Prioritization with Ryan Kugler

Unknown Speaker 0:00
Hello, this is George G. And the time is right, welcome today’s guest strong apart for Ryan Coogler. Ryan, are you ready to do this? I am. Thank you. Excellent, let’s let’s let’s go. Ryan is a multi business owner. He is an author. He is a speaker and a family man. excited to have you on Ryan, tell us a little about your personal life SmartBox your work and why you do what you do.

Unknown Speaker 0:25
Well, thank you. And good morning. Happy to be here this fine morning. I am Ryan Coogler. I’m based in Los Angeles, California. And basically, I run three businesses, which was why I think he wanted me here because I run a layered company, which means all of the employees do work for all three companies. So if someone is an operations, they’re doing operations for all three companies, someone’s marketing, they’re doing more marketing for all three companies, it kind of makes their job a little more exciting. So they’re not doing the same like conveyor belt thing of just, you know, stamping or whatever every day. So you have a little bit more pizzazz and life into it also keeps me busy keeps me on my toes. The three business thing, I’m always looking for other opportunities, I’m always looking to have different things. And each business I am active is not a silent partner, silent, whatever I’m physically doing every day, and I’m sure we’re going to get into how do I manage each business or what’s the priority? So yes, that’s fulfilling my day. And, you know, it started because I did not like what happened in 2008, where I was told, Hey, you might not get paid, and this was in a family business. So I decided to start some side hustles that turned into some full time gigs. So here we are today. still managing every day is a new day one business up two down two businesses up the next day one down three up the next day, none down. So this way, I can go home happy if all three are down. That kind of sucks.

Unknown Speaker 1:43
Very, very, very rare.

Unknown Speaker 1:45
Nice. Well, I certainly I certainly appreciate all of those things. I don’t think I’ve ever heard the term layered company before. Yes, I coined it myself. So anyone can use it or take it or copyrighted. It’s fine. Okay, good enough. So a lot of people talk about a why or having a purpose in in business. Do you have something like that? I think my purpose and my wife started when I was in high school, or just growing up and I just I love getting an allowance, but I’m like, why can’t I have more? Why can’t I buy more I want to buy other things, you know, at the time that used to go to a record store. And I only had like $8 I was only able to get one cassette, you know, and I’m just like, Okay, I want the other three. So I guess my purpose was I wanted to have more money. Now money doesn’t rule the world. It doesn’t create happiness, but it helps you. So I just wanted to have more money. So I wanted to work literally when I went to school when I got ridiculed for this. I brought my briefcases my backpack. I remember a girl who I’m still friends with made fun of me for that. So I just had this whole idea of being a businessman and doing business and being you know, doing deals, buying, selling whatever it was. So I guess that was the chip installed in me when I was born. Nice. I certainly appreciate that. How much work is sets? Ryan, I also bought a million cassettes. I just can’t remember how much there was 799 If I remember because I’ve heard like $8. And I had to find like a quarter somewhere in the room. So we’re records LPS was like 999. And then when CDs came out, it really jumped. So anyway, but now a record is like 2530 $40 They don’t make sense. But that was my whole thing is to buy a cassette. Nice. I appreciate that. Yeah. So we are we human beings living in in today’s world are pulled in a lot of different directions with so many different things that we can give our attention to on our time. And so I’ve been spending a good amount of time thinking about prioritization and helping people to do a better job of that. I don’t know if I’m being successful at it or not. But you certainly are you talked about, you’ve got these three companies, and you’ve got employees that are your layered companies doing different things at different times. So how do you think about and teach train prioritization? I think the main way when you have three companies is follow the money. And I don’t mean to be I don’t want this to sound money hungry in today’s times. But basically, which company has the most transaction or is bringing in the most revenue that day or that week? So that’s really what I do. So if if, you know, the person handling operations, or the person handling marketing is dealing with three companies and companies as well, what I do I just teach them well, where do we have the biggest bang this week? You know, or deadline, we do follow that too. But you know, if the operations person if we’re, you know, one of my businesses a wholesale business, and if we have to pick up 10 truckloads of something, as opposed to we have an event business and the event isn’t for three weeks, well, we’re gonna pick up the 10 truckloads because that’s more pressing, or the event business can wait a week or so.

Unknown Speaker 4:48
But it also just, it involves judgment and delegation. So I always let someone you know I delegate I don’t micromanage that is I hate micromanaging.

Unknown Speaker 4:58
And then I just say, hey, use your best

Unknown Speaker 5:00
judgment, here’s my policy or here’s what I suggest. From there you do it. Now if I come in the person’s working on an event that’s taking place in nine months from now, as opposed to picking up the 10 trucks. I’m gonna go, what gives? Why? Well, because we had to fill out the permit today, otherwise we lose the space. Okay, that makes sense. Okay, cool. You know, and oh, by the way, we already booked the 10 trucks rocket. I’m all good. I’m walking away. I probably sorry. I said anything.

Unknown Speaker 5:23
Yeah, I appreciate that. So you if you don’t like to micromanage, you are a delegator. And sure there million different reasons for that.

Unknown Speaker 5:34
Did you do a really good job on the front end, and train people the right way?

Unknown Speaker 5:41
Good employees, common sense. Logic, interests, non entitlement.

Unknown Speaker 5:47
If you can find a good employee that can really just use judgment, I mean, sure you train somebody. But you I mean, you just try to find the right person who you know, when you’re doing interview, they’re actually looking at you. They’re asking questions, they’re answering questions, and you could just tell they’re not looking at their watch finding out when they can go to Starbucks.

Unknown Speaker 6:06
Keep it simple. Yeah. So do do do, do we overcomplicate things, we you and I sure

Unknown Speaker 6:15
know as human beings? No, I actually don’t think so at depends. I mean, you know, it’s funny you say that I think of, we’re doing a permit right now with a city that I can’t name. And someone is over complicating things, and it’s so literal, and you’re just pulling out your hair. So every Indian, I bring up that story, because every individual is different. So every human is different. Every human is built different. We are not all the same. Some, you know, are raised this way. And some are these that way. And some have these traditions and some don’t. So it just, you know, you just love and respect all.

Unknown Speaker 6:47
Well said, so, are you working 100 hours a week running through businesses, right? No, I’m working about 50 to 60. I do, I do have a clock that shuts down meaning where I immediately just say I’m done. So honestly, after I do about 10 hours in the office, meaning 10 hours in this building, I’m done. I want to leave, I reach a certain point where I’m kind of like, okay, I did it. I’m good.

Unknown Speaker 7:14
I’m gonna go home, I’m gonna go exercise and eat a snack, I’m gonna play with the kid, I’m gonna do homework. Yeah, maybe I’ll check email and see. But usually I do have a cut off, or I just go, I’m done. Because already committed to 10 hours. And when I’m in the office, it’s 10 hours. I mean, it’s not like I’m having a three hour meeting or three hour lunch. Lunch is at my desk, which takes five minutes, and meetings, I don’t ever let go beyond a certain time. And you can even ask my friends who want to eat lunch with me. I’m like, Sure, I’ll eat lunch with you. 30 minutes. So that’s just kind of how I am because I want to make sure I’m in the office and really doing what needs to be done. So you try and set a rule of thumb or limit of 30 minutes on all the meetings are is just as good. I wish I could but now some some go an hour, but it’s funny, I was someone like said, hey, hey, let’s do a zoom call. It’s gonna be two hours. I’m like now.

Unknown Speaker 8:02
So don’t take this interview is I’m gonna cut you off in 30 minutes. But it is it is kind of known, like, you know, I just had to handle a friend of mine who came to me and said, You ate your pizza. And you were just done and you got up and left. I guess that’s the negative side of me. I just do it neat. And then I go to the next thing in my life. Now granted, I do have fun if I go out my friends at night. Sure. I’ll go to dinner for a few hours. And it’s about it’s like a Friday night or Saturday night. I don’t have a pressing issue of work the next day. I’m good. And it’s 10 hours is that what you’ve discovered? Is the limit to like, just this is it. I need to move on and do something else? I think so that’s a good way to phrase it. By the way. I think that is how it is yeah. Now I will have days where I’ll work more like you know, I own an event business. So if I’m going to work and then I have an event Sure I’ll go beyond it. But I just try to make it that I know there’s a certain cut off and something my father taught me to is you want to end the day on a win which means end the day where something good happen and then go okay, like George Costanza didn’t Seinfeld. I’m out. I’m done. So I try to do that too. I try to like okay, so it’s nine hours and 52 minutes and someone just called and gave us a big sale. I’m like, okay, good. This is a good time to leave. Because sometimes if you stay you might have a problem and then it’s gonna you’re gonna go home not happy. Yeah, yeah, it’s interesting.

Unknown Speaker 9:21
Either focus on it have have, have you tried to say, Okay, I’ve got you’re looking at tomorrow or you’re in the office, because you’re really early morning person. You say okay, here’s the key things I want to do today. Have you tried to do that versus 10 hours or you just found that the way that you like to perform is more time based? Oh, I always do write my goals and targets. So any your listeners should do this. Always I do it before I leave usually like I’ll just go okay, this is what I’m going to do tomorrow. Here’s my battle plan or here’s what I’m going to accomplish. And then in the morning, if it’s if I didn’t do it before, because I just walked out. I’ll do it in the morning, and I’ll just go okay,

Unknown Speaker 10:00
There’s usually a piece of paper like literally, I mean, the camera can’t see it, but right in front of me next to my keyboard that says, here’s what’s happening today. So and then I know and then also says My goal is like close this person or do this or, you know, place this ad or whatever the whatever it is that I need to do is usually there. I appreciate that. Yeah. And then from Do you have

Unknown Speaker 10:23
what, what is a typical week look like? Do you have meetings that are like fixed and scheduled?

Unknown Speaker 10:30
No, every week is different. Monday is always the busiest for some reason. And it seems that we get the most inflow, which means the most calls in the most content, emails coming in Monday is always the busiest. It’s, it’s good, we love it. But usually like if I have, but I will schedule calls whenever I can. But usually, so I’m an event business too. And I try to do event calls on Fridays. Because usually, events are on the weekend that I do. So I do a lot of charity runs and walks. So a lot of weekend gigs. So I try to schedule anything with events on a Friday, because then it’s fresh in my mind the next day, because the last thing an event producer event coordinator needs to do is forget something. So if I handle it on a Friday that most likely I’ll remember it on the weekend. Even if it’s not the event I’m working on, it just helps agenda in my head, or I’m just kind of like oh, yeah, this event needs water, blah, blah, blah. And then I’ll go to the event, even though it’s different. It will just remind me Oh, yeah, most events need water, blah, blah, blah. Yeah. So is is three the number or are you is Is there room for expansion. There’s room for expansion, I’m actually looking at something right now I’m actually actively looking for another business. I’m trying to I’m actively looking for business that says, This is a platform that has more than five employees more than a million dollars in sales and continuity. That and preferably in the tech space, and preferably in Florida or Texas.

Unknown Speaker 11:52
Nice. Yeah, there’s a checklist of what I’m looking for. So there is something but I want to take a more of a silent role on it. So I don’t want to actively be doing it every day. I just want something that’s there with some knowledge and help out either as a board member of staff, you know, in a staff meeting or whatever. Nice. Yeah, like it. Thank you, Ryan, you’ve already given us a bunch. You’ve already given us a bunch, but the people are ready for your difference making tip, what do you have for them? Well, the difference making tip is number one is very logical what today’s world always return every call and email.

Unknown Speaker 12:27
I don’t know if that’s what you were looking for. But I have to tell you, I am a salesman at heart. And I am constantly selling in all three businesses, whether it’s my event business, and I’m selling to get new events, or in my marketing business, getting new clients or my wholesale business. But either way, one is always emailing one is always calling. And by the way, you’re very good at replying to email. So thank you. But you always always I mean, I’m not telling you to reply to an email from Walmart, email spam, but if any, if someone emails you and asks you a question that you know, is not spam, it is best to reply. Even if you don’t have an answer, I’ll get back to you. I’ll check on this. And it’s something I’m teaching my kids right now. Like, hey, if I send you a text, or even my friends still, but I’ve just noticed the society we live in today is a little different. And it’s a little bit more like I’ll if I want to I’ll reply, if I want to I’ll do this, but I look at it like this is long winded. Like if someone sends you an email or calls you and you don’t call them back or reply back. It’s like me walking up to the street and going, Hey, how you doing? And you just walk away? You don’t even say hi.

Unknown Speaker 13:30
So, so I’m a big advocate of you know, making a change in today’s communication cycle, meaning that people actually adhere to it. And just, you know, even if it’s something you don’t want, now someone’s gonna be irate at you. Yeah, choose, I would suggest not returning it.

Unknown Speaker 13:47
Well, I think that that is great stuff that definitely gets come up. Thank you, Ryan. So it’s fascinating. The way that we communicate is vastly different than when you and I were buying tapes back in the day. Back then, when you wanted to call someone you just you picked up the phone you called or you wrote them a letter, or later in technology, the end of the 80s You send them a fax. Now you have 20 different ways to communicate with someone LinkedIn, Facebook, WhatsApp, texting, calling, it’s amazing. The ways to communicate with someone and you George, you probably have seen this, some people will say hey, text me, hey, send me a communication on LinkedIn. Hey, do you have this software? You can I mean, it’s anyway sorry to cut you off. No, no, that really sort of my thought processes are your fluid and you endeavor to communicate with people how they best like to be communicated with try to

Unknown Speaker 14:40
Yeah, I try to it’s it’s like for example, yesterday I had a meeting and you know, I’m, I have a cell phone. Okay, it is here, but it’s actually off to my right when I sit down at the desk, because I’m sitting in front of two screens, a keyboard, a phone, and then I have two actual landlines here, so I’m old school and I like when people just call me

Unknown Speaker 15:00
The office but then there’s a lot of people like, No, I want to text you or No, I want you to communicate with me. You know all kids today all communicate on Snapchat and Facebook and Instagram through their messaging service. And I’m constantly asking my son, wait, you have to go and open another app to do and then go there to send a message. Yeah. And I’m like, why don’t you just dial their phone number, just hit the text button and just text and it’s like, you save three seconds? Because that’s how everybody does it, Dad, and I’m like, okay, like, but anyway, I was I was saying, I went to a meeting and the guy’s like, yeah, just here’s my cell phone, just text me. I’m like, okay, so I gotta pick up my phone to the right, which I usually have on vibrate, by the way, I have it over here. So you know, because kids call life and I gotta go that direction when I’m like, right here and have all of this like you’re looking at?

Unknown Speaker 15:46
Maybe I’m a snob.

Unknown Speaker 15:48
Not at all. It’s, you know, funny that

Unknown Speaker 15:52
these days, I wonder if the most underutilized app on the cell phone is the actual cell phone itself, but who knows? Yeah, so someone taught me they said, you know, an Apple iPhone is actually it’s a computer that has an app that has a phone. Exactly. So funny. Yes, that’s right. All right. Thank you so much for coming on. Where can people learn more about you? How can they engage with you? Thank you, um, I you know, you can go to my website, Ryan Coogler calm or you know, I have three different websites for three different companies. Obviously, a plan b.com is the website for my wholesale business. So basically, we help people get products into retail when the plan A doesn’t work. That’s why it’s called Plan B a Plan B comm. We have a marketing business where we make high end specialized marketing material for people. These are actually video brochures, the brochure that plays a video on opening it’s pretty cool, ideal content com or video mailer.com. And then we have an event business so we do a lot of charity runs and walks a lot of our we don’t do personal events like Bar Mitzvahs or weddings or baby showers. We do all corporate nonprofit gigs. And that is a five events, the letter A the number five and the word events, which is plural.com.

Unknown Speaker 17:06
If you enjoyed as much as I did show, Ryan, your appreciation and share today’s show with a friend who also appreciates good ideas go to Ryan Coogler. com. That’s ryankuglr.com and I will list all of the other sites that Ryan mentioned in the notes of the show as well. Thanks again, Ryan. Thank you. And until next time, keep fighting the good fight. We’re all in this together.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai