197: Vaughn Sigmon of The Alternative Board discusses the value of an executive advisory board with us.

Vaughn Sigmon of The Alternative Board has over 35 years of executive experience successfully leading, growing, and managing a diverse number of businesses. Vaughn recently retired from an 11 year career as Regional Vice President General Manager for the Los Angeles Region of CarMax; a Fortune 100 Best Companies To Work For Award winner. Vaughn specializes in helping small businesses learn that focusing on their employees with the right approaches and gaining their buy-in will drive whatever initiatives the business owner wants to accomplish. Upon retiring Vaughn knew that he wanted to extend his career in the area that he enjoyed the most from his days as a senior executive: Coaching executives to be the best that they can be.

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Fail fast to succeed faster

• Vaughn relates that he resisted strategic planning in the corporate world.  When he finally saw that planning and goal setting worked he became a champion of strategic planning in that organization.  He has carried the value of planning and goal setting over to his work with The Alternative Board.

Tell us something good

• Vaughn tells us about a coaching client who had taken over the family bookkeeping business.  When the client first came to Vaughn he was afraid to have tough conversations with customers, like raising rates.  Since starting with Vaughn and The Alternative Board, the business has increased revenues by 45% year over year and in the process the client has developed a ton of confidence around having “hard” conversations with customers.

How do you support a Lawpreneur?

• Vaughn reminds us that attorneys are business owners that don’t usually get a business education and that is one of the reasons that business coaching and something like The Alternative Board is so valuable.
• Joining a board expands the horizons of the business owner through the shared experiences of their fellow board members.

On the Importance of Business Plans

• Vaughn says that a business needs to have direction, like hands on the handlebar of a bicycle you hold the business on course.
  • You have to know where you are going so a plan starts with a vision of your life as a business owner.
  • What do you want to get out of your business?  What is your reason for having this business?
  • Create a long term plan to support your vision of the business
  • Set Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Results-focused and Time-bound goals to move you and the business forward towards your ultimate vision.

Favorite Books:

• Why Employees Don’t Do What They’re Supposed To and What You Can Do About It Based on the actual experiences of 25,000 managers, Why Employees Don’t Do What They’re Supposed to Do… gives you proven, straightforward methods that work on real jobs, in the real world. This results-oriented guidebook helps you handle the top 10 situations in which employees don’t perform the way they should, including a detailed analysis of the causes and the plans for preventing the same problems down the road.
• Influencer: The New Science of Leading Change, Second Edition Whether you’re a CEO, a parent, or merely a person who wants to make a difference, you probably wish you had more influence with the people in your life. But most of us stop trying to make change happen because we believe it is too difficult, if not impossible. We learn to cope rather than learning to influence.
• Crucial Conversations Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High, Second Edition The first edition of Crucial Conversations exploded onto the scene and revolutionized the way millions of people communicate when stakes are high. This new edition gives you the tools to: Prepare for high-stakes situations, Transform anger and hurt feelings into powerful dialogue, Make it safe to talk about almost anything, Be persuasive, not abrasive

Thanks for Listening

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Miranda McCroskey – host of Lawpreneur Radio