The Freedom Formula Podcast: Achieving Financial, Location and Time Freedom

In another of the Remote Local Podcast's ongoing series of entrepreneurial interviews, Need chatted with Mike Loftus of Connor Landscape. Mike got a finance degree but found out he hated working inside.  He took $10k of his own savings and started knocking on doors, building a landscaping company from scratch.  After building it to $750k in revenues, he started acquiring others, three so far and more in the pipeline! Neel and Mike also discuss:  All the things you have to learn when starting a business ("what's an EIN, bro?") The keys to making good acquisitions The importance of being clear on what you want, not what books/influencers tell you you should want If you'd like to catch up with Mike, you can find him on Twitter, under a handle which is an homage to his father's entrepreneurial spirit.

In the last of a three-part series, Neel gives you an ultimate guide to hiring, from his own successful playbook! This episode focuses tweaking your flywheel to make sure it's working at its best. Neel also shares: What he does on screening calls The purpose of a test job How many cleaners he actually ends up with from 20 applicants (shockingly low!) Collect all three! If you haven't listened to the first two episodes in this mini-series, do so now!

In the second of a three-part series, Neel gives you an ultimate guide to hiring, from his own successful playbook! This episode shares the six places that MaidThis posts jobs ad to find talent for their local services business. Those places include: Indeed.com ZipRecruiter Craigslist (yes, really!) Facebook (not just ads, but in groups) Oh, did you want the other two?  You'll have to listen to the episode :-)

In the first of a three-part series, Neel gives you an ultimate guide to hiring, from his own successful playbook! This episode focuses on the mindset (and a few tactics) for hiring in general and putting up your job ad. Great tips which are included: How much an employee leaving can cost you How much an A-team player can make you each year Why you should ABC (always be 'cruiting...hey, close enough!) How to make your job ad STAND OUT There's plenty more here.  This is the sit down and take notes kind of episode.

In this episode Neel interviews Chris Munn, a fellow remote local entrepreneur. Chris grew up in Detroit, now lives in LA (though he lived in Paris for a while), but has a cleaning business based in Tampa.  Neel connected with him on Twitter and they had a chance to meet and connect in real life and decided to continue on some of the themes they had a chance to discuss when together, including: Chris' start in business via residential real estate Why Chris prefers the multiples on offer in real estate vs those in small business How world events shaped the work choices of a rising generation Things to consider during due diligence when you buy a business. Enjoy the episode, and if you want to catch up with Chris on Twitter you can find him here.

In this episode Neel interviews Jodie Cook, who recently exited her remote local business (and is getting ready to start another!). Jodie knew from an early age that she wanted to work and earn her own money and be independent, and that hustle meant sometimes two jobs as she figured out what she wanted to do.  Turns out that was a social media digital marketing agency that began from the desire to travel and work.  It would be some time before she realized that travel/work relationship in her business, but when she did, it was one month away, two months back in the UK for five years before her 7-figure exit. Jodie also shares: Her philosophy on creating useful people (watch her TEDx talk on the subject if you want to go deeper) How her team adapted from being completely in-office to entirely remote after March 2020 The genesis of her book Stop Acting Like You're Going to Live Forever If you want more Jodie you can find her website here and check her out on Twitter here.

In this episode Neel and David talk about limiting beliefs, how to identify them, and how to replace them with empowering beliefs. David has been preparing to leave for 90 days off the grid and was worried one of his businesses would implode and Neel was battling the idea that more growth = worse life.  Both of them share how these limiting beliefs paralyzed them for a while and how they moved past them. They also discuss: Why it can be hard to identify those beliefs Why you can't just eliminate them, you must replace them with empowering beliefs The importance of identifying the "worst-case scenarios" and living with those possibilities Neel also points out that sometimes a friend who is an exact refutation of one of your beliefs can be right next to you.  In his case, a friend had 400+ employees but did not seem to have a crappy life.. Enjoy the episode!

In this episode Neel and David sit down with Derek Dodds and have a leisurely conversation about how Derek found his calling. Derek currently runs WaveTribe, an ecological surf company, has an interest in Naked Armor, a wet shaving company, and serves an advisor to a publishing company he co-founded, 2 Seas Agency.  The path he took to get to those projects is anything but conventional. Derek also shares: Going from having a gun in his hand at the age of 5 and being a hunter to becoming a vegan How following women he loved led to big changes in his personal and professional life The influence of Jidda Krishnamurti on his life How getting a flyer while on a self-study visit led him to give up everything he was building in Europe to come back to America, where he never thought he would return. Enjoy the episode! If you want to connect with Derek you can find him on Facebook or Instagram or on his personal site.

In this episode Neel and David brainstormed, putting the podcast itself into the frame that they discussed in Episode 32: the three levels of entrepreneurship. If you haven't listened to that episode yet, do so, so that this episode will make more sense! Neel and David consider the podcast to be still at Level 1, aka "Podcasting for Dummies."  They discussed the origins of the podcast, why they prefer a conversation/co-host format, and why they keep the episodes short in length. They also discuss: Different ways they could grow the podcast The importance of an email list (and using it) How the podcast itself has shaped this current stage of their entrepreneurial journeys Not being in a rush to get to Level 3 Enjoy the episode!

In this episode Neel and David share the ONE BIG SECRET of successful remote local business owners. Okay, so the secret is...well you're going to have to listen to the episode to get it, but here are some of the other things Neel and David talk about: "Level 1" entrepreneurship, which is essentially like building and working in your own job "Level 2" entrepreneurship, which involves trying many different things while you develop a secret sauce  "Level 3" entrepreneurship, in which you strive to be the "dumbest person in your company" Enjoy the episode!