More Episodes | What Works Small Business Podcast

EP 289: Leading Through Uncertainty with &yet CEO Sarah Avenir

Jul 14, 2020 | Mindset & Identity, Podcast

I wanted to dig into what leading a team or community through a crisis can look like, and I could think of no one better to talk to about this than my friend Sarah Avenir.

Sarah Avenir—who you might know better as Sarah J. Bray—recently took the helm as the CEO of &yet, a digital development and strategy agency.

Sarah is an incredibly thoughtful leader and I knew her approach on leading both herself and her team through this time would be an insightful look at embracing uncertainty.

Sarah and I chat about how she became CEO of &yet, how she considers herself a naturally fearful person, and why a key part of her leadership is knowing others have her back. We also talk about how she structures her time, team, and approach to her work so she can focus on her own role and let other people do their job.

3 Powerful Ways To Do More Of What Matters Most So You Can Build A Stronger Business

Jul 9, 2020 | Growth, Mindset & Identity, Productivity

Every small business owner goes through a phase (or many) where they're just trying to keep up. In the beginning, you might be trying to keep up with the vague idea of all of the things you're supposed to be doing to get your business off the ground and functional....

EP 288: Rethinking Your Business Amidst Change With Second Breaks Founder Lou Blaser

Jul 7, 2020 | Business Models, Creativity, Podcast

We are all facing uncertainty–as we do every day. So I wanted to talk with business owners who have their own stories about embracing uncertainty this month and the first person I thought of was Lou Blaser, the founder & host of Second Breaks.

I’ve watched Lou embrace uncertainty over and over again throughout the years. I’ve watched her step outside her comfort zone and I’ve watched her take courageous action.

Earlier this year, she announced that she’d made the decision to upend her business, then a career coaching company for late Boomers and Gen Xers, and move back to the Philippines to help out with her aging m. And while she could have tried to continue with her business as is–she made the bold move to use the change as a way to rethink everything.

That’s where this conversation starts–and throughout, Lou and I talk about how her business has evolved, the questions she asked herself to create the new plan, how she could use her existing assets in new ways, and how she started experimenting with her new ideas.

EP 287: The Things We Thought We Knew About Money

Jun 30, 2020 | Money & Life, Podcast

This week, we asked members of The What Works Network to share one thing they thought they knew about money but later discovered wasn’t true. Each shared a narrative or bias that held them back from fully embracing their business and their earning potential.

As you listen, consider which of these narratives are ones you’re currently operating with and how you could start reevaluating them. What would you do differently if you reprogrammed those money thoughts? What decisions would you make if you claimed a new money narrative?

You’ll hear from Charlene Lam, a curator and social media strategist, Maggie Patterson, the founder of Scoop Studios, Carol Hamilton, the founder of Grace Social Sector Consulting, and Anna Wolf, the founder of Superscript Marketing.

Back To The Future: Why Clarifying The Vision For Your Business Matters Today

Jun 25, 2020 | Growth

I'm a Trekkie. I grew up immersed in Star Trek: The Next Generation. I devoured Deep Space Nine and Voyager. And while I'm not as up-to-date with the more recent incarnations, Star Trek is still an important part of my identity. Quick aside: I suspected Sean--my...

EP 286: Pricing For The Future With Fire + Mineral Jewelry Founder Tiffany Whipps

Jun 23, 2020 | Business Models, Podcast, Sales

As you grow as a business owner, you can start to anticipate market changes and plan for the way your cost of goods increases. You can set a goal to position your brand in a certain way and you can become smarter about your target market so you understand the value of what you’re offering more fully.

And perhaps most importantly…

You can plan for the ways your cost of doing business will evolve.

You can anticipate the team members you’ll hire. You can plan for the software upgrades you’ll need. You can build in margin to cover unforeseen circumstances or changes in the market that impact your bottom line.

Very, very few business owners do this from the start. But over time, you can get better and better at your pricing strategy—and even your overall financial strategy—so that you’re planning for the future instead of reacting to it.

And that’s exactly what I’m talking about with today’s guest, Tiffany Whipps. Tiffany is the founder and designer behind Fire + Mineral Jewelry. Tiffany has been designing jewelry full-time since 2012 and she’d be the first to admit that her pricing strategy has become a lot more sophisticated since she put together her first line sheet on a whim.

I originally invited Tiffany onto the show to showcase how money flows through product-based businesses. And we absolutely talk about that. But we also talk about how Tiffany’s approach to money has grown more sophisticated over time, as well as how she’s now pricing for the business she wants to have instead of the business she has right now.

Tiffany and I talk about how her pricing strategy has evolved over the years, why she’s focused on products that have more long-term value as opposed to what’s trendy right now, and how she’s using her goals to set prices for her new work.

Dabbling Isn’t As Safe As We Think It Is

Jun 18, 2020 | Growth, Mindset & Identity

I think we dabble to keep ourselves safe. Try a few different social media platforms. Experiment with a few different kinds of offers. Play around with a few different marketing techniques. On one level, it feels like you're increasing the odds of success and...

EP 285: Going All In With Strategist Marie Poulin

Jun 16, 2020 | Business Models, Podcast

This week, we’re taking a look at what happens when you’re able to go all in on every aspect of building your business—product, marketing, and operations—and how that impacts how money flows through your business.

To do that, I talked with Marie Poulin.

Now, Marie has been on the podcast several times now. Most recently, I spoke with her about her decision to not build a business that scales. Funnily enough, at just about the time that interview aired, things started to change for Marie.

Marie found something she could go all in on.

And suddenly her path to the right product, the right marketing, and the right operations became clear—as did the path to making money with ease.

In this conversation, Marie and I talk about how she transformed her business when she stopped resisting and found the thing she could go all in on. We talk about how the way she makes money has changed, how she’s finding her customers, how it’s all impacted her personal finances, and what she’s investing in now that her business is growing with ease.

A Bias For More

Jun 11, 2020 | Culture, Growth, Money & Life

The world of business—big business, small business, micro business—has a bias for more. More revenue equals a more valuable company. More users equal a more valuable platform. More followers equal more valuable content. And that bias for more has largely been...