Two Small Biz Guys: Recent Episodes
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Wednesdays 12pm - Ray Silverstein and Zen Benefiel, offer more than 60 years of combined experience across small business environments. These characters share a bit of wit while making sense common with practical wisdom. Visit our Website at www.2smallbizguys.com
Ray and Zen throw around a lot of stuff during the shows, but this one is different – no BS. The Guys square off to debate and discuss the notion of being a freelancer in today’s economy and what that really means as an employee and employer. This is not a book of theory – it’s Business without the Bullsh*t. It’s a collection of practical approaches to real-life situations that take place every day inside every company.
Incoming President of NAWBO Phaedra Erhart tells how to make noise and how NAWBO grows and grows.
The Guys get caught up in a relevant and timely discussion about best business practices in the new millennium…. REWORK. It really is imperative for business owners to not just think about what to do. They need to DECIDE and ACT… That makes so much sense, doesn’t it? Why does it not happen more often? The authors of REWORK present some pleasant and unpleasant facts about what it takes to run a successful business in the 21st Century.
Ray and Zen interview Rick Murray, Arizona Small Business Association (ASBA) CEO and discuss a variety of aspects regarding small business in Arizona. You’ll want to hear about the legislation that was introduced and support by business leaders.
The Guys dive into another best-seller for business owners, pricing man confessions. It's one of the most important books an owner and/or price-setter could ever read. What every CEO needs to do: “Lead your company with a strict profit orientation. And keep in mind that price is the most effective profit driver.
Ray and Zen talk with SCORE members and mentors, Rod Houston and George Sezemsky, about the organization. Across the country, SCORE helps small businesses with consulting and mentoring from retired executives who want to give back to the community.
The Guys explore one of the toughest issues – dealing with confrontations in the workplace. No, it isn’t about breaking up fights, but it can result in one if not handled properly in some cases. Most of us avoid conflict at all costs, so confronting employees who aren’t meeting up to standards is certainly not an enjoyable process. How do good leaders create conversations to address work issues? The first few seconds of the interaction sets the tone for everything that follows.
The Guys launch into the first of a couple of discussions on the book, 13 Fatal Errors Managers Make and how you can avoid them, by W. Steven Brown. The subject matter is great for small business owners and managers who are developing employees to help grow their business successfully. We don't often think of them, although we often find them during the process of business building... usually because we make them. What are manager's fatal mistakes? How do you lead with vision?
Facebook tips and mainly, friendly is what is most effective. Here is how to market your bizz in a friendly way using facebook tools.
Simon Sinek is a movement maker, a way-shower for building momentum that matters in our world today. He’s insightful and spot on in observations of how we behave and using those observations to create maximum results. This book is about a naturally occurring pattern, a way of thinking, acting and communicating that gives some leaders the ability to inspire those around them. Tempting incentives or the threat of punishment will often elicit the behavior we desire. Great Leaders are able to inspire people to act.
Goal Setting. How do you make them? What do you need to consider? Who should be involved? Those are just a few of the discussion questions. Ray has some great insight, has been a featured professional on Entrepreneur.com and many years of experience in his own companies and peer adversary groups. Of course, Zen is no novice to the process either. He’s helped many small businesses and entrepreneurs develop goal setting processes, too.
Listen in to the Guys as they discuss another excellent guide for small business development, Scaling Up, by a collective lead by Verne Harnish. Gazelles as they may be, the Guys don’t treat them as prey yet they reveal the tasty morsels of intelligent business activity compiled by their efforts. Many companies struggle with growth after making it through their initial launch, if the business concept is sound and the market supports sales
In old school entrepreneurship, if you didn’t work an insane amount of hours, love marketing, selling, negotiating, and firing people, you were the inferior version of the entrepreneur. The old school, one-size-fits-all, black-and-white version needs to be archived in a museum somewhere. Instead, there is a whole new way for you and me to look at entrepreneurship.
How Do You GET the Orders? The Guys explore a 20+ year compilation of creating sales insights derived from Ray’s long-standing involvement with Peer Groups. His work, 7 Steps to Creating Sales, covers proven strategies for sales success shared by business owners. Sales drives business and techniques that bolster sales are plentiful. The Guys dive into just 7 that have proven value.
How do you use LinkedIn as a business tool? The Guys launch into looking at LinkedIn from multiple perspectives, discussing tasty tidbits for triumph in the use of LinkedIn as a business tool. Small business talk radio with these guys is a little out of the ordinary. Zen does workshops on developing LinkedIn profiles and company pages based on a workbook he wrote during his research into best practices on LinkedIn
The 2 Guys have talked about new combination tools, social media, and many of our listeners really do not know about the standards—radio & print. How has communication in the digital age changed? Ray Schey, Publisher of the Phoenix Business Journal and ‘The Mayor’ Dave Pratt, Founder/CEO of Star Worldwide Networks join us in the studio.
The Guys banter about some familiar territory as coaches and mentors, bringing out the best in people. Join them for an exploration of Aubrey Daniels book, Bringing out the Best in People. The book is about the science of human behavior. Advisorology includes the understanding of human behavior, too, because no matter the product or service – people are the greatest resource for any kind of deliverable.
Many are, so you are not alone. You’ve got to listen to this show.Social media is now a navigation tool as much as a methodology for connecting and creating relationships with customers through various platforms. Zen started with bulletin boards back in the 1990s before the Web took off. His first website, built in 2000, grew to over 25,000 visits a month.
2 Small Biz Guys put it on grand pause; albeit Grandpas, that is. We’re feeling older, now. Things were much different when we were young and with the advent of click and mortar businesses. Things have really changed. As if the turn of the century flipped everything upside down online businesses have escalated to 12-24 million, only 650,000 generate annual sales of more than $1,000.
The Guys launch into the world of wealth management with this week’s guest, Brion Crum. Mr. Crum is the Director of Investor Relations for Caliber – The Wealth Management Company. There are many ways for the small business owner to invest in today’s financial marketplace. Stocks, Bonds and Money Market Certificates are instruments that leave little control to the investor, relying on market fluctuations to determine the growth and/or decline of value at any given time. Caliber operates on a more localized platform, investing in real estate opportunities instead.
2 Small Biz Guys explore Geoffrey Moore’s Escape Velocity and the hidden force that is working against your best efforts. Status Quo: What is the matter? Cisco’s CEO, John Chambers states, ” Market transitions wait for no one.” Your job is to destroy your product or service by creating a better replacement.
2 Small Biz Guys dive into the Strengths Movement to explore the powerful possibilities. More often than not, the old managerial methods included exploiting weaknesses. Now just before the new millennium broke, the Strengths Movement was introduced. As the name may indicate, the idea was to focus on strengths and exploit them. It would seem that sense was being made a little more common.
2 Small Biz Guys dive into the 80-20 rule which states that 20% of our efforts lead to 80% of our results. For instance, it’s likely that you spend less than two hours daily on what you do better than anyone else. The rest is probably tied up in tasks that help your clients, your colleagues and your company. We explore the nature of setting priorities and the 9 steps that engage the process.
2 Small Biz Guys small business talk radio delves into the realm of creating focus and direction for business development and success. Vision and Mission statements to explore what they are, how they help business growth and empower direction for the workforce. Our first segment outlines the development of and differences in the Vision and Mission statements and the communication of those details throughout the organization.
The Guys dive into the depths of what Professional Employer Organizations do for the small business owner, with Jeff Bartelt – president of Midwest HR. Jeff spent a number of years with ADP before launching a PEO that he felt would serve clients more completely.
2 Small Biz Guys talk with David Grossman, President/CEO of Renue Systems, venue revitalization specialists. Mr. Grossman took his early education, from Harvard nonetheless, and his early experiences with business development and venture investing to assist Renue Systems in becoming a top-tier hospitality industry service provider.
This is the next step in achieving our goals, based on some things lining up. We like data and with the transparency of the web and great analytics, we can deliver messages with greater accuracy. Early adopters often get the worm, or no, that’s early birds. Well, we are a little aged compared to the millennial push.
Peter Bergman's book and approach, 18 Minutes - Find Your Focus, Master Distractions and Get the Right Things Done, used by hundreds of thousands of people – allows us to safely navigate through the constant chatter of emails, text messages, phone calls, and endless meetings that prevent us from focusing our time on those things that are truly important to us. The Guys explore the navigation of relationships on the ocean of emotion.
What's an industry rockstar, you might ask? The Guys share one with you on this show. Over a decade ago Kane Minkus was broke and homeless, $40K in debt, and sleeping on a friend’s couch. Since then, he’s built five multi-million dollar and multi-international businesses and helped over three million Entrepreneurs and professionals all over the world to open the floodgates of sustainable wealth. Kane is the Co-Founder of the #1 Global Business Training Company, Industry Rockstar. This is must listen.
"Happy people get more done with less supervision," says Zen. Improving morale and energizing employees is more than a job for some; it's a calling. Some people have had the experience of a work environment that is exciting, fun and highly productive. In today's revolutionary business environment people have more choices in work environments. They move quickly if they aren't satisfied. How do you, as a business owner, keep the good ones around? Listen in to find out.
Description: Peter Senge changed the face of how corporations look at organizational management. His book, The Fifth Discipline - The Art & Practice of the Learning Organization, was revolutionary in management circles, demonstrating that there are more satisfying and productive methods for managing organizations. Ray and Zen explore the concepts and material of his book in this show.
The Guys explore the nuances of the small giants Bo Burlingham discusses in his book, Small Giants. Small companies can do amazingly well if they navigate the waters well, avoiding the pitfalls and capitalizing on their key assets. How do that do that and what are their key assets? Listen in to Ray and Zen and find out. They talk about how small companies are still small giants and what that means for small business owners.
Everyone thinks their plight is unique, "Why is it so hard to market my business?" "But what if I told you, no matter what your business claims to do or provide, you're actually in the marketing business. That's right--every business is actually a marketing business." Ray and Zen explore the steps of Duct Tape Marketing; getting people to know, like, trust and contact you.
This book focuses on the lessons the author has learned, the five Ps of successful entrepreneurship that he has discovered through his own experiences: Personality, Product, Persistence, People and Philanthropy. The Guys dance and dangle over the ‘P’recipice and talk about how to fly. Key ideas that are explored, foremost is thank you. Listen in to the brilliant banter and pertinent points.
The author states “Anytime I interact with people and I see evidence of these signals, I know I’m connecting. I’ve learned what it takes to connect with others, and I’ve learned to gauge when I’m succeeding.” Everyone communicates. But few connect. Listen in to the conversation that reveals the secrets John Maxwell has discovered and learn how to connect. The bottom line is connecting is everything when it comes to communication. Make sure you visit our blog for the Crib Notes, too.
The Guys help you pump it up with this show. Groundswell is a spontaneous movement of people using online tools to connect, take charge of their own experience, and get what they need—information, support, ideas, products, and bargaining power—from each other. The groundswell is broad, ever shifting, and ever growing. Are you part of it? Find out what to do to make sure.
A while back The Guys took on Boer and Wickman in a discussion about How to Be a Great Boss. They present a plethora of points to lead business owners and managers toward creating ideal working conditions. Amidst all the popular research and studies there are some tell-tale truths. In fact, 'people issues' are one of the most common frustrations shared by bosses--not sales, not profits... people! Keep this in mind: as frustrated as you might be with your people, the fact is, they are your number one competitive advantage. So better or worse, the people you employ or who report directly to you are your only real differentiator.
The Guys might be a little too seasoned for this topic; advisorologists aged to perfection. ...and what the heck are Free Radicals? According to the author a Free Radical is someone who not only creates wealth for themselves, but at the same time improves the world, makes life better and increases everyone else's standard of living. That sounds like a new millennial mindset we could all adopt. That sounds like a new millennial mindset we could all adopt, right? You simply have to tune in to this show and hear what The Guys have to say about the author's assertions and wisdom he shares from intense research and experiential understanding.
Decisive - How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work by Chip & Dan Heath... review by The Guys... Crib Notes by Ray Silverstein This week The Guys talk about the Heaths' book and processes that both hinder and hasten good decisions. The discipline exhibited by good corporate decision makers—exploring alternative points of view, recognizing uncertainty, searching for evidence that contradicts their beliefs—can help us in our families and friendships as well. A solid process isn’t just good for business; it’s good for our lives. Listen in and learn!
Business Owners and Operators This week Ray and Zen speak with two dynamic and successful business leaders who are part of the Business Mentor Team, a group of successful business owners/operators that volunteer time to help mentor small businesses. Allan Himmelstein and Rich Murphy share their enthusiasm for and understanding of small business challenges. The Business Mentor Team mission: to provide small business owners/operators access to people and resources to develop and grow, both personally and professionally.
The Guys start off this show by examining a few employee retention myths. They cross-reference a series of assumptions made by managers as to what employees are looking for in a job. The differences are striking and fodder for fueling change management for sure. You'll enjoy the banter and maybe learn something about your own perception. What makes a great boss? Do you have what it takes? Listen in and learn.
This week's guest, Diana Hoyt, has been around fundraising since the mid-1980s serving in various capacities, including as board member and past president of the Association of Fundraising Professionals Greater Arizona Chapter. Her passion for serving the nonprofit community caused her to become instrumental in raising millions of dollars while directing a number of campaigns. She also consults and trains nonprofit organizations across America.
This is a topic of extreme importance in today's digital world. Small business growth depends on rapid response, relationship and reputation in the marketplace. How does it all work? What are best practices for successful market penetration and, most of all, getting the phone to ring and acquiring new business? The Guys dive into the digital discussion with local search industry marketing experts Ed Kundahl and Linda Donnelly.
Author and speaker Jay Myers is a veteran entrepreneur who shares inspiring stories and practical tips based on growing his technology business from $11- to $25-million during the Great Recession. Jay's message as detailed in his second book, Hitting the Curveballs: How Crisis Can Strengthen and Grow Your Business, reveals creative, practical strategies to achieve business success in difficult times.
Ray and Zen get to have a fun conversation about the relativity of Zen (the practice) and how it can apply to practical business daily. Eleven Rings discusses Phil Jackson’s basketball background and most importantly, the leadership style he developed to mold larger than life personalities into a team. Phil’s success using the tools he presents is much more relevant in the world today, and certainly his results demonstrate it on a very practical level. The information is much more practical in business than you could even imagine, it truly is the soul of success on so many levels.
The Guys launch into the first of a couple of discussions on the book, 13 Fatal Errors Managers Make and how you can avoid them, by W. Steven Brown. The subject matter is great for small business owners and managers who are developing employees to help grow their business successfully. We don’t often think of them, although we often find them during the process of business building… usually because we make them. What are manager’s fatal mistakes? This book is about avoiding the common errors managers make with the people they manage, and luckily for you, there are only 13!
The Guys have a most interesting guest this week, Taansen Fairmont, a consultant and expert on debt elimination and common law trusts. Many people have heard about these topics and some business owners may have had experience with the process of debt elimination and/or common or natural law trusts. Taansen shares information about the nature of trusts, who uses them and why. The Guys talk with Taansen about how unsecured debt can be eliminated through a few simple steps.
The Guys explore one of the toughest issues – dealing with confrontations in the workplace. No, it isn’t about breaking up fights, but it can result in one if not handled properly in some cases. Most of us avoid conflict at all costs, so confronting employees who aren’t meeting up to standards is certainly not an enjoyable process. How do good leaders create conversations to address work issues? The first few seconds of the interaction sets the tone for everything that follows.
Ray and Zen throw around a lot of stuff during the shows, but this one is different – no BS. The Guys square off to debate and discuss the notion of being a freelancer in today’s economy and what that really means as an employee and employer. This is not a book of theory – it’s Business without the Bullsh*t. It’s a collection of practical approaches to real-life situations that take place every day inside every company.
The Guys take off with preparing you to launch into 2017 with a jump start.. Goal Setting. How do you make them? What do you need to consider? Who should be involved? Those are just a few of the discussion questions. Ray has some great insight, has been a featured professional on Entrepreneur.com and many years of experience in his own companies and peer adversary groups. Of course, Zen is no novice to the process either. He’s helped many small businesses and entrepreneurs develop goal setting processes, too.
Simon Sinek is a movement maker, a way-shower for building momentum that matters in our world today. He’s insightful and spot on in observations of how we behave and using those observations to create maximum results. This book is about a naturally occurring pattern, a way of thinking, acting and communicating that gives some leaders the ability to inspire those around them. Tempting incentives or the threat of punishment will often elicit the behavior we desire. Great Leaders are able to inspire people to act.
The Guys get caught up in a relevant and timely discussion about best business practices in the new millennium…. REWORK. It really is imperative for business owners to not just think about what to do. They need to DECIDE and ACT… That makes so much sense, doesn’t it? Why does it not happen more often? The authors of REWORK present some pleasant and unpleasant facts about what it takes to run a successful business in the 21st Century.
The Guys launch into the world of wealth management with this week’s guest, Brion Crum. Mr. Crum is the Director of Investor Relations for Caliber – The Wealth Management Company. There are many ways for the small business owner to invest in today’s financial marketplace. Stocks, Bonds and Money Market Certificates are instruments that leave little control to the investor, relying on market fluctuations to determine the growth and/or decline of value at any given time. Caliber operates on a more localized platform, investing in real estate opportunities instead.
Incoming President of NAWBO Phaedra Erhart tells how to make noise and how NAWBO grows and grows.
Facebook tips and mainly, friendly is what is most effective. Here is how to market your bizz in a friendly way using facebook tools.
Are you a local business or a fan of them? Listen in and learn why local businesses are a key component in the growth of any community.
Listen in and learn how the Scottsdale Chamber is running things with their new president and starting to grow in a BIG way!
Your instincts are not to be ignored. Success stories when trusting your entrepreneurial DNA is trusted.
From the two that have created millions, it's the creating sales episode. Tune in and learn.
The Guys review Grove's book, one of many, entitled High Output Management. Grove was one of the founders and the CEO of Intel Corporation, helping transform the company into the world's largest manufacturer of semiconductors. As a result of his work at Intel, along with his books and professional articles, Grove had a considerable influence on the management of modern electronics manufacturing industries worldwide. The central thought of this book is that the output of a manager is the output of his organization. Are you adding real value or merely passing information along? How do you add more value? One great answer: By continually looking for ways to make things truly better in your department or company.