Achieving a Successful Pivot in Your Business │Ep: 263 Shawn Buttner

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I tell you, it's early in 23. What am I going to do? What differences am I going to make? How. What changes are I going to see? Well, you may be asking these questions yet, and I know every month keeps going by and we keep asking ourselves these questions. Well, today we're going to help solve those questions because with my guest today, Sean is going to help us solve a problem that Small Business Answer man podcast listeners have. And Shawn, what is that that you're going to solve for us?

I'm going to help solve for y'. All. How to pivot and when to pivot. Actually, more importantly, to identify that in your business, to have a little bit of a framework for when to be thinking about that. And of course, at the beginning of the year, this is a perfect time to be rethinking about how we do everything in our business so well.

Great. I'm excited about this conversation. Sean Butner is a certified high performance coach and he's the host of the Meaningful Revelation Evolution podcast. He specializes in helping business owners and professionals divine and implement their purposeful and impacts and best and live their best lives. Sean, it's great to have you on the podcast. Welcome.

Thank you. It's great to be here. I'm really excited for all the good work that you've been putting out and listening to the podcast to prep for today.

So thanks for joining me. And I tell you, we're both certified high performance coaches. That's how we got connected. So I always let people know sometimes on the podcast. It's amazing those connections you make, they come back to you. Shawn and I connected a few years ago and then just recently, last November, we saw each other at a conference or December, I guess it was in December and we reconnect it and I was able to be on his podcast and now he's on my podcast. But I think the big thing I want to start out with because as you and I were talking again and kind of reconnecting, you shared with me how you used to be a software engineer. And I'm curious from your software engineering side to now, to be a certified high performance Coach and a business owner yourself. How did that pivot? How did you learn from that pivot and what happened in that transaction to make that happen?

That's a great question. So it's funny. So my training is actually in business. So I went, I have two degrees. That's what I studied. I had this passion for computers and I was able to turn that into my first corporate gig working for Walmart isd. And you know, so that's a bit of a pivot there where I knew that I wanted to work in technology, had that opportunity and was able to take it because of hobbies or whatever. But so doing the software engineering thing and what you realize is like, I started that one, it's probably about 15 years ago now. That would have been 15 years ago when I started my career. The technology landscape has completely changed. And so one of the best skills I learned as a software engineer is you need to adapt and adapt on the fly and you need to know when to do the new shiny new thing or when to stick with the thing that, you know, that works. And so as I progress in my career, I really love the mentoring part. I wanted to go into leadership and I'm like, you know what, I should have some extra skills. That one helped me stand out as a leader, but to like really help me, you know, coach the team forward and do that conflict resolution stuff. And so that's why I got certified as a high performance coach. And then I picked up that this is the work that I, this is my life's work. This is what I really want to do. And so I made that transition to coaching full time and getting out of tech. So that's like the high level of the journey. But to your question, what did I learn through it? It's that you have to. Those transition from corporate America to business took me about two and a half years of talking myself into it, trying to like plan contingencies and be okay with the risk of starting a business. I'm sure a lot of your listeners understand that feeling and anxiety as you're jumping into something new. And I wish I would have pivoted earlier. Right. It really kind of delayed learning. I kind of, at the end of my tech career had lost that, like the joy that came with the career. You know, it's just because I didn't want to keep learning like the new shiny software language. I wanted to really help people with a greater impact. So leaning into that earlier would have, you know, had I would have been further along in my business now, of course but so that opportunity cost of, you know, when do you make the decision and trying to improve that decision cycle. So if this is something that you are totally into, jump into it as soon as you possibly can.

Yeah, I think that's great advice, Sean. And I think one of the things is with us both being certified high performance coaches, I'm curious when you have people and you're coaching them through that high performance process, because high performance, some people get wrong. They think it's the people that's at the top level. And the problem is even the people at the top level have another level they want to go to. So it's about sustained, consistent, you know, about increasing all the time. We always hit these ceiling of complexities. And business owners, it's early in 2023, they may have just came off this fantastic 2022, and now they're a little bit in that method of how do we pivot and keep this thing going? Because, man, that was the biggest year we've ever had. So what would. What have you seen from your clients and from your advice? Would you give people that when you've got to be able to pivot to be able to continue that up and really what we're talking about is pivot to get to your next level of performance, what would you share with them on that?

Well, the very first thing, I think, especially since we're at the beginning of the year, again, like, this is the time for, I like to call them New Year's revolutions. I use the word a lot in my business. But what's that big idea? Re engaging that big idea and that big vision you have for your future and getting crystal clear on that. So, like, it could be someone that, you know, had a really, you know, stellar 2022, you know, get clear on what is that next level for you? You know, what are the. What would that mean? Because sometimes we speak in very abstract words and having it a little bit more concrete. So it could be like, oh, I double revenue, I double the impact of the mission. I double. You know, it could be something like that. When you have that clear vision for yourself, the second question I always am asking myself and my clients is, like, what really did work last year? And could you double down on that? Right? Because so much of it, I feel a lot of the people I work with at a professional level tend to get the goal. And then you're like, okay, onto the next thing, right? And it could be something completely different and you lose a little bit of momentum, or six months later, you're like, why are my numbers are worse for my performance personally? Like, what happened? It's like, oh, I stopped doing the thing that worked. So making sure you're also really clear on what is working to double down on that and carry that through the next year is another important thing to be thinking about.

Yeah, I think that's so important. I love what you talk about with that clear vision, because what happens a lot of times is you've had that success and the challenge is you don't really re envision what you want the next year to be. And then you wonder why two or three months down the road, the teams a little bit, because a lot of people have team employees and stuff, and even yourself, you're kind of just going through the motions. And I think that's really a challenge. And that's one thing I loved about high performance is it's about always leveling up. You know, we always can improve. You know, if you think you're at a 9, then you know, let's get to the 9.5, you know. But the thing is, is you have continue to work on it and continue to do it. So as we look at it and as you've seen these changes for yourself, and I think it's good for us to talk about that is what are some of the things that you see when you left your positions and you've decided to get into the business world? What was some of those things that you would say are challenges? And then, you know, the exciting part is now that you're kind of living your vision, right?

Yeah, so, yeah, that's a great question. You know, jumping into entrepreneurship, like, I think everyone struggles with this. You think it's going to be easier or it's going to go smoother than it does?

Oh, yes.

Eventually, like, life happens. So I left. So my last job was at Apple Corporate as a software engineer. And I left in April of 2019, got married. You know, things were going really great coming into 2020, had a couple of clients, and then the world shut down. Right. And you can't predict that, you know, and it could be very. I had to fight that first year of like, I'm doing something wrong versus, like, no, this environment is challenging, especially when you're trying to figure out your footing in the market, you know, because it was a strange, strange time. And if you can. So, yeah, it became more of a emotional management. Think personally of, okay, like, don't freak out. What are you going to do about this? Versus, like, oh my gosh, like, this is all terrible. So in a weird way, it's oddly grounding because you have to show up for your business, for your clients. You know, this is how I'm making money for my family. So that's always at the back of my mind of like, oh, I have to do, like that necessity drive of this needs to happen is always kind of, you know, speaking back there. But that was probably like, the biggest challenge is not taking it personally that we're in a really strange time and then being more patient and like, oh, things will come. You're doing the right things. You just got to keep at it. And then kind of what we're talking about today, too is like, what are those things that you're working on that are just busy work that aren't getting your results? How do you cut that out? So that's super important.

Yeah, you really have to identify the most important. And then, like you said, even when you talk about pivot for yourself, what you had to do, the pivot and timing and most people find out in business ownership, you know, we all want it to happen a lot faster than it does. And I'm that impatient person, too, so I understand that totally. But you, you've got to be. You've got to be persistent, you know, and that's where I loved what you talked about with emotional management, because you've got to manage that side of it for yourself. And really, it's about you. You've got to make those changes that's there. So when we look at business ownership and entrepreneurship and we talk about high performance, just share with me. If since it's early in 23, for people that are sitting there and they're having some challenges and, you know, we know, we talk about energy, clarity, you know, purpose, and all these different areas. All. What are two or three of those that you think that people really ought to concentrate on besides just having their vision and having that clarity that's there, that would really help propel them in 23.

I think as we look at the landscape, economic landscape going forward, you know, going back to that resilience, going back to that grit, you know, I believe that people generally want three things in life, and it's part of my business. It's they want joy, they want growth, and they want impact in the world. Right? And so that's always going to be my message of those three things. But, you know, finding the fun in your business, you know, is going to help you be resilient. You know, finding that magic, you know, if there's something in your business, that's magical for you, that you really connect with that. You see that impact, that. That fills you up with a sense of good vibes, feeling, you know, happiness, joy, whatever that is. I think identifying those pieces and making sure that you're connecting with those regularly, I think as business owners, we can get so into the weeds of just doing the thing that we forget that, oh, no, we, like, we love doing this, you know, and this is important work. And a lot of times you're not going to be making money for not making an impact in people's lives and beliefs. So connect with that. I think that's the very first thing as we go forward to remember. The second thing is this is a business podcast, so we talk a lot about business, but there's other lovers in your life that can help you manage stress, that can help you keep your energy up. So do that. Accounting of. On a scale of 1 to 10, how physically energetic do you feel in this moment? What was the average in the last two weeks? And if it's not at least a seven, I mean, whatever number you have, like, as a high performance coach, I'm going to say, what would it take to bump it up a couple levels? And if you're like, I'm a 10, like, there's a new next level for you too, so you're not off the hook there. But what is that next level of health? What is that next level of relationships? What's the next level of lifestyle? And really key into, like, leveraging your. Your physicality or your health to help you, you know, keep at it every day doing the things that, you know, you need to do and the things that you love to do.

Yeah, I love that. Because the thing is, is we forget we. We want to get to the destination so bad that we don't enjoy the journey. You know, in my first business, I said that I worried too much about the destination. And then when I got there is kind of like I didn't get to really take advantage of the journey that I went through that time. And now when I look back on it, you know, of course it's easy to say now, but he's telling you, enjoy it as you're going through it, you know, even the struggles, because you learn from the struggles. You know, we've got to be realistic. Going into this year, people are saying, you know, the economy is going to be slower in recession. Don't live by that and say that's what's going to happen, because then that's what will happen. For your business? But how can make it better? But then what are you doing physically, you know, and energetically to grow yourself and your own team that's there. Sean, you know, there's a lot that we could talk about, but I think, you know, that high performance becomes something that connects us, and I think it's so important for business owners and entrepreneurs. So when you think about high performance for yourself, I'm gonna put you on the spot here, if you don't mind, is, you know, you talked about a little bit of clarity. What do you want that to be for your business this year?

This. Okay, this is a great question. And I put a lot of work into it. So I've been calling January Batchuary. I've been trying to batch a lot of the content, a lot of the big projects, so I'm not doing things one at a time. So, you know, that's podcast content. Podcast interviews, my. My daily content rhythm. So trying to get a little bit ahead of the curve on just being a little bit more efficient. So working on efficiency from an operations standpoint this year is also my main focus is to grow the podcast, the Meaningful Revolution, because I feel like it's like the front part of this movement of trying to help people live a more engaged and fulfilled life. And so that entails in the business, working on building the community and really doubling down on that aspect of highlighting people, really encouraging people that are trying to make that, you know, dramatic transformation or have that purposeful impact in their lives more so.

Well, and if you haven't heard the term before, because Sean used batching, and I use that some, too. We do it some in podcasting because, of course, it's hard to just jump on a podcast the week it comes up, because what you find out if you put out a weekly podcast, it comes up really quick. You gotta have some ahead. But what it is, it's a productivity tool. So as a business owner, what could you do to get multiples of those done? What in your business can you do instead of doing one at a time? You know, if it's an article that you write or a blog that you put out, how could you do four or five of them? It's kind of interesting. You just mentioned that. I was gone last week, and my person that works for me, she wrote like 10 to 12 blogs last week because I was talking about this batching and stuff, and she said she just got into a rhythm. And what happened, it allows you to get accomplished more in a shorter amount of time. So it's A real productivity to tool there. And one thing, Sean does have a podcast. So make sure you check that out because the Meaningful Revolution podcast is a great podcast and you may even know one of the people that's on his podcast. So check it out because I've been on recently on Sean's podcast also. So as we start to wrap up Sean, I'm going to ask you one more question and you may have shared it, but I want you to kind of think about it. I what would be the business tip that you would give the listeners that's listening, knowing that a lot of them are business owners and entrepreneurs? What would be that business tip that you would share with them?

I would say to have a process to evaluate when you need to pivot in your business, to know when something's working or when something needs more time. Because it's the difference of having a big impact in your bottom line or your impact in the world or spending a lot of resources, time, money, energy, things that aren't giving you that return.

What a great one. Know when to pivot because you're doing the same thing and getting not the results you want. Maybe it's time to pivot and know when that time is. So thank you for sharing that, Sean. You can check out Sean on his website@seanbutner.com we'll have that in Show Notes as well as his podcast Meaningful Revolution Podcast. Please check that out. We'll have how the links and everything that you can get there. All you got to do is go to Small Business Answerman Biz B I Z and that'll take you to the Show Notes and you'll get all the information for Sean. Sean, I really appreciate you joining me today on the podcast. Thanks for joining me.

Well, thanks for having me. This is a blast. Thank you.

Well, listeners, I'm going to give you this action. What should you pivot on personally or professionally? What should your pivot be? We're early in 2023, so don't think you can't do it yet. It's not like January has to be the time. You can do it at any time. What is the pivot that you need to have personally or professionally in your life? Decide what that is and then take action and then pivot and make your life more meaningful like Sean's talking about and make it be in an impact so you have the energy, the drive that you want to have in your business each and every day. Make it a great day. Come back next week and we'll have another great guest for you. Thanks for joining me.

That's all the time we have for this week. To continue your journey, head over to smallbusinessanswerman Biz to access the tools and resources mentioned in today's show. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and share it with someone who would benefit from listening at smallbusinessanswerman Biz. Until next time, Remember, when you find the right solutions, your business grows and you get your time back.