Living with grit.

Grit is “the combination of passion and perseverance for long-term goals.”

I’m not just talking about being tough or grinding through. But standing for something you believe in despite the struggle. 

It's the CEO choosing to work with ethical labor standards, even when pressured by shareholders to chase higher profits.

It's the mom pursuing a classroom that includes her child with special needs, even though she might get labeled "too much” by some parents.

It's my teammates at Stryde who stay in the fight against rising business cost day after day even after seeing some business' fail.

I think Churchill was spot on.

We must stand for what's right. 

Even if some might say you’re wrong.
Even if progress might take years.
Even if it might cost you. 

Sometimes it's good to have enemies!!

 

We recently came across this quote:

"If you have enemies, good. It means you stood for something at least once in your life." — Winston Churchill

At first I thought, “How can it be good to have enemies?”

But look what happened to Churchill.

British generals questioned him.
Americans doubted his competence.
His own government nearly voted him out.

But he stood by his convictions.

By the end of his life, the same people who once criticized eventually came to respect him. Not because he softened his stance, but because he held to it.

As someone who can be a bit of a people pleaser, that really convicted me.

Use these magic words, if you're like my brother who likes to yell at people on the phone!!

 

Say you’re calling customer service because you need help. Maybe your bill is wrong, your service is down or you want a refund. Instead of a person, a cheerful AI voice answers and drops you into an endless loop of menus and misunderstood prompts. Now what?

That’s not an accident. Many companies use what insiders call “frustration AI.” The system is specifically designed to exhaust you until you hang up and walk away. You want a human. For starters, don’t explain your issue. That’s the trap. You need words the AI has been programmed to treat differently. Nuclear phrases: When the AI bot asks why you’re calling, say, “I need to cancel my service” or “I am returning a call.” The word cancel sets off alarms and often sends you straight to the customer retention team. Saying you’re returning a call signals an existing issue the bot cannot track. I used that last weekend when my internet went down and bam, I had a human. Power words: When the system starts listing options, clearly say one word. “Supervisor.” If that doesn’t work, say, “I need to file a formal complaint.” Most systems are not programmed to deal with complaints or supervisors. They escalate fast. Technical bypass: Asked to enter your account number? Press the pound key (#) instead of numbers. Many older systems treat unexpected input as an error and default to a human If direct commands fail with AI, be a confused human. The Frustration Act: When the AI bot asks a question, pause. Wait 10 seconds before answering. These systems are built for fast, clean responses. Long pauses often break the flow and send your call to a human. The Unintelligible Bypass: Stuck in a loop? Act like your phone connection is terrible. Say garbled words or nonsense. After the system says, “I’m having trouble understanding you” three times, many bots automatically transfer you to a live agent. The Language Barrier Trick: If the company offers multiple languages, choose one that’s not your primary language or does not match your accent. The AI often gives up quickly and routes you to a human trained to handle language issues. Use these tricks when you need help. You are calling for service, not an AI bot.

The more valuable it becomes long-term.

 

If your calendar controls your company, your company owns you.

Your team mirrors your standards. If they’re sloppy, distracted, or waiting… ask where they learned that.

Micromanaging feels like leadership, but it’s actually insecurity in action.

The less your business needs you daily, the more valuable it becomes long-term.

Replacing yourself doesn’t mean you’re lazy.

People don’t rise to the level of your expectations.

They rise to the level of your systems.

Replacing yourself doesn’t mean you’re lazy.

It means you're building something bigger than you.

If you’re the answer to every problem, you're also the bottleneck.

A real business doesn’t ask you for permission.

It shows you results.

"Success is not just about what you accomplish in your life, it’s about what you inspire others to do." — Unknown

Leadership or Babysitting?

Your time is too valuable to spend putting out the same fires every week.

Build systems.

Train killers.

And stop calling babysitting "leadership."

Your business will thank you later.

As Zig Ziglar said: “You don’t build a business. You build people. Then people build the business.”

They buy what they want.

People don't buy what they need. They buy what they want. Once they're in your world, that's when you give them what they need.

You already earned their trust. They like you and listen to you, otherwise they wouldn't have pulled out their wallet for you.

But after that first sale is where most of us (maybe even you) just let them drift away.

Meanwhile the smart biz owners build simple no-brainer monthly offers around the wants their customers already told them about… and deliver the needs that actually fix the real problems.

Once you really understand that, recurring revenue stops being some complicated mystery and becomes the easiest money in your business.

So here's my gut-check question for you:

If you went through your list of customers, could you build a recurring offer in under 48 hours based on what they wanted from you?

If the answer is yes but you still haven't done it... there's your leak.