Building a StoryBrand with Donald Miller | Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen

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 news is you can earn trust over time by building and maintaining these eight key pillars. Listen to this episode, learn how to form a trusting relationship with your team and your customers, and watch your bottom line increase.

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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. Listen to this episode and put some of these same fundamental habits to work for you in your business so you can achieve your maximum potential.

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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 that will help you begin a strong mentoring relationship, whether you need a mentor or want to become one.

The six elements they outline in their process (forming the acronym MENTOR) will show you how to begin a mentoring relationship that could make all the difference in another person’s life -- and in your own.

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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 dramatic impact on your business.

http://buildingastorybrand.com/49

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 homelessness to engrave keys with different inspiring words. You buy a key and wear it for awhile, and then you look for a chance to pass it on and pay it forward to somebody you feel needs the message on that key more than you do.

Caitlin’s story is remarkable for so many reasons, not the least of which is that she never set out to be a social entrepreneur. If you’re a creative person running a business or believe in the power of entrepreneurship to make a difference in the causes we care about, don’t miss this inspiring interview.

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 shares six principles that make a TED talk successful. If you need to communicate any big idea to a large group of people, whether it’s in a speech or a board meeting or a lecture, you’re going to find his advice invaluable.

Can you be both a disciplined, focused business leader and a deeply creative person?

For us here at StoryBrand, the answer is a resounding yes. In fact, the worlds of creatives and business leaders overlap more than we might assume.

If you’re leading a business, you need to embrace your creativity. When you do, you’ll unlock levels of innovation and inspiration in your work that will give you a competitive advantage. And anyone who does creative work needs to focus and master their industry so their work gets the attention it deserves.

To help us as business leaders understand the creative process better, Donald Miller invited Luke Laird to join this episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast. He’s a Grammy-award-winning producer and songwriter who’s penned 23 number-one hits for major country artists like Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton, Eric Church, and Tim McGraw.

Whether you’re a business leader trying to embrace your creativity or an aspiring artist trying to make it, here are three takeaways from Luke Laird about the creative process. He also brought his guitar along to showcase some of his work, so make sure you give this episode a listen!

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If you’ve ever smelled that warm and buttery smell in the mall, and minutes later, had an Auntie Anne’s pretzel in your hand, you’re not alone.

Auntie Anne’s has 2,000 locations in 26 countries. They’ve made 1.8 billion pretzels -- enough to go around the Earth 50 times. And their success is about a lot more than just that amazing smell.

Auntie Anne’s founder, Anne Beiler, is an incredible leader with a unique backstory. She joins Donald Miller on this episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast to share the lessons she’s learned growing this company. Her story will inspire you in so many ways, especially if you’re passionate about personal growth and building a company with a greater purpose.

For a blog post summary of the episode with practical takeaways, visit http://buildingastorybrand.com/45

Is it possible to live a life of service and sacrifice even while pursuing a career that matters deeply?

When you look at the life of sportscasting legend Ernie Johnson, Jr., you can’t help but say yes.

On this episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast, Donald Miller sits down with Ernie Johnson. They share a heartfelt conversation about leading a life of significance and making room to help others, even while we pursue our careers.

Don’t miss this inspiring episode. The life lessons here are rich and hard and absolutely worth your time.

Get the worksheet that goes along with this episode at http://buildingastorybrand.com/44 to help you apply what you learned in the interview to your life and business.

What if there were a roadmap that showed you all the major milestones your business was going to hit as it grows? Wouldn’t it be great to know what’s coming next and how to navigate well?

That framework exists, and we’re going to explore it in depth on this week’s episode of the Building a StoryBrand podcast. Donald Miller sits down with David McKeown of PredictableSuccess.com. He and his father Les have developed this framework over decades, and they’ve seen it prove out in countless companies, regardless of their size or industry.

When you understand these seven stages, you’ll understand how to strike a perfect balance between innovation and processes. And when that happens, the success of your business becomes a lot more predictable.

Listen now and take the guesswork out of growing your small business.

Get the worksheet that goes along with this episode at http://buildingastorybrand.com/43 to help you apply what you learned in the interview to your business.