Married to the Hustle
Married to the Hustle
Overcoming Business Hurdles Together
Ever feel like your business setbacks are insurmountable? You're not alone. Join Jessica and me, Alex, as we share our personal journey of overcoming the hiring challenges that many businesses faced in the post-pandemic world. We reveal how partnering with a temp agency became a game-changer for us, turning a tough situation into a valuable learning experience. This episode will help you see failures in a new light—as essential stepping stones toward progress and innovation.
In this inspiring episode of Married to the Hustle, we also delve into the resilience stories behind iconic brands like Ben & Jerry's and Burt's Bees. Learn how Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield navigated financial hurdles and product recalls by sticking to their core values. Discover the innovative thinking that transformed Burt's discarded wax into a multimillion-dollar empire. We emphasize the importance of leveraging overlooked resources and building a supportive entrepreneurial community. Tune in to share your own stories and be part of a network that thrives on mutual growth and resilience.
Now that you've listened to the Married to the Hustle Podcast, it's time to join the community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/marriedtothehustle
Another way to support the podcast is to leave a review. Your feedback helps us to continue creating valuable content and reach a wider audience.
Thank you for your support!
Alex & Jessica Fortis
Welcome to Married to the Hustle, the podcast where love, faith and business come together.
Jessica:I'm Jessica, and with me is my partner in life and business, alex. Together, we're diving into the wild world of entrepreneurial couples.
Alex:Each week, we'll bring you real stories, hilarious moments and valuable insights from couples who are building businesses and rocking their relationships. Talk about living the dream.
Jessica:Or surviving the nightmare.
Alex:So buckle up and get ready for a fun ride with Married to the Hustle. Welcome back, guys, to the Married to the Hustle podcast. I'm Alex, your co-host, and I am joined by my beautiful wife, Jessica.
Jessica:Hey guys, how you?
Alex:doing and on today's episode, we're going to be speaking about bouncing back from business setbacks right. Bouncing back from business setbacks right Things that hold you from growing, pulling you in other directions that you thought you were not going to go in and we're going to talk a little bit about our experiences and then some examples as well and how you can overcome some of those obstacles as an entrepreneur couple. So we're going to be talking a little bit about that and the role of failure in success. That one touches me so hard, jessica, because in order to have success, you have to have failure.
Jessica:Absolutely, and I don't think a lot of people see it that way.
Alex:Correct. Everyone just thinks that you know, yeah, you start up and you go and there's no bumps in the road. And unfortunately, there's quite a bit of bumps and obstacles and hurdles that you have to overcome, and we've learned that. I mean both in our business and your business as well right, with your coaching business. What are some experiences that you have experienced and then we can share some? You know what we've experienced here exclusive too.
Jessica:Yeah, I mean, there's been many times that we hit roadblocks, and whether that roadblock was in hiring, I don't know. If you remember those days right after the pandemic we were trying to hire like crazy and it just got so intense because it didn't seem like anybody wanted to work, and so taking a moment to sit back and really understand what our need was, and in having a leadership conversation, a temp agency came up and we never even thought that we were ready for a temp agency at the time, and so we partnered with a temp agency and they started to get people on the clock for us within 48 hours. And so part of hitting roadblocks is not just staying there, because many times when you experience a challenge, it's not okay how you got there and now you're stuck. It's okay. What's the lesson learned and how do you bounce back from that, and that's what causes resilience. And so that leads us into key number one on building resilience, which is learning opportunities.
Jessica:There are so many learning opportunities when we fail, so many, and even in preparing for this podcast, you guys, I was thinking of that song if at first you don't succeed, right, dust yourself off and try again. And so that's part of learning how to bounce back. You start to think strategically or how can I do something different? And you pull in resources and you start talking to other mentors or coaches or people in your network. You know that might be experiencing some of the same issues that you have and what's worked for them and what hasn't, and so we tend to take that as a learning opportunity to see what we can do different, because we cannot continue to do the same thing, expecting different results, and so that was the first one. It's learning opportunities and what failures bring your way.
Alex:And just wanted to touch on that too that we all expect everything to go perfect all the time and unfortunately it doesn't work out that way. But failures it's what helps you get to that next level in success analyzing what went wrong, what can we do different, gaining insights that lead to better decision-making and strategies. And it's not handed to us like we have to learn these things right, and I'm appreciative of that. I mean, we've hit many bumps and we continue to hit bumps, but it's overcoming those and learning from it and just continue growth.
Jessica:Yeah, absolutely I agree. And so and so that leads us also to that that resilience building of not stopping right. That's the number two. It's like I don't stop. Once I hit a roadblock, once I hit a challenge right and I experienced a setback, I don't stop there. It's all about what my pastor was talking about a couple of weeks ago. He talked about protecting our progress right and so when we get to a certain place in our lives or in our business, this can't be it right.
Jessica:I know, when I got to corporate many of you guys know that I spent 25 years climbing the corporate ladder, pursuing position, pursuing title, pursuing financial freedom and I was pursuing a title and not necessarily pursuing purpose. So as I started to get there, I started to feel like, okay, this is not what it was all meant to be. It didn't feel like there's no way. I worked this hard to get here, and so I'm not ready to stop now. And so that's when my mind started to go into a more challenging way. You were already experiencing the entrepreneurial life and I was just kind of like I had my toes dipped in it. You were all in into the entrepreneurial journey before I was, and so I started to dip my toe because, yeah, no, I'll just coach from the sidelines, I'll help you from the sidelines, but not seeing myself and doing this full time. And the reality is that entrepreneurship is a continual learning experience. It's a journey. We're in, the journey of becoming, of becoming who we've been called to to be, and part of that is that resilience building.
Alex:Right, I think, being entrepreneurial couple as well, I've spoken to plenty of people and they think it's easy. It's not easy, I mean, like on a scale from one to 10, 10 being the hardest. I'm at a 10 plus for sure, right.
Jessica:Yeah, I'm at an 11.
Alex:Right. Right, because there's always something to learn, especially at the industry that you're in. Right, we're in the janitorial space and the competition is just fierce. How do you overcome that? How do you stand out from that? And learning, and continuous learning, and taking in the proper knowledge and getting things in place. And, believe it or not, probably about 75% of that comes from failure. So, yeah, the resilience is it's a big key part to that. And also there's I believe there's another part is like the innovation right, what comes out of failure? It can force us, as entrepreneurs, to think creativity and find new solutions. Right, that's what we're doing in our space. Right, because we have to set yourself apart from the competition.
Jessica:Absolutely, and technology is a big, it's a big deal. I mean, there are so many tools out there. Even when you look at AI, right, let's say, even when you look at Chad GPT, you know anyone that tells me now that they can't, that they don't have content to put out on their social media or their blog or whatever. I'm like. Are you serious? There's so many tools out there available to help us put content out. It's not about the content. It goes back to time management, it goes back to other areas. There's so many tools out there available to help us put content out. It's not about the content. It goes back to time management. It goes back to other areas, and so there are so many ways to do things better and the technology behind it that, I'll be honest with you.
Jessica:Cleansmarts comes to mind. Cleansmarts, I mean, these are folks that you know. They're familiar with the janitorial industry and they realize that there wasn't an app out there that did all of the things that they needed for it to do Right, and so they came up with this tool, and the tool has been an incredible experience for us. Have there been hiccups? Totally Absolutely. Did the team resist it? Absolutely Absolutely. But it really helped drive innovation in our business. No-transcript experiencing challenges, and it automatically leads you to that, and so that was our point number three. Absolutely, innovation is definitely a key part.
Alex:I'll be honest with you. There's points where we come to and you've heard me say this several times like that's it, I'm done, but I do believe that there's a bigger meaning behind what we're doing and God would tell, right, god would tell, and I keep hearing and don't quit, don't give up, continue going through the hurdles. This is what you're doing. You're learning, you're getting better at it, and we have to hear that in a voice, because the easy thing to do is just quit, walk away from it. That's the easy way out. So, yeah, it is pivotal to continue your growth, to continue learning, continue making mistakes. It's okay to make mistakes. You get down because you're building your baby right and you're thinking everything is in place and nothing can fail. Unfortunately, things do happen. We just have to be strong and overcome those hurdles and just continue.
Alex:I was reading something right? I'm always looking to see what are other businesses and how did they come to be and how did they become so successful, right? And one of the stories that caught my eyes and this is just touching on it briefly it's a very famous ice cream brand, ben and Jerry's, the founders, ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield. They faced plenty of challenges. Not only it's a product that you're trying to sell, but it's in the food service business. They're selling ice creams, right, and Ben and Jerry. Everybody knows Ben and Jerry's right. One of my favorite flavors they make is the Americone Dream. I love that.
Alex:Ice creams. Right and Ben and Jerry. Everybody knows Ben and Jerry's right. One of my favorite flavors they make is the Americone Dream. I love that ice cream. But they face multiple challenges, you know. Number one and it's a really big one is financial struggles. Going through financial struggles in a business it's tough. They were able to overcome that, overcome product recalls because they have a food product right, something that they did. It didn't go well with the public, but they were able to overcome that and they persevered by staying true to their value and focusing on the quality of the product. Right. And look at where they're at now they're multi-million dollar business, right? Yeah.
Jessica:And I actually had the pleasure of going there in person many years ago and it's they have such an amazing process. I mean I was really impressed with their factory up in. I believe it was in New Hampshire or Maine up there.
Alex:But I mean you can hear the story. It took them trials and tribulations to get there where they're at, but they just stuck it through and they were focused on the product that they were trying to put out there for the customers right and help them stand out. And Ben and Jerry's who doesn't know Ben and Jerry's right? But that's just a little example that I wanted to share because you know, it's not just us right, they're the big brands. You know, if you read about Steve Jobs with Apple, all the obstacles that he's went through, all these big corporations, everybody goes to these hurdles and what's going to set you apart is being able to overcome that.
Jessica:Absolutely. I love that story actually, and you know, another one that comes to mind for me is one that I researched when I was in college. It was the Burt's Bees company, and so, basically, how that company came about, I don't I mean, I don't have all the details like you did. You're so good, you researched it ahead of time, I didn't. When it came to burt bees, I did some research. I had to do a paper years ago and it turned out it was beekeeper who was tossing the wax from the bees after he did whatever he did, and somebody else came across the the wax and thought you know, there's got to be something that you could do with this. And you know, she came to him a couple of times and he was like oh please, you know, take it, I don't care, it's garbage. And she was like no, no, no, no, no, this is not garbage, we've got to do something. And a woman turned that into a multimillion dollar business.
Jessica:Talk about innovation, right, I'm sure they went through their own struggles. I'm sure they went through their own hurdles. What can we do differently? And I don't think even initially it was an opportunity to capitalize on it. It's just that they knew it was a waste, and so I think it's really important to identify those areas in our lives where you know, are we being wasteful right? Do we have other resources that we're not tapping into, and what are some ways that we can utilize those resources or those tools or even those people around us to collaborate and connect and be able to help us just build a stronger entrepreneurial journey so that we can bounce back easier, because you know what the failure? It hurts, right. It hurts right, and and the bounce back is not always easy. It's, it's rewarding, but it's not always easy, and so these are the things that many people don't talk about.
Jessica:It's about overcoming the challenges and setbacks that come our way, whether you have full control of it or not. You know, many times they're self-inflicted wounds. You and I speak about that all the time. Many times they're self-inflicted wounds. You and I speak about that all the time right, about our own self-inflicted wounds. But being able to find ways where we can bounce back and where we can build resilience and build strength and identify those learning opportunities and continue to drive innovation to be able to help us succeed, is what's going to be a differentiator for us, and you know what. These will be stories that we'll tell in the future. These will be stories that we'll share with our children and our grandchildren as we continue to grow the business. And so, yeah, this was awesome. This was an awesome discussion.
Alex:Yeah, that was really good to touch on because it goes through everyone's mind, especially when you're trying to build something on your own or your spouse, and we've learned that every failure is just a stepping stone to success.
Jessica:Absolutely.
Alex:Each time something doesn't go as planned, we gain new insights and it helps us make better decisions in the future, and you just have to go with that and continue going with that.
Jessica:Absolutely Well. There you have it, guys. So today, I hope you guys enjoyed the conversation. If you have some experiences where you yourself have bounced back and you've been resilient or perhaps you're going through it right now, you know feel free to reach out to us. We love having these conversations with you guys and to hear what's happening out there in the world and in the field, and I think it's really important, as entrepreneurs, that you know what we stick together. We stick together, we grow together because entrepreneurship is a hustle, as you all know, and I can't wait to continue to share with you. Alex and I are putting together some new podcast episodes and I'm so excited to be able to continue to serve you guys in this capacity, and so until next time keep hustling.
Alex:Three, two, one. That wraps up another episode of Married to the Hustle. We hope you enjoyed today's show and found some inspiration and practical tips to apply to your own business journey.
Jessica:We love hearing from you, our amazing listeners. If you have any stories, questions or tips to share, connect with us on social media or send us an email. Your input makes this podcast even better.
Alex:And don't forget to subscribe to Married to the Hustle on your favorite podcast platform so you never miss an episode. And if you enjoyed today's episode, please leave us a review. It really helps us grow and reach more entrepreneurial couples like you.
Jessica:Join us next week for more exciting stories, insightful interviews and valuable advice. Until then, keep hustling, keep thriving and keep loving what you do. Thanks for tuning in. Join us next week for more exciting stories, insightful interviews and valuable advice.
Alex:Until then, keep hustling, keep thriving and keep loving what you do. Thanks for tuning in and happy hustling.