Hello and welcome to another exciting
episode of Bridge the Gap:Connecting Business Perspectives with your hosts myself, Colton Cockerell and Trisha Stetzel. Our goal is to bridge the generational, gender, and life experience gap in business through our unique styles of gathering information from our guests. This podcast is sponsored by Jim Butcher, who is a relationship banker with Allegiance Bank now let's get it started. Hello, everyone and welcome to another episode of Bridge the
Gap:Connecting Business Perspectives. My name is Colton Cockerell. I am a Certified Financial Fiduciary and an independent financial advisor with Sharer McKinley Group and with me, I have my partner in crime, my co host, Miss Trisha Stetzel.
Trisha Stetzel:Thank you, Colton. You know, I'm so jealous about where you're sitting today, right? You're sitting in the office where we used to record and here we are on Zoom, but that's okay, too. We get to connect every week. Hey, guys, Trisha Stetzel Here Results, Xtreme Business Solutions. And I am so excited about the guests that we have on today. He's come to talk to us about money, money in our businesses, right? So Colton is super stoked about this. And me not so much. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. So, Ibrahim Saleh. I'm getting it right. Saleh Ibrahim has over 15 years, you guys in oil and gas. His last position was director of corporate planning and strategy followed by six years as a business owner and principal consultant, Ibrahim's dynamic finance and business experience in a wide range of companies, locations and roles from large international corporations to small, privately held companies enables him to deliver unique value to his clients. Ibrahim is passionate about partnering with business owners with the objective to realize their growth potentials. Ibrahim, I'm so glad that you're here. And you and I have known each other for quite a long time. So we're going to have a little fun today too, right?
Ibrahim Saleh:Thank you for having me.
Trisha Stetzel:Absolutely. All right, Colton.
Colton Cockerell:Yes, and I want to jump in. And I have to say this because this is just funny to me. Literally Ibrahim such a good sport. We he was coaching us for about five minutes explaining us how to say his name. And it was great. I will say he gave us the origin. It was fantastic. I really, really appreciate that. So Ibrahim, thank you for being on the show today. And you know, we're gonna jump on in all right. And I guess this is probably one of the easiest questions that I can ask a business consultant. But it's very important. And that is all the people out there that COVID is going on. And you know what they're ready, they don't want to be told that they can't go back to work, because by an employer, they actually want to just take the reigns, they want to start a business. So as a business consultant, how do you start a business?
Ibrahim Saleh:That's a very common questions that I got, often through my business is how do I start a business? One thing is, regardless of the time, meaning whether we are during the COVID recession, or the market is actually booming, as well, I will tell you that the fundamental of starting the business does not change. So anytime, once you are ready, and actually you have the right plan to start the business, you can jump ahead and start the business right away. You can adapt as you go. As long as again, just having the fundamentals of starting the business, the financials, the processes, the business plan, and making sure that emotionally that you're ready to take that leap of faith as well.
Colton Cockerell:Is that what a business consultant and primarily does they help with that the process the all of is that Am I understanding that correctly?
Ibrahim Saleh:Absolutely. So you know, you know the saying failing to plan is planning to fail. So that's what I primarily focus on with my with my client is really having a clear, crisp plan with mitigations plans as well to make sure that you adapt and you start on the right foot. So having a plan from a financial standpoint, marketing strategy, pricing, processes, payroll, the whole gamut of action. You're starting a business, even, you know, connecting with lawyers and CPAs, business coach, you know, financial planners to make sure that the personal financials of the individuals as well is taken care of. So we put that all on the table, and we wanted to make sure that you have those checked. So you can be able to jump while you're conscious about the steps that you are going to take.
Trisha Stetzel:Yeah, and that really, oh, sorry, Colton.
Colton Cockerell:I was gonna tell them thank you for for pointing out how important it is to have a financial planner. Right?
Trisha Stetzel:I knew you were gonna like, Yeah. All right. So I want to redeem myself here, Ibrahim Saleh. Thank you very much. I got nervous. I'm just saying. Not really. I don't know. I don't know what happened to me. I it's my Texas brain. Right. So that really leads us into the next step, as you start that business, Abraham how to how do people secure funding?
Ibrahim Saleh:Yes, so the most common misconception about starting the business or actually surviving in the business is running into a loan, running into a funding running into the bank is VA, other financial institutions to get to get a loan, which is one of the most important mediums to actually you know, source and fund your business. However, in that, you need to think about your personal finances first, because it is tied together, banks are not handing out money because they like your business plan or they like you, they hand money making sure that you have a collateral that backs that backs that loan up. So we focus on both on the you know, strength of the financial situation. So when I work with a client, I want to make sure that they have a 401k they have a retirement fund, whichever it is, could be, you know, liquid in the 401k sense or assets. We look at their cash reserves from a personal standpoint, we look at their you know, income to make sure that they have sustainable income. And then we'll look at the business side, which is basically, how much does it take us to run this business? What is the what we call the financial ratios that help us in that business, and then we develop a plan to make sure that we get the right funding, you would be surprised that a lot of the clients, they can get a very good rates on funding if they have the right structure in place. So and we have, you know, plenty of sources of funding as well, we have a conventional funding through the banks, we have the SBA funding, we have an unconventionals we have factoring, but you want to make sure as a business owner, that you get the right funding for your business. And that starts with you personally, make sure that you have the right fundamentals from a personal standpoint, and you understand your numbers, your business numbers, as well.
Colton Cockerell:You know, I think I've heard that plenty of times Tricia preaching know your numbers. So fantastic, man, you're just like doing all these types of this overlaps here. I love it. So let me ask you this. So now we we've talked to you, we've talked to a business consultant, we have our game plan, we know we want to do now you take us through funding, right? You you point us in the right direction with funding. So now there's a business consultant continue along that process and help me as a business owner to grow.
Ibrahim Saleh:So absolutely. So there are a couple things that you have to think about. From a business coaching standpoint, it's a journey, it's a journey for you to grow emotionally, it's a journey for you to grow as a leader as well, as a business owner, and make sure that, you know, habits are being taught and been practiced as well. So if you just look at a project where you say, Well, I need some help with my organizational skills, and you look at it in a short period of time for you know, maybe a month or so, you're missing out because in a month, you can make some changes, but it will not be sustainable changes as well. So this is why you need a business coach like Trisha to make sure that you are discipline and you are consistent, you know, throughout your journey as well. And sometimes the duration might be longer at the beginning. But then if you have a change every maybe months or every couple months to talk about specifics that would help you great. I will share a personal experience with with you so I worked in oil and gas for about 15 years. In my first year, I was paired with a mentor who was an assistant what we call assistant Chief Financial Officers in the US. I was part of a pilot program that started for three months. We clicked really well. We finished the pilot program I reached out and say, can you help me? You know, can we have continue with the relationship? I'll tell you what, for the next 10 years. That mentor his name was Robert Manrig Was there for me, every month, every month, we had a call, and he helped me gross, tremendously in my job for 10 years, I was in Houston, he was connecting with me, I went to California came back to Houston. And I kept that relationship. And it helped me similar to the financials as well. So when we talk about organizational skills and personal skills, similar to that is the financials as well, you want to make sure that you keep your eyes on the ball, meaning that you understand your numbers, and it just not a revenue number. It's not just a net income number. No, it's liquidity. It's a return on return on equity, it's a return on assets. It's a capital structure, it's a debt to service. I mean, all of that, you have to make sure that as a business owner, you look at it from a month to month, what happens is business owners, they look at it for one month, in the second month, it's okay, then they forgot. And then they come and calling me and say, Hey, I need funding right now. Right? That's this is, and at that time, I would say it's a little bit late, because it takes planning. So you want to make sure that you're keeping your numbers, that's where, you know, a business consultant can help. And I like I said, Could be a project for you know, two, three months, but then having that periodic check in to make sure that you are your numbers are trending in the right way.
Trisha Stetzel:So Colton, I know you're really excited about this numbers talk I can get in your face, I just know it, I see it. So Ibrahim and I were talking just a couple of weeks ago about business owners don't love their numbers, right? They just want to know that there's cash in the bank so that they can go spend it on whatever it is that they want to spend it on. And they run from the numbers, they're scared of them. And what I love about Ibrahim is he's an educator, right. And I love the story about your mentor, everyone needs a mentor, everyone needs one. But the idea behind understanding and knowing what your numbers are is so important, right? You begin with the end in mind as you start to form that business and getting familiar with your numbers. So as a business owner of 13 years, I spent the first five years of my first business running from the numbers I did. And I I deal with so many people that are in business, they don't get into business to be in the numbers, right. But they do need to understand the language so that they can talk to somebody like Colton, or a CPA or their bookkeeper, right people who are good with numbers so that they can understand the language.
Colton Cockerell:And I want to what I'm curious about here, because I'm seeing a lot of similarities between a business coach and a business consultant. So is there a difference?
Ibrahim Saleh:So there is a difference. From a business consulting standpoint, point, from my standpoint, I really focus on the numbers, I focus on educating a business owner, tracking their numbers properly, having a plan to improve it as well. So a special saying, I work with business owners, they never looked at their balance sheet. So when you talk to them about liquidity, the only thing they think about is I have cash in the bank. Okay, what about your receivable? They don't know, what's about your payable? I don't, you know, I'm gonna pay it whenever it comes my way. You know, how much debt do you have? Oh, I have a couple of, you know, loans from here and there? How much are you paying on your debt? They already know. You know, any of your ratio? Are you really profitable or not? I mean, are you you know, having a good return on your investment or not? They don't. So my focus is really helping the business owners marry the balance sheet. That that that is that shows the story. And that's how they become bankable as well. Right. So that's from my perspective, as you know, from a financial standpoint, and I'd like Trisha to speak about her perspective as well.
Trisha Stetzel:Yeah, absolutely. You know, adding on to that Ibrahim has a very focused space, right, that he's operating in with these business owners where my work, the work that I do is more general, right? It's the overall, like getting to the vision, what does it look like, you know, 234 years down the road, and what roadblocks are in the way of this business owner getting there and really removing those. So it's more problem solving generally, on, you know, the relationship that I would have where Ibrahim is really focused on the numbers, and everybody needs that everyone does. And I generally don't have time to spend in that space, right, nor am I an expert. And that's why I would send somebody to someone like Ibrahim to really dig into being bankable and I love that word. I haven't I hadn't heard it before today, and you mentioned it earlier before we started this show. And I love that, you know, are you bankable I don't know. Am I you know, how much debt do I have? I don't know. I, I hear it all the time. So I love that you're out there educating people. And I would be remiss if I didn't mention, by the way, that Ibrahim is a score, mentor. So can you talk a little bit about what that is if people are not familiar with the SCORE program.
Ibrahim Saleh:So score, it's a non for profit organization. As you mentioned, my my passion is really educating intrapreneurs. So SCORE was was was founded about 50 years ago, it's one of the partner resource for the SBA. And we focus on counseling and mentoring intrapreneurs. So anybody that has any idea, they come to us, we are assigned by geographical area. And, and basically, we can help them throughout the process of starting a business or actually running and maintaining a business. We also have classes as well that we provide on a weekly basis. It's all free, it's a not for profit, it's my way to give back to the community. It is what I do what I love as well. And by the way, I was also privileged to actually learn from school when I was a business owner as well. That's how I got initially introduced to SCORE. And after I left my first business, I went back and said, I want to volunteer, I want to do this.
Colton Cockerell:No, that's fantastic. And let me just ask a generational just question here. Because I'm curious. So being you know, starting with people who are looking to start a business, tell me because Millennials are very aggressive they are Millennials are starting their own businesses. What do you what is the big difference you see between a millennial starting a business and more of a Gen X? Or or even maybe a baby boomer who's just hustling still at an older age?
Trisha Stetzel:I'm not a baby boomer saying, Colton. I see you it see you.
Ibrahim Saleh:It is it is a challenge, and is a challenge for me as well to learn about the generation gap, and how can I reach out to those potential clients, or potential mentee as well to make sure that I'm not burning them that I'm not actually running them off. But being able to actually help them and as you say, I mean, the generation gap is you have younger generations who are very aggressive, they want to jump right away, they take risk. But they miss a bit of the fundamentals that needed for the business. So sometimes they run, you know, multiple steps ahead, without thinking about Do I have the structure to continue or not? Which catches up with them, because you know, they start and then it comes to a point where I'm stuck, I cannot grow, you know, what do I need, and then we go back to the fundamentals, where older generations, they tend to actually have a bit of let me take it step at a time, let's make sure that we continue to build a structure, but sometimes they miss opportunity as well, because they are really a lot of risk adverse, they don't want to take the risk right away. They think about the retirement, they think about the funds, they think about the kids, they think about the house, so they have a lot to lose. And that's where it ties them a bit down from from a risk perspective.
Colton Cockerell:So then you have the young bucks who are running down the hill, Sprint, and you have the older generation who are making this marathon a whole lot longer than it actually needs to be Is that what you're saying?
Ibrahim Saleh:Absolutely. Absolutely. And you have to find your medium because you have to, you have to move with the same speed to make sure that you're again, you're you're helping them along the way and they don't trip. You know, that's really the key is is making sure they don't trip.
Colton Cockerell:Oh, fantastic. And so let me let me ask you this, we always ask a totally off the wall random question. I know, you've heard multiple podcasts before. And you may have heard this question. This is a recycled question. We actually gave it to Tara Mason and I loved her response. So I have to ask you, if you had the option to have either a pet elephant or giraffe, which one would you pick?
Ibrahim Saleh:I would pick the giraffe. Why is that? The only always looking from a helicopter view. That's what that's what I do from a business standpoint as well. Yeah, you know, have to raise you know, raise yourself above and just making sure that you look at all the pieces before you buy it.
Colton Cockerell:I can just see part of your your initial consultation. You're just riding in on this giraffe head. Gary the giraffes there. I let's see the whole business I can set up Yeah. Oh my gosh, what a great, great marketing campaign. I think you should roll with that. No, that's a great answer.
Trisha Stetzel:I know I it's like he studied for that test. Right? It's like you studied. So would you share with us Abraham since people can't see us? What generation do you belong to?
Ibrahim Saleh:So I don't really know what what what is that generation? And maybe I don't want to tell as well so maybe we'll just to keep it as a as a secret you know they can take a guess if if they see it,
Trisha Stetzel:I'm gonna let him be in the X Genner with me Colton.
Ibrahim Saleh:Oh, yes, I can hang out with both of you.
Trisha Stetzel:I love it. So in closing, Ibrahim, will you please say your name, since I butchered it at the beginning, but we'd like for you to spell it as well since people aren't going to have access to this to this in writing. If you would spell your name and a way that people can contact you if they have any questions or follow up from the show.
Ibrahim Saleh:Sure. So it's Ibrahim Sala last name is S A L E H. They can reach me at Ibrahim I B R A H I M at taqtics group.com and tactics with the Q. So T A Q T I C S group G R O U P.com.
Trisha Stetzel:That's wonderful. Thank you again, for being with us today. We've really enjoyed the conversation and thank you for giving back through this SCORE mentoring program for those business owners out there that needs some extra help. It's a great place to to go right or even to look into anything else. Mr. Colton, my friend
Colton Cockerell:Ibrahim knocked out of the park. fantastic job today.
Trisha Stetzel:Yeah, absolutely. So thank you, again for being here. And this concludes this week's podcast Tune in next week for another exciting episode of Bridge the
Gap:Connecting Business Perspectives.
Colton Cockerell:Thank you again for tuning in to this week's episode of Bridge the Gap: Connecting Business Perspectives. If there's a certain professional or profession that you want to hear from leave a comment in this week's Facebook posts. Please subscribe and share this podcast. Thanks again to our sponsor, Jim Butcher, a relationship banker with Allegiance Bank, Colton Cockerell with Sharer McKinley Group, LLC is located at 820 South Friendswood Drive Suite 207 Friendswood, Texas 77546 phone number to 281-992-5698. Securities and investment advisory services offered through NEXT Financial Group, Inc. member FINRA/SIPC Sharer McKinley Group is not an affiliate of NEXT Financial Group, Inc.