The Leadership Stack Podcast

[00:00:00] Sean: So you have this beautiful engine of marketing for you, that's just driving in leads, just driving in the sales for you. And the other guitar teachers didn't have it, as you mentioned earlier. When was the time that you finally realized that “I have so much going on and I can't just throw these leads out the window, I got to hire people?” Chris: I think that was the point where I...

Sean: Did you establish it early on in life? And your dad did an amazing job training you and making sure you knew the value of hard work, which is pretty much a lost art right now and lost discipline with Millenials. I'm a millennial by the way, so millennials younger, you know, we always say "work smart." Don't work hard, but Hey, work hard - that's key. Chris: Work smart and hard, you know? So...

It's almost Christmas Season, and Happy Holidays, Leaders! I am so blessed that you guys have been with me on this journey. July 2019, when we started, and now it's 2021, so we're two years already and counting, and I really appreciate your help. The value that you're getting and you're sharing, also to friends and family. We are so blessed to have you. And on behalf of the Leadership Stack team,...

Sean: What's the best way to tell a boss or client that their business idea may not be as viable as they think? And how to position your alternative solution? Oh, good question. Erika: Give them a comparison with their business idea or tell them that, "Oh, you know, if we do this, we can insert reasons here." Tell them how your alternate solution is better without undermining their idea. Do you ge...

Sean: What would you say will be the top three, I'd say the top three biggest mistakes in communication? And I know I was horrible at it when I started, but I couldn't really tell you, oh, this is the worst problem. When I was a leader, early on, and this is the first communication problem they have. But what will be the biggest, most common problems and communication that you see today in leaders...

Sean: How can I expand the reach of my business on social media? Erika: So first off, make your social media pretty. Kidding aside. Aside from it being aesthetically pleasing because it is important right now on social media and for people to notice you, then it has to look nice. But then at the same time, what do people get from what you post? So that people will be more interested in what you're...

Sean: I started out as a freelancer. Grew it from a one-man team, we're now a 50 man team, but how do you network when you're a one-man team, and you've got no company logo, and you got no company records, you don't have your receipts. No one knows who you are. And I started out when I was 22 years old. Hence the book CEO of 22. How do you network well? Cause a lot of people will look at you and s...

Sean: What was the biggest difference when it came to marketing your online store versus your physical store? There you go. Erika, I think that's for you. I don't have a physical store. Erika: Marketing online is easier. It's easier because people are all online and you just have to worry about your social media accounts and your Facebook ad spending as compared to having a physical store. We did...

Sean: Do you tackle when people do get emotional in a negotiation? For example, I know that there are times when I personally felt offended, when there are negotiation counterparts when I was starting up SEO-hacker, who would give me a super-duper low price and would try to just shove it down my throat, that I have to get that deal so that will make some, one person feel bad. How do you usually re...

Sean: When it comes to online selling, is it better to have an Instagram shop or use FB Live? Have you ever sold using FB Live? Erika: Yes, we're doing that right now. Sean: There you go. Okay, so how was it? Erika: Well, we tried both. We tried Instagram Live and Facebook Live. We did much better, like way better on Facebook. Our viewers on Facebook Live reached 200+ viewers, which is the highest...

Sean: And would you say negotiation is more of convincing from a logical standpoint whereas you mentioned earlier, I have a team we've worked well together and that might justify a higher value for the contract that I'm selling, or would you rather go for a more logical approach where you would say with, with this team that I have, you're going to be more comfortable. You're going to be safe. Beca...

Sean: Mitch asks, how do you test the demand for your product or service before launching it? This is a really good question, especially for startups. Erika: I used to do this back then and I did a pre-order. I think you guys all know what pre-order is. So you post about your product, you hype your product, tell them the benefits and for them to purchase your product, you offer them a little bit o...

Sean: What would be your best advice for entrepreneurs who are still in that rut, where they're just trying to think if they're going to throw in the towel and finally give up? J Haleem: Don't give up. Shift. You got to shift. You have to shift. I heard this years ago that the smartest people in business know when to let something go, and not hold on to something. So they always say the new normal...

Sean: Would it be advisable to highly leverage your business? I think this is making your business collateral. Would it still be considered good debt? I'll go ahead first and answer this one. With leveraging your business, not a lot of banks would allow your business to become leverage especially if you're starting up. They won't even lend you money. You have to be established for at least five ye...

Sean:  You shared, some of those core values earlier. I'm wondering now, what are, maybe your top three leadership principles that make your role, make you who you are, and make you successful as far as you're concerned. Can you share that with us? J Haleem: Well, for me, you know, definitely, authenticity is number one. Authenticity. You gotta be yourself. You know a lot of times, and again, I've...

Sean: All right, what are your tips for people having a hard time choosing what type of business they want to start? Erika: I guess you have to keep asking yourself questions like: What are your options? What's your situation? What do you offer? What are your talents? What resources do you have? Like I said earlier, I just really focused on what I wanted to do, what I wanted to be at, and that was...

Sean: So what gave you the sign? Like 'Hey, because a lot of people don't like doing things to just throw in the towel and quit, right? It's not for me. Hey, I don't like doing this. I feel so tired afterward. Cause I feel like this is something that, you know, I could hire someone to do this,' but in your case, you went ahead and took the grind. I mean, how did you know that this was something th...

Sean: From Erika. I know that networking is a big factor in growing my business, but I'm nervous to speak to more experienced business people. How can I become more confident? Join a networking group. That's one of the easiest ways. So some people who are afraid of public speaking actually join those masters and learn public speaking there, and at the same time, get to mentor other people who want...

Sean: What does that look like? Because a lot of people think that they know how to deal with people. Hey, when I was starting out, I thought I knew how to deal with people, but it turns out looking back now I'm connecting the dots. I was an idiot at it. And so what do you mean when you say that you got picked up because you knew how to deal with people? J Haleem: Well, when he was telling me was,...

Sean: Question from Mich. I'm a former employee. As someone who wants to enter the coaching industry, there you go, or any business of help, how can I manage the feelings of guilt when charging clients? JM: I like the analogy that when someone is sick, you go to a doctor. Right? And you also pay for the service of that doctor. And when someone is going through a mental challenge, they also go to a...

Sean: Can you give us a little bit more idea about what that means when you say standardized things? What does that really mean? Dancho: Healthier way is that when we started Bizzbee, it was project-based. Someone gives you money. You have one month of work and that's it and you need a new client. Working with long-term clients gives you monthly recurring revenue, which is much healthier because y...

Sean: How can employers manage depression in the workplace? How can employers qualify feelings of sadness as reasons for employees not being able to come to work?   JM: So I think having that time in order for your employees to have that safe space for them to let you know what's going on in their lives. It's very important to manage depression even before it starts. Meanwhile, when there is alrea...

Dnacho: There are hundreds of ways of how you can generate leads. And then how our client knows what's best for them. And you know, you're going to need years to try all hundreds of them to see what is the right fit for you. And then we said, well, you know what? We do really the outreach. So which type of companies would really benefit the most from the outreach. And when we saw that the high tic...

Sean: Our next question is from Erika. I want to resign from my current job to focus on my career, but my fear of failure is stopping me from doing so. What should I do? JM: It’s very important for you to recognize why you're having that fear of failure. With your current job right now, do you want to resign because you really want to move forward and grow? Or do you want to resign because there a...

Sean: And now I'm wondering, how do you find those right project managers that you mentioned earlier? Because I'm sure you've found a lot of wrong ones. How did you get the right ones? Dancho: Very hard. For me at the beginning, maybe that's juniority and then becoming really an expert in the field, but you do a lot of interviews and some tests and personality and stuff just to get the right guy,...