A new coach shares their fascinating transition from accountant to entrepreneur after a professional setback. They reveal how personal experiences inspired their entrepreneurial journey and the importance of authentic connections. Insights on strategic thinking tools showcase how reflecting on the past can guide future success. The discussion emphasizes the need for a supportive community and a mindset shift to achieve freedom in entrepreneurship. Ultimately, it illustrates the power of self-discovery and commitment in fostering growth.

Is complaining holding you back from your full potential? In this episode, Dan Sullivan and Shannon Waller discuss the surprisingly simple choice between complaining and creating when facing obstacles. Discover how shifting to a creative mindset, embracing courage, and taking full responsibility can unlock new capabilities and exponential growth. Here’s some of what you’ll learn in this episode:How complaining allows you to avoid responsibility by justifying why you can't move forward.The Strategic Coach® thinking tool for transforming obstacles into capability and confidence.Why you need commitment and courage before you can gain capability and confidence.The kinds of people that give creativity a bad name. Show Notes: An obstacle feels like something is blocking your progress. There are only two ways of dealing with obstacles: creating or complaining. When you’re in creativity mode, you’re fully engaged with transforming or bypassing the obstacle. To deal with an obstacle, you have to create something new. Taking 100% responsibility is essential for creative problem-solving. Complaining involves blaming external circumstances or people. Committing fully to complaining offers a sense of freedom because you’ve absolved yourself of any responsibility for improving your situation. Few people are entirely creative or entirely complainers. Most are a mix of both. Creativity requires courage; complaining does not. Creators are more likely to be honest with themselves. You attract what you are: complainers attract complainers, and creators attract creators. Resources: The 4 C’s Formula by Dan Sullivan

Organizations have changed a lot over the past 50 years, and it’s vital for entrepreneurs to be aware of these changes if they want to achieve great business success. In this episode, Dan Sullivan, who has been coaching entrepreneurs for 50 years, talks to fellow business coach Shannon Waller all about the changes in companies that have taken place over the past half-century and the very different position that entrepreneurs are in today. Here’s some of what you’ll learn in this episode:What gave Dan confidence to become a business coach.How Dan’s desire to coach got married to entrepreneurism.How Strategic Coach® helps entrepreneurs thrive in the current economy.The way to give your team members roles, not just jobs. Show Notes: The invention of the microchip allowed entrepreneurs to have a lot of power and capability they’d never had before. The introduction of the microchip meant large corporations would start to fracture and wouldn’t be as effective or useful. It might take three months to get a decision from large organizations, but entrepreneurs can decide to hire you, and write you a check, in the moment. About every 15 years, the number of employees required in an organization is about half of what it was 15 years previously. Now that small companies with microchip power can be powerful economic forces, government has adjusted to make the process of incorporation faster and easier. We’re partway through a 50-year period in which we’re shifting from large, pyramid-shaped organizations to network-based organizations. Artificial intelligence can do work that used to require many people to do. A lot more people can own companies and have leadership positions now than they used to. Canada, especially Ontario, is one of the easier places in the world to incorporate. Being a bureaucrat in a large pyramidal organization used to be the safest job in the economy, but is now among the riskiest. Being an entrepreneur has become the safest role. Resources: The Great Crossover by Dan Sullivan Your Business Is A Theater Production: Your Back Stage Shouldn’t Show On The Front Stage Unique Ability®

Do you believe in luck, or do you make your own success? In this episode, Dan Sullivan explores the concept of luck in entrepreneurship. Drawing from 50 years of coaching experience, he reveals how successful entrepreneurs create their own paths, often starting young by seeking opportunities to grow their wealth. Discover how self-made success intertwines with luck in the entrepreneurial journey. Here’s some of what you’ll learn in this episode:The top ways Dan has been lucky.Why it’s more difficult for someone born into wealth to become an entrepreneur.The new Strategic Coach® thinking tool that will help you recognize and increase your luck.Why being an entrepreneur requires a lot of courage.How Strategic Coach is run like a live theater company.Show Notes: 50% of your success comes from luck, and 50% of it comes from the ability to take advantage of the luck you've had. An entrepreneur’s success is an act of self-creation. Entrepreneurs create their own income streams and their own capabilities. Entrepreneurs understand intuitively that freedom requires money. It’s difficult to separate luck from skill. The U.S. is an entrepreneurial country created by entrepreneurs. Even the challenges you’ve faced have shaped who you are today. Recognizing the luck you’ve had keeps you centered and grounded. Whether your capability drives your luck or vice versa depends on your perspective. Resources: Unique Ability® Your Business Is A Theater Production: Your Back Stage Shouldn’t Show On The Front Stage

Can ambition flourish as we age? This discussion dives into how ambition can evolve and even intensify over time. Personal stories reveal how pursuing what you love can amplify your impact. Aiming for longevity, one speaker shares their goal of living to 156, highlighting the optimism in health advancements. The dynamic nature of ambition is framed as a proactive journey, essential for ongoing growth. Interactions with younger generations can reignite one’s ambitions, emphasizing the crucial link between commitment and courage.

Explore the crucial difference between viewing expenses as costs versus investments. Discover why a growth mindset can propel entrepreneurs forward. Learn how seeing team members as valuable assets, rather than just expenses, can unlock greater productivity. Uncover innovative hiring techniques that emphasize finding the right talent and ensuring long-term returns. Shift your perspective from mere survival to nurturing a thriving business culture that embraces growth.

When Patti Mara graduated from university in the recession of 1989, she couldn’t get a job—so she made one up instead. In this episode, Patti shares how she’s achieved entrepreneurial success, the exciting new project she’s launching to support local businesses, and what she’s learned as a long-time coach in The Strategic Coach® Program. Here’s some of what you’ll learn in this episode:The invaluable resource that Patti turned to when she realized she didn’t know how to build a business.Some of the most helpful tools Patti learned in her first year at Strategic Coach®.The difference between tasks and results.The value in separating the fault from the problem.“magic” that happens in every Strategic Coach workshop. Show Notes: Entrepreneurship often emerges out of necessity, but being good at making up a job for yourself doesn’t mean you know how to build a business.Strategic Coach concepts can dramatically shift an entrepreneur's mindset and ability to build a thriving organization.Every coach at Strategic Coach is also a Program member who uses Coach tools and concepts in their own business.What you sell is actually the vehicle for how you create value.Your business is the value you create to the people you want to work with.Everyone wants to feel like they’re winning.When team members feel like their roles serve a greater purpose, the whole company culture shifts.And once you recognize team members as experts in their roles, you can encourage their innovation and sense of ownership.When you empower team members to solve problems rather than to focus on who was at fault, customer interactions get much better.Awareness and mindset are more impactful than specific skills when training team members. Resources: Blog: Time Management Strategies For Entrepreneurs (Effective Strategies Only) Unique Ability® The 10x Mind Expander by Dan Sullivan Turning Teams into Heroes and Customers into Raving Fans by Patti Mara UpSolutions Team Success Program Blog: What Is A Self-Managing Company®?   Tool: The Positive Focus® Who Not How by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy Podcast: Team Success pattimara.com wechooselocal.com

Entrepreneurs need to be ambitious. But what happens when you achieve your ambition? In this episode, Dan Sullivan and Shannon Waller explain the drawbacks of having ambition as a destination and describe the incredible benefits you can expect when you see ambition as a capability. Here’s some of what you’ll learn in this episode:Why Dan sees ambition as an internal capability.Measurements you should be making every day.What’s made Dan’s life simpler over time.How Dan gifts Strategic Coach® members extra years to their entrepreneurial lives.What you need to avoid to be continually ambitious, and why. Show Notes: Ambition is a capability, not a destination.Simply by continually improving your ambition each day, you’ll experience exponential growth over time.Dan Sullivan feels more ambitious at 80 than he did at 50.To strengthen your ambition, it’s important to measure your daily accomplishments and strive for continal growth.You can measure your progress not just in achievements, but in the ability to accomplish more in less time with greater impact.Ambition itself should be measured in terms of increased capability and confidence.Simplifying life by eliminating distractions (like television) can reclaim valuable time for personal development and ambitious pursuits.Surrounding yourself with growth-oriented individuals, often younger, can inspire and fuel your ambition.To be continually ambitious, there are three things you should avoid: celebrity, retirement, and legacy.It’s important to focus on being useful and impactful in the present rather than worrying about future legacy.Viewing ambition as a capability can also help you feel more fulfilled personally—and have a greater impact on your community.Every day, ask yourself what you can do so that you’re more ambitious tomorrow.Being around people who aren’t invested in growth is an obstacle to your ambition. Resources:CliftonStrengths®Who Not How by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy

Entrepreneurs can fall into a success trap, where early achievements lead to complacency and hinder growth. Embracing failure can be transformative; setbacks often spark reinvention and new opportunities. Success may feel comfortable, yet it risks stagnation and limits personal development. The discussion emphasizes the importance of maintaining a growth mindset and setting challenging goals, while confronting the discomfort that drives true progress. Aging offers unique insights, showing that ambition and health can thrive even later in life.

Discover the power of teamwork in entrepreneurship. Effective communication and trust can skyrocket productivity. Entrepreneurs should embrace delegation by asking, 'Who can do this better?' The theater analogy illustrates the delicate balance between collaboration and performance. Navigate uncertainty with strong leadership and clear goals. Learn how self-reflection and diverse skill sets enhance team dynamics. This approach empowers leaders to prioritize actions, focusing on what unique contributions each member brings to the table.