Since it’s Christmas, we decided to wrap up all the practical advice from 2017 and give it to you in a single episode. Tune in to Blake Mycoskie, Chief Shoe-Giver and founder of TOMS, for the first three hires you should make as you scale up your business. Charles Duhigg, author of Smarter Faster Better reveals how to build mental models to help you avoid wasting time on unimportant tasks. Professional storyteller Tricia Rose Burt gives you the story structure that will help you resonate with yo...
Dec 25, 2017•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast Get our most helpful advice from some of our favorite interviews in a single episode! As we close out the year, we’ve selected five big ideas from our conversations that zero in on building your business. You get to hear from Seth Godin, marketing genius, about speed versus perfection when it comes to launching your product. You’ll learn how to reverse engineer your goals from Fizzle director, Chase Reeves, and how to get your team to focus on and execute your most important goal from 4DX co-aut...
Dec 18, 2017•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast You don’t get to meet an astronaut everyday. They’re really special people who beat terrific odds (less than 1%) to get where they are. So what an honor it is to have Astronaut Jerry Linenger on the podcast. He was sent on some of the most dangerous and historical space missions of all time. Jerry has faced mechanical malfunctions, fires and system failures all while in space. While you might not have to put out a space fire this week, we all have faced extreme pressures before. The principles J...
Dec 11, 2017•53 min•Transcript available on Metacast As consumers, we admire disruptors like Netflix, Uber, and Apple. But as a business leader, disruption can cause you to lose sleep at night. You’ve got to stay ahead of the competition or you might get left behind. In this episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast, Donald Miller sits down with Whitney Johnson to talk about how to prepare your team to manage change in an age of disruption. She’s an expert on this topic and gives you some strategies to help you feel competent and confident in t...
Dec 04, 2017•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast How much can poor customer service cost you? The answer is more than you think. Donald Miller sits down with Todd Duncan, author of The $6,000 Egg . A best-selling author and thought-leader in the sales industry, Todd outlines five scenarios that illustrate the five rules of spectacular customer service. When you apply them, you’ll bring in loyal customers and create trust in your company. Customer service is the bedrock of your brand. If your team takes ownership of your company’s values and de...
Nov 27, 2017•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast How can a professional storyteller help you grow your business? Simple. Business is about persuading people to buy your products or services. And, psychologists tell us that storytelling is the most effective method of persuasion. So, you’re going to need effective storytelling to grow your business. In this episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast, Donald Miller sits down with professional storyteller Tricia Rose Burt to talk about 3 super powerful principles you need to tell a great story....
Nov 20, 2017•58 min•Transcript available on Metacast If you’ve ever seriously thought about starting a business of your own, you’ve probably discovered how difficult it is to get good advice on how to do it. What you need is a map, a blueprint, of how to get from your cubicle to doing what you love. And you need to know how to make money at it. Because, let’s face it, making a good living is an important part of your security and happiness. This week, Donald Miller sits down with Dorie Clark, author of Entrepreneurial You, on the Building a StoryB...
Nov 13, 2017•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast You’re going to retire someday. And we’re not talking about just a few years of your life. People are living longer. More people will live to 100 than ever. So you might be in financial stress for a good 20 to 25 years of your life if you don’t make some changes. Worse, you could end up becoming a burden to the people you love the most. That’s not a pretty picture, but there’s some good news. Donald Miller sits down with Chris Hogan, the author of Retire Inspired, on the Building a StoryBrand po...
Nov 06, 2017•57 min•Transcript available on Metacast Do you feel like no matter how hard you work, you’re always behind? The worst part is you know of highly productive people who have time for everything important — family, health, friends and business. Nothing has to be sacrificed upon the altar of success. So, what are their secrets? Today’s podcast guest will reveal them. Charles Duhigg, the author of Smarter Faster Better , used to be sitting in the same place you are now. He had achieved an incredibly successful career, but was still miserab...
Oct 30, 2017•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Does running your business feel like you’re caught in a whirlwind? That ringing phone, the unexpected appointment, the stuff piling up from last week? Urgent matters keep popping up. All the while, more important things like growing your company gets pushed aside. You know the answer lies in getting help from your team, but trying to get your team to do something new in the midst of the whirlwind is extremely difficult. Today, you’ll discover the solution to that problem. Donald Miller sits down...
Oct 23, 2017•47 min•Transcript available on Metacast If you have an important, high-stakes presentation that needs to move people en masse in a given direction, Nancy Duarte is the person you’d call. She’s written, visualized, and helped people deliver some of the world’s greatest talks. Her Guide to Persuasive Presentations is the best-selling Harvard Business Review guide ever. And if you haven’t seen Nancy’s TED talk — where she lays Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech over Steve Jobs’ Apple iPhone release and shows you how they’re essen...
Oct 16, 2017•49 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week my new book Building a StoryBrand is out! If you’ve been wanting to clarify your message pick it up today at Amazon or Barnes and Noble! That said, if you don’t want to order it because reading hurts your brain, there’s a distant, distant second option I recommend. And that’s to listen to this week’s podcast because this week, J.J. and I shamelessly plug the book by going through it point by point. It’s like the audiobook but with a laugh track! The main reason I wrote the book is beca...
Oct 09, 2017•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast Being successful isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be. I mean, look at the headlines. We can all name a few celebrities who crumbled under the pressure of fame and fortune. While well-known artists may deal with the problems of success on an amplified level, most successful leaders have similar struggles and are in danger of the same downfalls. That’s why I’m so excited about this week’s episode on the Building a StoryBrand podcast. I sit down with Al Andrews, the founder and executive direct...
Oct 02, 2017•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast If you’ve ever tried to write sales copy for your product, then you’ve probably felt the intimidation of the blank page. Worse, when you’ve finally beat the blank page blues, your copy doesn’t deliver the results you wanted. Your words fail to persuade your customers. That’s why I’m thrilled to sit down with Ray Edwards on the Building a StoryBrand podcast. As the author of How to Write Copy That Sells , Ray’s going to reveal some magic phrases that will help you write great copy. After listenin...
Sep 25, 2017•47 min•Transcript available on Metacast Ever thought about quitting your job to start a business of your own? Not everyone is ready to risk a secure job to launch a new enterprise. Some people really like their day job. And for many, a regular paycheck is a blessing. That’s why I’m honored to have Chris Guillebeau joining us on the Building a StoryBrand podcast. He’s the author of Side Hustle: From Idea to Income in 27 Days and he’s going to show us how to quickly and easily create an additional stream of income without giving up the ...
Sep 18, 2017•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast If you had a chance to sit down with a world-renowned businessman, what would you ask? As an entrepreneur, you’d likely want him to go back to the point where you are and find out what crucial decisions he made to help his business go big. Blake Mycoskie, Founder and Chief Shoe Giver of TOMS, is one of the top young businessmen in the world and perhaps the most visionary entrepreneur in forming social-minded businesses and consumers. On the podcast this week, I sit down with Blake to talk about ...
Sep 11, 2017•43 min•Transcript available on Metacast Do you feel like your job isn’t what you should be doing? Perhaps you have a side hustle that you wish could be your main hustle? Or you have an entrepreneurial itch that just won’t go away? If so, you’d probably like some help in making your business dreams a reality. Someone who can guide your through the journey from beginning to end. That’s why I’m happy to have Chase Reeves joining us on the Building a StoryBrand podcast. He’s a co-founder of Fizzle and their mission is to help you earn a l...
Sep 04, 2017•53 min•Transcript available on Metacast Many of our favorite movies and TV shows portray jerks at work. From droning Lumbergh in Office Space , clueless Michael in The Office , to sleazy Mr. Hart in 9 to 5 , we find these characters so funny because they’re true. It isn’t funny, however, actually working with these jerks. According to a recent study, 75% of workers deal with bullies in the workplace. This has a huge effect on the economy, your workplace, and your health. So, what can you do? Robert Sutton sets out to answer that quest...
Aug 28, 2017•52 min•Transcript available on Metacast Do you and your team members suffer from DSD — Distracted, Stressed, and Disconnected? Sure, you believe in what your team is doing. And you believe in the people on your team. But it feels like no matter how hard you all work, the results keep eluding you. Worse, you go home exhausted and give your family the only thing you’ve got … leftovers. You’d love to find a way to turn your team around, but how? On the podcast this week, Donald Miller interviews Craig Ross, one of the authors of Do Big T...
Aug 21, 2017•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Are you in a sales slump? What if I told you the reason for your lagging sales isn’t the fluctuating market. Neither is it your product or company. It’s not even the competition. Top sellers across various industries and companies prove that sales performance isn’t situational. The key to sales success is you . This is good news because you can start making money right away with some key adjustments to how you sell. By learning the behaviors, attitudes and a few vital skills of the aces in the i...
Aug 14, 2017•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast Running a company can sometimes feel like a treacherous journey. A bad financial decision will cost you a ton of money. If you don’t give enough attention to your relationships, you might lose your family. And a lack of focus sucks away precious time. It’d be so much simpler if you had a map to guide you through it. Some sort of blueprint to show you where you might fall so you can avoid the hassle of trying to dig your way out. That’s why I’m thrilled about this episode of the Building a StoryB...
Aug 07, 2017•49 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week, we’re honored to welcome Seth Godin to the Building a StoryBrand podcast. Unless you’ve been living in a cave for the last fifteen years, you recognize Seth Godin as a preeminent influencer in the marketing world. And in an industry that can be so noisy, cheesy, and in-your-face, Seth’s thinking stands out. It’s deep and it’s well-reasoned. And it’s humanistic, affirming at its core that marketing is ultimately about people and the relationships we build with them. In this conversatio...
Jul 31, 2017•46 min•Transcript available on Metacast If you want to grow your business, of course you’ve got to get the everyday stuff right: product quality, customer satisfaction, marketing, personnel, logistics, etc. But there’s more to success than those elements. To see the right kind of growth in our business, we also need to focus on our personal growth. That’s why this week’s episode is designed to give you a moment of reflection this summer. In our second of two podcasts featuring The Best of 2017 (So Far), we’ve compiled the most powerfu...
Jul 24, 2017•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast For these next two episodes, we’ve selected several excellent clips for you to revisit or catch up on what you may have missed. Summer is a time for recreation, rest and reflection. Because we’ve covered so much great content, we wanted to take some time to think back on what we’ve learned. Whether you’re on a vacation or staycation, mull over the highlights of what we’ve covered in 2017 and evaluate whether you’ve incorporated them into your business and your life. Some principles are so essent...
Jul 17, 2017•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast Why does trust matter so much in business? In this episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast, we’re going to show you how to build trust in your company. Donald Miller interviews David Horsager, leadership speaker and author of The Trust Edge . David tells us that loss of trust costs us a lot, bringing skepticism, frustration, low productivity, lost sales, and turnover into our business. Trust affects a leader’s impact and the company’s bottom line more than any other single thing. The good n...
Jul 10, 2017•43 min•Transcript available on Metacast What do elite athletes have that business leaders need? A fearless mindset. In this episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast, Donald Miller sits down with Molly Fletcher, a former sports agent who has taken what she’s learned from leaders in the world of sports to leaders in the workplace. Representing elite athletes during their sports careers has given Molly an insider view of what drives them to surpass the rest. She reveals that the best-of-the-best athletes have a fearless mindset. List...
Jul 03, 2017•47 min•Transcript available on Metacast How did you get to where you are now in your business? I’m sure you could list a lot of factors. But every successful business leader will always point to specific people in their lives who mentored them along the way. Books and classes are powerful, but nothing can replace actual people stepping into your life to guide you. In this episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast, Ken Blanchard and Claire Diaz-Ortiz join Donald Miller to talk about mentorship. They share a process for mentoring tha...
Jun 26, 2017•49 min•Transcript available on Metacast If you haven’t gotten serious about email marketing, it’s time. In this episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast, we’re going to take away the confusion behind getting started with email marketing. Donald Miller sits down with Francis Jones of Infusionsoft. Francis shares eight common email mistakes he sees beginners make when they start email marketing -- plus what to do instead. Listen to this episode and schedule an hour of time to implement even one of these ideas, and you’ll make a dram...
Jun 19, 2017•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Imagine you see a homeless couple on the side of the road holding a sign that says “Ugly, Broke, and Hungry.” You stop to hear their story and take them out to dinner. And before the last course is served, you’ve invited them to be your business partners. That’s the story of Caitlin Crosby, the founder and creative visionary behind the company The Giving Keys and this week’s guest on the Building a StoryBrand podcast. The Giving Keys employs people who are trying to transition out of homelessnes...
Jun 12, 2017•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Go on, admit it. If you’re a business leader, you’ve stayed up late binge-watching -- no, not Game of Thrones -- but TED talks. And it’s totally understandable. TED talks take complex topics and present them in a way that everybody understands. There’s something about making things clear, regardless of what you're talking about, that the human mind engages. That’s the magic of TED. This week on the Building a StoryBrand podcast, Donald Miller sits down with Chris Anderson, the CEO of TED. Chris ...
Jun 05, 2017•34 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
