WEBVTT 00:00:07.480 --> 00:00:11.099 Welcome to the Business Abundance Podcast, providing 00:00:11.099 --> 00:00:13.560 the tools and knowledge to help small business 00:00:13.560 --> 00:00:16.879 owners succeed. For additional resources, visit 00:00:16.879 --> 00:00:21.719 www .businessabundance .online. Hello. Welcome 00:00:21.719 --> 00:00:24.600 back to the Business Abundance Podcast. I am 00:00:24.600 --> 00:00:28.820 Zee and I'm here with Rowan and Ian. Hello. And 00:00:28.820 --> 00:00:32.320 today we're going to be chatting about the cost 00:00:32.320 --> 00:00:36.700 of always being available. That's like if someone 00:00:36.700 --> 00:00:38.899 texts you on a Sunday morning, and I'm guilty 00:00:38.899 --> 00:00:42.520 of it, and they just need a quick email or something. 00:00:42.619 --> 00:00:44.299 They just need to have a quick conversation to 00:00:44.299 --> 00:00:46.500 get something off their brain. All of a sudden 00:00:46.500 --> 00:00:49.539 you're, yeah, but you should. I remember I got 00:00:49.539 --> 00:00:52.659 client feedback once and it's really good. Like 00:00:52.659 --> 00:00:55.020 when I messaged her at 11 .30 at night, she spends 00:00:55.020 --> 00:00:56.719 time with me and gets all the stuff done at the 00:00:56.719 --> 00:01:00.159 same time. I go, what are you doing? You've just 00:01:00.159 --> 00:01:03.060 put that on the podcast. Most employers would 00:01:03.060 --> 00:01:06.159 be like, yeah, what a hard work. The irony, last 00:01:06.159 --> 00:01:08.280 night when you were messaging me, I'm there like 00:01:08.280 --> 00:01:09.980 working and you're like, hey, you got this. I 00:01:09.980 --> 00:01:10.659 was like, what's for - I messaged you because 00:01:10.659 --> 00:01:13.819 you were online. Yeah, I was working. You said 00:01:13.819 --> 00:01:16.280 available. But to be fair, I enjoyed it. It was 00:01:16.280 --> 00:01:19.739 for me. It was for me. But yeah, I don't know. 00:01:19.840 --> 00:01:22.060 I probably need this lesson as much as the rest 00:01:22.060 --> 00:01:23.620 of the bedroom. Nah, you got to do what you got 00:01:23.620 --> 00:01:26.540 to do. Well, sometimes you actually just feel 00:01:26.540 --> 00:01:28.620 like working. I was pretty comfy on the couch 00:01:28.620 --> 00:01:30.780 and I had nothing else to do and I needed to 00:01:30.780 --> 00:01:33.430 get some thoughts out. Yeah, now when you got 00:01:33.430 --> 00:01:35.209 the thought sometimes it's like you can't sleep 00:01:35.209 --> 00:01:38.349 because you're going to deal with that rest peacefully 00:01:38.349 --> 00:01:42.150 slept like a baby But you cried all night and 00:01:42.150 --> 00:01:44.450 then woke up and you'd wake yourself. No slept 00:01:44.450 --> 00:01:51.129 like Rowan's baby Yeah, no, it's probably a lesson 00:01:51.129 --> 00:01:58.450 I need to learn however, I am slowly but Tell 00:01:58.450 --> 00:02:02.959 me about your father Time to reap and a time 00:02:02.959 --> 00:02:06.359 to sow, I reckon. My dad, he never stopped. So 00:02:06.359 --> 00:02:09.159 that's probably where I got it. The... It did 00:02:09.159 --> 00:02:13.340 turn into therapy. Whoops. Sorry, guys. That 00:02:13.340 --> 00:02:16.360 was a compliment to you. Z is currently lying 00:02:16.360 --> 00:02:19.939 on the couch. So, I think this conversation came 00:02:19.939 --> 00:02:22.819 up because I was talking to someone who's interested 00:02:22.819 --> 00:02:26.099 in starting their own business. Stop. Don't do 00:02:26.099 --> 00:02:31.479 it. Do it. Do it? Yeah, why not? Send it. Do 00:02:31.479 --> 00:02:34.180 it smart. It's going to be Ian's therapy session. 00:02:34.219 --> 00:02:38.240 Yeah, okay. Now Ian's on the couch, but one of 00:02:38.240 --> 00:02:41.280 the reasons we're just looking at some statistics. 00:02:42.060 --> 00:02:44.060 No, just keep talking. One of the reasons. That's 00:02:44.060 --> 00:02:46.860 Rowan just going, oh, butterfly. Distracting 00:02:46.860 --> 00:02:50.879 everyone. One of the reasons they want to start 00:02:50.879 --> 00:02:53.639 the business is essentially they want freedom, 00:02:54.479 --> 00:02:58.050 which - Don't do it. Do you want to talk about 00:02:58.050 --> 00:03:00.889 why you think that? If you're starting it for 00:03:00.889 --> 00:03:02.330 freedom, initially, you're not gonna have a lot 00:03:02.330 --> 00:03:05.750 of freedom, I don't reckon. No. True. More freedom. 00:03:06.849 --> 00:03:08.669 When you first started? Pretty good freedom. 00:03:09.069 --> 00:03:10.469 But when I first started, I had a ton of freedom. 00:03:10.710 --> 00:03:13.830 Yeah, yeah. How much money? More than enough. 00:03:14.689 --> 00:03:18.770 Yeah. Tons of time. Too much time to spend doing 00:03:18.770 --> 00:03:22.330 that day. What was that business? This one. Oh, 00:03:22.330 --> 00:03:24.270 well, how about your first business? No, I had 00:03:24.270 --> 00:03:27.560 tons of time. Did that in my spare time? Yep. 00:03:29.300 --> 00:03:32.340 Cool. I was slightly more educated. I was thinking 00:03:32.340 --> 00:03:34.840 you might be the unicorn in the room. Yes. Yeah. 00:03:35.939 --> 00:03:38.979 Sorry, Zee. There's this idea that when you do 00:03:38.979 --> 00:03:40.620 start the business, you're going to set your 00:03:40.620 --> 00:03:44.219 own hours. Well, technically it's not untrue. 00:03:44.539 --> 00:03:46.400 It's not a lie. You're going to set your own 00:03:46.400 --> 00:03:49.259 hours. You're going to run your own ship. You 00:03:49.259 --> 00:03:51.120 can work when you want, where you want, all those 00:03:51.120 --> 00:03:54.009 sort of things. Technically true. However, If 00:03:54.009 --> 00:03:56.349 you also need money to survive, sometimes things 00:03:56.349 --> 00:03:58.870 start to creep in and you feel like time equals 00:03:58.870 --> 00:04:02.150 money and therefore. Got to feed the family. 00:04:02.569 --> 00:04:04.889 And then all of a sudden you're working so much 00:04:04.889 --> 00:04:06.810 more because it's generating money and you need 00:04:06.810 --> 00:04:08.650 that money. And therefore it starts to turn into 00:04:08.650 --> 00:04:11.349 a 24 hour shift. Living to work instead of working 00:04:11.349 --> 00:04:15.569 to live. And then if you've got employees at 00:04:15.569 --> 00:04:17.870 the same time and they start contacting you and. 00:04:18.459 --> 00:04:21.980 You know, it's 7 .30am and you are running a 00:04:21.980 --> 00:04:24.519 cafe and they text you and they say, we've run 00:04:24.519 --> 00:04:26.339 out of almond milk. What are we doing? We don't 00:04:26.339 --> 00:04:28.879 know where the capture is supposed to go. And 00:04:28.879 --> 00:04:32.959 your breakfast plans are messed up because you 00:04:32.959 --> 00:04:35.120 need to get dressed, call the suppliers and then 00:04:35.120 --> 00:04:38.740 drive, restock. And the whole time you're just 00:04:38.740 --> 00:04:41.079 wondering why can't they do it themselves. It's 00:04:41.079 --> 00:04:43.860 likely because you trained them to come to you. 00:04:44.240 --> 00:04:48.319 So, I mean, we're looking at setting. I know 00:04:48.319 --> 00:04:51.639 there's two different examples there, one being 00:04:51.639 --> 00:04:53.699 you're not setting boundaries about how much 00:04:53.699 --> 00:04:55.500 you're on your phone and answering clients, and 00:04:55.500 --> 00:04:57.680 then the other one is how much you're babying 00:04:57.680 --> 00:05:02.180 your employees. Two classic examples of issues 00:05:02.180 --> 00:05:04.600 we see that come through our door and the reason 00:05:04.600 --> 00:05:07.420 why you don't get freedom when it comes to your 00:05:07.420 --> 00:05:10.899 business. It's a very nice idea to be able to 00:05:10.899 --> 00:05:13.579 work when you want, but when... time and money 00:05:13.579 --> 00:05:16.399 crunches come in and people need you or you feel 00:05:16.399 --> 00:05:19.959 like you need to be needed then that's when it 00:05:19.959 --> 00:05:24.500 hurts. So I guess that's where Ian's come in 00:05:24.500 --> 00:05:27.139 and he's a bit sad about the fact that you can't 00:05:27.139 --> 00:05:28.759 get freedom when you're on your own business. 00:05:29.199 --> 00:05:32.259 I was in a cafe, a local cafe, a couple of weeks 00:05:32.259 --> 00:05:34.480 ago actually and there were two young employees 00:05:34.480 --> 00:05:37.959 running the show, no one else there. One was 00:05:37.959 --> 00:05:42.129 the barista and one was the short cook and What's 00:05:42.129 --> 00:05:44.829 a short cook? Short order cook. For little people. 00:05:45.329 --> 00:05:50.470 Yeah, they only serve short people. Short orders, 00:05:51.209 --> 00:05:54.389 so like basic fries. Toasties. Gotcha, gotcha, 00:05:54.389 --> 00:05:56.610 gotcha. And they were having a whinging complaint 00:05:56.610 --> 00:05:59.509 about being left there alone and my wife and 00:05:59.509 --> 00:06:01.810 I are sitting there and we're like, huh, I think 00:06:01.810 --> 00:06:04.930 we'd only just recorded the micromanaging. I 00:06:04.930 --> 00:06:06.129 don't know, I'm sitting there going, oh, that's 00:06:06.129 --> 00:06:08.110 an interesting perspective. Do I have a conversation 00:06:08.110 --> 00:06:11.319 with you? Let's chime in. I said would you guys 00:06:11.319 --> 00:06:14.279 rather your boss sitting over your shoulder saying 00:06:14.279 --> 00:06:15.860 you're doing that wrong why aren't you doing 00:06:15.860 --> 00:06:17.639 it the way that I showed you or would you rather 00:06:17.639 --> 00:06:20.620 have this whole establishment to yourself and 00:06:20.620 --> 00:06:22.839 have the autonomy and they've looked at each 00:06:22.839 --> 00:06:24.560 other and go oh yeah they're not that bad are 00:06:24.560 --> 00:06:26.699 they actually yeah I get to do what I want I 00:06:26.699 --> 00:06:28.459 get to run I get to make the menu I get to do 00:06:28.459 --> 00:06:32.000 this I get to do that the downside is Last week 00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:35.699 that business went out of business. Unfortunately. 00:06:36.680 --> 00:06:40.240 It was supposed to be a positive story of how 00:06:40.240 --> 00:06:42.180 letting your staff do what they want to do, but 00:06:42.180 --> 00:06:43.639 there might have been a bit of a culture problem 00:06:43.639 --> 00:06:47.360 there, I don't know. But would you rather your 00:06:47.360 --> 00:06:49.699 employees be able to run the show and you have 00:06:49.699 --> 00:06:52.680 your time freedom that is spooked about in all 00:06:52.680 --> 00:06:54.439 the brochures of starting a business, or would 00:06:54.439 --> 00:06:58.240 you rather have them do it your way? Yeah, it's 00:06:58.240 --> 00:07:01.300 a fair question, but... I think what I've seen 00:07:01.300 --> 00:07:03.519 is people just feel guilty when they're not working. 00:07:03.839 --> 00:07:06.259 Like it's essentially their baby. And it's their 00:07:06.259 --> 00:07:08.879 reputation. Exactly. Their identity is tied to 00:07:08.879 --> 00:07:10.220 it. It's hard to let that go, isn't it? If they 00:07:10.220 --> 00:07:11.600 buck up a client, they might not have any more 00:07:11.600 --> 00:07:14.399 work in the future. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. That's 00:07:14.399 --> 00:07:16.019 a massive one, isn't it, that we see all the 00:07:16.019 --> 00:07:19.120 time, is if I'm not working hard now, then I 00:07:19.120 --> 00:07:22.480 might not have anything in the future. Sad. I 00:07:22.480 --> 00:07:25.439 guess the cost of it being the stress that comes 00:07:25.439 --> 00:07:28.120 with it, the chronic stress and then burnout. 00:07:28.459 --> 00:07:31.199 When I see someone we burn out it really breaks 00:07:31.199 --> 00:07:33.899 my heart because they know what it looks like. 00:07:35.300 --> 00:07:40.160 Yeah It's so sad because obviously someone's 00:07:40.160 --> 00:07:42.339 invested time and money and effort and their 00:07:42.339 --> 00:07:44.439 dreams into this business and then turned around 00:07:44.439 --> 00:07:47.480 and Don't even want to look at it. Don't want 00:07:47.480 --> 00:07:50.240 to be there can't be there bodies not letting 00:07:50.240 --> 00:07:53.600 them be there and Those hopes and dreams are 00:07:53.600 --> 00:07:55.699 essentially going out the window and that's that's 00:07:55.699 --> 00:07:59.350 the like emotional and mental cost of always 00:07:59.350 --> 00:08:01.250 being available. It doesn't happen immediately. 00:08:01.329 --> 00:08:03.250 You don't spend one week and then all of a sudden 00:08:03.250 --> 00:08:08.029 you're like, oh well, now I'm burnt out or it 00:08:08.029 --> 00:08:11.829 just snowballs. It accumulates. Yeah. It's a 00:08:11.829 --> 00:08:14.350 straw that breaks the camel's back story with 00:08:14.350 --> 00:08:15.990 stress. We talked about stress on another episode, 00:08:16.689 --> 00:08:19.129 but people go on to the right thing. I've got 00:08:19.129 --> 00:08:20.389 to work hard because I haven't got any clients. 00:08:20.410 --> 00:08:21.810 I've got to work, so I might as well work hard 00:08:21.810 --> 00:08:24.750 or answer that phone after work because then 00:08:24.750 --> 00:08:26.649 I've got some work to do next week, work, work, 00:08:26.649 --> 00:08:29.560 work, work, work. But then at some stage that 00:08:29.560 --> 00:08:32.019 you've got something to do, things are happening 00:08:32.019 --> 00:08:35.220 but then that's the example you've set for everyone 00:08:35.220 --> 00:08:36.659 who deals with you whether it's an employer, 00:08:36.779 --> 00:08:38.960 you're a client or a supplier, that's how they 00:08:38.960 --> 00:08:41.539 deal with you and then you've got to either undo 00:08:41.539 --> 00:08:43.700 it and change how you do it all or you've got 00:08:43.700 --> 00:08:45.440 to deal with the fact you're super busy and you're 00:08:45.440 --> 00:08:47.679 getting all that extra contact too which then 00:08:47.679 --> 00:08:49.360 is the straw that broke the camel's back like 00:08:49.360 --> 00:08:51.240 it all adds up into all these different types 00:08:51.240 --> 00:08:52.840 of stresses and then suddenly we don't have time 00:08:52.840 --> 00:08:54.320 or we can't have time to do the right things. 00:08:54.580 --> 00:08:55.860 Suddenly you're in the corner with your thumb 00:08:55.860 --> 00:08:57.929 in your mouth in the fetal position. to know 00:08:57.929 --> 00:09:01.070 what happened. And it was something minor. It's 00:09:01.070 --> 00:09:03.850 so interesting though. Recently, because I've 00:09:03.850 --> 00:09:05.870 been doing a bit of trying to understand what 00:09:05.870 --> 00:09:08.690 makes people tick, I have something about the 00:09:08.690 --> 00:09:11.289 psychology of business kind of fun. Anyway, I 00:09:11.289 --> 00:09:14.169 sent people that I know that I would consider 00:09:14.169 --> 00:09:16.590 to be quite successful in business. I sent them 00:09:16.590 --> 00:09:19.429 a message and I said, can I pick your brain about 00:09:19.429 --> 00:09:21.590 your business? What was the one thing that really 00:09:21.590 --> 00:09:23.710 got your business up and running from just an 00:09:23.710 --> 00:09:26.990 idea? So I've sent every single person this text. 00:09:27.129 --> 00:09:29.090 I said, I know that people can have a great idea 00:09:29.090 --> 00:09:31.450 that's loved, but then getting actual paying 00:09:31.450 --> 00:09:33.590 customers is a whole different story. Was there 00:09:33.590 --> 00:09:35.950 something that made it all click for you? Can 00:09:35.950 --> 00:09:38.549 you tell me what that was? What time did you 00:09:38.549 --> 00:09:42.210 send this text message? Sent to all the 10 PM 00:09:42.210 --> 00:09:48.409 at night. And every single one replied. And the 00:09:48.409 --> 00:09:54.029 overwhelming response was, I was available, was 00:09:54.029 --> 00:09:56.590 one of the That was one of the big ones. One 00:09:56.590 --> 00:09:58.690 was putting yourself out there, which we can 00:09:58.690 --> 00:10:01.909 chat about in a future podcast. But then, oh, 00:10:01.990 --> 00:10:04.370 we did. The last one was about that. We did chat 00:10:04.370 --> 00:10:06.830 about it in a future podcast. We did. We did. 00:10:07.210 --> 00:10:10.789 Wow. I'm so switched on. Anyway, the next one 00:10:10.789 --> 00:10:14.610 was that story. There was a small business, a 00:10:14.610 --> 00:10:17.350 little medical. business and essentially they'd 00:10:17.350 --> 00:10:20.350 just bought it, had no investment. Other people 00:10:20.350 --> 00:10:22.990 were investing in them. So there was a huge risk 00:10:22.990 --> 00:10:25.490 to everyone around them and they knew it. It 00:10:25.490 --> 00:10:28.490 was back when computers and stuff weren't necessarily 00:10:28.490 --> 00:10:34.870 about. They've grabbed their phone book and they've 00:10:34.870 --> 00:10:38.470 taken the phone. What's the phone book? as in 00:10:38.470 --> 00:10:40.669 like a phone book with all your contacts. Oh, 00:10:40.669 --> 00:10:42.789 okay. And they had like the paper diary and those 00:10:42.789 --> 00:10:44.309 sort of things. Some people might not know what 00:10:44.309 --> 00:10:48.110 a phone book is. They might be your age. I don't 00:10:48.110 --> 00:10:50.549 know what a phone book is. How old do you think 00:10:50.549 --> 00:10:53.629 I am? Twelve. I'll have you know it's my birthday 00:10:53.629 --> 00:10:58.190 this month. Anywho. You're getting older. Anywho. 00:10:58.250 --> 00:11:01.570 So they've taken the phone book home every single 00:11:01.570 --> 00:11:04.070 night and whenever that phone went off they would 00:11:04.070 --> 00:11:06.779 be picking it up. They would never let it. not 00:11:06.779 --> 00:11:10.679 be answered and that was essentially what they 00:11:10.679 --> 00:11:14.000 did for the first two years. They said they would 00:11:14.000 --> 00:11:16.840 answer that call any time and if someone wanted 00:11:16.840 --> 00:11:19.360 to book in, they would be there. It was almost 00:11:19.360 --> 00:11:22.980 like a 12 -hour guarantee. They'd worked from 00:11:22.980 --> 00:11:26.419 6 .30 in the morning until random hours on the 00:11:26.419 --> 00:11:28.539 weekend because that's what worked for their 00:11:28.539 --> 00:11:30.759 clients and they were just available and available 00:11:30.759 --> 00:11:33.129 and available. Anyway, not something they had 00:11:33.129 --> 00:11:35.289 to do forever because their business became quite 00:11:35.289 --> 00:11:37.649 successful and they were able to fill those spots. 00:11:38.250 --> 00:11:41.970 But it was what they needed to do in order to 00:11:41.970 --> 00:11:45.250 get their business to where it was. The risk 00:11:45.250 --> 00:11:48.230 being they could have kept that going as a standard 00:11:48.230 --> 00:11:50.230 and they could have just been like, I'm going 00:11:50.230 --> 00:11:52.870 to be available whenever, wherever, because I 00:11:52.870 --> 00:11:54.490 know it works. Imagine if they did keep that 00:11:54.490 --> 00:11:57.370 going as a standard. They delivered that. That 00:11:57.370 --> 00:11:59.490 would be cool. Pretty incredible. I feel like 00:11:59.490 --> 00:12:02.379 you'd need more resources. to cite some resource 00:12:02.379 --> 00:12:04.500 to it, and that's the motto of the business was 00:12:04.500 --> 00:12:06.399 that you answer the phone no matter what. Yeah, 00:12:06.799 --> 00:12:07.899 pretty cool. Anyone who's annoyed with someone 00:12:07.899 --> 00:12:09.779 not answering the phone, there we go. Probably 00:12:09.779 --> 00:12:12.539 a bit easier back when it was landlines. You 00:12:12.539 --> 00:12:15.419 still had that disconnection with a landline. 00:12:15.799 --> 00:12:17.500 There was a few places I worked where it was 00:12:17.500 --> 00:12:20.100 a two ring policy. So if it rings more than twice, 00:12:20.220 --> 00:12:23.299 we failed. Mobile phone changes that a little 00:12:23.299 --> 00:12:26.440 bit, doesn't it? Because it's always there. It's 00:12:26.440 --> 00:12:28.100 not just the phone ringing, it's the fact that 00:12:28.100 --> 00:12:31.480 you can do stuff on your phone too. Yeah, but 00:12:31.480 --> 00:12:33.820 I mean they're at home. They're waiting. It's 00:12:33.820 --> 00:12:35.639 the middle of dinner. Yeah, and they're picking 00:12:35.639 --> 00:12:37.460 up that phone It doesn't matter what's happening. 00:12:37.460 --> 00:12:39.419 They're picking up that phone. They are always 00:12:39.419 --> 00:12:40.879 available. And so what happened when they're 00:12:40.879 --> 00:12:43.519 already on the phone? Oh Interesting because 00:12:43.519 --> 00:12:47.259 it would just go with the question. Yeah Yeah, 00:12:48.899 --> 00:12:51.059 I remember those I just remember the beeps in 00:12:51.200 --> 00:12:53.639 Landlines were something else. Anyway, so that's 00:12:53.639 --> 00:12:55.700 the way I thought it was important. Yeah. Anyway, 00:12:55.940 --> 00:12:58.700 so they were probably the opposite of what we're 00:12:58.700 --> 00:13:01.879 going to recommend in this podcast. Maybe. Well, 00:13:02.139 --> 00:13:03.580 the timing, yeah. You've got to do what you've 00:13:03.580 --> 00:13:05.840 got to do. Like there's time for working hard 00:13:05.840 --> 00:13:08.460 and there's a time for working smart and there's 00:13:08.460 --> 00:13:10.440 a great time to work hard and smart, you know? 00:13:10.700 --> 00:13:13.519 So, you know, when you're at one stage in your 00:13:13.519 --> 00:13:15.679 career or your business, working hard makes more 00:13:15.679 --> 00:13:17.759 sense. Yeah. And when you're on another stage, 00:13:17.980 --> 00:13:20.580 working smart makes more sense. But working hard 00:13:20.580 --> 00:13:22.559 is always fantastic. I always recommend that. 00:13:23.080 --> 00:13:25.139 But if you're doing the right things, the issue 00:13:25.139 --> 00:13:27.259 is there where we're doing things that don't 00:13:27.259 --> 00:13:28.919 make that much sense because we did it once, 00:13:29.340 --> 00:13:31.259 because maybe it made some form of sense, or 00:13:31.259 --> 00:13:32.740 we could, or we had the time to, so we didn't 00:13:32.740 --> 00:13:34.720 really mind. So I was like, oh, I don't mind 00:13:34.720 --> 00:13:36.340 making that dinner for you tonight because, yeah, 00:13:36.340 --> 00:13:37.940 I've got a bit of time. But then you always make 00:13:37.940 --> 00:13:39.960 dinner for that person. And then now we do mind. 00:13:40.159 --> 00:13:42.620 But you never change it. So it's, it's those 00:13:42.620 --> 00:13:44.460 things. So some things make sense, but some things 00:13:44.460 --> 00:13:46.840 don't make sense. Yeah. The cafe example doesn't 00:13:46.840 --> 00:13:49.179 make sense. Yeah. Oh, yeah. I've got nothing 00:13:49.179 --> 00:13:50.639 to do this morning. We get the milk next time 00:13:50.639 --> 00:13:52.360 they ring. Can you get the milk to get on the 00:13:52.360 --> 00:13:54.379 way through? If you don't mind. Oh, no, I don't. 00:13:54.860 --> 00:13:57.419 Yeah. That's how it goes. Yeah, exactly. Whereas 00:13:57.419 --> 00:13:59.340 those people starting a business, they've gone 00:13:59.340 --> 00:14:03.820 in to really over deliver early. And there's 00:14:03.820 --> 00:14:06.259 one adage that rings true. You never get a second 00:14:06.259 --> 00:14:09.950 chance to make a first impression. So every person 00:14:09.950 --> 00:14:11.909 that they dealt with in their first few months 00:14:11.909 --> 00:14:14.429 of business has come away from that transaction 00:14:14.429 --> 00:14:18.389 going, oh, that wasn't the usual, that was kind 00:14:18.389 --> 00:14:21.629 of good, one would hope. They build an incredibly 00:14:21.629 --> 00:14:26.070 successful business. Yeah. So again, there's 00:14:26.070 --> 00:14:28.309 a time to do that. There's a time to, as Rowan 00:14:28.309 --> 00:14:30.490 said, there's a time to work your butt off. And 00:14:30.490 --> 00:14:33.389 it probably is when you first start, is put yourself 00:14:33.389 --> 00:14:37.370 out there, under promise, over deliver. have 00:14:37.370 --> 00:14:40.830 a whole ream of happy customers in your phone 00:14:40.830 --> 00:14:44.990 book and build on that and then scale out. I 00:14:44.990 --> 00:14:46.950 think when we're talking about this, we're talking 00:14:46.950 --> 00:14:48.830 about things getting a little bit out of control, 00:14:49.090 --> 00:14:51.409 that adding up is having some healthy boundaries. 00:14:51.669 --> 00:14:53.690 So whatever you decide to do, have some boundaries 00:14:53.690 --> 00:14:55.490 on that. So we will do this, but we won't do 00:14:55.490 --> 00:14:58.549 that. And you know, we have it here with clients 00:14:58.549 --> 00:15:01.570 that we do do certain things and there's some 00:15:01.570 --> 00:15:03.309 things we don't do. Other people are really good 00:15:03.309 --> 00:15:05.289 at it. you really complain at us because we don't 00:15:05.289 --> 00:15:06.970 do those things well that's fine no worries like 00:15:06.970 --> 00:15:10.210 it just doesn't suit us that's nothing bad about 00:15:10.210 --> 00:15:12.690 us that's nothing bad about you it's just it's 00:15:12.690 --> 00:15:14.730 not going to work out it's not a service we offer 00:15:14.730 --> 00:15:16.629 well it's going to be service it'll be how we 00:15:16.629 --> 00:15:18.370 do it you know yeah do we want to answer the 00:15:18.370 --> 00:15:20.830 phone at eight o 'clock at night guaranteed no 00:15:20.830 --> 00:15:23.590 are we happy to answer it sometimes yes if you 00:15:23.590 --> 00:15:26.230 abuse that probably not yep if you're not happy 00:15:26.230 --> 00:15:29.009 to pay a bill probably not you know there's certain 00:15:29.009 --> 00:15:31.490 things that that we're happy to do and we do 00:15:31.490 --> 00:15:32.970 very well there's certain things we probably 00:15:33.039 --> 00:15:35.340 a lot worse than other places, but we just don't 00:15:35.340 --> 00:15:38.840 see them as valuable. The cost for us as people 00:15:38.840 --> 00:15:42.139 is not worth the value to the client or to us, 00:15:42.700 --> 00:15:45.759 so we prefer to upset them and not do it than 00:15:45.759 --> 00:15:48.960 be upset ourselves. And then some people get 00:15:48.960 --> 00:15:51.679 that, some people don't. Has consequence, like, 00:15:51.679 --> 00:15:56.139 just for yourself, even, like, as a person who 00:15:56.139 --> 00:15:58.500 probably hasn't set boundaries, it does have 00:15:58.500 --> 00:16:01.080 consequence, you know, that, hey, I have a quick 00:16:01.080 --> 00:16:05.299 question can certainly turn into hours and I 00:16:05.299 --> 00:16:07.259 know I've done that and I'm happy to do that 00:16:07.259 --> 00:16:10.440 for the people that when it suits me essentially 00:16:10.440 --> 00:16:13.980 if it's outside normal time but then you do have 00:16:13.980 --> 00:16:16.259 to think about the people that you're so let's 00:16:16.259 --> 00:16:18.259 just say I did that on a Sunday when I'm out 00:16:18.259 --> 00:16:21.200 playing golf all of a sudden I'm distracted I'm 00:16:21.200 --> 00:16:23.639 not present I'm not Lucky you're good at golf, 00:16:23.700 --> 00:16:25.440 it doesn't matter. Yeah, thank goodness. Gets 00:16:25.440 --> 00:16:29.559 out of bunkers, no problem. Yeah, and so it does 00:16:29.559 --> 00:16:31.440 impact the people around you and so you've got 00:16:31.440 --> 00:16:35.820 to be aware. That's it. The boundaries are personal, 00:16:35.820 --> 00:16:38.159 I guess, because, you know, you've got a client 00:16:38.159 --> 00:16:40.879 that you're dealing with after hours and a quick 00:16:40.879 --> 00:16:42.460 call turns into two hours, you don't mind doing 00:16:42.460 --> 00:16:44.899 that, so that's fine. It's the issue when the 00:16:44.899 --> 00:16:47.940 client then saves those questions till eight 00:16:47.940 --> 00:16:49.240 o 'clock because they know you're available at 00:16:49.240 --> 00:16:51.240 eight. There's a very big difference between 00:16:51.240 --> 00:16:53.039 a client calling saying, oh, I need a bit of 00:16:53.039 --> 00:16:55.639 a hand with my chat now. Sorry to distract you. 00:16:55.840 --> 00:16:59.659 You know, can we do this? And, oh, it's time 00:16:59.659 --> 00:17:01.759 to chat now and having those boundaries. And 00:17:01.759 --> 00:17:05.519 I think that's the difference. Yeah. Well, it's 00:17:05.519 --> 00:17:07.500 pretty relevant considering in the last podcast, 00:17:07.579 --> 00:17:10.299 we were talking about how you essentially live 00:17:10.299 --> 00:17:13.339 your work in the sense that when you're networking 00:17:13.339 --> 00:17:15.559 and those sorts of things. Yeah. But when it 00:17:15.559 --> 00:17:18.930 comes to addressing issues. for a client, for 00:17:18.930 --> 00:17:21.329 example, like you're still a human, still need 00:17:21.329 --> 00:17:23.170 your downtime, that sort of stuff. You're allowed 00:17:23.170 --> 00:17:28.769 to say no. Yeah. I know when I was first learning 00:17:28.769 --> 00:17:32.170 this, it was an issue where I didn't want to 00:17:32.170 --> 00:17:35.450 disappoint people or I didn't want to miss out 00:17:35.450 --> 00:17:37.609 on an opportunity that someone might be presenting 00:17:37.609 --> 00:17:40.029 me. If someone's called me and they're not actually 00:17:40.029 --> 00:17:42.430 my client, but they want some help or to ask 00:17:42.430 --> 00:17:45.680 a question, that could be... me working with 00:17:45.680 --> 00:17:47.420 them in the future. So why am I going to miss 00:17:47.420 --> 00:17:51.420 out? And I do look back on that because I'm obviously 00:17:51.420 --> 00:17:55.779 still building. We all are. Yeah. I want that 00:17:55.779 --> 00:17:58.099 opportunity. And so I can justify that. Would 00:17:58.099 --> 00:18:01.759 I do that now? Sometimes. Let's give and take. 00:18:01.900 --> 00:18:04.640 It's like there's a criteria both ways. So one 00:18:04.640 --> 00:18:06.460 setting boundaries, one setting what's the rules 00:18:06.460 --> 00:18:11.009 of engagement? Yeah. So changing the topic. completely 00:18:11.009 --> 00:18:12.950 to different look at a different angle there's 00:18:12.950 --> 00:18:15.589 a client a very long time ago that was just like 00:18:15.589 --> 00:18:17.750 their life was ruined because they're constantly 00:18:17.750 --> 00:18:20.230 clients calling the business now the receptionist 00:18:20.230 --> 00:18:22.549 was getting everyone's getting phone calls 24 00:18:22.549 --> 00:18:24.470 7 non -stop where's the job at where's the job 00:18:24.470 --> 00:18:26.009 at where's the job at and they're booked out 00:18:26.009 --> 00:18:28.970 for 18 months ahead so they had 18 months worth 00:18:28.970 --> 00:18:30.910 of clients bringing the business constantly where's 00:18:30.910 --> 00:18:32.529 job at where's job at where's the job at was 00:18:32.529 --> 00:18:34.630 exhausting hated life everyone in the business 00:18:34.630 --> 00:18:40.619 hated life and so What was the change? The change 00:18:40.619 --> 00:18:42.720 was changed in the process to give everyone a 00:18:42.720 --> 00:18:46.039 monthly update on their current Estimated schedule 00:18:46.039 --> 00:18:49.700 and the phone stopped. Yeah, so so we did it 00:18:49.700 --> 00:18:51.660 this way We had a few clients it was fine when 00:18:51.660 --> 00:18:53.339 they rang up I've got a little open trial and 00:18:53.339 --> 00:18:55.640 no one went back and changed the rules or you 00:18:55.640 --> 00:18:57.200 know part of that's community for client Hey, 00:18:57.299 --> 00:18:59.019 don't ring us. Ask where the job when you sign 00:18:59.019 --> 00:19:02.079 them up If you're wondering about your job, we 00:19:02.079 --> 00:19:06.269 send a monthly update Yep, okay Now they know 00:19:06.269 --> 00:19:08.750 not to ring, they're aware. So it's what do you 00:19:08.750 --> 00:19:11.390 agree to with people? But I think most people, 00:19:11.470 --> 00:19:13.450 whether it's a personal thing or work thing, 00:19:13.910 --> 00:19:16.190 probably they have expectations. And if they 00:19:16.190 --> 00:19:18.890 get upset, they might show that displeasure, 00:19:18.970 --> 00:19:21.170 but might not tell people what that means. They 00:19:21.170 --> 00:19:22.950 won't change the expectations or communicate 00:19:22.950 --> 00:19:26.009 the expectations. And being able to have that 00:19:26.009 --> 00:19:29.829 sort of self -assurance or confidence or self 00:19:29.829 --> 00:19:32.309 -respect is probably the best word to go, well, 00:19:32.309 --> 00:19:34.250 here's a boundary. This is what I'm happy with. 00:19:34.250 --> 00:19:36.779 This is what I'm not. So I know sometimes people 00:19:36.779 --> 00:19:38.319 call me, I'm like, hey, this isn't a weekend 00:19:38.319 --> 00:19:41.000 call guys. So what are you? What's the go? Oh, 00:19:41.000 --> 00:19:42.259 sorry. Yeah, I probably could have waited. Like, 00:19:42.259 --> 00:19:44.759 yeah, no, you could. But then - But by now. If 00:19:44.759 --> 00:19:45.880 they call me, I was like, well, no, you're not 00:19:45.880 --> 00:19:48.000 bothering me at all. No, that's perfectly fine. 00:19:48.160 --> 00:19:50.319 But it's having that ability to say, well, I'm 00:19:50.319 --> 00:19:52.619 having to help you, but better be rude right 00:19:52.619 --> 00:19:54.700 now. But it doesn't matter what type of business 00:19:54.700 --> 00:19:56.640 you have or whether it's with employees or things 00:19:56.640 --> 00:19:58.700 like that. It's setting the parameters of what 00:19:58.700 --> 00:20:01.240 you expect and making sure that everyone's clear 00:20:01.240 --> 00:20:03.039 on that. Because if they're not happy with it, 00:20:03.039 --> 00:20:05.000 they can choose to do something else. That's 00:20:05.000 --> 00:20:07.059 their choice. You have a choice as what you'll 00:20:07.059 --> 00:20:09.339 do as well. And hopefully you agree and that's 00:20:09.339 --> 00:20:12.940 where the work happens. It's almost like a confusing 00:20:12.940 --> 00:20:17.779 guilt with responsibility. That's... Well, so 00:20:17.779 --> 00:20:19.680 we think about all these different scenarios 00:20:19.680 --> 00:20:21.619 in our head. If we do this, they might be upset 00:20:21.619 --> 00:20:23.680 or as long as it's past, we go through 10 different 00:20:23.680 --> 00:20:26.440 outcomes. But just having some communication 00:20:26.440 --> 00:20:28.599 or an agreeance means we don't have to do any 00:20:28.599 --> 00:20:31.339 of that. Well, it takes nine of them away. Yep. 00:20:31.529 --> 00:20:36.630 Immediately. We often build up any sort of communication 00:20:36.630 --> 00:20:39.109 or any communication that we put off. We're probably 00:20:39.109 --> 00:20:41.710 putting it off because we've got 10, 20 different 00:20:41.710 --> 00:20:43.309 scenarios going through our head that might not 00:20:43.309 --> 00:20:45.289 be great. We know the right thing to do. We just 00:20:45.289 --> 00:20:47.130 don't do it or... Just pick up the phone. We're 00:20:47.130 --> 00:20:50.369 scared. Yep. Yep. Yep. And the anticipation of 00:20:50.369 --> 00:20:52.250 the event is always worse than the event itself. 00:20:52.769 --> 00:20:56.470 Correct. It's hustle culture. But I think it's, 00:20:56.470 --> 00:20:58.829 yeah, it's defining what's working hard and having 00:20:58.829 --> 00:21:01.970 a crack, which we should encourage. And what's 00:21:01.970 --> 00:21:03.930 a point where we don't actually need to do that? 00:21:04.349 --> 00:21:07.950 Not being lazy, but it's not actually healthy. 00:21:09.410 --> 00:21:12.150 And let's say you're a mechanic and then you're 00:21:12.150 --> 00:21:14.349 constantly answering questions to people and 00:21:14.349 --> 00:21:16.150 that's how you got a name and that's what you 00:21:16.150 --> 00:21:18.470 do. But then you're spending your whole day doing 00:21:18.470 --> 00:21:20.049 that. You're probably getting taken advantage 00:21:20.049 --> 00:21:21.809 of by the crummy clients that aren't happy to 00:21:21.809 --> 00:21:24.170 pay anyone. And the good clients will feel too 00:21:24.170 --> 00:21:25.769 bad to go hell and harass you because you won't 00:21:25.769 --> 00:21:27.450 charge them. So they'll feel guilty about going 00:21:27.450 --> 00:21:29.029 and wasting your time. Not wasting your time, 00:21:29.049 --> 00:21:31.119 but you know what I mean? So you actually lose 00:21:31.119 --> 00:21:34.480 a good client and get the bad ones. Yeah. If 00:21:34.480 --> 00:21:35.920 you're going to answer that phone call, then 00:21:35.920 --> 00:21:37.599 that's going to be the standard that you've setting 00:21:37.599 --> 00:21:39.420 for yourself and you've got to live with the 00:21:39.420 --> 00:21:41.859 consequence of that. And when you're ready to 00:21:41.859 --> 00:21:45.140 change that, then that's just what you've got 00:21:45.140 --> 00:21:46.720 to do, isn't it? It's interesting because if 00:21:46.720 --> 00:21:49.160 you go into say a large retail establishment 00:21:49.160 --> 00:21:52.579 that has been around for a while, any large retailer, 00:21:53.140 --> 00:21:57.079 you basically know that The flow chart of what's 00:21:57.079 --> 00:21:58.740 about to happen is I'm gonna walk in I'm gonna 00:21:58.740 --> 00:22:00.660 find the product that I want I'm gonna take it 00:22:00.660 --> 00:22:02.240 to the counter. I'm gonna pay for it and then 00:22:02.240 --> 00:22:05.839 I'm gonna walk out That's what happens Any change 00:22:05.839 --> 00:22:09.420 to that might ruin your day or just make you 00:22:09.420 --> 00:22:12.539 ask a question So why as a business owner can't 00:22:12.539 --> 00:22:16.240 you have those expectations? Yeah, but if someone's 00:22:16.240 --> 00:22:18.720 gonna transact with you in any way Here's the 00:22:18.720 --> 00:22:21.779 way it happens and build the routine so people 00:22:21.779 --> 00:22:26.160 know that Monday to Friday between X and X Rowan's 00:22:26.160 --> 00:22:30.519 available. And it has to be important to get 00:22:30.519 --> 00:22:33.980 immediate response. And it has to be involving 00:22:33.980 --> 00:22:36.119 the business and it can't be frivolous chit chat, 00:22:37.019 --> 00:22:39.480 as an example. In my case, frivolous chit chat's 00:22:39.480 --> 00:22:41.460 encouraged. Yes, exactly. It's a nice break. 00:22:42.099 --> 00:22:45.859 So set those boundaries, but also set the routine. 00:22:46.319 --> 00:22:49.359 So people know that when you pick up the phone, 00:22:49.500 --> 00:22:51.019 it'll be the same way you pick up the phone every 00:22:51.019 --> 00:22:54.720 time. It'll be, good afternoon, this is Ian. 00:22:55.169 --> 00:22:58.269 How can I help? And then the conversation flows 00:22:58.269 --> 00:23:01.250 in a predictable manner that helps people stay 00:23:01.250 --> 00:23:04.049 at ease when they're talking to you and it goes 00:23:04.049 --> 00:23:06.670 exactly how the old days and sales training when 00:23:06.670 --> 00:23:09.849 it got to the end of the presentation and now 00:23:09.849 --> 00:23:11.470 it's time for you to give me your credit card. 00:23:12.230 --> 00:23:13.809 And people would give you the credit card? Yeah, 00:23:13.970 --> 00:23:15.289 could ask for the money. Could ask for money? 00:23:15.390 --> 00:23:17.569 Makes sense. Yeah. How many times have people 00:23:17.569 --> 00:23:19.329 had customers and are like, oh, what happens 00:23:19.329 --> 00:23:21.089 next? Yeah, like they're literally asking you 00:23:21.089 --> 00:23:22.529 to take the bill, book them in and you're like, 00:23:22.970 --> 00:23:25.650 oh, didn't ask that, oops. And genuine technique 00:23:25.650 --> 00:23:28.529 is the three questions, is what do you want to 00:23:28.529 --> 00:23:30.049 know next? So they ask a question, what do you 00:23:30.049 --> 00:23:34.109 want to know next? How much is it? $7 .95, what 00:23:34.109 --> 00:23:35.710 do you want to know next? When can you deliver? 00:23:36.009 --> 00:23:37.329 Next Tuesday, what do you want to know next? 00:23:37.430 --> 00:23:40.450 Oh, that's it. What do you want to do next? Oh, 00:23:40.470 --> 00:23:43.410 I guess I'll buy it. So just going back to the 00:23:43.410 --> 00:23:46.690 letting things add up, you know, completely different 00:23:46.690 --> 00:23:48.369 ways. So employees, you're talking about the 00:23:48.369 --> 00:23:50.529 milk and going to get it, but it's the same thing. 00:23:50.869 --> 00:23:54.339 What are the rules? So we have policies and processes, 00:23:54.859 --> 00:23:56.779 say you should have processes and no one follows 00:23:56.779 --> 00:23:58.819 them, blah, blah, blah. But the fact is sometimes 00:23:58.819 --> 00:24:00.079 it's just having to give someone a reference. 00:24:00.220 --> 00:24:01.880 So what are the rules here? Like how do we do 00:24:01.880 --> 00:24:04.359 things here? Okay, who goes against the milk? 00:24:04.359 --> 00:24:06.240 Who does this? Who does that? Blah, blah, blah. 00:24:06.519 --> 00:24:10.140 And then they are responsible for that. And that's 00:24:10.140 --> 00:24:12.619 your job is to manage that environment, set the 00:24:12.619 --> 00:24:14.980 environment, manage the environment, not fill 00:24:14.980 --> 00:24:16.619 in all the gaps and put your fingers in all the 00:24:16.619 --> 00:24:19.119 holes. Because you're putting the fingers in 00:24:19.119 --> 00:24:21.299 the holes. And if you're involved with the community 00:24:21.299 --> 00:24:24.079 club, Right. I think it will have been you'll 00:24:24.079 --> 00:24:25.720 know that a few people do a lot of things and 00:24:25.720 --> 00:24:27.160 what they're doing is putting things in a whole 00:24:27.160 --> 00:24:28.779 lot of holes and they're always upset about it, 00:24:28.779 --> 00:24:30.099 but they love doing because they like helping 00:24:30.099 --> 00:24:33.200 but they also upset about it and All they need 00:24:33.200 --> 00:24:34.380 to do is stop putting the finger in the hole 00:24:34.380 --> 00:24:36.140 and someone else is gonna get annoyed Because 00:24:36.140 --> 00:24:37.440 it's hitting in the face and then they're gonna 00:24:37.440 --> 00:24:40.259 put their face in the hole You know, but I do 00:24:40.259 --> 00:24:45.599 that because it's analogy Business okay, we don't 00:24:45.599 --> 00:24:47.000 have milk. We don't have them up with no one's 00:24:47.000 --> 00:24:48.660 drinking. Okay Well, what are we meant to do 00:24:48.660 --> 00:24:50.180 something to be so and so? Okay. No, they haven't 00:24:50.180 --> 00:24:52.170 okay At some stage everyone's going to be upset 00:24:52.170 --> 00:24:53.390 at the milk enough that the person's going to 00:24:53.390 --> 00:24:55.509 get the milk. Do you actually have to do anything? 00:24:56.190 --> 00:24:57.529 A lot of people are like, oh, I'll grab that 00:24:57.529 --> 00:24:59.230 and I'll solve that for you. A lot of these things 00:24:59.230 --> 00:25:01.150 add up that seem really tricky on small, but 00:25:01.150 --> 00:25:02.650 that's effectively what happens. We're going 00:25:02.650 --> 00:25:04.569 back to the straw that broke the camel's back. 00:25:04.970 --> 00:25:06.950 You start doing something, they all add up, and 00:25:06.950 --> 00:25:09.470 then suddenly you've got too many. And it's having 00:25:09.470 --> 00:25:11.390 the ability to go, what's essential, what's not, 00:25:11.430 --> 00:25:13.829 what's our policy? And actually having the confidence 00:25:13.829 --> 00:25:15.930 to enforce that. Whether that's a personal thing 00:25:15.930 --> 00:25:17.630 between people, whether that's with employees, 00:25:17.849 --> 00:25:19.509 whether that's with customers or suppliers, it's 00:25:19.509 --> 00:25:21.289 the exact same thing. It's just setting the rules 00:25:21.289 --> 00:25:23.990 and having the belief that those rules are fair 00:25:23.990 --> 00:25:26.049 and we're happy with that. Now if no one is happy 00:25:26.049 --> 00:25:27.529 with that, you're not going to have any business. 00:25:27.750 --> 00:25:29.210 So obviously you're not going to make those rules. 00:25:29.750 --> 00:25:31.150 But it's within the realms you're happy with 00:25:31.150 --> 00:25:34.240 that work. It's that simple really it really 00:25:34.240 --> 00:25:36.039 is confidence and the world's gonna go on like 00:25:36.039 --> 00:25:37.579 the world's not gonna afford the sky's not gonna 00:25:37.579 --> 00:25:40.420 fall Well, it's not gonna end and once it's explained 00:25:40.420 --> 00:25:42.059 most people are gonna understand. These are the 00:25:42.059 --> 00:25:44.859 rules of their transaction. There's Would have 00:25:44.859 --> 00:25:47.700 mentioned this before but if price rises most 00:25:47.700 --> 00:25:49.980 people are fine with price rise if there's a 00:25:49.980 --> 00:25:51.880 reason it doesn't have to be a good reason. Mm 00:25:51.880 --> 00:25:54.640 -hmm Petrol prices went up. Why because there 00:25:54.640 --> 00:25:56.819 was a war. Oh, oh, yeah, right then. We said 00:25:56.819 --> 00:25:59.779 we were gonna pay us up Oh, that's good for them 00:25:59.779 --> 00:26:01.500 though. Mm -hmm That's going to be the answer. 00:26:01.799 --> 00:26:03.019 Some people aren't going to like it. Majority, 00:26:03.039 --> 00:26:04.839 they've got a reason. If the fee goes up every 00:26:04.839 --> 00:26:06.740 year and you don't know why, that's different. 00:26:07.400 --> 00:26:10.079 So again, set the rules, give the reasons and 00:26:10.079 --> 00:26:12.220 then that's how the culture forms. All the streaming 00:26:12.220 --> 00:26:14.980 services every three months. Oh yeah, your price 00:26:14.980 --> 00:26:18.619 is going up $2. Why? Oh, it just is. Pay the 00:26:18.619 --> 00:26:22.700 artists. I'm just putting myself in the position 00:26:22.700 --> 00:26:27.619 of client. So I guess it is an interesting lesson 00:26:27.619 --> 00:26:32.000 to learn. They start their business. They know 00:26:32.000 --> 00:26:34.480 that they need to get work. They know that by 00:26:34.480 --> 00:26:37.680 answering, they get work. I'm just thinking about 00:26:37.680 --> 00:26:40.480 the practical steps that they can do in order 00:26:40.480 --> 00:26:44.960 to bridge that. And so, for example, one that's 00:26:44.960 --> 00:26:49.299 coming to mind is if they're working, but they 00:26:49.299 --> 00:26:51.420 also are the person responsible for the phone 00:26:51.420 --> 00:26:54.819 calls, you can set up order replies so that at 00:26:54.819 --> 00:26:57.869 least the client knows that you've sent them 00:26:57.869 --> 00:26:59.930 some sort of touch point that they know you've 00:26:59.930 --> 00:27:02.769 received. They arrange it when you get back to 00:27:02.769 --> 00:27:05.650 them. Yeah, exactly. And so there's the auto 00:27:05.650 --> 00:27:09.289 replies or there's sharing tasks. If, for example, 00:27:09.289 --> 00:27:11.869 you have a partner that is capable of doing some 00:27:11.869 --> 00:27:14.369 of the work, then pass that onto them. And that 00:27:14.369 --> 00:27:18.130 can be a team effort or just setting a really 00:27:18.130 --> 00:27:20.490 simple process. Like what you were saying, if 00:27:20.490 --> 00:27:24.150 this happens, then we do this, then that's just 00:27:24.150 --> 00:27:27.660 a nice little system you can put in. Yeah. It's 00:27:27.660 --> 00:27:29.539 good for your sanity as well, sorry to cut you 00:27:29.539 --> 00:27:31.160 off. Yeah, you know what's going to happen. If 00:27:31.160 --> 00:27:32.259 you know what's going to happen, if you've got 00:27:32.259 --> 00:27:34.660 a flowchart or a chart of communication or anything 00:27:34.660 --> 00:27:38.440 like that, any process, it makes it so much easier 00:27:38.440 --> 00:27:40.640 and you don't have to think about it anymore. 00:27:43.799 --> 00:27:45.720 Which your example is, it's good because, you 00:27:45.720 --> 00:27:47.319 know, like, so you're asking the call and then 00:27:47.319 --> 00:27:50.059 you get a sale. It's looking at that process. 00:27:50.539 --> 00:27:53.059 Okay, someone's going to answer the call. Let's 00:27:53.059 --> 00:27:55.619 look at it from other key points. So what's the 00:27:55.619 --> 00:27:58.119 value we need to create? What do we need to please 00:27:58.119 --> 00:28:00.019 them with? What do we need to tick boxes? Do 00:28:00.019 --> 00:28:02.259 we need to tick? And then, okay, we have our 00:28:02.259 --> 00:28:04.940 responder say, okay, we respond to inquiries 00:28:04.940 --> 00:28:06.920 between three and five every day. We'll give 00:28:06.920 --> 00:28:09.180 you a call back if we have an answer. Talk to 00:28:09.180 --> 00:28:11.420 you soon. And then maybe after we've called them, 00:28:11.480 --> 00:28:13.220 there's just an email with a few things in it 00:28:13.220 --> 00:28:15.140 that you send out. So instead of drafting it 00:28:15.140 --> 00:28:17.440 every time, make it custom. Like have one that 00:28:17.440 --> 00:28:19.980 you can just change a little bit. because then 00:28:19.980 --> 00:28:22.319 as you're doing what you do you're getting some 00:28:22.319 --> 00:28:24.619 consistency and exactly what Ian said you have 00:28:24.619 --> 00:28:26.180 the confidence that you know that's going to 00:28:26.180 --> 00:28:28.380 happen but then you also have the ability to 00:28:28.380 --> 00:28:31.579 pass that someone else or something else later 00:28:31.579 --> 00:28:33.779 whereas we generally do it because we can and 00:28:33.779 --> 00:28:35.920 it's quicker to do it ourselves but then you 00:28:35.920 --> 00:28:38.400 never have the opportunity to give it to someone 00:28:38.400 --> 00:28:41.039 else with the key points being addressed. You 00:28:41.039 --> 00:28:42.559 know the beautiful thing about passing it to 00:28:42.559 --> 00:28:45.519 somebody else in your team is they might have 00:28:45.519 --> 00:28:47.990 an idea. as well. It's probably better than yours. 00:28:48.190 --> 00:28:50.650 Yep. It's usually what happens here for me. It 00:28:50.650 --> 00:28:53.410 really is something that I think every person 00:28:53.410 --> 00:28:56.130 who is starting a new business, when they start 00:28:56.130 --> 00:28:59.369 employing people, that's your biggest asset is 00:28:59.369 --> 00:29:01.589 those new ideas that new brands bring. They're 00:29:01.589 --> 00:29:04.009 not as emotionally attached to the outcome as 00:29:04.009 --> 00:29:07.190 you are. Ideally, they are at some stage in their 00:29:07.190 --> 00:29:09.490 working life. Well, they don't have the fear 00:29:09.490 --> 00:29:11.190 of failure. You're exactly right, because it's 00:29:11.190 --> 00:29:13.950 not their money. It's not their neck on the chopping 00:29:13.950 --> 00:29:17.220 block. That's right. So you can throw some crazy 00:29:17.220 --> 00:29:18.920 ideas out and every now and then one of those 00:29:18.920 --> 00:29:22.140 crazy ideas becomes a pet rock And you make a 00:29:22.140 --> 00:29:25.279 million dogs love pet rocks Someone painted some 00:29:25.279 --> 00:29:34.000 eyes on a rock made fortune me Yes, I think all 00:29:34.000 --> 00:29:36.019 of it just kind of means that you're going to 00:29:36.019 --> 00:29:38.539 be able to take that holiday Instead of just 00:29:38.539 --> 00:29:41.460 working somewhere with nicer weather. Yeah, and 00:29:41.460 --> 00:29:43.240 if you find yourself you don't have enough time. 00:29:43.240 --> 00:29:45.769 You're too stressed have a look at the key things 00:29:45.769 --> 00:29:48.990 you're doing. Set some boundaries. Make a list. 00:29:49.529 --> 00:29:51.569 Yeah, set some boundaries. Set something up to 00:29:51.569 --> 00:29:54.190 do those key things and let everyone know what 00:29:54.190 --> 00:29:56.390 expectations are. I mean, if you are on my band, 00:29:56.490 --> 00:29:57.670 you're like, oh, clients always want to talk 00:29:57.670 --> 00:30:00.730 to me. Let the clients know, hey, got to be done 00:30:00.730 --> 00:30:02.430 at the moment. Going to talk to people between 00:30:02.430 --> 00:30:03.990 these hours because I know everyone's going to 00:30:03.990 --> 00:30:05.569 be happy and I'm going to be able to service 00:30:05.569 --> 00:30:08.170 you well, but also have some balance. If you're 00:30:08.170 --> 00:30:09.690 on my band, all your clients are going to go, 00:30:09.869 --> 00:30:11.680 oh, yeah, fair enough. Good on you, mate. If 00:30:11.680 --> 00:30:12.819 you're a big business, it's going to be different, 00:30:12.880 --> 00:30:15.339 but don't be afraid to put those things in place, 00:30:15.559 --> 00:30:18.539 but you still need to do the value points. That's 00:30:18.539 --> 00:30:21.940 the key. Does work. And I was just thinking it's 00:30:21.940 --> 00:30:26.279 not really work related. Yeah, it is. I've got 00:30:26.279 --> 00:30:31.579 work and personal on my phone, right? And I obviously 00:30:31.579 --> 00:30:33.640 get notifications throughout the day. You know, 00:30:33.660 --> 00:30:36.279 you have people send you reels and videos and 00:30:36.279 --> 00:30:38.200 random messages and catch -ups and that sort 00:30:38.200 --> 00:30:44.609 of thing. And what I do is I go to bed at 9 .30 00:30:44.609 --> 00:30:47.349 -ish and I sit there and I'll do my Duolingo 00:30:47.349 --> 00:30:50.730 and then I'll respond to everyone and then I 00:30:50.730 --> 00:30:53.849 won't worry about it until the next night. And 00:30:53.849 --> 00:30:57.250 so there's always a 24 hour response and everyone 00:30:57.250 --> 00:31:01.150 knows it. Is it going to reply to me again? Yeah, 00:31:01.150 --> 00:31:04.430 but it's like if someone... Why is she replying 00:31:04.430 --> 00:31:09.180 in Spanish today? What is going on? Originally, 00:31:09.220 --> 00:31:12.380 I felt really guilty about it because I can't 00:31:12.380 --> 00:31:14.900 turn off my notifications. I just, I can't do 00:31:14.900 --> 00:31:17.240 it because otherwise I'll miss it with so many 00:31:17.240 --> 00:31:19.779 stupid platforms. I should just delete platforms, 00:31:20.319 --> 00:31:23.359 but turning off notifications is just too far 00:31:23.359 --> 00:31:25.279 of a jump for me. I just feel like I'm going 00:31:25.279 --> 00:31:27.279 to miss something that I probably should. But 00:31:27.279 --> 00:31:29.160 if I go throughout the day and I go - It's always 00:31:29.160 --> 00:31:30.500 available. It's a good setup you've got there. 00:31:30.500 --> 00:31:32.980 It's a good example. Exactly. So yeah, just swipe 00:31:32.980 --> 00:31:34.839 away those notifications. I'll get back to you 00:31:34.839 --> 00:31:37.640 tonight. Everyone has - got on to the fact that 00:31:37.640 --> 00:31:40.920 it takes me 24 hours to reply, unless they call 00:31:40.920 --> 00:31:46.279 me. So that's my boundary. And as for work, call 00:31:46.279 --> 00:31:52.480 me whenever and we're working on that one. You 00:31:52.480 --> 00:31:54.900 can do that when you've got the right setup. 00:31:55.480 --> 00:31:57.539 It's when it becomes a problem and you don't 00:31:57.539 --> 00:31:59.000 have the right setup and you do it because you 00:31:59.000 --> 00:32:01.759 have to, that becomes an issue. So you've got 00:32:01.759 --> 00:32:03.380 different focuses and you're going to put more 00:32:03.380 --> 00:32:05.529 attention to those. So it's going to be different 00:32:05.529 --> 00:32:06.910 for everyone and it will change around though, 00:32:06.950 --> 00:32:08.309 feel bad because someone else doesn't do it or 00:32:08.309 --> 00:32:09.609 does do it. That's what works for you at the 00:32:09.609 --> 00:32:12.309 time. Yeah. And in doing all of that, you are 00:32:12.309 --> 00:32:14.470 teaching, I think someone said this earlier in 00:32:14.470 --> 00:32:16.730 the podcast, you're teaching people how to treat 00:32:16.730 --> 00:32:20.910 you. Self -respect. Yeah, exactly. So you just 00:32:20.910 --> 00:32:23.650 need to define what it is that you want to get 00:32:23.650 --> 00:32:26.210 out of it. If you do want to be available, then 00:32:26.210 --> 00:32:28.210 you be available. You deal with the consequence 00:32:28.210 --> 00:32:30.450 of that. However, if you're starting to see that 00:32:30.450 --> 00:32:34.160 has negative impacts, start changing it. There's 00:32:34.160 --> 00:32:36.019 some great resources available as well if you 00:32:36.019 --> 00:32:38.599 are feeling like you're at that point where crap, 00:32:38.640 --> 00:32:42.180 what do I do? I've set this standard and now 00:32:42.180 --> 00:32:45.599 I can't step back from it. Reach out, find some 00:32:45.599 --> 00:32:48.319 help. Whether it's read a book or listen to a 00:32:48.319 --> 00:32:51.460 podcast, I find The Imperfix, which is based 00:32:51.460 --> 00:32:55.420 on The Resilience Project, outstanding. And they're 00:32:55.420 --> 00:32:57.660 starting to branch out from education into business 00:32:57.660 --> 00:32:59.900 now, which I'm really excited about seeing where 00:32:59.900 --> 00:33:02.589 they go with that. in regards to helping business 00:33:02.589 --> 00:33:04.730 owners who are feeling the pinch a little bit 00:33:04.730 --> 00:33:08.849 mentally. So I've seen firsthand what it does 00:33:08.849 --> 00:33:11.430 in education and in mental health. So to see 00:33:11.430 --> 00:33:13.730 that translate across to, and this isn't sponsored 00:33:13.730 --> 00:33:15.250 by the way, although if they want to throw us 00:33:15.250 --> 00:33:17.569 a couple of dollars, that'd be fantastic. I just 00:33:17.569 --> 00:33:19.730 want to talk to them. Yeah, I've met them in 00:33:19.730 --> 00:33:23.849 Melbourne. It was great. Hugh could probably 00:33:23.849 --> 00:33:26.269 relate to this podcast. He's one of those guys 00:33:26.269 --> 00:33:29.289 who was always available. And I think he's just 00:33:29.289 --> 00:33:32.680 starting to set his boundaries. But genuinely 00:33:32.680 --> 00:33:35.940 awesome humans and trying to help. Yeah, well 00:33:35.940 --> 00:33:38.859 on that note, I guess have a listen to the Imperfix 00:33:38.859 --> 00:33:41.839 podcast and if you do need some help, reach out. 00:33:41.960 --> 00:33:45.960 We can chat from the business hours of 9 to 4 00:33:45.960 --> 00:33:48.519 on Monday to Friday. Unless it's a Sunday at 00:33:48.519 --> 00:33:54.500 8pm I heard is when Z's returning messages. Alright 00:33:54.500 --> 00:33:56.940 everyone, have a good week. See you.