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block schedule

How You Can Master Your Time and Productivity with a Block Schedule Including Themes

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I recently posted this in the Junto:

block schedule

When you read this, what comes to your mind?

Is it a sense of frustration?

Is it a sense of irritation?

If so, do you have too many tasks and ideas that you’re trying to get to, but keep running out of daylight?

If that describes you, I completely feel where you’re coming from. It used to describe me too.

I always thought it wasn’t fair that others had found the secret to getting their own stuff done.

But after a few mastermind sessions in 2016, I realized that my problem was that I was TOO structured in my scheduling.

This post is all about making sure that you have balance in your schedule while chipping away at those things you really need to be doing in your life – especially if you’re in a day job you don’t like or you’re a super busy college student.

Setting the Guidelines of an Amazing Schedule

Often times when we’re picking the things we want to do, we often feel this battle between what’s right and not right to do. We feel a pull of what our inner self tells us we should be doing vs what the external world is telling us that we should be doing.

Ideally, we’d like everything to be what’s right and we’d like to be self directed. Unfortunately for those of us who have day jobs, we feel that this is an uphill battle we’re not going to win. (Great example of a self limiting belief right there.)

The first thing we need to do in winning back our time is to follow 12 guidelines – and they are:

  1. Know thyself in what makes you feel the most alive – this is your passion and is part of your Mission.
  2. Realize that as long as you’re in the United States (or another free country), your default mission in life is to find out what your personal mission is and fulfill it.
  3. Once you have determined that, you need to commit to yourself that you’ll spend your time fulfilling that mission.
  4. When you’re putting things into your schedule to fulfill said mission, make sure that you have a good and clear understanding of how those tasks are going to help you achieve it. (If you’re working a 9 to 5 – your job should be helping you fulfill that Mission. If it doesn’t, it’s time for a new job.)
  5. Are there any points in your schedule that you dread or fear, ask yourself why you fear them. Don’t dwell on the worst that could happen, but instead, simply sit with them and realize that they have to be done for you to move on.
  6. Realize that any changes you’re making are going to take time to get going if you’re just now starting them. But, here’s the key –  if you keep at it, you’ll start noticing that things are going well for you. Like me, you’ll think “Well, if I hadn’t made this connection or done that, this wouldn’t have happened.” This is the truth. The problem is, you have no idea what will set future motions in place. (This is known as the Law of Momentum.)
  7. If you’re stuck in a rut, you need to realize that you are. Then ask yourself – what do I need to learn to move forward?
  8. Make sure you set aside a time for learning. Learning new things regularly allows for you to constantly move forward. Action is one thing, but taking the same action over and over and expecting different results is… insanity. (Also, don’t burn yourself out thinking that you can find the answers by taking simple repetitive action.)
  9. If you DO find yourself burning out or sucking at something you should be better at, it’s best to notice it and don’t hide from it. This is the universe telling you you need time to rest.
  10. Be precise in making your schedule until you can look at it and you look forward to every event that’s on it.
  11. Make your schedule so that it doesn’t imprison or trap you, but, instead, frees you.
  12. Always remember your schedule is meant to nourish you, so you can relax and enjoy your life. (If you’ve gotten to this point in the list and you still dread getting up in the morning, you should start over at #1.)

 

Key Points to Remember about the Guidelines

Now, from all that you might be thinking, “Well, that’s all good – but I know there’s going to be some things that I don’t like doing even when I’m working towards my Mission”.

And you’d be right – maybe you hate paperwork. Maybe you’d rather be out interacting with folks. Perhaps you’re really into helping people with sales funnels, but you hate having to find clients.

That’s par for the course.

If you want to know you’re still in the right, here are two questions to ask yourself:

  1. Overall, is this week going to be enjoyable? Am I doing what I want to do – for the most part?
  2. What’s the first thing that I can do that would allow me to be me?

The reason that these two questions are important to ask yourself is because, again, we’re working from a mission perspective.

If you feel you’re doing more things that you don’t want or like to do – than you’re not in the right position in life (or at work). Secondly, if you don’t have enough autonomy to do an act that you actually like to start your day and/or week off with a simple win – then there’s probably something wrong there as well.

In other words, do things that get you to your mission. Don’t do them because you think it’s the thing to do. That’s the will of the World forcing you to do something. Other people have no problem telling other people what to do. That’s the way the world works.

Also, don’t avoid things just to avoid them. Sometimes you’ll have to embrace the suck – but it’s so worth it if it’s in alignment with your mission.

For example if you want to become better at copywriting for marketing purposes – go find some great examples of marketing and use it as a guide to craft your own. (Arne has us do this in his FB group growth course student group all the time.)

 

Note to Newbie Time Blockers

Now, if you’ve never time blocked before, then this next part will be a little easier than if you have.

See, I used to be a scheduling Nazi. I had to be very specific in when I did this, this, and that. Otherwise, I didn’t think I was doing a great job in scheduling.

Well, long story short, I realized that I learned to schedule from a Driver-Analytical personality-type person. The thing about Driver-Analytical types of people, they are all about completing tasks. The more, the merrier.

That’s not what I’m about.

I’m more about building relationships. Why? Because from good relationships come opportunities which yield possible income.

So, in the end, depending on your own personality, what takes priority on your calendar might be different than mine.

That said, here’s how to time block with themes.

 

Time Blocking with Interval Themes

Generally speaking, these days I have two types of weeks as a solopreneur. One week (called ‘A weeks’) I focus more on content development – a blog post, a podcast post, and a video in the Junto.

The other week (which I call ‘B weeks’) I focus more on marketing and group development as well as learning.

As you can see, I have two main themes that I use. However, I’ve known people that use 4 themes a month. I also know folks who theme their entire month.

What do these themes consist of?

Well, for me, they’re general guidance of the things that I have to do in a given day. Other folks use them to get better at something, while yet other some people use it as a way to control their overall content building and marketing structure.

 

Interval Themes in Practice – A Step-By-Step Guide:

So let’s look at this from a weekly example – because that’s essentially what I use.

  1. The first thing you want to do is determine what kind of theme you have for that week. Usually you want to do this on Sunday after reflecting on how your previous week went.
  2. Next, you’ll want to set the time that you want to get started on your work. Honestly, I don’t usually get started on my work day until 10am. I don’t finish until 5 or 6. But during that time, I’m usually very focused on the work at hand or, for short breaks, posting in the Junto or building relationships with its members.
  3. When it’s quitting time – it’s quitting time. I learned early from Pat Flynn that you want to be able to turn things off for the night when your loved ones are home. Even when he had a one room apartment, his computer was in a corner and he used his laptop for more personal things.
  4. If you’re more of a task oriented person – I got you! Make sure you plan out time for relaxation and fun. Seriously. If that means throwing date night on your schedule, do it. Fortunately for me and Maria, we’re pretty lackadaisical when it comes to our evenings!

 

The General Structure Of My Daily Schedule

Just an idea of what a typical day might look like. I really don’t have this all laid out in

  1. Morning Routine – Breakfast (no carbs!), workout, a bit of meditating, finding out what’s going on in the world
  2. First item of the day – Something that gives you an easy win. For me, I knock out my emails. Once I do that, I close Mail. I’ll reopen it later – but emails are super distracting throughout the day!
  3. Second item is usually an easy win item as well. These days, it’s posting in the Junto and few other groups.
  4. Then, until lunch, I’m either doing growth related activities (meeting people, meetings, learning) or working on production of content.
  5. After lunch, I’m focused more on finishing said content, mastery, and marketing.

 

Alternative Version for Someone who Doesn’t Own Their Entire Day

So, this is a pretty sucky situation – but a lot of us have to start here. So realize that you’re going to have a bit of a handicap but you’re not alone.

Depending on whether you’re a morning person or a night owl, you’re going to aim to work 2 hours a day on your craft before you go to work or after you come home.

Ideally, the last part of the day should be spent just chilling for at least an hour. Again you’re looking to enjoy your life. So, if I had to decide, I’d go for 2 hours before work. That way when you go to your day job, you have the bonus of having already worked on your craft and not having to dread it coming home.

So, go to bed one hour earlier, then wake up 2 hours earlier. You can really start your day on fire this way. Those first two hours can be focused on heavy amounts of action.

But keep in mind, don’t sacrifice that much to the point of feeling empty. Enjoy each minute you can now. You want to make sure you’re enjoying every single day.

Action Steps

So, there you have it. Again, this is just what has worked for me combined with my new schedule for building the group.

Obviously there’s a huge difference if you have a day job. So if you can find a day job that supports your mission, that’s even better. That’s what’s great about this new sharing economy of ours.

Heck, even Laila started substitute teaching and tutoring before she got completely up to speed with her coaching practice. But what’s great is that those tutoring spots got her some of her clients!

If you have any questions, feel free to let me know below! 🙂

good habits

Forming Good Habits through Chance: How Success Dice Can Help you Build Your Decision Making Skills with Andrew Kaplan (AoL 108)

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Procrastination is a reality for everyone in some form. Many people struggle day in and day out with getting things done that they know should be done.

Most of the time, those folks are struggling simply because they are playing a reactive role in life vs one that is proactive.

They let their circumstances control what they’re doing.

On the other hand, successful people choose what they’re going to do and then act accordingly.

But how do you know what’s right to act on? We can spend a ton of time and energy figuring out just that part.

But – what if you could have something that would help you decide what to work on or do next?

Today’s guest, Andrew Kaplan, has invented just that: Success Dice.

Like many of us, Andrew struggled with a lot of things in his life. In fact, at one point, he hit an all time low.

However, after creating the prototype of the success dice, he found himself achieving more than he ever had in years prior.

In this session, Andrew shares with us how Success Dice came to be, how they help him battle procrastination, and why we could all use them.

Enjoy!

SPECIFICALLY, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT:

  • How has his career helped lead him to where he’s at? 9:13
  • How did being a part of the Foundation help Andrew? 15:57
  • How can someone deal with procrastination in their lives? 23:41
  • What’s people’s main mistake when they’re trying to actually get things done? 29:43
  • How did the idea of the Success Dice begin? 31:41
  • Since there is an element of chance when using dice, how is using Success Dice beneficial in the long run? 35:41
  • Who are Andrew’s top 3 influencers? 43:26
  • What’s a fact from today that would blow the mind of someone from 10 years ago? 46:02
  • Smallest decision he’s made that has had the largest impact on his life? 48:34
  • What’s a service that doesn’t exist that he’d gladly pay for? 49:30
  • … and MUCH more!

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

 

ITEMS and PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SHOW NOTE EXTRAS:

Introduction to Success Dice:

Tony Robbins on not letting the Opinions of Others Affect You:

Even Pagan on The New Wealth (pt1):

Kamal Ravikant talks Love and Entrepreneurship:

Thanks for Listening!

Thanks so much for joining us again this week. Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below!

If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the top of the post.

Also, please leave an honest review for The AoL Podcast on iTunes! Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and we read each and every one of them.

If you have any questions feel free to email them over via the email mentioned in the show or by our contact form.

And finally, don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and/or Google Play Music. It’s absolutely free to do so.

A huge thank-you to you guys for joining us!

Cheers!

how to overcome insecurity

How to Overcome Insecurity when You’re Starting Something New

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Do you feel insecure?

Maybe about your passions? That they’re not shared by anyone else?

Maybe you’re insecure about social situations. Perhaps you’re wondering what people are thinking about you?

Or, are you simply worried about putting your art into the world? Again, thinking that someone might compare it to some great artist? Or they’ll make fun of it – or you’re afraid of the feedback you might get?

 

These are all insecurities that most of us face from time to time. If you weren’t then you’re not human.

There’s a trick, though, to not letting them stop you from putting yourself out into the world in a meaningful way.

Actually, there’s 4 ideas that you can use on yourself to psych yourself into doing things for the first time.

 

Competence Means Confidence

For me, I hated the way I sounded on the AoL Podcast when I was first starting. However, as I grew into the craft of making the show, my brain just grew accustomed to that voice. And what I would hear in my mind after a while, wasn’t so much me, but it was more of the talent that was the host of the AoL Podcast.

I had the opportunity to make that person sound good.

2 years into the podcast, I get compliments by guests that I actually sound like I know what I’m doing.

Today, I’m facing the same thing when starting this new group thing. A part of it is doing Facebook lives. While I’m not posting every day, I have already done a couple of them. Still not completely used to my face yet, but I’m sure I’ll get over that as well.

So, the first thing you need to do is just start.

You’re not going to master the rest of your life in one day. Just relax. Master the day. Then just keep doing that every day.

You’ll see that that action will yield results which then yields new beliefs.

Then repeat the process!

overcome insecurity

Feedback Yields Power

Don’t tie your work or feelings to anyone’s approval. Even to this day, there are people out there who don’t like Harry Potter, Star Wars, Star Trek – you name it. If it exists, there’s more than likely going to be people who don’t like something.

However, those who do like your stuff, when they let you know that they like it – it means you’re going in the right direction.

If they have constructive criticism, that’s even better. Not only is someone showing you that they care enough to let you know what they thought about your work, but they’re giving you feedback in a way that matters.

As an entrepreneur and leader, that’s what you want from your followers. To have feedback so you can know how you can help them!

Don’t search for the attitude with them or even yourself – use it as a way to get better in you craft.

And finally, you can’t perfect something if you don’t have other’s input about it.

 

Rejection Doesn’t Happen that Often

Here’s the thing, you’ve probably already interacted with plenty of people in your life. Hundreds, if not thousands of people. From all of those people, how often have you really dealt with rejection?

In fact, what life actually tells us is that people are going to be indifferent about what you’re doing more than they’ll actually reject it.

The main reason that I think people reject something is that it starts out being seeing as one thing and then, for whatever reason, it changes.

For example – New Coke.

How many New Coke situations have you heard of in your life? Not many! (I’m still not too thrilled about them changing Coke Zero to Coke Zero Calorie. It’s not the same thing!)

If you’re newly putting yourself out into the world, people are going to give you the benefit of the doubt that you’re new.

Plus, there’s a heck of alot more supportive people in the world than trolls.

 

Your Soul Won’t Settle

Take it from me. Ever since I heard from Pat Flynn about the online business world in 2009, I’ve been wanting to follow in his footsteps.

Here it is, 2017, and I’m still not to the level I’d like to be. BUT I will mention that things are going better than i would have expected a year ago at this time.

I now have a plan for the future.

But I wouldn’t have had that plan if I hadn’t have taken action.

I would be still wondering “Can I? Will I? Should I?”

And frankly, that wasn’t going to cut it… for the rest of my life.

So, if you already have that aching suspicion that you’re supposed to be doing something else than you’re already doing – and you continue to put it off, then you’re always going to have to fight those demons.

Do yourself a favor and get started as soon as you can in doing the work that you’re meant to do.

Your mission is waiting for you.

Action Steps

If you’re in that place right now, whether you’re an experienced entrepreneur or not and you’re not sure if you’re ready for the next big thing…

Ask yourself this one question.

What does my gut tell me I need to do next?

If it’s telling you to get up and do something different, then do whatever it is.

If you think it might help, make a mission statement. Let the world know that this is who you and who you see yourself becoming. Not tomorrow, but eventually.

If you need help figuring out what your mission is, check out this interview with David Anderson. It’s quickly becoming one of my go to episodes as I answer this insecurity issue from time to time.

Basics of The Junto- An Online and In Person Mega Mastermind Group

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Well, guys, it’s official! The new Facebook group is up and going! I present to you… 

mastermind group

 

I’m really excited to bring you guys’ this joint effort.

It’s been something I’ve been wanting to do for awhile but I just didn’t have the pieces in place to be able to get it done.

Now I do.

And by pushing the podcast to a every two week effort seems like it’s going to really pay off. I feel that I’m going to be much more productive in my own business as well as being able to help you awesome folks out a bit more.

Since last week, I’ve received a few questions about what the group itself. I wanted to take a little bit of time to answer some of those questions.

So this post is all for you prospective members.

What the Junto is all about – including what it is and what it isn’t.

What is this version of the Junto?

Basic Rules:

I’ve had some questions about how closely I’m going to be following Ben Franklin’s Junto. Well, for one, this group is going to be open to anyone – they just need to meet certain criteria including:

  • Been on Facebook for more than a year.
  • Answers the questions to get in the group.
  • Doesn’t post random offers or troll when they’re in.

 

The Junto is a branding channel, first and foremost. In my book, branding is all about making people aware that you exist. Marketing is letting people know you have something to offer. (And since we’re on the subject, sales is about making a transaction. Don’t get the three confused.)

Just to make it absolutely clear – marketing is usually not permitted (unless given permission to do so). But you’re totally allowed to offer people value as much as you want.

You can express that value in written, audio, or video form. Totally up to you. Just don’t drop offers.

 

What’s with All the Logos?

So here’s the awesome thing, guys. I’m not the only “star” of this group. I am simply the moderator and the pot stirrer. As I’ve done in the past with New Inceptions, Junto has various contributors itself – all with their own focuses in helping people in the offline community.

  • Coffe – Help people understand about finances and getting them out of debt.
  • Amplify – Make great events around the city.
  • Collaborate 317 – A place for people to come together for an event, a class, or simply to engage with other like minded individuals.
  • Ascension – A means for patriots AND veterans to get training so that they can climb up in their career – whether in the traditional 9 to 5 world OR as an entrepreneur.

 

All four of these companies are looking to expand their reach outside of Indianapolis. They want to empower others around the world and possibly do what they’re already doing.

Being part of this group will allow them to do that.

If your town doesn’t have one of these groups and you think it might be a great addition to your community, I’m sure the founders would love to help you put a chapter in your area!

 

Are we Going to Use the Junto’s Original Questions?

Yes and no. We are going to use them. It’s my goal to post at least a tip and a question as often as possible. Hopefully daily as I’m always learning and need to write some of this stuff down.

As you might have seen, the original questions ARE pretty antiquated. So I’ll need to update them a bit to post in the group.

For example, question 13 goes like this: “Do you know of any deserving young beginner lately set up, whom it lies in the power of the Junto any way to encourage?”

Today, we’d simply ask, “Do you know of any cool newbie entrepreneurs who need an extra boost that we could highlight and/or encourage?”

I think a lot of these questions are those that many groups don’t ask enough. So be on the lookout for these!

 

If someone wants to Promote Something, how can they do that?

By going through the proper channels! Lol.

But no, seriously. If you’re contributing regularly to the group and want to promote something, there’s a way to do that. It’s called hop on LIVE with one of us and we’ll highlight who you are and what you’re about. Just as in the podcast, in that conversation you’ll get the opportunity to mention anything you’re excited about and that’d be a good time for YOU to promote your wares.

 

Action Steps:

So this post is fairly short for a reason. I want you to hop in there and start introducing yourself! Answer the onboarding questions so we can make sure you get connected to the right people.

We’re all in this together, so if you want to know one of the mods a bit better – let me know. I’ll be more than happy to connect you!

Have any other questions? Let me know here or on Facebook.

true self

Circling Back to the Beginning: How a Sweat Lodge Realization Opened a Door to True Self and New Opportunities with Eric Finnigan (AoL 103)

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Who are you really?

This is the question that so many of struggle with when we’re trying to start our first business. Many of us start businesses to make income to replace our day job, not necessarily worrying if the business we’ve created matches our personality or interests.

When you have yourself figured out, however, you have access to the full potential of what your business can become. Because not only is your mind in it, but your heart is as well.

In this session, Daniel and I have the opportunity to chat with Eric Finnigan.

Having lived what most would call a successful life, he felt as if something was missing. It wasn’t until a visit to a sweat lodge that he realized what that something was. He was living to provide himself a safety net – and that was about it.

It wasn’t going to make him truly happy in the end because he wasn’t living as who he really wanted to be.

Join us as we find out more about more about this past life of his, what made him actually choose to pursue life more fully, where the idea for his 3 companies came from, and why his favorite type of personal development is that which is done through emotional and relational intelligence.

Thanks for spending some time with us and enjoy!

SPECIFICALLY, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT:

  • Who was the old Eric Finnigan in the corporate world? 14:40
  • Why did Eric move from Syracuse, NY to pursue a career in finance in San Francisco? 17:48
  • Was he trying to impress someone in his old career or was he strictly trying to build his bank account? 19:52
  • When did Eric realize that he wasn’t living his life on his own terms? 22:14
  • How did he eliminate the need for a safety net in his life? 27:22
  • What did his time in Breckenridge, Colorado for him? 27:52
  • How did he become an expressive in his writing and connecting with others? 30:05
  • What gave Eric the idea of starting his first business in copywriting? 34:19
  • What’s the value of practicing copywriting? 37:13
  • What are some skills that new entrepreneurs need to develop or have? 39:39
  • How did he strategically grow this business? 43:45
  • Where did Business Hacking Retreats come from? 47:35
  • What is circling? 54:05
  • Who’s the ideal “customer” for a business hacking retreat? 59:18
  • What’s the intern excellerator? 1:00:04
  • What does Eric mean when he talks about personal development through emotional and relational intelligence? 1:11:19
  • What’s he looking forward to? 1:16:09
  • 3 Top Favorite Influencers? 1:19:18
  • Least Favorite Social Custom? 1:21:07
  • What would he do if he woke up as his 10 year old self with all his memories? 1:23:52
  • Something all high school students must know? 1:25:16
  • What’s it mean to live a life of abundance? 1:26:24
  • … and MUCH more!

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

ITEMS and PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SHOW NOTE EXTRAS:

Eric’s Webinar on Copywriting:

Bright Insight’s review on Tao Te Ching:

Bright Insight’s review on Tao Te Ching (Part 2):

Tim Ferriss on TED – Define Your Fears and Not Your Goals:

Dane Maxwell – Instant Software Business:

true self true self true self true self

Thanks for Listening!

Thanks so much for joining us again this week. Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below!

If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the top of the post.

Also, please leave an honest review for The AoL Podcast on iTunes! Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and we read each and every one of them.

If you have any questions feel free to email them over via the email mentioned in the show or by our contact form.

And finally, don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and/or Google Play Music. It’s absolutely free to do so.

A huge thank-you to you guys for joining us!

Cheers!

how to be an entrepreneur

Learning How to be an Entrepreneur: A Review of 2 Years of Business, Podcasting, and Life with Laila Rahmatian (AoL 100)

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It’s been nearly 2 years since I started this podcast. In those two years, I’ve been able to meet a ton of awesome people. Many who have been great connections that have opened me up to various ideas and new concepts. Even new ways of thinking.

The same could be said for Laila Rahmatian, who joined the show as frequent co-host after her first interview on session 14.

Since then, we’ve both had our growing pains and learning curves as we’ve climbed the entrepreneurial ladder.

In this session, we go over everything we’ve learned in the last couple of years. From taking a stand and using your past to be part of your future to not having to re-create the wheel, we’ve learned a ton!

Join us as we recap some of that information and discuss some of the common themes that we’ve learned along the way.

Thanks for spending some time with us and enjoy!

SPECIFICALLY, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT:

  • What’s Laila been up to recently since she was last on the show? 8:53
  • How has a goal of traveling more been able to give her the power to get more accomplished? 16:15
  • Where’s JC at in business after 100 sessions of the AoL podcast? 19:14
  • Things that Laila has learned while being involved with the AoL Podcast? 34:34
  • What has JC learned through doing the podcast thus far? 44:27
  • What are common themes that we’ve heard about throughout the different interviews of the show? 52:56
  • What’s a short roadmap that new entrepreneurs should follow as they’re getting started based on what we’ve learned through 100
  • podcasts? 1:11:50
  • What are we looking forward to working on from here? 1:20:56
  • Who are three influencers that have helped Laila get to where she is today? 1:23:54
  • JC’s Top 3 favorite books to tell others about? 1:25:22
  • Something Laila still wishes was a thing? 1:26:57
  • What was the smallest decision that JC made that had the largest impact on his life? 1:29:28
  • What is something Laila thinks all high school students must know? 1:31:02
  • Most awe-inspiring person JC has ever met in person? 1:32:54
  • … and MUCH more!

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

ITEMS and PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SHOW NOTE EXTRAS:

Why Laila Quit Her Job:

Why Laila Chose NOT to take the Professional Engineer Exam:

Reflection: 2 Years After Wedding:

Why You Need the Perfect Wedding Photographer:

how to be an entrepreneur how to be an entrepreneur how to be an entrepreneur how to be an entrepreneur

Thanks for Listening!

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business partnership

A Quick Guide to Forming a Productive Business Partnership

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Last week, I got the great news that AMS was finally a licensing company.

The news officially went live on the net via this post on Endurance Sportswire.

We’re licensing our Viking Dash series to a company in California known as Spectrum Sports Management. They are known for doing fun and unique runs. Viking seems like a great match for them!

That said, as a board, we didn’t jump to this decision quickly. We had a list we used to make sure we found exactly who we needed to help further this brand.

Because partnering is no easy task. It needs to be treated with care in who you’re choosing – you have to be particular with whom you’re bringing on or negotiating a contract – such as a license – with.

So in today’s post, we’ll be looking at some of the things you should consider in partnering with others in a new business venture.

 

Matching Values

One of the things I’ve noticed over the years is that when people are building romantic relationships, many people do so with someone they don’t share values with. I know for me, I had a list of 100 some traits and qualities I was looking for when I met and started dating Maria.

She hit on a good number of them. In retrospect, I’m pretty happy I made that list. Thanks LTD for the giving me the idea! 😉

The same thing should be done when looking for a partner in building a business. You need to have a list of qualities that you believe are important in someone who’s essentially going to be another spouse of yours in many ways. Your business is the baby in this situation.

So just like if you were dating, you need to be asking certain questions to find out if you align. However, I wouldn’t go doing it in an office – that just has interview written all over it.

No, instead I’d opt for something informal where you’re just getting to know each other. For me and Maria, we had tons of coffee “dates” where we would just chat and find out more about each other.

Same thing can be done when starting a business.

 

Ideas for Questions:

“Date” questions for a potential co-founder should get to not only find out about their character, but also their business savvy.

Here’s a few examples that I’d ask when seeing if someone lines up with your believes:

  • What do you want out of a business?
  • What do you like about this particular idea?
  • Where you see this business going?
  • Where do you see your role in 2, 3, or 5 years?
  • How do you find good employees when you’re ready for that step?
  • What are you expectations of an employee?
  • What are you expectations of me?
  • Is there anything that I should know about your family that might cause periodic issues with your ability to help with the business?
  • How do you feel about the business contributing to nonprofit or political causes?

 

Complementary Skills and Personality

When I was searching for my wife, I knew that I wanted someone that was intelligent but I also knew that this person had to have a complementary skill set.

I know there’s just some things that I have no interest in doing or am simply not good at. I was talking to Albert about this in a recent Ascension Council meeting and mentioned that there are some things that Maria does 100x better than me – or cares about things that I don’t:

  • Making the bed everyday
  • Laundry
  • Tidying up

Albert and I both prefer organized chaos – but that’s because we’re both idea guys. Our wives seem to be more of the executor types.

In a business situation, you need to be looking for this at all different levels – but it’s especially true at the cofounder level.

As John Maxwell says, “Take advantage of your strengths, and hire for your weaknesses”. Well in this case, you’re not hiring – you’re partnering! It’s going to be even more important here.

  • So if you’re broke, you need someone that has money.
  • Are you good at creating? Then you’re going to need a marketer.
  • If you’re good at design, then perhaps your partner needs to be good at writing code.
  • Are you a strong Dominant (D) personality? Then you’re going to need someone who’s supportive. Or if you’re a the Calculative (C) type, you’ll need someone who’s Imaginary (I).

Of course there’s examples out there where having two or more founders have similar skills, it’s not often the case. The more well rounded the leadership is, the better this thing is going to have!

 

Start with the End in Mind

Earlier I wanted you to make sure you asked questions that were pertaining to the future of the business. The reason for this is that if you do end up doing well with the business, then there might come a time where you’re thinking of an Exit Strategy.

The Exit Strategy needs to be in stone at the beginning. The business you and your partner(s) are building – are you going to hold onto it as a lifestyle building business? Or are you going to build it and sell the right of the business if a bidder comes along with a ton of money?

Or, perhaps another case is that you need money to keep the thing going – you consider starting to sell stocks vs “keeping it in the family”. Are either of you the type that wants the opposite of what the other wants?

This is stuff you want to consider.

 

Background Check

When Maria and I were dating, she asked me a ton of background check questions. Did I have kids? Was I a convict? Did I have chicken pox? Well… maybe not that last one – but you get the idea!

Anyway, you want to do the same for your future business partner as well.

Find out the answers to these questions:

  • Does the candidate move from project to project without getting anything done?
  • Have they ever owned a business themselves or ever been part of a successful one?
  • Have they ever had financial issues?
  • Do other people get a bad vibe from them?

 

Just remember that no one is perfect and sometimes troubled pasts make a person that much more committed to what they’re doing now with their life. Sometimes people actually learn from their mistakes. If they have had a spotted background, see what they’ve learned from it.

 

Take Them for a Test Drive!

Well, not literally, of course. But if you’ve never worked with this person before now, you need to see what they’re like with other projects.

In the dating world, you can continue to date. I know for Maria and I we just felt like we were long lost friends. Really, the only thing we ever have quarrels about are our dogkids and whether or not they were sleeping on the bed recently or not. I imagine that in the future, when we do conflict, it’ll probably be about the kids!

In business, you want to have this trial time as well – even if it’s with friends you’ve had forever.

Start a working relationship and see how things go in smaller projects. Find out if they’re as committed as you’d like. Are they flaky about time? Do they even have the same vision as you? Maybe they’re just too naive about certain things that might drive you crazy?

These issues can mount up over time and you should know about them first before you build something on a larger scale with them!

When you believe it’s time to move to the next level, make sure you get a founders’ partnership agreement. It should include things like:

 

  • The contribution and obligations to the company of each party
  • How long a party must be with the company to vest in percentages of their promised ownership
  • Whether partners can be fired or bought out and under what conditions
  • What voting percentages are required to validate any of these actions
  • Any other issues unique to the business

 

If a partner is reluctant to put something as big as this agreement in writing, then there’s a big red flag there.

I mean, it’s like going without a prenuptial agreement in a marriage after you already have a fortune. It just doesn’t make sense!

 

A Special Note About Friends as Business Partners:

One of the original people involved in AMS was recently in a lawsuit with us. Needless to say, he’s no longer considered a friend after what he did and wasting the time of all parties involved.

The thing is – you can’t predict what’s going to happen down the line.

So here’s a few tips with this.

You need to realize that if you do decide to get in business with friends, that things can potentially go south and the friendship will more than likely go that way too.

Don’t ever go into business with family or friends just because they’re family or friends. Again, make sure you take time to test them out first. Just because you know someone as a friend, doesn’t mean you know them as a business person.

If a friend screws up bad once and promises that they’ll correct their ways, you can give them a second chance – you still like them as a friend. A great way to make sure it doesn’t happen again is to draft a secondary “social” contract with them saying what they’ll do to make up for how they screwed up. Another part of that new contract needs to mention what will happen if they do screw up again. Let them help make it so they believe it’s fair punishment as well.

 

Action Steps:

If in the future you find yourself negotiating partnerships, make sure you give it some deep thought. A business is a baby and if it has multiple parents, it needs them to work together and not fight about little things all the time or one getting the short end of the stick.

When you have great partnerships from the beginning, anything is possible. However, that said, if you have to carry dead weight – then it’s going to be twice as hard.

Have you had a partnership that worked extremely well or fell apart? Have any questions or comments about this post?

Let me know below!