast and sold his high-quality popular coffee company to Starbucks in 1994. He returned to coffee-traveling worldwide, and in 1997 worked on models of economic sustainability for coffee farmers under the United Nations and the International Coffee Organization. This led directly to the founding of the precedent-setting Cup Of Excellence program in 1999; it established the world’s first international estate coffee competition and international internet auction that mightily contributed to breaking the commodity/price cycle for craftsman farmers in the specialty coffee industry.

George Howell is a pioneer of the fair trade system. While founding George Howell Coffee, he sought quality producers that were just as passionate about outstanding coffee as he was. To this day, George Howell Coffee pays these farms top prices for green coffees, far exceeding Fair Trade pricing. In order to assure mutual education and trust, George and his daughter Jenny visit the farmers they work with and form lasting partnerships. 

Enjoy Part One of this Two-part series with entrepreneur, connoisseur and compelling storyteller George Howell.

Great entrepreneurs lead with passion and purpose

George grew up in New Jersey then Mexico City, raised with a love of language, art and culture. Before George began roasting coffee, he discovered Mexican indigenous Huichol artists. 

Quickly realizing that their work was unappreciated, he sought to help Huichol artisans show their work on the national stage. He was met with condescension. Defined as ‘folk artists’, the Huichol peoples’ work was devalued and discarded. But George saw what we see today - that these artists produced work that was every bit as thoughtful, unique and important as European painters and muralists. 

Meanwhile, George developed a love for coffee - which he did not yet see as a business opportunity. George was determined to bring Huichol art into museums on the East coast. He and his pregnant wife, Laurie packed their two children into the car and headed East. He packed his french press and coffee grinder.

The family stopped at Howard Johnson’s motor lodges along their route and George would grind their coffee in the mens’ restrooms, leaving behind a captivating aroma most Americans had never smelled before. After using hot water to brew their coffee right there in diners and parking lots, people would come up to them and ask, “What are you doing?”

Big things begin with simple ideas

Showing art wasn’t paying the rent. George and Laurie got to work thinking of things they could do to make money, help artists and make an impact. This led to the creation of The Coffee Connection - named by Laurie Howell.

The Coffee Connection was a simple idea: The Howell’s wanted to share their love of art and coffee with the world. It combined two things they cared about, paid the bills and built community. They never could have hypothesized the growth and scale their dream would take over the next few decades.

After an initial press boom and surviving the coffee freeze that hit Brazil in 1975, The Coffee Connection continued to expand. During the height of the espresso obsession of the 1980’s and 90’s, they were adding a new café every two years. After rebuffing Starbucks’ advances multiple times, The Coffee Connection was successfully acquired by Starbucks in 1994, led by CEO Howard Schultz. 

An exciting coffee comeback

After The Coffee Connection was sold to Starbucks, George devoted himself to transforming the coffee industry for the better. He worked on sustainable farming and coffee production policies at the United Nations and the International Coffee Organization. He was making the impact he always wanted to make - but he found himself longing to return to the formation of new cafés. 

Be sure to tune into Part Two of our conversation with George Howell to hear how George Howell launched his signature East-coast cafés, further developing coffee culture and nurturing a love for quality coffee unlike any other.

Quotes

“It became a ritual to wake up to a great cup of coffee - no milk, no sugar because it was good just the way it was.”

“We moved East, by car with two kids and number three on the way. It was February or March 1974. I brought coffee with me, and a little french press and grinder, just for Laurie and me. We stopped at the Howard Johnson’s along the way. I would grind the coffee in the mens’ rooms, always leaving the bathrooms smelling a lot better after we left. And we would order hot water…like, for tea. We’d brew our coffee right there at the Howard Johnson’s. We’d always have two or three people who were having breakfast there who would come up and say, ‘what are you doing! What’s that!’”

“We realized that we could win on both sides by opening up a café where we could exhibit art and sell great coffee.”

“The enthusiasm was so incredible. Literally within the first three months, we were overwhelmed with customers coming in there. The media was coming in. The locals were coming and filming us!”

“We were successful with the people we were hiring because they were so enthused. We learned very quickly that the best salespeople were the people who spread the excitement by contagion. That was the best you could ask for!”

“I’d rather go broke selling great coffee than make a fortune selling garbage.”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Visit the website for George Howell Coffee at https://georgehowellcoffee.com/ 

Follow George Howell Coffee on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/ghowellcoffee/?hl=en and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/GHowellCoffee/