Big Things Done Podcast

*Note: Listen to Episode 7 before listening to Episode 8. Recall the definition of what a leader is from Episode 7: A leader is someone who is ahead of everyone else, and works to bring their team to their future state. Episode 8 is all about the second part of this definition - what it means for a leader to bring their team to their future state. I’ve been in countless organizations where a “leader” talked about a future state or goal, but the organization never progressed toward it. How do you avoid just talking about big things and actually going and doing them?  How do you lead your team to accomplish your goals? A leader makes and executes action plans.  An action plan is a simple list of what needs to be done, who is responsible for doing it, and when it must be accomplished. Without an action plan, nothing will never be done - the team has no direction or sense of accomplishment. A leader must recognize the importance of action plans and be the DRIVING force behind their creation and execution. A

In this two-part series, I detail out the basic definition of what it means to be a leader. Too often, our world produces books and speeches about the qualities of a leader, but rarely does anyone take the time to discuss the definition of what a leader is. While these conversations are good, they do not serve to equip people to develop and grow into effective leaders - because they gloss over the basics, which is where we all need to start.  And that is a shame, because leadership is THE THING THAT CAN SOLVE EVERY PROBLEM IN OUR WORLD. Here’s my definition of what a leader is: A leader is someone who is ahead of everyone else, and works to bring their team to their future vision. In Episode 7, we talk about the first part of that definition - what it means for a leader to be a person who is ahead of everyone else.  And it boils down to 2 simple facts: A leader thinks about a future vision.  A leader is someone who says “where we are right now is not ok. We need to move to a better, improved state”. Lite

If you want to start a company, build and/or improve a brand, this episode FOR YOU!! When it comes to doing Big Things, few people have built as iconic of charity organizations as Tom Lennox, the founder of Pelotonia and Chainbreaker. Combined, these organizations bring together nearly 10,000 people to participate in annual bike rides in Columbus, OH and Minneapolis, MN and have raised $159M for life-saving cancer research.  Both organizations operate and feel different than most common-place charities, and that is primarily due to Tom’s extensive knowledge of building brands and running businesses. This interview focuses on the very beginning of the organizations and how the values and identity of Pelotonia and Chainbreaker were formed. Here are some of the main themes from the interview: The importance of forming your unique identity The link between business success and living your business’ values Developing and trusting your process Learning to develop and utilize your skillsets, regardless your

Are you tired of giving up on your dreams and goals when things get hard? Pay attention to your stats. We have been taught to only think about stats that are in the past - how much money we’ve made, what our profit margins were, how much weight we’ve lost. We call these metrics “lagging metrics”, because they only tell you about what happened in the past. These stats are ok, but they aren’t the best, because they don’t give any indication that you can do better or are moving toward your goal.  That’ll make even the best person eventually want to quit. Here’s a better approach - start paying attention to your leading metrics. Leading metrics are actions that you take to influence a future event. These are metrics, that if you do them well, you will reach your goal. I guarantee you already know what these are, but I’m willing to bet that you don’t use these to say you’re successful on a daily basis. You should start. If you are tired of feeling bad about not reaching your goals and want to start making p

We all have a story of how we got to where we are today, and in this episode, I share a little about my personal journey and my Big Thing. I was hesitant at first to open up about my story - only because it’s not very dramatic and doesn’t involve some sort of cool, crazy, radical transformation. But as I look back on the “average” events in my life, I can point to multiple lessons that can help me get better in the future. My purpose in sharing my story is to inspire you to look at your story, identify the valuable lessons that you’ve learned, and start making yourself better.

Have you ever seen someone who has a lot good things going on in their life? They're really busy, making big things happen - how do they have the time to do that?? They protect their time Here’s a reality check: our culture is sloppy when it comes to spending time wisely. We are taught that it is ok to let our life’s circumstances dictate what we do. We are rewarded for thinking we are “victims” of our career, our friends, or how we're feeling today. The instant entertainment-focused world we live in wants you to spend your time with their content. That's NOT ok! If you are serious about doing something big in your life, you have to abolish this type of thinking. You have to go on the OFFENSIVE and PROTECT your time to use it wisely. In this episode, I walk through a great way to do this, and it centers around building your strategic calendar.

We’ve all had a great idea that we wanted to go do. But ask yourself, how many times did you actually go do it?  Or maybe you’re in a company that presented a brilliant new product - did anything ever develop after the initial meeting? How do we keep that from happening? How do we move past this and start doing Big Things? It all depends on your first reaction when you want to go do something. Often times, when we face something big, the first thing we say is “I hope that I can do it”.  But that’s not how you turn ideas into action. Hope is a dangerous word for people who want to do something big. In this episode, I share my experience with “hope” and show a much better way to approach your big thing. The application will help you develop into a person who’s first reaction to something big is “here’s my plan”.

We all want to do something big with our lives - every one of us. Losing weight, making money, starting a business, creating a new product, fixing something that’s broken - we all want to do something big. But big things don’t just happen randomly - they require skills, habits, and characteristics to make them a reality. Whether your goal is personal or organization, all require certain distinct traits to lead yourself and your team to achieve at a high level. Episode 1 takes this concept and relates it to the purpose behind this entire podcast - helping people and teams get something big accomplished. I share how my active duty military experiences have given me a unique perspective that can help you accomplish your big thing.  This podcast is all about giving you practical things you can do to achieve your goals. Everything we talk about I have actually put into practice and executed - and so can you!  Every episode will have an application, and this episode asks you to define your “big thing” in much mor