As the founder of the Small Business Owners Community, I’m here to kick off your week with insights that matter to you, no matter where you are in your entrepreneurial journey.

Today's Lineup:

1. Taylor Swift’s Influence on Business:

• We're starting with a look at Taylor Swift’s latest album release and her massive influence not just in music but as a business powerhouse. Why should entrepreneurs care? Because her strategies for engagement and audience capture are lessons in excellence for any business.

1. Networking for Real Results:

• Forget endless meet-and-greets. I’m sharing a personal story about how I accidentally discovered a strategy for making 'dream connections' that can significantly impact your sales and business growth.

1. The Small Business Summit Update:

• Get the latest updates on the upcoming Small Business Summit sponsored by The Connection Agency. We've got some exciting speakers and sessions lined up that you won't want to miss!

1. Chester the Mouse Saga Continues:

• An update on my battle with Chester the Mouse, who decided my basement was his new home. Spoiler: high-tech gadgets might be winning the war.

1. Question of the Week - Thinking About Quitting:

• I posed a question to our LinkedIn network: "When's the last time you thought about quitting?" The responses were both enlightening and inspiring, showing just how resilient entrepreneurs can be.

Feeling inspired or want more insights like these?

Join the Small Business Owner Community where you can connect with other like-minded entrepreneurs and access resources to help you grow your business.

Don’t grow it alone®

Join the SBOC Here: https://info.smallbusinesscommunity.com/try

Mentioned in this episode:

2 week free trial to SBOC

And good morning, got a question for you.

2

Do you know who the most

influential person on the planet is?

3

Think about it.

4

Is it the guy with his

finger on the button?

5

No.

6

We'll talk about it in just

how influential you are.

7

She is in today's show.

8

Welcome into small business mornings.

9

I'm your host, Pat Miller, founder of

the small business owners community.

10

And today we're going to talk

about what's going on in the world.

11

And we're going to get ourselves

primed and pumped and ready to

12

small business for the week.

13

In addition to the most powerful person

in the world, we're also going to talk

14

about something I discovered, which

sounds way fancier than it is, but it's

15

I accidentally stumbled across something

really cool and I'm kind of turning it

16

into a new method for you to unlock a

dream connection and a sales target.

17

Now again, I just fumbled into this, but

we're going to use it for good, not evil.

18

We're going to catch up on the

small business summit that's

19

coming up next Wednesday presented

by the connection agency.

20

And I'm going to give you a mouse update.

21

If you listened in last week, you

know that Chester the mouse is

22

running around here someplace.

23

Well, did I catch him?

24

Where's Chester still in the wild?

25

We'll talk about that and our question of

the week When's the last time you thought

26

about quitting your small business?

27

And we've got a great meme of the week

from our director of meme abby miller

28

Your job is to drop into the comments

and say hello And say good morning that

29

way I can say hello to you back and

suzy's here and erin's here and kristin's

30

here and you're here And because you're

here Now we can get started Who's the

31

most influential person in the world?

32

Do you know?

33

If you think it's the president

or, I don't know, a dictator

34

someplace, you're wrong.

35

She's the most powerful

person in the world.

36

And I'm pretty sure the

numbers will bear this out.

37

Unless you live under a rock, you

know that Taylor's new album, Tortured

38

Poets Society, released last Friday.

39

It's Now this is a big deal

because the album is so long A lot

40

of her fans need it all weekend

just to to take it all in right?

41

So it came out on friday people have

been listening to it all weekend and

42

according to abby who listened to it

constantly Uh, it's very emotional

43

And it was good to have the weekend to

consume it all but when you hear about

44

an artist Or a show on netflix being big

We've kind of lost touch with how big,

45

really big, really is Good Morning Sarah.

46

Because, if you're a fan, Taylor's

the biggest thing on the planet.

47

But even if you're not a fan, Taylor's

the biggest thing on the planet.

48

So I don't want to talk about her music.

49

I want to talk about Taylor as an

influencer and as a business, not just

50

as a musician, because she's probably

way bigger with a way wider appeal

51

than you think if you're not a fan.

52

So first, you know who

Taylor Swift is, right?

53

But you might still think if

you're not a fan, you still

54

might think, well, she's really.

55

Kind of a niche artist and she

affects young girls and tweens.

56

Remember all that?

57

That's how Taylor was

introduced to a lot of us.

58

Oh, well, you know, it's

kind of a girl thing.

59

Well, you'd be wrong because the numbers

are showing this influence is real.

60

Not the most influential

musician on the planet.

61

Not the most influential

woman on the planet.

62

The most influential person

on the planet right now.

63

This is her 11th.

64

Studio album.

65

And this is her first release since 2012.

66

The new album's 31 tracks long, and

she says it's an anthology of new

67

works that reflect events, opinions,

and sentiments from a fleeting

68

and fatalistic moment in time.

69

Now on the first day it was

out, the first day, it sold 1.

70

4 million copies, which is rare because

people don't buy albums anymore.

71

But 1.

72

4 million on the first day is gigantic.

73

And on that first day, first day, it

had 300 million streams on Spotify.

74

First day, 300 million streams.

75

Now when you think about who has

the biggest reach on the planet,

76

the person I think about is Mr.

77

Beast.

78

People think about YouTube, Mr.

79

Beast, biggest influencer there is.

80

Well, last week, Mr.

81

Beast, I looked it up.

82

Mr.

83

Beast had 451 million

video views all last week.

84

Taylor had 300 streams in a day.

85

She's going to dust him.

86

It's not even going to be close.

87

So I thought, okay, how

can we quantify this?

88

If you're still not into

it, how do we quantify this?

89

Google trends.

90

I pay a lot of attention to Google trends.

91

Taylor, Is the blue line.

92

This is Taylor's last week of search

volume on Google for Taylor and that big

93

spike is the day that the album came out.

94

Who do you think the red line is?

95

The blue line, good morning

Patty, the blue line is Taylor.

96

Who's the red line?

97

Now this is Google search volume.

98

The red line is literally

the most powerful person in

99

the world, President Biden.

100

That's Google search interest

for Taylor versus Biden.

101

It's not even close Then let's

get out of music for a second.

102

Here's another one.

103

Check this out The blue line is Taylor

The red line, what is the red line?

104

It's something that's happening

today It's something that will be

105

talked about in every newscast.

106

It's gonna be all inside your social

media feed Everyone everyone is

107

talking about this today in the

United States What is the red line?

108

So this red line should, like, spike

straight up because it's a one day thing.

109

Like, it's a holiday.

110

But Taylor is still crushing

this one day of awareness.

111

That red line is Earth Day.

112

Happy Earth Day, by the way.

113

I still don't know how to

celebrate Earth Day, but happy

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Earth Day, however you celebrate.

115

That's domination right there.

116

Is what that is.

117

And that is public awareness.

118

Now here's another thing.

119

This is gonna blow your mind.

120

Are you ready to have your mind blown?

121

Are you ready?

122

If you think that Taylor's audience

is still just little girls and

123

swifties and that whole thing.

124

If that's what you think.

125

I looked up her audience using

SparkToro, created by Rand Fishkin,

126

the keynote speaker of the Digital

Summit coming up on May 1st.

127

Here's her audience.

128

Now just, you gotta take

a second and look at this.

129

Cause this is like, what?

130

Keyword Taylor.

131

Search the word Taylor.

132

Half men, half women.

133

Half men, half women.

134

52 percent of her audience is women.

135

48 percent of her audience is male.

136

And if you think, like, that

number really surprised me.

137

Not because she's a big

deal, she's a big deal.

138

I just didn't know that

her appeal was that broad.

139

Here's the last thing about

Taylor and her influence.

140

I didn't think that it was

possible to do anything for me.

141

that would grow the

ratings of NFL football.

142

Now, NFL football, huge fan,

Bears, NFL football is a TV

143

show disguised as a sport.

144

It's the number one through number 10 most

watched TV shows of the year, every year.

145

Yet, when Taylor started dating Travis

Kelce, people tuned in who had never

146

watched football before, just to see her.

147

Just blip there.

148

She is.

149

Oh my god.

150

There she is and it actually moved the

needle They went back and analyzed the

151

ratings of the games where she appeared

and the ratings where she appeared Ratings

152

were up 9 to 15 percent of the games that

she appeared at that is Beatles level

153

stuff Beatles level stuff So if you're

sitting there grumpily, that's a word

154

by the way grumpily grumpily ignoring

Taylor, huh Taylor's stupid like if

155

you're one of those folks right now,

and you're a small business owner You're

156

missing it It it You're missing it and

to put it even more in perspective If

157

you're sitting there today thinking, what

am I going to put on my social media?

158

Oh, I'm going to put up

a picture of the earth.

159

Happy Earth Day.

160

Okay, fine.

161

Do that if it's on your heart, but know

that you're talking about the thing that's

162

down here, not the thing that's up here.

163

Every single one of you.

164

I don't care if you're

a lawn care company.

165

I don't care if you sell

copiers for a living.

166

You should put a tweet out or put a

LinkedIn post up today about Taylor Swift.

167

I'm telling you.

168

If you think that this is some niche

169

It's the biggest story and

the most influential person

170

in the world for all of you.

171

So that's my recommendation for today.

172

Learn it, know it, live it.

173

Welcome in, by the way, Pat

Miller, founder of the SBOC.

174

Glad that you're here.

175

Good morning, Aaron.

176

Thanks for tuning in.

177

Uh, I want to talk about

networking for a second.

178

What's the point of networking?

179

You want to build a list of people

that know, like, and trust you so you

180

can buy and sell what you need to win.

181

Isn't that right?

182

Networking's goal is to build a list of

people that know, like, and trust you so

183

you can buy and sell what you need to win.

184

Now that's a pretty

good definition, right?

185

I wrote that this morning and I really

scrutinized it because I'm like,

186

what is the point of networking?

187

Networking's you get people to

like me so I can sell stuff to

188

them and buy stuff from them.

189

That's really when we boil

it down, that's the purpose.

190

But what hit me as I was thinking

about that, some of us do kind

191

of bottomless pit networking.

192

Meaning the point of our

networking is basically more.

193

Well, what are you doing?

194

I'm out networking.

195

Who are you trying to meet?

196

Everyone.

197

Does that happen to you?

198

Do you ever get stuck into

the concept of just more?

199

And it's really easy to lose sight

of that defined goal of networking.

200

You can just kind of avoid drilling

down for power connections and just

201

get stuck on the quantity of people.

202

And, here's another thing.

203

You can, like, fall into a habit

of waiting for an introduction.

204

So not only one extreme is I'm going to

go out and harvest as many people as I

205

can, or I'm going to sit back and wait

to be introduced to my power partners.

206

Both of them can work.

207

I'm not being critical of them,

but they're differing strategies.

208

And introductions are great, but

I had something happen to me this

209

week that I thought, oh, cool.

210

I wish I was smart enough to do that on

purpose because I wasn't this happened by

211

accident but It was such a neat accident

that i'm making it a thing and I want to

212

share it with you this morning a way that

you can meet Power partners and people

213

that seemingly are way out of your league

I'm used to trying to meet people out

214

of my league because hello look at me.

215

Have you met abby?

216

Look at this.

217

Yes Okay, obviously i'm good at making

maybe like getting to know people out

218

of my league So as a host of a small

business community and an organizer

219

of business events, there are a few

categories that I need to make friends in.

220

I need to find people that want small

business owners to pay attention to them.

221

And specifically, I want to find people

that spend a lot of money to get small

222

business owners to pay attention to them.

223

You know, insurance, banking,

legal, CPAs, those kinds of people.

224

And I'm trying to meet those people, like

the national people, like the big people.

225

But it's really hard to

meet them one by one.

226

I don't need hundreds of

introductions to a bunch of random

227

people outside of my target list.

228

I need to build those relationships

with the big time targets.

229

And I need to tell them two things.

230

I need to tell them, I have the

people that they're seeking.

231

And I can put them in front of the

people that want to buy your stuff.

232

I have the people and I can

put you in front of them.

233

Those are the two things

I need to tell them.

234

That sounds really simple, right?

235

Sit in your basement in your PJ pants.

236

Who do you want to meet?

237

This person.

238

What do you want to tell them?

239

I got what you need, baby.

240

That's what you got to tell them.

241

But compare that targeted strategy to

the last networking event you went to.

242

Oh, Pat, I'd like to introduce you to Bob.

243

He fixes bicycle tires.

244

Pat, this is Al.

245

He sells air conditioners.

246

I mean, it's nice to meet you, Bob and Al.

247

But I want to go where

the power partners are.

248

So this week I stumbled across something

good, and you can steal it and use it

249

and, like, pretend it's your own idea.

250

Okay?

251

I had this impossible contact.

252

This person that I have on the Mount

Rushmore of I want to be their friend.

253

Like, these are the ones, like this is,

if I could get this person's attention and

254

sell them stuff, we would be on it, baby.

255

And I had reached out to this person, Hi,

I'm Pat, and I have a community, and I

256

think you're swell, and if we could ever

have an ice cream cone together, like,

257

it was one of those deals, and nothing.

258

So I was scrolling Twitter, and

I saw that someone on my Twitter

259

feed interviewed her on a podcast.

260

So I'm like, hey, that's, that's

the person I've been trying to meet.

261

So I listened to the

podcast, and it was great!

262

So that I followed the host of the show.

263

I followed the show.

264

And then I went on LinkedIn

and I DM'd the target.

265

This person.

266

And all I said was, Hey person, I just

got done watching you on this show.

267

I really appreciated your

comment on this thing.

268

Great job!

269

And you may see in our chat history

I've wanted to connect with you

270

before in the past and I would love

the opportunity to tell you about

271

the small business owners community.

272

That was it.

273

That was all.

274

In less than an hour, I got a response.

275

Hey, thanks.

276

Here's my email.

277

It's good.

278

I'm not saying that I'm selling

anything to this person.

279

This was a complete happy accident.

280

Did the thing.

281

Sent the thing.

282

Yahtzee.

283

Whoa!

284

Okay.

285

So now today I have to send a

very thoughtful email, share

286

the stuff with the contact, and

I'll let you know how it goes.

287

Huge win.

288

And this all happened by accident.

289

Again, not smart enough

to invent this strategy.

290

However, pattern recognition showed up

and I know, hey, let's drill this down.

291

So I want you to think

about a dream target.

292

I mean, dream target for what you do.

293

You're a speaker, right?

294

Who makes the decision on the TED stage?

295

Great.

296

That's your dream target.

297

Google their name plus podcast.

298

Now you know how that works, right?

299

If you put in Pat Miller, and then you

put plus with no spaces plus podcast, It

300

will return results of me on a podcast

or me being mentioned in a podcast.

301

Plus podcast means include

podcast in the search results.

302

Or Google their name plus

blog or plus YouTube.

303

You'll get a bunch of results.

304

Then sort those results by the date.

305

And you may see your dream contact

was just on a podcast 60 days ago.

306

or just released a blog two weeks ago.

307

Once you do, read it, listen to it,

find something thoughtful about what

308

they did, and then message them.

309

Hey, Patty, just wanted to let you know

I read your blog, and you said these

310

things, and I thought it was great.

311

Way to go.

312

That's it.

313

That's all.

314

Now, why does this work?

315

I'll tell you why this works.

316

I don't care if you're the chair of Ted.

317

I don't care if you're, uh, Simon Sinek.

318

I don't care who you are.

319

When you sit down with the courage to

share what you think with the world,

320

I don't care who you are.

321

You're waiting for the feedback.

322

You want to know that what you

said resonated with someone.

323

I don't care who you are.

324

Every single person wants that.

325

And if they say they don't

want that, they're lying.

326

And maybe they don't sit there

and wait for it, but they

327

appreciate it when they get it.

328

That's probably a fairer way to say it.

329

So if you send literal

fan mail to someone, Hey,

330

person, saw you on the thing.

331

I really respected your perspective

on this and I'm gonna use it for this.

332

Stay awesome.

333

It could be that simple.

334

You might have a chance to

start a dialogue with them.

335

I did this by accident, but now

I have at least a conversation

336

started with my dream client.

337

So rip it off, try it, and if you

use it and it works, let me know.

338

Like, I would love to

know what that works.

339

It's um, it's pretty cool.

340

So, wish me luck.

341

Coming up, I'm going to give

you a Chester the Mouse update.

342

We've got our meme of the week.

343

We have our question of the week.

344

When's the last time you thought

about quitting your small business?

345

But first, I want to talk about our small

business summit coming up on Wednesday.

346

Not this Wednesday, next Wednesday.

347

May 1st is the Small Business

Owners Community Digital Summit

348

presented by the Connection Agency.

349

It is from 9 to noon.

350

It's on Zoom, and this is a can't

miss event for small business owners

351

because we're talking about the three

hottest topics in business right now.

352

Those three hot topics, sales,

AI, and audience growth.

353

Because all of us, we need to meet

more people and introduce our product.

354

We gotta close the sales when

those opportunities show up.

355

And AI is going to change

the way that we work.

356

So if you want in and you're a

small business owner community

357

member, all you got to do is

click RSVP inside the software.

358

But if you're not a member

yet, this isn't all swim.

359

We want to help all small

business owners with this event.

360

So click the QR code that's on your

screen right now, and you can join us.

361

May 1st.

362

It doesn't matter if we've never met.

363

I'd love to meet you, and I'd love

to have you come to the event.

364

Our keynote speaker is Ran Fishkin,

the founder of SparkToro and

365

Moz, and he's doing a talk on how

to build your audience online.

366

I mean, he is like the leading voice

on how to identify where your audience

367

is and how to connect with them.

368

Then we're talking sales with Dr.

369

Donna Smith Bellinger.

370

Sales is not about wait and see.

371

How do you follow up with purpose and

close the deals that are out there?

372

And then our good friend, Founding

50 member, Jennifer Buchholz,

373

she's doing a full blown demo on

Microsoft's CoPilot generative AI.

374

And what's cool about it is she's not

only a Microsoft certified trainer,

375

she's also going to approach this

from a very practical standpoint.

376

What if you don't pay for CoPilot?

377

Can you still unlock some of the goodies?

378

You can.

379

So JB is going to do a training on that.

380

So the community summit is going to

be incredible free for all members.

381

Just click RSVP in the app.

382

And if you're not a member yet You

just got to click the QR code that was

383

on your screen until 10 seconds ago.

384

There it is And you can get

your ticket before the summit

385

next Wednesday 9 to noon.

386

It's going to be great presented by the

connection agency one of our new partners

387

Okay, let's talk about our mouse update.

388

Did you miss last week's show?

389

Well, you missed something fun last week.

390

Well, kind of not fun for

me, but maybe fun for you.

391

Something happened last week

when it got to be 70 degrees.

392

When it got to be 70 degrees, everything

with legs decided to crawl out of

393

whatever hole they were living in.

394

I mean, I'm talking spiders everywhere,

millipedes, ferrets, and a family of mice.

395

That's not a thing.

396

Not a thing.

397

I'm sitting in the living room and I

hear Abby make a noise reserved for, oh

398

my god, there's a mouse in the basement.

399

So I went downstairs and determined,

yeah, oh, there's another one.

400

Uh oh, we have a family of mice.

401

So I went and I established

a second mortgage at Lowe's.

402

And I bought every weapon

possible to get rid of the mice.

403

They can't even shake their tail

in the house without laser beams

404

of death coming down on them.

405

And over the last two weeks,

I've actually ejected two mice.

406

Two!

407

And for you mouse lovers,

I didn't kill them.

408

What I actually did is, I, I saw them

and threw a towel over them, and scooped

409

them up and released them outside.

410

I literally did that.

411

I did not kill them.

412

But I've only seen one

other running around.

413

I've only seen three total,

which means there's probably 87.

414

But I've only seen three and gotten rid

of two, so I'm feeling pretty good, right?

415

But that one, that extra, Chester,

we named him last week on the show.

416

Since last week, I have

not laid eyes on him.

417

Now it may be the rat poison

that's every two feet.

418

Maybe that's what got them.

419

And I've got traps everywhere,

although none of them have worked.

420

But I did one other thing that as soon as

I did it, I haven't seen the mouse since.

421

So I'm walking through Lowe's,

again, spending an obscene amount

422

of money to demouse the house.

423

And I saw something I'd never seen before.

424

It's a little, it looks like a nightlight.

425

It's like a little square, about

that big, and you plug it in the

426

wall, and the package claims that

it emits a sound, a high pitched

427

sound, that the mice don't like.

428

Eee, probably sounds like that.

429

You know what it might be?

430

It might be, go away, at like

a frequency we can't hear.

431

You're no longer welcome.

432

Go away.

433

But it's a high pitched frequency.

434

As soon as I plug those things in,

I have not seen the mouse since.

435

Now, I know, just because, life, I'm

gonna see this thing run across the

436

floor here while I'm talking to you.

437

But I have not seen the mouse since.

438

Bait didn't work.

439

Traps didn't work.

440

But maybe these little plugs worked.

441

I'm not sure.

442

But yes, we are mouseless as of right now.

443

If I see Chester, I'll tell

him that you said hello.

444

And I need to kind of figure this out.

445

Because Abby, while understanding

my loving wife, she wants a corpse.

446

She's not okay with, I haven't seen him.

447

No.

448

Until I produce a corpse, there's no way.

449

It's not done yet.

450

Abby, when she sees a spider,

I'm the squish patrol, right?

451

I could be in New Hampshire.

452

If there's a spider in the house, I

am to report and produce a corpse.

453

No matter what.

454

That's my job.

455

I haven't seen a corpse yet of the mouse.

456

So this job is not done.

457

But that is an update.

458

Okay, Aaron, are you serious?

459

My daughter is getting a snake.

460

So save them for me, and I, whoa.

461

That would be, uh, effective.

462

Abby, I didn't kill it,

but it's off to be killed.

463

She would probably

accept that as an answer.

464

I don't understand snake people, Aaron.

465

Respectfully, I'm not critiquing them.

466

I'm saying, my ignorance is, I

don't understand snake people.

467

You can't really, I mean

maybe you can cuddle them?

468

I don't know.

469

I don't get it.

470

I don't get it.

471

I'm not gonna say anymore cuz I

don't wanna get in trouble with

472

Big Snake because Big Snake people

probably uh, would beat me up.

473

Okay.

474

Oh, Laura's got a comment

in the mouse sonic devices.

475

They use them in their

camper over each winter.

476

They get zero mice as long

as they have them running.

477

Maybe I have stumbled across a hack.

478

Mouse.

479

Sonic devices.

480

Thank you, Laura.

481

Appreciate it.

482

Good morning, by the way.

483

And Patty says, I'm with Abby.

484

Yes, we need to produce a

corpse or this job is not done.

485

We've got our meme of the day coming

up, but I want to do our question

486

of the week because it's a good one.

487

When is the last time

you felt like quitting?

488

See, we're goofing around with

mouse corpses and laser beams

489

and ferrets and then I hit you.

490

Pow!

491

When's the last time

you felt like quitting?

492

Oh.

493

Things happen.

494

Things slow down.

495

You get frustrated.

496

And if you're like me, you kind

of doom spiral a little, right?

497

And you reach the point where you think

to yourself, you know, this would be

498

easier if I work for someone else.

499

You know, what would

be nice is a paycheck.

500

You know what would be nice is if this

was someone else's freaking problem.

501

Now, you might even have actually

looked at the job listings and I'm

502

going to tell you right now, I have.

503

Recently.

504

So this is not, we're not immune to this.

505

We're all subject to the ups and downs

of our small business and sometimes

506

that might mean considering quitting.

507

Now I'm not, I was just in a

bad place, but when you think

508

about quitting, what do you do?

509

I asked my LinkedIn network that,

and I want to hear, what do you

510

do when you think about quitting?

511

And look at Laura Holliman.

512

Brilliant.

513

When's the last time you

thought about quitting?

514

Well, it's Monday.

515

So earlier today.

516

Bravo, Laura.

517

Thank you very much.

518

Show's always funnier when you're on.

519

Appreciate it.

520

All right.

521

So, I asked the LinkedIn network

when's the last time you thought

522

about quitting and what did you do?

523

Joseph Levy reconnected

with the purpose of his job.

524

I thought this was a good answer.

525

Working in higher education, specifically,

measuring student learning and managing

526

quality assurance, talking with staff

and students about their passion and

527

purpose helps me get back on track.

528

Yes, there are stressors, bad actors, and

many barriers and pressures, several of

529

which we may be creating for ourselves.

530

Great insight there.

531

But we also have a good amount of

talented and passionate people who

532

have the capacity to come together

and transform students lives through

533

education, and I get to be a part of that.

534

Awesome answer, Joseph.

535

Awesome.

536

Sherry Danialak considered

the alternative.

537

At times when I feel like quitting

my business, it's because something

538

didn't go as planned, and I'm feeling

overwhelmed and really stressed out.

539

Right?

540

I spend some focused time remembering

my mission and vision, since the why is

541

where I find inspiration to keep going,

and I take a look at my vision board.

542

I also think about the potential

clients who I can serve and how

543

fulfilling it is and joyful it is

when I see that I've made a positive

544

difference with my current clients.

545

And here's the landing.

546

Stick the landing.

547

Do it, Paula.

548

Lastly, I think about the alternative

of going back to work for somebody

549

else and that is a big heck no.

550

No!

551

No!

552

No!

553

If someone walked down the steps right

now and said, Pat, here's a blank check.

554

Write your salary to come work for me.

555

They would have to have one of

those big floppy checks that they

556

have at the casinos just to be

able to fit all the zeros that

557

would get me out of my basement.

558

No way.

559

So we're asking the question,

what do you do when you think

560

about quitting the business and

how did you get out of that funk?

561

I asked my LinkedIn network and

I want to hear what you do when

562

you feel a little bit down.

563

Jill Melford gets creative.

564

At times, it gets challenging to

stay motivated, especially when

565

things don't go as planned, and

I begin to struggle financially.

566

At those moments, I take a step back

and try to look at things from a variety

567

of perspectives, always looking for

ways to save money and make money.

568

Good exercise.

569

I research consumer trends and

what they most want and need.

570

It's important to do this a couple of

times a year since consumer trends change.

571

Then I dive deep into those trends

within my business to see what's

572

being produced for consumers.

573

It ignites my creativity so

I can develop new products.

574

This is how I stay in the

game and avoid quitting.

575

I redirect negative energy into

positive creative energy to produce

576

new products that make customers happy

and my small business profitable.

577

Awesome.

578

Awesome answer.

579

One more and then we want

to hear yours as well.

580

So drop it into the chat.

581

What do you do when

you feel like quitting?

582

Chris Wallace said, uh that

they lean into gratitude.

583

Chris said, I think the best way I have

found to cure what Zig Ziglar called

584

stinking thinking is to stop, take a

breath, And make a list of what I'm

585

grateful for in my business and life It

is virtually impossible to feel negative

586

about a situation if you start with

gratitude Because gratitude is the most

587

powerful emotion we have it vibrates

at a higher frequency It's been my

588

experience that things look different

once you reframe them with gratitude.

589

Aren't those awesome answers

and all like Wow, like I can use

590

all of those So what do you do?

591

When you think about

quitting your business.

592

Kristen came in.

593

She has an answer.

594

About a year ago, there was discussion

of what used to be my dream job opening

595

up, and I would be a front runner for it.

596

I considered it for about 10 minutes.

597

LOL.

598

Absolutely not.

599

And now you're crushing it.

600

Way to go, Kristen.

601

Thank you.

602

And Sarah says, I reach out to

my network and do something to

603

either reduce my expenses or grow.

604

Sometimes I'll grab another part

time job, just like last week.

605

Yeah, we got to do what we

got to do, right, Sarah?

606

But that's a good way to do it.

607

Just reconnect with your folks

and remember, don't grow it alone.

608

Meme of the Week time, Monday

morning, Meme of the Week time

609

from your director of meme, your

friend the photographer, Abby Miller

610

from Stories Frame Photography.

611

If you're having a hard time

this morning picking out what to

612

wear, and you're a small business

owner, Maybe this will do you.

613

Just me and my to do

list ready for action.

614

Perfect.

615

Isn't that the truth?

616

So you hear dorks like me say, take the

weekends off, don't work on the weekends.

617

Well, this dork has been

not working on the weekends.

618

And now this is what my life looks like.

619

Monday Today is like.

620

Boy, I can't wait to sit

down and do all the things.

621

That's my to do list today.

622

Pat, how's your day look?

623

Awful.

624

That's today.

625

I have all the things.

626

So that visual is just spectacular.

627

And that's what I'll be wearing today.

628

PJ pants and a shirt made of post

it notes ready to take on my day.

629

Okay, before we get out of here,

I'm reminding you the Digital

630

Summit's coming up on May 1st.

631

Remember, SBOC members get in free

because you're cool and nice smelling.

632

Also, it's open to the public.

633

So, if you have not grabbed your ticket

yet, you don't want to miss this event.

634

It's only 47, people.

635

Like, come on.

636

9 to noon, next Wednesday,

it's gonna be great.

637

Grab your ticket before

you think about it.

638

Like, go do it right now.

639

And join this group of

people and enjoy the Summit.

640

So thanks for joining this episode

of Small Business Mornings.

641

I'm Pat Miller, founder of the SBOC,

fun chatting with you this morning.

642

Now go do something that matters.

643

Will ya?

644

Talk to you back here next week.

645

Thanks.