Suzilla: Family Business Podcast

The Economy has shifted even if you have not seen it.

Our insurance business has been experiencing massive growth. It took us five months and seven days to write as many policies as the entire 2022. So when someone told me that the economy was slowing down, I had to take a deeper look.

It seems like the media is in cruise control. One group talks about how bad the Democrats do for the economy and then the other side of the news says how bad the incumbent party is doing for the economy. They are not talking about policy shifts like the 32,000 job sites. They are not talking about the small business growth with the Economic Development Districts. The Biden Economy is hot and we can see small businesses continue growing in the next couple of years with this plan. 

The economy has shifted whether the media is talking about it or not. 

Education is important.

We have been doing insurance for half our married life. It takes a lot of education to move everything forward.

How do you become a better you, partner, business etc. Do you schedule time during your day to improve one skill? When was the last time that you read a book or tried something brand new? How about making a new friend?

There is a reason that people make a lot of friends in school and it becomes harder as they age. If you want to reverse that trend then let's start working on something new. 

 

Honest change comes from awkward moments.

Environmentally friendly is business friendly.

Insurance is not an instant business as we have to look at things over long periods of time and then plan.

We have folks building dream homes out of concrete and steel to protect from wildfire. We have large portions of Canada on fire. Hawaii’s losses are monstrous. Kids in Montana are upholding their state’s constitution to protect the environment. How do we do better on the bottom line and keep it sustainable?

Every Second Counts

By focusing on effect you can affect a response with the people around you. The Bear season 2 is a real good example of the details a restaurant can have to create an experience. Other businesses can work on similar effects to change lives.  Let’s get into it.

Are you treading water or are you getting new experts in your life?

It is amazing how much people spend on time and money by avoiding experts. We see it a lot in our independent Insurance Agency. We are going to talk about experts today and the value they add. What happens when you cling to an expert? What does that do to your choices, your business, or even your lifestyle? Qualities that we look for every time. If you want to make big improvements in your life then surround yourself with experts. 

Are you an inclusive or an exclusive business?

Between last week’s SCOTUS decision and our town’s Prayer meeting masquerading as a 4^th of July Celebration, it’s time to sort some things out. Our business has always been inclusive by design. We suggest that people start looking for Friends of Stella lists and GSBA Memberships. It is going to be a tough time for a lot of people. The ability to run secular events/businesses is a key element for building community.

Nostalgia sucks in the long run

While we run a lot of mid-century with Suzie Health Solutions. We can not rest on that for Wenatchee Insurance. 

My teenager reminded me how bad nostalgia sucks when we walked into a 50s diner and were served substandard food, reduced sizes, between Marilyn Monroe and Elvis. Start looking at what a company is doing and what they are serving up. Did it peak in Highschool? Let’s take a look at nostalgia.

Lessons from the bottom of the ocean.

There are lessons everywhere to improve your business and yourself. Two hours after launch to see the Titanic, Titan lost contact with the surface. There are lessons everywhere and especially over the loss of five people that paid a quarter of a million dollars each for the ride to the bottom of the ocean. We are going to take a dive into the lessons. 

What are signs that you are adulting well?

Seriously, what signs does a person display when they have their house in order? What does it look like when they are a hot mess? We are no angels however there are habits that effect people display over and over again that promotes success as they define it. Let’s get into adulting.

Are kids interested in Branding

We are going to get into branding and marketing today thanks to Nikki Darling Productions brochure that I have in my lobby. We keep a rack in our lobby for local businesses brochures which is one of our regular community-building projects.

I was asked about branding by a customer this week and since we launched a massive campaign and am talking to a marketer today. Every action that you do impacts how the world sees and responds to you. What flags are you signaling to others? Are they seeing your signals or are they expecting a pattern laid out before you got there? Let’s get into building your brand.