Listen to “#680 The Power of Decency in a World Turned Mean” on Spreaker.
On this episode of The Small Business Radio Show…
SEGMENT 1 with David Bodanis, starting at 0:00: Let’s face it – in the last 5 years, the world has gotten a whole lot meaner with social media and public figures normalizing bullying, lying, and dividing people. What can we do about it? David Bodanis is here to share the power of decency in a world turned mean.
SEGMENT 2 with Chris Lynam, starting at 18:00: Businesses lost over 100 billion dollars in recent years, and that was all before the pandemic. Why? Bad customer service. The customer experience you provide will determine if you get new customers and keep the ones you have. What can you do to up your game?
SEGMENT 3 with Esther Wallace, starting at 37:15: Esther Wallace is on a mission to propel women’s sports forward. She shares how her experience as a child who went from never having played sports to falling in love with basketball and earning a Division I scholarship led her to become an entrepreneur and the founder of Playa Society.
Sponsored by NiceJob.
More on each segment below.
Segment 1: David Bodanis was born in Chicago, lived in France for a decade, and now makes his home in London. He studied math, physics, and history at the University of Chicago and for many years taught the “Intellectual Toolkit” course at Oxford. His books include the New York Times bestseller The Secret House and the bestselling E=mc², which was adapted into the PBS documentary “Einstein’s Big Idea. He is also the author of The Art of Fairness: The Power of Decency in a World Turned Mean.
1:30 – Why has the world turned mean?
4:30 – Should we expect the world to be fair?
7:00 – What we can learn from the teamwork of the research groups that created the mRNA vaccine and an emergency flight situation.
10:30 – Leaders can be jerks. But that’s not the only way to lead.
13:45 – How can we turn back the meanness?
Segment 2: Chris Lynam is an author, speaker and small business owner with a unique perspective that could help to dramatically change any business through high touch service, even in a touch free world. His book is called The Choreography of Customer Service. He owns 7 Arthur Murray Dance studio locations in the Bay Area.
18:00 – How did you come to own 7 Arthur Murray Dance studios?
21:45 – What has made Arthur Murray so successful over the last 100 years?
25:00 – Every small business says they offer great customer service, but few actually do. What are the common misconceptions about customer service?
27:15 – What do you teach your staff about delivering excellent customer service?
30:00 – How do you train your employees to be empathetic with customers?
33:30 – Can everyone learn to dance?
Segment 3: Esther Wallace is the Apparel + Footwear Designer, doing all things Playa Society. She is an artist, turned athlete, turned entrepreneur who went from never having played sports as a child, to falling in love with basketball and earning a Division I scholarship to Fairleigh Dickinson University. After playing and coaching overseas, Esther decided to create the brand that she needed when she was younger – one that would show the world that women can be strong, bold, and beautiful all at the same time. Inspired by her personal experiences, Esther uses Playa Society as a platform to contribute to the growth of women’s sports.
37:15 – How did you become a Division I basketball player after never having played sports as a child?
39:45 – How did your experiences inspire Playa Society? What is your company’s mission?
42:45 – What is the state of women’s sports?
43:45 – How have digital tools fueled Playa Society’s growth during the pandemic?
“we’re all on the same team”
46:15 – What’s the environment for minority entrepreneurs to leave their jobs to run their own businesses? What gave you the courage to quit your job?
48:45 – What advice do you have for minority entrepreneurs?
