The Kim Doyal Show

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Yep, Happy Birthday to Me!

Kind of a crazy way to start a post, but I'm all about celebrating the good things in life, and yep, that includes birthdays!

ALL of them.

Getting older doesn't bother me... aging, well, that's another story. But the truth about aging is we have some control over the quality of our lives as we age (as in taking better care of ourselves, honoring who we are and making the most of our lives). Which is why I thought it would be a great idea to record a podcast on my birthday, especially since it's mid-year and I can check in with how the year has been going and what's in store for the rest of the year.

So today is my 45th Birthday (see, told you I didn't mind getting older). And here are a few things that make this birthday awesome and why I don't mind getting older:

The first half of 2015

The first part of 2015 has been amazing!

I put the intention out there a couple years ago that I wanted to travel more and each year seems to bring more travel (something magical happens about putting the intention out there, letting it go and continuing to work with inspired action). So far this year I went to Vegas in February (EMPIRE Mastermind), Vegas again in May (Funnel Hacking), Maui in June (EMPIRE) and am heading to the South of France in FOUR DAYS with my daughter! WOOHOO! I've loved every trip but think I'm looking most forward to France since it really is a vacation as opposed to a 'business trip' (even though these trips hardly feel like business when you love what you do and the people you do it with).

My business has grown exponentially.

Both financially and in terms of taking things up a notch, which I know is kind of vague, so let's see if I can bullet point some of what has happened:

Hired a new project manager who has absolutely made my life easier in terms of what I can focus on and keeps things moving. She also happens to be one of my very best friends and being able to share this journey with her is a blessing

I finally feel like we're getting systems and processes down in a very structured way so I can focus on what I love doing most and is the best way to serve the people I work with

My project prices have gone up

My Coaching fees have increased and I'm coaching a little less

I've launched a whole new division of my company, INFLUENCE Podcasting, and it's taking off in ways I never dreamed! (more on that later in the year)

I've stopped doing things I don't want to do

The podcast is still rocking (and still one of my absolute favorite things to do)

I've connected with some amazing people and am grateful for all the new friendships

Had a $24k week! WOOHOO!

I'm starting to love the sales and data side of things

And that's why it's time to Celebrate.

There was a time in my life (not so long ago, and really, I still struggle with it), where I had a hard time really celebrating what I've accomplished or how far I've come. Somehow it felt like I was bragging. Then it hit me, with the help of a mentor (a few of them actually), that if you don't celebrate where you are and what you've achieved how will you go further? How do you accomplish more?

Being authentic and transparent means sharing BOTH sides of the coin. The difficult times AND the fantastic times.

And here's the kicker... when you show up as yourself, all the time, people will be there with you through it all. I'm not talking about the trolls or the haters. Why on earth people choose to expend energy to be nasty or negative is beyond me. One thing I've learned is that people who are living in their own truth, are happy with what they're doing and are earning a good living with what they do (yes, money gives you that freedom), don't waste anytime berating, bitching or judging other people.

They don't have time for it.

They also understand that everything they do is energy. When you put negative energy out into the world that's exactly what you get back...

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When it comes to podcasting I have a few personal rules after the basics are met (best audio quality and valuable content come first). We all know I'm a huge geek about the visual side of things so after having had my podcast for a while I knew I wanted to put a better looking player on my individual episodes than the default player from PowerPress (no offense to them, they pretty much keep everything going with their plugin, but the players are a little dull).

Enter the Simple Podcast Press by Hani Mourra.

Could it be more Awesome? :-)

Yes, that's the fantastic player that you're looking at below the image in the post.

What I love most about the Simple Podcast Press is that it's geared towards marketing with your podcast. It's not just a good looking player, it takes everything one step further by adding buttons, opt-ins and reviews on your site. What you might not know is that before launching Simple Podcast Press Hani created and released Simple Video Press (which I've also purchased but haven't gone through my site yet to swap out videos. I'll get to that later this summer, so stay tuned for videos on that as well).

[tweet_box]"I love that feeling of solving problems." @hanimourra http://thewpchick.com/63[/tweet_box]

 

Questions I asked Hani:

1) What's your backstory? (What brought you to WordPress Plugin development)

2) What are your thoughts about the premium WordPress Plugin space?

3) What have been some of the challenges you faced when launching the plugin?

4) How did you decide to do a podcast plugin?

5) Do you have your own podcast?

6) What were some of the features that people wanted that surprised you? (for the plugin)

We went a little sideways in our discussion about podcasting and what you can do with it (which I think you'll enjoy as well), which is one of the things I love most about these interviews (letting the conversation flow organically and see where it takes you). Hani also shared what his plans are for launching his upcoming podcast and why he wants to do an audio and video podcast (something I want to add to my podcast as well, may as well record the video at the same time, right? More on that front coming soon too).

What You're Going to Learn

1) How to keep podcasting SIMPLE

2) Why you should focus on content

3) Why you still need PowerPress (by Blubrry)

4) The different ways you can pull your reviews into your site with Simple Podcast Press

5) How Hani's initial focus for the plugin was automation... then his customers dictated what they really wanted

6) How you can grow your subscriber list with the Simple Podcast Press

[tweet_box]"I just listened to what people wanted and gave them that. You have to listen to your customers." @hanimourra http://thewpchick.com/63[/tweet_box]

Where to connect with Hani

Facebook | Twitter | Website

 

Links from this episode

Simple Podcast Press

Simple Video Press

Other episodes you might enjoy

Interview with Matt Medeiros of Conductor

Interview with Aseem Badshah of Socedo

Interview with Shane Melaugh of Thrive Themes

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I have a tendency to go through spurts where it seems like I'm traveling a lot or attending a lot of events or I'm doing nothing.

Maybe that's just me. :-)

Lately it's the traveling a lot (which fortunately I love) and I'm excited to share my 'take aways' and event recap of the first annual Funnel Hacking Live event that I went to at the end of May in Las Vegas.

Funnel Hacking Live

Funnel Hacking Live was put on by Russell Brunson & his team at Click Funnels. If you're not familiar with Click Funnels, you will be. :-) I'll be doing some free 'funnel training' via hangouts with a private group (no idea what this looks like just yet but I'll keep yo uposted). I figure I may as well share what I'm doing while I do it, right?

Click Funnels creates, surprise...funnels. Everything you need is built into Click Funnels. It truly has a drag & drop customizable interface where you can create any type of page you want (again, think marketing pages here - which are listed below). You're not limited to what you see on the template (which is one of the things  I've always disliked about LeadPages. You can change colors or hide elements but that's it).

Here's a list of the type of funnels you can create within Click Funnels:

O.k, let'e get back to the event.

The event was 3 days and completely jam-packed. The first day didn't start until 1pm (which was kind of nice after travelling the day before) and went until about 6pm. They had some 'round tables' after the first day where you could talk to the 'Inner Circle' members (Russell's coaching program members). We hung around for a bit to go in then changed our minds (I love meeting new people and networking but I also appreciate the downtime in between sessions).

Here are some of the topics that were covered by the speakers:

Book launch

Free plus shipping

Webinars

High tickets services

Physical products

All of the speakers had great content and great value. No one sold from the stage, which was refreshing and they all 'taught' something. Awesome.

The two announcements Click Funnels made during the event were:

1) Affiliate program (where you can run your OWN affiliate program) called Basecamp

2) Email Marketing called Actionetics

Both are launching soon (I think Basecamp will be available this month and Actionetics is coming in the next month or so).

The topics covered by the speakers ranged from book launch funnels, to webinars, to affiliate programs to nutritional supplements. There was something for everyone - and even if your business wasn't covered there was pletny to take away from watching what other people were doing with their funnels and how they were making Click Funnels work in their business.

Click Funnels Next Year

Yep, I already bought my tickets for next year at this years event (which fortunately will be in San Diego next year as opposed to Las Vegas).

I hope to see you there! :-)

*disclaimer: I am an affiliate of Click Funnels*

Podcast sponsored by:

ANYONE who has wanted to take their current business to the next level with high ticket offers needs to listen to this interview.

I was fortunate enough to connect with Tony through a mutual training we took and instantly knew he was someone I wanted to connect more with. Needless to say he didn't disappoint. :-)

Like many of my guests Tony has an interesting story that brought him to where he is today. With a background in classical music (violinist, pianist) and then moving into music in metal band (there are some awesome pictures of Tony with the 'oh so awesome' hair of the 80's, but I promised I wouldn't put them in the post, so you can do some Googling yourself if you want verification of his band days) to landing in network marketing.

Not a traditional path by any means.

The interesting thing about Tony and Network Marketing is that he didn't like the industry, yet he ended up building a profitable business.

[tweet_box]"The good news is they can help everybody. The bad news is they can help everybody." @ateegarden http://thewpchick.com/61[/tweet_box]

 

Questions I Asked Tony

1. What were you doing before starting your current business?

2. I love your tagline - Turn Your Problems Into Profit. How did you come up with that?

3. Explain your current business and who you work with?

4. What are some common challenges you see your clients face?  (biggest obstacle)

5. What would you recommend for someone wanting to step into coaching & high ticket offerings?

6. What's coming for Tony Teegarden?

7. Anything fun about yourself you'd like to share?

Where you can connect with Tony

Website | Facebook | Twitter

Check out Tony's BRAND NEW Podcast:

Turn Your Problems Into Profits

Click here for a Special Offer from Tony Teegarden

Lead Generation is something we ALL need.

All the time.

I honestly don't remember exactly how I found 'Socedo', but am SO glad I did. I think it was through Twitter (which makes sense because that is one of the key elements of Socedo). The funny thing is that I went through their lead generation process without even realizing it! (That tells you a lot about how good the system is, right?)

Socedo also has one of the BEST onboarding systems I've come across as well. As soon as I signed up for the trial I was contacted by a rep to see if I wanted to go through a walk through of the features, how it works and what it could do for me. In the past I tended to pass on the walk through because I was afraid of being 'sold' into something (duh!). Now I look at it as an investment in my business and if it is in alignment with what I'm focusing on now and can help me achieve my goals (and I have a way of keeping up with it consistently) then it's kind of a no brainer.

The Questions I asked Aseem

Like I mentioned above, you'll hear me talk with Aseem about how I didn't even realize I was going through their process when I signed up for Socedo. You're also going to learn how Aseem came up with the name "Socedo" (which totally makes sense when you hear him explain it because for the life of me I couldn't quite figure out where it came from :-)).

I would highly recommend signing up for the 14 day free trial of Socedo, setting up your filtering criteria and looking at your stats as you go along. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at the engagement, connection and leads that come from using Socedo.

Links from this episode

Socedo

Aseem on Twitter

Have you ever had one of those moments when a thought comes to you and you feel like you're in a V8 commercial? (getting bonked upside the head like "DUH!")... that's what happened to me with this idea (and for anyone outside of the U.S., V8 is vegetable juice and the commercials are always about people getting bonked on the head after they realize they 'could've had a V8').

I used to like the "fake it till you make it" idea. It always seemed like it went along with intention, right use of will, law of attraction... all the things that are near and dear to my heart.

But then I realized what a disservice it is to 'fake it till you make it'.

Bear with me on this because it might not be as easy to explain in writing (which is why I did the video) as I think it is or make as much sense as it does in my head.

First, let's look at what 'fake it till you make it' is all about (or at least my interpretation). Let's say you want to be a successful online entrepreneur (like how I dug deep to find something unique for that example? Although hopefully I can be more clear in using this as an example).

When you're first getting started you're super excited and everything seems full of possibility. You absorb as much information as you can, ideally you implement on some of the ideas you're learning and start seeing some results, regardless of how big or small the results are.

If you were to 'fake it till you make it' you might decide that you shouldn't share the frustrations, challenges, weepy moments, pissed off at everyone you know moments or even how many times you thought that maybe a getting a job would be easier. Instead you paint a perfect picture of how effortless it is to build an online business.

(*Note* I also had an 'a-ha' moment last week about "doing the work" and "hard work". For me, "doing the work" to build my online business has NEVER been as "hard" as some of the long, physically demanding and frustrating days I spent in retail management. Start thinking about 'doing the work' as opposed to 'hard work').

You only share your successes.

You're thinking that if you were to share those 'less-than-perfect' moments it would hurt your brand and business. People might not hire you because you're not quite the expert they thought you were.

Does any of this sound familiar?

OR... maybe instead of only sharing your successes you keep everything very 'safe'. You create content that probably appeals to your audience, are nice about everything and never take a firm opinion on anything if it differs from the masses (or more importantly, your community).

The problem with this second scenario?

People become indifferent. They don't love you OR hate you.

They simply don't care.

Ouch!

Just the thought of that makes me cringe a little bit.

I know I played it very safe for the first 5 years I was in business. I didn't want to ruffle any feathers (which might seem odd to those who know me personally, although I think it depends on the subject and our comfort level) or take a strong stance on anything.

And quite frankly, it was a little boring. 

Not that I'm going to start writing controversial posts or going out of my way to piss people off (mainly because I have made a conscious choice in my life NOT to focus on the negative... ever). It's actually kind of funny when I think about it... I mean how pissed off can you get with WordPress? 

Recently a mentor of mine asked me what it would have been like for me had people that I looked up to and respected had shared some of their struggles? (not my current mentors, this is going back a few years).

My answer?

It would have been HUGE!

It would have made a significant difference!

During those times of frustration I wouldn't have felt like I was alone or like I was doing something wrong (which I wasn't, but you don't know what you don't know, right?)

So.. what does all this mean?

SHOW UP!

After having talked to Matt a few times (we had a 'hey, how's it going' chat on Skype first, then we recorded the podcast... which didn't record! So we did it a second time), I kind of wondered what took me so long to get Matt on the show (my doing, not his!).

No complaints here though that it didn't record the first time because that simply meant I got to talk to Matt again (and I'm sure it comes as no surprise to tell you that Matt was a total champ about having to do the interview a second time... and he recorded it also, just in case! You gotta love interviewing other podcasters and tech savvy people!).

While I'm sure Matt doesn't need much of an introduction, I'm going to give it to you anyways .

Matt Medeiros founded & runs "The Matt Report", Slocum themes and the uber awesome Conductor Plugin. The Matt Report is a WordPress Podcast for Digital Business Owners. Slocum themes is the theme shop he founded (with his Dad... how cool is that?) and now the Conductor plugin, which is a visual page builder for WordPress (but not like some of the other visual page builders I've discussed on the show. But we'll dive deeper into that in a bit).

[tweet_box]"I was really trying to figure out where I could make the biggest impact in WordPress"  @mattmedeiros[/tweet_box]

We talked in depth about what makes the Conductor plugin a unique page builder (it focuses on content and uses the built in WordPress Customizer).

What You'll Learn in This Episode

Questions I asked Matt

[tweet_box]"For me, having my ear to the ground by doing client work is what helps me improve my product."  @mattmedeiros[/tweet_box]

I think once you hear what Conductor can do for your clients you're definitely going to want to see how powerful this tool is and what it can do for YOUR business as well! Be sure to register for the webinar training on April 28th, 2015 at 5:00 pm PST where Matt is going to demo the power behind Conductor and show you exactly how you can create amazing sites by focusing on the content (and increase conversions!).

Where you can connect with Matt

Conductor Plugin | The Matt Report | Slocum Themes

Links from this Episode

Conductor Plugin

Matt Report

Slocum themes

There's something about hearing the story behind the business that makes things so much more relatable.

Starting a business is both awesome and hard. Sometimes you feel like you're on an island by yourself, even if you have people you connect with regularly (daily) or even have someone who works with you (or for you). Hearing how other people have managed all of this is a great reminder that you're on the right path (or maybe that you've accomplished far more than you give yourself credit for).

That's how I felt after talking to Dan Norris of WP Curve.

If you haven't heard of WP Curve, you will (and not just from this podcast). WP Curve is a service that provides unlimited WordPress support and small jobs, 24/7 from $79 a month (if that sounds awesome, it's because it is... and is their explanation of what they do!)

As someone who has made a conscious choice to stay away from maintenance and support (that's for another conversation), I LOVE that this is an affordable and amazing solution for my clients.

Dan is one of those people that you talk to and wonder if he ever sleeps ... not only is he the founder of WP Curve but he is also an author (The 7 Day Startup: You Don't Learn Until You Launch) and a microbrewer! Yep, he's starting a microbrew too (I know, I totally want to hang out with him too).

What You'll Learn in This Episode

[tweet_box]"We're focused on rising above the competition in terms of building a better team." Dan Norris @wpcurve[/tweet_box]

 

Questions I asked Dan

Connect with WP Curve

Website | Facebook | Twitter

 

Links from this episode

- WP Curve

- The 7 Day Startup

- Facebook group Content Machine

- How to build a scalable WordPress business in 1 week (WordCamp Sydney slides)

This episode is a little 'Out of the Box' to say the least.

I was joined by Trey Lewellen, aka, Mr. ON IT ... or maybe I should say I joined Trey (at his offices in St. Louis, Missouri to get his upcoming podcast rolling). I decided to do a podcast episode with Trey while I was there because this trip was part of a new venture for me (and the first of many I'm sure) and it was simply an amazing experience.

This episode was really about stepping outside of my comfort zone in SO many ways!

I could go on and on about this episode, but I really think to get the most out of this episode you need to listen to it.

Here's what we talked about in this episode:

You'll have to bear with me because we went in a WHOLE bunch of different directions, but this is one of those conversations that took on a life of it's own and there are a BUNCH of gems nestled in our crazy tangents.

[tweet_box]We should nickname them "buttso"... or is it so, but? - Trey Lewellen[/tweet_box]

You're also going to get an update on Trey's business, where he's going and what his intentions are for scaling his business to a 12 million dollar a year business.

[tweet_box]Are you willing to #stepup and say "Call me out?!" - @kimdoyal[/tweet_box]

Links from this episode

Hatchbuck

My first interview with Trey

Trey's ILMG Facebook page

University of Guns  (Trey's gun website)

Other Episodes You Might Enjoy

 You are the Obstacle in Your Business

Yep.

I literally raced a Ferrari in Las Vegas a week and a half ago.

HOLY MOLY it was friggin OFF the charts fun! I knew I was going to enjoy it and was excited about doing it but had no idea how much fun it was really going to be. Once we got to Dream Racing we had to sign our lives away, watch a video and then try out driving in the simulator. I have to say that driving the car felt easier than the simulator! It also made me a whole lot more nervous than I thought I would be.

Next it was time to suit up, pose for pictures and off to the race track.

We each had 5 laps around the track and just like they told us, it was by lap 5 that you started to feel like you were starting to get the hang of things and before you knew it you were done. I felt like a little kid who just had a brand new toy taken away from me!

What a RUSH though!

I ran up to one of my mentors and just said "THAT WAS AWESOME!" OMG!!! After that I also decided that I want to bring my son back when he turns 16 and we'll make a family trip out of it (bringing my kids, parents, siblings & their kids, aunt & uncle... the whole clan!).

My take aways from Ferrari racing:

Here's a group picture pre-racing (I'm in the back):

After racing we had a great lunch and headed off to Zappos for a tour!

Which was also pretty awesome (although it's hard to beat racing a Ferrari. Just sayin).

The Zappos tour was pretty amazing. The founder, Tony Hseih (who I bumped into and grabbed another selfie with.. see below) decided to move Zappos to downton Vegas after the company took off so he could support the community better. Their offices are in the old City Hall building, which is downton (old Vegas, not the strip).

Zappos has an amazing culture, people who are passionate about working there and tons of perks for employees.

It was also validation that I could never work for anyone else again. Even a company as cool as Zappos (as our tour was winding down our guide asked how many of us wanted to work at Zappos? No one responded so I jumped in with "you're talking to a group of entrepreneurs!"... to which he asked if we wanted our own companies to have cultures like Zappos. :- ) ).

I also prefer less 'chaos' when I work.

Zappos allows all their employees to decorate their cubes anyway they want, they've painted hallways, have unique artwork everywhere (and product) and even a small ball pit in the Human Resources department (and a cool roof top deck, cafeteria and ping pong table).

It was still a little too much for me (and most everyone else as well! You have to be somewhat organized to run a business, right?). Regardless, it was a great tour and wonderful day!

And then there was the meeting.

EPIC.

Yes, I just used the word epic (I'm calling myself out more on that one than anything else).

Our Mastermind meeting days are always structured in a similar manner: the first day is more of the "big picture" thinking and the second meeting day is our strategy and implementation. What I love about this is that it helps me get out of my head. It's so easy to get caught up in (and stay in) the day-to-day dealings of running a business that if I don't step back once in a while I lose site of the overall purpose and my 'why'. Which, I can tell you that for most entrepreneurs that I've talked with part of their 'why' is always freedom.

Freedom is hard to attain if you're stuck in the minutia of the tasks in your business and the basic daily operations.

And because I want you to listen to the episode I'm going to save the juicy details of the meeting for the show... but I promise it's worth it!

The BIGGEST take away for me from the entire meeting was to step things up AS MYSELF!

It's easy to get caught up in the tasks that are part of our business but sometimes the only way to get where you're going and figure out exactly what you SHOULD be doing is to show up and do the work.