WITH DISCOMFORT COMES GROWTH

We’ve had a great run at The Outloud Group -- a run I hope and expect to continue moving forward. And while I’m very proud of what we’ve created and continue to build, I’m not here to champion our success. Quite the opposite in fact -- I’m here to bring our struggles with success to the surface. Despite the many good things that we continue to do, over the last six months I've come to recognize that as we're continuously dealing with thorny issues I’ve started longing for tha

In football, the quarterback is the undisputed leader of the offense and the bell cow for the entire team. The quarterback calls the plays, touches the ball just about every play, and perhaps most importantly – dictates the successes or failures of the team based on his performance. So what happens when you have two quarterbacks that are both good enough to play? Maybe Jimmy is a better passer and Joe is a better runner? Perhaps Connor throws a better deep-ball, while Tyler h

Back in 2009, I made the trek from Chicago to Orlando for the Capital One Bowl college football game between my beloved Michigan State Spartans and the Georgia Bulldogs. I’m not a Disney guy – so what’s a man to do with extra time in Central Florida on a hot day in December? Go-Kart Racing. Really fast Go-Kart Racing. I knew I was enjoying my time navigating the track when I started shouting with glee to nobody in particular. And even once I was conscious of what I was doing,

“You’re only as fashionable as the oldest white undershirt you still wear.” Many years ago, I read this quote as part of a fashion piece in my favorite magazine, Men’s Health. Rifling through the clothes in my dresser on a recent Saturday, these words came racing back into my conscious mind. While I can’t say that I typically spend a lot of time examining the white undershirts in my dresser, there was something insightful that came from taking the time to look at these tee sh

I’m a big believer that with everything you do – you either win or learn. If you take the time to process information and make yourself better, that’s a learn – not a loss. Welp. I definitely learned recently. For the second year in a row, I joined forces with a good friend of mine, Adam Brown, to speak at the Michigan Business Professionals of American conference, a gathering of 2,000+ top high school students launching their business career. As part of the conference, stude

While it’s appropriate to emphasize the need to understand the fear that’s holding you back from pursuing that amazing new endeavor, it’s equally important to understand how to maximize success for first-time entrepreneurs. So, let’s change the narrative away from fear and learn from the brave souls who dive into the shark-infested waters of something new and different. What motivates new entrepreneurs to move away from a safe career and to invest his or her precious time in

Fear is a paralyzing beast that lives in all of us. It spends every hour of every day working to keep us locked inside the soul-sucking cage we call our comfort box. Dramatic? Maybe. Just don’t dismiss the impact fear can have on your life and how fear can stop you from doing the amazing things you’re capable of. But how can we conquer this fear? How can we be comfortable in an environment where we expose ourselves to fear? We get there by believing our true job is to expose

Odds are you’ve thought a lot about creating a new business on your own. You’ve read books and blogs, shared ideas with friends, and probably even discovered that someone else brought “your” ideas to life. Yet for some reason, good or bad, you haven’t made a clear decision to start or not start a business. And if you’re like a lot of people I know – you’re no closer to a resolution than you were last month. I recently spent some time with my friend Joe helping him decide whet

Like most entrepreneurs, I don’t just like to win, I love to win and I hate to lose. The only thing worse than losing is the idea that someone might beat me because they outworked me. So, naturally, I put everything I have into winning – whether it’s starting a company, pick-up hockey, Pictionary with friends, or feather bowling at Cadieux Café. Whether it’s email, voice, text, chat, or any other form of communication – people know how to track me down and can count on me to

The difference between entrepreneurs and wantrepreneurs is simple: wantrepreneurs pursue inspiration and entrepreneurs create inertia. And believe me…the power of inertia is stronger than the power of inspiration. There are countless websites dedicated to inspirational quotes. We subscribe to daily inspiration emails. We pay $6.99 for a card with an inspiring line. Co-working spaces spend thousands of dollars to paint inspirational quotes on walls. Ever wonder why we love ins