From Minimum-Wage Barista to CEO
Nearly one million people start a small business annually, but 20 percent of those companies fail in the first year, and almost 65 percent close within a decade. Mike McFall is a Co-CEO and Co-Founder of the third-largest U.S. coffee franchise, BIGGBY, and author of the Inc. Original book, Grind, a practical guide for starting a new business.
Mike doesn't have a yacht or an MBA, and you won't hear him talking about disruption, leveraging assets or changing paradigms. Mike has learned through hands-on experience the value of refreshing your business to build and maintain a successful work environment; this has helped BIGGBY grow the fastest it has grown in 20 years, 25%-30% year over year, despite COVID-19.
At a time when there's a lot of confident-sounding start-up advice from academics or ultra-wealthy tycoons, Mike's remarkable life journey from minimum-wage barista to business leader has given him a very different outlook. His perspective on business—shaped by spending the last 23 years helping hundreds of people open and operate successful coffee shops—provides a much-needed roadmap for today's entrepreneurs, so they can turn their ideas into a profitable reality. If Mike's business philosophy can be distilled down to its essence, it would be this: Be brave. Be humble. Be thoughtful. Be aware of others. And be yourself.
In Mike’s book Grind, he explains the leading indicator in your business and shares the GRIND Score, an assessment test based on his 26 years of entrepreneurialism and leadership coaching. Every person can take the test to evaluate their readiness for entrepreneurship and starting a new business. After completing the quiz, participants receive their personal “Grind Score”, which highlights the TEN crucial steps in doing due diligence to become a successful entrepreneur as well.
Take the GRIND Score assessment test
Order Mike's book, Grind
0:58 Mike introduces Biggby Coffee
04:06 Introducing Mike's book, Grind
10:30 "If you believe you're self-aware, you're not"
16:35 "One of the more powerful ways to build a relationship is to ask someone for help"
18:24 "Treat the customer like your first crush"
26:24 "Finding good people"
30:25 Rethinking hospitality
38:55 Selling and rethinking sales
42:29 How to think about competitors
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Production
Audio production: The Podcast Distillery.co
Music: Kid Kodi by Skittle and These Times by The Pine Barrens from sessions.blue