205. Leading in Hard Times

Guilt-free vacations are a must. You need them. Every single one of your team members needs them. Not only do vacations reduce burnout and illness, but they’re critical opportunities to cross-train staff, create systems, and overall make your business more autonomous and sustainable.But here’s the thing– no one is going to take a guilt-free vacation if you don’t systematize it. In this episode we teach you concrete steps to make sure you and your team members take vacations that are good for them and good for business.We break it down into three segments: Preparing your team, preparing your clients, and preparing yourself. We also touch on how to build vacation into your company culture: Mandatory vacation, including vacations on vision boards and quarterly goals, etc.Whether taking off a single day terrifies you, or you have a decent vacation practice, this episode has tried-and-true tips for you to strengthen your vacation “muscle.”Connect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media

Here at Empire Building, we’re all about building a big business, and more importantly, a bigger life. So today we dive into how to live a big, long, healthy, robust life. We are talking Blue Zones.Blue Zones are parts of the world where people live the longest. Dan Buettner came up with the term while studying the places that have the highest life expectancy or with the highest proportions of people who reach age 100: Barbagia region of Sardinia; Ikaria, Greece; Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica; Seventh Day Adventists in Loma Linda California; and Okinawa, Japan. In this episode, we review the 9 daily habits that Dan identified across these communities. They are: Move naturally, have purpose, down shift, eat to 80% full, stick to a plant-based diet, drink alcohol moderately, belong to a community, put your family first, and find your circle of support.We dive into the details of each one and talk about how we can find space for them in our own lives as Empire Builders.Resources:Learn more at the Blue Zones Project Listen to Simon Sinek’s podcast episode with Dan Buettner Read Peter Attia’s book “Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity” Connect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media

Krisstina Wise is a real estate mogul, Millionaire Coach, and creator of several multi-million dollar businesses including Goodlife Luxury, The Paperless Agent and most recently, WealthyWellthy. Krisstina started WealthyWellthy based on her own experience of being a hard-working real estate agent. She was bringing in good income, but she wasn’t creating wealth. She was high-achieving, but she wasn’t well.If this sounds like you, tune it and listen to Krisstina’s journey towards wealth and wellness. It’s truly inspiring.Resources:Learn more and sign up for classes at WealthyWellthy.LifeRead Krisstina’s book Falling for Money: How to Have a Lifetime Love Affair with your Finances”Listen to Krisstina’s show Wealthy Wellthy PodcastConnect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media

The key to building big businesses and even bigger lives is to hire well. That’s why in today’s episode we walk you through the 9 steps you need to take in order to make a great hire. Whether it’s your first assistant ever (nerve-wracking!) or adding a new member to your long-standing team (still nerve-wracking!), we give you tips that will make it easier and more effective.We dive into each step, one by one: Know Yourself, Create a NOT To Do List, Help Starts at Home, Your First Hire Should be Admin, What to Look For, Follow a Hiring Process, Have at LEAST 2 Finalists, Set Them up for Success, Add Hiring to Your Goals.This episode has tons of great anecdotes and wisdom based on our combined decades of experience. Enjoy! Resources:Listen to Episode 11: Say No to Say YesListen to Episode 13-15: The 8 Step Hiring Process that Could Save You MillionsListen to Episode 53: Hiring Starts at HomeListen to Episode 65: How to Train EffectivelyConnect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media

The average person makes over a thousand decisions every day. Can you imagine what that means for a person leading an empire? We’re probably making ten times as many decisions as that. Today, Kymber and Sarah dive into “decision fatigue.”First, we cover the signs of decision fatigue. If you notice you’re reacting to making a decision in these ways, you probably have decision fatigue: Emotionally reacting in a negative way, struggling to concentrate, feeling mentally drained, procrastinating, feeling extremely overwhelmed, or even making impulsive decisions.So what can we do to reduce decision fatigue? Kymber and Sarah discuss the top 6 keys: Protect your mindset and confidence, decrease the number of decisions you face, make lists and prioritize, lean into delegation, take breaks, practice self-care. This episode is going to help you be a better, and happier, Empire Builder.Connect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media

We had such a great time at the Keller Williams 2024 Family Reunion, we wanted to share it with you! That’s why we’ve made this episode a recording of our panel Q&A session.We cover everything from tactical advice to sharing meaningful parts in our lives. We talk about finding good tenants (both residential and commercial) and developing strong relationships with them. We talk about mom guilt and favorite books. Probably the most impactful part was when we each answered the question, “Was there a defining moment when you stopped being content with an average life and started striving for next level living? And what were the first steps you took to change?”The energy in the room was incredible. Tune in and get re-energized with us!Sponsor:This broadcast of The Color of Money Podcast is brought to you by RIS Media Premier. RISMedia Premier offers exclusive information and insights necessary to achieve unparalleled success in real estate. All Keller Williams listeners receive $100 off their annual membership when they go to rismedia.com/premier and use coupon code RISFR24.Connect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media

When a lot of people see numbers and math, they run for the hills. If that’s you, take a deep breath– you’re going to get a lot of this episode. Developing the habit of tracking your numbers is critical to wealth-building (we focus on personal wealth, not businesses in this episode). Which numbers? We’re glad you asked…We talk about your budget, and how to approach it with a positive mindset. We go over how to figure your net worth, and how to slowly increase your assets while decreasing your liabilities. Ever heard of the “financial freedom number?” Well, we discuss that too.If you automatically have a negative reaction when you hear “numbers” or  “budget” or “math,” this episode is for you. Tracking your numbers can be an empowering, freeing, and positive experience– we tell you how.Resources:Want to learn how to calculate your financial freedom number and everything else you need to create a rich life? Sign up today for Her Rich Life Masterclass!Learn how to calculate your Financial Freedom Number Connect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media

Today is Part 2 of “The Top 7 Tactics to Grow Your Business.” Just like Part 1, we outline the top tactics, then we take questions from a live audience to give you real-life, applicable strategies.We cover finding your value and fighting for it– charging what you deserve, yes even and especially in service industries. We also dive into finding additional revenue streams based on what you are already doing– offering a coaching course on what your business is about, offering ad space in your waiting room or website, etc. We talk about protecting your energy and resources. And last but not least, we go over the importance of sticking to your plan- don’t get distracted by all the shiny things!You’re going to love the inspirational stories and wise nuggets from our audience. This is truly a special episode that you can come back to over and over while you are building that big business and an even bigger life!Resources:Follow Her Best Life on Instagram: @herbest_life Connect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media

We had such a great, in-depth conversation, we had to break it into two episodes! This is part one of “The Top 7 Tactics to Grow Your Business.” And it wasn’t just us hosts this time– we took questions from our live audience. If listening to real life scenarios helps you envision how to apply tactics to your own business, tune in!We cover “building a fence,” another way of saying stay focused on doing one thing well instead of jumping around to the next shiny thing.  We also discuss how sometimes to move forward you have to look backwards– examine what your top revenue streams have been and double down on them. And finally, we talk about doing competitor analysis, even on your best friends in the business!This episode is really fun and jam packed with concrete actions you can take to 10x your business. Take a listen and don’t forget to tune in for Part 2! Connect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media

Optimistic leaders don't believe hard things are easy. They believe we can do hard things. That’s the core message of today’s episode about leading in hard times. Today we give you concrete advice about how to be optimistic with your individual team members and your team as a whole.Lots of us in real estate faced a hard year last year. The numbers show it. After about a decade of growth, there was a contraction. As leaders, we had to lean on, and improve, our skill of being optimistic. What we cover in this episode is based on our experiences, both failures and successes.Tune in to hear about how we bring optimism to one-on-one meetings with individual team members, reaffirming that we have faith in them. We also talk about leading whole teams with optimism, keeping them united in tough times. Specifically, we cover techniques like ending the day on a win, finding at least one data point that is positive, and spotlighting team members who are doing something well. The bottom line: You’ve got this!Resources:Read Adam Grant’s newest book “Hidden Potential”Go to HerBestLife.com and check out Empire Circle. It’s an exclusive community of empowered women on a journey to transform their business, wealth, and personal lives through fierce vulnerability and accountability.Connect on Instagram:Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevpSarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsojiWendy Papasan: @wendypapasanKymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkitiTiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykesProduced by NOVA Media