Tag: business

To Defy The Laws Of Tradition Part 1: What does it all mean?

“To defy the laws of tradition. It’s a crusade only of the brave.” – Les Claypool, Primus

What does it mean to be brave? What are traditions? What are the laws of tradition?  What is a crusade? How does one defy the laws of tradition? These are the questions running through my head when I read the opening quote. I guess to answer those questions literally I have to break each word down and define them. Not on my own, of course, there are dictionaries for that. Let me take them in the order they appear in the quote from this fine Primus song…

Defy – verb

1: to confront with assured power of resistance
2: to resist attempts at
3: to challenge to do something considered impossible

Law – noun

1: a binding custom or practice of a community: a rule of conduct or action prescribed or formally recognized as binding or enforced by a controlling authority

Tradition – noun

1a: an inherited, established, or customary pattern of thought, action, or behavior

1b: a belief or story or a body of beliefs or stories relating to the past that are commonly accepted as historical though not verifiable

Crusade – noun

1: a remedial enterprise undertaken with zeal and enthusiasm

Brave – noun

1: one with mental or moral strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty: one who is brave

Brave – adjective

1: having or showing mental or moral strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty: having or showing courage

Great. Now that I know what all these words mean let me attempt to answer the questions being spun by the squirrels in my head.

What does it mean to be brave?

The dictionary defines it pretty well but I like simplicity so I will say it means to be courageous.

What are traditions?

Again, the definition above is pretty clear I will just add for the context of this article, a standard way or method of doing things.

What are the laws of tradition?

I will interpret this as the rules or guidelines that govern an inherited, established, or customary pattern of thought, action, or behavior as commonly accepted by a group or body of people.

What is a crusade?

For simplicity, let’s just call it a passionate mission.

Now, what does this have to do with anything and why am I thinking about it? Besides that fact that I am gearing up to see Primus tomorrow for the first time in years, I have been thinking a lot about the what, how, and why I cook, bake, and create as of late. The business is in transition right now. We are getting ready to expand into a production kitchen and we have been experimenting with a variety of desserts to create a menu for the new kitchen.

During this process it came to me that I like to take traditional desserts or dishes and put my own twist on them. Not always just minor twists. Some are reconstructing the entire recipe, essentially making a new and different recipe all together.

I don’t do this to be unique or different, necessarily. Oftentimes I simply do this out of laziness. I don’t want to have to keep looking at a recipe. That involves getting the recipe and continuing to reference it while I am cooking. That just breaks up my flow and continuity. I would much rather commit it to memory or create my own version that I memorize. He latter is the result of the rebellious side of me that wants to do things my way and defy the laws of tradition.

This has been a theme throughout my life and is just part of my nature and the way in which I am wired. Sometimes it works out and other times it completely backfires. At the end of the day it is much more exciting to me and nourishing for my soul to create. Whether it’s a recipe, a blog post, a logo, or anything in between I am much happier living in the creative space. It is often about the creative process rather than the finished product.

Stay tuned as I go through my start up and life escapades answering what it means to defy the laws of tradition. I bet you thought I forgot about that last question and was just rambling on and on talking “the balls off a rhinosaurus” didn’t you? Call me bizarre…see you next time.

Psst! I wrap up the End series in a few weeks. We are getting close to finalizing a deal.

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live

The End Part 16: Dance With Me

“Either run the day or the day runs you.” – Jim Rohn

Selling is a game. Selling is a dance. Or so I have been told by the wise ones that have come before me. The sales negotiation process is a dance between the buyer and the seller. The goal is to always be the lead and control the situation. That sometimes means letting the other party think they are in the lead and controlling the deal. That is where the opening quote come is; you either run the sales dance or the dance controls you. That means control the deal or the other party wins. Unless, of course, the deal is a win-win for all parties involved. I have also been told by some wise ones that there is no such thing as a win-win, but that is a discussion for another time.

Let me be frank; I don’t like this dance. I am not much of a dancer as it is. The most “dancing” I’ve done was in mosh pits at concerts. I don’t think the violent nature would be good in this application. I simply do not like the back and forth, the half truths, the waiting, the deflection of responsibility, and so on. No one wants to make a decision or assume responsibility for their side of the table. They always have to go back and talk to “someone” that cannot ever seem to leave their office and join the dance. My father in law calls this person the “wizard in the back.”

In our present dance, I think their wizard is their lawyer. This wizard has been sitting in the back without providing more information for too long. I’m tired of slow dancing, let’s pick up the pace. Maybe that’s the old mosher in me talking but it’s time “run the day!” They have had us sitting in uncomfortable silence for too long. So, we pushed back and took back the lead. We want to know if we are moving forward or moving on. Hopefully, we make some progress this week.

This process has brought up an important lesson that I have learned running businesses the past couple decades; hire people that make you and your business better. As the boss or owner I always wanted to be better or smarter than those that worked for me. That just results in a team of less-thans. That is not good for growth and progress. Not to mention furthering my skills and knowledge. It is best to bring on people that have skills and knowledge in areas I lack. For example, I do not like sales and I am not that great at negotiations, therefore, I want to add people to my team that are better than I in those areas. Following this strategy builds a strong team that is rich with diverse skills. 

The great ones throughout history know that they don’t know it all. They know they become better and stronger by the people they surround themselves with not by doing everything by themselves on a lonely throne. They create a dance team that can take over any dance floor.

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live

The End Part 15: The Doors of Perception

“Communication breakdown, it’s always the same
Havin’ a nervous breakdown, a-drive me insane” – Robert Plant, Led Zeppelin

Business is about relationships. That is the bottom line. It really doesn’t matter if you sweep the floors or head the board, everything leads back to relationships. All relationships, whether personal or professional, require communication of some form or another. In my experience, good relationships are built on good communication.

Seems simple, right? My experience also teaches me that it is not always that easy. In fact, it can be one of the hardest parts of any relationship. Communication provides information for all sides of a relationship. We, as rational and sentient creatures, use the information that we have to make decisions, formulate opinions, and take actions. Information is not created equal but our minds will do with it what it will based on what have access to or have been provided at the time.

It’s a pretty simple equation; bad information = bad thoughts and opinions and bad thoughts/opinions = bad decisions and actions. Simple equation but hard to follow. Why? Because we do not always know that the information we have is incorrect or limited. How many times have you been given some information that was not the entire story? Did you form an opinion or even take an action based on the information that you later regretted? I think we have all done that. I bet most of us have even looked back in hindsight after receiving the “rest of the story” and realized that we would have taken a different course of action had we had all the information at the time.

The real questions is have we learned from these lapses in judgment? Have we learned to verify the information we have before making major a decision and saying or doing things we later regret? I have. Don’t get wrong, I am not saying I do this all the time but more often than not, I pause and take time to evaluate the information and situation before I react. This allows me to respond accordingly. I must admit I have only learned this by doing the wrong thing over and over.

In the last part I discussed how the prospective buyers had gone silent. That led us to think they lost interest. Further, that one of the main communicators in this deal on our side had pushed a bit too hard and closed the door. The reality was there was a miscommunication. We thought one thing and they thought another. They were waiting on something from us and we were for something from them. We were locked in a holding pattern on different pages. The good news is we cleared things up and got back on the same page and have moved closer to finalizing a deal.

Communication is the key. Without having good information, or providing good information, the human mind is left to fill in the empty spaces. In my experience, I have often filled those spaces with “worst case” type of information. That usually does not end well for any party involved. If you want to build something great in business or your personal life, focus on your relationships and strengthen them with good communication.

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live

The End Part 14: The Sound of Silence

“If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” – Author Unknown

The riddle makes me wonder if a door shuts and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? Strange thing to think about, right?

The potential buyer of Go-Go Babyz has gone quiet for about a week now. A little disconcerting because things were moving along well for a couple weeks. I hope a door has not been shut because the default reaction to the sounds of silence for my over active mind to fill the void with noise. I don’t do well in silence so I create thoughts, scenarios, outcomes, rhymes, reasons; you name it, to fill the empty space in my mind. Unfortunately, they are not usually good.

This could just be a negotiating tactic. Retreat to silence, go dark, ghost the other party; however you want to label it, the tactic is quite common and effective. It makes the other party, in this case me, a bit unsettled. It is working.

The key is to not let fear set its hook. When the hook is set the result is often poor decisions and bad behavior. It is easy to react when this happens but that will serve no one. Except maybe the other party if they end up with more leverage in the negotiating process. I do not want that so I need to practice patience and trust. This is not a small deal. These types of deals take time and happen in the background to life and normal business operations.

There is a grace period in these types of situations. Ten days is a good number. The lead person on their side could be on vacation, could be sick, or could be traveling for business overseas, just to name a few.

As I said above, I don’t do well in silence. I also don’t well sitting still or when other things are idle. Like projects or deals. I want movement and progress. I want to know that things are getting done and moving in the direction I want them to. Learning to deal with this has been a process over the last twenty years of running businesses. Early in my career I would fill the empty spaces with negativity, creating worst case scenarios. All this would do is rile me up and create a lot of fear, anxiety, and anger. That is a bad recipe for me. I make poor decisions, both personally and professionally under such conditions.

Over the years I have become better and creating comfortable silence. I do this by practicing acceptance and being patient. I do not try to fill the empty spaces as often, I let them be. They will be filled naturally as thing progress. I do this with three main practices that I have learned over the years. The first is mediation. This discipline helps me clear my mind and build my stamina for silence. It helps me to be more at peace and accepting of the natural timing of things. I think, feel, and act better when I regularly practice meditation. Even if only for five minutes a day.

The second is writing. That is exactly what I am doing now with this series. Not only do I hope my story and experience will help others, but it helps me get the mess out of my head. That does three main things. Number one it takes the power out of the crazy thoughts I create. Number two, it makes some sense out the mess. And three, it creates space for positive thoughts to enter. I know it sounds cheesy but it works.

The third is the mental exercise of trading places. I try to put myself in the other party’s place. That helps me to see things from their side. Quite often I will realize that they are doing exactly what I would in their position. Of course, I can never know exactly why, but it helps to see things from more than one position.

So, I will sit in comfortable silence and go about my normal business…

For a few more days that is, because the grace period is almost up!

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live

The End Part 13: Shake & Bake

“Busy people make to-do lists when what they need is to reflect and create stop-doing lists” – Francis Shenstone

We are not quite shaking hands yet, but we are getting very close. We are at the point in the negotiations where there are just a few more details to work out then we should have a deal.

It is hard to imagine that business number two of my career is almost wrapped up. It has been a part of my life for a long time. We are near the time to wrap it up with a bow and deliver it to the buyer that should be able to keep it alive and growing. I can’t think of a better way to close this door.

Now that the handshake is close, what is with the baking? There are more than just pies baking right now. Visions, daydreams, ideas, business models and business plans are all baking inside my head. Now that the end really is getting closer, the ideas are becoming clearer and clearer. Plans often come together in the eleventh hour and that time is drawing near.

As everything bakes away and starts to come together an important lesson comes to mind; it is just as important to know what you don’t want to do as it is to know what you want to do. Just as don’t-do lists are just as important as a to-do list. Sometimes they are more important. Over the years I have noticed many people focusing so much on what to do, including myself. I have been paralyzed trying to figure everything out, needing to have all the answers worked out and a solid plan in my head. The reality is that sometimes I just need to cut the fat and eliminate al the no-go ideas first to open the space and provide clarity.

It may sound simple and intuitive to most but my head is hardwired to focus on ideas to move on. I love so many ideas I don’t want to get rid of any. It’s the entrepreneurial syndrome. It takes a conscious effort and extra energy to go against my natural tendency to weed through the ideas. In a perfect world I would want to use all the ideas. The reality is, when I really get in the weeds and dig deep and look beyond the whats I really want to do and start looking at the whys in my life, the whats become clearer. That makes it easier to eliminate the whats that don’t support the whys. Get it? Got it? Good.

The bottom line is, crossing out the things I really do not want to do make it easier to focus of the potential whats that I want to do, ultimately making the decision process easier. If only I could move some wires around in my head.

So, now that I have really talked some circles in your head, I will wrap this part up and share what’s really baking next time.

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live

The End Part 12: The End Is The Beginning

“What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.” – T.S. Eliot

For those of you following the entire series and the sale of the business there really is not much of an update at this point. Right now there is just some back and forth every couple days as the buyer-side decision makers ask a few more questions to gather more data as they do their due diligence. I understand completely. They want to make sure they are making the best decision for their company. An answer to one question often leads to another question, which leads to another, and so on and so forth. The end of one conversations leads to the beginning of another. It is a dance of sorts one that wish would hurry up and end.

Are we actually starting at the end as the quote above suggests? I don’t know but I do know that business, and life, are full of cycles and everything appears to be circular. That brings up the age old question; is there a beginning or an end to a circular pattern?

I am neither a philosopher nor a rabbit, or a mathematician for that matter, so I don’t want to jump down that hole. What I can say is that over the course of starting and running businesses for a couple decades, I have learned that there is lot to be gained from understanding patters, cycles, and universal processes. There are many different types of sales with just as many negotiation styles but it all boils down to a sales process. The essence of any sales process is a transaction where one party exchanges something of value for something else of value from the other party. That is it and, yes, it really is that simple.

The difficult part of it all is the personalities involved. This is where the definitions, motivations, emotions, techniques, styles, etc make every transaction unique. If this weren’t the case, every person who went to a car dealership would be able to pay the exact same price for the exact same car. But we don’t.

If all the other stuff listed above were not part of the transaction, our potential buyer would have purchased or passed already. Instead I sit waiting and waiting for them to make up their minds. The waiting is the hardest part as I quoted the late Tom Petty in an earlier post. The waiting stage is when the many faces of fear rear their ugly heads, creep in and take over. That serves no one. I have learned in fear generating activities that I must just let things go and allow them to move and flow. Otherwise I constrict the natural flow of things and I often get bitten, or bite others by acting rashly.

So, here I wait and wait as I begin anew at the ending. A new vision. A new path. A new strategy. A new mission for the other business because as I navigate through life I learn more and more about what matters most to me and those around me. My desire is to bring all the ideas into alignment and execute. Success is more than dollar signs. If I can support my life and live in the moment of my life with a level of serenity all the while avoid stepping on the hopes and dreams of others, that is a success…

And only the beginning!

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live

The End Part 11: Come A Little Bit Closer…

“Come a little bit closer to this” – Glenn Danzig, The Misfits

Like when a “black dress moves is a blue movie” I am getting drawn in to the excitement of potential. Of course, Mr. Danzig was writing about the allure of Vampira but these business opportunities can be quite similar. I get drawn into them with visions of grandeur and I get bitten.

The current status of business with the businesses is this…

We are still in negotiations with the sale of Go-Go Babyz. The talks seem to be moving at a snail’s pace, but is probably just me perception because I am so ready to move one. On the other court, we have a couple opportunities knocking on the food business door. Exciting, exciting.

There are a lot of potentials floating around and as a daydreaming entrepreneur I need to be careful I do not get swept up in the moment and allure of the shiny objects. I need to stay grounded and focused on real data, not daydreams. This creates another potential opportunity; one to practice hard lessons learned from my past experiences. There have been times throughout my entrepreneurial career that I have been taken under the spell of opportunity. It is a spell that I actually cast on myself with my overactive, daydreaming mind. I can tend to drink my own kool-aid.

Don’t get me wrong, I make some good kool-aid but when I lose the ability to make logical, educated decisions, I have drunk too much. In the past, it has been easy for to let my ideas, daydreams, and visions sweep me away and make rash choices that turn out to be bad for business. I have been bitten too many times and I hope that I have learned my lesson. I do believe that each bad decision has made me stronger and better at what I do. Mistakes are how we learn best. So, with these shiny new objects floating around, I hope I can pull that acquired knowledge, and self restraint from the crevices of my mind and make good decisions for the sale of one business and the growth of another.

Let me end with that and urge you to know that it is good to fail. Just do it fast and early! Failure is one of the greatest teachers. The key is to make sure you look at each one and learn from them. That is how you keep getting up and getting better. Take a moment to analyze the failures of your past and see what you can carry forward to make you better today. It is very rare to hit it out the park on your first at bat so don’t beat yourself up.

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live

The End Part 10: 5-4-3-2…GO!

“It’s meant to be, you can’t change fate.” – G.B.H.

I don’t really know what is meant to be but what I do know is that when I get out of the way, things just seem to work out better. Things tend to get messy when I get in there and start trying to control the things I have no business controlling.

One of the hardest lessons in business is realizing that time is the greatest asset and resource AND, that I have no control over it. I can do everything in my power to make things happen in my time but they are all just guesses. In the most basic and general sense I’ll call it timing the market. Can it really be done? It sure appears that it can when you look at the track record of some very successful entrepreneurs. I don’t want to go down that rabbit hole today. I will just boil it down to the fact that some people just have a great sense for timing, reading the market, and a little bit of luck on their side. Not to mention a great team working with them.

The reality is, most of the time we only hear or read about the “perfectly” timed events. We do not hear about the failures, losses, and missed opportunities. Although most entrepreneurs love to talk about the failures and how they made them better. That too is topic for another time.

What I do want to talk about is how I have learned that I want everything now. I want everything to happen in my time. Further, that quite often, my time is not aligned with everyone else’s. Right now discussions have opened up with an interested party to purchase the business. I want it to happen right now so I get on with it. Shut this door and close the chapter so I can start writing a new one. I know that if I keep that mindset I will grow more and more impatient and frustrated which is not good for any negotiation.

I have to remember that this transaction is not a time bomb and will not explode on expiration.  Yes, many transactions or offers have expiration dates on them but we are not there yet. I need to just do the work and provide the information they need to make an educated decision. If the roles were reversed I would be doing the same thing they are doing. Acquiring a business is major decision no matter the size and shouldn’t be taken lightly.

I need to practice patience and be open to the process, and the offer. For today, I will let time continue to tick while I move closer to closing this door.

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live

The End Part 9: Race Against Time

“Lost time is never found again.” – Benjamin Franklin.

I thought that things usually slow down as they come to an end. Why do I feel like everything is speeding back up? Is this a final push? Are we all just racing against time to get everything in before we get to the finish line?

Whatever the case might be, things have really picked up. So much for a soft, easy landing. I can’t complain, though. I want to sell through as much inventory as possible while finding a buyer for the business. To be honest, I have been a bit busy the past two weeks to do much searching. I need to carve out some time and really search for the right buyer.

As I search I hope this burst of business is a sign that people are starting to travel again. When families travel sales go up for us. Rising sales always look good to potential buyers so keep traveling with your kids people.

Back to the title, everything is a race against time. Life in general is all about time. Every single thing we do can be broken down into little increments of time. Business is no different. If there is one thing I have learned running multiple businesses it is that time is the most precious and valuable resource. Cash reserves are great. Smart, productive employees are great. Efficient equipment and technology are great. But nothing is as great as well spent time. All your resources, assets, plans, processes, etc, operate in time and you can use it wisely or poorly but once it’s used it’s gone for good.

Time is everything and is non-renewable. When it’s gone, it’s gone. You can always hire more people, buy more equipment, adopt better technology but you can never buy more time, regardless of the silly saying. What buying more time really means is extending your runway further into the future. For example, this burst of sales extends the cash burn rate so I don’t have to pump any more money into the business right away while I wait. Even though we are closing shop, no one wants to buy a dead horse so I have to keep it breathing and cash is the life blood of any business.

Time is the great equalizer. It doesn’t matter how much money we have in the bank, everyone has the same twenty four hours in a day. The best we can do with our time is to use it wisely and do our best to be productive and efficient. The next couple weeks I plan to do a quick assessment of where the business is and dedicate some time to move towards closing this door because I am so ready for the next to open fully.

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live

The End Part 8: What Am I Waiting For?

“And I need something more
To keep on breathing for
So give me something to believe”
 – Samuel Bingham Endicott, The Bravery

What am I waiting for? That is the question. The other is “what do I believe?” Our three neighbors up north say I am waiting for an open door. That I am, but what am I doing to help close this door and open another?

If you have been following this series you know that the selling process has been a bit slow going. That is most likely due to the fact that I have not been doing much. After some deep thinking and soul searching, the reality is that I am holding on a bit. I am keeping one foot in the door to prevent it from closing completely.

Why? Why would I do that? Well, this business has been part of my life for nearly twenty years. It’s hard to let go. As much as I want to let go and move on, it is hard. All the good times and bad times have been an integral part in my development personally and professionally. I learned more running this business than all my years earning a degree in college. It has brought happiness, joy, fulfillment, and pride. It has fostered confidence, skill development, and wealth creation. It has also ignited fear, a sense of failure, and deep financial losses. This business has guided my family through the entire range of success and failure. This business has truly become a part of me.

The time has come, however to move on. One of the greatest lessons I have learned is that nothing happens if I do not take action. I have to be responsible. I can’t just sit and wait for things to happen or wait for others to them for me. As an owner/operator the first thing one should understand is that no one will have the drive or passion that you do. You and only you can be the driver.

That is what I believe. I also believe that when one door closes another will open. It is time for me to get off my butt and start working to close this door. What am I waiting for? Simply to get in the right mindset to do what needs to be done. I believe that thinking this through before I wrote this little ditty has prepared me to trudge forward and drive this to the exchange station to find a new driver.

Talk Soon,

Kevin W @LEAP272
Owner-Operator

You have to leap if you want to live