Onward Nation With Stephen Woessner | Interviews With Todays Top Business Owners | Careers

Ron Carucci is co-founder and managing partner at Navalent and is a seasoned consultant with more than 25 years of experience working with CEOs and senior executives of organizations ranging from Fortune 50s to start-ups in pursuit of transformational change. He’s a two-time TEDx speaker, a popular contributor at Harvard Business Review and Forbes, and is the best selling author of the book, “Rising to Power.” What you'll learn about in this episode: Why you need to be open to receiving change The importance of having a sense of your most vital daily priorities The value in starting your day with gratitude The one thing that every entrepreneur has to decide Why you should pay attention and understand your impact on others The power of demonstrating that we care about other people’s stories Why you shouldn’t be afraid to ask for help in areas that you need to stretch and learn Why you should seek out people who push you Why you need to take control of your narrative Setting your sights on what you can do to h

Brian Burke is an active owner and president of SellYourMac.com, the world’s most trusted and highest independently rated Apple trade-in company and whose mission is to make it fast, safe, and easy to buy, sell, and service Apple products. His company has served over 100,000 customers, paid out $19 million, and has been featured on USA TODAY, MacWorld, and ABC News. What you'll learn about in this episode: How Brian’s passion for sales and entrepreneurship led to him starting his business, SellYourMac.com The importance of having systems and processes in place Brian’s business model and why there will never be a shortage of used Apple products to resell How packaging can play a key part in the consumer experience The importance of developing healthy habits Why it’s critical to have a clear vision for your business How determination and persistence helped Brian to become the business owner that he is today Why you need to have data tracking analytics in place The benefits of having a team that supports one an

Paul Spiegelman is the co-founder of the Small Giants Community, a peer-group of purpose-driven business leaders. He is the former chief culture officer of Stericycle, the co-founder and former CEO of BerylHealth and the founder and chairman of The Beryl Institute. He’s a New York Times bestselling author and has been honored with the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award. Paul is a columnist for Forbes.com and has been featured in the Wall Street Journal and Inc. Magazine. What you'll learn about in this episode: How the Small Giants community got its start The impact that accepting outside capital can have on your business How to measure the ROI of your business’ culture How to create a values and purpose-driven business that is sustainable The three things that every team member wants The power of focusing not just on your company’s vision, but on every employee’s vision How to approach having tough conversations with your employees The value of having a mentor as an entrepreneur Why you should

Good Morning...I’m Stephen Woessner, CEO of Predictive ROI and your host for Onward Nation. Before we dive into today’s episode — which is going to be a solocast where it’ll be just you and me spending some time together exploring a topic that my team and I have been watching very closely — I want to make sure you’ve heard about our new Alexa Flash Briefing that we launched yesterday...and how you can get free access to the daily content. You can activate it with a simple voice command to your Amazon Echo device by saying…“Alexa, enable the Onward Nation Flash Briefing” and you will be all set to receive our daily, short, business building tips and strategies anytime you ask Alexa for your Flash Briefing. Please give it a try and let me know what you think — thumbs up or thumbs down. Your feedback helps us get better each and every day. And if you’re asking yourself, “What the heck is an Alexa Flash Briefing?”... during our time together in this solocast...I’m going to share the ins and outs to Alexa Skills a

Elizabeth Engen is an Online Business Strategist and Founder of Premier SEO Ninjas - a digital marketing agency that helps doctors and lawyers grow their practices by creating online strategies that increase their number of clients and boost their bottom line. Premier SEO Ninjas aims to be the leading provider of innovative, comprehensive, state-of-the-art, and results-driven digital and Internet marketing solutions to enable their clients to become successful. What you'll learn about in this episode: Elizabeth’s path that made her realize that she’d been in the wrong line of work for 18 years The struggles many business owners go through trying to balance the desire to gain customers in any way possible with learning to focus on the niche that suits them How Elizabeth learned to keep negative ideas and beliefs from gaining a foothold and prevent her from pursuing promising business opportunities The way Elizabeth approaches sales with the mindset of what she’s got to offer versus what she’s going to gain fr

Our special encore guest today is Chris Prefontaine. Chris has been in the trenches of the real estate industry for over 25 years. His company has done over $80 million in real estate transactions. He is a practitioner at heart — which is why his company still buys between 4 to 10 properties each month where Chris and his family practices what he preaches. He is the author of the best selling book, “Real Estate on Your Terms.” I invited Chris back for an encore because of a fundamental problem that most business owners struggle with -- how to get their wealth out of their business and into other assets -- just in case they don’t have an opportunity to sell the business -- or even if they do sell the business -- awesome -- the diversification of assets can provide a very balanced portfolio. And real estate may be one of those investment strategies to consider as you are building out your plan. What you'll learn about in this episode: How to get your wealth out of a business and into other assets while still r

Chad Littlefield and Will Wise are Co-founders of We!™ — an organization whose mission is to create conversations that matter. Chad is a keynote speaker, who has spoken at TEDx and is the creator of We! Connect Cards™, which are now used to create conversations that matter on campuses and companies in over 50 countries around the world. Will has over two decades of experience in custom building leadership programs for corporate and non-profit groups. Together, Chad and Will have launched a new book, Ask Powerful Questions: Create Conversations that Matter, now a #1 Amazon.com Bestseller. What you'll learn about in this episode: Getting clear on creating conversations that matter Small talk vs. conversations that matter Why you need to ensure that there is trust within your organization Communicating with a person based on what they’re doing vs. who they’re being The power of being clear about your intent and sharing it How to not have impossible conversations Low curiosity small talk vs. high curiosity small

Ron Alvesteffer is the President and CEO of Service Express, a company that specializes in on-site data center hardware maintenance services. Under his leadership, Service Express has averaged double-digit revenue growth year over year and has expanded their geographic footprint nationally. Service Express has been named to the Inc. 5000 list of fastest growing privately held companies for 10-years, but Ron is most proud of their strong company culture which has led to the company being named one of the nation’s Best and Brightest Companies to work for for the past several years. What you'll learn about in this episode: How Ron decided on his 2020 BHAG goal for Service Express and worked to achieve it by focusing on nurturing the personal growth of the people they hired Working to help Service Express consistently achieve double-digit growth each year by using the type of employees they hired as the differentiator from their competition The way Ron feels it’s important to always let people know the value the

Stacy Jones is the CEO and founder of Hollywood Branded, a Los Angeles influencer and entertainment marketing and strategy agency. She has over 20 years of leadership experience building global influencer and entertainment branding campaigns for top Fortune 500 companies and hundreds of brands. Acknowledged as an expert in the field, Stacy has appeared on CNN and MSNBC, spoken at conferences around the globe from Germany to Beijing, and has been featured in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, Advertising Age, and other media outlets. What you'll learn about in this episode: Why influencer marketing has become so significant for both brands and influencers The difference between a ‘social’ celebrity and ‘real’ celebrity Why all celebrities need to figure out how to be social influencers How to determine if you should make social influence part of your marketing plan Why micro-influencers have more power than any other type of influencer out there Creating a paid course curriculum based on cornerstone content fro

Phil Singleton is a web designer, SEO expert, award-winning author and CEO of the digital agency, Kansas City Website Design & SEO. He is co-author of the Amazon bestseller, “SEO for Growth: The Ultimate Guide for Marketers, Web Designers and Entrepreneurs” — a book that he co-wrote with John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing and listed as a top marketing book by Huffington Post. He’s also the author of a popular WordPress SEO plugin that has been downloaded over 100,000 times in the last year. Phil’s latest venture, Podcast Bookers, is a service that helps marketers and executives get booked on established podcasts. What you'll learn about in this episode: How after returning stateside after 10 years in Taiwan, Phil successfully began to develop websites while living in Kansas City and soon saw the potential they added to ecommerce The growing importance of SEO (search engine optimization) for those buying and selling items on the internet The value of sharing information on other podcasts, especially in a

Ken Pasch is the President of KiVisions Inc., a leader development company that utilizes the innovative 7-Step Successful Ventures in Human Dynamics Model™ and the Make Your M.A.R.K! cycle™ — the basis for the entire leader development process. He’s a leadership authority, having worked for 30 years to develop, test, and refine the process that revolutionizes the tools available to leaders. Ken is the host of the syndicated radio show “Unlock Your Full Potential” and is also the author of the book, "On Course: Become a Great Leader and Soar!” What you'll learn about in this episode: The value of sharing the "we-win" mentality, providing information that helps others become better at the things you already do so they can advance as well Why leaders try to get everyone on board so that they realize that their contributions really matter The importance of looking for things that cause us to drag, slow us down, and ultimately impact our return on investment How good people become great leaders by adopting the pr

Matt Theriault is a real estate investor and mentor, entrepreneur, author, and United States Marine Corps Desert Storm Veteran, who teaches people how to create wealth, financial independence and freedom through financial literacy and a creative real estate investing education. He’s built a cash-flowing real estate portfolio of over 100 units over the last 10 years. using a conservative, simple, and efficient approach. Matt is also the host of two podcasts, including the popular real estate investing podcast, Epic Real Estate Investing and Do Over, a top-rated personal development podcast. What you'll learn about in this episode: How Matt recovered from a failed venture in the independent music industry by refocusing his energies in the area of real estate investing Three ways that his real estate investing has taken shape in the past 12 years: doing it with you, doing it for you, or showing you how to do it yourself Ways that real estate investing allowed him to focus on developing strategies to live largel

Shannon Adkins is the President and CEO of Future State, a consulting firm that works with companies and their leaders to help them realize their “Future State” and remain productive inside a constant state of change. In 1996, she started working for a small company, Tech Prose, where she successfully started the web division. Shannon worked for numerous startups and tech companies before returning to Tech Prose, where she helped to revive the company. The changes led to a doubling in revenue in 24-months, new offerings, new clients, new leaders, and a new name, Future State, where she has served as the CEO since 2015. What you'll learn about in this episode: A take-away lesson that Shannon learned early on in her career Why we need more businesses that recognize that people should be their most strategic asset — not profit The benefits of building your culture with intention How to ensure that your system works cohesively The power of knowing what makes your business unique Why you need to ask for and recei

Chip Franks is the co-founder of JoeVolunteer— a philanthropic company that connects people who need help with people who want to help…by using an app that’s like Uber for volunteers. He was also a successful real estate broker, having owned a residential real estate and property management company with 20 agents and a staff of 10, which he sold in March 2017 following a stroke. After selling his company, Chip wrote his first book, "Life Lessons from Dad: 101 Ways to Get More From Life”. What you'll learn about in this episode: The power of doing something good for yourself every single day A turning point in Chip’s life that lead him to create an app for volunteers, Joe Volunteer Why you need to lead with revenue An important question that all entrepreneurs need to ask themselves Finding a way to impact as many people as possible The three big components that can help you to get really good at what you do How self-development is the best thing that you can do to live a better life and create a better busine

Our special encore guest today is Bill Troy. He is an Inc. 500 CEO who helps global brands like Sony, Disney, and Nestle see the world from a different perspective. As CEO of Civilis Marketing, Bill and his team help companies initiate and nurture relationships that drive business growth using today’s digital communication tools. He is also the author of the book “CLICKSAND: How Online Marketing Will Destroy Your Business (And The Unlikely Secret To Saving It).” Now...you may remember Bill and the wisdom he shared during Episode 597. If you haven’t listened to, studied, and applied all he shared during our first interview...I highly encourage you to add Episode 597 to your list of vital priorities. What you'll learn about in this episode: Why Bill was driven to write his book “CLICKSAND” The importance of being more specific when it comes to business development and recruiting Why you should not be afraid to repel potential customers How millennials are looking for personal relationships as a source of trust

Our special encore guest today is Tim Fargo. He is a successful entrepreneur, speaker, and investor and founded investigative business firm Omega Insurance Services in 1996 with a credit card, grew it to over 300 employees, and sold it in 2003 for $20 million. He is now the President and CEO of socialjukebox.com — a social media content management system he developed and designed. Tim is also the author of Alphabet Success — Keeping it Simple. My Secrets to Success. Now...you may remember Tim and the wisdom he shared back in Episode 63 of Onward Nation. If you haven’t listened to, studied, and applied all he shared during our first interview...I highly encourage you to add Episode 63 to your list of vital priorities. What you'll learn about in this episode: How the freemium model works well for some business models and service offerings, but doesn't work as well for others How to determine whether the freemium model will work for your own business model How paying customers tend to be the easiest work with w

Anese Cavanaugh is devoted to helping people show up and bring their best selves to the table in order to create significant positive impact in their lives. She is the founder and creator of the Intentional Energetic Presence Method, an advisor and thinking partner to leaders and organizations around the world, and author of Contagious Culture: Show Up, Set the Tone, and Intentionally Create an Organization That Thrives. In addition to appearing in publications like Harvard Business Review, The Huffington Post, and the NY Times, and she writes regularly for Inc.com in her column “Showing Up”. And...she is currently working on her next book due out this year. What you'll learn about in this episode: How to bring best self to the table on a regular basis and have a good impact on the lives of your employees, customers, and the people around you How to have an intentionally energetic presence through the way you walk into a room, engage in a conversation, etc. How cultivating an intentionally energetic presence

Our special encore guest today is Scott Dubois. He is the co-founder of Pidalia, a digital agency in Boston, that provides clients with solutions to their challenges in advertising, software design, and business process management. Scott specializes in media selection, campaign strategy, and analytics and applies his knowledge of business processes through consultation with clients. Scott is also an internationally recognized speaker on the topics of marketing strategy, user engagement, and cross-media communications. Now...you may remember Scott and the wisdom he shared during Episode 526. If you haven’t listened to, studied, and applied all he shared during our first interview...I highly encourage you to add Episode 526 to your list of vital priorities. What you'll learn about in this episode: The importance of having an onboarding process for your clients Why you should use a survey data tool to gather client feedback Why Scott believes that success cannot be defined How the failure of Scott’s first busin

Dr. John Johnson is the President and CEO of Edgeworth Economics, one of the most prominent economic consulting firms in the world. He uses econometrics and economic theory to develop careful analyses in a wide range of antitrust, labor and employment, class action and damages-related matters. He writes and presents on economic topics related to litigation, including several highly-cited papers on rigorous analysis in antitrust class actions. Dr. Johnson is also the author of EVERYDATA: The Misinformation Hidden in the Little Data You Consume Everyday. Now...you may remember John and the wisdom he shared during Episode 344. If you haven’t listened to, studied, and applied all he shared during our first interview...I highly encourage you to add Episode 344 to your list of vital priorities. What you'll learn about in this episode: How John takes data sets and simplifies them for everyday people The importance of starting your business with core values Why you need to determine what differentiates you from your

Duane Brown is the founder and head of strategy for Take Some Risk, Inc., a performance marketing agency working with startups and brands to discover what is not working, convert traffic they have or improve and scale what is already working. He has over 11-years of digital marketing and branding experience working with clients including ASOS and Cineplex. What you'll learn about in this episode: Why Bing.com can be a good advertising tool for niche businesses Why Duane started Take Some Risk, Inc. and what makes them unique The benefits of hiring people with senior level experience The importance of finding an audience through empathy Why getting to work early is an important daily habit Why organization is key to helping your business run smoothly The importance of working on only the things that keep your business moving forward Why managing cash flow is the most critical skill to master The importance of consistently reviewing and evaluating operating expenses The benefits of staying focused on your goal