999: LuAnn Nigara - A Well-Designed Business

Speaker A: Everything that you do has to sing to your soul. It has to bring passion. You have to want to be in it. Because there are a thousand moments in a week, in a month, in a year that just attempt to crush you down.

Speaker B: Luanna Gara co owns with her husband Vince and cousin Bill Window works in Livingston, New Jersey specializing in window treatments and awnings with annual sales of more than $2 million. Her book the Making of a well Designed Business is a veritable how to for the small business owner. Detailing the best principles for starting, growing and managing a healthy, successful business. By sharing her 30 year career as an entrepreneur, Luann teaches, encourages and inspires fellow entrepreneurs to make the commitment to running their business with proven business practices, ensuring their profitability and their. Hi, I'm Jeffrey Shaw and this is Creative warriors where I talk with top business experts, authors and entrepreneurs. It's time in business when we no longer target a um market but instead build meaningful relationships with ideal customers who we can best serve and who value what we do. If you're a startup, an entrepreneur or service based business that wants to attract and retain your most profitable customers, let's talk. You can find out more about my consulting and coaching services@jeffreyshaw.com Creative warriors mean business and this is Business with a Soul. My book Lingo Discover your Ideal Customers Secret Language and Make youe Business Irresistible is now available on Amazon and wherever books are sold. You can also go to thelingobook.com welcome to Creative Warriors. Now let's get ready to create, serve and be prosperous. Hey there Luann. It's really great to have you with us here today.

Speaker A: Jeff, thank you so much. I am really psyched to be here with you on your program today.

Speaker B: Awesome. Well, as you know, because I know you're a listener, here in Creative wars we have a tradition of we like to hand down some wisdom. So to start us off, perhaps you can share with us a best piece of advice you ever received or maybe a meaningful quote that you live by or even a favorite book, but something to inspire us and let us know

Speaker A: why I actually have all three. Go for it as soon as that goes through. You say that three things go through my mind. I'll restrict it to one answer and I'll take the quote that I love the most is by Tony Robbins and it's All I need is within me now. All I need is within me now. And it's just so true for every one of us if we will just sit in it and recognize that we truly do have everything within us to create the life and the business that we want. We just need to take action to do it.

Speaker B: Love that. I absolutely love that. And I'm m a proponent of the idea. And even as a coach, I always have believed that when I begin working with people to already believe that they're creative, resourceful and whole. Like, nobody's not there. I'm not, I'm not fixing. We're not, you know, trying to look at anything that's broken. Everybody already has everything they need. So it's a beautiful quote, right?

Speaker A: Just have to access it in yourself, right?

Speaker B: Exactly. It is the access. So, you know, I'll bet you probably share this too. What I love about entrepreneurship is the broad variety of types of businesses. Uh, and you're in the window treatment business. And I'm actually really intrigued by that because like I said, what I love is how people just create businesses. Like, hey, this is an idea. We'll create this business. As a photographer myself, it has taken me years to make the connection between who I am as a photographer and the branding work that I do. And I'm just kind of curious whether you have made a connection or have seen a pattern as to. Is there something about being in the window treatment business that you think has provided you with this unique angle that you have on teaching others and how to be in business?

Speaker A: I would not say that it's unique to the source of the product being window treatments. Truthfully, it is the perspective and the experience of having been in business more than 30 years. And it is the culmination and the careful thought that I reflect and take the time to literally consider on a regular basis what has been the keys to our success. And it's that, I think, that informs the, um, knowledge and the passion that I have for helping other business owners be profitable and be successful. Does that make sense?

Speaker B: It does. But you also have a deep passion for the work you do. And your business was started by your father in law. Do I have that right?

Speaker A: No, my, my husband started the business.

Speaker B: Your husband. Oh, okay. All right. That's right. Your father in law was the plumber. Great story about his integrity. So he stuck in my mind. He seemed like such a good man.

Speaker A: Exactly. He was. Definitely was.

Speaker B: Yeah. So. But your passion in the business is evident. So I just, I don't know, I was. I found myself just letting my mind wander and thinking about what it meant to be in the window treatment business and this kind of feeling of protection. Right. I mean, to me, I look at window protections as a, uh, Window treatments as a form of protecting, protecting outside elements from coming in and also beautifying the interior. So I don't know, I just started metaphorically looking at the idea of window treatments and how that related to kind of a protective quality you have in the way that you want to help businesses really understand the fundamentals and how to really just get at the beginning in the fundamentals of a business.

Speaker A: To your point, though, a lot of it really was sprouted from that conversation with my father in law, and that's why I shared that in the beginning of my book, because the truth be told, I've said this dozens, uh, of times over these many years, is that when I met my husband, if he had just opened a copy machine store, we would have a tremendous copy machine business right now. I was not the person that grew up and said, oh, I love interior design and I love draperies and I love fabric. I love sales. That's what I loved. I loved sales. And the intersection of having been, truly, since I was 10 years old, a student of salesmanship, I mean, that's no joke. I mean, I'm saying reading sales books and reading all of that stuff from the time I was 10 all the way through, and then the intersection of that pivotal moment of hearing my father in law have that pride for his name, the integrity that he felt for his business and for his clients, that was that little boom moment for me. It was like, oh, right, we sell draperies and we sell awnings, but these are people that we interact with. These are people that matter to us. And if I treat them the very best I can, with the most integrity I can in every transaction, that's going to mean something to them. And in turn, I can take pride in that. And so that's what it is, Jeff. It's really not window treatments. It's this absolute desire to be the best that I can personally be as a business person. And now at this stage of the game with our team, to impart that to our team and to have them understand that if Kim, for example, goes to meet, uh, a prospective client today, while I'm doing a podcast interview with you, she's representing my ideals. And so I've taken a lot of time to think about these things and realize that these are the seeds of our success and these are the oak trees that have grown from that. And now it's our job, myself and my husband and our cousin, the three of us as owners, to make sure our, uh, team has this same critical understanding of, yes, it's A product, it's a window treatment or an awning, but you are in someone's home and you are making a connection with them and you are changing. They are going to spend a lot of money on what you do. You need to make this experience good for them.

Speaker B: I suspect that similarly, your passion for sales isn't really about the sale, if you will. I mean, we all get passionate about seeing our businesses grow, but I suspect then it's not, you know, your passion for sales is not because you love to take things from people. It's the connection that's made through the sale process. Is that a fair.

Speaker A: Absolutely. It's the win win. See, the best sale on the planet is a sale where both people win. The best sale on a planet is it when I convince you to buy something that you don't need, want, or will ever use. I might still come away with a sale like that and I'm skilled enough to probably do that. Most of the time I would attempt to do it, but there's no satisfaction in that sale.

Speaker B: I love that you just said that. I have. You're skilled enough to do that. One of my daughters, Here's a, here's a reveal. And she's going to kill me. But I have three kids and my, my middle. My daughter is such a powerful soul. She has been since birth. And at a really young age I remember turning to her mother, my then wife, and I said to her, if she uses all she's got for good, it'll be great. If she uses it for evil, we're in trouble, right? Because there's, there's something to that. It's like you can get so skilled and passionate about what you do that, you know, you probably could be the person that's just a taking model, right? You could convince anybody to buy anything, but in your heart, you're doing it for a win win.

Speaker A: Look, it's great for the client, but ultimately it is the best win for you too, right? That's how you grow the business. And these are my revelations, my observations of looking back at these years, at the success that it has been rooted in. Always having that combination of the technical expertise for the product that we sell, the integrity that we bring to it, and the absolute focus on it must serve the client and us.

Speaker B: Uh, one of the things that you said pretty early on in the book that really struck me is that it takes all three, right? So confidence. I love them. We just said three. You perked my ears because I also say three things, but they're different. It's confidence and goals without a plan won't get you anywhere. But a plan and goals without confidence won't work either that you need all three. You need confidence, goals and a plan. So tell us a little bit m more about that and the intersection of those three things.

Speaker A: Well, I mean, it's so true. You could sit there and really want something tremendously. That's your goal. And you can have this confidence that it's possible to do because you are capable, expert at whatever that is. But if you don't sit down, I use the analogy of a marathon a lot. And when I talk on my podcast, because, look, I've been a runner since I'm 14 years old and I could right now, at 56, have a goal to run a marathon. And by the way, four or five years ago, I ran a half marathon right after running for some 40 years at that point, I still went and got James Fix's book the Download or the on the Internet and said, okay, so week one, you run this, week two, you run this, week three, you run that, and at the 14th week you'll run your 13 miles. And because just knowing that I was a confident runner and just having the goal to run 13 miles didn't mean that I was going to be able to achieve it without the plan. And then you rip it apart the other way. I could have the plan. I could have the goal of running that half marathon. But if I never, if I didn't believe in myself that at 52 years old I could run 13 miles in the pouring rain at 37 degrees in Washington D.C. oh, gosh, help me. You know, I might have stopped at mile three and said, forget it. But I was, I said, no, I have confidence in myself. I can do this. So you really do need to carefully think about the intersection, as you said, of the three of them and put them together with the action.

Speaker B: There you go. Confidence, goals and plan. Got to have all three. And I have to say, you know, reading your book and then talking to you now, I think, you know, one of your strengths is. And again, maybe goes back to my first question I can't help but get because I'm all on the. I'm such a conceptual thinker, I can't get the window treatments out of my mind. But, you know, because you're so good with the fundamentals, and I think so often that's what gets overlooked in business, right? Whether it's a startup business or business, businesses have existed for years that need to get back to the fundamentals. So let's talk a little bit about some of those fundamentals. I think this is, you're so good at this, like just the way you bring things back down to fundamentals. So let's talk about some of the really fundamentals of a well designed business. So one thing you mentioned, and I have to be honest with you, Ann, I had a little mixed feelings on this. But you say establish a company mission and core values. My resistance to that is so often mission statements are just something that people think of. They sit around in a committee and it's all cute and they put on the wall and nobody lives by it. But you actually stress there's more to it than that. So tell us a little bit about a company mission and core values.

Speaker A: Well, it's the truth. Because if your company mission or core values are a plaque that sits on the wall in your reception lobby, you're beat. You know, then it really doesn't mean anything. But if you think about, and I'll use our example because it makes it easy to understand for us, our company mission and core. Our company mission is to be the very best, to be recognized as the very best window treatment and awning provider in our area. Okay, so that's simple. Okay, that can hang on the plaque and the wall, but we also live and breathe it and teach it to our employees and to our customers as well. But the core values for window works are integrity and 110% commitment to customer satisfaction. And again, if they stayed on a plaque in the reception wall, it's useless. It's like everything else, Jeff, that you and your warriors know, you must connect the action to it, right? So for us, we connect the action to it. But what's very important is that we connect and teach that, uh, those core values to our employees. Because what happens is in order to grow your team, in order to grow your company, even if your goal is to just be three people, five people all, it's like the wheels on a car. If a car's goal is to have four wheels, do they all have to go in the same direction or can they all do whatever the heck they feel like every day? They have to go in the same direction. And when you take the time as the leader of your company to consider what really is or are the non negotiables for your company and you teach them to your employees, you empower them to then go through their day. So the example is with 110% satisfaction. Take my admin. My admin is extremely important to us in our Business, but outside looking in, you might take her for an entry level person. If you're a client calling up on the telephone, you might think she's just the person that answers the phone, whatever it is. But the reality is, is that she has a tremendous amount of responsibility because every customer that calls our showroom happy or mad starts with her. And because she knows that our core value is 110% satisfaction. If somebody calls mad, think about your experience. When you call a customer, when you call a company and you're not so happy and they give you nonsense, I don't know this and I don't know that, and I have to this and you have to that and I have to ask 50 people that and blah, blah, blah. Instead, Adriana, if somebody calls up and says, your installer is here and your installer just put, uh, up purple drapes and I ordered blue drapes, first thing she's going to do is look at the paperwork, and guess what? The paperwork's probably going to say purple drapes, okay? But Adriana knows that even if that paperwork says purple drapes and that customer signed on purple drapes and we ordered purple drapes and we installed purple drapes, she knows if she wants blue drapes, we're going to take those purple drapes down and give her blue drapes. She knows that. Because I don't putz with my customers. I don't nickel and dime them, and I don't figure out ways to make them responsible or wrong for anything, I will stand behind it. So instead of having somebody on the ledge, instead of having somebody who doesn't know what's gonna happen, instead of her being freaked out because it says purple and the person says it was supposed to be blue, she can simply say, Mrs. Smith, I can hear that you're very upset and I'm 100% certain that Luann is gonna take care of this for you. She's been due into the showroom in the next 45 minutes. Don't you worry about a thing. We're going to figure this out. Make sure that you get the drapes you want.

Speaker B: So with your 100% satisfaction guarantee and in such a heavily customer service based business, which I understand as a high end portrait photographer, serving, you know, the most particular people, and rightfully so, I get it. But I'm kind of curious as to, you know, you just described a really great customer service experience, but I'm also, you know, uh, to me there's almost a broader picture, like what does it really look like? So to Hear that? It sounds like the way customer service looks to you is that the customer is always right. Which I have never really fully believed. Not that you don't take care of the problems, but I'm kind of how does it in a broader. And let me qualify why I believe that. What I say to a lot of entrepreneurs anyway, the customer is only always right to the degree that you're desperate for their money. Right. Because then people bend over backwards to try to accommodate somebody that you're just never gonna make happy. That's how I kind of fall into. To me, customer service looks like, like work with the ideal customers in the first place so that you're. And you're actually calling them to the mat in some way. That's why I'm a really large proponent of big deposits. Money creates commitment. Getting people like literally drawing their level of commitment out of them so that you're creating mutual value. Right. Um, maybe as a photographer it was a little more so that way was important because people had to show up willing to be photographed. They had to show up. It all shows up on the surface. Right. While I'm photographing them. So, so I'm just kind of curious with all that. Like, what does 100% satisfaction in the realm of customer service really look like? Does it mean that they're right all the time? Is it that you have a desire to make it right? That doesn't mean that they're always right.

Speaker A: Right. So there's a lot in there that you just said. The first thing is absolutely true. They're not always right. Most of them are crazy. Let's be real. Okay, okay. So. And they're not always right. In that particular case, Mrs. Smith, did we have all of the documentation to show that she ordered a bullet blue drape? There's no question. It's. I'm not suggesting that we lay down. I'm, um, not suggesting anybody else lay down and give away their hard earned property.

Speaker B: Actually, I just want to clarify all the paperwork said she ordered a purple drape.

Speaker A: I'm sorry, right. It all said that. Yes, it all said that she ordered the purple. In other words, what she had was what she ordered. Right?

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: So she is not right. But I have this other saying that is, do I want to be right or do I want to get what I want? So if I only want to be right, and this works, when I'm talking to my husband, I'm talking to my kids, I'm talking to my employees, or I'm talking to my customers, if I only want to be right, then I simply do what probably at least 70% of the businesses would do out there in that situation is I call her up and I straighten her out. Hey, Mrs. Smith, here's your paperwork. It's got, you know, it's got purple drapes on it. You signed it. I showed you purple fabric. We didn't even have blue fabric. You're out of your mind. Sorry. I've got your 50% deposit. Pay me your balance and don't let the door hit you in the butt. Right, That's. I am right. But do I want to get what I want? What I want is an advocate for my company. What I want is an as a person who will go out and say, oh my goodness, you have no idea how amazing it is to work with window works. Now here's the other thing in there. This is the other lesson in there, is that it is not just a lay down thing. So when we really peel away, how am I actually going to handle this situation? Is I'm also a firm believer in, and this is for us business warriors listening. I'm a firm believer in you never give something to somebody like this. This is a gift. If I give this woman, if I remake her a blue drapery when she ordered purple, this is a gift, right? So I don't mean when I want to give my friend, my colleague, my customer, a, uh, reward gift, that's a different story. But when I'm going to give something over to this customer, in this case where she is not right, then I have to make sure she knows I've given it to her. So very often in this situation, I've done it dozens of times. I will simply call up, how are you? Blah, blah, blah. You get the scoop on where and how the miscommunication went. There's usually some place where in a conversation you can identify. Now here's the thing. If I identify in that conversation that I dropped the ball, there's times when a customer will say, hey, I called you at 10 o' clock on Tuesday night and remember I said change it to blue. If she's right about that, even though I didn't remember till then, all day long, take those drapes out, make them over again. But if I know at the end of this conversation that she actually still is wrong, then I'll make the appointment for a face to face. And then I go through and I look at the purple drape and I acknowledge and I ask her and I somehow get her to acknowledge that it actually is perfect in Here, because if I sold it, it probably works. But then I say to her, but, you know, this isn't about me. It's your home. And I would love to make you happy, and I would love to put the blue drape in here. And here's what I do in these particular situations, Mrs. Smith. I've already made profit. This is a business. We know that. Right? I've already made profit by executing the purple drape. Why don't we. Since you can see now that you signed the documents for the purple drape, you can recall our conversation, that there really was the purple, ordered that, that you wanted the blue. It was never expressed, or we never talked about blue, whatever it is. But now you want blue. How about this? Why don't I. You pay me this invoice in full, I will make you the blue drape at my net wholesale cost. Does that sound fair to you? And every time they say, yes, it does, because they know they've made the mistake, you see?

Speaker B: And they respect that. Uh, you're in business for a reason.

Speaker A: Exactly. Now, like I said, if there's any mistake on our part, the tiniest 1% mistake, then I make it again, no charge. But if I really determine, like you said, like, really, the customer isn't always right, but there is a process and a system that we follow that enables that customer to save face, to be thankful to us in the process, for us to have integrity. You know what I mean? But when we talk about as the leaders, in the beginning, you said, what's the point of a company mission? It really does start with my frontline. People know that. That they don't have to get freaky on the front line. They can just say, luann will take care of it. How I ultimately take care of it is up to me and will always be balanced by the actual details of each and every scenario. But the confidence that everybody that we have working for us, that they just know, they know they can rely on the people that own the business they work for to do the right thing enables them to be superstars at their jobs.

Speaker B: What I love about I said just how I asked the question, like, what's customer service look like to you? I would say that customer service to you is building a community of advocates. Right? So at the end of the day, your decisions are coming from the understanding that customer service to you looks like making sure that everybody's happy to the point they'd be an advocate. And I think that's, you know, and interestingly enough, that by pointing out and making Mrs. Smith clear that she actually made the mistake. Because I've been in the same situation and you meet halfway and you create that win.

Speaker A: Win.

Speaker B: She's actually more likely to be an advocate.

Speaker A: Absolutely. Always. Always. Because she knows at the end of the day, in this particular scenario, she knows at the end of the day she purple and she's going to end up with blue and that's what she wants and she's happy about that. And what's so funny is what we know is as business owners is that when you can turn a negative situation and an unhappy customer into the happy one, that is your best advocate.

Speaker B: It really is. Yeah. Yeah. So it's more so than even just the one that you just see the expectations. Yeah.

Speaker A: Because there's it all.

Speaker B: And why is, and the reason why is because you've actually deepened the relationship. You've actually had a, a thing together.

Speaker A: And also they've seen the actual fulfillment of your marketing promise. You know, like I say, all of our marketing talks about we're going to be behind it, we're going to be with you, we're going to get, stay with you till it's finished. We're going to be the ones that you're going to love it. But if you order something for me, I, uh, tell you it comes in in five weeks. It comes in in five weeks, it gets installed, you pay your money. It's a, that's a great experience, but there's nothing memorable about it. I wasn't testing it. When you have to test my promises to you and I come through, that makes an impression on you.

Speaker B: Yeah, that's a great point. When your promises are tested and you come through, that makes all the difference. Love that. So one of the other fundamentals of building a well designed business, which is just evident in everything about you, is you suggest to be a systems freak. And by the way, I love the analogy of the, the, the children's book. If you give a mouse a cookie and how that, that cook, that mouse had a system. I mean it's, I was such a good analogy because I love reading that book to my kids and now I get why. It's because I'm a systems guy. I make a system out of everything. I get made fun of all the time because I, I literally, I have a spreadsheet for spreadsheets. Like I have a spreadsheet for everything. So I love that analogy. So tell us a little bit about why, you know, for those that are, they're not convinced yet, why do they need to Be a systems freak.

Speaker A: Well, the reality is, I know it. See, this is a perfect segue to what we just described, because you are by nature a systems freak. You know, they work. And that seems obvious to you.

Speaker B: I don't have time to not have systems.

Speaker A: Right, but see, you come to it naturally, right? So you're almost like the order that went perfect. It was ordered, it was installed. It was great. You know, systems work. I love systems. Of course they work. See, I'm the other guy. I'm the person that came kicking and screaming to systems. I'm the person who's like, hey, it's fine. I got this. We'll get it done. Don't you worry. But my husband is like you. And he had window works for six months before I came into the company and started working with him at the time. And honestly, I mean, the first three or four years, you could. Every day of the week, there was a conversation in our business, like, luann, I need you to do it this way. Write the paperwork this way, Turn it in this way. Picture. You're like. And I would be like, okay, okay. And then three days later, be like, sweet Jesus, I asked you to do it this way. I'd be like, but it's done. What's the difference? You know what I mean? And so I am, um, what you call a rehabilitated, free, and loosey goosey person, because I have. They were forced on me. And it was the combination of the pressure exerted by my husband in order to fit in and toe the line with systems. But what happens is the pressure of doing it. And then the doing it, uh, equaled the result that you just expressed. It frees you up. It gives you so much more time. It gives you more time to sell. It gives you more time to be off from work. It gives you more time to manage your employees. It gives you more time to do, uh, business and personal development. If you've. And the big, big, big thing I learned is that if you don't have a system, then you actually don't have a business. You have a you. Because if you are the only person that knows how to do everything that you do in your business, it's not duplicatable, it's not sellable, it's not trainable and teachable to somebody else. So you have a you. And you can't scale a. Ah, you. You can't take a you from $100,000 in gross sales to $3 million in gross sales, because you cannot do everything. And if you haven't enunciated your systems and the way everything gets done, they can't be duplicated.

Speaker B: That's great point. I also think I'll add to that that systems. As you're saying this, I'm reminded of how systems also can help you if your business is seasonal. Right. So as a photographer, my business was very seasonal. And a story stands out to me that for years growing up, I mean, many, many years growing up, my family had a tradition. My extended family, there were about 26 of us. Um, every year for Mother's Day, our grandparents would take the whole family of like 26 out to a restaurant. And every year it was a different restaurant. But yet every year it was also the same scenario. Right. You'd go to a restaurant on Mother's Day, which by the way is the busiest restaurant day. Right. So what happens when you go on Mother's Day? They have a limited menu because they want to restrict what you can order. So they have a limited menu. The prices are jacked up and the service is terrible.

Speaker A: Right, right.

Speaker B: And as a, because I was such a nerd as a kid, as a little kid, I'm sitting there thinking, on the busiest day of the year when you have the opportunity to impress the maximum number of people, why are you doing your worst job?

Speaker A: Great point. What an observation, Jeff.

Speaker B: Right. I'm telling you, I was a little nerdy business kid. I was, you know, Alex P. Keaton long before he existed. But you know, that's what systems can do. Systems can enable you if your business is seasonal, systems can enable you to be at the top of your game when you, you're overly busy and when you're slow because everything is consistent. Because at the end of the day, the customers that are, uh, coming to you at the busiest time of year, the customers that are spending the most amount of money, they should not be sacrificed on any level of customer service.

Speaker A: Right, exactly. Exactly. True. And it just, you know, the systems also, they are such a fail safe for catching mistakes. Also our systems have systems and they have cross checks and there isn't a system that we have in our business that isn't touched by at least two team members. So that if I drop the ball, there is a system designed by a second team member to check to see if I brought that ball. Very cool. Yeah, it's really, uh, it's, it's, it's

Speaker B: a, that is a system for your system. Ah, literally.

Speaker A: Yes. The truth, and the other thing is, is that when you consistently do something the same way over and over and over. Then again, you know, whether your team is two people or five people or whatever it might be, everybody comes to understand that. So, like, in our business, I have, you know, my install, and if I always do, uh, something a certain way, if I get. If they get to the install, and they're like, wait a second, she didn't say that this drapery rod should be under the crown, but, you know, you can count on, you know, two hands a number of times in a month. She doesn't want the drapery rod under the crown. So it's because I do it in a certain way that if Thread sends a red flag to another team member, I might have just forgotten to write it down, or maybe I changed my mind that time. But either way, because everything we do, we strive to do it with consistency. When something's inconsistent, it alerts somebody else.

Speaker B: Exactly. I used to do that with my photo lab, like my lab had on the wall. Jeffrey Shaw defaults because I'm always gonna want a certain type of mount board. I'm almost always gonna want a certain amount of texture. So if I order something that is out of that, alert me, because it's more than likely a button I forgot to push when I ordered it through the online system. Right.

Speaker A: See, and that's so perfect on the, uh, point of your lab, you. That extra layer of customer service, of understanding your norms and knowing that you might change them. But they have it set up a system for recognizing what the norms are, no matter who's making the process of your photos that day. And the next step, I'm sure, of contacting you to say, is this a mistake or is this a change? Love it.

Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: So I wanted to also ask you about, uh, I used to say I think you're the only person I have ever come across that shares my view, literally. Luann, I think you're the first person that has come along that shares my view that defining who our ideal customers is begins with us. Uh, yes.

Speaker A: Yes.

Speaker B: That's the entire chapter two of my book lingo. That's what the entire chapter is about. And I talk about it on stages because we have been led to believe in normal business that the customer is, like, they're a target, they're a buyer Persona. There's something that outside of us, but really knowing who you're meant to serve begins with you. So I would love to get more from you on your perspective. I said, you're literally the first person I think that I've met that shares my perspective, that we don't define our best customers outside of ourselves. It begins with who we are.

Speaker A: Right? Well, I mean, isn't it. I mean, to me, some. Like you said, you mentioned in the beginning of the show that I take things down to such a basic level, but to me, it is. It's so basic. Where am I going to spend my day the happiest? So if I decide that my target client is the. I don't know. It doesn't matter. I can't even. It doesn't. Doesn't matter. Whatever it is, if it's so foreign to me, my personality, my wheelhouse, my ability to be my best self, well, what kind of day is that? I mean, how am I gonna relate to you? Because the other is just an external thing then, right? I mean, it's like you said, it's a target. And how real can a target be if you haven't taken into account.

Speaker B: I love hearing you stammer through this a little bit because it's. To you and I, it's like it doesn't make sense to do it any other way. Like, why would your best customer. Why would you define your best customer? Your ideal customer? Because they're a good demographic, uh, socioeconomic,

Speaker A: I got the dog head tilt going on.

Speaker B: That could be a nightmare. Right?

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And I have dealt with this. I've had people come to me and say, well, uh, I've been told this is who I should work with. They make me miserable. But I think it's the most profitable road in business. I'm like, really? That's how you want to live your life?

Speaker A: Exactly. The thing is, the most, the biggest thing about here's, here's the other thing too, right? How hard is it to be self employed? It's really hard.

Speaker B: Really hard.

Speaker A: All sunshine and roses. And so the thing is, it has to be like getting up in the morning and putting on your most comfortable pair of shoes. It has to fit you. Everything that you do has to sing to your soul. It has, has to bring passion. You have to want to be in it. Because there are a thousand moments in a week, in a month, in a year that just, uh, attempt to crush you down.

Speaker B: I love it. So your ideal customer is like your favorite pair of jeans.

Speaker A: Yeah. It's got a fit. Nothing.

Speaker B: But it has to fit. It has to fit. And it has. You know, you've paid, you've. You've worn it down so it's smooth. And I love that your ideal customer is like your best favorite pair of jeans. Love that. So, you know the whole, uh, the premise of your book, uh, the making of a well designed Business. And, and I love the idea of a well designed business. Again, I love good branding, obviously. I love how you tied in the fact that you're in the design business and your title is well Done. Well Done.

Speaker A: Wait to hear my second book, Jeff. Second, uh, book is coming out March 30, 2019, and that's called the Things I Learned from a well Designed Business.

Speaker B: Oh, there you go. Well, that one's not quite as creative,

Speaker A: but it's all tying all into the branding.

Speaker B: It reminds me of, uh, the small house book series like the first one was. Yeah. There's like designing this small house and then things I learned from designing the small house. So I love that. So. But in the effort to design a, uh, well designed business, you say that we need to dream, visualize and intend. So tell us more about that. How do those three things again, back to the threes again. But how do those three things intersect in designing a well designed business?

Speaker A: Well, these sort of speak back to the component of confidence because there has to be. You have to believe in your passion for your business, your business itself, your ability to run your business, and the dreams that you have for this business. You must believe in them. You must at your core level, know that you are completely capable of creating, creating this business that you vision for yourself. And in that you must have the vision for this business. You must look ahead. What does it look like in one year? What does it look like in 3, 5 and 10? And the thing about that, Jeff, is look. That's business 101, right? Make your business plan, take it out for a year, take it out for three. But it is a powerful tool. The reason it is business 101 is because it works. The reason James fixed formula for running a half and a full marathon has been a mainstay for 40 years is because it works. So, you know, like I often say to my kids, okay, I know this is cliche, but things get to be cliche because they're true, you know, so you can't discount it because it feels like, oh, everybody says that you must put out on paper what it is. And I believe that you make it whatever you say. See, if you see a $10 million company, put it on paper. If you see a solo firm for your entire life, that you always manage your personal time and your business time and you're profitable and you always have that perfect balance of income and happiness and time and, uh, everything, then put it out there. It doesn't mean that it has to be big or little, but what is your vision? Write it down, dream on it, and then intend to make it come true. Because, uh, you can. That's the truth.

Speaker B: Awesome. All right, so Luann, thank you for all that. So in a moment, I'm going to ask you our discovery round questions. So while you're preparing yourself for these thought provoking questions, we're going to hear a brief message and we'll be right back. Hey, warriors. Do you sometimes wonder if your website is showing you and what you do at your best? Whether it's speaking to your ideal customer? Are people coming to your website but not converting to customers? Or are you not super proud of the way you and your work are portrayed on your website? According to my research, 98 out of 100 websites are not speaking the lingo of their ideal customers. As a listener of creative warriors, I'm offering you a rare opportunity for me to help you out. I'll do a quick review of your website, complimentary, and let you know how you can improve your website. To be sure you're speaking the lingo of your ideal customers, all you have to do is go to lingoreview.com, fill out a quick feedback form and I'll take a look at your website and email you with some tips to improve your website. Again, that's lingoreview.com I look forward to making sure you are putting the best of yourself out in the world and getting the results you want. All right, Luann, it is time for our discovery round questions. Question number one. What drives you crazy?

Speaker A: What drives me crazy? Uh, what drives me crazy is when people don't take accountability for themselves and when we, as people, we give our power over and say, that couldn't possibly, or that's not like me, or that's okay for your business, but not my business. You must, I say, you have to decide to be acceptable. Excellent. So it drives me crazy when someone longs for anything, but is it willing to make the decision to make it happen?

Speaker B: And in your effort to have a well designed business, to dream, visualize and intend, do you have daily practices that support that? Quarterly, yearly. How do you. What practices do you have to help you dream, visualize and intend?

Speaker A: M. All of it. So I make a vision board every year. So that's the big, big picture. That is not a finite business plan. That's the big pict. A vision board. The second thing is that there is a vision board for, if you will. Uh, that's finite for the business plan we, we plan out every. What, what our revenue will be for the our goal revenue for the year. We divide it into the months. Not 12 months divided into that number, but 12 months based on 36 years of records on the high months, the low months, the middle months. Then we divide it down even further by salesperson, by month and by day. So I wake up every day knowing how much I have today. And then beyond that my day is broken down into time blocks. Wednesday and Thursday are podcasting day. Monday, Tuesday, Friday are uh, window works day. And then beyond that the days are broken down. 6am to 7am I write 7:30 to 8:30. I go to CrossFit. It's planning to achieve.

Speaker B: Love it. Awesome. Being a systems freak. Do you have a favorite system, tool or technology?

Speaker A: I'm really. I can't say that I do. I really. You know, it's funny, I'm such a kick. This goes back to my innate nature of not. I mostly kick and scream against all technology as much as I know and recognize how much they help me. But so yeah, I'm the typical. I'm using 9,000 pieces, but there's no love for any of them.

Speaker B: Everything's MacGyvered. No, but I actually love. Actually I love your. What you just described in the previous question. In a way, that's a system. Right. You're starting broad, broad and then. Right. And narrowing it down. I think that, I think that's a really valuable. I do it similarly and I think it's brilliant. But I also like the way you didn't just divide it by an even number of, you know, your sales goal for the year wasn't divided by an even number of 12. It was based on records, the high, low and middle months. So very smart. So that to me. And again, I think you're. You seem to be the type of person that like, being a systems person is so innate to you that you almost can't identify a favorite system because you don't know how to think otherwise.

Speaker A: Yes. You know what it is? I'm going to fight you a little bit. It's almost a little bit more like. Like I recognize the value of every single one of them and so I execute them. But I can't say that I love being in systems. My innate nature is not. And I have to say that one of the reason why I consistently mention that to you and to your warriors, Jeff, is because so many creatives truly believe, because their nature is creative and they are not natural to systems, that it can't be done that they're doomed to not be able to overcome that. But you know what I say, put your big girl panties on and do it.

Speaker B: Yeah. Love it. All right, so last question is. Imagine you're sitting around a campfire and out of the darkness appears your greatest enemy. What inner warrior do you call upon and why?

Speaker A: Uh, well, this is really developing a theme here, isn't it, Jeff? Because. Because when you think about your question as a metaphor, which is the way you intend it, my greatest challenge is as much as I embrace them, is staying in the systems. And also too, in the last three years since I've started this podcast, now it's me. I do the podcast primarily. I have team, uh, members that help me, but it is 100% driven by my vision, my direction, and my to do list. And so, so I have now re remembering how hard it is to develop systems and to live in those systems. And especially because I spend most of my podcasting time alone. There is nobody over my shoulder saying, you've got to, you've got to, you've got to. And so I would say that that metaphor for that biggest enemy is the systems, and the warrior that comes to me is my set. I have to just say, stand up, lady, and do it, because there's nobody else here that's going to do it for you.

Speaker B: Awesome. So the stand up warrior. Totally get it. Love it. Luann, thank you so much. It's really been a pleasure to have you here. So everyone's going to want to hop on over to creativewarriorsunite.com for links to everything that was mentioned today, as well as all of Luann's, uh, contact information. And of course, if you're not part of our Creative Warriors Unite Faith Facebook group, please join us@joinwarriors.com so everything you need, the show notes, the Facebook group resources, everything you need is@creativewarriorsunite.com Luann, thank you so much for being here and, uh, helping us have a well designed business.

Speaker A: Thank you, Jeff. It was my pleasure and an honor.

Speaker B: That's it for now, warriors. Let's go out. Create, serve and be prosperous. Thank you for joining us for another episode of Creative Warriors. Be sure to go to Creative Warriors Unite. Check out the resources available for you, Join our Facebook group and be on the lookout for our very next episode of Creative Warriors.