Business

S03, Ep07: The Mindful Entrepreneur featuring John Edmonson

The mindset of an entrepreneur is their strongest asset. It’s their imagination that dreams up the idea, their strategic thinking and planning that allows the plan to unfold, and their determination and will power that gets them through the uncharted waters. It’s patience and persistence that keeps them going.

However, in this fast-paced world in which we live, we don’t always allow ourselves down time, we can forget to slow down and recharge our batteries. So, how do we, as entrepreneurs, keep ourselves moving forward at the speed of light, while also taking care of ourselves and get balanced?

That’s where mindfulness steps in. John Edmonson, Director of Wellness and Life Coach at Healing Springs Ranch, has a fascinating approach to mindfulness and it’s end goal. In today’s episode, John will answer these questions and more.

S03 Ep05, The Customer Service Experience with Chris-James Cognetta

Have you ever had a bad customer experience? Odds are you have. Fact is, a lot of us tend to run into some rough customer service from time to time. And usually it’s understandable, but it’s never acceptable. And when it comes to poor customer service, the problems don’t start with your customers – they start with your employees. Just ask Chris-James Cognetta. He’s a consumer experience expert, and today on a brand new episode of Coffee with Claire, he’s sitting down with Claire to talk about how customer service can be tailored at a management level, what that can mean for your employees, and how you can shift your thinking to have a customer-focused business at every level!

S03, Ep 04: The Modern Wine Merchant, featuring Rashmi Malhotra

According to Marco Jacober, CEO of Life Hacks, the freelance workforce work force is growing three times faster than the traditional workforce, and the majority of work will be contracted by 2027.  Couple this with technology bridging the gap between states and countries, and the accessibility of products and services 24/7, and you’ve got a real opportunity to make a side business work for you..and at some point, if you love it enough, make it your full time “side gig” career.

One of the side gigs I have run across lately is in the wine industry.  According to Forbes, US wine consumption  has grown from a volume consumption of 370 million gallons in 1993 to a current level of over 770 million gallons.  In 2017, $40 BILLION dollars was spent in wine sales.  That’s a lot of wine!

Like everything else, the wine industry has been impacted by changes in demographics, technology, and budgets.  It’s not necessary to travel to France anymore to get high quality French wines.  The challenge is, how to get the wines in the hands of the consumers to maximize the quality, minimize the time, and fit into their budget?

The wine world is changing from wholesale to direct sales.  The rapid consolidation of grocery, retail and wholesalers is creating a narrower path to market, especially for small wineries and limited production wines.  The future opportunity for fine wine producers is to sell direct from the wineries to the consumers.  But how do they find those distribution points?

Join me and my next guest, Rashmi Malhotra, as she explains how one of the world’s leading family-owned luxury fine wine companies has  taken their 56 years of winery experience, leveraged education, technology and their vision for the future, to create a side opportunity like no other.  Stay tuned and learn about Boisset wineries, and how they are bringing their quality wines to a home near you!

S03, Ep02: What Drives an Entrepreneur? Featuring Adpop and Techmillenial

What is it that drives entrepreneurs?  Why would anyone subject themselves to the crazy, unpredictable entrepreneurial lifestyle?

Entrepreneurs are an interesting breed.  They are tenacious, passionate people who really do march to the beat of a different drum.  They are visionaries, their strongest advocate, and although they have immense self confidence in themselves and their vision, they are humble enough to know when to pivot and say ”this isn’t working.”  Lastly, entrepreneurs believe that rules are made to be broken.  The status quo is boring. They are always thinking of ten different ways to solve a problem, and by putting all of these traits to work, develop products and services that their competition says, “Why didn’t we think of that?”  It’s the amazing combination of using both sides of their brains to achieve what others may never have thought possible.

Here at Coffee with Claire, we celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit.  And today, our guests demonstrate how collaboration and the bringing together two totally opposite ends of the business spectrum is the perfect combination to help newly formed companies or re-designed businesses create a strong professional footprint, while staying true to their individual entrepreneurial spirits.

Stay tuned and learn how bringing two very different worlds together has found the crossroads of the soft skills of creativity and the “hard” skills of programming have created the perfect combination for success!

This episode features Sungwoo Chun of Adpop and Jonathan Kim of TechMillenial discussing their businesses and their place in a variety of communities.

S 03, Ep 01: A New Beginning

Hi and welcome to Coffee with Claire!

Today’s theme is going to be about resilience.

The definition of resilience is the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness.

At the beginning of anything new, there’s always excitement and an adrenaline rush as you build that something that has never been built before.

You figure it out, you put processes together, and pretty soon, you have a well-oiled machine that you understand and know you can depend on.

Then, one day, you hit a snag–something completely unexpected, and out of your control.  Everything you worked for is suddenly gone.  You’re left standing at a crossroads.    Which road do you choose?

Path #1 is easy.  You quit.  You throw in the towel.  You decide that the thing that happened was a sign that you weren’t supposed to do it anymore anyways.

Path #2 is you pick yourself up, gather the pieces you can find, and re-invent and re-create those that you can’t.  It takes time and it takes money that you didn’t think you had, but you find ways to make it work.

Not everyone will pick Path #2.  It may not be feasible.  But those who are successful know there’s going to be up’s and downs.  You’re never 100% right, or profitable, or marketable or whatever other adjective you want to inject.  However, it’s the people who have resilience in their blood that are willing to try again.  Maybe do it a little differently this next time around, but it’s definitely worth it in their minds.

The resilience I am speaking about specifically is Coffee with Claire, and how I came to the conclusion that just because we hit a major bump in the road didn’t mean we veered off the road, took the wheels off the bus, and walked home.  Would it have been easy?  Sure.  But I wasn’t done, and I wasn’t going to give up.

Stay tuned, and follow the path of our show to Coffee with Claire version “2.0”

On the first episode of Season 3 of the show, Claire Billingsley sits down with Paul Maynard, Claire’s Communications Director, to talk about this new beginning. But where’s the new show happening? What can you expect in the new season? And where in the world has Claire Billingsley been? Tune in to find out!

 

John Allen: Being Recognized

John Allen is in a business that can be hard to truly understand.  Or to get people to talk about.

Insurance.

“Most people tune out as soon as they hear the word,” John said in a conversation recently.  “They’re bombarded with salesy insurance messages, and many have had a poor experience with their own insurance … they’re not sure who to trust, and so many simply choose not to engage.”

That’s where his experience with Coffee With Claire was helpful.  John was our guest on Episode 4 of Season 2.  His program was part of a series called “The ‘What-if’ Series on Insurance.”

“I went on Coffee With Claire as part of a series with my good friend, Benny Wright (at Jansen Adjusters International), to give some real-world examples of what can happen when you don’t hire the right people to insure you” John continued.  “You need to know what questions to ask when you buy insurance.  Understanding what you are buying can remove the angst from the process, and gets you much better coverage for your money.”

John is President and Managing Agent with Community Insurance Advisors in Plano, Texas.

“However, it really didn’t hit me just how much reach that appearance had until I visited friends in California,” John said.  “In the course of a conversation with friends who had seen the program, it came up that they watched the whole thing.”

A whole episode discussing insurance?  Really?

“They said they actually learned something,” John said.

John chose to appear on Coffee With Claire because his larger mission is to do his part to correct the broken practices of the insurance industry.  Being honest, clear and direct with clients, and others, is a big part of that mission.

“Claire’s interview helped me to focus that message,” John said. “She is a skilled host!”

Claire has interviewed dozens of business and community leaders for Coffee With Claire.  For more information about how you can be a guest on Coffee With Claire, contact us for a tour and prospectus.

S02, Ep 06: Sue Moore, Finding Your Side Hustle

Do you have a full-time job that pays the bills? Do wish you could do something else that would fuel a passion while earning extra money? My guest in this episode is Sue Moore who knows all too well what it means to find a “side hustle” to help s sometimes-depleted bank account.

One of the fastest growing segments in the American workforce are side earners–people who keep their regular, full-time job, and then find something to supplement that income with more. This episode covers:

  • How to find these opportunities
  • What the typical hurdles might be
  • Gives you some ideas on how much you can make
  • Describes what your daily routine might be like

“Side Hustle Sue” Moore is a “recovering banker” who successfully transitioned from the financial services world into this fast-growing segment of earners. She loves to tell her interesting story and is an inspiration to those who need that push to get started.

S02, Ep 06: Sue Moore, Finding Your Side Hustle

Do you have a full-time job that pays the bills? Do wish you could do something else that would fuel a passion while earning extra money? My guest in this episode is Sue Moore who knows all too well what it means to find a “side hustle” to help s sometimes-depleted bank account.

One of the fastest growing segments in the American workforce are side earners–people who keep their regular, full-time job, and then find something to supplement that income with more. This episode covers:

  • How to find these opportunities
  • What the typical hurdles might be
  • Gives you some ideas on how much you can make
  • Describes what your daily routine might be like

“Side Hustle Sue” Moore is a “recovering banker” who successfully transitioned from the financial services world into this fast-growing segment of earners. She loves to tell her interesting story and is an inspiration to those who need that push to get started.

S02, Ep 05: Benny Wright, The What If Series on Being a Private Adjuster

Do you know what a public insurance adjuster is? In this episode, meet Benny Write, an adjuster with Jansen International. He explains how he and his brethren can help you through the claims process with your insurance company.

Episode also features Von Daniel and Claire discussing their new series “Behind the Wall.”

S02, Ep 05: Benny Wright, The What If Series on Being a Private Adjuster

Do you know what a public insurance adjuster is? In this episode, meet Benny Write, an adjuster with Jansen International. He explains how he and his brethren can help you through the claims process with your insurance company.

Episode also features Von Daniel and Claire discussing their new series “Behind the Wall.”

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