Start With A Win - Franchise Expert Kim Daly shares her knowledge about growing a business 1 of 2

Episode Date: April 19, 2023

In this episode of Start With a Win, we talk to franchise expert Kim Daly about franchising, business growth, and overcoming challenges in life.                 Show Outline:What is the Dream? (02:33)Freedom – Defined (04:14)Solo or Partnership with framework, why pick franchising? (05:40)Biggest challenge in franchising – The Silent Killer! (09:59)It’s about the Journey! (10:50)Shift your Mindset…Locust of Control (13:33)Busy vs Productive…Maximize what you can control (16:04)Three A’s of Leadership (19:36)Do you remember how your felt? (22:21)Connect with Kim at: www.kimdaly.tv Connect with Adam at:https://www.startwithawin.com/https://www.facebook.com/AdamContosCEOhttps://twitter.com/AdamContosCEOhttps://www.instagram.com/adamcontosceo/ Listen, rate, and subscribe! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts

Welcome to Start With A Win, where we talk franchising, leadership, and business growth. Let's go. And coming to you from Start With A Win headquarters, Adam Contos here with Start With A Win. We have a very special guest on today. This is so exciting. Kim Daly, franchising expert, a business coach, a motivational speaker, and just a great person and a lot of fun to talk to. So Kim, welcome to Start With a Win.

Well, thank you, Adam. I'm so excited to be here. It's not often I talk to somebody who actually knows what franchising is. This is fun because I've been in franchising for a couple decades, as has Kim. And we've both been working with franchisees and franchise organizations for quite some time. And I want to talk about how do we get people to grow businesses? Or how do we get people that grow businesses? Because I guess you can't grow somebody's business for them. You can't be more interested in their success than they are. And Kim and I

have run across that a few times. But what should we be looking out for in this day and age? There are a lot of different variables. The IFA, International Franchise Association, has just released their 2023 financial predictions. They predicted a few spaces were going to outperform in franchising. And also the National Restaurant Association has just recently released some of their 2023 studies franchising. And also like the National Restaurant Association has just recently released some of their 2023 studies and findings and their economist has made some statements about it, things like that. But we have a lot of interesting stuff going on just in small business in general. And I want to kind of break this down a little bit because most of our

listeners are small business owners and small business operators, a lot from the real estate franchise space, mortgage title, as well as across the food services industries, and even just like personal services, home services, things like that. So Kim, let's just open it up. Give us a little bit of a flyover about yourself and some of the industries you've played in, and what are you doing today? I love it. So I'm a franchise consultant, Adam. So I get to work with people right at the beginning as they have some sort of pain point in their life or they're looking for diversification in their real estate portfolio. You know, they're looking to make a change and

they're thinking about is franchising the right investment for me. So I've been blessed for 20 years to play right there. I absolutely love what I do. I get to help people change their life every single day. It's an amazing, amazing opportunity. I built an amazing business for myself. I help a lot of people say yes to the dream. I always used to say that the dream was to own a franchise, but what I've come to recently is there ain't nobody who has a dream to own a franchise. The dream is not the franchise. The dream is not the franchise. The dream is what the franchise affords, the money and the quality of life, right? The leverage to be able to scale your time, your income, you know, and then wealth to build

wealth. That's what we're all chasing, the freedom of that. And franchising is just the vehicle that helps drive those outcomes or it's one vehicle. Totally. I mean, you, you hit some of the key points here. Uh, some of the major key points, one of which obviously is, um, you know, time and money. We all want time and money. And when we, when we talk about those two things together, uh, ultimately that's why a lot of entrepreneurs exist is they're like, I don't want to have somebody else rule my time or regulate my money. And that's it. Entrepreneurs out there. I know, I know people who have quit union jobs, great, you know, a job where it's practically impossible to fire them, even if they're underperforming or something like that. And they're out there now running a

franchise by themselves, a solopreneur. And you go, why did you quit a job where you had all this security and somebody going to bat for you every day so you could go get up and go eat what you kill every day? And the interesting part about being a solopreneur is you're out of business until that next customer is standing in front of you. I mean, you're, you're unemployed until that next customer is like ringing the register. So, um, it's, it's fascinating, but you also touched on a word that I love and I want to, I want to unpack this a little bit. You said the word freedom and it's a franchising is freedom. Can you explain to us why people get into this? They have this dream of that freedom and they're looking for something to do. First of all, why did they pick franchising over going and

starting their own business? Let's start with that one. Franchising versus starting my own. Why would I pick franchising? So to go back to your first question of the definition of freedom, it's defined by all of us in a very different way. But after, you know, interviewing thousands of people, number one, that's what every single person, that's what every single human is looking for is freedom, right? That's why all these people want to come to the United States of America, because we have freedoms that they don't have in their own country, right? That's why we want to own a business. It's the freedom to build a life for our family, a legacy for our family, to break through a glass ceiling in corporate America, to have the flexibility to work when you want, as hard as you want,

and be rewarded for all the time and effort. It's all definitions of freedom. But for some people, even a job that's like punch in, punch out, and you don't have to take it home with you, that's freedom for some personalities, right? For some people, it's better to be invested in like a real estate, more passive investment because they want no time commitment into a business. So when people first come to me, Adam, the very first question I'm asking is, you know, why are we talking? Like, what are your goals for your future?

Because franchising may not be the right investment for you. So when you go to the second question, you ask like why franchising over entrepreneurship, that is hands down the easiest question ever. The easiest people to convince of the value of a franchise are former entrepreneurs. If you've ever started a business completely on your own, you're like, that's a one and done experience in my life. I'm convinced I want to own a business and my own future, but I'm not starting at the bottom. Even if there's only a corporate store with five territories, it's more than I have. There's value to paying for that. So the value proposition in a franchise is a couple of things.

I really coach my people to look up from what the business does. I don't care what a business does. I care what it affords you. And most importantly, in a franchise, Adam, I care about the people that you're partnering yourself with. Ultimately, this is you being in business for yourself, but not by yourself. It's all about the partnership. If you want to do it your way, go be an entrepreneur. But if you want to buy down that learning curve and you want to find people that can be there to keep adapting the business

to a recession or a pandemic or to the competition, right? This is a franchise. We are collective. We work collaboratively together, not just with a corporate office, but with our fellow franchisees. So inside a franchise, it's about finding people, culture, vision, momentum in a brand that you, with that freedom ringing in your chest, say, that resonates with me.

I like the vision of what you're trying to do. I validated the culture by talking to other franchisees. It sounds like a place where I could learn to be a successful business owner and thrive and enjoy the highs and lows with these other people. Sign me up. Please award me a franchise. That's basically what you're saying yes to. So many people start this conversation at, well, I like to work out. So maybe I should,

I should own a plan of fitness. And then they come to me and I go, that is not necessarily where you should begin. That is not how you get to happily ever after. Yeah. Don't buy an ice cream store if you like ice cream. I mean, that's it. You're right. And it's so much fun when you start to think about this because ultimately human beings, we like systems. We're creatures of habit. And what's a system? It's a habit, okay? And that's what a franchise affords you is a system to operate under, which is why, I mean, you talked about entrepreneurs going, give me a franchise, please. Because inventing that framework, coming up with that framework that the franchise operates under,

that's one of the hardest parts. I mean, operating it, yeah, it's the grind of every day. It's the marathon. But ultimately, I mean, it takes, call it anywhere from half a million to a million dollars just to build a franchise system and get into it. Becoming a franchisor is not cheap, folks, by the way. And don't fall into the, oh, we're going to license stuff. Right, the illusion of, oh, I'm going to have a franchise, but it's going to be cheap. You're like, no, no, no. Starting a franchise company, franchisor, is expensive.

Operating a franchise itself as the franchisee, yes, it's not, there's an investment in it, but there's a return. You should see a return on that investment that you're into because you are responsible for that return. And I did another podcast and I talked about like multiple revenue streams and franchises. Ultimately, it comes down to getting customers, keeping those customers, and servicing those customers at the highest level so that they will continue to purchase from you your service product or other ancillary items that create your multiple revenue streams. So Kim, tell me, you deal with a lot of franchisees, you deal with franchisors, you deal with a lot of franchisees, franchisors. You deal with a lot of people in the franchising space.

What's the biggest challenge you're seeing right now in franchising, and how are you addressing that? The biggest challenge of all time in franchising, I call it the silent killer. It's this idea that you, Mr. Franchisor, are going to make me successful. Right? Nobody's talking about it, but everybody's thinking it. And then this is the whole reason that I created the YouTube channel is to bust this myth. There is more people coming into franchising with an expectation of being owed something. You're not owed anything, people.

Right? with an expectation of being owed something. You're not owed anything, people, right? You pay a franchise fee to buy down the learning curve and to buy the templated business plan and to get support. So I guess you're owed those things. But in terms of your success, it's all on you. We know that the plan works, but the question we don't know is how well or if you're going to work the plan.

And everybody sort of wants, you said the word comfort earlier, I forget in the context. And I was like, oh, so I, I really feel like you said, why would somebody leave a union, the security of a union job? Because you know what, Adam, I don't think security is what we're really after, right? If we were, nobody would ever want to be a business owner because this is not, this is about the thrill of the adventure. And it's not even so much about like finally getting to where you're making the money and living the life, right?

That's what everybody thinks it's about. But the reality is it's about the journey. It's about becoming the person of influence. It's about learning how to build a million dollar business. It's about becoming the manager of people and creating jobs and taking pride in that and feeling the satisfaction when you finally like hit the nail on the head, right? And you hire the right people and now they're staying or you land the ideal customer and you understand exactly why they bought and how to replicate that. It's

the satisfaction of that, that every single person who owns a business is looking for. We call it money and freedom, but the freedom is actually learning that and that satisfaction because when you have that, your confidence is there and then your passion goes up. And that's why we own businesses. So my whole job with people really is to help them move away from what they think a franchise is, which is food and retail and buying a hobby and setting it up for them about outcomes and vision and goals and using the business as a vehicle and finding people who have what you want that can inspire you. And then also my job is teaching people how to win the name of your podcast because I'm a franchisee. I spent eight years in my franchise being average

and then one year later making history in my industry, like building the largest franchise consulting business in the history of franchise consulting. So my skill didn't drastically improve from one year to the next, right? My process was the same. I was following it this year and this year, but I created two very different realities. And when I did that, it changed everything about how I coach other people. Because I sort of had my own aha moment about, oh, how nobody really is going to ever do it for you.

When you decide to do it for yourself, you can make history. Do you think that's the major switch that you threw was that realization? And then obviously how you approach that with your clients? Was it getting them to go from that external? I'm using this psychology concept called locus of control. And so external locus of control means you're a victim of the circumstances. Everything happens to you. And internal locus of control is everything happens from you. So,

I mean, regardless of what, let's say you get hit by a bus and you're laying in a hospital bed, you're going to, you're like, I'm going to be the best person laying in this hospital bed that they've ever seen. Why? Because I'm in control of my attitude and my actions at this point. So, um, you know, and, and that's the same as running a business. If you go in and you're miserable and you know, you're like, I'm not opening the door until 8am and there's somebody standing out there at 7.55, heck, an owner would go up and open that door at 7.55 and say, come on in. I don't have the register on yet, but I want to be the first one to serve you today and own that situation. You wake up and it's snowing. I mean, it's

that time of year. And you're like, oh, I got to drive to work. How about I get to drive to work? Is that what you're seeing here? I mean, tell me, what was the switch that you threw that made that big difference in your life and for your clients? Okay. The first thing is, it was a couple of things. Number one, I got tired of being average.

And I set a really big goal for myself that was not based in reality. It was more than three times larger than anything I had ever done in my business, but I said, I can do it. I can figure out how to do it. Pause on that one. Let me ask you, was it a preconceived limiting factor in your head that said you couldn't do that? Or was it actually, it's like if you're going, I'm going to bench press 300 pounds and you're like, I've never bench pressed more than a hundred pounds, whatever it might be. I mean, obviously you're physically impossible versus mental hurdle. I mean, we're not lifting rocks here in franchising. I mean, is this a mental hurdle that you had to approach and And was it scary? Or I mean, what did you think about it?

It was super scary, Adam, because I think really big goals should always be scary. This is what I've learned. But no, I think it was just that I didn't, I think before I would play it safe and I would always set goals that I could actually achieve. So now I realize, look, if I'm achieving my goal, I'm leaving way too much on the table. I want to be 60% of a massive goal than 100% of a small goal. achieve. So now I realize, look, if I'm achieving my goal, I'm leaving way too much on the table. I want to be 60% of a massive goal than 100% of a small goal. So it was just a shift, first of all, in the mindset of I'm going to aim for something bigger because even if I miss, I'm going to land somewhere higher. So that was number one. Number two was I looked at my business and I said, okay, what is it that I really can control?

And this was the key differentiator. So as business owners, we can fool ourselves every day by being busy, but busy and productive are not the same thing. Busy is an excuse, people. So many, and it's the same in the gym. I know you're a gym rat too. Like, you know, people walk around, do the same workout. And wow, my body doesn't change, right?

Like, but so I'm not judging. I did it too. I did it for eight years. It's easy to be busy. It's hard to be productive. So I looked at my business and I said, what is it that if I came here and did this, like where's the gas pedal in my business?

Well, the gas pedal in any business is always customer acquisition. It's always lead flow. So I committed to myself. I cleared my calendar every day, first thing, to what I could control, knowing that the other things I have to do, they'll be thereafter. But if I don't start maximizing what I can control, I'm not going to really have too many other things to be busy with long term. So that one thing, what it did after the first year when I made history and I was like, oh my gosh, now I had numbers that I could study and I had my own KPIs, if you will.

And in looking and thinking back, what did that one switch do? The number one thing that it did was correct my attitude. Because every day I came to work, and in the beginning when I was trying to generate my one lead per day, I didn't know how to do it. But if you look at my production that first year, 80% effective. 80% effective made me a history maker. So perfection, not the goal, right? But so what happened is I came to work focused on learning a skill and I was determined. I didn't let myself off the hook. Like going to the gym, I don't feel like it.

Get your butt in the gym. Just do it. Just figure it out. Do one thing today that maybe doesn't produce a new candidate for you, but moves you forward incrementally. And so little by little with focus and consistency, I started to get good at it. And when I started to get that payoff, that satisfaction, that, ooh, I might be onto something, I started to get confident. And then it was like a game. I came to work every day going, okay, who am I going to find today?

And my attitude started becoming unstoppable. And who doesn't want to be around somebody who's passionate, excited, motivated, in control? I was passionate and motivated and excited because I was in control. Everybody wants to be. It's infectious. And so then my candidates were falling in love with me and they wanted what I had. They were referring their friends to me. I've never built so many referred leads in all my life the eight years before. I mean, it was a snowball effect,

Adam, that started because of my attitude, but that corrected because I let go of what I couldn't control, which was never mind to control in the first place, but that corrected because I let go of what I couldn't control, which was never mind to control in the first place, but it's what we all do. And I only maximized my time on what I could control. I love that. I love that. You're, I mean, it's, and you're not making excuses for anything. You're going after what you can go after.

People will come to me. They either love me or hate me, they're gonna i'm gonna the truth will set you free there you go i love it i love it uh one of the principles i teach in in executive development and leadership training is the three a's of leadership and you just nailed those it's your awareness so you you knew what was going on in yourself and in your clients and in the business and then your attitude you know it's it's, it's either the, do I have to, or can't, or, or do I want to type mindset and then actions. Actions are what put those things together in your world and in the business world in order for people to accomplish things. You know, so, so if you look at

it, awareness, how am I, how are these other people, how's the business? So, you know, that's, it's awareness of yourself, your surroundings and other people and the business and an attitude. Is it a killer attitude? You know, you're, you're going to have to, to, to kill me, to stop me because I'm going to go out there and I'm going to win at this business. I don't care if I'm 25 years old and in the best shape of my life, yet missing a little knowledge, potentially, or I'm 65 years old and in the worst shape of my life, but I got all the knowledge. I don't care where I fit in between there. I'm going to win. I'm going to go out and win. And it's fascinating. The greatest part, too, was that I never ran my business with so much integrity like I did that year and for the last 12 years.

Because when you have a limited amount of customers, you react negatively when they leave you, right? Because you have this scarcity mentality. I got to a place where I had so many people in my pipeline. I needed people to tell me they were taking a job and not investing in a franchise. Well, that's freedom for them, but also for me. It allowed me to be like, you know what? Do what is best for you. And there's so much more integrity in that. And this abundant place that I was coming from, the funny thing is, Adam, as I was so abundant, I couldn't find people who weren't saying yes. It's like the funniest thing.

It's like the less you need something, the more it's available to you. The more you need it, you can't find it no matter how hard you're looking. And so, you know, it's principles of laws of attraction. But things I've learned, you know, over the last 12 years are really kind of mastering the art of what I did that first year and thinking about how it all changed and why it all changed so that I can replicate it. And then more importantly, so I can become a better coach to all of my people. So as they enter their life as a business owner, experience is really gonna be the only teacher. You're gonna hear,

they're gonna hear half of what I say or less without any knowledge or wisdom of how to take it in. But I can inspire that dream somewhere deep inside of them. And they may not remember exactly what I said, but they'll remember how it made them feel. And maybe they'll remember to call me back when they find themselves in a place that they didn't intend to be as a business owner

and think, you know, I should call that Kim Daly back because I think she had some wise words back in the day. Well, that was a great statement there, Kim. This reminds me of a Maya Angelou quote. People won't remember what you said or what you did, but people will remember how you made them feel. And I mean, that's so important. I want to dig deeper into this, how we communicate with the clients that we're consulting with, franchisees, entrepreneurs, things like that, on the second half of this episode. So everybody, this is an

incredible business masterclass that's going on right now. Make sure you check out the second episode of this coming up here real soon next week with Kim Daly. We'll see you on that one. Thanks for joining us on Start With A Win. Be sure to like and subscribe to this episode and share it with your friends. Also, be sure to check out Adam on YouTube, Adam Canto, CEO, as well as on all the social media platforms. And don't forget, Start With A Win.