Chris Collins Live Stream

The fact of the matter is, is what is the stat? 90% of businesses fail. Chris Collins here. I'm the Business Whisperer. If you want to make $200,000 a year, call me. I can figure out how to get you there. I don't care what you do. You're gonna have to scratch, scrape, and fight for everything. It's gonna hurt a little bit at first. I've been a turnaround specialist, gun for hire, for over 20 years, fixing businesses of all types. Really? The wrong question is where should I market? The right question is, how do I figure out where the hungry crowd is? Being in business for yourself is lonely and it can be pretty hard. It's all ego and like, who's got the bigger dick? I hate all that. So I want you to join us because everyone starts somewhere. I appreciate all that you're doing for the business sector. Am I the business whisperer?

You are the business whisperer.

You have to remember, business is war. So let's fuel up and get ready for battle. Welcome to the Business Whisperer. We have a fun show today for you. Of course. We're going to have dirty business news with the beautiful Miss Diamond. I've hand curated some of those news stories. They're going to be exciting. If you have a question, if you're stuck, you need business advice, marriage advice, basically any advice, I'm here for you. The number is 8337 whisper. Nichols will screen your call if you're. We haven't had a crank call in a while. Nichols, you have to, you have to screen out the crank calls.

The one we did have was pretty funny, though.

Yeah, it was good. It snuck in there earlier, early in our, in our experience here.

So we, we have some fun shows. I had a little business lesson that I learned on Friday. There was. There's actually a couple lessons there, but you know, when you buy stuff during the holidays, some of the stores will give you a gift card that's only good for like a two week period during March.

Yeah, you got, you have to come. You have to like come back in three weeks and then you can use it. Yeah.

So I had one of those and it was going to expire last weekend.

Okay.

And so my la. Basically my last day to use it was, was Friday or, or Saturday. And so I kicked out of here a little early on Friday and went to Barney's in Beverly Hills because it literally was like a $2,000 card.

Oh, what?

And it's kind of a weird thing that you have like the $2,000 on a card that you can spend, but you really don't want anything.

Man, we live very different lives.

What do you mean?

No one's ever given me a $2,000 gift card for shopping somewhere. No, no.

Well, it's like a rebate on.

No, I know. Mine's been like 50 bucks or something.

Oh, no, this was like, get you a pair of underwear, 2,200 bucks.

Oh, wow.

And so on the way to Beverly Hills, I was like, okay, well, I want to have dinner in Beverly Hills. And my favorite restaurant is Cut. Who is has the best steaks anywhere in the world?

I think phenomenal. I've been there once.

Yeah, I've had dreams about the steaks there. And so we go to Barney's, right? When I get off the elevator at Barney's, I see Jimmy Kimmel. And I've seen Jimmy Kimmel there before. I've actually talked to him there before. I don't know why he hangs out at Barnes.

You guys shop together?

Yeah, I've met a lot of cool people at that Barney.

Okay.

I met Max Gladwell there once.

Really?

I heard his voice. I was shopping in the men's department, I heard his voice, and I go, that's Gladwell. And I turned around, I go, you're Gladwell? And he's like, yeah, thanks for pointing out the.

Well, I was, I was gonna ask, what's the protocol when you see someone like that in a store? Because once when I was a child, I was in a mall with my cousins and my aunt and uncle, and we saw Webster, who was like 30 at the time, but he was smaller than me, and we were scared to go approach him. And then he went into a little kids clothing store, because he's tiny, to buy clothes. And we just walked in and looked like we were looking for clothes. And they were like, hey, are you Webster?

And then what did he say?

Yeah, or, you know, whatever. He sounds like your picture.

Back then you probably had like a camera.

You would have to have a full on camera with you back then. Yeah. So no, we didn't get a photo with him. But years later, I was working this music festival and Webster randomly showed up. So I took him on stage with me to introduce Def Leppard.

So that was you tell him about the story.

No, because that would be weird. Like, it was like, you know, 20 years ago. I met you in a clothing store for children. That's odd. Michael Jackson stuff.

Okay, well, the first time I met Jimmy Kimmel at Barney's, I asked him for a Picture. And this time I just caught eyes with them and just did the nod. And then the, you know, he kind of was shopping for something. And then the person I was with, I was like, did you see Jimmy Kimmel? And just as I said that, I turn and look, and he's right behind me. And he heard me say it.

Did you yell it?

No, but I feel like. I felt like such a.

Did you see Jimmy Kimmel over there?

That's exactly what it was like. And so he. He just disappeared. That was it. He was gone.

I used to. I used to go to his show. Like, I knew one of his writers really well, so I used to go to a show and hang out backstage in that VIP area, which was always kind of trippy because it'd be celebrities just hanging out and stuff. But it was open bar. So.

Yeah, he's done a good job of creating an atmosphere where people want to hang out.

Yeah. And he's really. He really is a friendly guy. Like, he's really nice down to earth.

I wasn't going to bother him, but.

Yeah, but you yelled his name in the store, so.

No, I did that. So that was funny. So then.

Well, what did you buy with the two grand?

A bunch of sweater. Yeah, one sweater.

Sweater vest.

This green sweater vest.

Nice.

$200. And the tie.

And technically free.

See the tie clip? Yeah, technically. But somehow they're making that work. No, the truth of the matter is, is just like you would expect, and you would want that. And anybody in business who's doing crazy things like giving rebates like that. I spent more money than the two grand.

Well, because the point of it is to get you back in the store, and it works. And once you're back in the store, you're gonna buy a ton of stuff.

So I'm gonna guess I spent. Spent another grand on top of the two grand. Wow. So it worked for them.

I opted for dessert at dinner the other night. So that was my big, big splurge.

So then I. I go over to. To cut. I had a little reservation. I love cut. And there's the sommelier. There is the greatest. Guys, this young kid that's kind of taken over. His name's Cameron. We're gonna have him on business Outlaws actually. Coming up, I want to break down the, like, what he did with the wine list there. How, you know, how he approached the pricing of it, the ordering of it, all of it. But he's amazing. And so him and I kind of have this thing where, you know, I'm like, He's like, so you want some wine? And I'm like, yeah. And he goes, dealer's choice. I'm like, yeah, dealer's choice. And so he said, okay, let me think about it. And he leaves. And then he comes back with a bottle. And granted, I don't know how much the bottle is. I don't. You know, it's. It's his to. To curate.

That's something I would check out first, but.

And so he said it was National Women's Day.

Friday was International Women's Day.

So in tribute to International Women's Day, he brought me a bottle from Napa by a winemaker. Then her name is Helen Turley.

Okay.

And so she's a woman. I don't know if there's a lot of women winemakers.

I mean, there's probably some, right? There's got to be.

But she's. I guess she's kind of famous for her wine, is great, but she's a little eccentric and a little nutty. So the. The wine was called Blaniet Blankiet. Something like.

Sounds about right.

So, you know, he does his thing. He pours it, and. And I'm, like, smelling it, you know, I'm like, so kind of like this tequila here. I'm like, so, you know, I smell oak. Smell. Smell a little agave.

Little bulldog ass, right?

Is there. Is there any chicken blood in this one?

No.

Okay.

That's the. The mezcal.

Okay.

What is it called?

I don't remember.

I don't either.

But it has chicken blood in it.

The blood of a chicken. So the wine. I can't quite get it. Like, I'm, like, smelling it, but I'm like, what is that? You know? And so Cameron comes back around, and he. He says, what do you think of the wine? I'm like, it's cool. I'm like, but, you know, it's definitely different and unique. It was. It tasted amazing, but the smell was. Was something that I couldn't quite put my finger on. And he said, oh, it smells like green peppers.

And I was like, yeah, that seems odd for wine.

Smells like green peppers.

Yeah.

Yeah. No, but did it taste like green peppers? It was very. Kind of that camus. Like, very blueberry fruit. Fruit front. Okay. A little drier than, like. Like a Caymus, but perfect with a steak. So then he's like, I. You know, that bottle of wine's really exciting. Like, do you. Do you want to try it? Because he said he'd never tried it. And he goes, can I And I go, yeah. And so he goes back to the back, and then he's coming down that it cut. They have this long, like, kind of ramp that comes down into one part of the dining room. And he's walking down the. The ramp with an empty glass. And he's. He's smelling the empty glass.

He's practicing.

Well, I asked him when he got there. I'm like, why are you. Why are you smelling an empty glass? And he said, oh, you know, you. Don't you. Sometimes the dishwashers use too much soap. And so I want to make sure he goes. Oftentimes the. The wine is compromised by a bad dishwasher. And I'm trying to explain something to a customer or they're not happy with the bottle. And really, it came down to too much soap.

Yeah, it tainted the actual wine.

So he's, like, testing an empty glass, which I thought was fascinating, because I know just enough about wine to get in trouble, but I thought. I thought that was fascinating. And so then he tried the wine, and, you know, it was amazing. And then the salads come, and here's where the business lesson comes in. So the salad comes, and they put it in front of me. And then I asked the guy. I'm like, can I get pepper? And he just, like, freezes. It was like. It was kind of like the same feeling. Like, when I said, did you see Jimmy Kimmel? Like, he didn't know what to do. He froze. And. And I'm just looking at him, and he goes, well, did you taste it? And I go, no. I go, but can I get pepper? And he goes, well, that's how the chef intends it. And I'm like, okay. And he goes, do me a favor. Would you. Would you taste it first and see if you still want pepper? I was like, oh, I get it. Like, okay. And then it made me think about this thing that I read a long time ago about Henry Ford, that before Henry Ford would hire somebody, an exec at the executive level of Ford, he would take them to lunch, and if they salt and peppered their food before they tasted it, he wouldn't hire him, really? Because he said they. They were in a rut. They. They just had a habit of peppering food. And I started thinking about that. It's true. Like, when you go to a restaurant, they bring the salad. Like, they're, like, putting pepper on it. You haven't even tasted it. And they're like, tell me when to stop.

Yeah, yeah, right.

And just going crazy.

Which it's a Ton.

Which I love.

Well, yeah, cuz it makes it better. They would be super offended cuz I just put hot sauce on everything.

Even on salad?

Yeah, why not?

I don't know. Cuz that's weird.

No, I don't. I wouldn't put it on salad.

Are you one of those people that puts ketchup on everything?

No, I actually don't eat ketchup that often.

I was it. Somebody was telling me yesterday they put ketchup on macaroni and cheese.

Oh no. Put hot sauce on macaroni and cheese.

Yeah. I don't know.

But not that. But that's true. People do get in their ruts and they just get into the habit of doing that. Whether it be putting salt and pepper on stuff before they taste it, whatever. But that applies to like every aspect of life, I think.

Yeah, no, it really does. People, people lose track of what is important. What's important is the, you know, the taste of the salad or whatever it is. You just get in a habit of doing things and you do them without questioning yourself.

And what famous person were you eating with?

Oh, so sitting next to me was Anderson Cooper.

Oh, fancy.

And Anderson Cooper is what I would look like if I didn't dye my beard. Like he's as white as these lights.

Like he's like translucent.

Translucent. It was weird. His husband, okay, nice, like you know, said hi, sweet guy. And I, I really would have loved to have just like slipped over to their table and like said, okay, so it's cnn. Do they give you talking points? Like how liberal do you have to be like. Because it is odd to me that Anderson Cooper, to me seems like a pretty ethical guy that, that has a pretty good head on his shoulders, has worked hard for what he has.

Has he? Isn't he a Vanderbilt?

No, he didn't. He didn't have any money. He is, but he, no, I think he didn't come from money. No, bro, he was, he was the guy out there in the, during the Gulf wars and stuff. He was in areas that nobody would go. Like that's how he got on TV was being in places nobody else would go. So he's definitely, I, I think he's paid, he's paid his dues and earned what he has. But it's always odd to me that FOX News and CNN will report the same story. So much different.

Oh no, it's two completely different narratives.

And I just wonder how much of that is him and how much of that is somebody in a room upstairs at CNN going, here's our narrative today?

Well, I think both networks probably have. And I mean, this goes back to what we talked about, I think, on the last show with like, sort of the propaganda stuff. Like both, both networks have their own sort of narratives that they push. So they pick and choose the elements out of the story that further that narrative for whichever side they're pushing for. And that's kind of what they go with. And then you have the other thing I noticed, too, with Anderson has sort of become this. A lot of these news anchors are now more like opinion people.

Yeah.

Which is interesting.

But the opinion is always left on cnn.

Yes.

Yeah. And so how could you. Like, here's the thing. Like, if you and I were talking politics. Right.

Which we've done.

Which we've done, people will say like, oh, don't talk politics because, you know you're going to fight or whatever. And I'm always like, I'll talk politics. You can change my mind if your point's better than mine. I'm coming into the conversation wanting to understand.

Yeah.

Not trying to shove my opinion down your throat. And so I'll ask a lot of questions. And I want to understand, but I don't. I don't believe that we know everything anyways. Like, unless you're sitting in the room at the White House and the seat and the CIA is, you know, briefing you, you have half the story in with.

We don't. And those networks don't have the full story either. But you're right. Like, you should always be willing to engage in a discussion because if you have a strong opinion, there's a chance someone else has a strong opinion as well. That's different. Why not hear them out, ask questions?

And it seems to me Anderson Cooper would be that way, but he's on a network that isn't that way. And it feels like that what I've seen. And I don't watch him every night. Like, I'm not a. I'm not watching news. But it does seem to me that the narrative is very far left. And I would have loved. I mean, it seemed like him and his husband were having a nice romantic dinner, but I would have loved to just slip over like, hey, Anderson, can I ask you a question?

Most importantly, though, you're saying that if you did not dye your beard, you would look like Santa right now.

Yeah, for sure.

Really?

Yeah. At least on the side.

How old are you?

47.

All right. I have really. I have one really long white hair that my barber keeps saying that he will not cut.

You Just gonna like grow it.

I don't know what I'm supposed to do with it. He won't cut it.

Why won't he? Why won't he cut it?

I think he's just messing with me. I gotta get a new barber.

This tequila is really good.

Thanks for sharing.

Yeah, you can have a little if you want.

Get some in a bit.

Yeah. So should we. Should we take this first call?

Sure.

Andreana Andriana. Is that how I say it?

I think it's Adriana.

Adriana.

Adriana. How are you?

I'm well. How are you, Chris?

Amazing. What is your question?

So my question is.

What is your advice as far as being able to connect with people who are, I don't know, more conscious, more creative, who I can bounce ideas off of? As I'm starting to kind of put together my business plan, I find that a lot of people, when you give them ideas about launching your own business, especially when you've been in the corporate world for so many years, look at you like it's an insane idea and, you know, it's a very kind of unsafe place to dip your toe. But I'm kind of looking for people who, you know, experience that and understand that that's kind of like the best strategy to kind of create your own business and really have more control about of your income stream.

What kind of business are you creating?

So I'm trying to put together an online platform that helps businesses improve employee engagement through better communication. So it's create your place. And it has like five fundamental values that represent place, which is positivity, love, accountability, compliments, and empowerment. So I'm trying to make it feel very non corporate and give people. All the leadership books say the same thing. And every time I read them, I feel like they're leading you to the water, leading you to the water. And I'm like, okay, I just want to drink already. I could have summarized this in five pages. So. So kind of getting what I have known to work best in corporations that are highly engaged and corporations that are not as engaged and kind of give leaders the tools that they need in order to have better teams.

How's selling it going? Are you having a hard time selling it?

I'm just building it right now. I haven't even tried to sell it. I'm still in the corporate world.

So you still work with five?

Yeah, I'm working nine to five. And I work on this from the time I put my kids to bed to about one o' clock in the morning. And you Know, I'm constantly listening to Audible books and doing whatever it is I can to kind of create that space in my head that allows new ideas to come in. And I've had some really great ideas by being able to, I don't know, meditate and do whatever it is that I need to do in order to think more creatively. But I have a vision of what it looks like. I don't have any marketing skills, but I can get them. I'm in a business school right now, like an eight week business program that kind of shows you what you need to think of, how to create your ideal customer, how to really figure out your target market.

So I'm working on those things, but I haven't even begun to get revenue in, so I don't have numbers for you.

Okay. The. I'm just gonna, I'm gonna help you a little bit. The you'll probably get more out of this than that eight week business school in that what you're trying to do. Because I'm in that, I'm in that field. Right. And so what you're trying to do is gonna require educating your buyer before they buy it, which is always twice as hard to sell. So when you come up with an idea that's original and creative, it is always harder to sell because you have to educate people on your idea before you educate them on what it'll do for them and people. It's like the best analogy I can think of is pop music is popular because it's easy. And if a band comes out like Frank Zappa or something that's different than what people are used to, it takes longer for that to catch on. Now it creates a stronger niche, it creates a loyal following more than pop music in the long run. But the timetable is much longer and the ramp up is much longer. So let's dive into this a little bit and then we'll get back to your original question. So if you're going to be selling this to the HR managers of a business. Correct?

Kind of, yeah. Yeah. I mean I feel like it would be something that is accessible to anybody who is kind of a more, more edgy kind of business order like startup tech and boutique creators and stuff of boutique markets such as, I don't know, this is the great or shop doan or kind of high profile lines that understand the power of empathy in their brands and kind of have that as like a, like a, like a ongoing, you know, niche in their market in the way that they market. So. But yes, I mean, I guess Their HR people would be the ones who would. I would have to sell this to.

Okay, so an HR manager. And give me an example of a company that would be your dream company to sell this to.

Goop Goop.

Okay, so you're the HR manager of Goop Goop.

So just put on your meditation hat and put yourself in a little trip to the HR manager from Goop's office. And you're sitting there at the desk. What is it that is your challenge? Day to day.

Clear communication. Having kind of.

So I didn't. I didn't say the CEO's office. I said the HR manager. Communication is more the CEO. See, this is. This is good for you, Adriana, because you're. You got to understand that the person making the decision doesn't benefit from what you're selling.

Do you get that?

Yeah, I do.

Okay, so that's what I'm telling you is what. When you're trying to create a new niche or something different than what they're looking for. So do you think that a platform that improves communication and creates your place is more important to them than sexual harassment training?

Yes, I think that sexual harassment training those businesses have down. I mean, there's like a million people who do that already. NavX Global, et cetera, et cetera. But I think that I'm asking which is more important. Oh, no. Well, legally it's required. Yeah. Sexual harassment prevention training, for sure.

And as much as there's a lot of people out there doing it, it still requires a lot of work to facilitate that, Right?

That is true.

Okay, so what would be. What would be the next thing on their list that is important? So, you know, sexual harassment, the stuff that they legally have to do. And then what's the next thing on their. On their list?

Like a good. A good accountability process, I imagine, internally.

The next thing is going to be onboarding new employees and indoctrinating them into the cult of the business.

Okay, Right. Yes. Hiring, onboarding, company culture.

Yeah. In getting people excited about goop. So now I'm just trying to paint the picture that you're fourth or fifth down the list and you're selling something that doesn't answer a problem in their head. You're selling something that's a dream, it's an aspiration, but it doesn't solve an immediate problem. And most of the time with startups or fast growing businesses, it's about an immediate problem.

And so more than business school or anything, what I would encourage you to do is to go out and spend Some time with these HR managers, buy them lunch, get in their office, listen to what motivates them, and then tailor your training to answer their problems and then put what you want on the back end. But if you try to sell what you want, it's going to be a much longer ramp up.

Okay.

Does that, does that resonate with you?

I know, absolutely, yes. No, I've been interviewing people, so this absolutely helps.

And what are you learning when you interview them?

I'm learning that they have a big problem with engagement so that the training is boring. They're what? Their training is boring.

Training is boring.

Yeah, it is. People don't like trainings. Yeah, I understand.

No, we run into that too, and with what we do. So what else have you learned?

I've learned that a lot of training, it's not that, you know, you're not giving them the right tools a lot of the time, it's attitudinal. So the problem is that, you know, people don't believe what they see. I mean, they don't see what they. They don't believe what they see. They see what they already believe. So the selling point, what I believe is important, is to.

Start by talking about how big.

The attitude coming in already impacts that person so that I can sell it based on that. Because when I say I think it's an attitude problem. Right. And people don't understand how, you know, what they're doing and how they're messing up is a product of them and not everybody else, which they continue to blame. So my big aha moment in all these interviews is that I need to start by discussing how the first step in my, I don't know, online platform training is talking about them. Right. And what attitude they bring to the job. What are their preconceived notions of people who suck at their work or who are always late and how they respond to those. Right. Because if I think that you are crappy, everything I view is that you are crappy. Right. Because it's supporting my idea of this crappy employee is here and works for me, and they're never going to change. But if we're able to start by discussing attitude and painting a clear picture of how it's not them, it's you as a leader, I think that I would get more buy in.

I think you want to go one step further and you want to sell them on the outcome. So you're still, you're still selling kind of features and benefits. What you want to sell them on is the actual outcome of what they will get from the training. So what is the, you know, best case scenario of what would happen to them if they, if they went through this training you're going to create?

I think that the best case scenario is that they would be able to identify their own biases very clearly in a non kind of judgmental environment that holds them accountable still. Like, I'm not going to be like, you know.

It'S that all of this is actionable, like we can move past all this. But if I sell them on really honing down on their already preconceived notions of people and have them take more accountability, then they would have a.