Crushing Goals with Darcy Eikenberg
Live with Alaska MEP
Join us for an insightful live interview with Darcy Eikenberg, an esteemed Executive Coach, Leadership Speaker, and the author behind RedCapeRevolution.com
Live Summary
Join Sami Jo Lewis from the Alaska MEP and eCommerce Evangelist for Manufacturers Curt Anderson - Founder of B2Btail , and Darcy Eikenberg, an esteemed Executive Coach, Leadership Speaker, and the author behind RedCapeRevolution.com.
As a seasoned expert, Darcy brings her wealth of knowledge and passion for empowering individuals to our discussion on goal setting to conquer 2024.
Tune in to explore the transformative benefits of effective goal setting, gaining a roadmap for success in the coming year. Darcy Eikenberg will share invaluable strategies to kickstart 2024 with purpose, ensuring you're equipped to make this your most accomplished year yet.
Key Highlights
• Leadership development and workplace mindset. 0:56
• Setting goals for manufacturing companies in 2024. 4:01
• Goal setting and manifestation for success in business. 8:29
• Setting realistic and achievable goals for business success. 13:21
• Setting and achieving business goals with accountability and support. 18:38
• Surrounding oneself with supportive dreamers and elevating each other's goals. 23:37
• Team goals and individual development in entrepreneurship. 26:15
Transcription
Sami Jo Lewis 00:02
Hi everybody, happy Thursday. I hope you guys are staying warm. This cold winter day. I know at least that Alaska I know our great guests. We have days probably a little bit warmer than we are. She's literally kicking up in Florida but as for jealous, we're gonna have a great speaker today. And as always, I'd like to welcome Kurt How are you doing today, Curt?
Curt Anderson 00:26
Sami Jo. Happy Thursday, aka Happy Friday Eve and I know this is our last program. We're to 2023 go I might reach out did that happen? So what a great way What an honor what a privilege to have this guest with. I can't think of a better person a better way to kick off or the end 2023 Put a tie a little bow on it with the holidays coming up right right around the corner. Darcy Eikenberg Happy Thursday. How are you my friend?
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 00:56
Wonderful, especially now that I'm here with you all and happy Thursday and and you know Hello to all my friends in Alaska. If it is all for you, over my shoulder here is a little so if you don't care about anything else, we're saying just focus on the beach and maybe a warm up. degrees. So
Curt Anderson 01:13
perfect. Well, Darcy's coming to us live from Florida, sunny, warm Florida. So guys just didn't you get one just think about that. See what Jonathan said.
Sami Jo Lewis 01:22
I'm starting to warm up already.
Curt Anderson 01:23
Feel the heat coming right through for so Darcy we're going to talk about the red cape revolution. You have a book read over your shoulder. This is an amazing incredible book that you wrote read keep rescue. And I want to tell folks, you were on our live show before and I wanted to just share this. You have a an abundance of information on your website to help people move the needle and just all sorts of wonderful things but Sami Jo, let's dive in. We have a lot to cover in a short period of time once you kick it off with your first question because we're going to dive right into what's going on with Darcy. Perfect.
Sami Jo Lewis 01:56
Yes, I'm super excited about a lot of talk about with crushing goals and how you're going to meet your goals for 2024. But the first question want to start out with this. This Tell me a little bit about yourself and your company and how you kind of got into this land or?
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 02:09
Sure well, Red Cape Revolution is that in essence, a leadership development company and the story comes from remembering when you were a kid and you'd grab a towel or a sheet and throw it around your shoulder and you felt confident right? You felt like you were in control. And I always wonder what if we could feel that way every day in our life at work. And so that's really the theme that goes through all the things that we do from executive coaching, to leader team development to thinking about how are we using our people assets? How are we growing our people and how are we growing ourselves as leaders as business owners to be able to make the impact we want to make in the world?
Curt Anderson 02:55
So good. All right, let's take now Red Cape Revolution. So you're thinking about your cape. Now we're about the revolution part. Let's go there. Darcy
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 03:02
Yeah, well, I think you know, we all recognize that we live in a world where there is this kind of mindset sometimes about work right? Oh, work is hard. Oh, you know it's it's not personal. It's just work and, you know, I just call that out. It's all personal. Like we care about our work when we're when things are moving forward. Whatever we're doing, we want it to matter. You know, whether it matters to a small community of our customers or a broader community of our world. And so to revolutionize how we think about what we're doing in our work, and you know, for me, a lot of that goes back to thinking about the people that we're working with, and we're helping them grow, how we're helping them thrive, but also thinking about ourselves. And what are the things we need to do for ourselves to create the life at work that also works for our life?
Curt Anderson 04:01
Yeah, I love it. And so and I just for folks listening or catching this on replay, I just want to give a little connection to your, your connection to manufacturing. So I know you work with a lot of leaders in different corporations, that type of thing, but you ever really you have deep roots in manufacturing, and that's what we're here. We're here with the Alaska Manufacturing Extension Partnership. That was a mouthful, but just share a little bit about your background, your connection with manufacturing.
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 04:24
Yeah, well, I one of the things that we had talked about it on your show is that the I grew up basically with a you know, a manufacturing family. My grandfather started at the plant floor, you know, graduating high school, worked his way up eventually became a chairman of the board of a housewares company. My father, I remember going to his his work, he went to work on a Saturday and walk the plant floor and you know, and talk to people on those shifts. And, and so, you know, I know that so many towns, so many communities and so much of what we do, as it's hard in manufacturing, and even here where I am now in southwest Florida, one of the growth areas you know, you think hospitality, you think health care, one of the real growth areas is in manufacturing and the innovation that's going on there because of our proximity to so many different things and, you know, our great weather and economic situation to be able to help companies thrive. So, you know, manufacturers I think are really important and often under recognized and under, you know, under supported when it comes to some of the things that I am most interested in, which is their people challenges.
Curt Anderson 05:45
Yeah, and we're gonna dig into it and just for Alright, so we're making the connection to manufacturing. There's also connection to the cold weather. You're at Northwestern grad if I'm not mistaken, right in a great city of Chicago. So you know, cold weather and your family's from upstate New York where I'm at and so we know so you've got cold weather in your in your blood there. So you know what's going on here. So, Sammy, Joe, I know you're dying to dig into like, how can we really lay out those goals? You've got some really exciting questions here for Darcy. Let's keep the party rolling here.
Sami Jo Lewis 06:13
Yeah, so when it comes to kind of our theme, you know, crushing goals. For 2024. And like looking forward, what are some steps manufacturers can take to better prepare for the new year ahead.
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 06:23
I think the one thing when you think about bowls, a lot of times we get hung up on something that is really tactical, like you know from X dollars to y dollars and those kind of goals are great, but often, we don't have full control over those things. So when we're talking about really making an impact for ourselves and for our companies and 2024 Often, you know less about what do you want to do and more Who do you want to be to get to a result because if I know if I want to, you know 10x My revenue, I have to be somebody different. And I might have to you know, there's only three things I control the way I think what I say and what I do, if I may have to make some different choices, but often I think we focus too much on I want to set a big goal but I'm doing the same things I've always done instead of saying Who do I want to be and starting to be that person now, but on that if I want to be the leader that has the 200 person organization instead of the 50 person organization? How do I want to make some different choices. So I think thinking differently about goals, less about the end result and more about what's it gonna take to get there can be really powerful to help you challenge yourself and push forward.
Curt Anderson 07:48
That is, you know, what, and I'm not always the best at that, like setting those goals. So Darcy if there's folks out there that like, you know, we're gonna dive deep into a, we're gonna go much deeper into this topic, but just like what are some tactics strategies as far as like setting that goal like you know, going from that 50 to 200 Any, any tips or any suggestions there?
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 08:07
Yeah, I think that you can't get anywhere unless you do kind of know what is that estimation and again, it may not be a physical number, it may be more of how you want what you want people to be saying I often will ask my clients who are like, Well, I'm not exactly sure I want more or I want different. What is it like? Well, so if we were a documentary, movie crew, and following you around in a year, what would people be saying about you? What would your customers be saying? What were the phone calls? What would the email correspondence be? What would your peers sitting around the conference room table making decisions or on the factory floor? What would they be saying? So sometimes in Fast forwarding yourself, can be really powerful to then say, okay, if I want that, how do I need to reverse engineer to get there just like you would make a product and say, We think there should be a product that solves this problem. Great. We've got that vision. Now. How do we reverse engineer it? Often we're trying to go in a different direction. We're trying to go from where we are. And the Delta looks just too big right? It just like overwhelming how can I ever get there but picture ourselves and to know what it feels it looks like to be where we want to be? And then like backtrack footsteps.
Sami Jo Lewis 09:32
I love that. I like that you're working backwards. I feel like it's like a completely different mindset as you're saying, like, you're kind of like, well, let me just like do all these steps and trying but if you really like manifest and picture and have it mapped out like this is where I want and really have your goal aligned and then just kind of work backwards of like ways to achieve that. I think. Yeah, that mindset really kind of shifts and makes it a little bit less daunting.
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 09:57
You know, we throw around words like you know, manifest or imagine the future. This is interesting. This is actually how the brain is designed to work. The brain can't tell the difference between what is true and what you tell it is true. And you know, there's really excellent research that like, what you choose to believe, we know will be what becomes true for you. So I would say if you had two things choose like you choose. It's going to be hard year Oh, you know, we don't know where the economy's gone. I mean elections, she's like, I can choose that energy. And that's what I'm gonna get back because I'm telling my brain that's what's true. But I could choose, you know, we've got the runway to be able to do the, you know, to x or 10x we you know, we're gonna hire it's going to be easy because we know what we want. That's not fantasy and that's not over self talk. There is a piece of getting super clear about what you want that future to be. So that you also believe in in in your actions. Follow your beliefs
Curt Anderson 11:05
Okay, talk about the dropped the mic at the end of the year right there Sammy show that like I had I don't know about anybody else. I'm gonna go back and replay that Darcy that was so profound of like, what is truth compared to what is the truth that you tell yourself? That is just such brilliant advice. Sami, Jo, I know this kind of ties into the next question that you're going to tee up and I hope I'm not sure if there's an overlap, but let's dive right into the next question.
Sami Jo Lewis 11:31
Yeah, so it sounds like we're we've touched on this a little bit, but why would you say? Why is goal setting so important? Starting off right at the beginning of the new year. Taking off the new year? Why is that so important?
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 11:44
I think any time of year if you don't know where you're going, then you'll just get anywhere right? We know we can. We've all had those pieces in our times in our life where we've just sort of floated or floundered. It's just for good reason, right? Sometimes our season of life, that we're not in achievement mode or not in growth mode, we're in maintenance mode, and that's okay. We just have to know where are we? Where is our business, and being able to be intentional about it. Instead of what happens and especially this time of year, a lot of us beat ourselves up. We say, oh, man, we thought we could do that. We thought we'd have 10 new clients, we only have three you know, we consider ourselves a failure. So getting clear is always going to be the direction it's like GPS right to GPS going unless you set a destination and there is no energy this time of year to stop reflect, you know, to use these darker days to use these colder days, and even a little bit of the holiday energy whether yours is joyous or yours is reflective and maybe introspective. Say what do I want in this next set of days? Should I be so lucky to be given? What do I want for my company? How do I want to be?
Curt Anderson 13:12
Well, let's go here. This is This is phenomenal. I think you set this up just for me Sammy Joe so I feel like a coaching lesson. Let's go here. I want to talk about you know that goal setting. Famous motivational speaker Les Brown says so many people fail because not that they miss their goals. They set the bar too low and they hit it right. Now on the flip side of that turn, you're like, hey, we have to pass it. We could 10 fold, you know, 10x I know I've been a culprit of like maybe I'm a little bit one of those delusional entrepreneurs, helpless. Can you walk us through a little bit about the difference between like the Les Brown kinds of like hate and we set the bar too low and we hit it compared to maybe sometimes that entrepreneur a little bit too creative to delusional if you are sorry to use that word. How do we set like, is there such a thing as a realistic goal? Is that a good question?
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 14:02
Well, it didn't, you know, said delusional I might say you know dreamer, and you know, if we don't dream, nothing can happen. So I think there's a pieces to where it first does start with knowing yourself. So there are those of us that will you know, that to my example. And this is actually a client of mine, who was just beating themselves up for they wanted 10 new clients, they got three, it's like, let's celebrate the three you know, our, our mental model feels like that's a loss not a win. Now, the truth is that we have to look honestly and say, what could have been in my possibility? What could I have done if I really had wanted 10? And how might that have made me uncomfortable? Because I think the way the brain works the way all human beings are built is that we err towards safety and comfort. It is you know, and an entrepreneur is somebody who is does more often gets used to being uncomfortable, you know, uncomfortable is their new comfortable that is the normal, but sometimes because we're used to doing them, then we don't necessarily know. Okay, so at what point do I need to follow through on the ideas I have, where do I want to make sure that I have executed on it so that this great idea I have gets into the world and sometimes that part of it isn't as exciting. And then we feel like my idea didn't really come to fly, but it's like, when I execute, did I follow it through or did I build the team to be able to follow it through? So you know, I think these are important things for us to know ourselves first, to have the clarity about, like, how do I want to succeed? What does success look like for me? And the used a Les Brown quote, I'll throw a Leo Burnett quote back with you in advertising classic, it's, you know, it's like, reach for the stars. You may not get any but you won't come up with a handful of mud either. Yeah. Yeah.
Sami Jo Lewis 16:23
And I would assume like the more you know, businesses or just people like internally are setting different goals, the more they're probably able to like reflect back each year. Like really kind of find that consistent realistic of like, what they're really capable of like more often you do it the more you're really able to like continue setting and making those changes.
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 16:45
Yeah, and I think we all need some stretch goals. Yeah, right. I have a friend that the way that's her goals, is she sets like good, better and best, you know, anything like that. Yeah, good would be. We've grown year over year. That's great. We're not going to beat ourselves. up for that. That'll be terrific. Like better, would be we launched the new product and we you know, and then best and you know, you can even come up with this language according to whatever your company culture is and of just like how do you help people envision, like what would be extraordinary? And because again, if we're not clear on even thinking that's possible, we don't even reach for it. I mean, the whole story of Roger Bannister and the breaking the visit the four minute mile human beings could never run faster than a four minute mile, three minute mile. I don't know you probably know for
Curt Anderson 17:47
four minutes for
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 17:51
Think of all the things we thought human beings could never do that they're not doing the same. The same is in our business. But yes, I think we don't want to be in the place where we're so unrealistic that the people around us don't see a path to it. And the human nature is when when I can't see a path. It's easier for me to give up. It's easy for me to pull back and hide because it you know, it doesn't feel safe. It doesn't feel like that's achievable. So I don't need to try. Right.
Curt Anderson 18:24
So good. What would you what would it take to be extraordinary? That was just that was like the best line right there. So let's, let's keep it going Sami Jo What do you get an accent or not get here? Yeah, so
Sami Jo Lewis 18:38
this is kind of a two part question. But I'd love your opinion on common mistakes that you've seen that are often made that the businesses unable to reach their goals, as well as maybe a few examples of businesses that are doing super well and are able to reach their goals, you know, pretty consistently year after year and like, what are some strategies they might be doing?
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 19:01
I think a common mistake is to set your goals by yourself, and especially in a business or you're a leader or a business or you're the you know, the owner or entrepreneur is to say, Well, I'm just gonna go off into my little cave and just come up with my goal. But when we do it in public, or we do it with people, and even if they're my own personal goals, feel to have a you know, a conversation or to just be able to work through them and get other feedback in the swear. Things like masterminds. Things like coaching is really powerful because someone can kind of poke at you and say, to x, really, you've tripled the business every year for the past three, like, are you thinking big enough? Or just to be realistic? But yeah, I think I think the teams and the groups and the individuals who involve other people, and also we're hesitant, because obviously we don't want to put something out there and fail. But even in the creation, I think there's so much more to be gained from creating goals together, creating goals in public. And if you're trying to motivate your team, rather than you dumping something from down on high, it's like being able to take the picture vision and say, Well, wait, so we want to get to this broader vision. You know, what do you all think? What should our goals be? How should we be measuring success? What does success really look like? And engage that in a discussion, rather than throwing goals out? And we've all been there where someone puts goals on the table and we're like, yeah, that's nice. That will be that someone will forget. They'll forget that next month and there'll be something else we're gonna focus on. Right?
Curt Anderson 20:59
So good. I love that. So a couple of takeaways there. Darcy, I love that having the accountability coach, you know, it's like, you know, if you're working out just kind of go to the gym, do your own thing, but when you have somebody over your shoulder, you have that workout, buddy, you know, it's like you know, kind you can do another one, hey, do it a little bit faster. Hit that four minute mile, right? So putting it out there and having the courage to like, I love that stretch goal, right? Like a pretty stretch yourself like all entrepreneurs, you cannot be an entrepreneur and not be uncomfortable right like, if you need comfort zone, you are not enough or you know, you need another career path, right? So yeah, I love that ad. And as she was asking that what is there? Has there been a common one like we've thrown out the Les Brown maybe not setting the right goals or anything? Are there any other culprits that there any any things that we should be aware of stay away from that are like gold deniers go the primers anything else there?
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 21:54
I think there is a big factor of Who do you surround yourself with? Right? Are you involved in professional groups? Are you involved with people who want want the best for you want you at your very best, and who you can mirror back to and sometimes, you know, what's happened in our past few years, as the world has changed, not even just COVID And you know, all of the ups and downs economically, but just in general as we've gotten more used to working you know, out of these little boxes of chips and and we are more detached. And I think we have to be even more intentional now to seek out the people who not only support us, but who will tell us the truth, and the people who we can model after you know, somebody out there has gone first. And that's because you don't know them yet. doesn't mean they're not out there and doesn't mean you would never know them. So I think the strategy of finding the others right who then and nothing quit as competition, but it really is cooperation or learning. I have seen some coalition's of people who do very similar things and in theory, could look at each other as competitors, but instead recognize we each have our own secret sauce. And there is something I can teach. There's something I can learn. And you know, when we bring people like that in a room, and we don't wait to be invited, we just start reaching out. Then there's magic to be had and it also keeps us motivated. Just moving forward.
Curt Anderson 23:37
That is so good. Right there. I use the term dream supporters. How can you surround yourself with Dream supporters? And when you can do exactly man like Darcy just laid it out textbook This is phenomenal. And so the thing is, I call them you know, when you surround yourself with Dream supporters, how do you know you have the right people? I call them dream collisions. Right? Like Darcy you have a dream Sami Jo has a dream. I have a dream and we put it out to each other. And you know, iron sharpens iron, right local shades. You know, rising tide lifts all ships. And so the thing is by putting that out there to each other, and we're elevating each other as a team. Now we're having these dream collisions. And that's exactly what the last game up is you know, like you're working relentlessly, helping manufacturers to realize their dream. And that's where those dream collisions come in. That's where the magic happens. So I love I couldn't love more what you just laid out. That is brilliant. Thank you for that advice. Sami Jo over come this time. You got one more juicy question for Darcy. Let's do it. And then we'll take it home. That
Sami Jo Lewis 24:36
sounds perfect. Yeah, no, I'm just really excited. I feel like I've learned a lot internally, as Curt was saying, and I think it's really important and like biggest takeaway is like, you can't do that like on your own especially when you're looking at like a business or manufacturing like you can't I mean, yes, you can set your own goals but if you're not sharing them with your peers or your supporters, or even brainstorming as a team of like, how are we gonna take your business from here to here, then you're probably not going to, you know, you're going to be floundering, kind of, as you said earlier to get them so I really, really like that. So moving forward. Last question I'm excited to ask is what are you most excited for heading into 2024? Oh, geez.
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 25:15
So much. You know, I we're, I think we're we continue to be at an inflection point in our lives at work, and that always creates opportunity. Yes, it can create a lot of tension and worry, but we get to choose, right, we get to choose and for me, I always live by the mantra that somebody out there needs me. And I think those needs are going to increase, not decrease. And so you know, how can I do what I need to do stretch my own goals, to reach more of those people to make more of that impact? And then in turn, I know there's a ripple effect of anybody that I get to connect with is going to create their own collisions to your point, you know, good standard, Joe and then you know, becomes expands and I think that makes a difference across all of our businesses and hopefully across our world. So I'm excited for the possibilities.
Curt Anderson 26:15
That's fantastic. As we take it home, I'm gonna throw in one more little bonus question. So our friends manufacturers out there. So first off, connect with Darcy on LinkedIn, Darcy Eikenberg. Check out Red Cape Revolution. There is just an abundance and just a wealth of information to help you on your journey, your entrepreneurial journey. As a manufacturer, you do a ton with retention. How about team goals or like any like as a team collectively going in GRC? Any last parting thoughts that you want to share as far as like putting out to the leader for the team? Yeah,
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 26:48
don't forget that a team is made up of individuals. And whereas we say there is no I in team what Michael Jordan used to say but there is an AI and when so when we're presenting a team goal, we also have to recognize that where does somebody need to come from individually to be part of that team? So don't ignore that individual development often has to happen along with team goals and team development, or else you know, it's the team can't find where their collisions are either.
Curt Anderson 27:20
Well, Sami Jo, is it any wonder how brilliant how successful Darcy is because this was I was shameful that I just got all this information from Darcy. This was just absolutely a gift. What a blessing. What a holiday gift for everybody listening to this program. So Darcy I'm gonna thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are just such a dear friend. Just such an inspiration. We appreciate you we adore you. We can let you do all the work and all the folks that you are helping. Sami Jo, thank you for just what a what an amazing year I've had to share with you on our little live stream show and what a great time we've had. What a what an incredible opportunity to to share opportunities and folks like Darcy here and just close out the year on this high note. So any parting thoughts takeaways for you with this great conversation today?
Sami Jo Lewis 28:09
This was absolutely wonderful. I think that this was the perfect topic to end 2023 With I know me personally I'm like thinking of things that I can start taking my family and personal goals as well as Alaska MEP is different things I can pass for a few members. So I know I gained a lot from this. I'm excited like I should really start thinking about like what do I want for 2024 and really kind of start working backwards. So I know I gained a lot this is a perfect topic and it was wonderful to have you on. Thank you so much. I did want to let everyone knows we do these every other Thursday. We will be taking a break during the holidays. I hope everyone has fantastic holiday season and we look forward to reconnecting January 11. We'll have another great topic and great speaker for you on January 11. So thank you all so much for listening and Happy Thursday. Thank you for thank you very happy holidays. Happy
Darcy Eikenberg, PCC 29:03
New Year. All