Rebel Entrepreneur With Alan Donegan
Episode 195
Episode Guide
Episode Summary:
Episode Timestamps
ChooseFI Podcast Show Notes: Episode with Alan Donegan
Episode Summary:
Alan Donegan discusses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on his Pop-Up Business School venture and shares insights on navigating financial challenges during trying times. The conversation explores disaster planning, the importance of having a cash reserve, and shifting focus from loss to opportunity. Donegan emphasizes collaboration and transparency in overcoming challenges, illustrating how innovative solutions can emerge from adversity. He also introduces the upcoming podcast, "Rebel Entrepreneur," aimed at helping individuals realize their entrepreneurial dreams without relying on debt.
Key Topics Discussed:
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Introduction to Alan Donegan
Introducing Alan Donegan, co-founder of Pop-Up Business School, discussing his journey in helping people start businesses without going into debt. -
Impact of COVID-19 on the Business
The dramatic shift from live events to online platforms and the loss of substantial revenue due to pandemic-related cancellations. -
Disaster Planning and Cash Reserve Discussion
Importance of maintaining an emergency fund to weather financial downturns. Alan shares insights on his business’s year-long runway built through prior savings. -
Shifting Focus: Loss to Opportunity
Emphasizing the need to focus on opportunities that emerge from challenges. Alan highlights the belief that "big problems yield big opportunities." -
Rebel Entrepreneur Podcast Introduction
Alan introduces his new podcast, "Rebel Entrepreneur," aimed at exploring entrepreneurial pursuits without debt and encouraging innovative thinking.
Key Quotes:
- "Big problems yield big opportunities."
- "We should openly discuss money."
- "Building isn't just about revenue; it's about growth."
- "Consider this a pause; resuscitation is possible."
- "Don't let grief and loss consume you."
Actionable Takeaways:
- Evaluate your emergency fund and cash reserve.
- Engage your team in financial conversations to improve transparency.
- Use the time spent during the pandemic to develop new skills and knowledge in your business area.
Discussion Questions:
- How can we prepare our businesses for unexpected downturns?
- What new skills can we develop during a pause in our business activities?
Related Resources:
Podcast Description:
Join Brad and Jonathan as they explore with Alan Donegan how to navigate through financial uncertainty, focusing on building resilience and seizing opportunities in the face of adversity.
Email Campaigns:
- Discover how to pivot your business strategy during the pandemic for long-term success.
- Learn about the importance of maintaining a cash reserve and disaster planning.
Timestamp Highlights:
- Discussing transparency about finances with the team.
- The concept that building is still possible even when revenue is low.
- The importance of viewing challenges as paused opportunities.
Podcast Intro:
Podcast Intro: "You're listening to ChooseFI. The blueprint for financial independence lives here. If you're looking to unlock the secrets to financial independence and early retirement, you're in the right place..."
Podcast Extro:
Podcast Extro: "You've been listening to ChooseFI Podcast, where we help middle-class America build wealth one life hack at a time."
Navigating Financial Challenges: Lessons from Alan Donegan
Understanding the Impact of Economic Downturns
Financial uncertainty can strike unexpectedly, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, which profoundly affected businesses worldwide. It's essential for entrepreneurs and small business owners to develop a strategy for navigating such turbulent times. The need for disaster planning cannot be understated. Start by evaluating your cash reserves; aim to maintain a strong emergency fund that can sustain you through challenging periods.
Building a Cash Reserve
The first actionable step is to evaluate your emergency fund. Ensure you have enough savings to cover several months of expenses, ideally a year. This financial cushion allows you to weather disruptions without immediate panic. If you’re currently running a business, keep a portion of your income aside and build a cash reserve. This proactive measure is critical in tough economic climates.
Shifting Focus: From Loss to Opportunity
During times of economic stress, it's easy to dwell on what is lost, but this mindset will hinder your progress. Instead, focus on opportunities for growth and innovation. Ask yourself these critical questions:
- What can we build in this situation?
- How can we pivot our services to adapt to changing market demands?
By reorienting your focus from loss to opportunity, you can begin to identify potential paths forward even amidst adversity.
Turn Problems into Questions
When you encounter challenges, transform each problem into a question to guide your thinking. For instance, if you can no longer run physical events, your new question might be, "How can we deliver value online?" This reframing opens doors to fresh ideas and solutions that can sustain your mission despite external setbacks.
Engaging Your Team in Financial Conversations
Transparency with your team is vital. Encourage open discussions about finances, which can foster collaboration in tackling financial challenges. This practice not only enhances trust but can also generate innovative solutions as everyone works together towards a common goal.
Action step: Organize regular meetings with your team to discuss financial health and potential strategies for adaptation. Make financial discussions part of your company's culture.
Embrace Innovation and Business Adjustments
Adapting to economic changes often requires significant innovations. If your business relies on face-to-face interactions, consider shifting to digital solutions. This might include webinars, online workshops, or virtual networking sessions. Analyze what your customers need right now and pivot your offerings accordingly.
Develop New Skills and Systems
Use periods of downtime to build your skill stack. Whether it's enhancing your digital marketing abilities, learning about effective online sales tactics, or understanding new software, investing time in learning can position you for success when the market stabilizes.
Another action step: Allocate time each week for personal development. Take online courses or engage in community-based workshops related to your field or interests.
Recognizing the Grieving Process
It's essential to acknowledge the emotional toll of sudden changes in your business. Recognize the grieving process associated with loss and understand that it's okay to feel disappointment or sadness about the changes that have occurred. However, don’t allow those feelings to paralyze you. Make space to process them quickly and then focus on actionable steps forward.
The Concept of 'Pause'
View the current economic climate as a 'pause' rather than an end. Your business idea deserves a chance to grow. Use this time to refine your strategies and prepare to express your full potential once circumstances improve.
Building Community and Loyalty
Even if revenue is low, focus on creating value for your customers. Engage with them through social media or virtual events. Consider offering free resources or advice to build loyalty. This approach not only reinforces your community presence but can also lead to increased customer loyalty when the economy rebounds.
Action step: Start hosting free informational webinars that provide real value to your customers, enhancing your reputation and community ties.
Launching the Rebel Entrepreneur Podcast
As part of this reflective process, consider sharing your experiences and insights through platforms like podcasts. Alan Donegan's new podcast, Rebel Entrepreneur, aims to empower individuals to pursue their dreams and build businesses without relying on debt. This initiative aligns with the mission of helping others build sustainable, successful ventures.
Final thoughts: Remember, the best time to invest in yourself and your business is during challenging periods. Embrace the opportunity to learn, adapt, and collaborate with your community. Focusing on growth and innovation will ultimately pave the way to resilience and prosperity as economic conditions improve.
For more resources and insights, be sure to check out Alan Donegan's work at alandonegan.com and stay tuned for upcoming episodes of the Rebel Entrepreneur podcast.
Alan Donegan, the founder of Pop up Business School joins the show to take a look at how businesses can continue to thrive during this difficult time.
[elementor-template id="143609"]Popup biz school is an event based business... going into communities for two weeks at a time and teaching people how to start and run their own businesses. His biz has been hit hard during the pandemic since the whole basis of the business is getting people together.
Alan went from running live events to trying to figure out how to put these events online. But the cancelations started pouring in and he lost about 250,000 pounds (roughly $300,000) overnight. He has eight people on payroll and no idea when the money will start coming in again.
However, he's been following FI principals both personally and in his business and has a year's worth of expenses saved. So even with no revenue he can last quite a while--obviously that's not ideal. It took him eight years to build this savings and he'd rather not spend that all the way down. So the question is: how do you both protect what you have while still trying to recover the business?
Alan explains it as a scale between attack and defense.
Defense is laying off his entire staff and holding tight until things recover. Attack is going out there and doing massive customer research and work to develop the next product that will help them during these times.
Alan has decided to go on the attack for 30 days and then reevaluate. He believes that in times of challenge you should push harder.
How Alan Is Moving Forward With Pop up Business School
Alan's first order of business was to figure out what business owners are truly struggling with right now. His team started calling business owners and speaking to them directly.
When business owners tell him their problems, he turns it into a question. A common problem is that they can no longer run face to face events. So the question becomes "how can we generate an income online and make a difference in people's lives?"
There is a grieving process in all this and you can't skip it. Alan was all set to run a Popup Business School event in Google's headquarters in New York. Along with this, Alan has been pitching doing a TV show with a streaming service and a TV network were going to come to the Google event to see him perform in person and potentially agree to produce his show. All of that has vanished. It's difficult not to grieve those losses.
But don't get trapped in grief, the sooner you can turn your problem into a question the sooner you will bounce back. It's easy to focus on what you've lost but look to change your mindset. It's important to focus on your mission and not get caught up in how things have always been done.
If you have finished grieving and are ready to move forward the first thing you need to do is change our state--go for a run, play with the dog, dance, etc. Realize that this is time is an opportunity to do all the things you've always wanted to do.
Current Reality
It's important to be honest about the state of things. There are always both good and bad things going on. Only seeing the good or only seeing the bad will not serve you. Even all this is over we will be living in a new reality and we must face it honestly if we are to move forward.
Building revenue in your business might be hard right now, but we can still build loyalty. Popup Business School is doing bi-weekly Facebook live events to support business owners. It's free to give away your support and energy.
He's also building processes to run Popup Schools more efficiently in the future.
His team is also building their skills. They are learning more about social media, negotiation, online promotion, etc. You can build capabilities, skills, and knowledge during this time so you can come out stronger on the other side of this.
Alan's New Podcast--Rebel Entrepreneur
Alan decided to launch this podcast so he can get his message out further than ever before. You can build a business without debt. He wants to smash the belief that it takes money to make money.
His tagline is Passion, Purpose, and Profit. He believes everyone can start a business doing what they love.
The podcast will be extremely actionable. He will be teaching the lessons from Popup Business School as well as doing case studies that show his teachings in action. So you not only get the tools you'll need but also examples of it in real life.