Year: 2021

Can Colorado’s Brand have a CAUSE?

This is a big question.

It came to me after my interview with Johnny Le Coq, founder and CEO of Fishpond. Patagonia is a products company that supports the environment. Athleta is a products company that supports the advancement of women. Both companies are examples of authentic and effective support for a cause that aligns with customers. Fishpond seems to go further – Fishpond seems to be coming very close to using sales of its products as a mechanism to support river conservation.

Image courtesy of the Fishpond website

Johnny: “Our brand has become a voice for the environment… It’s not what we sell that I’m most proud of – it’s what we stand for.” He means it.

That made me think about Colorado. Can Colorado have a CAUSE that ultimately becomes interwoven with our brand? That’s tough, but I think Colorado’s entrepreneurial community DOES – it STANDS FOR supporting opportunity for those who strive, collaborate, innovate, and mutually appreciate the rich lives that people wish to have in our great state.

Colorado – Summer is Coming!

I’m so looking forward to this summer – COVID is getting under control, and I’ve already been enjoying outside brewery patios with my friend Chuck, who made a map of Denver that shows about 40 breweries that he wants to explore two or three at a time! Our plan is to create a sort of “March Madness” bracket for those we visit and crown our champion.

Cheryl and I are also planning camping trips to enjoy Colorado outside of Denver. If you see the PROCO360 rooftop campmobile, and if you see me sitting in my new and amazing Stargaze chair, come say “Hi!” and have a beer!

I’m Still Getting Better – Part 2

In Part 1 of this post, I shared my son’s thoughts about my continuing to make mistakes. The focus of Part 2 is recent work at improving my skills.

Last April, as it became clear that COVID was going to be here for a while and I’d have time for deep work, I decided to invest in some training on sales messaging. I’ve mentioned books by Oren Klaff called Pitch Anything and Flip the Script many times in my What’s Dave Listening To column. I hadn’t done substantial, deeply focused training in a while, probably because I felt “capable.” Oren Klaff’s new thinking felt enlightening to me, so I decided that perhaps it was time to dive into it. I signed up for coaching by Oren’s team, and with their help and I’d estimate about 100 hours of work, I’ve become WAY BETTER and more effective at something I thought I was already pretty good at.

Even with all that work, I still make mistakes, still wish I’d made another edit to a released document (mostly to make it shorter) or had or hadn’t said something. Overall, I’m encouraged to know that a) I HAVE gotten a LOT better, and b) if I’ve worked this hard to improve, even though I continue to fall short, I’ve gained on “the field.”

I’m Still Getting Better – Part 1

Not long ago, I told my older son that I’d thought that by about the time I’d really become an adult, certainly by age 50, I’d be done making big mistakes. And I really did. Sure, I knew I’m make small mistakes, overlook things, but when I was in my 20s and 30s, I really thought by the time I was 50 (and more) I’d have figured things out. My son responded, “Dad, you’re still in the game and the world is still changing.” Smart, and he’s right.

And at the same time I’m still making mistakes, I’m working SMARTER. Interesting how both can happen concurrently. Check out what I’m listening to now: Great at Work, The Hidden Habits of Top Performers, and watch for Part 2 of this post!

Sell Something and You’re in Business

In my interview with Randy White, co-Founder and CEO of Wheel Pros, I was surprised to learn that when he started Wheel Pros, which in 2020 sold over 3.5 MILLION aftermarket vehicle wheels representing 30 brands, he didn’t have a real vision or much of a plan. Isn’t a business plan the first thing one is supposed to do?? When I started my multimedia production company, I didn’t have a plan either – I had a hopeful spreadsheet that I used to rationalize getting into business. I always felt foolish about that – and yet, many entrepreneurs much more successful than I, also started without much of a plan. Michael Dell had no plan to create a public company worth billions – he just started building superior PCs in his dorm for people who wanted to buy them.

Randy White’s Wheel Pros has been a HUGE success, admittedly without a plan or even a vision. What do Randy, Michael Dell, and countless successful entrepreneurs who started without a plan have in common? They knew exactly how to get a product they were passionate about to the customers who would buy them.