LEVEL FOUR: Global Entrepreneur on What the World's Most Successful Founders Have in Common

LEVEL 4: $8M - $20M
GROWING PAINS AND OPERATIONAL COMPLEXITY 

On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Skye Blanks, Chief Operations Officer at the International Council for Small Business (ICSB) and founder of Herman Todd Consulting Group, to unpack what it really takes to grow a business beyond founder hustle and into something that can scale sustainably. 

At this stage of the game, the challenge isn’t just getting customers or staying busy, it’s about building systems, delegating effectively, creating strategic partnerships, and turning a founder-dependent business into one that can operate without you in the room. 

In this conversation, Skye shares how he built credibility as a young executive operating on the global stage, what small business owners consistently get wrong when they hit a growth plateau, and why the businesses that scale fastest are the ones willing to think beyond their industry, their local market, and their own four walls. 

Lets dive in,
with Skye Blanks: 

• Why most growth plateaus are strategy problems, not market problems 
• The role SOPs play in scaling without chaos 
• How strategic partnerships can unlock growth faster than more marketing 
• Why founders need to stop building businesses that collapse without them 
• What Skye has learned from advising businesses across industries and countries 
• The mindset shift from doing everything yourself to leading through trust and delegation 

If you’re a founder trying to move from being the person who does everything to the person who leads a business that can grow, this episode will give you a clear look at what needs to change next. 

Connect with Skye Blanks:
Website: https://icsb.org/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/skyeblanks 

The Business Game is proud to partner with HighLevel, the all-in-one CRM and marketing platform built for growing businesses High Level’s software will drive your customer retention and your profits through the stratosphere - so click here for your 14-day free trial:
https://www.gohighlevel.com/?fp_ref=ribu88 

This episode contains affiliate advertising. The Business Game Group is a GoHighLevel affiliate. If you sign up through the link in the show notes, we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.

Transcript

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I go into these rooms and people think, "Oh, you're just the executive assistant." But no, I'm the one calling the shots. Even, you know, everything disappears tomorrow with ICSB or my other ventures, I can start up tomorrow and, and build another company. People are gonna be at my door knocking down to pick me up if I ever left ICSB. Usually after conflict and war, the first people to open their doors are small businesses, and they're the ones holding down a lot of these communities. What I hear from founders and clients is, "I'm really stagnant." What I say to them is, "Okay, do you know your mission statement?" And a lot of them say, "What's that?" Everyone I interact with, I wanna help. I wanna make sure that we all are able to benefit. It doesn't always have to be life or death competition. Welcome to The Business Game, the show that breaks business down into real levels from zero to $200 billion so founders can see exactly where they are and what comes next. Today's guest is playing at level four, which sits in the 8 to $20 million bracket, the scale builder stage. At this level, multiple teams are running, revenue is climbing, and operational complexity is real. The challenges? Systems breaking under growth, cultural strain, and the friction that comes when speed meets structure. The goal? Build operational discipline without killing momentum or culture. Welcome to The Business Game. On today's episode, our hosts Steve Plummer and Kalina Stano are joined by Skye Blanks. Skye is the founder of Herman Todd Consulting Group and chief operations officer of the International Council for Small Business. Between advising founders and working with entrepreneurs around the world, Skye has seen the same growth challenges play out across industries and countries, and has learned what it really takes to keep moving up the levels. Let's dive in with Skye Blanks. I'm Steve Plummer. And I'm Kalina Stano. And before we get started today, make sure to like and subscribe wherever you're listening. Today we're joined by Skye Blanks, chief operations officer at the International Council for Small Business and founder of Herman Todd Consulting Group. Welcome to you, Skye. Great for joining us. Thank you for having me. All right. Fantastic. Can you tell us a little bit about what you do in that international group and also about your consulting? For sure. I like to say I sit between vision and execution. So as a chief operations officer at ICSB, I kind of w- move about and making sure the ship is being sailed correctly, bringing the bridge for a lot of our strategic partnerships. Um, a lot of my day-to-day consists of lots of long phone calls, uh, Zooms, uh, connecting with international partners. So I'm always in a different time zone, so this is nothing 'cause I'm usually talking to Asia or Australia or, uh, you know, Europe, uh, at the early morning or deep in the night. So, uh, a lot of what we do is bring together policymakers, practitioners, and professors- Mm-hmm to advance small business policy globally. And the more practical arm of what I do with, um, Herman Todd Consulting Group is really advising businesses on how they can best capitalize on their growth opportunities. And so a lot of my international expertise, I'm able to, um, bring that to practicality and help practitioners really, uh, take theirselves to the next level. All right. Fantastic. So I'm just curious about what an eclectic mix that is of, of your career, uh, the career roles that you have. So what does the, I guess, the day-to-day look like? You mentioned you're often on the phone, but obviously you've got clients, um, in the consulting space as well, so are you, you're juggling lots of balls at once every day? Yeah, I, I try to, I try to segment my day, um, and say, "Okay, we're gonna do, uh, ICSB focus policy and, and our, our strategic meetings from this time to this time," but often that doesn't look like, uh, it doesn't, not as neatly packaged as I would like. So a lot of it is be on the fly, um, going, also traveling a lot, so I'll, I'll spend a lot of time maybe in my office, but then there'll be weeks where I'll go and we'll do an event in, um, a different country. So I was in Cairo most recently, um, in November, and we hosted our world congress, which brings together those, you know, three key stakeholders I mentioned, the practitioners, policymakers, and professors. We also work with students and do trainings for them on how to be, uh, sustainable entrepreneurs. And, um, a lot of it, you know, our work is tied into, um, working with multilateral organizations. So that's the UN, World Bank, OECD. Um, I'm, was in Paris at their, uh, round table discussions at the OECD- Wow um, earlier in November to talk about, um, bringing women CEOs and how can we support them globally. And so the, I get into a lot of these, um, rooms of a lot of these really high-level people, and I just love to absorb all their knowledge- Yeah like a sponge, and then apply that to, you know, my clients with, um, HTCG, say, "Hey, you know, I was in Paris and I met this, uh, entrepreneur that might be able to connect you with, you know, your business that you're trying to take globally to South Africa. Let's, let's connect and, and see what their strategies, you know, align." And, and so I bring kind of like the, the bridge, too, to those companies and say, "Hey, l- let's use my global network. Let's see how we can all benefit, um, from the multiple hats I wear." Yeah. Yeah. You, you must have one heck of a Rolodex. All, all, all those con- all those contacts you've got. I'm, I'm just really curious, though, like how does one even go about getting a job like COO of the International Council for Small Business? Yeah. You know, my story is, is, uh, very unorthodox, I would say. Uh, I was in the right place at the right time. I, I was... Uh, I did my undergrad, um, in Washington, DC, so it was a very international focused city. Uh, my background's in international development, so I did my bachelor's, um, in that, and then I had a minor in entrepreneurship. So at, you know, my undergrad career, I connected with a professor who, uh, was my entrepreneurship professor, and he... This was very unique because he didn't talk just about academic, um, you know, proud- prowess, but he talked about real world practicality, and I wanted to learn more about him. So I requested to talk to him, um, and learn more about what he does outside of being a professor, and that conversation led to an internship with ICSB, and I continued working with him while I did my MBA, um, continued my practice at George Washington University. And yeah, this was... Got, you know, promoted to project manager, senior project manager, and just worked my way up to, uh, chief operations officer. You know, gaining that trust of the CEO, um, and knowing, you know, all the, all the hard work I put in, um, paid off to be in this current role. Yeah. Congrats. It's one heck of a story. I know. That's amazing. Yeah. It's so incredible. Yeah. Um, so looking back across this journey, um, what would you say has been the biggest bottleneck, um, that you've had to break through, and what actually changed that, like, finally unlocked the momentum for you? Yeah, I think a lot of it is, um, I would say being such a young executive, right? Mm. Um, I go into these rooms, as I mentioned, and people, you know, think, "Oh, you're just, you know, you're a project manager. You're-" uh, just, you know, the as- the executive assistant." Uh- Yeah but no, I'm the one calling the shots. And so- Yeah changing that narrative and, and breaking through and, and kind of leans into that confidence of saying, "Hey, yeah, I might be young-" Yeah um, but I have the experience. I was juggling jobs while I was doing my studies. I was... Uh, have, you know, a track record of, of being able to work on projects for different governments." And so just leaning into that confidence. And I think it wasn't until, you know, fairly recently when I launched my own company and said, you know, "Hey, I'm in- the boss in charge," that I was able to break through that and have a team with ICSB, um, that I'm managing along with, you know, my other ventures, um, and saying, "Hey, this is actual tangible success. I earned my spot in the role I have, and so, you know, let's bring the momentum and, and make things great." Did you go through a period of imposter syndrome or anything like that? Because like you said, you're just a young guy in, in this room of- Yeah world, world leading business owners and so forth. Did you, did you have that moment of, "Well, who am I to be doing this?" And if so, how did you deal with that and break through? Yeah, I, I definitely, I think, have those moments, right? You, you see all these impressive people. E- even people that are younger than me sometimes are doing great things, and I'm like, "Oh, wow, you, you're on the Forbes, you know, 30 Under 30. You're doing these things," and have all these accolades. But then I reflect, I'm like, "Okay, um, I have these things, too." And, uh, I have a... One of the, um, board members of ICSB, uh, his name's Dr. Winsel Sergeant. He served under Obama and was in SBA. Wow. And he always talks about... And he's a good mentor for me. He always talks about how, you know, him also being a, a person of color and also, um, you know, breaking through and, and kind of being put in a position in administration, how he was able to, you know, look, reflect and say, "You know, I have a PhD in engineering. I have this, you know, all these degrees. Um, I'm supposed to be here." And so he always says, "Raise your floor." And I realize, you know, with my degrees and my experience, there's never a point where I- I'll fall down that, you know, it's all the way back to zero, right? I have built such a career and, um, experiences and, um, I would say credibility at such a, you know, early age that even, you know, everything disappears tomorrow with ICSB or my other ventures, I can, uh, have a better starting point than at where I was. And so that confidence in saying, "Yeah, I can start up tomorrow and, and build another company or, uh, you know, supercharge another nonprofit and be a leader in this," you know, people are gonna be at my door knocking down to pick me up if I ever left ICSB. Uh, that's what helps me carry myself into these rooms with ambassadors and, and, uh, ministers and say, "Hey, yeah, no, I'm just as, you know, qualified as your senior deputy that's, you know, twice my age." Yeah. And- Yeah, you're in that place, in that room. Yeah. It's awesome. Yeah. And, and was there, you know, amongst all of that, was there a moment when things nearly went off the rails? And if so, how did you stabilize and reset what happened? Yeah. Um, honestly, ICSP is a nonprofit, so there's m- much times when a policy changes and funding that we're supposed to have isn't there, or a project gets canceled because a, a minister decides he wants to do something else. Yeah. And, uh, it kinda gets crazy, right? And so, uh, there was a project we were supposed to do with, I won't name the government, one of the governments, and, um, we had everything lined up for the budget for the year. We were bringing on different, um, you know, consultants and, um, expanding our team, and then last minute they decided, "Oh, we're gonna pause this until further notice." And we're like, "Well, I planned the whole year." Yeah. "What do we do? How do we pivot?" Um, and so, you know, it was really sitting down with the board, sitting down with our other executive members and saying, "Okay, what can we do to kind of staunch this, this bleeding of us financially, um, and kind of make sure that we're not, um... still delivering the excellence, you know, um, quality services and, and resources for our stakeholders?" And so, you know, it was going to a- another, um, stakeholder in another country and saying, "Hey, let's do a program here. Um, let's, let's pause this initiative maybe, um, and, and postpone it to next year until we have more of, um, guaranteed, um, pathway forward. And, you know, let's rely on, you know, e- even taking, you know, our, our own personal liabilities" and say, "Okay, maybe I won't use the budget to fly there, but I'll pay myself to get to this meeting because we need to meet with this person really crucially in order to guarantee us, you know, a grant in the future." So it's really being, nibbling your feet, not waiting for the bureaucracy to, uh, you know, go through and say, "Okay, I'm gonna do this and hope it, it, it pays off." Yeah. And does that get frustrating, the government bureaucracy kind of thing? And, 'cause the wheel- as we know, the wheels of government often turn really slowly. Yes. Yeah. Yep. Is that a frustration point for you in what you do? Yeah, it's, it's kind of a domino effect. So, you know, one thing gets caught up in, in the government wheels and then- Uh-huh uh, you're behind because you're adjusting to that, that cog. And then, oh, I need to get this website and this, uh, proposal out. Uh, you know, that's where I'm being right now at the end of the year is we were, we postponed actually the, the World Congress was supposed to be, um, in the summer, but because of some government issues, we moved it to, um, the, the fall. And now we're promoting the next year's Congress. But, uh, I don't have enough time to, uh, still respond to the other, you know, what we just closed. And, um, you got, gotta get the budgets out for the governments to send their, their representatives, and everyone's like, "We need it before January." So it's, it gets a little hectic. So it's, a lot of it is delegating- Yeah and saying, "I need help." And not being afraid to say, "I need help." And, and trying to find, you know, okay, maybe we'll, um, send a notice to everyone saying, you know, "This is the rough outline and we'll send you more details later," just so they're, they can get the gears rolling and talking to the right people and get excited about it, because I can't give you everything right away, and there's a lot of uncertainty. But, um, giving you just enough information that I can give you is, staying up late and, and finishing that project, it all pays off in the end. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. Um, just on that, um, just about every founder and every person who rises to a high level in their business eventually has to navigate the divide between being a doer, um, in the company versus being the boss. Um, how have you coped with that, and do you have any advice for our listeners, um, who might need some help in that area? Yeah, I, I definitely had struggled with, um, I guess being able to train and delegate, uh, people under me, right? Mm. Um, I was the one that my, my boss trusted and knew I can, you know, deliver on, you know, with, with less time and more, um, accuracy than maybe those I have to train. And you have to let them fail, um, a- and, and be patient- Mm because, yes, there's so much limited time, there's so many things happening, but I need to be able to eventually replace myself so I can grow in my career. Mm. And I need to be able to provide, you know, the seeds and, and nurture the, you know, people under me so that we can all grow as a organization. And so being able to build trust, I would say, is the key component when you are growing a team so that you can transition to be that ultimate boss. Uh, and that's doing things outside of the workplace. That's, you know, going, taking them to dinner and talking to them and learning about what their initiatives are and what their, like what drives them and what are their, what are their s- strengths and weaknesses, and let's see how we can maybe delegate so that you're not just, uh, doing all your strengths. Let's work on some of your weaknesses to be- make them strengths. And so being able to lead that way, being able to, um, build that trust is how I was able to, you know Still have, still have a little bit of, of, um, growing there too, but for most part able to delegate a lot of the tedious tasks that I, I would do on a daily, um, to my other team members. Mm. Yeah. That's great. And how do you manage your time? 'Cause it sounds like you've got so many moving parts. Is there a little hack that you can share with us and our listeners on how you manage your time with the schedule that you have? Yeah. I love, I love to plan my year, to be honest- Okay as, as far as advanced as I can. Mm. Um, so the big, the big moments, right, um, blocking them out ahead of time, so the travel, the events. Just put Even if you don't know the exact date, you know it's around this time, making sure that you leave that window open. Mm. Um, but for the more day-to-day side, you know, side of things, I try to, before I go to sleep, kind of write out what I, I'm looking forward to the next day, uh, what are things that are priorities, high priorities. I always like to take a paper and pen and, and write down everything, um, and cross it out, and that helps me move forward. Mm. Um, but still building in that time for yourself is important. You know, that means I have to wake up a little bit earlier to, you know, have your ritual of making tea and, and reading the news and reflecting and then be able to apply it to, um, your, your day and have the momentum, right? Like having those small wins- Mm-hmm really are helpful and gets me motivated to be as efficient as possible with my time. So- A lot of it is just being intentional with the blocks, having a block and say, "Okay, I'm not gonna have meetings here. I'm gonna actually build this time to do any, you know, busy work. I'm gonna build this time for meetings," and allocating those on my calendar. So I, you know, every day from 12:00 to 2:00 I, I block that out as time to have meetings and, and, um, you know, conversate. Then I'll have another block maybe 9:00 AM to 10:00 PM of just let's go through the, um, you know, top priorities of things that have to be done. Let me see if I can delegate this to others. Mm. And I kind of go off that way. Yeah. Time blocking. Awesome. I love it. Mm. Now I'm, I'm curious, um, Scott, you've got this, it's almost an eclectic or rare- Mm mix of this international experience, and then you're, you've started your own consulting business over here. So I, I guess what experience or insight from working on the international stage has most dramatically changed things for you, either the way you've thought about or the way you've built your business? Yeah, I, I think, and this is something that we do with our students as well through the ICSB Academy, is, uh, we intentionally bring together people from different, uh, countries and different cities to look and see how similar, similar they are, right? There's a problem in Korea that's not too far, um, dissimilar from someone in Brazil or in United States, and let's bring them together and let's solve these issues and think differently, right? They might, uh, go about solving a problem a little bit differently. It might be more efficient for that actual use cases. So a lot of what I was able to do is I have met, uh, I don't know, I've been to 20, 25 countries, and I've been able to interact with all these people. I say I like to make a friend in every, every, um, country, and be able to have them as a resource. So when I look at a problem with the clients I have at HCCG, um, we say, "Okay, have we seen this before? Is this something that's, you know, uh, brand new?" Um, well it's often not. It is not brand new. Someone around in, in my network has d- dealt with this issue. We've been able to overcome it, and let's use best practices globally, right? Mm. Um, every year ICSB publishes, uh, the top 10 trends, um, for MSMEs. So we- Uh-huh um, publish it with the UN, and we have a global MSME report, and so these resources aren't resources that normal business owners look for or know about. Yeah. And so I'm able to be that bridge and say, "Okay, I have this plethora of research with our journals and our, you know, connections with the UN," and kind of have that first mover advantage to say, "Hey, these are the trends that you guys as small business owners need to be hopping on and use these tools to get you to, um, growth and to not be left behind." And so I think a lot of what I have been trained to do in my career is like my brain's wired differently. I'm not just thinking about the locality. I'm looking at the global impact. Even if your company is something like a plumbing business that's focused in, you know, your own city, I'm thinking, "Well, why not build a website that makes sense and that can get clients in, in other regions and, and maybe have strategic partnerships?" And so I'm always thinking outside of the maybe everyday consultant of just, "Oh, let's fix this problem and get you more clients." No, let's, let's build ourselves bigger than what the status quo is for your company. Fascinating. Can you mention that report again for our listeners? Yeah, for sure. So it's called the Global MSME Report. Um, and you can find it if you Google UN MSME Report. Um, it's published by ICSB, or you can go on icsb.org, um, and just search on the website there. Um, it's double published, but it's all I guess released every June 27th- Okay on MSME Day. So- Yeah a little fun fact about ICSB, in 2016, um, we realized There was a big focus on the sustainable development goals, so the SDGs, and there was no mention of small business owners. And, um, so ICSB was going to the UN and said, "Hey, why aren't we talking about small business owners? They're the largest, um, community that is actually, um, making impact in their local countries. Why don't we have anything focused on how we can provide resources for them to actually follow these goals and, and implement them?" Yeah. And they go, "Yeah, that's great ICSB, but, uh, you're not a country, so you can't do anything." And so we're like, "Okay, we'll find a country." And so we went to the UN, uh, found a country, it was Argentina, and were able to co-sponsor, um, a resolution to make MSME Day, um, which is Micro Small Medium-Sized Enterprise Day, a named day, like Women's Day or any other day, um, every June 27th. Wow. And- Congrats. That's great. That's insane. Yeah. Thank you. Yeah. So that was in 2016, and this year will be our 10-year anniversary. And I guess, do you guys know the significance of, um, June 27th? No. I'm, I'm- Glena, do you? No, I don't. I feel like I'm about to learn though. I do, but I'll, I'll let Scott take lead on that. Oh, okay. You go first. No, we got no idea. Lay it on us, Scott. So, so the UN charter was, um, uh, finalized on June 26th, and so we said June 27th because usually after conflict and war, the first people to open their doors are small businesses. And so we wanted to the UN to remember, hey, small businesses are the first ones to, to, uh, recover and open after a war and, and, you know, strife, and they're the ones holding down, um, a lot of these communities. So that's a little bit of a fun fact around why we picked it. I love that. That's so cool. That is so cool. I'm gonna put that in my calendar. Yeah. I love that. I think we should. Okay. I think we should- Yeah put that in the budget. Yeah. Scott, a, a, a quick question about that. You mentioned, um, how you bring business owners from different parts of the world together. I'm just curious, a- again, are business owner challenges, small business owner challenges, are they very similar around the world? In other words, like you said, a business in Korea versus one in Mexico versus one in Thailand, are- or are things a lot more location specific? There's definitely a cultural layer to a lot of, you know, the issues, right? Um, you know, I was in Cairo. There's, you know, startups focused on, um, swimwear for those that, you know, are practicing, um, you know, Muslims that wanna be more conservative, and I'm like, "Oh, that's awesome." Um, that's a different challenge that might not be, you know, in a more Christian country and things like that. Or, you know, access to finance for women in certain countries is different than, you know, in the US and others. So there are nuances and different things, um, based on cultural, um, differences and how companies are ran. Mm-hmm. But I would say there's a lot of, um, knowledge sharing that could be done- Mm um, to rethink of how we can do things, and you have to have respect for the culture, have respect for, you know, the traditions of a lot of these countries. But, um, the fundamentals of, hey, my accounting's right, my, um, technology should be, you know, up to, you know, standards. I should have the same, you know, marketing. Those fundamentals of business, you know, I think, um, break through- Mm those cultural, um, challenges. Yeah. Um, it's just a little bit different nuances to it. Yeah. And so what we like to do is say, "Hey, this is an example from a country that might be more similar to you than the US, so let's l- talk to them." Yeah. Right? Um, I was in Indonesia this summer, too, and, uh, in Jakarta w- we're talking about how they don't really have coffee shops, but they love coffee, and it's not commercialized, and how can we, uh, teach students to build more, uh, community around these shops like we have in more Western countries? Yeah. Mm-hmm. And, uh, so there's a lot of ways of looking at the lens and saying, "Why are we doing this this way? Let's figure out how we can maybe adjust or build on these things." Um, and so hope that answered a little bit your question. Yeah, absolutely. That's incredible. Yeah, yeah. I am just, yeah, so amazed. Okay. The Business Game is proud to partner with HighLevel, the all-in-one CRM and marketing platform built for growing businesses. With CRM funnel, website, and course builders, marketing automations, email builders, and so much more, HighLevel Software will drive your customer retention and your profits through the stratosphere. And HighLevel is fully white label, which means you can brand the platform and mobile app with your logo and company colors, and then resell it to your customers for a monthly subscription. Ready to go HighLevel? Click on the link below to begin your 14-day free trial Um, let's talk a little bit about, um, Herman Todd Consulting for a moment. Um, what's the most common issue founders come to you with, and what's the real problem, do you think, hiding underneath that? Yeah. I, I think a lot of what I hear from founders and clients is, "Hey, I, I wanna, I want growth. I wanna, I wanna really scale." Mm-hmm. "But I'm, I'm hit a l- hit a wall. I'm, I'm really stagnant." And you know, what I say to them is, "Okay, what's your website look like? Uh, what... Do you know your mission statement? Do you know your, you know, value proposition?" Yeah. And a lot of them say, "What's that?" And, uh, and I'm like, "Okay, let's, let's re- let's rethink this. Let's build on what you're looking to deliver." Um, and you know, from, from my clients, I like to look at people who maybe aren't going through the startup space, right? They're... The startup space where universities have that structure, those, those people, you know, have the universities to guide them. But a lot of my clients are maybe more in the trade business, where they didn't have the proper business education to think about these things. And so I like to talk to them because they are always, uh, a little bit stubborn on saying, "Oh, well, no, I have, you know, a bunch of clients. I'm happy, but, you know, I know there's, you know, something... I still can't walk away from my business. I can't be away from it," right? "How can I- put my business on autopilot? How can I be able to have more time with my family and kids instead of just being, working in it?" Right? "I wanna be able to have my business work for me rather than me f- work for it." Yeah. And, uh, that's where I come with HTCG, and we look and see, okay, what are the foundational, um, pieces of your company that can help you, um, improve on, to help you be that, that person who has the business work for you rather than working it all the time? Hmm. Yeah, so just on that- Yeah with your broad experience, i- in terms of breaking through plateaus, which you mentioned growth quite a lot, and that's what we hear all the time. You know, I wanna grow the business. You know, growth's really important. But oftentimes it reaches a, a plateau, and so from that broad experience that you have, and I guess I'm asking regardless of country or, or industry, is there a secret sauce that you've observed that has allowed different companies or businesses to break through the plateau that might be keeping them stuck? Yeah, I think a lot of people see their company as very one-dimensional, and I like to say, "Okay, maybe, um, you have this one service and you're really good at it, but how can we use one strategic partnerships to, um, build on top of it," right? If we're working with an event planning company, um, let's have a strategy meeting and, and proposal for the flo- florist and say, "Okay, I have this package and we have this commission working with the florist because now they're referring me clients and things like that." So you see a lot of businesses being siloed and not talking to each other because they're like, "Oh, I'm not in the floral business. I'm in the event planning business." Well, why not talk to your local, you know, uh, uh, florist? Now we have a, a partnership. Now I- Yeah gain clients I would never even lear- learned about, and let's, you know, be able to grow this business. And so that's how I approach it with a lot of these clients is saying, "Okay, are you talking to other companies that maybe aren't in your sector but can help you grow your business?" Uh, and there's a lot of companies or people that want to have a, uh, piece of a business, right? A lot of the MBAs I work with are, uh, going t- they're, they're actually teaching this at business school now as entrepreneurship through acquisition. So- Mm uh, there was a big over-hiring, uh, in, I would say, the past couple years of consulting firms trying to, uh, hire a bunch of MBAs, and they're saying, "Oh, well, actually, I don't wanna do this anymore. I don't wanna be a consultant. I wanna actually acquire a business and run it." But th- these MBA types, honestly, they never ran a business before, so how can I bridge that gap? And maybe they have really great institutional knowledge, but they don't have the practical knowledge. Mm. And so they can come and say, "Okay, I'll buy a piece of your company. We can supercharge it and look at this new division and, and grow it to be internationally known, international facing," or, "We, we're gonna build this new pr- um, product that we're gonna sell and, and do this." So it's just looking at everyone's strengths and seeing where we can, um, really optimize them to take the business to the next level. Yeah. When founders feel stuck, um, how often is it, uh, a market problem versus a strategy problem, and how can they tell the difference? Yeah, I think it's, it's more often than not, you know, not really a marketing problem, it's more of a strategy problem. It's- like I say, you're, you're siloed. You- Yeah. Yeah you're thinking that what the customer is, is buying something and maybe, sure, there's a economic slowdown, but if you're really in a, in a place where, um, you're marketing a little bit differently 'cause you're just, "Oh, well they, they always come to me. I don't need to go out and look for the customer," well, maybe we should, um, think- rethink that. Your business needs to be more dynamic. Like I said, a lot of people come into business and just are very siloed or really one, one-facing, or one-dimensional is the right word, and I'm like, "Let's be multidimensional." I wanna, I want to, uh, touch every single person that is around me, even if it's someone that's not seen as a client or a potential customer. Mm-hmm. You never know, they might refer you someone. They might talk to someone, um, and bring you there. So a lot of it is, um, I, I'm big proponent of, like, digital branding, is you need to have a proper website. You need to have, um, a proper online presence. You need people to be able to look up your company and for it to be the first, you know, result, um, because you're doing so many things, you're interacting with so many people, you're having so many positive reviews. Um, there's a lot of companies that are just passive and they're just like, "Okay, I don't really need Google reviews. I don't have a, a, you know, a m- brick and mortar shop." Well, you should have reviews somewhere so people know who you are and what you're doing. Yeah. Um, and so there's a lot of, like, these little tactics that people just maybe overlook because, you know, they're doing okay. They're, they're happy, they're paying their bills, but there's always opportunity for growth. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. Let's talk a little bit more about that growth and scale kind of thing, because often with growth and scale comes chaos. And, um, uh, so what system, structure, or hire have you seen across that spectrum, whether it's in your own consultant business or, or, you know, your international work? So what, what single system or structure or hire have you seen make the biggest difference when a business is trying to scale, but scale without the chaos? Yeah, it's, it's really building the foundation of, like, standard operating procedures, so SOPs. Mm-hmm. Um, many businesses kind of go with the flow. They have a l- loose, you know, portfolio of documents spread across everywhere, and they're like, "Well, I know how to do this. I know all the passwords. I have a l-" No. W- we need, we need to have your constitution, right? We need you to have your foundation to be solid, and, and I don't have that. I can't train someone else to, to do, you know, run this division for me. I can't have someone, um, build on, you know, the work I've spent, you know, 15 years building because, oh, it's all left on me. I always ask the, a founder, "What happens if you leave? You're gone. Is business gonna run? Is it gonna be able to, you know, someone pick up the baton and keep it moving, or is it gonna fall and crumble?" Yeah. And if they say, "It's gonna fall and crumble," okay, we need to figure out how we can make sure it doesn't, right? You have to have, be able to have a day off. You have to be able to have a sick day, and for your people in your team to, uh, carry that baton and still make the company work. If not, it's just you, right? You're just a solopreneur. That's, that's what the difference between a business owner and, I say, a solopreneur is I have other people be able to, uh, make this business run without me. Solopreneur, I need to be there all the time. And so create the SOPs, create the foundation so that I can hand it off to my general manager, and they can run the store for me, or I can, um, have a standard in place where I can fire someone that's not doing their job because, hey, we had the, we had this clear set contract that this is what you need to be carry out, and you're not doing that. I see a lot of people also get dragged down because they have relationships with, like, their f- their, uh, coworkers in s- sense of, like, "I hired you. I, uh, you're a friend of my family," and this and that. Yeah. But they're not, uh, they're not delivering, and now they're taking up space on the payroll. They're, uh, bringing your company down. Well, okay, I have a mechanism where I can say, "Okay, your performance review, you haven't hit these, these different, um, benchmarks. So let me, um, you know, have a conversation with you and say these are what you need to do in the next 90 days or you're gonna, you know, lose your job." Um, and so having that standard and being more formalized, uh, because a lot of these companies I've seen and talked to internationally are informal. They, they're very family-oriented or it's a family business, and- Yeah those are great, but we need to be, um, have some sense in s- terms of standards and expectations set across the whole, um, organization. Yeah. That's such great advice. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I'm just curious too about Him and Todd Consulting. When, when a business comes to you, is there a, I guess, so talking about SOPs, is there a, a thing you look for? Is there a process you take a client through to find out what the root cause of their, their challenge is? Yeah, no, for sure. So usually when I have a new client, we sit down, we go through, um, our process I like to say is the pathway to profit. So one, I go through a whole questionnaire, uh, of questions, understanding, taking the hood off the car engine and looking in and saying, "Okay, these, this is your financials. What, what's your income? Um, where have you seen growth? Are you stagnating?" Um, asking about the, the, the strategies we talked about, strategy partnerships, your website, your, um, even your corporate structure. What's, what's holding you back? Um, if you can't, if they can't answer these questions, okay, I know where to go and look first, and let's work on this project and work on this piece of your company first. And, and now we're gonna do the next piece. That, and so there's a whole step-by-step guide and, and, uh, formula I take them through. I have a software system, and we just... They see it, visualize it. "Okay, if you do this, these four strategies, now you can, um, you'll see, you know, this estimated profit," because we, you know, seeing time and time again, this is the percentage of value, um, you having SOPs will add to your company and be more efficient. And so it's, um, it's really, it's really, um, interactive. I see their eyes light up, and it's like, "Okay, I didn't even think about this. It l- I can... Are you telling me I'm gonna get a 20% increase because of just adding SOPs? Oh, wow, okay." And then they get excited, and then I get excited 'cause I'm like, "Okay, now you're gonna work with me." "And we're gonna make this happen." Yeah. Oh, that's awesome. Yeah. And typically, I, I know it's a bit of a how long's a piece of string type question, but typically, how long does it take to turn a business around using that system? It really, it really happens, like you said, with the people, how will- how hard is a business owner willing to work? Yeah. And I have people say, "Okay, yeah, I always ask everyone that I work with, I'm like, "How committed are you to your business and making this goal that you said your number one goal is happen?" I'm, I ca- I'm not can't be the one that's more excited to make your number one goal happen. Yeah. Right? So are you 100%, you know, ready to go, or y- you need more time and figure it out? And so I only work with people that say, "Okay, I'm ready to go. I'm gung-ho. Let's make this happen." And they're working every week through our modules, through the programming, through the workshop, you know, um, you know, tasks that we talked about, and we walk them through that. So I would say within s- d- depending on where, what their goal is and what they're trying to grow, and if it's just foundational stuff and they're doing the work- Yeah uh, it can take six months and they're like, "Okay, I have the foundational skills. Um, I feel good about this. Okay, let's keep building the other aspects," right? I say to bring you above water, maybe six months. To get you, you know, s- cruising, let's say another six months, so a year. Yeah. And let's, it's, it's like practice. It's, it's you need to keep refining and keep updating and, and not just fall by the wayside. So I'm usually that person that I like to call myself a profit advisor. I'm making sure that your profits are great, you're, um, you're ready to go, you're doing what you're supposed to be doing, and holding that, holding that CEO or, you know, high-level executive accountable, uh, for their institution to be, you know, running the way it should be. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. Mm. Sky, you've also been involved in highly regulated industries. What does that environment teach you about resilience and adaptability that applies to any business? Yeah. It's really about... And we talk about this bureaucracy and, and different rules and, um, language. And lucky for me, I ha- my fiance is a lawyer, so I'm like, "All right, I can go to her and ask her about that." But being in that bubble of always think how, how is this language, you know, being, you know, I guess perceived, and how can I walk the fine line of not being out of compliance or being in trouble with the government or, you know, the, the, the institutional body, but be able to push it just enough so that I'm doing everything I can to optimize our, our company or optimize, um, you know, my work and, and my enthusiasm for success. Hmm. And so a lot of it is talking to people, other people in the, in the industry that you're in and see what they're doing. What are their best practices? Um, you know, as a early founder when I was in my, my first company- I was, I had to talk to, interact with people. I had to learn from other markets. I had to learn from different places because we're writing regulation while we're, you know, building the company at the same time, right? The government's figuring out things, we're figuring out things, and we're saying, "Okay, these are the needs." And not being afraid to talk to the regulators and say, "Hi, this is not working for us. Um, you guys might have heard from these lobbyists that this is the best way forward, but it's really only benefiting these multi-state operators and, and the big guys. Let's look at the small businesses and the, you know, um, local people and say, 'This is what we need. This is how we can market better. This is how we can be in compliance still.' And everyone benefits 'cause we're making money, paying you lots of taxes, and, and you guys are seeing lots of growth." Um- Yeah and so a lot of times you see these regulated industries where they put all the restrictions on because there's like, "I'm afraid. I don't know what's gonna happen. Better restricted than, than, uh, not, because if, if it's all free range, uh, people are gonna complain if we put restrictions on them." Well, I'm always looking like how can we slowly take off the restrictions so it's, one, fair and, and manageable, and there's, you know, importance in being able to be in compliance, but push it just enough so that we're all, um, making a living and be able to survive. Man, absolutely. Yeah. Well, let's, um, let's talk a little bit, lean into your wisdom, you know, with all of your multiple around the world travels and, and your consulting work and so forth, but I might go bad cop a little bit here, 'cause we always learn most from our mistakes. So if you could rewind and refine one decision or mistake to accelerate your progress, what would that be? Yeah. Um, that's a good question. I'm trying to think that as a, as a business owner and, and, uh, uh, I guess as a student too, I'm like, I like go back to academia. I'm like, "Oh, I made lots of mistakes there." But, uh, I would say A mistake that might be something that's I'm still working through is putting myself out there more and not being afraid to approach that high level, uh, ambassador, CEO and ask them questions that I might perceive as, you know, maybe ignorant or, or, or vulnerable, um, because there's so many people I have passed in just working with ICSB and in my other roles, and I could have maybe had some insight or could have had that follow-up conversation or add that person as a mentor. And so a lot of those opportunities are missed, and I think that could have maybe took me a different direction. It might have been even better than what I'm doing, or it could have just led to, um, a faster answer to maybe a problem I was facing, uh, that I could have solved in the future. So not being able-- being afraid to talk to somebody and say, "Hey," introduce yourself, give them a compliment, and s- ask a question, um, just because you might be feeling embarrassed that they might not perceive you as, um, intelligent or on their level, right? No, it's okay. The worst they're gonna say is, "Oh, I'm busy. I, I can't, I can't talk to you right now," or, "Oh, here, talk to my assistant." Exactly. I, I rather put myself out there and, and be vulnerable, um, than lose the opportunity to cross paths with that person ever again. Yeah. Well, I love that. I mean, especially from your perspective, who does a whole lot of stuff internationally- Mm which, you know, many people don't. And for, for you to be vulnerable about that, I could have actually done that better and, and being, being more out there is, um, I think a, a refreshing lesson for everyone listening. Yeah. Thank you. Absolutely. Yeah. Um, Scott, I'm really interested. You are super motivated and you sound, um, very driven. Um, what drives you? What is it that keeps you going? Yeah, I, I definitely think what keeps me going is, um, understanding- Mm-hmm the importance this is for my family, right? I'm the oldest. Um, my father-- uh, both my parent- I'm the first, like, gen- generation to go to college. My family, I'm the first to do a lot of things. Um, and my father has always been an entrepreneur and a small business owner, but never really had the tool set to take himself to the next level. And so being able to, uh, be his, uh, I would say legacy, um, and be able to travel the world and help build companies and, um, help him with his company as well, um, and grow it to be successful where it is today because of all my experience, you know, that's what gets me excited. That's helping bring, bring people along, right? The, um, the tide that rises all ships, I, I like to call myself is because everyone I interact with, I wanna help. I wanna make sure that we all are able to benefit, um, because- We, we're in such a competitive nature, right? Business owners and businesses are taught to, "Hey, we always have to fight. We always have to compete." No, we can, we can benefit from each other. We can learn from each other. We can help each other. Um, it doesn't always have to be life or death competition. Um, and so what I'm excited about is building that community, building these, um, knowledge hubs we talk about with ICSB, with, um, making a friend in every country. Those are things that get me excited and say I can tell my kids later down the road, um, "These are what-- This is what your dad did. This is what you can do," and, and be able to, um, be that, um, that goal and that, um, uh, I would say example for people that, come from backgrounds like me that say, "Hey, you're the person that did that and, and, uh, I can do that too." I love that. Mm. Just before we finish up, Sky, I'm, I'm interested in shortcuts and cheat codes. Who doesn't love that, right? Yeah. So, uh, if, um, you, you may have touched on this already, but I'm, I'm wondering if there's anything else that drops to mind when I say those words, the cheat code or the, the shortcut. So if a founder was two or three years behind you, say, and same business, same industry, um, and they asked you for, you know, based on your experience, Sky, what's a... Give, give us a cheat code for accelerating my, my development, my success. What would you tell them? I would say is fi- find your, your tribe, find your community around you. Um, you can't do it alone. I think a lot of us as founders think, "Oh, I can do this all myself. I... If I tell anybody my idea, they're gonna steal it." No. Let, let's cooperate. Cooperation's key. I don't know everything, right? I, I'm, I need mentors. I need, uh, peers to bounce ideas off of. I need co-founders. Uh, I think a lot of people, um, get afraid when they say, "Oh, well, I have to give up equity in my company, or I have to do this." Yeah. No. Let's, let's figure it out. I'd rather have, you know, 5% in, uh, equity in, in a bunch of little companies, um, that I'm helping a lot of people with start up, and I get a percentage of that, and that all adds up. And I'm not maybe as involved, but I'm helping them get their vision. So we can, we can work something out. I think a lot of people are just like, "Oh, I have to get 50%." No. Let's, let's figure it out. Let's work together. Let's have your, your sounding board, um, that has someone that also behind you that will... is not afraid to criticize you, right? There's a lot of people that say, "Oh, you're doing amazing. You're doing this. That's a great idea." No. Let's have someone challenge you, too, on why you're doing, making a decision, why you're deciding to do that. Um, and if you have a mix of those people in your life, you know, you can do anything. Yeah. All right. Fantastic. One of the things we like to do on The Business Game, Sky, is our rapid fire round. So we're gonna fire 10 quick questions at you. We'll go, um, take it in turns to do so, and we just ask you to, what's the first thing that comes to mind? You know, a, a word or a sentence or two and, um, are you ready to go, Sky? Uh, it sounds, it sounds, it sounds intense, but All right. So let's lock in here. Collena, you ready to go? Yes. Yep. All righty. Here we go. So Sky, what was your first job? My first job was working as a restaurant, uh, busser. Wow. Are you an early riser or a night owl? Early riser. Mm. Office or work from home? Uh, office What's your book or podcast recommendation? Oh, um, I really like, um, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, um, as a book. Oh, that's a great book. Mm-hmm. Android or iPhone? iPhone. One piece of tech you couldn't live without. My phone. Best investment you've ever made. Um, in myself. What's your coffee order? Um, a black nitro cold small. Your current go-to productivity hack. Um, I would say bullet journaling. Ooh, okay. I like that. Um, if you weren't doing what you're doing now, what career would you choose? Uh, I would work for the State Department as an ambassador. Wow. All right, cool. All righty, and our last question for you, Sky. So if business really is a game, Sky Blanks, what's your definition of winning? My definition of winning is having a positive influence on those around me. So when, when someone asks, "Oh, do you know this guy Sky?" They have nothing but b- positive things to say about me and say, "Yes, he's a, he's a really empathetic and, uh, an impactful person" who's made an impact on them. All right, fantastic. Look, Sky, thank you so much for sharing your wisdom and your experience with us. It's been a fantastic episode. I've enjoyed it. Colleen, you enjoy it? Oh, this has been fantastic. Thank you so much. I've pulled so much for this conversation, so. Yeah, absolutely. Appreciate it. So Sky, if listeners wanna find out more about you and your business online, where can they reach you? I think the best place for me to respond quickly is my LinkedIn, so you can search me up, Sky Blanks on LinkedIn. Um, and also icsb.org, um, has lots of information about work we do there. All right, fantastic. Thank you once again, Sky. It's been fantastic. Thank you. So that's all we've got time for today, folks. Wherever you're listening from, thanks for joining us here on The Business Game, and we'll see you next time.