Episode 82 - The Business of Story Podcast
Brian Scudamore, Founder and CEO of 1-800-Got-Junk, joins the Business of Story Podcast to discuss the power of a painted vision, finding the right employees, and his three primary story tips to build an enterprise.
In order to reach your dream for yourself and your business, you first have to articulate and actually write down that dream.
Brian Scudamore credits putting his goals on paper for much of his success. It helps that he also has passion, creativity, and one heck of a work ethic. Still, his point is compelling. He started with nothing and worked his way to building a thriving million dollar company by dreaming big, crafting a compelling story, and then staying true to that story.
Brian found that you can transform any regular business into an extraordinary leadership opportunity by having co-workers who care about each other, pride in your mission statement, and stellar customer service.
Brian discusses his colorful past in and out of school systems, the basis for his joy and how it became the core of his business, why he fired his entire team once and why that saved his company. He also shares his three key story tips that anyone can use to build an enterprise.
“If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there. Having a vision and a clear path is the most important thing.” —@BrianScudamore
“It’s all part of the painted picture, and it’s all by design. We figure out where we want to go; we don’t question ourselves, and we somehow get there.” —@BrianScudamore
“A company is all about people. It’s about finding the right people and treating them right. They’re enjoying what they’re doing because we are aligned behind the story, the cause of what we’re building and it’s a fantastic thing.” —@BrianScudamore
“We hire on attitude and train on skill. When we made that change and really focused on the person behind the job, that’s made all the difference in the world for us.” —@BrianScudamore
“To me, the contract with our customer is if we do a great job, each and every time you’re going to continue to have us come back. We make it easy. So all we do is we work each and everything with every customer to make sure they’re so wowed and so pleased that there’s no other option but to have us back.” —@BrianScudamore
“We make our own reality by putting these big ideas out there. They’re so lofty at times that nobody believes them but yourself. But as long as you personally believe in it and think there’s a chance, you’ll be amazed at how the universe conspires to bring it all together.” —@BrianScudamore
“Customer service-centered businesses are the place that people, entrepreneurs, should look to because everybody loves services and everybody has limited time.” —@BrianScudamore