Learn what it takes to build a business while designing a life that matters.
LifeWork features entrepreneurs Dave Krock and Meagan Francis as they discuss the intersection between work, life, and the things that matter most, with weekly interviews, tips and insights to help dreamers, doers, and self-starters scale up their businesses without losing their souls.
41 Available Episodes (41 Total)Average duration: 00:15:08
Aug 14, 2016
Why Successful Businesspeople are Also “Constant Learners”: LifeWork Episode 19
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What does it mean to be a “constant learner” and how can busy entrepreneurs (or wannabe entrepreneurs) apply the “five hour rule” to their lives? In episode 19 of LifeWork, Dave and Meagan discuss why regularly including books, articles and other kinds of instructional media in your life is so important when building a business – and how to make it fit around all the other balls you have in the air.
Strategies for making more time to read and consume educational media
How “not having time” to read (or do other enriching activities) is often a mistaken perception
Utilizing commutes and other “downtime” opportunities to learn more
Skimming vs. a deep dive read: a technique for absorbing information quickly
Aug 14, 2016
Get That Cash: Finding, Raising, or Saving Capital For Your Business – LifeWork Episode 18
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So you’ve got a great business idea or existing business. Only problem: you need money to either start or grow it. Between angel investors, SBA loans, venture capitalists and other forms of capital-generation, your head is spinning. Sound familiar? We’ve got you covered! In this episode of LifeWork, Dave and Meagan break down the most common forms of business funding, how to figure out which is right for you, and how to get started looking for it.
Discussion Points and Links:
What’s the difference between an angel investor and a venture capitalist, and what is each type looking for?
How do you establish your business’s value and convince a potential investor that they will see a gain?
How do you decide how much to ask for?
Creating financial projections: how much is guessing? How to back up your numbers?
Is it true that it “takes money to make money?”
How to tap into “other people’s money” (and resources/equipment.)
What you need to know about Small Business Administration (SBA) loans
How To “Crush It” Without Crushing Yourself: LifeWork Episode 17
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Is burnout the necessary price for success? No, but you’ll need to work hard. In Episode 17 of LifeWork, Meagan and Dave discuss “crushing it,” whether work-life balance is a myth, and why it pays to set up systems early that can help lighten your workload down the road.
Hero worship, Gary Vaynerchuk and different levels of success
Work/Life Balance: Truth or Myth?
How to set up systems that make work and life more streamlined
Is it possible to “crush it” hard for a few hours a day and see results?
Putting margin or “white space’ in your life to make room for the things that matter to you
Taking care of yourself by putting your non-negotiables on the schedule: hydration, sleep, relationships, good food.
Jul 29, 2016
How Your Personality Type Influences Your Entrepreneurial Style: LifeWork Episode 16
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What does your personality type say about your strengths and weaknesses as an entrepreneur? In Episode 16 of LifeWork, Dave and Meagan discuss two popular personality tests, the Myers-Briggs and StrengthsFinder tests, and how being aware of your own strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies can make you a more successful entrepreneur and all-around better person. Meagan and Dave also share their own results and what they think it means about them as human beings and business owners. PLUS: this episode contains a special surprise! The first TWO listeners to leave a comment containing the timestamp when Meagan notices a car on fire outside the window during recording will receive a free copy of the book na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=thegrebircen-20&l=am2&o=1&a=159562015X%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/>">StrengthsFinder 2.0. Hey, we’re recording live here, people – things happen! Make sure your comment contains a viable email address and we’ll be in touch if you’re a winner.
The Enneagram – not discussed in detail during this episode, but also an insightful tool for digging into your tendencies and motivators.
Jul 19, 2016
Making Yourself Fire-able, And Business Lessons from Pokémon Go: LifeWork Episode 15
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What do we want? Freedom! When do we want it? At a time and place of our choosing!
After a month-long hiatus in which they both went “off the grid” on relaxing vacations, Meagan and Dave are back. In episode 15 of LifeWork, they discuss the systems and team they’ve had to put in place to make their businesses “vacationable,” and how to take that even further to become “fire-able.” They also talk about the incredibly fast-growing popularity of Pokémon Go and what entrepreneurs can learn from the phenomenon.
Discussion Points:
Dave & Meagan describe their vacations and the preparation each did to make it possible to disconnect
How making yourself “fire-able” makes your business more valuable
Potential pathways to creating a business that doesn’t require you to run it
The franchise model and how it can apply to a small business
What if you don’t want to be fire-able? Staying involved in your business without performing your current role forever
What the breakout success of Pokémon Go says about marketing, being in the right place at the right time, the future of gaming and augmented reality, and how businesses can cash in by luring players to play in their spaces
featured imaged credit: Sadie Hernandez, via Flickr Creative Commons
Jun 09, 2016
Start With Your Audience in Mind: LifeWork Episode 14
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So you’ve got a great business idea. Now what? If your first step is “create the product and then try to find a market for it,” you’re probably putting the cart before the horse. In episode 14 of LifeWork, Meagan and Dave discuss the importance of understanding your potential market before you decide what to create for them, and why it always makes more sense to solve a problem that already exists than to try to force a “great idea” into a market that doesn’t recognize its value.
Discussion Points & Links:
Why it’s so vital to understand your audience and their needs, wants, and pain points
How to anticipate the needs of your market – and test your theory
The importance of pivoting if your initial solution isn’t the right one
How to educate an audience that doesn’t yet know they need your product
How to build a solution that unconsciously makes people pull out their wallets
Turn Your Business Into A Cash Machine with Tara Gentile: LifeWork Episode 13
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How do you turn your business into a “cash machine?” Can you build a successful business around a small number of high-quality customers who can really benefit from your big idea? And how do you keep your products and services cohesive so that they serve the whole of your business rather than diluting your efforts? Those are just a few of the topics we discussed with Tara Gentile, business strategist and creator of Quiet Power Strategy, in Episode 13 of LifeWork. Listen in to find out how to build a business that goes deep, creates real value, and grows both sustainably and authentically.
What does it mean to take smart risks in business – and how do you balance that potential reward vs what you’re putting at stake to achieve it? In episode 12 of LifeWork, Dave and Meagan discuss different kinds of risks in business, how to decide if a risk is worth taking, and how to minimize the potential fallout if things don’t go as planned.
Discussion Points:
How a business risk is like an investment
How accurate are financial projections? And does it matter?
The more knowledge you have, the safer you can feel taking a big risk
The importance of flexing your “risk taking muscle” to get better at it over time
Mitigating and minimizing risk
Dave’s process for deciding whether a risk is a smart move
How “inverted thinking” can help you manage for potential outcomes and decide whether an opportunity is worth pursuing.
May 31, 2016
The Art of Risk with Kayt Sukel: LifeWork Episode 11
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Is there such thing as a natural propensity toward risk-taking? Are successful people more (or less!) likely to be risk-takers themselves? In episode 11 of LifeWork, Meagan interviews Kayt Sukel, author of the new book The Art of Risk. Kayt’s insights into how the brain measures and judges risk can help anyone be a smarter and more calculated risk-taker, in business and in life.
Discussion Points:
How and why the teenage/young adult brain is wired for risk, and why that propensity tends to fade as we get older
What instinct (and isn’t) and why there is a lot more cognitive process involved in that “gut feeling” than you might realize
Why pro gamblers, extreme athletes and others who engage in what most consider risky behaviors may actually be very strategic in the way they take risks
Making It In The Music Biz and Becoming a Student of Success with Nick Ruffini: LifeWork Episode 10
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Nick Ruffini is a professional drummer, entrepreneur and student of success. As host of the Drummer’s Resource podcast, Nick interviews the best pros in the world in his niche. He’s been featured in Modern Drummer, Drum! Magazine and all of the other top media in the drumming world. He’s also a former restauranteur.
In episode 10 of LifeWork, Dave and Nick discuss what it takes to make it in the music business, the importance of self-education, choosing happiness and more.