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Welcome to Make Your Passion Pay, hosted by LuAnn Buechler, a seasoned leader with a master’s degree in Hospitality Administration and a recipient of the TLC Award for Leadership. This podcast is designed for business owners who have left toxic environments to create their own thriving workplaces but find themselves struggling with team building and mindset. Join LuAnn as she shares insights and strategies to help you cultivate joy and a positive mindset in your business and personal life. Drawing from her experience working with renowned leaders like Dr. Ivan Misner, LuAnn guides you in building a supportive community and mastering the art of people management. Each episode offers practical advice and inspiring stories to empower you to transform your work environment into one that reflects your values and passions. Tune in to discover how to lead with joy, foster meaningful connections, and truly make your passion pay.
LuAnn Buechler: Welcome to the Make Your Passion Pay podcast!
LuAnn Buechler: I'm particularly excited for the day today, and I want to share that with you. Here at the Make Your Passion Pay podcast, we talk about the six C's in the playbook to making your passions pay, which are clarity, connection, community, collaboration.
LuAnn Buechler: creativity, and commitment. And since we started, we found a lot more words that begin with C that apply in this situation. And today, we're going to talk to a coach.
LuAnn Buechler: We're gonna talk to Kim Bjorki, is a career ownership coach with The Entrepreneur's Source, where she helps professionals explore business ownership and franchising as an alternative to a traditional employment.
LuAnn Buechler: She does this through an educational and discovery-based process, where Kim helps people gain clarity, there you go, around their goals, identifying opportunities that align with their desired income.
LuAnn Buechler: lifestyle, and long-term wealth and happiness, I'm sure, and confidentially determine their next steps.
LuAnn Buechler: Welcome, Kim!
Kim Boike: Thank you, LuAnn, I appreciate you having me.
LuAnn Buechler: It's so exciting, I love this description of a career ownership coach, or I should say the language, what we really need to know from you, is what does that really mean, and how does that.
LuAnn Buechler: help people. I mean, I know lots of people who are in J-O-Bs that they.
Kim Boike: Huh?
LuAnn Buechler: Get out of, but they don't really know how.
Kim Boike: Right, and that right there is an explanation of many of our clients.
Kim Boike: We go ahead, and what we do is provide an opportunity for those that have been laid off, or those that want to get out and don't know which way to go. You know, veterans, a lot of different, you know, people that are facing ageism. We want to give them a safe space to learn about what those other opportunities are. And it's not just franchising. I just happen to be associated
Kim Boike: with the franchises. That's my part in the education process.
Kim Boike: But we do look at all the other paths, you know, staying in what, you know, first of all, what are your goals and expectations? That's the very first thing that we want to go ahead and focus on. You know, ever since COVID, so many people have been looking for that better work-life balance, so we think it's important to look at professional and personal goals.
Kim Boike: Once we have those in place, then we look at, alright, is it staying in a W-2 job that's best for you? Is it investing, whether that's, you know, in the stock market or real estate? Or is it business ownership? Is it something that you want to start independently on your own?
Kim Boike: or looking at the franchises. So, with that, if people are interested in learning about franchises, I can take them further in the process to help them learn.
Kim Boike: If that is not an option that they want to pursue, then I'm hoping that I can connect them to other people in the other areas. Our goal is really just to help them, get to… connected to somebody that will help them in whatever path that they want to learn about.
Kim Boike: Mine just happens to be franchising.
LuAnn Buechler: Right, right, but what a great combination, you and I, right?
Kim Boike: Yes.
LuAnn Buechler: identify their passions and what they're most passionate about, which includes, you know, clarity on where they want to take the rest of their life. It doesn't have to.
Kim Boike: Nope.
LuAnn Buechler: You know, it's not a… it can be a beginning of a career life.
LuAnn Buechler: the next phase. I tell people the word retirement is not in my vocabulary.
Kim Boike: Right.
LuAnn Buechler: Rather, it is, what am I gonna do next after this particular job or career ends? What do I want to do with the rest of the moments that I have left?
Kim Boike: Absolutely. And I love how you were even saying clarity, right? Because that is a big word in what we want to do. Our goal is not to push people down that path, but to give people the opportunity to learn, and then they take that information, and can come to a point of clarity. That is huge. And that clarity may be to go into franchising, and the clarity may not to go into franchising.
Kim Boike: But either way, we celebrate.
LuAnn Buechler: And I have learned so much about franchising from my guests on the podcast, because I get it from all over, and it is so important for you to really align what your passion and values are
LuAnn Buechler: With the right franchise, if that's the right way for you to go.
Kim Boike: Right, right, very important. And we always tell people in our process to keep an open mind. We ask them to keep an open mind and be curious, because
Kim Boike: maybe the passion industry isn't what you thought it would bring to you. You know, is that passion industry going to bring you the income, lifestyle, wealth, and equity
Kim Boike: that you're looking for. So, we actually tell people, stay open-minded. We're going to give you brands to look at that you're interested in, of course, but I'm also probably going to give you a brand that maybe you said no to, because I just want you to understand all the different business models that are out there. You don't know what you don't know until you start learning, so that's important. Find out what you are liking, find out what you're not liking.
Kim Boike: Which is just as important.
LuAnn Buechler: Absolutely.
Kim Boike: all the information, the more information you get, the more clarity you're going to have. And we actually have a statistic with our brand that 95% of the people that have gone into business with us have actually gone into something they would have dismissed early on.
Kim Boike: But because we… yes, that's it. We can't ignore that stat, right? That's a huge statistic, that's a huge number, and people need to understand, just learn. Like, we're not pushing you down this path. Just be open, be curious, and learn.
Kim Boike: And then… so a lot of times, when they do this on their own, they're going ahead and looking at just things or industries that are of interest to them. You know, but when they're coming with a coach, what we want to do is we want to give them the vast, area to learn, learn about as much as you can. We're going to help keep the noise out, because a lot of the times it's very overwhelming when you go through this process
Kim Boike: on your own. I coach people all the way through it. You know, okay, you're thinking that this may be a path. Let's go back and look at your goals and expectations. What about the income you're looking? What about the lifestyle that you're looking for? You want to travel globally. Is this going to allow you to do it? You don't want to work weekends, so are restaurants the right business for you? You know, that's just one simple example. People are like, I don't want to work nights and weekends.
Kim Boike: okay, but then they're like, I've always dreamt of opening my own restaurant. Well, let's look at that, you know, let's definitely look at that to see if that's a path. It may be, but it may not be, you know, as you dig deeper into it. So we just kind of help people to stay focused on those goals and expectations, and then come up with a path, what's the best fit for you.
LuAnn Buechler: Yeah, I love that. So you said another word that begins with C, curiosity, right?
Kim Boike: Stay.
LuAnn Buechler: stay curious, and I think that a lot of us,
LuAnn Buechler: Mature adults need to relearn curiosity.
Kim Boike: yes.
LuAnn Buechler: We get set in our ways, and we stop being curious, right?
Kim Boike: I…
LuAnn Buechler: And there's so much out there, there's just a vast array of opportunities in the franchise world and others.
LuAnn Buechler: That's another thing I've learned from the guests I've had on, you know?
Kim Boike: Hmm.
LuAnn Buechler: One gentleman who owned
LuAnn Buechler: 8 different franchise companies, right? Like, some of the brands, when you think of a brand, have multiple,
LuAnn Buechler: What?
Kim Boike: industries. That's what… Industries. Yes, and we talk about
Kim Boike: scaling in our coaching. You know, how… is one unit gonna get you the income that you're wanting, or do you have to scale? And one way that we talk about scaling is horizontal, which is doing the same thing, right? Just in different territories. But then you have what you're talking about, different… different… or different brands, which is called stacking. So, you know, I always say, think of a realtor.
Kim Boike: Maybe they… their realtor is going to maybe want to own a carpeting, flooring company, a painting company, a roofing company, a window company. You know, all of the clients that a realtor has can use those things when buying a new house. So it's not just always doing the same thing, you can stack them as well.
LuAnn Buechler: Well, now you've just introduced another new,
LuAnn Buechler: word and concept that I didn't even think about, and yet now I can look back at some people who I know do just that, I just didn't know what to call it.
Kim Boike: Right, right.
LuAnn Buechler: Fascinating, right? Stacking, around an area. So, it's another thing that people could learn from you that they might have never thought about.
Kim Boike: Right.
LuAnn Buechler: How do I generate the lifestyle, the wealth.
LuAnn Buechler: that I want to have moving forward.
Kim Boike: Absolutely. The wonderful thing about this is, I think, personally, is that my husband and I actually went through this same process. We were being coached by somebody from the entrepreneur source, and then working with my coach, I realized that my two non-negotiables were I wanted to have control of my time. Being from Detroit, you know, we're living in Phoenix now.
Kim Boike: I want to be able to go back to help our family when needed. Our oldest son still is back there. I want to be able to go and visit him when I want to.
Kim Boike: We have a lot of company that come out here, so that was… I want to be able to take time off with them and not have to worry about, you know, how much time available do I have, right? Or vacation time do I have, or can I get permission from somebody? I don't want to have to ask that anymore. So I definitely have that.
Kim Boike: And then I also wanted to be virtual, just because if my husband's company moved us again, I didn't want to have to put what I was doing to start over. I love this brand that I represent, because it is about education. And I was in education for 27 years. I was a teacher for 27 years. So it is really about providing that space for people. But going through the process myself, and just
Kim Boike: learning the, you know, what I did going through the process, but even as a coach in the brand, I'm still learning right along with my clients, right? Brands that I haven't presented before, different opportunities, we're always getting new brands into our inventory.
Kim Boike: So it's pretty… it's a unique process, and very happy to offer it to people.
LuAnn Buechler: A couple of things are coming to my mind. First of all, I want to emphasize that the entrepreneur source.
Kim Boike: Hmm?
LuAnn Buechler: Name of the company that you work with.
Kim Boike: Yes, I am a… I am a franchisee owner of the Entrepreneur Source.
LuAnn Buechler: Thank you.
Kim Boike: a franchise. Yes, it is a franchise. So this is the one I decided to go into. We do have over 20 different industries in our inventory, and then within those inventory, we have over 200 brands. So I'm not working for just 4 or 5 brands, you know, we really are here for the
Kim Boike: science, and then making that introduction.
LuAnn Buechler: Fascinating, that's so awesome.
Kim Boike: Yes!
LuAnn Buechler: And there are so many different ways to become a business owner.
LuAnn Buechler: So, how much time does the coaching process with you take from the minute I say, Kim, I think I want to look into this
LuAnn Buechler: possibility of owning my own business, my own franchise, until we actually land on a decision. How is that pro… how long is that process?
Kim Boike: Yeah, I would say the average is usually about 3 or 4 months of going through the process and starting to learn. Within that time frame, most people are usually coming to their decision whether it is for them or not for them.
Kim Boike: I have had people that have opened a business within 4 or 5 months of saying yes, I should say, of signing their franchise agreement. And then I've had people that I've worked with for over a year, because, you know, based on their life that happens, you know, they're working full-time, they have limited schedule, we take the brands one at a time.
Kim Boike: And they're doing their due diligence, and, you know, okay, this brand isn't quite… I want to learn a little bit more about some other brands. I'm like, that's fine. So it's not about rushing people through this process.
Kim Boike: Let's… if you're curious and you still want to learn more, let's learn more. I just want people to,
Kim Boike: you know, know that it is that safe space. I keep repeating that, but it is so important to realize
Kim Boike: that it is a safe space to learn. And not only are you learning about business ownership and franchising, but you really are really learning about yourself, too. It's self-discovery, because there are things that are coming up that you're learning that you're like, oh, I never thought about that before, you know? And like, oh, okay, I can see how that could work and give me the lifestyle that I want. So you are learning
Kim Boike: just as much about yourself and what you're wanting, in addition to business ownership. And if people don't want to go into franchising, I have enough connections and clients that I've helped and make connections to people that have started their own business. You know, I refer them to SCORE, the organization. It's SCORE.org. They are a wonderful, organization that gives free mentorship to people wanting to start their own
Kim Boike: an independent business. They have great websites, and so just making those connections to help people in whatever path that they want.
LuAnn Buechler: Yeah, I used to volunteer for SCORE.
Kim Boike: Son!
LuAnn Buechler: the SCORE organization. If my audience is not, you can also talk to me about what SCORE is like.
Kim Boike: Yes.
LuAnn Buechler: And, hopefully someday Kim can pass some people to me to help them…
Kim Boike: That's right.
LuAnn Buechler: own business.
Kim Boike: That's right, that's right. I always have new people that are, you know, I'm a solopreneur, so I'm the only one working in my business right now, but I do have people that start businesses up that
Kim Boike: have employees, you know, depending on what… how many employees you're wanting, there's those different industries as well, but to have that culture, you know, that winning culture and retention is a huge question that a lot of people are asking, you know, how do you retain people? They're hearing all these people with the, you know, ins and outs of people leaving, and how do you retain people? And I think that culture is one of the biggest things.
Kim Boike: And to have you helping them is a great benefit to that, building that right from the start, even.
LuAnn Buechler: Yeah, thank you.
Kim Boike: think about it.
LuAnn Buechler: You know, franchise, companies, Establish some culture on, like, the national level, right?
Kim Boike: Absolutely.
LuAnn Buechler: as a brand new business owner with my own franchise, implementing and ensuring that that culture grows in a.
Kim Boike: Bye.
LuAnn Buechler: with a greater organization still can be a challenge if you've never.
Kim Boike: Hmm.
LuAnn Buechler: Built a culture before, right?
LuAnn Buechler: So thank you, Mark.
Kim Boike: Right.
LuAnn Buechler: But let's… let's take the entrepreneur's source for an example, and do a little case study here, okay?
Kim Boike: Sure!
LuAnn Buechler: So, let's say I've been working with you, and I decide that the entrepreneur source is likely one of the choices that I might make. What do we do from there?
Kim Boike: Okay, so what I do, let's… we're going to kind of back up before, before you're even making that choice. Right. I could present that to you. So what happens right from the very beginning, after I present it to you, you start having conversations with the franchisors. And the franchisors are the people that are at the executive level. They're the ones that are giving you the support in marketing, in sales.
Kim Boike: and business development.
Kim Boike: accounting and accounts payable, right? So you are going to understand, and you talk with them about once a week. You have… the first phone call could be, you know, learning the history of the business. The second phone call could be learning, you know, what do territories look like? How are territories set up? The third phone call could be about learning about their financials.
Kim Boike: And then… then after those phone calls, and you have a good foundation, then you start having validation calls with the franchisees. And the franchisees are the individual business owners. So this is where you get a little bit into more of the nuts and bolts. You get to have conversations about what… what does it look like on a day-to-day basis? You know, are the things that I'm learning from the franchisors
Kim Boike: In fact, happening On a daily basis. You know, would you do this again?
Kim Boike: What were the challenges that you faced that the franchisors either helped you or didn't help you with? You know, you get to get into more of that discussion with the franchisees.
Kim Boike: After you're having those conversations, then you're kind of deciding, okay, it's supporting my income, lifestyle, wealth, and equity goals. I'm liking the support that they're giving the franchisees.
Kim Boike: The challenges… okay, there are challenges, but I think with my strengths and my capabilities, I could work with those. You know, you're gonna have challenges with anything. You're gonna have challenges with a regular job, right? But what are those ones that you think that you could withstand and
Kim Boike: you know, push through. Then you're going ahead and thinking, okay, I might do this. So the last part of your discovery is going and meeting the team. It's a virtual discovery or in-person discovery, where you get to go to the brand offices and meet people. And then you're deciding if that is for you or not. If it is, then we…
Kim Boike: put you in contact with funding sources. We actually do that
Kim Boike: early on in the process, because that's one of the very first questions is, how do I afford this? How can I pay for a business? So we actually have you get education about that early on in the process, so that when you come to that point of decision-making, if it is for you, then you have an idea of how you would go about funding that business. And then I coach you through, and pretty much go through that whole process of
Kim Boike: Building your business. Is it going to be an LLC? Is it going to be a C-Corp, an S-Corp? Getting you in touch with those people that can help you do that. And then you go ahead, if you invest in a brand, let's say it is the entrepreneur source.
Kim Boike: Then you get to go to training. And that's kind of where a handoff is. I kind of hand you over often to the franchisors. But I always am in contact with you, especially in the beginning. I want to meet with you once a month. You know, how was training? You know, how is that going for you? What were some of the things that you learned?
Kim Boike: But it's never, you know, and we're always staying in contact. I try to stay in contact with everybody, you know, then we're to a point of, like, alright, once a quarter, we'll go ahead and talk. And my first clients that I ever had go through were kind of talking, like, maybe through email, and definitely getting on Zoom at least once a month… once a year, talking to see how things are going.
Kim Boike: So that's kind of, like, the whole process, but yes.
LuAnn Buechler: Well, that was great, and now let's go back to the timing that you described earlier, right? So, in that first 3-4 months.
LuAnn Buechler: Are we just researching all the potential?
Kim Boike: I have you, talking with 3 different brands. Okay. And then you're going through those phone calls with the franchisors of all 3 brands. So that's… so that's where a little bit more time is coming in, because you have 3 different brands to talk to, and you figure that's 1 hour per brand per week.
Kim Boike: So, you're getting a lot of information. But again, like, I've had some clients, they have a full-time job. They can't… they don't have the time to do that. So, we'll take one brand at a time, right? And that fits into their schedule. So, however it works for the client, it can be overwhelming, so I don't want to overwhelm them where it becomes frustrating.
Kim Boike: One thing we always tell people, we want you to have fun with this. If it gets to a point of frustration.
Kim Boike: Talk to me about those feelings, you know?
LuAnn Buechler: That is another reason we love you! You love to have fun!
Kim Boike: That's right, that's right, exactly, exactly. So, and it is fun, but it also, you also have those emotions that are coming in with it, whether it's time, you know, it's just time-bearing, so I can't look at three brands at one time. Okay, what can you look at? What can you see yourself giving the time to? One brand, two brands, depending on the client.
Kim Boike: we'll look at those. But yes, that's what the beginning months are, is having those conversations with the franchisors first, and having those conversations to understand the business, understand the model, you know, understanding if you want to be full-time owner, or if you want to be semi-absentee and just have a multiple stream of income.
LuAnn Buechler: You know what?
Kim Boike: My clients want to keep their jobs, but they just want to have a multiple stream of income, so they'll do a semi-absentee business. So, you know, what does that look like?
LuAnn Buechler: e-business. See, I'm learning all kinds of new words.
Kim Boike: Yes, yes!
LuAnn Buechler: Business. Yeah, so…
LuAnn Buechler: my audience to catch that and say, okay, right, there's a way that I don't even have to leave my current career.
LuAnn Buechler: the security of that, and still build additional income for my future. I'm gonna guess there also can be a transition from…
LuAnn Buechler: You know, keeping my current job, having this franchise, and then shifting to the franchise and leaving the job.
Kim Boike: Absolutely.
LuAnn Buechler: So what I'm hearing is Kim is very knowledgeable in all the potential options of how you transition out, if you want to transition out, etc.
LuAnn Buechler: In becoming a business owner and creating an additional stream of income, potentially, which I love.
LuAnn Buechler: So much, right? Now, of course.
Kim Boike: Hmm?
LuAnn Buechler: I want you to find your passion first, to make sure when you go into Kim, you have good information in your heart and soul to share with her about what.
Kim Boike: But I eat.
LuAnn Buechler: Or, because that can only help her more fine-tuned what she has to offer you. So that is super fantastic.
Kim Boike: Right.
LuAnn Buechler: Are people investing with you as a coach on a monthly basis? Is it a flat fee for so many months?
Kim Boike: Good question. Yeah, no, my services are complimentary.
Kim Boike: I am paid through the businesses. So, just like a recruiter, I am paid from the third parties, companies out there. So my… my… the only thing it costs to work with me is time, right? You have to invest the time to be available for the conversations, to do the activities.
Kim Boike: And going through. And I don't mind. I did my due diligence.
Kim Boike: on learning about this brand. So, I know what I was getting into. I knew that it was a complimentary service. I knew how I got paid. So, I don't mind giving people that opportunity to learn, as long as they're invested and they're showing up for the meetings. You know, people are professional, you know, overall. You know, if they can't make a meeting because life happens, of course, we understand that.
Kim Boike: But as long as they're involved and, like I said, curious and open-minded, I'm happy to work with them and guide them through that process.
LuAnn Buechler: I'm gonna use those two words. I love that. I think curious and committed to some sort of change, at least they believe.
Kim Boike: Huh?
LuAnn Buechler: didn't work. Right.
Kim Boike: One second.
LuAnn Buechler: This is where they come in at. Curious, committed to the research and the process.
Kim Boike: Right.
Kim Boike: I feel like that's a… that right there, being curious, is probably our biggest challenge. I do challenge people, I don't force people down that path, but I do challenge them to keep that open mind, and to not say no too early. You know, people will, like, well, I… they'll have a first phone call with their franchise, like, I don't like that industry. I'm like, well, tell me why you don't like that industry. Well, you know, I don't think, or I feel, and when I hear
Kim Boike: those words, I'm like, that's not what we're basing this on. We're basing it on facts. I want you to find out if those feelings or those thoughts are true or not.
Kim Boike: You know, and then basing those decisions on facts. They may be, but let's find out. They may not be, and let's find out.
LuAnn Buechler: I love that, it's another distinction between you and I, because I'm told about feelings.
Kim Boike: Oh, right, right.
LuAnn Buechler: Options of what's coming from your heart.
LuAnn Buechler: That will give you the facts on the outside of that, and I know that to be true, right?
Kim Boike: Exactly.
LuAnn Buechler: So…
LuAnn Buechler: very clearly when the moment is for me to pass them to you if they're undecided, so I love that.
Kim Boike: That's neat.
LuAnn Buechler: Excellent, and what great information. I had no idea it was complimentary until, yeah, I learned that about business brokers, too.
Kim Boike: these days.
LuAnn Buechler: Right?
Kim Boike: Yes.
LuAnn Buechler: That, again… I've been in my own business for 25 years, and I didn't know that, right? Until now. Plenty of people out there listening who have yet to learn these items, so I hope we're helping you with your decisions.
LuAnn Buechler: Yeah, certainly. So, someone is curious about business ownership, what's the first step?
Kim Boike: Just to go ahead and visit my website at kvoike.
Kim Boike: eSourceCoach.com, and I… and just go ahead and look at the website.
Kim Boike: see what our, our… what we're about, and then I do have a calendar link on my website that they can go ahead and schedule an introductory call.
Kim Boike: just to, you know, learn more about the process, ask me the questions that are coming up, in their heads as they're listening to this, and I'd be happy to clarify or answer any questions that people may have.
LuAnn Buechler: That's awesome, and of course, we'll make sure that those links are in the show notes, so that you can reach out and follow Kim on Instagram. I see you have Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, where you could find her, and
LuAnn Buechler: reach out to her, reach out to me, you know how to find me, LuAnnBe.com, and my complimentary link for a…
LuAnn Buechler: curiosity session. I just changed the name for a curiosity…
LuAnn Buechler: Passion. Love it. Curiosity, conversation, everything has to rhyme for me.
Kim Boike: Love it.
LuAnn Buechler: If there was anything else that we didn't talk about today that you feel it's important for my audience to know.
Kim Boike: I just… just again, it's a safe space. Education is everything, right? You don't know what you don't know, and the more you know, the better, decisions you can make for what's important for you.
LuAnn Buechler: And in today's world, that may be the most important thing to know. It's a safe space.
LuAnn Buechler: Low pressure, you said. It's education and discovery of what's possible for you.
LuAnn Buechler: And what's best for you in creating the life you want to create, and that's what we're all about here, is make your passion pay. Live, enjoy, have fun, but monetize it, and do it well.
LuAnn Buechler: Thanks again, Kim. I look forward to continuing our relationship, and everybody out there, enjoy the day. Have some fun.
Kim Boike: Thank you, LuAnn.