Wayfinding Growth

Tuesday mornings at 7:00am new episodes of Wayfinding Growth drop. This week it's Doug Davidoff dropping knowledge bombs on BFSC... you'll want to tune in!www.wayfindinggrowth.com

An Entrepreneurial Marriage

What's it like being married to an entrepreneur? You could ask either of the Impulse Creative co-founders this question. What started as "Rachel, what's it like being married to an entrepreneur?" turned into a lesson on what an entrepreneurial marriage looks like. 

On this episode, we "open the pantry and peek inside Impulse Creative" to dig into what it's like working and living together as a couple. 

Today's Episode is Brought to You By:

This episode of Wayfinding Growth is brought to you by Sprocket Talk. If you’re ready to take your HubSpot experience to a whole new level, you need to join Sprocket Talk as a Free VIP member. Tutorials, courses, training, HubSpot updates and more. Head to SprocketTalk.com/WG to join the movement and get an exclusive Wayfinding Growth deal!

In a Good Relationship, We Sharpen Each Other

"I think we guide each other," Rachel offered. "I look at alternative routes to find the most efficient way from A to B. Remington is the creative."

For co-founders Rachel and Remington, they aren't exactly opposites. But they do come at the business from different perspectives. And they aren't afraid to challenge each other, sharpen one another and grow together. 

While it can be difficult to separate work and personal, the Beggs have worked intentionally to separate the two when needed, but also understand the work is life. Both sides are closely tied together and aligned well.

One tip from the conversation to consider if you're working with your significant other is to clearly define your roles. "We knew early on who was responsible for what," Remington said. 

Intentional Communication is Critical

As partners in business and family, Remington and Rachel work hard at intentional communication. They may not always get it right, but it's always on their minds. Whether it's how one spouse annoyed the other, or why a day isn't going well, being able to live the Impulse Creative core value of candor in a safe space has been critical to their success.

Plus, sometimes you have to simply make time for each other. "Sometimes we set meetings," Rachel said. "We make sure we can focus on what we need. But we also set that time so it doesn't run over. Maybe Remington has had a tough day, and I've been with our son and working all day and we're both frustrated. We can talk about it within boundaries without bringing all the negativity 'home.'"

Married to an Entrepreneur? Rachel's Advice: Patience

When asked to give her biggest piece of advice to anyone in a relationship with an entrepreneur it was this: Patience. 

"Have the understanding and patience that you are going to put in a lot of hours [as the spouse]. You're going to have to put up with your spouse or significant other putting in a lot of hours, even if you aren't. And sometimes it's hard to turn off your work." 

Remington added to Rachel's thought with the idea that it can sometimes look like, as the spouse, you're competing with the business. You're not. But if you're feeling that way, go back to the idea that open, honest communication is best. Set time for the discussion, live out candor, and work together. 

Get to Know Rachel

• Rachel on LinkedIn
• Maiden Voyage Podcast
• Rachel on Impulse Creative
• Rachel on Instagram

Subscribe for New Episodes Every Week

Be sure to subscribe on your podcast player of choice (or the email notifications below) for new episodes every week, Tuesday mornings at 7:00am EST. Wayfinding Growth is the go-to podcast to inspire entrepreneurs, business owners and leadership. “For better or worse, in richness and in want” may be for weddings, but it’s also for businesses. We will be your navigator in this journey, no matter your level.

Love what we're doing? Leave a review wherever you listen!

Meet Chris Savage

Chris Savage is Co-Founder and CEO of Wistia, as well as the host of the Wistia Original Series Brandwagon. 

Chris started Wistia in 2006 with his best friend Brendan Schwartz. The pair got involved in film-making at Brown and wanted to create a portfolio website for film-makers.

They eventually pivoted and Wistia is now a video sharing and analytics program that allows business owners to get insight on the performance of their video content.

Wistia also creates the great video series Brandwagon. 

Today's Episode is Brought to You By:

This episode of Wayfinding Growth is brought to you by Sprocket Talk. If you’re ready to take your HubSpot experience to a whole new level, you need to join Sprocket Talk as a Free VIP member. Tutorials, courses, training, HubSpot updates and more. Head to SprocketTalk.com/WG to join the movement and get an exclusive Wayfinding Growth deal!

Know Your Brand Voice

"This doesn't feel Wistia to us." That was a watershed moment for Chris and the Wistia team. 

When the company needed to increase pricing like so many businesses need to do in growth mode, they knew they needed to communicate to their current customers. Even with transparency, the message missed the mark. Their own customers let them know that the voice just didn't feel natural and authentic.

The team adjusted the message, tested it again, and found success. Even a difficult discussion with customers can be done in your brand voice in order to communicate well. Knowing your brand voice helps endear your community to you.

It Takes Time and Effort to Build a Business

Wistia's journey began in 2006. For what's considered a startup by many, that's a long time. It's taken time, intention and hard work to grow. 

Chris shares some of the rough seas he and Brendan had to navigate through, some of the great days and many of the lessons learned. The biggest takeaways for us included:

• Be intentional
• Don't be afraid of failure
• Listen to your customers
• Love what you do

Creating an Original Series to Build Your Brand

Wistia has created original content to build a brand and community. One, Ten, One Hundred is a documentary series on the process to create three ads. One ad cost $1,000, one cost $10,000 and one cost $100,000. They wanted to see how each budget performed. During the meta project, the Wistia team documented it all, creating an original series they released, full of lessons and insight. 

Now Wistia has a second orignal series, called Brandwagon. This series is more talk show with a guest interview and other segments, showing off the personality if Wistia while bringing value to an audience. 

Chris says any brand can consider this route, and explains in the full conversation. 

Connect with Chris and Wistia

• Chris on LinkedIn
• Wistia
• Wistia on Instagram
• Brandwagon

Subscribe for New Episodes Every Week

Be sure to subscribe on your podcast player of choice (or the email notifications below) for new episodes every week, Tuesday mornings at 7:00am EST. Wayfinding Growth is the go-to podcast to inspire entrepreneurs, business owners and leadership. “For better or worse, in richness and in want” may be for weddings, but it’s also for businesses. We will be your navigator in this journey, no matter your level.

Love what we're doing? Leave a review wherever you listen!

It's Time for an INBOUND Debrief

Five Impulse Creative team members traveled to Boston for #INBOUND19. We're also all hosts on podcasts. So we decided to host a debrief that could serve as a fancy crossover episode for all of our show... you're in for a treat! 

Today's Episode is Brought to You By:

This episode of Wayfinding Growth is brought to you by Sprocket Talk. If you’re ready to take your HubSpot experience to a whole new level, you need to join Sprocket Talk as a Free VIP member. Tutorials, courses, training, HubSpot updates and more. Head to SprocketTalk.com/WG to join the movement and get an exclusive Wayfinding Growth deal!

Biggest #INBOUND19 Takeaways

With five people of diverse backgrounds, you're bound to find different takeaways. Here's a list for you:

• Anese Cavanaugh's lesson on presence and showing up how you want to show up (with purpose), not how you think you're expected to show up.
• "Anese radiates an aura of awesome." - Jackie
• Doug Davidoff in the Westin lobby - and all the conversations we had.
• When you're at INBOUND, lean in during conversations.
• The only way we'll get better in life or business is by leaning into "the market."
• Elizabeth Gilbert's challenge to people: Stop making excuses for not doing the things you want to do in life.
• What are you willing to give up to have the life you're pretending to want? 
• This "sales and marketing conference" ends up with so many great life lessons if you're open to it.
• The hard work that the entire Impulse Creative team and our supporters is paying off. We heard a LOT of "Yo Impulse!" in the hallways. It's good to look up from our work and take in the impact we're having.
• Dharmesh Shah's vulnerability in his keynote was inspiring. (Watch the INBOUND19 Dharmesh keynote)
• We have a responsibility to take care of each other, online and offline. Geraldine DeRuiter spoke on surviving harassment that starts online. Women face a huge portion of it, and we need to stop it. 

Favorite #INBOUND19 Moments

INBOUND is like a family reunion combined with the biggest education and inspiration event each year. It's so hard to pick just one favorite moment. 

For us, moments of connection topped the list. Inspiration was next. Education followed inspiration. Those are the general moments that bring us joy from #INBOUND19. What else? 

• Brian Halligan joining us on the couch in the Westin lobby for an impromptu chat among friends.

• The cafe room set up for some presentations and how it forces us to have courageous conversations with strangers.

• Soup dumplings in Chinatown! Sneak away for a minute and share a moment with people over a good meal. 

• Holding court in the Westin lobby, meeting with clients in-person and engaging in great conversations.
• Maiden Voyage podcast recording.
• Live Sprocket Talk Unpacked podcast recording.
• Having Impulse team members speak at the event.
• Connecting with fans of Impulse Creative.

Who Should Speak at #INBOUND20?

Every year the INBOUND event team brings together incredible speakers for all different reasons. So we asked who each of us wants to see speak at INBOUND20. Some of our suggestions would be new, while others are returning. Hey HubSpot and INBOUND team, check out this list!

• Brené Brown @BreneBrown
• Rachel Hollis @msrachelhollis
• Impulse Creative team members (Jackie Pfriender, Dan Moyle, other team members with valuable teaching)
• Gary Vaynerchuck @garyvee
• Billy Gene @askbillygene
• Joey Coleman 
• The band Tool or Maynard James Keenan @tool @mjkeenan

Plug Your Podcast

Be sure to check out the other shows joining us on this episode.

Maiden Voyage

Maiden Voyage is a video podcast series by the ladies of Impulse Creative. Our mission is to relate, inspire, laugh, and learn all while empowering women in the workplace.

Sprocket Talk

Where HubSpot Users Unite!

Time to Pull Back the Curtain on Impulse Creative

On this episode, Remington and Dan unpack the growth journey at Impulse Creative, and how Remington can actually call in sick! Yes entrepreneurs and owners and executives ... it CAN happen!

Sure, you're a critical component. But if you've navigated the growth journey well, you have a team that can handle it when you're gone. Especially when your health is at risk. Let's set a course for growth!

Today's Episode is Brought to You By:

This episode of Wayfinding Growth is brought to you by Sprocket Talk. If you’re ready to take your HubSpot experience to a whole new level, you need to join Sprocket Talk as a Free VIP member. Tutorials, courses, training, HubSpot updates and more. Head to SprocketTalk.com/WG to join the movement and get an exclusive Wayfinding Growth deal! 

It's Scary

Remington begins by unpacking why it's scary to have to walk away from your business. Even when you trust your team, it's a big deal to be able to let go of the reins and let the people you've hired for their skills actually exercise them! 

When a business owner or high level executive is burning their candle at "too many ends," it's time to implement self-care. While he usually bounces back pretty quickly, this time around Remington was down for the count. So this wasn't just a one-day reprieve from work. This was a few days, plus extra days where he was out of commission for extended periods of days. 

Getting to the point where as a leader you can rely on the team to keep moving forward, knowing your clients won't even miss you, is a proud but scary moment. 

Don't worry. Your team still needs you. 

One Step at a Time

When it comes to being a Wayfinder CEO, Remington suggests taking it one step at a time. It's like if your business was your baby. You don't enroll her in a marathon. You teach her to walk first, with a few stumbles and well-timed catches.

If you think your team is ready for a little time without you, maybe take an afternoon off. Or if you take a day, be available by phone if needed. Then work your way up to completely unplugging. 

From there, it's a matter of measuring your team's confidence and aptitude - again you've hired them for a reason, so let them soar - and increasing the time away and the level of disconnection.

Unplugging = Self Care

Whether it's a vacation or calling out sick, taking time away and truly unplugging is critical to not only a CEO's mental and physical health, but it's great for the team.

When your team can run the business without your hand in every decision, magical things happen like scaling up and wins beyond what you thought possible. It may feel like you know the answers, but being the last to talk in a meeting, and being able to empower your employees to make decisions, means you're leading well.  

Subscribe for New Episodes Every Week

Be sure to subscribe on your podcast player of choice (or the email notifications below) for new episodes every week, Tuesday mornings at 7:00am EST. Wayfinding Growth is the go-to podcast to inspire entrepreneurs, business owners and leadership. “For better or worse, in richness and in want” may be for weddings, but it’s also for businesses. We will be your navigator in this journey, no matter your level.

Love what we're doing? Leave a review wherever you listen!

Growing a Business "Abroad"

Kevin Barber is the founder of Lean Labs, a marketing agency and HubSpot partner that describes itself as "an outsourced growth team for SaaS and Tech Brands that want to grow lean." Not long after launching a marketing consultancy, Kevin moved to Costa Rica and grew the company, through trial and error, to what it is today.

Over the years, Kevin has launched two iterations of a marketing agency with different focuses and levels of success. His journey to Costa Rica plays a huge part in his growth journey, which we get into in the conversation. 

We learn how changing your perspective is critical, how empathy plays a major role in growth, and what a CEO's job should be in a growth-oriented company. Plus more. Sit back and set a course for growth.

Today's Episode is Brought to You By:

This episode of Wayfinding Growth is brought to you by Sprocket Talk. If you’re ready to take your HubSpot experience to a whole new level, you need to join Sprocket Talk as a Free VIP member. Tutorials, courses, training, HubSpot updates and more. Head to SprocketTalk.com/WG to join the movement and get an exclusive Wayfinding Growth deal!

Communication and Empathy

Even a factor as simple as time zones taught Kevin that leading and growing a team, and business, should rely on empathy and communication. 

In Costa Rica, Kevin's time zone was Central for part of the year. But that country doesn't recognize Daylight Saving Time, so for part of the year it was Mountain Time. 

With clients and team members in several countries, a dozen different time zones, and different cultures, timing and communication paired with digital-first communication meant a lot of effective, efficient communication, a dash of empathy and a generous portion of grace. 

Without great communication and lots of empathy, it's much more difficult to grow your business and your team.

Tracking Assets as a Growth-Minded CEO

As the CEO, Kevin says, it's your job to grow your employees, not your customers. It took him a little time to discover this philosophy and truly implement it, but Kevin says he's so glad he did. 

Kevin used to think that the "stream of income" he had to focus on were the clients. Over the years he's realized that his focus should center on the team, since they're the ones producing for those clients. If he focuses on the team, the team can focus on the clients. 🤯

This mindset shift means Kevin focuses on developing the assets of Lean Labs - the employees. As the development moves forward, the team is then responsible for developing and implementing for clients. 

It seems like a small shift, and a common-sense approach, but Kevin said it was life changing to the growth in his business over the last 18 months.

Running Your Business by Getting Out of Your Bubble

Running an American company from a different country can help you get out of your bubble. For Kevin, that meant going from his market in Kansas City, where his local work brought him to a level of known and trusted, to a different world where remote work led to a new network where Kevin and the brand were not as known. 

Kevin ran a small agency - himself and two other people - for about 10 years. He knew how market, he owned about 75% of it, and he was comfortable. "With my customers, my network, my circle of friends, my sphere of influence, my neighborhood... we were doing well," Kevin says. "It was a dream life where we worked and I was able to go to the lake on Fridays and spend time with my family. I liked it so much, I wanted more freedom." 

That's when Kevin moved his family to Costa Rica. In about six months, his circle had grown to the point where he realized his success in Kansas City was a much smaller pie than he had thought.

Kevin found himself surrounded by other business owners and entrepreneurs with larger businesses, which drove him to see a new perspective. So he launched Lean Labs with a new mindset for a marketing agency, and found even greater success - even though at times he felt like a small fish in a large ocean. 

Kevin's lesson - Get out of your bubble for a new perspective. Maybe it's not moving to a foreign country. But you can step outside of your sphere and learn how the rest of the world works. It's a big, big world out there. 

Helpful Links

Connect with Kevin.

• Lean Labs
• Get to Know Kevin
• Lean Labs on Twitter
• Kevin Barber on LinkedIn
• Kevin Barber on Twitter

Subscribe for New Episodes Every Week

Be sure to subscribe on your podcast player of choice (or the email notifications below) for new episodes every week, Tuesday mornings at 7:00am EST. Wayfinding Growth is the go-to podcast to inspire entrepreneurs, business owners and leadership. “For better or worse, in richness and in want” may be for weddings, but it’s also for businesses. We will be your navigator in this journey, no matter your level.

Love what we're doing? Leave a review wherever you listen!

Time to Pull Back the Curtain on Impulse Creative

On this episode, Remington and Dan unpack the growth journey at Impulse Creative. This idea came from a conversation they'd had, where Remington mentioned casually that "Owning a business is a lot like being a parent." 

Dan wondered what that meant - are employees children? - so you get to hear how one business owner views the parallel between parenting and running an agency with other humans. 

Today's Episode is Brought to You By:

This episode of Wayfinding Growth is brought to you by Sprocket Talk. If you’re ready to take your HubSpot experience to a whole new level, you need to join Sprocket Talk as a Free VIP member. Tutorials, courses, training, HubSpot updates and more. Head to SprocketTalk.com/WG to join the movement and get an exclusive Wayfinding Growth deal! 

It's all About Relationships

Why is owning a business like parenting? Remington thinks of employees as family, and knows that it's all about relationships and influence. 

Have you ever tried to "make your kids" do something? You can influence, but sometimes it's more art than science. You want to lead by example. It's difficult to run a healthy business with an iron fist. 

"I have 14 'children.' I have to work through different personalities and I have to try and design the outcomes. My job is make sure the ball rolls. But now we're at the point where I have to get out of the way of the ball rolling." 

Leading, like parenting, can sometimes include corrections: "Hey, you're not in trouble but let's not do that again."

It also includes celebrating: "Someone made a goal - that's awesome!"

Remington believes that if you have employees or direct reports and you treat them like family, you'll see success. Part of this philosophy includes realizing that when you hire someone, you shouldn't try to change them. Ask yourself if this will work long term, sort of like a marriage. 

And while it can be risky to see employees as family, Remington says it's worth the risk. When a team gets to know, like, and trust each other like a healthy family unit, they'll fire on all cylinders. 

Guide Versus Force

In any leadership role, you have a choice to make. Will you try and force people to do what you want, or will you guide them in the direction of mutual goals. 

While there isn't necessarily an easy-button-answer to how to make this happen, Remington offers a few thoughts on how he navigates this role.

Leading from the front is an important goal of this CEO. Rather than pointing and saying, 'Go here,' Remington tries to ask things like 'What if we tried this,' or 'Have you thought about this.' 

He's also willing to do the work his team does, and has been in the same shoes as each of them. It's not an ivory tower he sits in and shouts commands from; it's a shoulder-to-shoulder culture of navigating the same course together.

The downside? Influence is difficult. 

"You can lead a horse to water, but you'll drown them trying to make them drink."

Remington asks the question, "How do you get them to the water, and get them to drink when we know as leaders they need to drink to survive?" 

We don't have all the answers, but we're always working on learning.

Be a Lifelong Learner

If you're leading a company or a team, the best tool in your navigational tool set is your penchant for learning. 

Books, leadership videos, podcast, parallel industries, and other sources of information will help keep you learning and improving. Remington also points to self-awareness as a major part of the journey. 

Own Things Personally, Don't Take Them Personally

This may be the best advice you'll hear on this episode. Whether it's personal or professional relationships, this advice can help you navigate all kinds of choppy waters. 

Subscribe for New Episodes Every Week

Be sure to subscribe on your podcast player of choice (or the email notifications below) for new episodes every week, Tuesday mornings at 7:00am EST. Wayfinding Growth is the go-to podcast to inspire entrepreneurs, business owners and leadership. “For better or worse, in richness and in want” may be for weddings, but it’s also for businesses. We will be your navigator in this journey, no matter your level.

Love what we're doing? Leave a review wherever you listen!

Christopher Lochhead: A Legendary Communicator

Christopher Lochhead hosts the top podcast Follow Your Different, wrote two life changing books Play Bigger and Niche Down, and he's a 3-time Silicon Valley CMO. The dude is legendary. He's also animated and authentic. Don't let the kids hear him... 

Christopher has been an advisor to over 50 venture-backed startups, is a venture capital limited partner and a former three-time Silicon Valley public company CMO, entrepreneur, and co-author of two bestsellers: Niche Down and Play Bigger.

He has been called “one of the best minds in marketing” by The Marketing Journal, a “Human Exclamation Point” by Fast Company, a “quasar” by NBA legend Bill Walton and “Off-putting to some” by The Economist.

We dive deep into growth, marketing, category design, and more in this episode.

Today's Episode is Brought to You By:

This episode of Wayfinding Growth is brought to you by Sprocket Talk. If you’re ready to take your HubSpot experience to a whole new level, you need to join Sprocket Talk as a Free VIP member. Tutorials, courses, training, HubSpot updates and more. Head to SprocketTalk.com/WG to join the movement and get an exclusive Wayfinding Growth deal! 

Category - Brand - Product

A great example of how we think of businesses that Christopher offered was this: If your tooth hurts, what do you think of first? You go category (I need a dentist) then brand (my dentist Dr. Smith is great) and then product (I need to get a cleaning and filling). 

If you can own your category, you win. 

Design Your Legendary Life

When thinking about designing your market so you can own it, Christopher says look to Google as inspiration. They own search because they thought about the category, then the product. 

At the time, we surfed the web through portals. When Google started, they said "We're not a portal. We're a search engine. Find what you want through us." 

They changed the category and created a new one, then designed a product that fit that category and do one thing well, then changed our behavior. Google distinguished themselves from companies like Yahoo, Excite, Alta Vista and others instead of saying they were "a little better."

Google purposefully positioned a new paradigm called search.

Now they've become that portal (Google, News, Music, Play store, email...) that they unseated early on.

Fall in Love with the Problem, Not the Product

If you want to truly grow as a business, Christopher talked about a new mindset. Instead falling in love with your product, you need to fall in love with the problem you're solving for your customers.

This helps you see the solution beyond just your product. You could have an entire category in front of you, but not even realize it because you've created a product just incrementally better than the last business who solved the problem. 

See the problem, and figure out what solves it, then create the category around that. The product should follow that.

"Big E Entrepreneur" Versus "Little e entrepreneur"

We're not all "Big E Entrepreneurs." Those are companies like Google, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram. 

Christopher describes it: "I have some technology, I go to Silicon Valley or another tech mecca, find startup funding, and create a mutlibillion dollar category."

This world is where Christopher spent the majority of his professional career. He's learned lessons and shared them in Play Bigger.

Then there's the businesses Christopher calls the "Small e entrepreneur." It's like if three friends get together and start a bar in their hometown with craft beer and vintage arcade games, and call it Barcade. This idea might grow into a chain of bars from the one legendary location. 

This example is similar in getting the holy triangle of category-product-brand dialed in, just on a different scale. Either way, you're navigating your growth journey by designing your category and your business.

Entrepreneurial Reports:

Here are the links Christopher mentioned on entrepreneurship in America.

• Venture Capital in the Midwest
• The state of competition

Connect with Christopher:

• Follow Your Different with Christopher Lochhead
• The Lochhead on Marketing podcast
• Lochhead on the Web
• Lochhead on Facebook
• Lochhead on Twitter

Subscribe for New Episodes Every Week

Be sure to subscribe on your podcast player of choice (or the email notifications below) for new episodes every week, Tuesday mornings at 7:00am EST. Wayfinding Growth is the go-to podcast to inspire entrepreneurs, business owners and leadership. “For better or worse, in richness and in want” may be for weddings, but it’s also for businesses. We will be your navigator in this journey, no matter your level.

Love what we're doing? Leave a review wherever you listen!

Legendary CMO/podcaster/author Christopher Lochhead breaks down legendary growth in the next episode of Wayfinding Growth. Tuesday at 7:00am www.wayfindinggrowth.com/208

Culture in the Modern Business

A quick Google search for "What is company culture" will net you this result: Company culture is the personality of a company. It defines the environment in which employees work. Company culture includes a variety of elements, including work environment, company mission, value, ethics, expectations, and goals.

Remington and Dan define it:

Remington - Culture and brand are intertwined. Brand is the image that people (the public) have of your company. Culture is the image your team has, and can unite behind. It's like a mirror. Everything in front of the mirror is brand, and everything behind the mirror is culture. 

Culture is defined by choices, not by definition.

Dan - The interaction between employees, between teams, and between employees and leaders. It's what people say behind your back. Culture comes from both the top down, and the inside out. If your company's actions don't align with its core values, culture sucks. 

For instance, if a core value is "People First" but management focuses solely on sales numbers and rewards sales people who trample on people, culture is toxic.

So... how does a company, especially with a hybrid team of in-house and remote employees, maintain a culture in the modern world?

This episode's sponsor:

This episode of Wayfinding Growth is brought to you by Sprocket Talk. If you’re ready to take your HubSpot experience to a whole new level, you need to join Sprocket Talk as a Free VIP member. Tutorials, courses, training, HubSpot updates and more. Head to SprocketTalk.com/WG to join the movement and get an exclusive Wayfinding Growth deal!

Leaders: You Can't Force Culture (But You Do Inspire It)

Remington says there's a difference between building a culture (you can't control it) and inspiring a culture (you can guide it and influence it). 

Remington says at the beginning of their hiring days, he and his co-founder Rachel used to obsess about culture. Around this time, Google and other tech darlings were in the news for their culture. Things like free beer, open office spaces, and other perks were the focus of many news stories. When Impulse Creative grew from a 2-person operation with an occasional freelancer into a legitimate agency that could afford a payroll, the Beggs focused hiring efforts on trying to woo people who wanted that kind culture. 

A few years later, Remington says he learned how culture grew from employees, how different personalities interacted, and how the company needed different personalities to grow well. 

He also learned that as much as he had a vision for how he wanted Impulse Creative's culture to develop, he had to understand that he only cast the vision, he didn't have total control. 

"I want to inspire ownership," Remington says. "Ownership of the problem, ownership of the solution. That's the area where I try to inspire the most." 

Employees with ownership of their culture can be powerful (and scary for an owner). As the team grew, Remington's piece of the influence diminished and the team's influence grew.

Have you found that as a leader? Do you see your job as an influencer of culture, or the one in control of culture?

Hiring is Like Marriage

When Remington hires someone, he thinks of it as a permanent solution. It's not temporary. He asks if he and the team can work with this person for the long term future. 

Another way hiring is like marrying, is understanding that you can't change people. Don't expect to marry a person and change them. You can grow together, but as many marriage experts say, you can't fix your partner. 

This mindset means that if an employee was brought on for temporary reasons, they should instead be a temp or a contractor, not a full employee. 

Modern Culture Navigational Tools

How does Impulse Creative navigate the culture journey? A few tools we covered in the conversation help us, and may help you.

Candor: It's one of our core values. It's the quality of being open and honest in expression. But with respect. We don't propose "brutal honesty." It's delivered with empathy. And it's hopefully received without pre-tense as well. This helps us live a culture of feedback and growth.

Empathy: Getting to know, like, and trust each other is critical. Remington and Rachel help foster this on a hybrid team with efforts to bring us all together throughout the year. We also use technology to connect, like video calls and scheduling random social times (we call them donuts - like having coffee and a donut with a coworker) help connect us. 

Flexible Benefits: Understanding that a hybrid team with varying stages in life (singles, families, different states, etc.) helps influence a culture where we all feel known and valued. 

Communications Tools: From feedback tools like 15Five to video communications like Zoom to messaging platforms like Slack, we use as many communications tools as we can. We have Slack channel like #gifgab, #random, #music and others where we can be social. Then we use others like #revenueteam, #inboundteam, #sprockettalk and others to manage conversations related to the company.

Does culture need to be a budget line item?

"It needs to be on your expense report. It's not going to be something you can go out and buy, but it's going to cost you money for camaraderie."

While culture isn't something you can directly put a profit line next to on a budget, but it should help overall. 

One example of this for Impulse Creative is flying the entire team in for a Christmas party. The effort does nothing for profits, but it helps the team align and develop personal relationships with team members. When people know, like, and trust each other more, that team performs better and delivers greater work. 

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