Episode 226: Winning at Business and Life with Matthew Deibler

This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast, where business leaders share their insights. It is 6 questions in 7 minutes because successful business leaders are busy and rarely have more time to spare. So let's get to it. Question number 1: In a few sentences, please tell me who you are and what you do.

Yeah, well, first off, I resonate so much with what you just said because I think, uh, in running my own business, I'm seeing how very little time that I do actually have. My name is Matthew Dibler, and I am the founder of the Lamp on the Stand motivational ministry. I am also an author of a book. It's called The Devil and the Children of God at the End of the World, and I am the creator of an online mental health community called The Outlet.

Well, Matthew, it is an absolute pleasure to have you on the show, and you and I are friends, so it's, it's really exciting for Question number 2: What is something that makes you smile and/or laugh about working in your industry?

Oh, so a number of things. I would, you know, as it relates to making me smile, I think it's, you know, hearing the stories of other people's redemption, the difficulties that they've encountered throughout their life, whether that's a mental health journey, whether it's specifically a spiritual journey. But, you know, being a part of their lives in a way where they feel that I am trustworthy, that I am a source that they can go to, to have a conversation, to find guidance. You know, when they share those stories very openly with me and I can participate in their victories, it's just so fulfilling. And it leads me to feeling so motivated in the work that I do and so passionate about pursuing it further, because hearing the redemption and the overcome in other people's work is just so moving to me. So I'd say that that's probably the one thing that gives me the most joy.

I absolutely hear it in your voice. That passion is just coming through, and it gives me chills. So I really enjoy that. Question number 3: I have a fictitious book with all the answers for business. What chapter would you think most companies should read?

I would say adopt a servant mindset. I think that is so critical for business, um, that you put not only your people internally first, but your customers first. You think about how you would want to be treated if you were an employee or if you were a client and really make that your priority. Obviously, we all want to be successful. We all have a desire to earn an income. You know, we want to build, we want to grow revenues, but I think if we make those other things a priority, then everything else just kind of follows suit.

I like what you're saying there, and I would agree because, you know, there's not only is it being able to serve others, but there is this sense of accomplishment and making a difference that is— you can't quantify that, but it's so important. Would you agree?

So true, 100%. I mean, it's— and I think that that is really like the servant mentality in that You believe that you're providing value to these individuals' lives that goes far beyond just a business transaction, that you are engaged with them in a way that is transformational in some fashion or another. And that is really moving. And I think that is what can fuel a business to unprecedented levels.

Mm-hmm.

Totally agree. Question number 4: Other than the generic work harder, have a great attitude, and care for customers, what advice or insight would you give to other business leaders?

Yeah, I would say, um, one thing that I think is really important is that you know your people. And I think that goes beyond knowing them for the skills that they utilize in their 9-to-5 work, because they may be, you know, fulfilling a specific role for your organization, um, that, you know, maybe, uh, accentuates their skills, but perhaps there's other things that they can be doing for you. There's other value that they can bring to the table. There's perhaps a diversity about their experience that you may not have visibility to yet. It could be something, you know, that's deeper in their story that has not been made known to you. And unless you're seeking that, unless you're having conversations with your team members and really trying to get a deep understanding of who they are, then that stuff kind of remains hidden. And I don't think that you can get the greatest performance out of your team if you don't really understand who they are and what makes them tick. And, you know, how you can best position them to utilize the unique and amazing talents that they have.

And everything that you're saying, I think that if you implement that, I would imagine that it also builds a lot of trust and loyalty within the organization. Would you agree?

Yeah. Absolutely. I think that really establishes a culture that wraps its arms around its people. And when you have that trust and you have that loyalty established, you're going to get people that are committed for the long term, that are willing to go the extra mile, that are willing to fight, you know, for the business. And I think that's so meaningful. People want to feel like they belong. You know, they go home and they have a sense of belonging with their family members. Can we create that same sense of belonging in a business structure? And I would argue that you can.

Mm-hmm.

And I would agree with you. It's great. Question number 5, what other business leader like yourself would you like to acknowledge and invite to be on my podcast?

Yeah, so I have a gentleman in mind, and I think he's just a phenomenal storyteller. He's got tremendous experience. He's got an amazingly powerful redemption story. He's been to the bottom and back, and he's had many great successes in his lifetime. His name is Jeff Bower, and so I would definitely encourage you to reach out to him because I think he would just be a very engaging guest on the podcast.

Perfect. I'll reach out to him. He sounds like a great opportunity to interview. Question 6, our final question: Please tell me about your first job.

Ah, yes. So my first real job as an adult out of college, um, I was working in city of Philadelphia. So I always had this desire when I graduated to move into the city. And so I was seeking employment and I found an opportunity pretty quickly. Um, soon after I graduated, I think I started a week or two later actually. And what I didn't know was that I was getting into an MLM type of, uh, scheme, multi-level marketing. And it was extraordinarily taxing. I was working very long hours and I was selling, uh, kind of promotional products and services, um, really just knocking doors, and that included residential doors, it included business doors, it included stopping people on the street to pitch them. So it was really a baptism by fire, if you will, into the sales environment, which I never really thought sales would be a fit for me in my career. My father had gone down that path, and I kind of had expressed my desire to avoid it at all costs. And then here I am, all of a sudden finding myself in this environment where I'm forced to actually like stop people on the street and pitch them on these products and services. Um, I found that actually I had pretty quickly established a comfort level with it though. And that's what made me, um, I mean, the lesson I guess that I learned was, is that I could do this. I could step into a sales environment and really, you know, come out of my shell. But it wasn't ideal and it wasn't something that would be a fit long term. I burned out pretty quickly. I was done with that in a few months. But yeah, interesting experience, to say the least.

I love the story. Great storytelling with that as well.

And I totally could visualize going and trying to pitch people right there on the street and stuff. Talk about— oh, and then door to door and getting people that aren't going to open the door or slam the door on you. Oh, yeah.

Yeah, people in their nightgowns and things. I mean, all kinds of stuff you'd run into. Dogs barking at you, chasing you down the street, you know, sneaking through buildings trying to call on businesses. I mean, it was, it was pretty intense. But, um, you know, for a guy that had had some anxiety earlier in his life, I really had to set that aside. And I'll say that that was the one really good thing about the experience was that I was able to shed that pretty quickly and just, um, like I said, come out of my shell and be a salesman.

There's always a silver lining, and that's it for that situation. So I'm glad you remember that. Yeah. Oh, so Matthew, so thank you so much for being on the show. How could people find you?

You can find me via LinkedIn. I'm pretty active on that platform. I'm creating content almost daily. You can also find me at my website, which is lamponthestand.com, and there, there is contact information to reach me. At my Gmail account for the business as well. So a variety of ways. We have a Lamp on the Stand Motivational Ministry has an active page on Facebook. We've got about 67,000 followers or so on there. So if you're looking for spiritual inspiration, that's a good place to find us. Do daily scripture. And I also share some of the other content that I do on the other platforms on that channel as well.

Perfect. This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast. Thanks for listening.