Curiosity is not always a death sentence for the cat, sometimes curiosity can lead to very fun and unexpected positive life event. In my social media and local personalities peripheral vision I had been noticing for a while this guy named Rick Dancer who was utilizing aspects of social media that no one else was daring to dabble in. Even now that there are some experimenting with tools such as Facebook Live, few of them approach it with the personal touch and the collaborative spirit that Mr. Dancer does. Curiosity drove me to I reach out to Rick and he graciously agreed to meet up with me for coffee one fateful day at the Washburne Cafe in Springfield, Oregon, sparking a friendship. Anyone who has seen him in action with Live with Rick Dancer knows he is a rather transparent person, I was glad that he was willing to go even deeper for this interview. Jon Isaacson / IZ Vents: Your past life was as a successful local journalist, when you look back on that leg of your journey, what are the key lessons you learned? Rick Dancer: Television News taught me how to think on my feet. I naturally react quickly but you make a few errors publicly and you quickly learn how to avoid pitfalls and holes. I also learned to take my love of storytelling and put it to work for me. For a few years I tried to mimic news people and write textbook type stories. However, what really changed my style was covering stories of great pain and humanity. Soon, I chucked the journalistic style for my style which was telling a story from the heart perspective. A significant portion of your story includes some road bumps which include phasing out of journalism not completely of your own accord, an “unsuccessful” run into politics and beating cancer, how has what many may look at as failure brought you to where/who you are now? Failure is my greatest teacher but many discount the value of failure or the pain one must go through in order to discover their true story, their true self. In news I won a lot. I got awards, had honors and lots of attention from the public. Running for public office humbled and tried to destroy me. It took every ugly thing in my life and put it right in front of me. Ego lost much of its power over me. I no longer care as much what people think of me. Losing has given me freedom and I don't think you can be truly free without loss. How is it that a nearly 60 year old man 1) looks so handsome and 2) is leading the charge in the state of Oregon to optimize the new media? How did you get into Facebook live and launch that into a growing local business? At 58 years old my thought is we must redefine what it means to age. I surround myself with younger people, not on purpose, but because they are the ones who are the most help to me. When I ran for office my young staff had me on Facebook the day after it started. Social media is a natural for me and I use it well. Young folks kept me ahead of the curve. We are using Facebook in a way many can't, won't or fear. Live has always been my weakness....I mean I thrive on it. A day after the live feature came out I was on there doing video's, figuring out how it worked and looking for ways to make money off it. Part of that desire is born out of desperation. Video production is easier and many don't need people like me to produce a video for them so I needed something to bring in the money. I found people who trusted me and launched "Get Real with Rick Dancer." Now we have "Live with Rick Dancer" and in November will begin "At The Car Wash, Live with Rick Dancer." You must never get stale and that means being willing to jump on the next thing before others do. You have a unique talent for drawing out stories, what is it about stories that are so compelling and how have you learned to bring those out of people? I have always been a storyteller but the gift began as a listener. I was the kid who sat with the old folks at family gatherings and listened to the stories. Growing up I now believe I had some learning issues. Spelling was and still is very tough for me. Proper sentence structure and understanding the ins and outs of grammar have never been natural. For years that kept me from using my gift. I would not write because I didn't want people making fun of my technique. In the news business I discovered my heart and use of real language, real words, pauses, points and percussion in a sentence was much more important than punctuation, spelling and sounding acceptable to the masses. This is what set me apart from others. Journalists used to poke fun at my techniques but none of them could match my ability to grab, squeeze and rip at the heart of a viewer. Learning to ignore them and winning numerous awards for writing, didn't silence the critics, but it made it so I didn't care, I understood what worked and used it. For those who are looking to market their services and products, what are some key principles they need to understand about interacting with the current economy? People today aren't just buying a product they are purchasing something from a person. They can buy a video from anyone but what makes my video better. It's not the equipment we use but the heart we bring to the story. People want to buy from people and yet many in marketing still look to the sell, sell, sell, in order to sell. What people want is you. They want to have a relationship with the person they are buying from. Purchasers are buying your brand. If a video producer wants to be the "Big Equipment Dude On The Block" that's their brand. Pretty pictures are nice but a story that helps you understand why the person serving you is serving you is far better than another drone video of your business. People don't care what you sell or what you do they want to know why you do it. But to understand the customers why you have to first understand yours. Storytellers are curious people who are not looking for happy endings or even an ending but instead the passion of a life. What projects are you working on lately that get you excited to continue with what you are doing? My dream is to travel the country, the world and video the stories of everyday people. I want to visit the small towns, the nowhere towns, the overlooked "spots on a map" and unveil that place for the rest of us. I believe we are tried of the fast-paced get it done life. There is something soothing, sobering and peaceful about simplicity. But the problem is we are complex or at least we've create a complex way of life. In order to reveal simplicity in each of us, there is a process that only great storytelling can release. No one wants to be told how to live, but show me, show me how to do it through the words and actions of another person, and I may actually see it. So, while I love what I am doing I hope it blossoms into the next thing. I hope my world takes me on the road to the places less traveled. And of course, the trip won't be any fun without people like you to follow me. As you look back on your life and the new chapters you are carving out what are some key things you believe are important for entrepreneurs? Life is not about being comfortable. No, it's about learning to be comfortable with discomfort. Life is not about you. Yes, you have value and purpose but those around must always be treated better. What you do doesn't matter at all. Why you do it is all that counts. Most people will never get to the why. Oh, they say to help people but the real story is deeper and too many of us stop just outside the door of discovery. Challenging our perceptions and our lives is like walking on a sore foot that is tormented with a sliver. Instead of stopping to dig at it, cause it to bleed, drain the infection and pull the sliver out, we continue to walk on it until we get used to the pain. After a while we don't even feel the sliver but it's still there. I am not the best father, husband nor am I the best businessman in the world but that's not my goal. I longed for freedom and now I have it. I longed to do what came natural to me and by learning to do things that are un-natural (vulnerability) I have found me. Cancer, losing, failing and struggling are my best teachers. While I would never purposely sign up for their classes, these educators continue to serve me well. Instead of trying to chase difficulty out of our lives what would happen if we look for it? One parting comment: I learned during my political run for office that I can't please everyone, not even myself. But I can please God so now I live for an audience of one....or should I say, "The One." Thanks for listening. You can find out more about Rick Dancer through his website, see him in action via Live with Rick Dancer on Facebook, as well as LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter (@RickDancer).
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How many people do you know who have a college degree and are working directly in the field that they studied for? Over the years of working with and interviewing professionals, there is a much more common thread of hard working people who put their careers in motion, met adversity and found a way to keep themselves moving forward. Thankfully we are a resilient species, we can find means of inspiration in our journey and if we are fortunate, we find people who will help expedite our progress. Andrew McCabe is an entrepreneur who has found ways to improve himself, is building a brand and has joined forces with like minded professionals who are seeking to innovate in their sector of the service industry. Our thanks to Andy for taking to the time to share a bit of his story and some of the snippets of success that have helped bring him to where he is as an independent adjuster, author and founder of a restoration conference. You don't meet many people that set out to get into the insurance industry, how did you find yourself involved with this profession? I took a job as a marketing manager for a restoration contractor straight out of college. I have a marketing degree, so I thought it would be a good start. I soon learned that I knew very little about "real" B2B marketing. Colleges don't teach networking or relationship building. I was quickly moved into Project Management with WRT and ASD classes. The rest is history. Currently you are engaged in several entrepreneurial ventures so let's break down a few of those components. Do I understand correctly that your main gig is as an independent adjuster? Currently I write estimates for contractors across the country as my main gig. I only recently started working as an independent adjuster out of necessity because we had a CAT [Catastrophic Loss Event] hit Bend, Oregon and it was all hands on deck. What was the catalyst for launching out on your own? The catalyst for starting out of my own was out of necessity, I had been fired three years in a row from three different jobs. I decided in late 2012 that I would never be fired again so I decided to work for myself, go figure. So, I started writing Xactimate estimates for whoever would hire me and most folks thought I was crazy and that the idea would never take off. But now we're here we are almost 5 years later there are several companies across country that do exactly what I do; write Xactimate estimates for other people I feel like the market is changing and the restoration industry which has been historically 15 years behind the time is going to be swept up in these changes. Writing estimates independently is only the beginning of what I see as a automation of the entire industry. You have written a book and developed a program around that publication titled The 24 Hour Tech, what is the story behind developing this program and what is the elevator pitch for how it benefits the water damage service providers in our industry? The 24 hour tech is another example of desperation and necessity being the mother of invention. I was working with a ServiceMaster franchise in Scottsdale, Arizona as the sole estimator, project manager and general manager. I was stuck with whomever the owner decided to hire in the given moment and I found myself training and retraining employees two and three times a month. I also found it difficult to find time to get to every single project that I had to estimate in any given day. The TPA [Third Party Administrator] framework made it almost impossible for me to do all the jobs that I needed to do. I needed to find a way to have the water damage technicians do my job for me in that I could sit back at the office and do estimates while they gathered the data and took the pictures for me. I developed The 24-hour Tech System to accomplish both things. I was able to train new water damage technicians quickly and I was able to get the information that I needed as an estimator back at the office without having to visit every single job myself. The crazy thing in my mind is that the franchise did not provide a system of training or documentation that accomplished what the 24 hour tech accomplishes so elegantly and simply. One of our taglines is "connect, collaborate and conquer", you have brought together a group of industry professionals and are putting together a conference that will meet this year, Restoration 2.0 Summit. How long has this idea been in the works and what was the catalyst for making it happen? I had/have been receiving email after phone call from folks who all have the same problems, frustrations and desires. There are so many of "US" out there, that someone had to give it a name and a place. That is the Restoration Alliance. The Rebels are the forward face and voice. But the Alliance is deeper and wider than even I could have imagined. We decided to hold this event in December/January this year. It just felt like the right thing to do. For those who haven't heard or may be on the fence, what is the primary benefit of attending R2.0? The primary benefit of the Restoration 2.0 Summit is connection and inspiration. We are all in this together, even those who chose to go it alone. We've covered three areas of your efforts, what would you say is a key piece advice either collectively or individually for restoration professionals as a collective body? I've been writing this email for the past several days, and I could go on for pages if I had the time. For brevity's sake I will say this: we need to look for and recognize the humanity in the things we do and folks we see every day. Yes, the "system" is flawed and downright frustrating. If we pause to see the PERSON sitting across from us, and next to us, we can start to find the wins without giving up our souls. You can find more about Andrew McCabe and his work through claimsdelegates.com, he is on LinkedIn and tweets as @claimsdelegates. The Restoration 2.0 Summit will be hosted in Bend, Oregon on September 29, 2017. ᐧ How do you overcome your fear of not knowing where or how to get started when you think you are ready to start promoting your entrepreneurial vision online? By Jon Isaacson We have come a long ways from free trials of AOL and waiting for the dial up modem to connect with the internet to now constant connection to information on multiple platforms. Web content continues to evolve from the eclectic early MySpace communities to generic sites built on GeoCities to now being the super highway for disruption and innovation. Even though our personal use of the internet portal borders on addiction, there are many entrepreneurs, side hustlers and weekend warriors who are relatively in the dark when it comes to utilizing resources that are both simple and inexpensive. If you aren't sure how to get your vision working for you through the resources that the internet provides, here are a few simple tips to getting started. Start with what you use. Are you on Facebook? Have you ever mentioned your business or the skills that you want to monetize on this platform? Most businesses endeavors start with approaching your friends and family as your initial client base, if you, your friends and your family are on Facebook why wouldn't you utilize this finger ready medium to promote your entrepreneurial venture? The next step would be creating a Facebook Page for your business, this is free, it is simple and it could serve as your businesses first foot print on the moon of internet commerce. Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible. Francis of Assisi Start with what you know. Do you have knowledge, skills and/or products that could be of use to others in improving their lives? Share what you know about these items and distribute that information in as concise and clear an information package as you can manage. There is plenty of useless information on the internet, if you are authentic and have genuine information to share, there are people that are ready to listen. The internet is a platform that is always working for you and can expose you to clients that you otherwise would not physically be able to reach. Think in terms of what you can contribute that can serve others by saving them time or money by sharing the experience that you have acquired. Good judgment comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgment. Barry LePatner Start with whom you know. Talk to the people who know you, your experience and your products/services, ask them about what they appreciate about what you do as a starting point for where you can connect with potential clients. It's one thing to have positive input from your friends and family, the next question for an entrepreneur is whether those feelings will transform into purchase orders. Having constructive input from trusted resources such as friends, family and mentors is essential to building your message, your network and your business. To read more about identifying, leveraging and building your market, read our article The Four Essential Who's of Breaking Into a New Market. If you have a dream, you can spend a lifetime studying, planning, and getting ready for it. What you should be doing is getting started. Drew Houston As an entrepreneur, if you do not know where to start - start with what you are already using, start with what you know and start by trying your branding out on people whom you already know. If you are on a platform such as Facebook start with what you use, what you know and who you know by experimenting with promoting your business through that medium whether you post on your personal page or create a business page for your organization. If you want to share your insights and ideas with the world there are blogging resources such as Wordpress that make setting up a site simple and free, with a few clicks you are ready to start assailing the web readers with your quips. If you feel like you are ready to take a shot at having a personal or business website, tools such as Weebly make starting an entry level site easy. If you start you can adjust as you learn, if you never start you will always fail. I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying. Michael Jordan The voices inside you are probably battling between the comforting voice cheering you on, "You got this, if those idiots can do this than so can you!" While the voice on the other shoulder take a different tone, "There's no way you can do this, they're all going to laugh at you." Your first attempts will probably look like first attempts, your first articles may be boring, your first site will likely struggle to gain traction, but the reality is that 1) you'll be laps ahead of everyone else who is still sitting on their thumbs and 2) everyone else started out the same way. Whether it's learning a sport, an instrument, a language or how to navigate the modern market, the most important thing is to not enable your fears to cripple you - start somewhere and you will learn as you go. If you hit a wall or decide you want some assistance, you know where to find us. In meeting and interviewing successful people, once common theme motivated individuals share is the practice of writing down your vision. I’ve recently met with a local Eugene, Oregon entrepreneur who made his money through property investment, he wrote down his business plan as he set out to change careers and even now in his late 60’s he refers back to those scribblings and is surprised about just how ambitious he was as well as how much he was able to achieve. He noted that there was something about writing down his business plan that set things in motion in his mind and as he says, “My feet got to work.” The plan doesn’t make itself but the discipline of writing your vision down and holding yourself accountable is powerful. Another interview I conducted was with renowned author, speaker and business coach Lex Sisney who wrote his initial vision statement when he was only 12 years old (hear part 1 of the interview HERE). Lex is now based in the Santa Barbara, California area, so we can call him a local entrepreneur even though his empire has spread from as far as China, Minnesota and California. Lex would refer back to that document that he created as a young pre-teen and too was surprised by just how much those details played out in his life. Mr. Sisney noted in our interview that around age 29 he realized that he accomplished what he had mapped out as his original vision and found that he needed a new direction in life based upon the new information learned through that process. Much of what Lex set out to discover in that second phase of life has become the experiences and principles he now teaches through his book Organizational Physics. If you aren’t sure where to start in your entrepreneurial journey, take it from these two and write it down. There is something about clarifying your vision and the practice of writing it down that generates a sense of accountability which can help to motivate your vision from conceptualization to materialization. Connect. Collaborate. Conquer. |
AuthorThoughts on personal and professional development. Jon Isaacson, The Intentional Restorer, is a contractor, author, and host of The DYOJO Podcast. The goal of The DYOJO is to help growth-minded restoration professionals shorten their DANG learning curve for personal and professional development. You can watch The DYOJO Podcast on YouTube on Thursdays or listen on your favorite podcast platform.
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