Hello and welcome back to another episode of the Service Based
Business Society Podcast. It's the second to last episode of season
three. And as you can tell from the last few episodes, I'm feeling a little
bit, almost nostalgic about the journey. And as I was going through
recently, looking at the episodes of season one, season two, even
season three, and really starting to decide where this podcast should go,
and it was very interesting, a little bit of journey, and I wanted to actually
share it on today's episode, because I think that every business almost
goes through this same thing. I know that I have gone through this with
my business a couple of times in the last few years. And so as we're
going through the podcast, as I've gone through it with my business, it's
a conversation that I just felt like was so relevant for today. And it's kind
of that discussion of realizing that you aren't where you necessarily
thought you would be. You don't have a problem with where you are. But
it's almost kind of that realization of like, "Hey, this isn't exactly what I
thought," and wondering what now. And it's that moment where we have
to take a step back and really wonder what is important. And it always
comes back to, why did we even start? So, I've talked about the podcast
for a long time, about being a way to connect with some incredible
people. And even this journey, this episode, is really born from the
journey of going back through some of the episodes. We've had some
incredible guests, and I really want to say thank you to the guests who
came on season one, season two, even season three, of course, all the
guests get a big thank you. But those who believed at the very beginning
when there was nothing, those who decided and agreed to be on the
podcast before there was a podcast. Those are the people who truly
believed in the, I'm going to show up. I'm going to take the time to
record. I'm going to come on the episode. I'm going to share my value.
I'm going to share my story. And then this person who I don't really know
is going to take it and she's going to go and do things with it. And I've
decided that that is worth my time. And we've talked about it so many
times on the podcast that when someone believes in you with their time,
there's truly nothing more valuable because it doesn't matter whether
you were in the first day of your business, Or the thousandth day in your
business. If your business is generating a hundred dollars a month or, a
hundred million dollars a month, everyone has 24 hours in a day. Time is
the biggest piece that offers such a quality. It neutralizes. And I feel like
the word equality, even as it leaves my lips, I'm like, Oh my goodness, I
don't want to get into that discussion. But what it does is it basically says
everyone has the same 24 hours. Do with it what you will, but you have
24 of them. And as we grow our businesses, as we grow a podcast, as

we make decisions as to when we're going to interview on a podcast or
when we're going to meet with someone. Where we put our time is truly
into what grows. As I sat back recently and looked through the episodes,
we're already starting season four guest planning and we're starting the
decisions as to what episodes kind of fit into what places and who do we
want and who is similar to someone we had before, but maybe offers a
different perspective. It really had me look through at who had been
here? And so today I wanted to share, this discussion about realizing
that things are not exactly as you thought they would be and that being
okay and part of every single person's journey. I'll be honest, if I go way,
way, way, way back in time. I didn't want to go to university. If we're
going way, way back, I rode horses really competitively my whole life.
This was my whole life. I wanted to go to the Olympics. I wanted to
represent my country. I worked, I slept, I breathed, everything was
around that goal. And it wasn't until I was in a really, horrific car accident
and I really tried to keep riding for a while after that, But it became very
clear that I was no longer going to be able to do it at the same level and
it actually, as my condition worsened, I wasn't able to do it at all. And, I
remember, early on, my dad always saying, you put all your eggs in one
basket, you need to plan to go to school, you need to do all of these
things, and I said, dad, it's gonna be fine. This is what I'm gonna do with
my whole life. It was not a great conversation when I had to say, well
dad, you may have been right. Nobody likes to have the conversation,
especially with a parent. But I had put my eggs in one basket and I
decided I was going to go back to school and I really, at that point, had
no idea what I was going to do because I had never even considered it.
And as I went through the process of going back to school and finding
my way and whatnot, well it turned out that I actually absolutely loved
school. I loved what I was doing. I loved this new life. Had someone,
early on told me that that's the life, the journey I would have or want, I
would have said no.But, you know, there we were in a different spot than
we intended and still absolutely adoring the journey. I went on to do, my
MBA, went to grad school. I mean, I absolutely love school and one of
the things that I would absolutely love to do at one point in my career is
actually go and teach at a university college, teach business classes.
This has been a passion of mine for a very long time because I love
school so much. Different journey than intended, but an amazing one
nonetheless. And so we almost go through that with our businesses,
you've heard me talk about it on the podcast before my business came
out of, one idea and it really wasn't until we got started down that path
that we realized there's some problems with this. And in order to do the
second level, we actually have to deal with the first level first. And so I
heard someone refer to it recently as not just product market fit, but

problem client fit and being able to solve someone's problem is really
every business, every product, every service is someone has a
challenge and you're going to solve it. Whether you are solving a
problem with a service, whether you are, selling a product that solves a
problem. It really comes down to that, that problem sometimes evolves.
It comes to mind, there's a software company out there, we deal with
quite consistently and they actually started selling a kind of AI chatbot.
Now, if you've been online, you know that AI chatbots are the thing right
now. And so they started selling this product, AI chatbot. And basically,
by the time they got it finalized and all the kinks worked out, technology
had evolved so much that the way that they had done it was obsolete.
And now you didn't really need to use their solution. That solution they
were offering previously was kind of built into other very inexpensive
solutions. I kept an eye on this business. I kept an eye on what was
going on. I thought, how is he going to deal with this? Because you've
started selling a product. You've got this all going on. You've made
investment. You're doing all these things. And now your problem that
you're solving is, it's kind of already been solved. Like it doesn't need an
external solution. And very interestingly, we watched him pivot to the
point where he almost called himself out and said, well, this is now no
longer a problem, but here's what the new problem is and here's how we
can help you solve it. And he actually modified his model to use the less
expensive solution, but in an enhanced way because he had a group of
people that were obviously interested in that problem and were
interested in investing into that. And so the end result is that he's gone
on, yes, changed the path a little, changed the challenge a little, but still
gone on to be very successful and doing great things. Now, I don't see
behind the number, like this is a company I'm watching. I know the
business owner, but I don't see the numbers or I don't have that
relationship with him. But he's gone on and if you're watching his
community, the members, people are growing, people are asking
questions, all signs point to the business is growing and doing well.
Ultimately it's modifying that challenge, but here's how this applies. How
does this all come back together? Your business will go through phases
and deciding not to adapt, being overly committed to your initial
challenge, the problem that you're solving will only limit you. You as a
business owner have to be willing to put on your visionary hat. Now, if
you've been listening to the podcast, you know that's not my favorite hat
to wear. I really enjoy the operator hat more than the visionary hat. I
challenge myself to spend time with, to learn from, to those visionary
type people because I truly believe a business future is really limited by
the vision. What is the difference between someone who wants to create
a $100,000 business and what is the difference between someone who

wants to create a $100,000,000 business? Well, it's two different ideas
and it's not common, but not impossible for people who started with a
$100,000 idea in their mind to somewhere along the way in that journey
where they started thinking, I'm going to turn it into this. Let's call that,
basic business. I have a vision for basic business. Along the way to turn
it into Epic business. Someone had to have a change, a shift. It's not
common for the same person to take an idea and go to basic business
and then turn it into epic business and not have a major mindset shift.
Oftentimes people will take a business, get it to basic business and sell it
to someone else who goes on to take it bigger places. This can happen.
And sometimes sheerly by accident. There are the businesses out there
that started as, I have an idea, take it to basic business and it just
skyrockets. But it's not common. It's not common. People have to go
through their own mindset shift. And it's the realization of we might've
been going to this original destination, but We need to modify. We need
to change. And it's always the reminiscent times where you're looking at
things. You know, I look at the podcast and I will openly say and
appreciate those who have been a part of the journey because, we did
things in season one that I would not do now. But at that time we did
them, they were great. And that's all part of the journey. I was sitting
back and I'm looking at where the podcast has been and the growth and
the content and all of these things. And I truly have this deep gratitude
for the journey and the growth and this exciting optimism for the future,
the openness, the possibilities of where it can go. The podcast has gone
from, something as a, Hey, I have an idea. And now here we are
wrapping up season three. I've said for whole journey, had someone
ever said I would have a podcast, I would have laughed you out of the
room. Interestingly enough, one of the things that my previous business
partner wanted to do was almost do an internal kind of podcast and at
that time, I remember these conversations of, it would be great if you
were a part of this. He would say to me, but I know you wouldn't do
things like that. And so when I sit here now and I look back and I think,
Hey, I do that now. I think of that conversation often because at that time
he was so right. I wouldn't, this is not my thing. I would not be doing this,
but here we are. This episode is a little bit of that kind of sentimental,
wrapping up season three, but the value is so strong on this episode. I
want you to take a look at where your business came from. Why did you
start? Why? What is the why? You know, there's a lot of discussion
about, going so deep on the why. There's a whole book Simon Sinek
wrote, it starts with why. There's a lot of deep questions there and, I
don't go as deep on the why, because I think that, you need to know why
you started your business, but chances are that has really evolved. Why
did you start, but why are you continuing? You know, your life, your

business, everything has evolved and we need to remember not just
why you started, but also why you want this, because your wants will
evolve, oftentimes, if we think of life as kind of the pendulum swing,
there's a problem and we attempt to solve it. And oftentimes we swing
past the solution and actually go too far. The end is near. We swung too
far. The pendulum is, and we see it all the time, in life, we try to fix one
thing and whoop, too far. And we over correct and go too far. And so
oftentimes why we start our business, not really a lot to do with where
we are, depending on how long you've been in business, obviously. But I
want to think, why did you start? Why are you still doing this? And what
is the difference? What is the difference in the market? What is the
difference in the environment? When I say market and environment and
you think, oh, this kind of could be similar, market or your customers,
what are the difference in your customers between now and then? Are
they different? Are you serving the exact same group of people?
Because if you have great customer retention and you're serving the
same people, chances are your customers are actually in a different
place now than when you started with them. Let's take something super
unique. If you're a hairstylist who specializes in damaged hair, and
people come to you, but you have great customer retention. They fall in
love with you and now they never want to leave. Well, if they came to
you with damaged hair and you're great at what you do, chances are
they don't have damaged hair forever. You're going to fix the hair. And
then what are you offering? What is your new thing? Because if your
shtick is that you deal with damaged hair and now you have a person
with amazing hair, are you no longer the person for them? Are you no
longer The person they should be seeking, should they now be seeking
out a different provider who specializes in healthy hair? And that is
where we really have to decide. It's not only why did you start, but it's
why are you continuing? It's where was the market? What market were
you serving then? And what market are you serving now? If you are the
person who specializes in damaged hair and now that the hair is fixed,
they're moving on. That is a very different business plan.. Then is the
person who wants to attract people with damaged hair to fix them to then
serve them for life. And so we really have to decide, what's different
because it is different. The market is different, around us, the economy,
the environment, the regulations, they're different. We as humans in our
own businesses are different. We're in different places We all spend so
much time on growing. That means that hopefully we are different as
humans than we were when we started. And it's so critical to factor that
into the planning to go through and look at the differences to highlight
the differences and opportunities that exist now. We're wrapping up Q1
of the calendar year. And so often, I'm dealing with different business

owners, talking to different business owners. It's almost like we're just
because things go so quickly. It's that moment of like, Oh, wow. Q1 is
almost done. There's only four of them. It's kind of like the weekends in
life where you think like, oh, I just wasted just one of them. Well, there's
only 52 in a whole year. In a business, there are four quarters in the
year. And so if you have not checked in to decide, what opportunities are
for you this year? Are we on budget? Do you have the budget done?
Because I actually have been hearing from a lot of business owners that
have not yet finished their budget. Guys, I hate to say it, but time is flying
by. While it started as a bit of a walk down memory lane for the podcast,
looking at how far we've come, I think we should spend less time looking
in the rear view mirror and more time looking out front, deciding, okay,
Yes, let's use that. Let's be sentimental and enjoy the journey. So
important. My mom has said the words, enjoy the journey my whole life.
That has been like her thing. And I believe in it wholeheartedly. Let's
enjoy the journey, but let's make sure that we are, making sure the
journey is in alignment with who we are, who is our business today. If
you need to refresh your offer, your messaging, your marketing, your
plan, your pricing, your vision, do it. It is your business. You can be
obsessed or you can be average. I feel like this statement resonates
with me as a human now more than it ever has. And I feel like I'm using
it in so many situations, whether it's for, kids in sports, whether it's for
work, whether it's for learning something new, it's where you put your
passion, your energy, your effort, your time. So make sure that what
you're putting them into is worth it, but it also is in alignment with who
you are. Don't take a plan from three years ago and just go all in on that
because the factors, the variables around your plan are different. Guys,
2024 is an incredible time to be in business. We have, incredible options
for technology, optimization, global talent, all of these different things.
Does it come with some challenges in the environment? Absolutely. I
don't think there's anywhere in the world right now that would tell you
that there isn't some significant challenges to the environment that they
operate their business in. But here's the thing, there have been many
successful people that have gone on to do amazing things during difficult
situations. So don't let it hold you back. You have the ability to go and do
incredible, amazing things this year, but make sure that they are the
things that are in line with who you and your business are now, not who
they were before. Well, guys, it's been a short but value packed episode.
And I want you to take the time to go and really think about these things.
Decide why did you start, but why are you still doing it? What is the
difference between the challenge or the problem you solved when you
started compared to now? What is the difference in the market, in the
environment? And then when you take all of that information and I want

you to decide what opportunities can you create from the change, what
new things can you offer, not necessarily in specific service, but what
kinds of things can you do to really make sure that you're utilizing the
current situation. That's all. Next week is our last episode. Please tune in
for a action packed summary of our previous three seasons. Guys, thank
you so much for listening. If you can do me a favor and leave a review
on the podcast wherever you listen, that would really help the show.
Thanks so much.