Richard Blank (00:00:01):
Welcome to Permission to Kick Ass, a podcast about leaving self-doubt in the dust, punching fear in the face and taking bold action toward your biggest dreams. I'm Angie Colee, and let's get to it.
Richard Blank (00:00:18):
Hey there it's Angie, and this is a first in the permission to kick show history. So today we've got a little bit of a special episode for you because my guest Richard Blank, and I had technical difficulties. The first time we recorded, which resulted in, I don't know what happens, but the recording cut out at about 20 minutes and then we did a follow up interview and wound up stitching them together. So in this episode, you might hear a couple of references to something that happened earlier in the conversation and think to yourself, wait, they didn't say anything about that. So that's part of the stitching together process, but I listen to it and I love this episode and I love Richard's energy. And I think that you are going to love it too. So thanks for sticking with us and, uh, enjoy the show.
Richard Blank (00:01:10):
Welcome back to permission to kick with me. Today is my new friend, Richard Blank say hi.
Richard Blank (00:01:15):
Angie's so happy to be here today. Cannot wait to share ideas with you and make things happen.
Richard Blank (00:01:20):
I'm so excited to talk. Like I just love your energy already because before we hit record, right, I'm, I'm hold up in this hotel just outside of Portland. And Stella is walking through the background and Richard was like, who is the kitty? Let me see just such good energy to start the show. Anyway, anyway, tangent aside, tell us a little bit more about your business and what you do.
Richard Blank (00:01:40):
Well, my name is Richard Blank. I'm the CEO of Costa Rica's call center. We're a bilingual dedicated nearshore call center in central America, and we handle, uh, customer support, lead generation appointment setting. And we're almost celebrating our 15th year in business. So my friend I'm living the dream. I have a luxury trade and it's been a great 22 years. I've been living here in Costa Rica.
Richard Blank (00:02:03):
I know that's awesome. We were talking about that before recording too. Cause you showed up nice and sharp and the pressed suit and the tie and
Richard Blank (00:02:10):
I'm like just in case our mother show up, I gotta be ready. Angie
Angie Colee (00:02:13):
it's like I'm over here in my tank top, cause it's a heat wave right now, but I was like, oh wow. I'm so impressed, man. I feel so good. Such a sharp looking guest, uh, like Z top said ever girl crazy for a sharp dress man. Oh yes. So how did you, that's an interesting business. How did you get into the call center business and in Costa Rica?
Richard Blank (00:02:34):
Kind of fell into it when I was 27 years old, a very good friend of mine asked me to come to Costa Rica to work at his call center for a couple months just to teach English and a couple things. If you can get past your parents' guilt, Angie, you can live anywhere in the world. and when that barn door was open, I wasn't coming home. I moved to Central America to paradise and one day turned into a week to a month to a year. Mm how did I know that I would be married? I'd have a business living in paradise. And so a lot of the times you're given opinions and people will pressure you mm-hmm for predestined careers. And when I graduated high school in Northeast Philadelphia, back in 1991, I decided to double down on languages. So this just didn't happen overnight. I was building on the momentum that I started when I was 18 years old, to really believe in myself and to go for a career, which would fulfill my needs. I just didn't wanna, Angie, I just didn't want a forced fit. I was willing to walk alone and be this sort of dreamer. And so I was prepared for this. So when I came to Costa Rica, I realized I could shed some skin, start anew and have a second life.
Angie Colee (00:03:43):
I love that. I love like all of the energy behind that. All of the thinking behind that. Cause I, I just, I, you know, I wouldn't change anything really looking back in time at all of the steps. I really do believe all the decisions that I've made have led me to this moment in time and us talking right now. Mm-hmm . But if I had had the confidence, when I was that age, when I, when I was 18 to just go out and do what I want instead of what I'm supposed to do, I feel like life would be incredibly different. I hope it would be different for, for the positive versus the other way, but it it's interesting to me how indoctrinated we can be just growing up in this capitalistic society of this is what you're supposed to do. These are the steps to follow. This is how you find your happiness. And I'm like, there's, there's 7 billion of us. How on earth is there one path to happiness for 7 billion people? If that were true, wouldn't we already all be there.
Richard Blank (00:04:36):
Of course it reminds me of Pink Floyd, the wall. I just don't want to be nameless, faceless and walking into a neat grinding machine. I, there was a couple arguments that I made towards it. My grandfather went to Harvard law. My dad went to Columbia business, my brother at Washington and Lee university, my friend, I know more had the grades for it, the structure and the disciplines we had to be realistic mm-hmm. And secondly, my great grandparents came over from the turn of the 20th century. From Eastern Europe, they moved to New York, they were tailors. They learned English, they were entrepreneurs. So even though it skipped a generation or two, I was pretty making my argument that were nomads. Mm-hmm that we take chances, we take risks. We followed, I could have always clicked my heels and come home and had everyone told me, I told you so, but guess what? The long shot paid off. Yeah. And I realized that when you're on a vision quest, a spiritual life journey, there are things inside of you that make you gravitate towards certain decisions. So I just didn't want resistance. Angie. I really wanted to live a very true life. Mm-hmm so at least I can look in the mirror and, and respect myself for the decisions that I've made.
Angie Colee (00:05:42):
Absolutely. And I think that's so wonderful. And I want everybody listening to just take note of that. That's not something that, uh, this is probably gonna come out the wrong way, but I think, you know, the spirit in which, I mean it, like, that's not a, like a special trait that's only reserved for certain kinds of people. You can con you can cultivate that desire to be true to yourself, to follow your own comfort compass. It's not like a, if I wasn't born with it. Well, then I'm just meant to be a cog in the machine. I believe everybody listening to this show was meant for more otherwise, why would you be listening to a show called permission to kick? If you didn't believe that you could go out there and kickass, am I right?
Richard Blank (00:06:18):
The permission is for yourself. I don't need anyone else's permission to do this. And also Angie, I was doing things with good faith mm-hmm and good intentions. So regardless of the outcome, I know I could live with myself on something and, and language is just opened so many doors and I was getting a lot of positive reinforcement. I was building momentum. Mm-hmm, got recommendation letters from my principal, my high school to assist me in getting in college. So I I'm just trying to pay it forward. You know, kind of like the me today, you tomorrow, and by owning a company and being a CEO, really, I focus on how many families can I feed, not how much money can I put in my pocket that that's not the most important thing for me today.
Angie Colee (00:06:55):
I love that. I think mission driven business is the way of the future. Like we've seen what happens when things kind of grow out of control unchecked. But I think if you're focused on the people that you serve, your customers and your clients, if you're focused on the people that work for you and creating a great supportive work environment, helping them get to the next stage, whatever the next stage might be, that everybody winds up working together to invest in this company too. And we all grow together. That's, that's always been my philosophy anyway.
Richard Blank (00:07:25):
And Angie we're dealing with individuals that are bilingual mm-hmm. So they're getting a turn on investment of their education, but I can expand on those skills. I can give them their self confidence and self-reliance, and since English is my native tongue, I can work with their vocabulary, the delivery and diplomacy mm-hmm. So they're really building their skills. And the best part is bringing someone in that's never worked at a center before, so you and I can mold them. They can be a, a Squire to a knight and not bring in bad habits or be a cancer or jumper. Yeah. And so we create, uh, it's a very organic environment here with a lot of synergy. Yes. And people work with me so I can give them their dignity. Mm-hmm, that's the easiest cracked code. If you're looking to scale and have people work with you mm-hmm is to once again, give them that sort of, um, their dignity, knowing their names. So they don't feel expendable. Mm-hmm, it's just as simple as that. Angie.
Angie Colee (00:08:23):
I love that. I mean, I, I work with someone, uh, who she hates when I call it this, uh, it's like a mastermind group, but it's group therapy for entrepreneurs, cause it's run by a psychotherapist. Uh, and we've talked a lot about like running business, having hard conversations in particular with employees, with contractors who might have let you down with clients who have expectations that are different. And like you, you wanna preserve that relationship and you wanna get paid cause you got bills to pay. So how do you have these hard conversations where somebody might get hurt? And dignity is what keyed me into that because she says you've always got to be focused on giving people a dignified way out and like that accusatory way of telling people like you're wrong. I'm right. Doesn't give anybody a dignified way to back out and you gotta give yourself a dignified way to back out too, because sometimes we're in the wrong, you know, that's a little bit of a tangent, but just that word dignity really caught me like treat people with dignity, with care, with respect.
Angie Colee (00:09:19):
It's not nearly as hard as it might seem. I don't know if you ever saw this movie called ever after. It was one of my favorites. Uh mm-hmm and at one point the prince says this line of like, I used to think that if I cared about anything, I would have to care about everything. And then I would go stark, raving mad. And I think a lot of people live their entire lives under that impression that if I care about something, I'm going to have to let all of the world's troubles in and then I'm just gonna like lose it. But I, I think that you can be a deeply caring, deeply giving person, a very successful entrepreneur. You can prop up the local economy. You can support people. You can make an excellent life for yourself without losing your minds. Like all of that is possible.
Richard Blank (00:10:03):
My suggestion it's impulse control and maturity. If there's no sense of urgency, if you do not need to give a final answer. Right, right. Right. Now, if you're allowed to walk away, sleep on it, write the draft, read it the next day. Maybe not send it. There's a very good chance. My friend, we can eliminate, what's not necessary. Prioritize calm down, rehearse how you're gonna make the diplomatic delivery. And once again, not come out guns a blazing mm-hmm possibly understand someone's position. Yeah. And really be able to represent yourself in the best light. Especially if something's emotional sensitive, you don't wanna ruin Thanksgiving dinner. Yeah. But given the chance to ponder, to organize my thoughts, to hit the gym, to take a walk, to play some pinball and think about these ideas, I've been able to maintain certain relationships compared to just a one and a doner burning a bridge.
Richard Blank (00:11:00):
But mind you, this, Angie, you know, a lot of people have situations that are happening outside of the office that might be affecting their work performance now without prying or going home with you. Mm-hmm I have to take that into consideration because I can give 'em a little silly guilt. I can say, Hey Angie, you know, you're better than this. And come on, you're outta character. Look what you did last Tuesday. You were the star and today you're a zero what's going on today. Mm-hmm . And so I, I can really get real with people because I've been there during their good times and added wind in their sales and, and maybe you and I could be the first mentor teacher mm-hmm, partner. That actually is a straight shooter. Yeah. I don't want a yes, man. I want someone on my team. Mm-hmm but someone's gotta tell me if my coffee's too strong. you know, at least if you play with me and I respect people like that, they're, they're more than willing to be open minded, not being vulnerable, but willing to really let themselves be true. Mm-hmm so we can build an honest relationship together. That's long term.
Angie Colee (00:11:59):
Absolutely. I think that's super important. Like, uh, I, I, two things that really stuck out to me there was like giving yourself space, like how many relationships and, and disaster relationships ending and disasters could have been prevented if the people involved felt like they could actually take space to respond. Like I can't tell you how many times once I learned that I used to be a hothead I'm sure. Permission to kick. Didn't tip you off to that.
Richard Blank (00:12:28):
The name of the podcast. Of course. Yeah. Angie,
Angie Colee (00:12:32):
I used to blow up. I used to have a very like direct fighting style of like, let's hash this out right now and just move beyond it. And as I learned this art of patience, I learned how often just me leaning into the emotions and, and deciding that I needed to solve this right now, actually escalated things to the point that there was no coming back from it. And half of the time easily, if I do take that pause by the time I've come back around to articulate my response or ask for a call, they've had some thoughts and come back and propose something too. And like the situation resolves itself almost so like patience and take a space. It's totally okay. And I don't think anybody, anybody rational anyways, uh, has a problem with you saying that's fantastic. I love hearing that. Or Ooh, like that's, I'm struggling with that. Could I have 24 hours to think about that? I'll get back to you tomorrow. Most of us are gonna be like, yeah, that's fair. Cool. Let's talk tomorrow. Nonissue.
Richard Blank (00:13:33):
A hundred percent correct. And, and as I mentioned before, writing down these ideas, sharing it with somebody that might be outside of your circle. Sometimes the best advice you get are from bartenders or strangers on the train mm-hmm. And so you just don't want to be prejudged on something like this. You might need to get it out with another group that has absolutely no idea. Absolutely. Which you're even talking about, just to see if your tone is off. If you're being too aggressive,
Angie Colee (00:13:59):
Those are the ones that I think can point out exactly what you said. Like maybe there's something going on at home. To me, that's kind of the, the impetus behind people always saying it's not personal it's business. You know, it feels personal when it's your business and when you work so hard on it. But like I said, maybe everything went wrong. I was telling you a little bit before we started recording that I had a mother of a bad weekend with a horrible Airbnb experience. And like I'm in a hotel right now. Um, and it's very easy when you're surrounded by those circumstances and all of that energy and that frustration to like somebody sends you an email and you read it at the exact wrong time and you go, not this right now. And you snap.
Richard Blank (00:14:39):
Man, Angie, it, it, it really depends on how you react to it. Mm-hmm, not what happens to you. My favorite thing is the movie ZBA, the Greek, but Anthony Quinn, the man's fishing boat thinks, and instead of crying or screaming, he just puts out his arm and starts dancing on the beach. it's
Richard Blank (00:14:55):
One of the Greatest, one of the greatest lessons in life you could ever learn. Mm-hmm how you react to it. And I learned to smile a long time ago and I don't take things personally. Cause sometimes in this world there's a Zig and a zag mm-hmm and that's okay. I'm willing to take that.
Richard Blank (00:15:13):
At the end of the day, my toes are still tapping and that's the most important thing, Angie,
Angie Colee (00:15:18):
I love that. And that's a choice too, cause I wouldn't say that. I grew up feeling like a very positive, a very power empowered, a very, um, understanding or compassionate person. I was very judgey. I was very convinced that there's a right way, wrong way to do things. And like if you just did things my way, things would turn out, better, stop arguing with me. Um, and just opdn, but I, I lived a life of kind of misery and frustration in that mental state because frankly I was trying to control a whole bunch of and a whole bunch of people that I can't actually control. Mm-hmm I can only control me. And when that light bulb went off in my head, I can only control me. There's nothing about the rest of this situation that I can really control me and my actions. That's it. That really helped me to understand the compassion and realize that. So like you and I were looking for the, for the positive stuff at this point, when things go wrong and we're going, all right, this ain't gonna hold me back for long. Let's just find the thing and have fun already there.
Richard Blank (00:16:18):
That's the worst thing that happens to you today about the D and D I mean, I think that's the greatest thing you could ever have in your life. It's you have to, you have your health, you have your friends, you're very successful, your own forward trajectory. I mean, you're a winner. So these are the sort of things. These are the small test where you almost have to laugh at it's it's almost like Bruce Lee mm-hmm remember when he went into the dojo and was beaten up 30 people. He didn't beat up 30 in one shot, like in the matrix where he's swinging around. It's really one, it's really one at a time it's it's taking big piles into smaller piles. Mm-hmm holding and putting away it's. These are the sort of steps to make your life that much easier. So when the little stuff comes, you almost laugh at it. You, you almost thank it because the sour then, you know, the sweet
Angie Colee (00:17:03):
Mm-hmm that's so true. And it's interesting. I didn't anticipate getting into this story when we started recording, but basically like what happened with this Airbnb was that I had driven for 12 hours from Northern California up to Portlands and I was try and like, I mean, pedal to the metal with all of my stuff in my car, trying to beat sunset because I really wanted to unload before dark. That's just a preference of mine. It reduces injuries. Yay. Let's let's unload before sunset. So I did get up here around eight o'clock at night. I got in, uh, I started, I unloaded the first like wagon full of stuff from my car and immediately noticed that this place has a smell to it. Like a not great smell to it, but maybe I just need to air it out, turn on the air conditioner, whatever, like sometimes places get dank if they've been shut up.
Angie Colee (00:17:51):
So that's fine. I go get another load. I come back in, I'm looking for the air conditioner. I realize there's no air conditioner. There's no fans. There's only a heater. There's not really any way to get the air circulating. And like I'm developing a headache from like this moldy dam smell. So I actually wound up canceling everything and telling the host, like I'm not gonna be able to do five weeks here with a heat wave coming and this mold smell and no way to circulate the air. Um, and they tried to get me to stay, but I told them, you know, like, no, I, I don't talk myself into staying places. That's just a personal rule of mine. Um, my gut says, leave. I follow my gut. So had to fight with Airbnb long and short of it. But I mean, by the time I got to the hotel that night, it's already after midnight, I, I plugged in the wrong holiday inn, I got to the front counter and I cried and the manager cried and I'm just like at the epitome of frustration, finally get checked into the right holiday, in, get everything settled, get Stella set up, pass out.
Angie Colee (00:18:49):
And thankfully I had the foresight to book two nights so that I wouldn't have to get up Sunday morning and just like rush like crazy figure out where I'm going. I bought myself some more time because I knew that I needed to rest and that I was in such a mental state that nothing was going to be clear right now. And honestly, most of Sunday I slept, I slept and I sat in the air conditioning and I looked up options and I tried to get a hold of Airbnb. But like that rest made the difference in everything. cause just like wandering around the hotel. I'm like, oh there's a hot tub. I'm gonna go research options sitting in the hot tub. yeah. And that allowed me to tap back into that gratitude, like giving myself space to tie it back to what we were talking about earlier to give myself rest and realize, okay. Things could definitely be worse. I'm sitting in a hot tub exploring my options. I've got friends that are looking for places for me. Like this is actually a lot better than it might seem. Even though yesterday, I felt like the whole world was falling apart.
Richard Blank (00:19:45):
You need a couple little chinks in your armor. Mm-hmm you have a couple little war scars there, here and there. And so that's cool. It's gonna be part of your funny story. You're mentioning it on the podcast. It's just one of those life ex it's never gonna happen again. Mm-hmm that? I promise you're definitely gonna be checking out these places.
Angie Colee (00:20:02):
Oh yeah. Well and I mean it considering I've been on the road for two years and this is my first like not really not great experience with Airbnb. I, I like the odds. The odds have been going in our favor. So hopefully Airbnb learns from this and, and things are back on the upward trajectory. Um, but yeah, it's, it's just fascinating. How like taking space, giving yourself rest, not reacting immediately can actually contribute to you. Being able to see the positive in a negative situation. I love it.
Richard Blank (00:20:31):
Hundred percent. Correct. Very smart.
Angie Colee (00:20:33):
All right. I'm gonna do an abrupt segue and I'm gonna say circle back to what we mentioned in the beginning with business relationships and how sometimes things happen. And I feel like that's something that I encounter a lot with newer entrepreneurs who feel like they've always gotta be perfect, always gotta put their best step forward. And that any mistake they make is either seen as a sign of weakness or a sign of incompetence. And it's I remember stressing out like that in my early days of entrepreneurship. And then the further I've gone and the deeper, the relationships I've gotten, I've realized how okay. Stuff happens. Exactly. Like you said, I didn't really have a question there, but
Richard Blank (00:21:13):
the best relationships to build with a client are no surprises. Mm-hmm in my industry, there is a rotation. So imagine Angie that one of your 10 agents doesn't come to work today and quits, I would let you know what happened. Hopefully get an exit interview and explain why give you the, the game plan of when we're bringing somebody on board and working with you, because if it's a one and a done, if that's so delicate that it could be a deal breaker with a client, then by all means walk on eggshells. But if you are capable in real time of having solutions and being accountable, you probably get a lot more seats and a lot more business because they realize you're a straight shooter mm-hmm and you're not gonna avoid to communicate with somebody. That's the worst thing you can do. And no one bats, a thousand in business, what sort of entrepreneurs? These people think they are? Things happen all the time,
Angie Colee (00:22:04):
The profession, sorry, I didn't mean to jump in on you on that. Like I,
Richard Blank (00:22:09):
No, no, no. I'm glad you did. As I'm saying, it's something that people shouldn't worry about. In fact, I don't want it to happen, but I look forward to it because there's always something that comes up and when I immediately address it, mm-hmm and it just establishes more my credibility.
Angie Colee (00:22:23):
Exactly. And just like you mentioned earlier, I love how this is coming full circle. Like you find out who people really are in times of crisis in times of mistakes, when things are going wrong, that's who you find out who the people are around you that are gonna step up that are gonna be leaders that you have these long relationships.
Richard Blank (00:22:40):
See, those are real business people. Mm-hmm if somebody become to you with a solution and just takes the deep breath and just, you know, figures out what to do, that's the sort of pilot you want. It's not the first time they've been out at the high seas. Yep. And so you need to have a couple scrapes on the armor. Mm-hmm it just shows that you've been out there a little bit.
Angie Colee (00:22:59):
I love that when I'm working with the, the newer freelancers that I coach, I tell them there's actually power in calling out the elephant in the room. It's like, because the client that you're talking to is looking over your shoulder going, are they gonna mention the elephant? Should I mention the elephant? What is, what is that doing here? How are we going to deal with that? And I was like, so when you go, oh yeah, uh, by the way, there's an elephant there. Here's how we're gonna deal with that problem. Uh, let me know if you have any questions on that. I mean, I know that it's kind of weird that there's an elephant in here, but like I've got a plan for that. Don't worry about that. Uh, then they go, okay, well, yeah, that's weird. There's an elephant in the room, but she's got it. It's fine.
Richard Blank (00:23:39):
Exactly, exactly
Angie Colee (00:23:42):
Like, and I do that with products. I do that with clients all the, the time, like if there's a flaw on the product, I'll call out the flaw on the product and be like, is this a hundred percent perfect? No, is this pretty good? Absolutely. Here's why.
Richard Blank (00:23:53):
Well, cause you're in the now mm-hmm, people that don't address that elephant and just continue their pitching. They're just rehearsed and they're going through the motions. It's, you know, sometimes there's a stop or a detour or you just sit in Oasis for a while and have some rest and some water mm-hmm and so I, I allow things to happen at a natural pace. If you don't do a follow up question, if you don't show active, attentive, listening, copious note, taking mm-hmm confirmation, you're probably gonna leave a door too open, and then you're not gonna get the results you want at the end of that conversation.
Angie Colee (00:24:27):
Mm-hmm absolutely. And I think communication is key and it's, it's so interesting to me, how many people are kind of paranoid to communicate. They're afraid they're gonna say the wrong thing. They're afraid they're bothering people. They're afraid if they let you know the truth and tell you that the elephant is in the room and there is a problem that you're going to be upset with them for some reason. And I get that fear on the one hand and I remember experiencing it in my lifetime. And, and I think that fear is valid, but flawed because exactly like you said, people respect a straight shooter. People want to be kept in the know and know what's going on. And even if you don't say it right, there are ways to kind of dampen that. Like one of my, I learned this trick from a very smart person named Annie Hyman Pratt, who does a lot of like team facilitation and his executive leadership training.
Angie Colee (00:25:20):
Um, and she said, if you're really worried about not getting the words right, when you have to have a hard conversation, you can just say, I may not say this correctly, but I hope that you hear the spirit behind this, the intent behind that, and then say what you have to say in a kind and compassionate manner. And ever since I learned that and I put it into practice, I get so many people that tell me, man, you really have a way with words. Oh man. You know how to have hard conversations? Like, oh, you're people management skills. And I'm like, it's one trick that I have just like I hopped on that horse and wrote it off into the sunset. And people are like, you're a great people manager .
Richard Blank (00:25:57):
Angie if they give you the luxury of time, mm-hmm . If they allow you to sleep on it, if you can write a draft and read it the next day, mm-hmm , there's a very good chance. You can reset yourself, avoid sending the information, prioritize practice mm-hmm so you're not afraid or nervous because it's rehearsed. You realize certain words could, it's almost like speaking physics. Mm-hmm some things can produce positive or negative reactions. And so maybe instead of using the word help, you could say assist guide and lend a hand mm-hmm before saying something, as you were doing earlier saying, Angie, may I make a suggestion? Yes. Or in order for us to move forward. And so listen, if you gotta walk into that sort of situation, you have to do it. Mm-hmm. And so the best thing to do is to be prepared with as much diplomatic and strategic semantic vocabulary as possible.
Richard Blank (00:26:49):
Yes, you have to do it. And so I would choose things that are always relentlessly positive mm-hmm and, and, and showing some sort of sincerity doesn't mean I need to agree with you. Yes. But the last thing I wanna do is provoke any sort of negative reaction from you. So maybe we could take it in steps. Maybe we go to a certain point today, Angie, and go, why don't we do this? Angie, why don't we speak tomorrow at the same time? And we'll go to part two part three part four mm-hmm, as long as people can respect time. Mm-hmm not do a sense of urgency or force you in regards to impulse control. Chances are, you will come back as you were mentioning with a much better delivery that could produce the results that you're looking for.
Angie Colee (00:27:34):
Mm-hmm I love that you said that because I think that's something that really needs to be articulated and reinforced in this day and age of instantaneous expectation for communication, right? Like there are, I've seen folks and I've had clients that expected like me to be online, answering questions all the time. And I would tell them, Hey, I, I understand that. And with your employees, that might be company policy. It's not the way that I work with my business. I actually do my best work if I've got notifications off and I've carved out time to focus on this project. So, I mean, I can be in slack, answering pings all day, if that's what you really want me to do. But my thought is you'd probably prefer me to be able to do the work that you hired me to do is that accurate. And they would always be like, man, wow. Okay. That was like a gracious, no and I'm not gonna be in your slack channel. But that being able to hold that boundary, when I learned how to do that has just impacted so many other things for the positive in my life, because I learned that precisely I don't need to respond. The second somebody brings something to my attention. And in fact, responding the moment that they reach out without giving myself time to think often means that I am even in more danger of saying the wrong thing, because I haven't thought about it.
Richard Blank (00:28:52):
You lost all of your leverage mm-hmm and Angie, and they could potentially use something you say against you, even though it was, as you mentioned, misinterpreted miscommunicated, or just at the wrong time. Mm-hmm . And so I don't think that's fair. I find that to be somewhat of manipulation. It really depends on the individual with whom you're speaking. Mm-hmm but to me, I try to, especially if something's emotional, where it's a very large decision, please allow me a moment to ponder. Yeah. Can I call Angie for a minute and talk to her about it so I can be calm and then get back in touch with you? I mean, there's the sort of support groups or best friends, or even better Angie, imagine sharing it with a stranger. So you have no sort of prejudgment yes. Or repercussion a bartender, a stranger just to get it out. Mm-hmm and just to gauge your reaction, they don't even know you. Yeah. And I've been able to readjust myself by getting some sort of feedback from individuals that really have no, you know, financial interest in any sort of decisions I'm making. They're just there to listen as a friend or just somebody that cares for the moment.
Angie Colee (00:29:58):
I love that when that happens to me, I, I think I take a similar tactic, which is, Hey, thanks for sharing that with me. Do you mind if I mull that over for, for a couple hours, I'm gonna get back to you by this time. And I just let them know I've I've heard you, I'm gonna get back to you. I'm not leaving you hanging on red so that you don't know what I'm thinking. You know, that I've heard you and that I'm gonna get back to you with what I think. And then the same thing. I have a certain number of friends, uh, uh, just a handful of people that I know I can call and say, all right. And it's funny cause they can't see this. I've got my little timer here. I need to rant. Are you available to listen? Are you in the right head space for this? Okay, cool. Thank you very much. I'm gonna set a timer for 15 minutes. I get to say whatever the hell I want for 15 minutes and then I gotta pull it together and come up with an action plan. And that's really helped me a lot in situations where I'm feeling overwhelmed and stressed. Just giving myself an outlet where it's okay to feel whatever I'm feeling and then deep breath action.
Richard Blank (00:30:58):
You have my permission to be uncomfortable physically. Mm-hmm like if you see a spider or snake or someone, you know, is running at you with a baseball bat. No problem. Yes. But when it, when it comes to mental challenges, I, I believe that people have the ability to control that and to overcome those situations. And a lot of it has to do is separating piles. Hmm. Cause it just seems like so much in the beginning. Yeah. And if you can start separating piles into smaller piles, it's it's more manageable. It's almost like a divide and conquer mm-hmm but it seems like so much. Well, write it down. It's not that much. Oh. And then when you start putting sub dispositions, scar crossing it out. Mm-hmm you laugh at it because it's not so tough. and then you can almost, you can almost dominate it in a sense mm-hmm to where you, you say you're I'm not afraid anymore.
Richard Blank (00:31:57):
Mm-hmm it's almost like Lieutenant Dan and Forest Gump that was in that shrimp boat. He's up there on that mask, just yelling at the gauze to strike him down, to pour rain on him. There's nothing that could affect him at that moment. It's almost like when you and I were dancing in the rain mm-hmm and it's easier said than done. I, I, I can't once again, make those decisions for people, but those are the sort of things that assisted me and visually looking at the sort of steps that needed to be taken or, or how cumbersome the, the, the project was. And when you really look at it and you really analyze it, each one has its own Achilles heel. Mm-hmm everyone's got a red button that could shut it off. Yes. Or just one domino can knock down the thousand. So what are you complaining about? Mm-hmm you just gotta crack that code, figure out where to focus. And then the next thing, you know, an hour later, it's all done and you're ready for the next day.
Angie Colee (00:32:52):
I love that you said that too, because you're, you're absolutely right. One domino can knock down a thousand and you never really know what that domino is, is, or when it's gonna happen. A hello global pandemic. So all you can really do on any given day is your best to keep this moving forward. That's all you can do. And if you've done that at the end of the day, your best. So I'm being specific. If you've done your best at the end of the day, even if you're best is less than yesterday, but more than some other days, right? It fluctuates cause we're human. Then that's a win in my book. Try again tomorrow.
Richard Blank (00:33:27):
I also believe that if you're put into a certain situation, you might have thought about something you would've never even considered before.
Angie Colee (00:33:35):
Ooh, interesting. Dig into that a little bit deeper.
Richard Blank (00:33:38):
Well, I mean, if you've been ever broke mm-hmm you realize how tasty steak is and how it's nice to be under a roof next to a warm fire with a cup of tea. Mm-hmm so if you ever get that again, you appreciate it more. Yep. Or you might double check yourself on what got you into that sort of situation. Mm. There could be a time where the mask comes off in the individual that is attacking you or putting you in a certain position that makes you feel uncomfortable. You realize that they've crossed over a certain line or didn't respect sort of boundaries or even bother to ask mm-hmm about a certain protocol. Cause you're asking you to communicate before the end of the business today. Well, I mean your lack of preparation should never be my emergency.
Angie Colee (00:34:24):
I wanna cheer for that. They can't see me, but I'm like, I want that to be a motto of every business owner, every person out there, just because you did not plan, this does not make this an emergency on my part. I will do what I can. No promises
Richard Blank (00:34:38):
Exactly. But, but it gives you a chance maybe almost like a video game where, you know, if Pacman dies, you have a couple more players and a couple more quarters it's, you know, it's not a one and a dime. So you, you may be able to experiment in regards to a difficult client, uh, um, you know, a certain target date. Mm-hmm, you know, when, when a project is given to you only 45% complete mm-hmm and you need to add the other, you know, 55%. And so I, I don't mind being in a situation where I can challenge myself. Mm-hmm but I, I don't want to do anything to break myself. It's not your job to continuously test me because you don't trust me. That's not fair. Yes. I mean, you, you can't judge me on what happened with your last client as I'm not judging you on my other clients, but lemme put it this way. I've been in business long enough to know when someone has practiced their violin. And when they're prepared, reverse psychology me on something that realistically cannot be done because I do own a call center and I do have infrastructure, but I I'm more than willing to kick a tire or two or, or to look into something and just see how far our minds can go. Mm-hmm and, and I think that's very healthy sometimes. Yeah. Just, just to dabble into different colors in your crayon box, just to see what may come out of it.
Angie Colee (00:36:00):
Yeah. Being willing to experiment and go out of your comfort zone, but not necessarily, uh, go against your own instincts or your own boundaries. I know I was talking with somebody recently about, let me see how I can do this in a, in a mostly anonymous way. Uh, there were struggling with a, a client that they were advising and this client basically said, well, yeah, I made mistakes, X, Y, Z, but you should have told me because you're the expert and I'm trusting you and that's what I'm paying you for. And this my student said, well, but I told them not to do X, Y, Z. And so I, I do feel like I advised them in their best interest to the best of my capability. And I was like, yeah. I mean, maybe they weren't in a place to hear you. Maybe they missed that message or misunderstood it so we can give them grace for being human while also telling them, okay, well, on date, I advised you not to do X, Y, Z. You felt that that was your best course of action. And you did X, Y, Z. Now we're in this situation. And I get that. That is tough, but I did not. In fact, do X, Y, Z for your business.
Richard Blank (00:37:11):
I like meeting minutes. Mm-hmm it makes individuals accountable. Yep. Maybe before the cure two or three, not emails or even phone calls, but whatever it was to get, that sort of response may need to be done.
Angie Colee (00:37:26):
Yes.
Richard Blank (00:37:27):
And as I say, you might need to find somebody else at that organization that has the decision maker's ear mm-hmm, that might be more flexible understanding or takes the sort of notes when you make your suggestions mm-hmm and reads it back to you. So everyone's honesty. I'm not throwing anyone under the bus, but they're just like myself. I have a floor supervisor mm-hmm and I hae a chief tactical officer I've individuals that assist me and, and alleviate some of my workload and stress mm-hmm and these owners try to wear so many hats
Angie Colee (00:38:03):
Oh yes.
Richard Blank (00:38:04):
And they want to do everything. Well, maybe you shouldn't mm-hmm and it's okay. And possibly by comparing other clients, you've had other experiences where it has worked out, or hasn't worked out that could be a passive aggressive way to share with them your experience. Oh. Which could you give them that sort of indirect hint mm-hmm that you shouldn't be doing it because I've seen it before.
Angie Colee (00:38:32):
Oh, interesting. I didn't think about that. So wait to clarify for my own, uh, understanding the way that I handled it was passive aggressive. Or are you talking about another one?
Richard Blank (00:38:43):
No, no. The way we had. Oh, okay. And so instead of letting 'em know, well, you told me we did this and here's the result. Oh no, no, no. Besides making this suggestion, I had a client X, Y, Z mm-hmm twice your size. Mm-hmm that did this, this and this. And this is what happened here, here and here.
Angie Colee (00:38:59):
Yeah.
Richard Blank (00:39:00):
How do you feel about that? Or what are your thoughts about that? or, or could you expand on that for me on ways in which you think my client would've been able to resolve that issue, they might have figured it out or they could have said check me. No, you're correct. You payments yourself in a corner.
Angie Colee (00:39:16):
I like that. That's demonstration in action versus saying, I don't advise you do X, Y, Z. Okay. Here's a story about what happened the last time I did X, Y, Z. And I just wanna
Richard Blank (00:39:26):
That scar, they have to see the broken wine bottle. They, they have to see the stain dress mm-hmm has to be done. And, and it's not like it's their end. I'm letting you see mm-hmm that I've seen this disaster in the past and can prove it yeah. With statistics. So I'm letting you know that I don't bat a thousand. In fact, I'm sharing with you. One of the, I still have 'em as a client, but look what happened with them. We took a few in the chin. Mm-hmm still with me, but you need to see this. Yeah. Because they've been with me longer than you. More experience. They're a senior, you're a freshman mm-hmm let me explain to you what's happening throughout the couple years of high school. Yeah. So you have a better experience.
Angie Colee (00:40:04):
I love that. That's I, that's how I work with a lot of my own clients and my experience X, Y, Z has not worked out the way that you're imagining. I understand why that is a fantastic idea. I share a story from my experience. And I say, that said, how do you feel? What, how would you like to proceed? I'm here to help you succeed to the best of my ability and the coolest thing. I think I learned as an advisor, a trusted advisor to people is that I consider my duty fulfilled. If I have advised them. And I am looking out after their best interest. And then if they decide to proceed against my advice, I'm still going to help them. And, oh, this circles back so nicely, like we talked about in the beginning, the business relationships, if it goes wrong, well, then I'm gonna be there to help them pick up the pieces and figure out how to move forward.
Angie Colee (00:40:53):
And if it goes right, well, Hey, that didn't go. Like I expected, but yay. Win. All right, cool. Let's keep moving forward. Like either way me looking after them in their best interest by providing the advice. Oh, that ties back to what you were saying about being a friend too. Like a friend will tell you like it is because they care about you and they want you to do better. So I've shared my best advice. And if you proceed cool. All right, I'm gonna let you proceed how your gut tells you to proceed. And then I will be here for better or for worse after everything shakes out the way it's supposed to
Richard Blank (00:41:26):
Think of ice cream scoops. Mm-hmm ethically. It's okay. I'll sell you five scoops, but I'll let you know that if you move a little bit, they may fall. . I mean, I've never seen, I've seen a triple scoop and no one does five, but I'm just letting you know, if you're good with it and you, you hold center, you might be able to pull it all, but there is still a risk there and I'm still ethically comfortable selling it to you because you're very insistent. Yes. And it's okay. I, I, I think there's a way to meet in the middle and wish them well.
Angie Colee (00:41:54):
I love, I think that a lot of business stress contractor, stress consultant, stress stems from this issue that we're kind of circling talking about, which is trying to do more than you can like stepping over the line of your business, into someone else's business and attempting to run it for them, the way that you would run their business. Sure. Versus you staying in your lane where you're strong. Oh, there's so many parallels here where you were talking about hiring support staff so that you can stay in your lane where you're strong, but like you started your business because you have this interest or this passion or this expertise, and you wanna help people with that. And that's really where your lane is. And in your sweet spot, you can't actually jump into other people's businesses and run all of their businesses for them. In addition to running your own, that's a recipe for burnout.
Richard Blank (00:42:40):
I just wish I may be able to change certain company cultures. Yes. When I've worked with clients in the United States to have an over zealous supervisor that likes to curse. Ooh. And they'd like to type in, you know, bold caps, which thinking they're making a, a statement, but it could be offensive. Mm-hmm. And a lot of the things that you may do in the United States, let's say New York, for an example, in a boiler room might not be a good fit here. Mm-hmm. And plus sometimes clients don't respect the labor laws. And so, um, at least I could try to make certain suggestions in regards to my company culture, how I interact with the agents, how I respect them and give them their dignity and their job stability and play pinball with them and work on their soft skills and have an open door policy.
Richard Blank (00:43:25):
And I'm not looking to fire mm-hmm an individual, because a lot of clients are like, yeah, let's just get rid of him. And no, no, no, because if you're talking about my reputation in Costa Rica, I just don't wanna feel used mm-hmm and, and you're back in Chicago. Yeah. You never see these people, but I might bump into them at the mall on Saturday. And I just wanna make sure that I'm cool with this agent and his family so I can say hello to his mother. And, and so to me, nothing's worth that price. Yes. I'm not gonna sell my soul for a golden fiddle. I'm not gonna compromise my ethics or do something illegal or gray area. I've been here for 15 years, 15 years before you even came with me. Mm-hmm so why would I want you now? I mean, it's either, either join my happy rhythm or potentially we're not a good fit.
Richard Blank (00:44:14):
I'm not gonna be a ball guy or, or that sort of individual. I'm sorry. I thankfully, Angie, I, I, I don't need that business. Mm-hmm in order to keep my lights on. Yes. Or in order for me to, you know, to make a payroll mm-hmm imposo I've never had to do things like that, that before. And I usually turn down more clients than I accept them. I'd love to grow to thousands of seats, but I have to make sure I can fulfill the need of the client and the agent and especially myself. Mm-hmm , that's the most impotant.
Angie Colee (00:44:43):
Oh, I love that. You were saying all of this, like the, the phrase popped into my head while you were explaining that, uh, uh, if you don't stand for anything, you'll fall for anything. Uh, and I feel like that is a danger zone that happens in business, right? Like, uh, I need to make the bills and this guy seems like he's on the level with their business. And then you get involved and you take their money and they're doing a whole bunch of shady unethical stuff that makes you really uncomfortable. And now you're kind of in that world, and it's hard to extricate yourself cause you need money. Like it, it can be a trap to fall into.
Richard Blank (00:45:16):
You should ever be there in the first place.
Angie Colee (00:45:18):
Exactly. Like if you know what you stand for and you say, I work with people who have a passion and a vision and they really care about their customers and they wanna achieve some good in the world. Well then you're probably not gonna fall for that shady guy that has the scammy thing because you know who you are for. Love it. And I love, and I wanna point this out because I wanna shine a spotlight on it. I think that you do this so brilliantly and I hope everybody emulates your example because this is something that I, it drives me nuts about American corporate culture that we think that we can discipline people into wanting to give their best to the company that we can micromanage them into wanting to give their best. I think your approach is better. Like I care about this person and their family. I care about their success. How can I train them? How can I develop them? Even if they're not going to stay here for the rest of their lives, how can I have a positive impact on their life and therefore the community, and then they wanna bring in other people to work. And this is a great place. Like I think that I just, if I could put that on a bat signal over New York and just be like, treat your coworkers with respect, treat your employees with respect,
Richard Blank (00:46:29):
But you're supposed to fear your boss.
Richard Blank (00:46:32):
and you're supposed to be afraid of being fired.
Angie Colee (00:46:35):
I don't buy it.
Richard Blank (00:46:36):
And you're trying to get the best outta somebody by, by forcing them to push a rock up a hill. I think that's terrible. I, I realize this because there's a large rotation within call centers. Let's be realistic here. Mm-hmm I usually lose someone Angie because of natural attrition, scheduling conflict, a boyfriend girlfriend, a best friend working somewhere closer to home or sometimes even money. Sometimes it's married. Mm-hmm but um, I think the greatest thing as a leader, and I'm gonna say the word again is, is dignity. The fact that I know somebody's name, I also work in their shoes. I have sat in a cubicle I've made and received these calls. I understand what it's like, so I can extend empathy towards them. Mm. But I, I know that when you create an environment where you sincerely invest in somebody and for me, it was quite easy.
Richard Blank (00:47:27):
Since English is their second language, I had an angle. Mm. I could focus on their grammar, vocabulary, similes delivery genres in the United States experiences. So I came to the table with something mm-hmm. And so I guess, by focusing on that, um, return on investment from their education and their own self fulfillment, almost letting, allowing them to be selfish mm-hmm to, to use me to get better English skills more, you know, become more marketable. That's great. Because if you feel that way, it's only gonna roll over into your work so, yes, as, as long as you're more confident that way besides even work, it's probably gonna make your life better outside of the office. And so I had a special sauce mm-hmm that I literally focused on business was second mm-hmm self-development was first. Oh. And it, and it was good enough for people to buy it.
Richard Blank (00:48:31):
Mm-hmm and for the, for the agents to decide, to choose my call center mm-hmm over Amazon and the other larger call centers, because they, they knew that they had a mentor mm-hmm and this was an environment where they would be increasing their skills and not become complacent and, and bored. And that's why it's kind of funny. It's almost like the dirty dozen or the justice league. I really do have a unique set of individuals here that are not looking to get lost amongst thousands. Mm. And, and, and just go their way. These are individuals that wanna make a name for themselves to, to know an owner and to have the opportunity through merit to grow. Yes. And it's very funny because we all have that in common. These individuals here are so humble and kind, and I hear stories all the time of agents breaking bread outside of the office on their own free time. Mm-hmm and that warms my heart because individuals from many different departments, men and women are like just going there to, to have some barbecue and some laughs and to share what they have in common, which is me I was able to bring them together. And so I think that's one of the greatest things that we've created. Angie
Angie Colee (00:49:45):
That's, That's fantastic.
Angie Colee (00:49:48):
Yeah. Like I, you know, when I became a copywriter, I went in house for a while to stabilize the finances. I, I told you that story about living in my car before I got my first copy job. And so I spent several
Richard Blank (00:50:00):
What was it, by the way a what kinda
Richard Blank (00:50:02):
Car were you headed?
Angie Colee (00:50:03):
A Suzuki XL seven.
Richard Blank (00:50:05):
rock on. There you go.
Angie Colee (00:50:07):
It was, it was pretty nice. It's a little small SUV. It was nice and comfy. I had my diabetic cat with me. We're noticing a, to the travel. I always take the cat of the hour. Uh, and of course they can't see the video I'm pointing over my shoulder at Stella. Who's like curl in an observer position as we're recording this. But when I wound up in the final salaried copyright role that I would occupy in my time as a, as a writer, uh, I was in a very toxic corporate environment. And I'm grateful for the experience too. I wouldn't change it if I had the opportunity to go back, because that taught me so much about leadership and the kind of leader I refuse to be. I refuse to be one that is seeking glory on the backs of my people's hard work. I refuse to be the one that intimidates people into staying versus inspires them to want to stay. I refuse to be the person that asks them to give up their life for the business. I like there were just so many great things that I learned about. I can't intimidate them into doing their best. I can inspire them to do their best though. Hmm. Change the way I do everything
Richard Blank (00:51:16):
They could always quit. And then look at that sort of investment, swinging a miss. Mm-hmm
Angie Colee (00:51:21):
right? Cause it, it costs real money to train somebody, to invest them, to create systems around them. And then I think you're just doing yourself and the whole company and disservice. If you're trying to control everybody, can only control you Boo might as well.
Richard Blank (00:51:38):
And I've done some philly guilt before I I've said, Hey, Angie, you know, you're better than this. Come on. I saw you do 14 last week or Angie, you seem out of character, usually smiling, having a great day. You're not talking to anybody.
Angie Colee (00:51:52):
The, I think that's compassion. I don't know that that's guilt. I think that's leading
Richard Blank (00:51:55):
It has worked every time though. There have been certain people that found that offensive or they didn't know how to react to it where someone not called them out, but observed something that I brought to their attention.
Angie Colee (00:52:08):
Mm-hmm
Richard Blank (00:52:09):
Maybe they weren't mature enough or ready. Yeah. To get to that next level, because a lot of the excuses are, are, you know, more about themselves than in regards to my efforts to make them better. Yeah. And so I try to learn with this new generation, through this vertical being a business owner and a guest in another country, really what is the right message to share with someone that might be having issues outside the office or potentially not feeling prepared that day, um, it's kind of strange like that, but I, I like to give people if as long as you're not breaking a labor law. Yeah. Second and even third chances. because you and I have been given multiple chances. Yes. And thank God we have, because we've, we've been given that opportunity to make right.
Angie Colee (00:53:00):
Yes.
Richard Blank (00:53:01):
And to correct on those mistakes. And, and I think that's the best way for personal growth.
Angie Colee (00:53:05):
Yeah. I think like that's the part that I wish I had realized earlier in my entrepreneurial journey is that so many people who have reached a certain level of success feel compelled by, uh, they even talk about it as a compulsion. Most of the people I know to turn around and help the people behind them step up because someone in front of them helps them step up and they could, they recognize that they could not move forward without that perspective, without that mentorship, without that guidance, without that grace, for being human and understanding that you're gonna mess it up, nobody's gonna get it perfect from the time that they started. I've made this joke, like you didn't come out of the womb as boss, baby, nobody like you're not a six month old executive in a suit who already runs a successful business. You're gonna have to have some moments where you're learning how to walk and you fall down flat on your face. And man, isn't it great when you've got someone there that goes, wow, I bet that hurt. Come on. It's okay. Step up here. Let me help you. Let's get up. It's okay. Here. Here's how to do that better next time. And then that's just so empowering. I love it.
Richard Blank (00:54:08):
I'll share something funny with you. Like I'll walk rows and an agent might be yawning that morning and I'll stop. I go 6.5 and you'll look at me and go 6.5. I go, Angie, you're supposed to open your mouth more. Lift your head back, put your arms out and stretch your back. If you're gonna do it, give me a Swan dive yawn. Mm-hmm that was a week yawn, 6.5. gonna start laughing. So then the next time I see em, they over exaggerate a yawn and I go, there you go. You're gonna do it. Do it right.
Angie Colee (00:54:40):
Love that. Heaven forbid we build workplaces where people have fun, laugh, enjoy themselves. Are that much more productive? Because they're just having fun and not like constantly staring at the clock and anxious and worrying about whether they're producing the right amount. Like, mm. Yes. I love this.
Richard Blank (00:54:59):
and I even caught the occasional person sleeping. It's not. And so I walk up to, you know, I go, Andrew, you're like, ah, I go, you gotta calm down. You're bothering everybody. you're too excited. Yeah. What am I gonna do? Write you up. I mean, if it happens once in a blue moon, you're you're exhausted. Yeah. I'm working so hard. Your numbers are great. I don't know if something happened. You, you fell asleep for a second, but instead of firing you or walk, shame or embarrassing, I'll make a funny joke. Obviously. It's not gonna happen again. mm-hmm I will whisper to you Angie, why you go put some water on your face real quick. Yeah. And that's the cool boss. That's that's giving you the whole pass.
Angie Colee (00:55:37):
Mm-hmm the dignity.
Richard Blank (00:55:39):
Not in trouble. You're not in trouble. Yeah. But I'm letting you know, I'm watching you.
Angie Colee (00:55:43):
Well, it's that dignity that you mentioned. Like, I, I, um, I have a friend who's a psychotherapist. And she mentioned that too. Like the root of so many arguments and disagreements that wind up blowing up is because no one has a dignified way to back out. And it's like, once you are entrenched and there's no way to preserve your dignity. Well, I might as well go all the way into the mud now, cause we're already like we, I'm already wet Might as well dance in the rain. But if you can give somebody like that, understanding that compassion and their dignity, then things tend to deescalate a lot more often than they escalate.
Richard Blank (00:56:18):
Listen, my good friend, if it's not my immediate family, my wife or some of my best friends, these aren't deal breakers. I could almost allow you to get it out. Mm-hmm then ask you, have you finished yet? You still done I'll let you go. And then what will happen is I will walk backwards, address everything you do in a common cool way. Mm-hmm usually by the end of that conversation, we're both apologize to each other because of our tone mm-hmm and things like that. And so now, Angie, I it's, it's very rare for me to go code red. Yeah. You might just be having a moment mm-hmm and so I'm gonna gauge you on the 99 other times, not this one time. And uh, let's just see where you go with this today. Angie just don't scratch my car please.
Richard Blank (00:57:05):
Or do something stupid. I know, but everything else you could yell, scream, curse, and kick a guitar. I'm cool with that. Mm-hmm as long as you like, okay. Because that might actually something might happen there where I've even seen people shed a tear and it's not even work related. It's just so much in their life living with multi-generational families and taking care of parents and grandparents could be overwhelming mm-hmm and so somebody might out and then they're embarrassed and I let 'em know. It's cool. Let 'em know that it's something that we're not gonna discuss with anybody else. Cause I respect your privacy mm-hmm and then they go, I never expected my boss to be like that. I go, no, I'm not just a boss. My name is Richard Blank and I am a man mm-hmm and I, and I understand these things.
Richard Blank (00:57:54):
And then that's the individual that will never leave mm-hmm your company. Not like I've leveraged over them or something to embarrass them in the future. But there's that sort of look that an individual will give to me and I will look back, well, we know we've been there. Mm-hmm, we've done that. And I'm cool with you. And so they become even more relaxed and comfortable and contribute even more with other individuals that they see that might be going through that sort of situation. And so I've planted a lot of those positive seeds in multiple areas of the call center with individuals that have gotten through situations with me. And so, um, I allow them to speak for us as well Angie
Angie Colee (00:58:42):
I love that. And I think that's like the perfect note to wrap on because I think human first is like sums up everything that we are talking about today. Human first care about your people first and invest in those relationships because those are, what's gonna pay dividends rather than trying to short stocks and all the crazy stuff like invest in the people around you give a about the people around you lift up the people around you, watch how you shine. Mm.
Richard Blank (00:59:10):
Yeah. I wish I was smart enough to do stocks or cryptocurrency and stuff like that, but, but you're right. You and I go old school mm-hmm we build relationships and that is still a, a way to build a sandcastle and that's okay. Mm-hmm, I'm more than willing to do it that way.
Angie Colee (00:59:25):
Yep. That's my preferred way to do it. I love it. So tell us a little bit more about your business, how we can learn about you.
Richard Blank (00:59:32):
You can buy plane ticket, fly down and come visit you in central America. Bring Stella. Of course you would love se Rica and you can give me a call 8882716750. My email address is CEOCostaRicascallcenter.com and Angie at I have a very large Facebook fan page close to 100,000 local Costa Rican Ticos. And if your audience is interested in learning about the business process outsourcing industry in Costa Rica, you will see that we're in north of Panama, south of Nicaragua, the only democratic society in central America So there's no standing army. We have a 95% literacy rate. They put all their money back into education. We have an incredible infrastructure. So companies such as Amazon, HP, Intel, and Oracle here, Costa Rica is known for medical tourism and especially eco tourism. We have some of the best surfing in the world. Waterfalls, zip lining, butterflies, monkeys, Eguanas, you name it. We're known for poor Avedo, which is translated over to pure life mm-hmm snd so we're very much into nature. Mm-hmm and it's a beautiful culture. And those that have been to Costa Rica find themselves and also lose themselves. . And so that's my recommendation for you and your amazing permission to kick ass audience.
Angie Colee (01:00:51):
I love that. Looking up tickets to Costa Rica right away. Thank you so much for coming on the show for recording with me twice. I'm gonna find a way to release that first 20 minutes like that. Ugh. That was so genius. And I'm so glad that we got to record again. Thank you so much for being on the show and for sharing all of your wisdom and insight. I appreciate you.
Richard Blank (01:01:10):
Pleasure was mine. Angie, thank you very much.
Angie Colee (01:01:16):
So that is it another awesome episode of permission to kick on the books. If you want to know more about the show, if you wanna know more about me Angie Colee and the mission I'm on to help entrepreneurs punch fear in the face and do big bold things, then head on over to permissiotokicass.com. That is all one word together, permissiontokickass.com, make sure to sign up for my email list so that, you know, whenever there's a hot, fresh and ready podcast episode out for you. And also on Mondays, I like to send out a little newsletter called kick Monday's. I'm sure you're totally, totally surprised by that. So thank you for being here with me today. I'm Angie Colee, make sure that you share this with a friend that needs to hear this message today. Like it, share it, comment wherever you're listening to this today and let's go kick some ass.