Ep. 76 - Traps, Myths, and Barriers to Small-Business Success

Are you ready to take the plunge into entrepreneurship but feel held back by myths and misconceptions? In our latest podcast episode, we tackle common traps that prevent aspiring business owners from realizing their dreams. It's often said that you need a significant amount of money to get started, but what if we told you that many businesses can launch with minimal investment? We explore this foundational myth and provide real-world examples of creativity and resourcefulness in action.

Throughout the episode, we discuss the vital role that networking plays in a successful business journey. Whether through formal organizations or informal connections, building relationships with fellow entrepreneurs and mentors can provide invaluable support. Fear of failure is another theme we examine, emphasizing that failure is not the end but a vital part of the learning process. Embracing this mindset shift can free you from the paralyzing grip of self-doubt.

Additionally, the misconception that entrepreneurs must do everything themselves is dismantled as we highlight the importance of delegating tasks to others who are better suited. This not only fosters a more efficient work environment but also allows business owners to focus on growth. 

Cash flow management is another critical element we address. Even the best product ideas can fail if cash flow is not carefully monitored. By understanding the intricacies of cash flow, entrepreneurs can make informed decisions that steer their businesses toward long-term success.

Join us in this insightful discussion as we shed light on the barriers to entrepreneurship and inspire you to embrace the journey with confidence. We invite you to share your thoughts and experiences with these myths and connect with us for further resources and insights. Don't miss our call to action, subscribe, and join us next week for more engaging conversations on building a successful small business!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:07):
hey, hey, we're back again.
Yes, we are.
It's gonna be another greatepisode of big and talk about
that small business.
That tripped you up on that one.
Oh, you're right, you trippedme up big time did you see that
last episode?

Speaker 3 (00:27):
we did and whenever like it looked like a mistake on
her podcast?
No, I did not, because it wentsilent and I was like what's
going on?
And I look at it and it's mewatching you on your phone.
We were in the middle ofproduction and you're over there
just hammering down on yourphone like doing text messages
and emails.
So rudely.

Speaker 1 (00:46):
I'm sorry, it's okay, make me feel bad.
Why don't you, why not justedit that out?
Did you just want to read?

Speaker 3 (00:52):
that.
Well, no, because I asked theeditor specifically to keep that
.
Oh okay, Just so I could throwyou on a bus and I feel better
about myself now.

Speaker 1 (00:59):
Was there like a little caption underneath
there's nothing.
It was awkward.
Like you know, man, I alwaysthought you guys edited that
stuff out.

Speaker 3 (01:07):
No, we do.

Speaker 1 (01:08):
It's just not that specific part.
I don't remember what I wasdoing.
I'm sure it was important, I'mcertain it was.
I wasn't like shopping onlineor something.
I can assure you.
It's true, it's a lot going on,man, a lot going on, yeah,
buddy.
Well, what are we going to talkabout today?

Speaker 3 (01:26):
Man, we're talking about traps, myths and barriers
about small business.
Yeah to entrepreneurship.
Yeah, man, I'm trying to bustthem out.
I think a little bit here.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
Yeah, I think that's great.
I recently put a post onLinkedIn about how I thought
that a lot of our and I say our,I'm not necessarily talking
about the Walton College at theUniversity of Arkansas, but I'm
saying colleges of business ingeneral are really missing the
mark with the education that weprovide on entrepreneurship.
That we provide onentrepreneurship.
You just see the same thingsthat are glowing voids let me

(02:13):
say absences that need to befilled, and then other things
that I think are very lowprobability that you'll need.
The information is what weteach in a lot of cases.

Speaker 3 (02:29):
Yeah, that was actually an excellent post.
It's inspiring, you know, whenyou post that, because I think
that you laid it out very nicely, but you had like five or six
points like specific ones ofwhere you've seen.
I mean, I think we all agree,but I mean, I think the
overarching theme in my opinionis that a lot of the
institutions and even on theprivate sector side of whatever

(02:52):
you want to call it a workshop,a conference, whatever it is
it's always about some big,glorious plan.

Speaker 1 (02:57):
The entrepreneurship ecosystem, yes, the whole
ecosystem.

Speaker 3 (03:01):
Yeah, it's just, it's always this high freaking, you
know, sell out big, big money.
Everybody wants to be afreaking billionaire, you know.
And I mean it's like, man, youdon't it confute.
That makes people feel likethat they're not going to be
able to start a business.
And you know what?
I've seen?
A lot more of really trueentrepreneurs that start up a

(03:24):
business that end up over timehaving an exit.
Yeah, you know, and that's it'sa very fruitful exit too,
because I mean, you might sell acompany for 100 million bucks,
but if you only have one percentof that company or 10, yeah you
know, that's a lot different.

Speaker 1 (03:39):
I call it get rich slowly.
Yeah, it's, it's not get richquick, right?
That's true, it really is.
It's get rich slowly most ofthe time.
Yeah, it's a building process,yeah, and you know.

Speaker 3 (03:50):
I heard a good quote by a fellow entrepreneur,
actually Dan Pena.
I don't know if you everlistened to this dude.

Speaker 2 (03:56):
No.

Speaker 3 (03:57):
You just need to YouTube his name Dan Pena How's
that spelled?
P?
How's that spelled?
Okay?
He calls himself.
I think it's the trilliondollar man now, but I mean, dude
, he is like you would love him,Like you guys remind me of each
other, actually, but he's likehe's been in oil and a bunch of
other stuff in his life, but hedoes spit out a lot of truth, a
lot.
One of the things that he'smentioned, though, is that you

(04:18):
don't.
You know, in most cases, youdon't get wealthy through one
transaction.
It's through a series oftransactions.
The serial entrepreneur yes,Like you, build a little
business.
Right, you work your way up,work your way up in business,
just like real estate.
Yeah Same thing man, just likeat a job, yeah you claw your way
up from the bottom.

Speaker 1 (04:38):
That's it, man.
Every one rung at a time.

Speaker 3 (04:41):
That's right, and so when people are trying to go out
and raise capital and do thesebig tech things or whatever it
might be, they get thrown intothis theoretical scenario and,
honestly, a lot of times theinvestors are the ones
benefiting significantly more.

Speaker 1 (05:00):
Yeah, if they're the ones putting the money into it,
the investors, what do youexpect, right?
Yeah, money wins, man.
But yeah, I mean, it's onlylike one of 400 or 500 new
businesses actually get startupcapital from, like, a VC or
angel equity investor.
What did you say?
One of 400 or 500.

(05:21):
Really, out of 400 or 500.
That's how low it is.
That's a legit stat.
Yeah, that's not just mepulling that out of my rear end,
and you know, I mean, if youthink about it, it makes total
sense.
The majority of businessesdon't need it and wouldn't be of
interest to those people, Right, because they don't seem to

(05:41):
have the same growth potential,right, and then you know, on top
of it you know the average newbusiness they get their
financing from either moneysaved by the founder, borrowing
from friends and family, andbank borrowing.
You know, that's, I mean,everybody's got to deal with a

(06:03):
bank, which is anotherpermutation on this conversation
.
But so, yeah, they don't get itfrom VCs at all.

Speaker 3 (06:12):
You know, I wonder if a lot of this is due to, like,
the media coverage.
Oh, sure it is Right, Because Imean prior to.
I mean honestly, if you look atit like the VC, PE markets,
markets, all that stuff isrelatively new.
It is in history, right?
I mean, you think what back inlike the the 80s, is when vcs
really started to when I wentthrough college, business school

(06:34):
in the 70s, nobody ever talkedabout vcs.

Speaker 1 (06:37):
Yeah, I mean private equity rarely ever existed.

Speaker 3 (06:40):
Yeah, now the public market's been around since like
the mid-1800s, right, so rightafter our Cornelius Vanderbilt
kind of kicked, kick, startedthat puppy off.
But I mean, but you know, buthistorically, most businesses, I
mean like the media would justcover like somebody starting a
business, and that was whatpeople knew how to start up a

(07:00):
business.
And now, yeah, we got into allthis media flash, you know where
the only thing that's beingpromoted about business is this
VC talk, this investor, thiscapital company, this founder,
you know, and it's big tech,it's big this, I mean.
And then, oh, by the way,there's a new restaurant and
it's open, but you don't have astory.
No, nobody says how did youstart this?

Speaker 1 (07:23):
business, but it's just like good news.
Nobody cares about good news.
You know what I mean.
That's right.
That's the kind of thing.
You've got to have something.
It ain't selling ads, baby.
Yeah, exactly, we're not goingto get eyeballs on that, it's
just here's Joe.
He bought his brother-in-law'splumbing company, that's right,
you know, when hisbrother-in-law got sick or
whatever.
We're just not going to seethat.

(07:44):
My other theory on that is thatreally the entrepreneurship
education and quoteentrepreneurship ecosystems they
started in Silicon Valley,wrote 128 Bell to Boston, you
know, maybe Austin, and sothat's where those programs

(08:07):
started in the higher educationinstitutions.
And then all the rest of us areall just like trying to play
catch up.
We, you know, we admire theHarvard's and Stanford's and
people like that.
Obviously, you know Harvardbusiness school and and, and you
know and, and those are theschools that really started
focusing on entrepreneurship.
Yeah, and that's where all theVCs were in the tech companies,

(08:29):
right, so it's sort of just, youknow, we've just taken that and
sort of exported that to theheartland.

Speaker 3 (08:37):
It's like it becomes this thing, and we want some of
that, exactly Because money doesflow through it, right yeah,
everybody wants a little bitmore kizash.

Speaker 1 (08:45):
Yeah, and they don't want.
I mean, it was sort ofconventional wisdom that
communities wanted knowledgeworkers, higher paid knowledge
workers.
We're not trying to start jobswhere we hire a bunch of factory
workers for 22 bucks an hour.
There's no glory in that, eventhough those are very necessary
jobs, Absolutely Fundamental,yeah, but it's yeah, it's more

(09:07):
of the you know, and so if wewant knowledge workers, that's
what we're going to focus on.

Speaker 3 (09:12):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (09:12):
Because those kinds of businesses where we can pay
200 grand to get softwarewriters and stuff.

Speaker 3 (09:19):
But yeah, you know.
The only thing I disagree withyou on, though, when you brought
up silicon valley, austin andboston, because I don't believe
that boston was really part ofit like I don't.
I don't think that's in part ofthe equation, it's really just
austin, silicon valley.

Speaker 1 (09:33):
Well, there's nothing that goes on in boston here
just pulling my leg there, Imean boston's, where it all
really started.
It was they had high-techcompanies there before they did
it For the reader, just fortheir knowledge.

Speaker 3 (09:45):
Like you're from Boston.

Speaker 1 (09:47):
Not originally.
I lived there For how long?
David, 17 years.

Speaker 3 (09:51):
Yeah, well, I mean, that takes you from there.
Where are you from?
Originally Kirkwood.

Speaker 1 (09:54):
Missouri.
Man Dang, how'd you get up toBoston?
It's a long story.
It's a long story, I loveBoston.
It it's not.
It's a long story, I loveboston yeah, it's a great city
to live.

Speaker 3 (10:10):
Yeah, it's cool.
It's too cold, it's too crowded, it's got fantastic history to
it.

Speaker 1 (10:11):
Oh, it's great.
Everything's there and so manyhigher ed institutions.
There's something like 180colleges and universities in the
boston metro area.
Are you kidding me?
I'm not kidding, it is justhuge.
Everybody is educated,everybody.
It's the most educated largecity in the country, really,
yeah, huh.
So now you learned somethingnew today I did.

Speaker 3 (10:33):
Hey, should we pull something out of this wagon?
Sure, why not?
The swag hat you want me to get?

Speaker 2 (10:41):
it?

Speaker 3 (10:41):
Yeah, you can, you're always like we're always doing
it, so I want you to have allthe glory.

Speaker 1 (10:46):
I don't want all the glory.
Go for it, okay.

Speaker 3 (10:49):
You ready for this one Yep?
Move the needle.

Speaker 1 (10:52):
Oh gosh, move the needle, mark, let's do a deep
dive on that and lean into itwhile we move the needle For a
big pivot, yeah for the pivot.
Pivot on this is what I like tosay, is it no?

(11:12):
Move the needle and pivot onthis.
Yeah, move the needle.
I don't know why people saythese things.
I mean, and it just, I was in ameeting recently with somebody
and, honestly, it was like acaricature of you know something
you'd see on, like you knowTikTok or Instagram, where

(11:32):
people are making fun ofbusiness speak, yeah, just every
single certain sad, sadbullshit.
Yeah, you know Acronym, yeah,acronym buzzwordswords.
It's just unbelievable.
Anyway, I mean, it's hard tokeep a straight face and not say
what did you just say?

Speaker 3 (11:55):
Well, if you said this word in a meeting, it's
like man, that's all you do inbusiness is move the needle.
You're either going or you'redying.

Speaker 1 (12:04):
Yeah, I mean, we do need to move the needle,
depending on what the needle is,yeah, Whether it goes up or
down, right, sure, but yeah, Imean sure, and we've got to have
the proper metrics on ourbusiness and we've got to
monitor those and we've got toshare those with everybody.
Yeah, right, I mean that's abig part of how we move the

(12:25):
needle.
It's just making everybodyaware that there is a needle in
the first place right.

Speaker 3 (12:32):
It's hard to move a needle if you don't know that
you have a needle.
Yeah, you don't know what thatneedle is.
Measuring needles measurethings right that's it.

Speaker 1 (12:39):
yeah, the gauge is on the business.
I always think of it like somebig old boiler or something.
Yeah, it's got all this stuffgoing on, you know, yeah, and we
got to make sure all thosethings are in the right, all
those dials are in the rightplace.

Speaker 3 (12:52):
It's true man and you do a good job.
I've watched you like multipletimes through different
businesses.
Like you do, have a good, agood perspective as to what
those gauges are well, it takesyou a little while to learn
whatever the industry is.

Speaker 1 (13:05):
Yeah, you know, certainly in the architecture
and engineering world that comeout of that.

Speaker 3 (13:10):
But I mean it, you know you do have to get some
knowledge of the industry tocome up with the right needles,
yeah, but whatever businessyou're in, the first thing you
do it is look for the gaugesbecause, like I've seen one
recently I don't know if we talkabout it openly here yeah,
whatever, this business thatyou're in, like, which is not
something that I've seen you door known that you were involved

(13:32):
in before, right, you quicklygot in there and you started
assessing and started figuringout where the gauges were for
this business like.
What is it?
Is it the supply?
Is it the?
You know what's going on withthe cash?
You the standard stuff, butthen what is it that's breaking
down the operational flow ofthis business?
And you start calculating that.
And then you hold people, youask them and then you hold them

(13:53):
accountable.

Speaker 1 (13:54):
That's what you're supposed to do.
I know you are.

Speaker 3 (13:57):
You're like this master, you're the master
megamind.
Looking at this boiler ofgauges.

Speaker 1 (14:03):
I don't know about that Screaming at people.
I was thinking today about anew spreadsheet I want to do for
that business, though yeah,it's going to be pretty
complicated, yeah, um, but Iwant to take all the inputs on
how long it takes to get stuffand how much cash flows out and
what the delay is, and then whenthe product is built and then

(14:24):
when we actually get paid, I'mgoing to put that all into a
spreadsheet so I can reallyaccurately predict how much
working capital you need, and Ialways track working capital in
a business.
If I see that going up, I startfeeling more confident.
If that's going the other way,then I start getting real

(14:45):
nervous.

Speaker 3 (14:46):
Let me ask you a question that plagued me for
years and still does Not as muchinteresting, maybe because I'm
almost 50.

Speaker 1 (14:55):
Probably also because you've got a lot of cash in the
bank.
That helps.
Don't add anything.
Go on, go on with your storyall right.

Speaker 3 (15:10):
so I would spend so much time in like analysis,
prowess or procrastinationbecause I thought that there was
like some specific, correct wayto spreadsheet stuff out or to
calculate right, or whatever itmight be.
Like I felt incompetent, youknow, and like I felt like that

(15:31):
I needed to go 20 more years ofschool to learn the right way to
do this, or else I was making abig mistake.
Oh yeah, that's I.
I know exactly what you'retalking about.
So, but like your spreadsheet,like I mean, can you like
probably give confidence to theaudience that, like what I've
been finding out is actuallyit's just whatever tool that you
create because you're trying tomonitor something?

Speaker 1 (15:51):
Yeah, and it's going to evolve.
I mean, you're never going tohave a perfect system, by any
means, but you want to have asystem that gives you as much
early warning on problems as youcan get, because then you have
time.
That's right.
Time gives you options.
Yeah, the problem is, when youdon't have the gauges and the

(16:11):
systems and the spreadsheets todo the predictive stuff, that
you run out of time.
Yeah, and and that's the bigthing, especially in
undercapitalized bootstrapbusinesses where cashflow is
everything.
Yeah, I mean, so many of themetrics relate to that.
It's just, you live and die bythe cash flow.
That's such good wisdom, dad.
Hey, thanks, son.
But I mean my own kids.
They don't care about any ofthis stuff.

(16:33):
They don't care about anythingyou say they never.
They don't read my books, myarticles, they don't listen to
the podcast.
No, nothing, they don't care.
The only one that might is myoldest daughter.
She's the only one, do you?

Speaker 3 (16:48):
feel like that maybe our kids are going to listen to
this after we die and be like oh, there's my dad, it was cool.

Speaker 1 (16:57):
It may just be wishful thinking.
They're never going to notice.
There's my dad.
He was cool.
Okay, they're never going tonotice.
My daddy was cool.

Speaker 2 (17:10):
Okay.

Speaker 3 (17:10):
Let me find something to mess with his mouth.
It'd be nice if they did, butI'm not going to count on it
Anything.
To rewind time a decade and beconfident in just my thinking
about the business, like asrookie as I might have been at
the time but just to have theconfidence, just to sit there
and work my own system, whateverit might be.

(17:31):
You don't have to have freakingQuickBooks to read a business,
you don't?
You're right, you know.
I mean like just look at thebank account, watch that, build
your own little spreadsheet.
You don't have to be a freakingExcel genius, it's so true.
You just need to learn how todo the simple formulas in there
and then just watch and monitorthe person, the squeaky wheel

(17:54):
that's watching that, like yourmega mind behind the boiler
looking at all the gauges.
That's how you're winning rightthere.
It's not a class?

Speaker 1 (18:04):
No, it's.
That's how you're winning,right there.
It's not, it's not.
It's not a class, no, it's not.
And I think you made a reallygood point, though that the
first stuff, you can't ignoreyour intuition.
But secondly, if you're a smallbusiness owner and you don't
open the mail every day and youdon't see the cash that comes in
Every day and you don't seeevery dollar that goes out,
whether you're actually writingthe checks or just signing them,
yeah, you're crazy, becausethat's how you find out what's

(18:27):
really going on.
You've got to have extremelyclose attention paid to the
inflows and the outflows ofwhatever it is the money, the
customer complaints, theproblems, customer complaints,
the problems, I mean.

(18:47):
If you're keeping tabs on allthat, then I think you're going
to develop a better sensibilityabout where things are going.

Speaker 3 (18:56):
Hey, can I ask you a real question?
Sure, will you take over mycompanies?

Speaker 1 (19:02):
For a fee Dang that.
Come on, man, for a fee Dangthat.

Speaker 3 (19:06):
Come on, man, you can use them as case studies for
big talk about small businessman.

Speaker 1 (19:14):
Are you tapped out?
I am feeling like I really am.
I got a lot to do right now.
I mean it's amazing.
I mean you know how it is.
Yeah, it's like I don't knowwhy we do it.
There's something wrong with us, dude.

Speaker 3 (19:24):
I think about that about every day I'm like what
the hell am I doing?
Yeah, it's, and I can't help it.

Speaker 1 (19:30):
But you know, in the way, it's not cocaine and it is.
It's a drug, it's addictive.
On the way out of the doortoday I go into my garage and
I'm like I've got these.
My gas struts failed on thefront hood of my 911.
And they're really, you know,it's a simple part.
You can buy them for like 20bucks on Amazon.
But it's what keeps the trunklid, which is in the front of

(19:52):
the car, because it's in theback, keeps it up.
And I always throw my briefcasein there.
Yeah, of course you do.
And so, like I go to get mybriefcase out and my you know
trunk hits me on the head whileI'm in the ufa parking deck.
It's not too swift, you know,or a good way to start, uh,
start with class getting whackedon the head, yeah, although

(20:14):
it's very lightweight, butanyway.
So I step out there.
Today now I've been on thephone, I've been emailing, I've
been working all morning and Ithink, think to myself, you know
what I bet I can really quicklychange those struts in the
front of my car.
And I did on my way out the door.
Then I was dirty.
I got dirt on my pants so Iwent over and got some Fantastic

(20:36):
off the shelf and sprayed themthat's awesome Cleaned the spot
off, got it in the car and hitit over here.
I thought about putting newwiper blades on my daughter's
Mini Cooper too, but I said youknow that would be cutting it a
little bit close.

Speaker 3 (20:48):
Yeah, it'd be pretty tight and you got here on time.
I got here on time.

Speaker 1 (20:52):
But I'm just saying it's just the way we're wired.
We're going to keep trying todo stuff productive, large or
small.

Speaker 3 (21:06):
It's kind of fun to, it keeps me entertained.
I mean, because if I don't, ifI don't have something to do or
I'm not being forced to dosomething, yeah right, it's not.
It's not really good like I get.
I mean, I just get kind of lost, yeah, and I get depressed,
yeah, depressed, real fast, Iknow, yes, exactly.

Speaker 1 (21:23):
You start knowing what's wrong.
What's the point?
Get everything on my do listdone.
I was thinking that last night.
That means if you haveeverything, then you're not busy
.
I know, don't worry, it allpiled on immediately.
This morning I thought, ah yeah, shit, that's right.

Speaker 3 (21:40):
I got to do this.
I had a good 2.30 in themorning wake Just worked for
like five hours, passed out for30 more and then got back to
work for the rest of the day.
It was awesome.
I freaking won.
Yeah, did you write?
Did you do some writing?
No, no, I just worked on likespreadsheets and marketing plans

(22:03):
and crap.
I see Ridiculousness.
I don't even really rememberwhat exactly I did.
To be honest with you, it waskind of weird.
The whole experience was alittle dark and weird and lonely
.
It was just me and my computer.
All the girls were stillsleeping.
It was like 3 o'clock in themorning.
And I'm playing some Viking Warmusic on YouTube.

(22:23):
Oh man, yeah, it's like drumsjust beat for like four hours
straight and then I feed thedogs and everything beat up.

Speaker 1 (22:32):
Yeah, I was up last night myself until about three,
30.
Um, but I went back to sleep.
But yeah, um, let let's talk alittle bit more about some of
these myths.
Okay, uh, I need a lot of moneyto start.
Well, that's a myth.

Speaker 3 (22:49):
Well, okay, so it depends Actually.
No, I would say you don't, likeyou could actually go about it,
about any kind of business.
It seems like you know, becauseyou don't specifically need
more money, but you could go,get the money, raise the money,
whatever it might be.
Or you know, there's thatcategory, so, like, if you're
going to build a factory, youobviously have to go.

(23:11):
You can't, right, you got tohave some money to build a
freaking factory, but there's alot you might be able to borrow
most of it.
Yeah, borrow it.
You could get grants.
There's a whole bunch ofdifferent stuff.
Sure, I'd probably do.
I don't know how, I've neverbuilt a factory before but
there's some ways I've donecommercial buildings with
absolutely no cash, I mean.

Speaker 1 (23:29):
So you can't do that Absolutely.
You get construction loans.
It's all about constructionloans.
That's how you do it.
But yeah, you're right, I mean,there are those.
I mean, the other thing is, whydoes it always start a business
?
How about buy a business?
Buying a business is somethingthat's easier to finance.

(23:49):
You may be able to get thatwith no money at all.
Yeah, because owners trapped.
Yeah, they want out.

Speaker 3 (23:56):
Yeah, okay, if you, if there's like, if people got
to understand this too.
It's like if you start abusiness or say somebody starts
a business and they get into itwhether it's plumbing or
whatever it might be Say it wasplumbing business, right, they
worked 30 years on this business, you know, whatever it might be

(24:18):
.
Say it was plumbing business,right, they, they worked 30
years on this business.
You know it became their dailylife.
It's their.

Speaker 1 (24:20):
You know what they did to make to earn, but they
never had an exit plan, right orthey never built the business
to sell the business verytypical they were just basically
sucked all the money they couldget out of, which is okay, yeah
that's fine business, smallbusiness, good, well done.

Speaker 3 (24:30):
Now you have a new owner young, that's fine Small
business, small business is good, well done.
Now you have a new owner young,that's ready to rock and roll,
yeah, you know.
And they literally may not evenhave to pay much for that
business, right?
Or they could pay it out overtime.
Yeah, through owner financingof the business.
Yes, exactly, and then your nomoney into, it is the existing

(24:51):
customer base, and then you justgo in and you make some
modifications and you grow thebusiness to exit if you want to
get a big check, lower risk thana startup Much lower.

Speaker 1 (25:01):
It's proven.
It's a proven business.
It's got a history.
Yeah, as you said, it's gotcustomers or clients.
It's got employees.
It's got suppliers.

Speaker 3 (25:10):
I want to do that in my next thing.
I want to do that in my nextthing.
I want to buy an existingbusiness.
Maybe it depends on what it is.
I think it'd be just somethingfun Not fun, but practically
useful.

Speaker 1 (25:23):
It's got to have some potential.
Yeah, I like businesses thatpeople need when they really
need it.
Like a plumber, it's rare I'vebeen in one of those.
Most of the business is like,no, they don't really need that.
I think they need that, yeah.

Speaker 3 (25:40):
And all we're doing is like how do we sell the best
that we possibly can sell?
You know how do I go havedrinks with that person and then
be showing people?
You know it's like therelational side of things.

Speaker 1 (25:50):
But like a plumber man, like if you need a plumber,
you need a plumber yeah, I meanI got like shit washing up,
bubbling up out of my yardbecause my sewer line broke.
I need a plumber.
Yes, there's, my dogs are outthere lapping it up.
I mean, I've had that.
I don't know why they're sofascinated with that, but no,

(26:13):
it's like you need them.
I've seen businesses that caterto certain client types, like
industrial clients in themanufacturing world.
One of the best ones I ever sawwas this company that all they
did is work on refractories infactories.
Refractories are used for heattreating and curing paint.

(26:33):
Okay, so if the refractory goesdown, the whole production
process stops.
You need them.
You need those guys.
You don't argue with them forprice, okay.
No, you just call them and youget them there as fast as you
can and you pay them whatever ittakes, because you're losing
millions of dollars a day,possibly, yeah, by not having

(26:55):
your plant going.
That's so that they cost you100 grand for it's four hours.

Speaker 3 (27:00):
You don't even care yeah okay, yeah, that's the kind
of business I like yes, youknow, a lawyer is kind of the
same way too, when you're inneed of them like yeah,
depending on what kind oflawyers they are.

Speaker 1 (27:13):
Yeah, no question about it.

Speaker 3 (27:15):
I mean, yeah, necessary.
A good way to get in withoutany money, that you don't need a
lot of money, is to buy anexisting one.
Yep, owner finance that thing.
Do something that's people need.
You're going to be, you'regoing to have a security floor,
and then your job is to thinkabout how you grow that.
How do you exactly scale it out?
Yeah, if, if you want.

Speaker 1 (27:32):
People fit into one of two categories.
They either like to takesomething that exists and make
it better, or they like to docold starts with a clean sheet
of paper.

Speaker 2 (27:41):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (27:43):
Myself.
I've done the cold startsmultiple times.
I actually prefer to takesomething and make it better.
Yeah, I can see that.
Prefer that take something andmake it better.
I can see that the constraintsin a way make your job easier
when you start a business likethis podcast videos.

(28:04):
You've just got a clean sheetof paper.
I have no idea what's going tohappen.
You don't know what's going tohappen.
There's just so many options.
I don't know if the market'sgoing to happen.
Yeah, you don't know what'sgoing to happen and there's just
so many options.
I don't even know if themarket's going to like it.
Yeah, well, that's the risk ina new business versus an
existing one.
You don't know if the market'sgoing to like it.

Speaker 3 (28:23):
Yeah, I just believe it needs it.
Yeah, well, and you're obviouslygetting some traction, so
somebody yeah but the thing isI've actually been talking about
this recently on that subjectis that you've got an innovative
type of business, clean slateof paper.
Like this type of business, youhave to go ahead and expect the

(28:47):
amount of education andinspiration that you have to
repeat over and over and driveto the audience.
It's like 10 acts, oh sure.
Like you cannot run a campaignand then say, oh, that didn't
work, they don't know they needit.
They don't know they need itExactly and they're nervous
about it.
Everyone's always I mean, whowants to be the first person to

(29:08):
try something out?
Everybody's always like thatman, you know, you got to focus
on education big time.
And then relentless repetition,repetition, and then say it 20
different ways right, you know.
And then, and then you know,then it takes all the
testimonials, the referrals, thebranding, all this stuff just
starts aggregating and over timeyou start my, you start

(29:30):
building something thank god youhave the marketing knowledge
that you have, because if youdidn't have, I mean you had a
marketing agency.

Speaker 1 (29:36):
It certainly helps.
Yeah, oh yeah, you know mostpeople don't, yeah, and they
just start and they just thinkI'm going to put this out there
and everybody's going to comeand beat my daughter Crickets,
bro, it ain't going to happen,man, it's so hard and I, man,
it's so hard and I don't devotenear enough time to the
marketing I should.
I'm getting a little bit betterat prioritizing my time, but

(29:58):
well, you can do a problem.
You got to do it, but anyway.
Um, so yeah, I need a lot ofmoney to start, and then some
businesses are just cheaper thanothers.
We used to have students gothrough an exercise.
Say, you got a hundred bucks inyour pocket and a working
pickup truck, what are you goingto do what?
What's your business?
Um, you know there's a zillionbusinesses like that that don't

(30:21):
cost anything to start.
No, did.

Speaker 3 (30:23):
You could buy a bag of trash bags and start picking
up dog poop that's true, andthere are dog poop cleanup
businesses around here.

Speaker 1 (30:31):
They make money.
Yeah, and it's necessary it is,unless you have, like I have at
my house, which is a dog-onlyyard.
Oh, and it's big enough andit's all gravel that I don't
pick up the poop very often outthere.

Speaker 3 (30:47):
What do you do?
What do you do?
Do you spray it down or justlet it dry out?

Speaker 1 (30:50):
Just let the rain just wash it.
Wash it out, the rain and thesun, the sunbeams just
disintegrate, exactly as long asit's big enough that they're
not like stepping in it yeahyeah you know, but anyway, no,
that is a business, that's onethat people are doing.
I mean, there's a million ofthose window washing, car
cleanup, beyond work, yada, yada, yada doesn't always have to

(31:14):
take a lot of money, it justdepends on what the business is.
Here's another one um, I mustdo everything myself.
What do you think about that?

Speaker 3 (31:22):
so that's a complicated statement to me,
because I know better than to doeverything myself, but then
sometimes I have to do thingsmyself.
Yeah, that's a really good wayto look at it, you know it's not
an either, or You're right,it's an and, and you need to

(31:42):
find the balance to know when todo it.
Right Now, typically, mystrategy, I guess, is and again,
this isn't a written strategy,it's just one that my gut tells
me the practice, yeah, is I dointentionally not do things and
I do hire or partner or whateverit is, so that somebody else

(32:06):
will do that specific thing.
Usually it's something I'm notstrong at or something I don't
really care too much about,right, you know?
I mean because I'm notpassionate about it, so I'm not
going to work hard on it.
Right, yes, you know, but atthe same time there are it's,
you know, I end up having to dothings myself to make sure that

(32:27):
it gets done the correct way.
The problem I always run intois is I have to do things myself
because they weren't doneexactly right the first time by
other people.
If everyone would do their jobcorrectly, there wouldn't be
nearly as many problems inbusiness.

Speaker 1 (32:44):
Well, we wouldn't need managers if everybody did
their job correctly.
We just have doers.
I mean, Matt Lewis said thatlast night in my class and it's
truly.

Speaker 3 (32:55):
It's profound why is it so hard?

Speaker 1 (32:58):
if everybody just did what they were supposed to do
what they're supposed to do theydoubt.
There's a whole lot of reasonswe can get into that on another
episode of this show.
I think I'm a terrible manager,mark.

Speaker 3 (33:11):
Well, I, well, I don't know about that.

Speaker 1 (33:13):
Are you multitasking again?
I'm always multitasking.
I don't think you're a terriblemanager, but I do hear what
you're saying.
I mean, there's times whenyou've got to delegate, you've
got to park with it.
It's not the best use of yourtime.
You don't want to do it, you'renot good at it.
You delegate that.
You get other people.

(33:34):
That's how you multiply your.
Oh yeah, you have to.

Speaker 3 (33:35):
it's essential well, the thing is, you have to you.
You cannot do everythingyourself right, you won't grow
right exactly.
So there's that paradox if youtry to do everything yourself,
you're not going to be able togrow the business, yeah, but if
you don't do everything, if youdon't, I guess, feel responsible
for everything, that's a goodway to look at it yeah, yeah,

(33:55):
and then get into stuff when youhave to and when you need to
get it done right, then you'regoing, something's going to
happen, like it could be thebooks, it could be, you know, it
could be customer support, itcould be looking at the customer
, a job needs to be done.

Speaker 1 (34:09):
A job needs to be done, you.
Job needs to be done.
Job needs to be done.
You got to jump in and do it.

Speaker 2 (34:12):
Got to do it.

Speaker 1 (34:13):
And it also sets a good example for other people.
It makes them feel like you'renot too good.
Oh yeah, you don't think you'reabove.
You know cleaning the toilet orwhatever has to be done.
I'm not, it's really.
It's so true.
My wife told me she went to afancy store with my stepdaughter

(34:36):
to buy new ballet shoes inTulsa and you have to be fitted.
She's a dancer, she's reallyamazing, she's really good at it
and anyway she goes.
You know she's at the store andthe people are, all you know, a
little bit snooty.
They're ballet people, you know.
Yeah, they're ballet people yeahit's an upmarket store, you

(34:59):
know.
And she said my wife tells meshe goes to the bathroom.
She said the bathroom wasabsolutely filthy.
Oh, that's terrible.
She was just like they're alltoo good.
You know she goes.
I almost said to him you gotsome rubber gloves and some.
I didn't see something.
I almost said to him you gotsome rubber gloves and some.
I can see some rubber gloves.
You might as well just get inthere and just clean it up.

(35:19):
You know, get it done, baby.
But that's the kind of thingSometimes the business owner has
to do, that it sets an exampleand it says I'm not above doing
whatever needs to be done.

Speaker 3 (35:27):
That, and sometimes you just got to do it because no
one else is getting the jobdone right, yeah.
And then you need to set astandard.
Not only are you leading byexample, but you're setting the
standard of what's important inthat business.

Speaker 1 (35:39):
Yeah if you're good at it.
I mean, there are some thingsthat you're just you can't set
the standard because you're notgoing to be the best, yeah, but
yeah, I think it's alsoimportant for you to like, know,
like, if you can try every job,then you know what the
frustrations are, you know whatthe inefficiencies are, you know
what the problems are, that ifyou don't do those jobs ever,

(36:01):
yeah, then you're not in tunewith the thing you know.
Yeah, I, I have this fantasy atat janice motorcycles, that the
, you know that the founder, theand myself will all build a
motorcycle at some point.
Oh, yeah, like, each of us getone on a stand and build it.

(36:21):
Who?
Not for any other reason otherthan it might be a really good
way to learn?
Absolutely, it probably wouldbe.
I mean, like, are the parts allconvenient?
Is everything there that youneed Right?
Do you have the tools that youactually need to do the job
properly and fast?
Yep, are the conditionstolerable Right.

(36:44):
Is the sequence that everybody'susing really the best sequence
to assemble something?
I mean, I just think there's awhole lot of questions you could
answer yeah, but none of us hasdone it that I know of, At
least you know.
Maybe they did at some point intheir early genesis that I'm
unaware of.

Speaker 3 (37:04):
So they're just disconnected.
But even if they did earlier on, so much has changed.

Speaker 1 (37:08):
Right, it's different now.
Now you've got like 8 or 10people working on that.
You know what I mean, yeah, so,yeah, I do think that makes a
lot of sense.
Here's another one of the mythsEntrepreneurship is a solo
journey.
I mean, we've had a wholeepisode devoted to partners.

Speaker 3 (37:28):
Yeah, what do you have to say to that?
No, I mean, I don't think itisn't.
It doesn't have to be.
No, it doesn't have to be.
Yeah, I mean like you can.
I mean, first of all, like youcan do what we're doing, right.
You have colleagues.
You have fellow entrepreneursRight, it's good to start
associating with that with otherwinner entrepreneurs, right?

(37:48):
Yeah, that you can discussthese things and get advice from
.

Speaker 1 (37:54):
Absolutely that you can discuss these things and get
advice from.

Speaker 3 (37:55):
Absolutely, it makes a huge difference to people.
And then you know, obviously,having a partner is one of the
best things you can do, but thepartnership has to be as
significantly considered as amarriage, if not even more.
So you know, because, I mean,you do deal with some hard stuff
and you've got to know you knowwhat your lanes mean.

(38:15):
You do deal with some hardstuff and you've got to know you
know what your lanes are.
What about the traps, though?
What about, like, how waitingfor the perfect product delays
progress and drains resources?

Speaker 1 (38:23):
That's a trap, yeah perfection's the enemy of good.
Yeah, don't let perfect get inthe way of progress.
I am telling you that is such acommon problem.
People have progress.
I am telling you that is such acommon problem people have I.
I deal I'm dealing with thisright now in another business
with a individual at a highlevel who will not produce a

(38:43):
report that is necessary, thatthe business is certain
information that the verybusiness may depend, its
existence may depend on.
That's right, because he can'tguarantee it's perfect.
That's right.
Okay, I'm serious, I am dealingwith that right now.
It's like your priorities arecompletely wacky, so the

(39:05):
operation's a success but thepatient dies.
You know that's sort of thesame line of thinking, I think.
No, it's true.

Speaker 3 (39:17):
You know, yeah, and I would say it's not necessarily
product-related, but what I'vebeen experiencing with this
business recently, no, it's notalways product, you're right,
it's marketing.
Yeah, that's another area thatyou can paralyze yourself.
So our team here is prettynon-tenured in marketing, right?

(39:39):
I mean, marketing is such a bigworld, by the way, it is.
It is so complex it keepsgetting more complex, like in
our last podcast when we weretalking with Jeremy about how
it's so broad.
Talking with Jeremy, yeah,talking with Jeremy about how
it's so broad but what I did wasthis is like here's a thousand
bucks that you'll spend ondigital media, and that was my

(40:01):
direction.
Now somebody else would be likeoh, wait a minute.
What about how you want yourbrand to look?
How do you want this to be?
What platform should we do?
Should we do this and do thatand get your agency?

Speaker 1 (40:13):
involved hangs everything up, but he's like
exactly no marketing is going onat all, exactly, and guess what
?

Speaker 3 (40:20):
who's the best teacher?
your own self, with your ownfailures it's so true and man,
they, they learned, they, theygraduated and they I don't know
if they can really even see ityet, because they probably live
in a pretty stressfulcircumstance, but the growth
that they've had in the lastfour months has been tremendous,
like I mean, they've learnedwhat works, what's not working,

(40:43):
why is it working?
They forget things, they repeatthe same mistake and then
they're like but it's bearinginto their brains.
Now they're becoming likeself-sufficient in a lot of the
things.
But but guess what?
We have gotten our name and ourbrand out in the market.
Yes, you know this, this entiretime, yes and uh, and I feel

(41:03):
like that we're ahead and, bythe way, we can apply all those
learnings to our clients, ofcourse, you know so it's.

Speaker 1 (41:09):
I mean that is such a good point.
Here's another trap poor cashflow management.
I mean that's just that's whatkills businesses.
Yeah, it's, it's.
They do not teach that inschool.
No, I, I, you know.
You see, you could say,business plans should have a
cash flow forecast in them, and,and they often do, and they

(41:32):
should have.
But how good is that?
And what about once thebusiness is operational?
Does that mean you stop doingyour cash flow?

Speaker 3 (41:39):
planning Right?
No, and I can tell you, whatkills cash flow plans are when
the unforeseen expenses pop up.
You work with attorney, right,and you're trying to set up your
LLC.
You find out and you set,expenses pop up.
You work with attorney, right,and you're trying to set up your
LLC.
You find out and you set it allup.
Then you find out that you'rein some sort of trademark

(42:00):
infringement, potentiallybecause you didn't do the
research beforehand.
Now you've got to spend thatsame $1,000 over again, sure
Right, and that knocks yourwhole entire cash flow and
that's going to happen 100 timesin business there's things like
that, and there's just thingslike not understanding the
difference between sellingsomething, earning revenue and

(42:23):
actually getting paid for it.

Speaker 1 (42:25):
You know, when you've got, let's say, your business
relies on large corporations,like a lot of companies here do
not to name any certain largecorporations, but we've got some
biggies around here, right,yeah, they don't, I mean they
don't pay very soon.
No, they, I mean 60 days, 90days, 120 days, maybe it depends
on what it is, but it'ssomewhere in there, yep, yep.

(42:47):
And so you could go out ofbusiness waiting to get paid,
even though you made a big sale,yeah, and you earned the
revenue.
Mm-hmm, sometimes you don'teven really earn it.

Speaker 3 (43:00):
Yeah, I know Right, like sometimes you're just
counting it in a way you knowand you're not.
I mean because if your contract, especially if you're working
with a big company, like theyexpect, like they might set up
terms with you, but their termsare that they could cancel with
a 30-day notice, exactly.
And if you made $100,000 inJanuary and you go out and you

(43:22):
blow that money to either catchup with what's happened because
you're bad cash flow managementin the past or you're still
practicing bad cash flowmanagement and you blow that
$100,000 and they stop in April,we're not paying you anymore.

Speaker 1 (43:34):
Now you're still practicing bad cash flow
management and you blow thathundred grand and they stop in
april.
We're not paying anymore.
Now you're really screwed.
So yeah, I think it's.
It's super important.
There's just a million.
The other thing, you know andand I heard matt lewis and his
brothers talk a little bit aboutthis on their podcast is just
people don't understand.
They get so worried about um,you know, thinking they got to

(43:57):
make their margin on every sale.
Oh man, instead of get the sale, get the cash go out.
Reinvest that cash in somethingelse.
Get the sale, reinvest thatcash in something else.
People don't understand thatcycle.
They're like like I'm going tohold out, okay, well, that could
be what puts you out ofbusiness.

Speaker 3 (44:18):
My philosophy has always been like your profit
margin really comes into playonce you have a process, the
right people, the right seat onthe bus with the right process
in place and you becomeefficient and effective at what
you do.
That's when you can reallystart looking at that profit and

(44:39):
expecting more out of that.
In the beginning, man, it'slike especially if you're
building a business like there'sno way, if I make a $20,000
sale today and it's just me, Ineed to go out back to that.
One other point about like I'vegot to do everything myself in
that myth, I have got to offloadmy time and so I'm going to

(44:59):
hire somebody but I'm notprofitable.
Or I'm still scraping, sure,but if I sit there, like to your
point, and I go, wait a minute,but my profit margin needs to
be this, because my accountanttold me that I need to have a
30%, yeah, I should make itthree times my raw labor cost.
Yeah, yeah, because myaccountant said it and I'm a

(45:21):
very well-educated person andI'm going to follow the exact
rule, because everything'sperfect and linear.
Right, you know, you're goingto start growth, you're going to
expand the time horizon, oryou're just not going to stunt
growth.
You're going to expand the timehorizon or you're just not
going to do well.

Speaker 1 (45:35):
Well, the whole cash flow and the cash conversion
cycle is something that peopleneed to understand with their
business.
I love businesses that arealways cash flow positive.
What's an example of thatOnline marketing business where
you drop ship?
Yeah, it's true, it's like I.
I mean, the only thing youcould be out is the marketing

(45:56):
dollars trying to drive peopleto your website.
So you could be out that.
But maybe you just rely onsocial media.
You get a sale, you get paidfor it, you got all the cash.
That's right now.
You get your supplier tofulfill, then they fulfill, then
you pay them.
Yeah, I like that model.
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (46:15):
Okay, that's good, like any kind of
subscription-based models likethat too.

Speaker 1 (46:19):
Yeah, where they're front-end loaded, you get paid
in advance, like our surveys.
Beckett's wife, exactly Cash.
His letters used to be likethat yeah, I mean cash, yeah,
cash.
I get all the money and then ittakes me 12 months to fulfill
it.
Yeah, okay, yeah.
So there are certain businessesthat have inherently better
cashflow associated with them.

(46:39):
Again, just like those thattake less capital, there are
those that take less money tooperate because the cashflow is
fundamentally better.
That's right.

Speaker 2 (46:49):
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Speaker 1 (47:04):
So how about barriers ?

Speaker 3 (47:07):
So this one's talking about fear or a failure and
mindset challenges.
Now, that's about a hundredepisode conversation, but would
you consider fear and failure afear of failure and mindset
challenges being one of the bigbarriers for entrepreneurs?

Speaker 1 (47:24):
Absolutely.
Yeah, I mean, you know I.
You always talk about how muchwork it is and I don't disagree
with that and yes, it is risky.
But it's not as risky if you dothe work.
Okay, I mean it.
You know what I'm saying.
If you just do the work, itwon't be as risky.

(47:47):
But a lot of people haveinherent fear of failure and
they don't do the work, yeah,and the?
Then the failure manifestsitself, right, um so, or they
don't get into it, yeah, at all.
I mean I, you know, we talkedabout this in the show before.
It's like, if I can't come upwith an idea that never been

(48:07):
done before, I can't do anything.
No, no, maybe that's yeah,that's so you know.
Yeah, it's like if I can't getout of um the walton college
with my degree in business andget a job working for walmart,
jb, hunter, tyson, I might aswell just go work at starbucks
as a barista.
It's about the same.
You know what I mean.
Yeah, it's like there's a lotof stuff in between there.

(48:29):
Yeah, you know.

Speaker 3 (48:31):
Yeah, and businesses don't really have to be that
different.
They don't To do better or eventake market share, they might
grow the market.

Speaker 1 (48:40):
Yeah, because they're there.
Yeah, yeah, that's a good point, you know, and I think the
mindset it's not like the marketshare, the market is
necessarily fixed.
No, not at all.

Speaker 3 (48:50):
Yeah, yeah, and I mean I think that the you know,
the fear of failure obviously isa barrier.
But this mindset challenge.
It's kind of interesting to methat the mindset that you have
to have as a small businessowner like you have to be
optimist, oh dude.

Speaker 1 (49:09):
That's the title of my next article I wrote for this
white letter.
It's not published yet.
Really, that's what it's allabout.
You have to be an optimist,you've got to be an optimist,
and how to maintain youroptimism.
That's right.
It's hard, that's right.

Speaker 3 (49:22):
And that's the mindset, a hundred percent, I
mean because?
Because you will have nothingbut problems.

Speaker 1 (49:29):
You're going to have a zillion problems.
Some of them are your making,some of them aren't Right.

Speaker 3 (49:33):
Yeah, there's going to be a lot of them, a lot of
them all the time, and you haveto be optimistic that there is a
way to overcome them, orthere's a way to just ride along
with them.
Yep, you know, there's certainproblems that I've never been
able to overcome in business.

Speaker 1 (49:50):
Well, the serenity prayer.
It always makes sense, yeah,knowing the difference between
the things you can change andthose you can't.
True, the wisdom that thattakes.
Yeah, if it's things you can'tchange, you can't let it depress
you because you can't doanything about it.

Speaker 3 (50:09):
I've watched a lot of folks in business.
You know, leaders, really greatleaders, that man I mean
there's just certain things, boy, that would just tear them up
Like they would.
I mean they would miss workbecause of it, whereas, like I
mean, yeah, it's troublesome forme in some of these things, but
it doesn't.
You know, it's like man, I mean, what are you going to do?

(50:31):
It's just crappy.
You know, you just got to rollon with it.
The situation changed, Just gotto power through.
It Just got to power throughand then you got to.
You know, just find a way tojust navigate that a little bit.
And you know, and typically, ifyou, like you said, if you work
your way through it, it worksout.

Speaker 1 (50:50):
Yeah, it's not blind optimism.
It's optimism, as you said,with a plan of action.
That's right Behind it.
That's right, okay and so.
But it is absolutely essential.
People who are negative, people, who always see why something
won't work, and a lot of veryintelligent people are like that

(51:11):
.
Okay, I mean, it does takealmost a willful ignorance, I
hate to say.

Speaker 3 (51:16):
No, it does, man.
I'm just sitting here thinkingabout my wife.
In a way she is so.
Everything has to be in thisperfect square, all stacked up
and perfectly, which isbeautiful.

Speaker 1 (51:30):
I mean she runs a beautiful life like well, think
about she had a militarybackground and she works in
health care.
Right, there's standards thathave to be met, all procedures,
there's processes, there's, it'scodified.
If you screw this up, somebodycould die, okay, yeah, therefore
, you are going to be, I mean,yeah, that's your orientation in
the system that you world yougrew up in.
You are going to be, I mean,yeah, that's your orientation in
the system that you grew worldyou grew up in.

(51:52):
You're going to respond to that.
I forget that all the time.

Speaker 3 (51:55):
Yeah, like I've never remembered.
I'm like, babe, I keepforgetting you're in the
military for like 18 years.
That's a major, just pretty.
You know're white in themilitary.
Huh, really, I've never seenanything.
I just don't remember.
Because I see her and she's sopretty I just get my breath

(52:15):
taken away more.
That's so sweet, thank you.
But what's funny is even withher, when it snows outside it
cracks me up because her OCDkicks into high gear.
She hates when the snow startsto melt.
In the driveway it's all slushyand then there's these snow
piles that pile up on the sidethat never melt.

(52:37):
She goes out there and kicksthem and she immediately wants
the driveway shoveled andcleared.

Speaker 1 (52:42):
How are you going to deal with that when you move to
your new property?
Oh, I know, with that driveway.
I know there's no way that'sgoing to be clear.
I know it's a problem, man,trust me, I've been thinking
about it.
You need to stay over there,where you are in Shadow Valley,
okay, where everything's allperfect.
No, the perfect world, I don'twant that?

Speaker 3 (53:04):
I don't want that.
But you though of where like?
I'll let the snow just happen,and the snow just melts away.

Speaker 1 (53:10):
Same with me.

Speaker 3 (53:11):
I didn't plow my driveway at all, that's just
selling my should be out in thenext what two or three weeks?

Speaker 1 (53:17):
Or it's going to be two or three days, dude, yeah,
it just never lasts.
It'll just melt off.

Speaker 3 (53:23):
Yeah, everything's going to be fine.
You know, and I I mean I thinkyou have to like not let a lot
of things bother you.
And yeah, because you cannot bein control.
Yes, in business, you'reentering into a world of
non-controllables well, it'salso.

Speaker 1 (53:38):
This is such a great analogy for marriage and life.
It's the same thing.
If you want to stay married,you can't be worried about the
uncontrollables.
You gotta let go of thosethings.
Yeah, you know.
Yeah, you do, you can't.
I mean, like, I knew a guy hewas so anal that, you know, he
had like six kids and he justwent home every day and like

(53:58):
screamed at his wife and kids ifanything was out of place or
whatever can't live like that.
You know, he made everybodymiserable, including himself.
Yeah, it's true, you know,including himself.
Yeah, it's true, you know.
It's just not a you can'tcontrol everything that much.
So, yeah, those are things Imean.

(54:22):
I do think, though, educationis one way to get over fear of
failure.
If people feel like they've gotthe tools, their knowledge and
their equipment equipped to makeit happen.
Maybe, maybe more than overcome.

Speaker 3 (54:33):
Or they get too educated and then become even
more fearful.

Speaker 1 (54:36):
Well then they always want more information, and then
the information's never certain, and then they die.
Yeah, so yeah, that could bethe case.
You also have limited networksor mentorship as one of the
barriers.
That's a good point I neverreally thought of.

Speaker 3 (54:54):
But if you don't know who to go to to ask for help,
no, or you don't know where togo to be in the presence of your
clientele and market so thatyou can be introduced to people,
or you can't.
You know, that's one of thoseB&I like these business network
groups, and what was the oneyou're part of?

(55:15):
Vistage?
Vistage, yeah, they're actuallyvery valuable, especially for a
new business owner.

Speaker 1 (55:21):
Yeah, the Vistage.
They tell you we are not abusiness networking group.
Okay but the reality of it isit functions like that.

Speaker 3 (55:30):
Yeah, people do business with the other
companies that are part of theirgroup of course I mean that's
well, but that's because it's ayou're networking with them,
you're getting to know you getto trust, you build up trust,
you find out what they do andyou like them, and so yeah and
stuff happens.
But I mean, like, if you can't,if you can't network in those
areas and be able to get help,you know, and to be able to meet

(55:52):
your clientele and beintroduced to them, you know,
showing up at the right places Imean like it's definitely going
to be a barrier for yourbusiness.
Yeah, and dig into the Chamberof Commerce.
I mean nobody really leveragesthe Chamber, I know.

Speaker 1 (56:05):
There's just like so many businesses there.
It's so true.
I can remember a member ofChamber of Commerce multiple
times.
I was on the Borea one, and boy.
You're absolutely right.
I always encourage smallbusiness owners to get involved
with the Chamber, and you haveto go down there and drive it,
man.

Speaker 3 (56:22):
I mean, they're not there to make your business
successful.
They're there to connect youand help you with your network.
It is a network, it is anetwork.

Speaker 1 (56:30):
It is, it really is.
It's a great easy network toget.

Speaker 3 (56:34):
I think that's a hard argument to say that if
somebody was like I have abarrier for my business because
I don't have much of a network.
I'd be like dude, have you goneto the chamber?
Yeah, I signed up for 300 bucks, but I haven't seen anything, I
know.
But have you gone down thereand talked to people, or get?

Speaker 1 (56:50):
involved and get involved in the chamber, right,
yeah, that's a really good point.
I mean the other thing, too,like fear of failure because you
don't know something.
My God, there's so muchinformation on that oh yeah, it
just absolutely blows me away.
Yeah, I mean it really does meaway.
Yeah, I mean it really does you.

(57:11):
Can, you can find out ofanything immediately, just
anything it's out there.
It is crazy on how to do it,yeah, and it shortcuts the
process.

Speaker 3 (57:15):
It just like I was doing something the other day
about a business and I was justcurious like on how it operated
and I just google-ized it andthen I was like, oh well, cool,
I just figured that out, yeahmove on.

Speaker 1 (57:26):
I know it's so true.
I mean, even again, I have togo back to my struts on my hood.
Yeah, I said to my wife theother day it's like I can't see
exactly how those things go on.
They got these little clips.
I'm worried that if I pop thatclip off it'll go fly and I'll
lose one and then I'll be allpissed off because I don't have
another one like that.
But let's see exactly how itgoes on.

(57:48):
Two minute YouTube video.
I don't take the clips off atall.
It totally explained it to me.
Okay, it's like anything youcan find, like that.
I can find out how to cashflowforecast.
I can find out how to makewebsites people buy stuff from.
I can find out how to hirepeople.

(58:09):
There's so much information outthere that's available to you
today.

Speaker 3 (58:19):
So this conversation I know we're out of time, but
this conversation right here isalmost like duh in a way.
But man, what I've noticed Igot my three daughters right.
They're all in their late teensand they've had a phone their
entire life, yep, and I've alsoworked with some younger folks
in the company.
Yeah, you know that are inbetween up to like 30s, mid-30s.

(58:39):
I've noticed something that hasabsolutely I would have never
thought Okay, this.
A lot of the folks have neverseen this thing as a tool of
information.

Speaker 1 (58:54):
This has been an entertainment box, yeah, and
communication and communicationOccasionally.

Speaker 3 (59:00):
They don't like.
I'm literally like.
I talk to my daughter, I'm likehoney, why don't you just
Google that?
Right, why haven't you Googledthat?
Yeah, why haven't you Googledthat?
Why haven't you gone to YouTubeyet?
She's like but then I'm like,then some of the folks I work

(59:20):
with, I'm like why am I tellingyou these things?
Like, this is something youcould have found out in
literally 30 seconds.
Yes, and you could haveprepared to show me what you're
showing me right now about yourwork.
Yes, have prepared for me toshow me what you're showing me
right now about your work.
Yes, and if you would havespent 30 minutes researching
online, you would have had.
You have been taught.
You've been teaching me now,baby yeah, you know what I'm
saying like there's no need,like the whole paradigm has been

(59:42):
shifted a little bit as far asa lot of the tools and
availability, but there's an aimakes it even exactly.
You know more so but the crazything is, is the mindset like of
, like they just don't thinkabout, like that they have this
power?
That's an interestingphenomenon.
I'm wondering, like, ifsomebody's really studying, you
should google that, I shouldgoogle.

(01:00:03):
That was shady, but you'reright, I didn't think about.
But you're right, I didn'tthink about it, but you're right
.

Speaker 1 (01:00:09):
I should have just Googled it.
That's how we find out ifthey're yeah, they're making it
is true, though you know rightnow there's a law that was
passed that we're not going tohave cell phones in public
schools in the state of Arkansas.

Speaker 2 (01:00:21):
I don't know if you're aware of that.

Speaker 1 (01:00:23):
But you know, and honestly I think that's a good
idea, okay, and and honestly Ithink that's a good idea okay
only because these kids, they'renot paying attention on school
at all, they're missing out onall the things that school could
be.
You know, especially I'mthinking of, like my 13 year old
.
You know what I mean.
They got to get off of that sothey're not on tiktok or

(01:00:44):
whatever all day, but as a toolto find information and capture
information, they're they'remissing out by not being able to
use that the school all daymark.
Don't have any worry, becausethe school has never taught them
that yeah, I know that's thesad sad part about it, because I
keep all my notes in here,being able to take pictures of

(01:01:04):
things.
There's so much you can do toorganize yourself your calendar.

Speaker 3 (01:01:11):
You could be a 15-year-old entrepreneur making
hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Speaker 1 (01:01:17):
They are out there, yeah yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:01:19):
There should be hundreds of more, you know, but
they just don't think about itthat way.
It's the most interesting thing.

Speaker 1 (01:01:26):
Well, we do have a lot of information that's
available to us.
Obviously, it's not all good.
Right, you do need to considerthe source, right?
Sure, but you can find damnnear anything you want on your
phone.
Hey, damn near, I mean, itreally is true, damn near.
That's what I say.
All right, man, all right.

(01:01:48):
So we got to wrap it up.
Yep, we want you to like andsubscribe.
Share, if you like our videos,our podcasts, share them with
your friends, put them out onsocial media.
We want to get the word outabout what we are doing here.

Speaker 3 (01:02:08):
Hey, man we're getting a lot.
We got a lot of guests gettinglined up.
Yeah, that's good, that'sexciting, yeah, yeah, I'm
actually getting approachedquite a bit on LinkedIn about
folks entrepreneurs want to comeon the show.
So I appreciate all youlisteners out there Me too
Pushing us around.
I mean, we're up to like 35, 36million listeners now,
something like that, and 10million downloads.

Speaker 1 (01:02:28):
I know Joe Rogan was getting concerned.
I heard him the other nighttalking about why we had so many
listeners.
Yes, it's crazy he was worried.
But no, seriously, we are goingto be bringing some more guests
.
I mean, for those of you whowonder about guests, we just

(01:02:50):
want people who've beensuccessful in business.
We're not looking for peoplewho are basically living off
other small business owners asindividuals.
That's not what we'reinterested in.
Okay, not trying to slam allthe coaches and one-man
marketing consultants out there,but that's not what we're

(01:03:11):
looking for.

Speaker 3 (01:03:13):
Yeah, and we're not looking for billionaires to tell
stories, because, you know, Imean, we want just entrepreneurs
that get at it, that havegotten at it and that have come
on the other side, so you canshare and encourage other people
to get through these myths,traps and barriers, like
recovery day yes, because thosethings are real.
Yeah, we all need inspirationand we want to make american

(01:03:36):
entrepreneurial country againlike it was before the 1900s
yeah, well, it certainly seemslike there's many opportunities
for people to totally dosomething if they want.

Speaker 1 (01:03:50):
Yeah, absolutely all right.
Well, until next week.

Speaker 2 (01:03:56):
This has been another episode of big talk about small
business see ya, see ya, andclick on the Ask the Host button

(01:04:26):
for the chance to have yourquestions answered on the show.
Stay connected with us onLinkedIn at Big Talk About Small
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