Think You and Your Business Can't Move Countries? This Guy Did It Mid-Pandemic!

And I'm going to say guten Tag today because we're wishing you a good day no matter where you are. To our listeners in Germany, we've got for you a treasure. We've got a, a really brilliant entrepreneur actually from Germany who's relocated to Canada, and he's a 2-time published author with 2 established publishers actually, and he's giving guidance on strategy to to entrepreneurs. And we're going to talk to Alex about how you can leave a legacy as an entrepreneur. But we're also going to find out how he managed to move his family from Germany to Canada. That may have had its challenges, but we want to know how he's managed to rebuild a brand and a business in a new country. Not an easy thing to do, especially as he did that just during lockdown with COVID Alex Brookman joining me today from Vancouver. Welcome to the show.

Thank you very much for the warm intro, Jim. Thanks for having me.

You're more than welcome because it's great to have someone on the show that has self-published and then also published with professional publishers. So we're going to talk about how you've managed to do that because that's not easy to do, and you also had an amazing work rate to get those done. Tell us a little bit about yourself, Alex, and then about the latest book, Strategy legacy. And then we're going to talk about how you managed to move and rebuild a business in a new city. And you're not actually from Canada, you're originally from Germany. So you've got the double challenge of starting a business and in a new country. So tell us about it, Alex.

Where do you want to start?

Well, let's talk about the strategy legacy. Can we leave a legacy as an entrepreneur or does the waters flow back over us so quickly because we're such a small pebble in the pond?

That's a really good question. The name of the book is potentially a little bit misleading. I'm not really talking about a legacy in the sense of the house that you hand down and the bank account that you give to the next generation. The Strategy Legacy lays out a framework and a process that I've created over, I would say, the past 15 years. While working with executives on creating more successful companies. And the framework and the process is laid out in a way that if you read the book, you almost feel like you go through a workshop with me, right? So, it's very interactive and it gives you a lot of great examples of real-life examples of organizations that I've worked with and the challenges that they found in this process of creating a strategy, a business strategy, I should say. The legacy term came about when I thought about the role of entrepreneurs and executives. And this is really, if you think about, if you're a solopreneur, that's maybe not so much, not so relevant for you. But the moment you lead a company, you are more than just, you know, an individual person, you represent a business you care for, ideally, you care for your teams and your entrepreneurs, you are the one person everyone looks up to. And therefore, it makes you responsible for creating the future of that organization. And that entails knowing what you want to build and to create the business strategy that brings you there. And on the other hand, creating that strategy and future in the right way. In other words, you are responsible for building culture and strategy. So results and how to achieve them. And if you put these things together, in my head, there was some sort of a trident that emerged for entrepreneurs. And the legacy that lives on that you built, that lives on when you've moved to another business, when you have maybe left the organization that you once led. This legacy trident is super interesting to explore and understand because how many people have you met in your life that impacted you through how they led or how they just, you know, how they approached work, not necessarily how they approached you, but you saw them, they became a role model for the, for the rigor, for the consistency, for the kindness that they had in them, leading others, leading the business, building a culture, representing the business towards society. And that legacy is super valuable. Because let's be honest, if you treat your people in a certain way, they leave work in a certain way, they go back home They impact their families, their circle of friends. So, it became clear to me at some point that this is way more than just about business strategy. This is about leading a life and leading a business the way that it is the most humane, if you want.

Fascinating. And as you say, Alex, as an entrepreneur, you hire people. You also dictate the terms of the workplace, don't you, and dictate people's work times, how they treat each other, the relationships. And then you set, you set examples of whether relationships you have with your, with your vendors and your clients, right? So you really do have, uh, uh, the opportunity to create good or, or not so good role models for people around you. Okay, so you've got this great book. You were doing strategy and part of a successful consulting business in Germany, then you moved to Canada. And I'd love to hear how you managed to relocate and rebuild a brand because you're not doing the same thing that you're doing in Germany. So tell us about sort of market entry strategy for an entrepreneur, a German entrepreneur moving to Canada. How did you do that?

That is a really good question because if you put it into context when it happened, you realize that the best plan goes down the drain when external circumstances dictate what's really going to happen. So, about 18 months before we wanted to actually relocate or before we then really relocated, we sat down and created, well, a must-have, you know, if you want, plan. So, what must be in place to make this a successful transition? And we quickly realized at the beginning of 2020 when our move was only 4 months out, that things have shifted. So, for example, all of a sudden we had an 8-week-old baby. I mean, this wasn't kind of all of a sudden, 10 months in the making as always, but you know what I mean. That wasn't part of the decision, of the initial decision to move from Germany to Dubai.

Not part of the strategy, Alex. I'm surprised that wasn't part of the strategy. But you have now got a legacy, of course. So, there we are.

There was this little, you know, additional piece that needed to be managed. But what was way worse was that, you know, what happened in February, March 2020, COVID lockdowns, and we were sitting in Germany with flight tickets to Canada at the end of April. And the airlines told us that this is not going to happen. Their last scheduled flight, Lufthansa, was like 2 days out. And when I called Air Canada, they were like, okay, 9 days out. And so you take the decision, to pack 7 suitcases, buy tickets for Air Canada, and instead of flying nonstop, you also immigrate into a different port of entry and you need to get all this paperwork done. And this all sounds kind of easy right now, but if you put yourself back into that time, everyone was just afraid like crazy because no one knew what was going on. In New York, they were burying the people by the thousands at that time, and we were just scared. And moving continents is one thing under normal conditions. Under lockdown conditions with an 8-week-old on your arm, it makes you feel like, you know, it doesn't get much worse than that.

Yeah, no, I hear you.

When you then try to rebuild a business once you've arrived in a new country and you realize there is no way you can network, Zoom meetings weren't a thing yet, it just was about to start. So it was really, really hard to build connections. But the thing is, I was able to build connections years prior that I could now use. They were never built with the intention to use them in a business way. But, you know, when you, when you start to knock on doors that know who you are, when you knock, it's just way easier to start to build connections and start to make your way into a new country, as if you just arrive and no one knows you. If you have just one or two people that believe in you, that know you, it makes life way, way easier in the beginning.

Yes, I think as you said there, Alex, the idea of having at least some forethought for where you might want to go and the minute you have that to reach out. When I went to Singapore in '95, I'd already reached out to people in 1993, '94. So when I arrived, In those days, of course, we sent a letter in advance. There wasn't email. But it did mean that you had at least one person who could connect you to their network as well. So really great idea there. And I think as you said before, you know, you're digging your well before you get thirsty, which was your expression, not mine, Alex. So I love that. How did you then go about building the business? Because it's one thing to get introduced, but that's different to getting clients. How did you go about doing that?

That is a bit of an, let's say, it sometimes feels like you sit in a bowl of jelly and you start to struggle your way out of that bowl. You feel like you're moving, but you're not really moving in the beginning. And that's really a tough time. So those first 2 or 3 years. It's mindful steps that you need to make and understand what is a good idea and what isn't a good idea. So first of all, I had advisors around me that told me a few things that made them successful in the past. Some of these tactics I could use for myself. Others were so circumstantial that they didn't make sense for me. That was one part, having good people around you that you trust, that you can open up toward with all your vulnerability. Because, you know, it's not easy when you do everything on your own. When you start to build a new brand and start to build a new business, it's very easy to look around and be like, how does everyone else do it? They seem to be so successful, but they all have their own struggles. So having that network around you is really, really helpful to open up, to share failures, to be vulnerable, and to learn from each other. Another really important element was to have had done purposeful networking long before I knew that I would eventually move to Canada. I met people in Vancouver and talked to them about their business. I wanted to know how my industry works in a different country. And when I came here the very first time with my girlfriend, just when we had met and we came to visit her family here on the Pacific West Coast, it was just, you know, Let's talk to these people. I want to know how the industry works in Vancouver. And then 5, 6 years later, these connections became friendships and successful partnerships in business. I think those 2 elements were extremely helpful. And as I said, purposeful networking, it's not a transactional relationship that you try to create when you need it. It is about building your network without ever knowing whether you need it. It's not about needing something. It's about what can I give. And the conversation that we've had 5, 6 years before we actually started working together, that was really about learning from each other. And I think that was one key. Another key is, you know, just to be relentless in your effort and put in constant effort. It's not about burning yourself out. So the rate at which you are consistent is up to you. Consistency can be doing the same thing every day over a very long period of time, but it doesn't mean you need to do it to the extent that it kills you. So doing consistent marketing, creating consistent valuable content, for example, on social media, for example, on your website, and apparently writing books is also pretty helpful, I heard.

Yeah, well, let's talk about that, Alex. And, you know, when I came back from China, actually 2019, we also had a couple of months and then we had lockdown as well. So, yeah, completely empathize with you. I have 2 daughters and that was not a pleasant experience for us. Especially not for the children. Tell us about the books because you've got 2 books, a 3rd one on the way, and you have a podcast. So just tell us the strategy behind having books and podcasts and how you've managed to produce that level of content so quickly.

We'll be back after a quick break.

Would you like to double your salary without starting another business? The easy way to do this is to join the board of another company. You get well paid for a part-time role, you get all the credibility that comes with being a board member, plus you get to hang out with some very cool people and learn how other businesses are dealing with their problems. If you'd like to know more, if you'd like to learn how you get your first board seat within 60 days, just click on the link below, as Unnoticed is a gold sponsor of our summit, so you get free tickets. Enjoy. I'll see you there.

So when we talk about the Strategy Legacy that you already mentioned earlier today, this book is a— how do I say that? I basically take what I've learned over 15 years and I give it back to everyone who wants to read it. So this book, when you read this book, you know how to create organizational identity. You can, you can literally do it on your own. So this book is not about me promoting my business or anything like that. This is me giving something to the world so that it can start to live on its own. And The Strategy Legacy was— it has an interesting birth story, because I never really set out to become an author. It was an accident, to be honest. Because I sat down when I started to feel guilty about moving away from my clients in Europe, some of which I had worked with for a decade almost at that point. It didn't feel right for me. It didn't feel good to leave them behind. I knew at the same time I would move closer to my clients I already had in North America. But that was— it didn't make up for that guilt that I felt. And a friend of mine in a conversation said, you know what, hand them over a valuable present. Have you thought about that? And, and that idea developed into, can I write down what I did with them in ways that they can replicate it when they need it again? Because, you know, strategy is not a one-off thing. If you do business strategy, that's something that is pretty much consistently morphing and emerging. And from time to time, you sit down and rebuild from scratch. So I started to write that process down. But that was not a good read. I mean, this did not read like a book. It was terrible. But, you know, it was a good starting point to then develop the stories around the content and create a book that then eventually became a Wall Street Journal bestseller. So this is, this is pretty much an interesting, almost accidental success, if you want. But As we all know, as you know, and as every entrepreneur knows, there is no such thing as accidental success. If you have put in the work, the consistency, and the rigor over time, and you've carved out your niche, then success, I almost want to say, is almost inevitable. But we know that there are many great entrepreneurs who at some point just, you know, throw in the towel because it didn't go in ways that they wanted. So I don't want to paint a picture that this was easy. It certainly wasn't.

Yeah, but I think what you've said there is really important about how you started without necessarily knowing the end in mind. For all of the talk about having a strategy, sometimes you do just have to start and you iterate along the way. But Alex Brookman is a strategic consultant and, you know, young, now a father as well. Um, but from a marketing point of view, would you say there's anything that you've done that didn't work out quite as planned? Because you've made it sound a little bit effortless. Uh, you write a book and, oh, guess what, it's a bestseller. There are many people, including be me who've written books that haven't become bestsellers. Is there something that you've done from a marketing point of view that hasn't worked out quite as you might have liked?

It did. I sunk quite a lot of money into building my online social presence on social media in ways that, let me say, it was premature. I should have done that a bit further down the line once the basis was fully established. And I think that is one of the biggest learnings for me. Um, before you invest into any type of advertising, marketing, into any type of campaign that creates traffic and audience for you, Make sure there is enough interesting content readily waiting for this audience. Otherwise, it's a short-lived kick when you see the number of followers climb, but it's it's a short conversation if they realize there isn't too much for them that provides value. So, for everyone who would like to grow their online presence, make sure there is value. For your audience. Otherwise, the money that you invest into brand building at this point in time is not really well invested. I wouldn't say it was a total failure. I certainly learned something from that. And in that sense, it was a good lesson. But did I spend the money on a course to learn something? No, I spent it to build, you know, an online presence, which I'm now doing in a different way, way more centered around valuable content than on fast growth.

That's a great idea, really great wisdom there. And I guess this idea of sort of building a shopfront, but really having no merchandise on the shelves, right?

That's a great picture.

Yeah. And we've all made that kind of mistake before. But Alex, you recovered plainly very well from that. So congratulations on that. You're a strategist. I can't let you get away without asking what strategy you think does work for getting noticed? Because now you've been at this long enough to come out the other side, if you like, from both lockdown and startup, and you're in business and you're plainly being very successful at getting clients and giving them high-grade consulting. So what has worked? What would be your number one tip?

I think what we need to understand first is what strategy really is. A lot of what people think strategy is, is actually tactics. Writing a book is a tactic. Launching a podcast is a tactic. All these marketing steps, they are tactics. They need to make sense. If you put them together, they need to feed off each other. You need to be able to repurpose your content in ways that it makes sense for your audience, that it creates valuable nuggets. But these in the end are all tactics. They are part of your marketing approach. And that's not strategy. Strategy is the few choices that you make to be successful, incredibly successful in your chosen marketplace. It's about understanding whom you serve and what you will do to provide value to your clients, to your target market. And those are questions that are sometimes really difficult to answer, especially in the beginning of your career, in the beginning of building a brand. And not getting frustrated when you make mistakes. We all make mistakes. I made strategic mistakes as a strategist, and you bang your head against the wall and you're like, "I should have known better," but you don't because no one has done exactly what you are about to do before you. So there is no one to ask unless you're a copycat and try to copy someone. But even then, your audience will be different, and that audience might need something different than you think they need. So understanding audience, target market, and building a cohesive strategy consisting of conscious choices that you make to win in that marketplace, in the words of Roger Martin, one of the original gangsters of business strategy, that is really what you need to embrace first before you decide about your marketing tactics, for example.

So just paraphrase. So you said In the words of— who is that guru you're mentioning?

Roger Martin. He wrote Playing to Win, probably the best strategy book of all times.

Okay. And Alex has brought up the book that he's going to talk about later. I think I was going to ask you for your book recommendation. But I think just coming back to that point about the importance of knowing who you're serving, but I'm also really a very big fan of deciding what you're going to be offering.

Yes.

Because it's really important to decide who you're going to serve. And I think it's almost more important than why you're doing it, because why you're doing it sometimes changes and why is a little bit self-serving. But who you're serving, ultimately, that is where the money is going to come from for a start. But also that's going to be really the basis of your business, isn't it, Alex?

That's a really interesting point. Sometimes you do something for a specific reason and you realize the reason why your clients buy what you sell is completely different. I'll give you an example. My girlfriend is an entrepreneur too. She started a small business, an embroidering business. So she started her own brand and started to create apparel with her brand embroidered on the shirts and sweaters. And people love it. It's high quality. It's beautifully done. It's local work. It's not outsourced to Far East. It's really done at home, and people like that. They like to support small businesses. But then something interesting happened. People were approaching her for custom embroidery work, which was never part of her plan. But now she's realizing that there is literally no one around here who can offer that type of service. So all of a sudden, you find yourself in the situation that you ask, ask questions like, should I do what people ask me to do? Or should I stay the course and do what I'm in love with? Or can I combine those 2 things in a certain way that they make sense for me and my audience? So staying true to what you set out to build, and doing it in ways that it delivers unique value to your audience. Sometimes you have no idea how people love your products, how they use your services. It's just an interesting It is indeed, Alex.

And it's a journey that, you know, you're plainly enjoying. I can see that. And Alex looking very— and you can hear the energy in your voice. So if there's a number one tip, Alex, that you would give my fellow unnoticed entrepreneur, what would that be?

I recently had a conversation with an executive that has been in the business for a long, long time. Financial industry, financial services industry, accomplished person with an incredible track record. And the person approached me and asked me what my experience was in building businesses because they were thinking about leaving the executive space and going entrepreneur. And in a conversation, we realized, or that person realized, that they were thinking entrepreneurship. And at some point, they realized you cannot think entrepreneurship, you can only do it. You cannot sit on a table and think about what you want to do and how things will play out because you simply have no idea. You need to open that door and turn up, like, flip the light switch to see what's in that room for you. And then you see the people in the room and they, they ask you questions. You meet other people, you build networks, you realize the product you're building is useless, but People see a certain gold nugget in it anyway. You take that gold nugget, you reframe your offering. But those are things that you cannot think, you need to do. If you're not willing to do and do the mess and sit in the bowl of jelly and put in the consistency over a long period of time, entrepreneurship is not for you. And you can spare yourself a lot of trouble, a lot of money to burn. if you are aware of that. So either you want to go into entrepreneurship and you do it consistently over a long period of time to become successful, or you find something else that gives you purpose and that gives you the thrill in life.

Alex, that's wonderful. And I'm wondering how often you used the bowl of jelly analogy before you had children. I just— but I don't want to go back through your old podcast before.

There'll be a pre and post I never used it before, to be honest, Jim. I never used it before.

That's what I thought. But bowls of jelly are plainly a big thing in the Brookman household. A book, Alex, that you'd recommend. You've given us a bit of a wave of one. Tell us this next one.

I would recommend The Long Game by Dori Clark. We're talking about becoming noticed as an entrepreneur. Dori Clark has built an incredible community. Wonderful books and wonderful interviews that she's given on podcasts and just a ton of really good content around becoming noticed as an entrepreneur, building out your niche, creating a product and a service offering that is so incredibly good that people will want to buy from you. She's a marketing professor at Columbia and her book, her books, She has many, many good books, but this one is a recent one. It's super valuable. It's a great read. I read it on a 5-hour flight cover to cover, and I think I took 2 or 3 pages of notes because there was so much gold in it. I really recommend it to every entrepreneur out there, no matter where you are in your journey.

Okay, that's called The Long Game by Dory Clark. So we'll put that in our show notes. Alex Brookman, If you want to get hold of you and have a long-game conversation with you, maybe over a bowl of jelly, maybe I should think, how would they find you?

The easiest is either on LinkedIn or on my website. If you dare to write my name, it's broekman.ca. If you don't dare to write my surname, just go to alexthestrategist.com.

Alex the Strategist, thank you so much for sharing your insights and congratulations on all the book success. And really delighted that you come on the show with me today. Thank you so much.

I appreciate it, Jim. Thank you very much.

Well, it's a great story. And Alex and I sort of parallel one another because we both moved country at the same time. We both started businesses at the same time in new countries. So it's wonderful to learn how he has really moved from one place to another and by leaving goods on the table from where he came from, but also by building a network in advance of when he needed it and doing so selflessly, uh, was really laying the groundwork for his entry into a new market. So if you're thinking about moving countries, then you know where that's going to be. Start today building the relationships that you're going to need tomorrow. And I'm glad that you've got a relationship with me, Jim James, by listening to this show. If you've enjoyed it, please do review it, really helps me, and share it with an unnoticed entrepreneur because we don't want anyone to get left behind. Who knows They may need to move country as well soon. Thank you very much indeed for listening, and until we meet again, I encourage you to just keep on communicating.