Podcast of “Get Down To Business” – 09/26/2021 - Bryan Cressey, Justin Breen and Tom Miroballi

I see my name in shiny lights. Yeah, a different city every night. Oh, I swear the world better prepare for when I'm a billionaire. It's time to get down to business on the weekend's number one business program. Known as the King of Networking, your host Shalom Klein has worked with thousands of entrepreneurs and created countless jobs. So to Let's get down to business.

And indeed, we're all about small business, jobs, and entrepreneurship. And business, we talk a lot about business here. You're on with Get Down to Business, and I'm your host, Shalom Klein. Remember, you could always download podcasts from Get Down to Business on my website at shalomklein.com. And while you are there, don't forget to follow me on Twitter @ShalomKlein. It's going to be a jam-packed week of content and information you will not want to miss. But I'm excited because I get to kick off the show with my very, very good friend, Justin Breen, who I haven't had on in a while. But he is a returning guest and is just connected with some of the most outstanding, amazing, visionary individuals that have been regular guests on this show. So for that, Justin, I'll kick off by saying thank you for being you.

Yeah, well, you know, most people don't embrace the fact that they're weird or unique, and I embrace it and continue to double down at the highest level. And that's— I've built 2 global companies with zero business background in 4 years, just embracing my weirdness and uniqueness. So you're welcome.

Well, I remember sitting in, uh, sitting in the office and I remember talking with you, uh, when you were, uh, pre-entrepreneurship and you probably wouldn't know, uh, what, how to, what, what a business plan is. But I mean, you are, you are, as you say—

I still don't.

You still don't. I was about to say, I said, you're, you always, um, you're a self-described wackadoo. I think you said that the other day, a self-described wackadoo. But you're, uh, things are working because you've got that, uh, as you always say over and over again, that visionary abundant investment mindset. And so that's what I want to talk about. So again, I'm chatting with Justin Breen, the founder and owner of Brepik Communications LLC, but also the author of a book which we have featured on Get Down to Business, and now the Brepik Network. So I want to cover all of those things and all of those 3 things in our few short minutes together. So Justin, how is Brepik Communications doing?

Yeah, so when you partner with visionaries who live in abundance and look at things as investments, not costs, it eliminates 99.9% of the population. But the 0.1% that's left are the ones that are changing the world. So, things are amazing because I just partner with people that don't ask, what do you cost or charge? They say, what does an investment with you look like? And those people change the world and then I help them change the world for everyone else.

Absolutely. And you are a storyteller and I've discovered that about you a long, long, long time ago. And that's what makes it easy for me to host this show because you introduce me to people that have just an incredible, incredible story to tell. And your stories have been featured quite literally on every national, international publication out there. And you and your wonderful wife, Sarah, you are— this isn't just business for you. This is— I know this is a way of life.

No, no, no. So, yeah. So, business plan, right? Business plans are for business owners. I'm an entrepreneur. There's a very big difference. And I don't care about revenue, office space, employee count. I've never I mean, I was a journalist for 20 years. You don't get into journalism to care about that stuff. And I just care about spending time with my family. When you do that, you have a good life, good family life, good life. And then I'd like to build my network on a global level. When you do that, you create endless opportunities for your network and yourself. Now, the byproduct of that is that I have one incredibly successful global company that only partners with the top folks in the world or the ones that'll make the investment to do that. And just launched a second one that's essentially LinkedIn without the BS, even though I like LinkedIn. But it's an invite-only, high-price-point connectivity platform for people that don't want to waste time with spam. They just want the connection. So, it's just technology for my brain and I'm very excited about it. Yeah.

Technology for your brain. I like it. So, it's called Brepic Network. And I know you just launched, you just had a fantastic launch with, and I have to talk about this, you launched it with your partner who you had not met prior to that night.

No need to. What's the point of that? And so most folks are living in cost scarcity world, need to meet in person. I mean, there's no reason for that anymore. The next time I'm going to meet Mark Fujihara, he's in San Francisco. The next time I'm going to quote unquote meet him in person is when we get to a certain member count for the new network. And then my wife Sarah and I are going to fly out to San Francisco to go to French Laundry, which is one of the top restaurants in the world with Mark and his wife Amy. And, you know, I mention all that because a lot of entrepreneurs, actually most of them are very hard on themselves. They're the hardest people on themselves, and they never take time to celebrate. And I am constantly celebrating, constantly, because when you're constantly celebrating and living in gratitude, it's very hard to not celebrate, and it's very hard to be ungrateful. So, just constantly grateful. You can't be ungrateful if you're constantly grateful.

And Brepic Network, which of course anybody can look up, it is by invitation only because, as you say, you're trying to work with Really the top-notch premier platform for those—

Well, we are. We're already doing that. Yeah, we're already— yeah. So, and, you know, it's an interesting thing because, you know, it's really bizarre to me because people think I'm a great sales— I hear all the time, oh, you're such a great salesman. And I'm like, I don't even know what you're talking about. I don't sell anything. I'm just the buyer. You know, companies and folks, they pay my firm, you know, my PR firm, and then they're gonna, you know, buy into this Brepic Network. But I'm not selling anything. I'm just I'm just buying the people I want to hang out with. And it's just flipping the script on what 99% of folks do. They're trying to sell something. I'm not trying to sell anything. I just want to hang out with the people that get it and it eliminates everything else. And then I can just focus on what I like to do and what I'm good at. It's very simple.

And I want to talk about that for a moment because this is a learning lesson, hopefully, for all of our listeners, entrepreneurs out there, whether in Chicago or around the world. That you say this on your website, and I found it fascinating as I was preparing for this conversation. Have you ever noticed that some of the best service providers in the world don't advertise much because their business comes from word of mouth and referrals? And I believe in that. I see that over and over again.

100%.

That ultimately it's the relationships. And Justin, you must have really discovered that.

Yeah, I haven't done anything outbound in years because again, I'm not selling anything. I'm just the buyer. And so what happened— all I do is simplify things. I hear blah, blah, blah, and immediately simplify it into patterns. The ultimate one for me is if you have the right mindset, right mindset, visionary abundance investment, it attracts the right network, visionary abundance investment, and visionary abundance investment people create the right opportunities for you. And I create the right opportunities for them. So that's all my PR firm is. It's just a giant incubator of geniuses. And we're constantly introducing each other for mutual gain. Nothing out, no outbound sale. That's just intro, intro, intro. And so that's all the new company is, is technology for that. It's a platform for that. It's very simple.

Led by Chief Wackadoo, Justin Breen himself. So Justin, for our listeners that are out there, what is— and I ask this all the time of every visionary, as you always say, that comes on this program. I always ask for that one takeaway. We air this program on Sunday night on the radio, and that gives people the opportunity to really get a fresh start in their week. Justin, what do you want to see the entrepreneurs tuning in putting into practice in the week ahead?

Yeah. So the purpose of my life is to be a connecting superhero for every visionary abundance investment mindset entrepreneur and share their stories with the world. So besides hanging out with my family and friends, that's 100% of my day. There's no deviation from that. And it's endlessly fun. It's endlessly lucrative. It's endlessly exciting. It's endlessly interesting. And my point is I'm just constantly in my zone of genius. There's nothing else. Constantly in that. And when you're in that, all this other stuff's eliminated.

And Justin, I don't know if you can look back to day one, and I remember being around you, maybe not on day one, but right around then. What is that one thing that you would recommend for somebody just getting started, maybe a young entrepreneur, somebody just out of college that has that mindset? What can they do to get started?

Yeah. So you're either born like— you either can start a global company with zero business background in a few years and have your job salary cut in half and reach out to 5,000 people to get your first 5 clients. You're either born like that or you're not. And go ahead and try. Go ahead and try. And I really encourage that. The bottom line is most people can't do this. And entrepreneurship is the hardest thing you will ever do. And the people that are on the fence, they're either born like this or they're not. And if they are born like this, then they can do it. And if they're not, they won't be able to. It's very simple.

Justin, the last of the 3 things that I said that we would talk about, and I want to make sure that I live to my word over here, is Epic Business, which is the book. Which really answers that question because you've got 30 secrets to build your business exponentially and give you the freedom to live the life you want. And I know you are doing that each and every day. Again, I'm chatting with the author of that book, Epic Business, Justin Breen, the founder and CEO of Brepic Communications and now the Brepic Network. Justin, you are a pleasure and I appreciate again all of the good people you send my way. And I always look forward to our conversations. Justin, how can people learn more about you and this fantastic incubator that, as you say, you've been building?

Sure. So again, Creating LinkedIn Without the BS, but I do like LinkedIn. Justin Breen on LinkedIn. And, and then the company's called Brepic, new ones, Brepic Network. So I really appreciate it, Shalom, and thank you for serving our country.

Absolutely. Thank you for the support, my friend. And again, I can't wait to have you back on because where there's 2 businesses, there's probably going to be number 3. And where there's one book, there's probably going to be book number 2. 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.

Exactly.

Lots more genius where that one came from. So I can't wait. And the books, I'm sure, will just keep coming. And again, Justin Breen, be sure to connect with him on LinkedIn and check out Brepik Communications, Brepik Network, and Epic Business, the book. We're going to squeeze in a quick break in just a moment, and then we'll be chatting with our returning guest, our friend, health insurance guru Tom Miraballi will be joining us after this quick break. But be sure to get on your favorite podcast app— Apple, Spotify, Google, really doesn't matter— just search for Get Down to Business. And you'll be connected with over 500 outstanding entrepreneurs and leaders that have joined us over these past 8+ years. Chicago, don't touch that dial. We will be right back. Hey, we're back on Get Down to Business, and as promised, As promised, I am joined by our returning guest, health insurance guru Tom Miraballi. Tom, welcome back to the program.

Well, thank you very much for having me.

How have you been?

I'm well, I'm well. You know, the world continues to, continues to be crazy. And you know, the one— I was telling somebody earlier that the one constant is the unconstant and the change. But I will say that the one constant is that everybody needs health insurance and everybody Uh, wants to take care of themselves, their families, and, you know, their employees if they're fortunate to have employees. And Tom, uh, I'm, I'm jealous of you because you get to do that each and every day.

Every single day, and I love it.

I know.

And I'm available every single day. I was about to say, I know you're answering your calls when, uh, when most people are sleeping. And, um, we always say this, that you can't answer 24 hours a day, but I know that when folks leave you a message, you're quickly responding. So let's talk about that. some of the calls that you receive and some of the ways that you are saving people money on their health insurance coverage and, uh, and plans. So we're having this conversation obviously at the end of September, which means that we are now officially at the end of Q3 2021, um, which is just crazy. So Tom, what's, uh, what's the Tom Miraballi Health Insurance Hotline, uh, been, uh, been ringing about?

Well, they're, uh, trying to figure out why the, uh, deductibles have gone up and why the premiums have gone up. And now a lot of people are saying, oh, I want to get a tax credit because the administration ended up raising the amount of money that you can qualify for a premium tax credit. But a lot of people don't realize that if you make more than what you state you're making to obtain the premium tax credit from the Affordable Care Act, you have to pay that back. You have to pay that tax credit back at a very high interest rate. But you see, the government doesn't tell you that. And if people don't know that and don't ask the marketplace about the premium tax credit and the penalties attached to it, they don't know. They have no clue.

No, absolutely. And, and, you know, Tom, there's something that you and I have not talked about in our many, many conversations. Um, which is, uh, and it's, it's on our mind now because, uh, the, uh, tax filing deadlines are now over. Hopefully everybody has their taxes in from last year, and no doubt all of our listeners are starting to get their shoebox of information ready for next year. At the end of every year, um, many folks get what's called a 1095-Alpha, a 1095-A, and it says something about health insurance.

Is that—

tell us a little bit about that and what our listeners should be doing with that form when they receive it, and what does it actually mean?

Well, you have to check with your CPA, your tax accountant, but whatever you pay in health insurance— let's say you're self-employed— whatever premiums you pay for your health insurance, no matter what plan you have or company that you have, that is a tax deduction. But I'm not an accountant and I don't play one on TV. You have to talk to your accountant and find out how much money you can take off If you're married, have your husband or wife on the plan and your 3 children on the plan, can you take 100% of your health insurance premium off of your income tax? I don't think so, but talk to your accountant, talk to your CPA and find out what your tax benefit is. I have a lot of sole proprietors and the sole proprietor is not a corporation, not a partnership or anything like that, just a one-person operation. There's a lot of people like that, consultants that are single operators. All those health insurance premiums on there that they pay during the course of the year, that's a tax deduction for that individual. Again, you have to check with your accountant.

Oh no, absolutely. Definitely check with your accountant, but the message, my takeaway over here is hold on to that form and bring it over to your accountant because it is important. Because, uh, there may be some benefits, obviously. And, and, you know, uh, my, uh, my father always told me that, uh, that his grandmother who raised him used to say, I want every penny that's mine and not a penny that's not. And that means that you've gotta, you gotta watch those pennies and make sure that you are, uh, that you're getting every, uh, every deduction, every, uh, every refund, whatever, whatever you're entitled to. And that's, uh, that's certainly good advice. So again, I'm chatting with Tom Miraballi, independent agent. His website is healthplanchicago.com. And as always, we have our monthly conversation talking about health insurance. And I encourage all of our listeners to get in touch with him at 630-863-3477. And we'll share that number again in just a moment. So, Tom, we talked about costs and we talked about saving money. So let's stick on that theme, finding lower health insurance costs. So what is the process that you follow when somebody calls you at that number? Again, 630-863-3477. What's some of the first questions that you're asking to make sure that they are on the right plan and that they're getting all of the savings that they hopefully are entitled to?

Well, the first thing I ask them, what is their zip code? Where do you live? I did one this morning in the 60615 zip code, which is Chicago. And then the next question is, how many people are on the plan? And what are their dates of birth? And this morning I did a husband at 50— age 52, his spouse at 52, their son who is 16, and their daughter who is 13. Now I figured the least expensive Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, and that here in Chicago through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois Is the Bronze HMO Plan 205. Well, for the 2 adults and 2 children, the family came out at $1,538.49 every single month for a premium. Over $1,500 every month for a premium with an $8,550 individual deductible. So that's over $17,000 in deductible expenses for the family. Now, at $1,500, this includes all of the mandates, which includes maternity coverage. Now, let me ask you a question. At age 52, are you going to have any more children? That's a yes or no answer. I would say 99% of the people are saying no. So my plans do not include mandatory maternity coverage that the Affordable Care Act has. So, and that is my claim to fame. I can do a plan through a company called North River Insurance Company with 100% coverage, $5,000 deductible per person. And if the 4 people are going to meet it, that's highly unlikely, but a $5,000 deductible per person, 100%, with child immunizations, With preventative care, with telemedication services where you can call and talk to a physician over the phone, that all is included. Their single premium payment for 6 months for the 4 of them, the single premium payment is $3,031.63. And if you divide that by 6 months, their average monthly payment is $505. Rather substantial. They're saving over $1,000 a month. Remember the Affordable Care Act, the least expensive HMO was $1,538.49, and I'm coming in at an average premium of $505.25. Just do the math. There's no mandatory maternity coverage. Yes, They have to be healthy. They cannot have insulin-dependent diabetes. They can't have cancer over the last 5 years, you know, that type of thing. But for a person who does have, let's say, insulin-dependent diabetes, I would take that one person— let's say it's the dad— I take that one person out of my short-term major medical plans and then, you know, put that person onto the Affordable Care Act, and that cost would be $543 for that one adult in this case at age 52. So you're still saving a substantial amount of money.

Absolutely, and that's exactly what we want to make sure our listeners are getting every day, every week, every month, because bottom line, people make the money to keep it and spend it on their family, not to Not to just spend it on that health insurance and again specifics that they don't need. So again, we're chatting with Tom Mirabali, guru, independent agent at healthplanchicago.com, as well as— Tom, can you share your phone number where people can reach you almost 24 hours a day, 7 days a week?

Yeah, well, you can contact me for 24 hours a day and leave a message if I don't answer the phone and call me at 630- 630-863-3477. Again, that's 630-863-3477.

Well, Tom, I appreciate you as always coming on, sharing your advice and expertise with our listeners. We will be promoting this heavily, and I know that Tom Miraballi Health Insurance Hotline will be ringing off the hook. So Tom, thank you again for joining us on the program. We'll have you back on real And we're going to squeeze in a quick break, some headlines, commercials, and more small business jobs and entrepreneurship when we return in just a moment. So certainly because of the COVID-19 crisis, the world looks much different than it did almost 2 years ago. And again, we're back on Get Down to Business, the show all about small business, jobs, and entrepreneurship. And now I wanted to squeeze in a couple of minutes to talk a little bit about some advice. The pandemic certainly has had a massive impact on businesses. Certainly at one point, the US stock market experienced its biggest decline since 1987, dropping a whopping 2,353 points in one day. Many brick-and-mortar stores were forced to shut down indefinitely. As part of social distancing efforts, and most businesses have reported a sharp decrease in customer activity and revenue, with hospitality company Marriott International reporting up to a 90% decline in some locations. Things certainly potentially can even get worse before they get better, but for businesses to survive this pandemic, you have to be really smart about how you approach your operations, specifically marketing. So I wanted to share some dos and don'ts in terms of marketing, things that everybody can put into place this week. Do, I want you to communicate with your customers. It's natural to feel that you've got nothing to say because you're not a health expert and the pandemic certainly has taken up a lot of the oxygen in the room, but the pandemic has ramifications that go beyond just health of the people in the region affected. The COVID-19 pandemic, for example, has pretty much shut down many countries and has sent stock markets crashing. People are afraid, panicky about the impact the global crisis is having and will continue to have on their daily lives. So communicating with your customers shows that you're sensitive to what's going on, that you can empathize with them. With a pandemic at the scale of COVID-19, during which physical movements have been deeply restricted and many people have been forced to work from home, it also allows you to reassure customers that your operations, your services to them, won't be affected in any way due to the changes brought about by the pandemic. Your communication should acknowledge the pandemic and its impact on your audience's daily lives, empathize with your audience members and assure them that you'll be there for them, discuss changes that the pandemic has brought for your business and how those changes will affect them, and reassure them the quality that they should expect from your business with them. Let them know that this will not be affected. Don't, don't stop communicating with your customers. Many of your customers are probably very confused and don't know how to deal with the changes that are going on as a result of the pandemic. Other businesses probably have stopped or will reduce communication with them because of the pandemic, and that should only further drive the panic and uncertainty around the crisis. If you stop communicating, you'll likely lose a good portion of your customers to competitors that are still communicating with them. It'll be difficult to gain them back once the pandemic is over. This is the time to make even better use of marketing communication tools like your email marketing, Constant Contact, Mailchimp. Keep your email marketing schedule consistent and make sure that new content is constantly being delivered to customers. Do, you do need to re-strategize and focus your marketing efforts. While many businesses have suffered significant losses as a result of COVID-19 pandemic, not all of them have been affected negatively. In fact, some companies have been experiencing their biggest growth as the trend towards remote work Video communications company Zoom, it's seen its stock double since the pandemic began, gaining as much as 22% in one day, even while the entire stock market was plummeting. Amazon, our e-commerce giant, has experienced surging demands beyond what it can handle and says it's going to be hiring hundreds of thousands of new workers. Face masks, respirators, hand sanitizers, tissues, cleaning products, and other health-related items have experienced such demand that a lot of them are still out of stock. Resulting in a boom for the companies manufacturing them. These are just a couple of examples of success companies in different industries are experiencing thanks to the pandemic. They demonstrate that every cloud has a silver lining. For you as a business, this means you have to be smart about how you market your products and to whom you market. And certainly it's not just about being gimmicky, but it means that you've got to refocus your efforts and start targeting businesses in these thriving segments. Don't stop creating content. Many businesses in the same industry as yours will probably drastically reduce reduce the amount of content they create or stop creating content altogether. This is an opportunity for you. Don't stop creating content. Instead, double down on content creation. Make sure that your content addresses key questions your customers might have as they go through the pandemic while also searching for other content. These pieces of content will give you a massive advantage when things settle down. Your competitors will then be scrambling to create content. You already have a lot of things ready to go and in search results. Do review your automated marketing activities. Automation is good. It might be the driving force behind many of your business revenue, but that was before the pandemic. Keeping these automations active without updating them to reflect changes caused by the pandemic might make you appear insensitive and more focused on profits than people. Make sure you review your automated marketing activities, including email messages, ad campaigns, and other aspects of your business to cater to your customers' needs. And finally, finally, my last bit of advice is don't, don't decrease your marketing budget. And let me explain this one. It's important to realize that the pandemic will affect other businesses in your industry as much as it affects your own. While other businesses have had to stop operations due to a lack of income, this is the time to increase your marketing efforts. At times like this, ad rates are likely to decrease significantly due to a lot of organizations cutting on their ad spend. This means your ad dollars will be able to go so much further than they would have gone during normal times. It will also allow you to gain market share and be the dominant voice while others are inactive. So I hope you found this advice helpful. Again, to recap, I want you to definitely communicate with your customers Make sure that you're re-strategizing, refocusing your marketing efforts. Don't stop communicating with your customers. Don't stop creating content and do review your marketing activities and don't decrease your marketing budget. Hopefully all of that advice will position you for success in the remainder of 2021 and moving into 2022. And with that, this is our last show of September 2021, which means we are going into Q4 of the year. So this is a good time to refocus. And we've got a lot of advice on all of the past 8+ years of shows. So definitely get on my website, shalomklein.com. That's where you can download the past 8+ years of shows all about small business, jobs, and entrepreneurship. And we have a podcast that you can subscribe to and listen wherever you might be. We're going to squeeze in a quick break. More small business, jobs, and entrepreneurship when we return. Welcome back to Get Down to Business, the show all about small business, jobs, jobs and entrepreneurship. So my next guest is one of the nation's most influential business minds and investors. Bryan Cressey is going to, is going to talk with us about some of the secrets that he's discovered in business, personal and financial success that he's shared with many others through his new book, Be a Winner: Life's Handbook for Joy and Success. And I'm not expecting to get all of the secrets over here, but maybe we'll squeeze out a few nuggets. Bryan, welcome to the program.

Thank you very much. I'm excited to be here. Love your program.

Absolutely. Appreciate it.

Thank you.

Thank you. So I love to always talk, uh, and start our conversations with understanding a little bit about you, um, that led, of course, to the writing of this fantastic book, Be a Winner. So, Bryan, how did you get into, uh, this world of entrepreneurship and, uh, how have you become the person that you are and, uh, You know, in 1986, you were featured in Time Magazine's edition of American Best. So that's pretty exciting.

I appreciate it. When I was young, I was entrepreneurial. And when I went to graduate school, I knew I wanted to help young companies grow. I was lucky enough, one of 2 people to get a job in venture capital in 1976. And I've learned all about entrepreneuring since then. I've grown and helped grow companies, and I've seen how management teams work. And I finally want to speak about it. And I did. People said, write a book. I restarted recording things for my 3 daughters to share with them so they could learn how to do things. And I finally decided I wanted to reach a broader audience because the way life works is different than we're all taught.

That's amazing. And I know you've received many accolades, and certainly in Chicago, you've been named one of 20 Most Inspiring Chicagoans in 2020. So lots of accolades, but I should mention you have a JD from Harvard Law School, an MBA from Harvard Business School, and a bachelor's in economics from the University of Washington. So enough about the background. Let's get into some of those ideas. So in Be a Winner, you talk about a lot of different examples of specific behaviors and actions that lead to success. So let's talk about, from your own experience, some of the hardest problems that you've attempted to solve and some of those solutions that you've uncovered through some of the tools that you share in the book.

I've learned, and it's the hard way, made plenty of mistakes, but I've been fortunate to have a lot of successes working with great people. I've learned that contrary to popular belief, great entrepreneurs work not on their weaknesses. They don't try to improve them. They work on their strengths. And our success in the world will be determined by playing to our strengths and exuding our strengths. Also, teamwork is crucial. The way you become a good teammate is you applaud your other teammates and you don't criticize their weaknesses. What you do is you get players or teammates who fill in your weaknesses. Finally, you admit you have a lot of weaknesses. And the older I get, the more I realize I have so many weaknesses, but I get great people in each of those spots who have a gift. They run with the ball, they get it done, and they're inspired. The final thing that makes a team work or a company work is a vision, a vision that excites. And speaking the vision, the way it excites is it improves the world. It benefits others. In our case, it benefits patients with better quality and better outcomes. You inspire people with that. And guess what happens when you have a great vision? People from other teams, other companies, want to join you and your team because they recognize, whoa, they're going to do these great things. They're having an adventure. They're discovering things. I want to be part of an adventure. People love adventure and excitement, and too many are bored with their jobs today. So that's how great entrepreneurs create great companies.

And I hear your passion, Bryan. I hear the zest and the excitement that you have each and every day. And again, that's why Just over and over again, you've received those accolades. You mentioned your healthcare background, so you've received that Lifetime Achievement Award from the Healthcare Private Equity Association, which is exciting. So we're going to cut to our break in just a moment, but Bryan Cressey, again, the author of Be a Winner. I have to ask, in the week ahead, for our listeners, for the entrepreneurs, small business owners, folks all over the country that are tuning in, what is the one thing that you want them to put into practice as a little bit of homework from our discussion today?

I would love listeners to put into practice listening well to others, listening deeply, and living in love and positivity, being positive as you listen to others. You will hear and find your pathway forward.

Absolutely. That's great advice. Again, the book is called Be a Winner: Life's Handbook for Joy and Success. By entrepreneur and philanthropist Bryan Cressey, talking about a path to becoming both financially successful and personally fulfilled. And Bryan, again, just before we go to break, you've been fortunate to conduct some business all over the world. I like to always squeeze in a little bit of fun and levity into our conversations as well. Where's the most interesting place that you've been and that you cannot wait to get to? after this whole COVID thing is in the rearview mirror?

Oh, interesting places. I love Paris, and I'm disappointed I can't go there. It really is a city of love, great restaurants, great art, and it gets me out of my daily existence. And I love the US, but Paris, I would love to visit again.

Well, there we go. That's Bryan Cressey's choice over here. So again, you're listening to Get Down to Business, the show all about small business, jobs, and entrepreneurship. Don't touch that dial. We are going to be right back, right back with Bryan Cressey, author of Be a Winner. As we wrap up our conversation, don't touch that dial. Get on my website, shalomklein.com. That's where you can download the past 8+ years of shows all about small business, jobs, and entrepreneurship. We'll be right back. Welcome back to Get Down to Business. Be sure to check out the podcast from this show. You can go on your favorite podcast app— Apple, Google, Spotify, really doesn't matter— but just search for Get Down to Business and you will find 8+ years of shows all about small business jobs and entrepreneurship. And speaking Of those topics, Bryan Cressey certainly has talked to us about how to turn entrepreneurial ideas into a reality. And Bryan, no doubt our listeners are nodding their head vigorously as they listen to this conversation, whether in the car or at home. But the question is being asked, is this something just for big businesses and people that are very well established in their career, or can the small business owner, the entrepreneur, benefit from this advice as well?

Small business owners can definitely benefit. In fact, I speak to a lot of them, and what I try to convince them to do is to look at their company, where it's going, and the people. They won't have as much talent, but they've got to have the right people in sales, in operations, and help grow. And the way they do that is innovation. If they get people that innovate and motivate those people, they can win big, just like large companies. The things they can do easier than large companies is innovation and motivation. They don't have layers in between them and the employees on the front line to deal with. The things more difficult is to get resources. And they get resources by showing growth. They get growth by motivating their employees and putting resources into growth, which is innovation and it's sales and marketing.

And I promised Bryan when we started this conversation that we'd share some nuggets. We wouldn't share all of the secrets because we do want folks to pick up a copy of the book, and we'll talk about that in just a moment. But in the book, I know you share dozens of examples of founders, startup ventures, seed investments, along with explanations of what made each of those successful. Can you share just one or two of those examples? And of course, then we will make sure people know where they can find your book online and purchase a copy.

Yeah, one of my favorite examples, a gentleman named Paul Olson, was from the electronic wire networking business. And he saw what was coming with computers and networking them together, started buying little companies and fixing them. And when Paul bought a company that wasn't working, instead of shipping product that wasn't great, he actually— the first one we bought, he stopped production, quit shipping, quit getting income. And the company, of course, lost a lot of money. But when it came out, it was working, high quality, customers started buying again. And that turned out to be the foundation of a company that made 18 acquisitions, built into a billion-dollar company, went public on the New York Stock Exchange, and was incredibly successful. And here's another thing that I learned from Paul that we can all learn from. When a recession came, What did Paul do? Did he cut people and cut expenses? No, he actually grew into new territories, put salespeople there, motivated the salespeople. They sold more product in new territories. He introduced new product lines. And in the end, through the recession, he grew the company. Paul would not—

That's inspiration right there. That's inspiration right there. Absolutely. Bryan Cressey, again, there are so many more examples in the book, which is Be a Winner: A Life's Handbook for Joy and Success. Bryan, you've been a pleasure. I want to make sure folks know where they can find you online and find the book.

Thank you very much. You can go to bryancressey.com, B-R-Y-A-N-C-R-E-S-S-E-Y.com. You can also go to bryancressey.com. 3-minute videos. I put several videos on the last 2 weeks on specific subjects that will show people how to have a wonderful life and how to win at what they're doing.

And we'll link to all of that through our, uh, through our website as well. Well, that's a wrap for us here on the show, all about small business, jobs, and entrepreneurship. Get on my website, shalomcline.com. To success, let's get down to business. We'll talk to you next Sunday at 6 PM right here on AM560, the