Dale Partridge is a seven-figure business owner, a husband, father, and entrepreneur. In this episode, Dale shares with us how to find that passion, identify problems that are actually worth solving, and how to turn your passion into your profession.
00:04:46.780And passion is not something that makes you happy or something that makes you excited.
00:04:51.760Like, oh, I'm passionate about chocolate.
00:04:53.500No, that's not what it's talking about, right?
00:04:55.000The word passion was originally defined in the Greek.
00:04:58.160The way that it was actually used for the very first time was to describe Christ's suffering on the cross.
00:05:04.280And we know that because that's why Mel Gibson did his movie, The Passion of the Christ, right?
00:05:08.460The idea is the definition originally was a passion is the willingness to suffer for something that you love.
00:05:15.640And, I mean, for me as a business owner, for anybody that's listening that's a business owner or passionate,
00:05:20.480like truly passionate about something, you guys understand that it hurts.
00:05:24.860You know, it actually, like, it's painful.
00:05:26.820You know, you're actually suffering for it.
00:05:28.460There's a problem that you need to fix, and it hurts so bad because you're constantly thinking to the solution.
00:05:33.460You're constantly working toward creating that better ideal.
00:05:37.240And that feeling right there, that's true passion.
00:05:39.840Passion isn't like, oh, I'm passionate about my garden.
00:05:41.880You know, like there's something that you really can't function without solving this problem.
00:05:46.500It's almost like sinful if you didn't take on that project.
00:05:50.320This makes sense, and it's certainly something that I adhere to and part of the reason we've started our project.
00:05:55.160And I recognize that there was a need in the world, and so that's why we've done what we've done.
00:05:59.480And certainly there are days of suffering.
00:06:01.800So I understand what you're talking about here.
00:06:04.000But what keeps most men from doing this?
00:06:05.880Because I imagine everybody, and correct me if I'm wrong, has a pretty, not, I won't say pretty good idea, but has at least some understanding of what they might be passion to your definition about what keeps people from moving forward with this.
00:06:19.000Yeah, you know, there's a lot of lies that we believe in terms of we're not qualified or we're not capable of doing certain things or we're not ready of doing these things.
00:06:28.680And I've just learned that entrepreneurs learn by doing, not learning to do, right?
00:06:32.300It's just one of those things that we must jump in.
00:06:34.380Again, entrepreneurs learn by doing, not learning to do.
00:06:36.960And a lot of men really believe that, oh, I need to go to four years of business school and go into $80,000 of debt before I know what I'm doing.
00:06:44.180I think we're kind of starting to uncover that that's a bad idea and not smart for men to be going into debt and starting off their careers that way.
00:06:51.620But, you know, I believe that there is a deep desire in men to turn their career into a calling.
00:06:55.980And I believe that men are designed, intimately, biologically, physiologically designed to be providers and to be protectors.
00:07:03.940And I think the idea of a man without a job that he loves is similar to a woman who wants a child and can't have one.
00:07:10.780And so there's something pretty deep about that in terms of, you know, and we've seen this, right?
00:07:14.360We've seen women that are trying to have babies, you know, with their husband and their five years going through infertility.
00:07:52.480I mean, let's assume that a guy has an idea.
00:07:54.640He's probably in a career or a job that's unfulfilling, unrewarding, unsatisfactory to him.
00:08:00.300And I think as we go through maybe the context of this book, the first thing you talk about is get ready and you have some steps in there.
00:08:06.300What does it actually look like to get ready to get yourself in a position, whether that's financially or mentally, to prepare to make some of these changes in your life?
00:08:14.440Yeah, you know, ideas are a dime a dozen, right?
00:08:16.240It's really the ability to execute these ideas.
00:08:18.980In my experience, it really does start with an idea.
00:08:22.000And, you know, ideas for me, they're all about a few things.
00:08:32.600Most businesses fail and most entrepreneurs fail because of lack of personal preparation.
00:08:37.320You know, we love to think that it's the marketing strategy or we love to think that it was we didn't understand how to do the graphic design.
00:08:44.860And sure, sometimes people fail because of those things.
00:08:47.540But really, in my experience, entrepreneurs and men fail because of the other stuff, the deeper stuff, the character flaws, the lack of discipline, the lack of organization, the lack of financial management, the lack of character.
00:08:59.640Like, they still can't get up on time.
00:09:09.340So the start, I always say, hey, let's start working on ourselves.
00:09:12.080Let's start getting ourselves organized, educated, elevated, you know, in terms of a position and a place to start and grow a successful business.
00:09:20.260The second thing, when I think about starting a business, what makes an idea really strong, besides timing in your life and timing in the market, is what problem are you solving?
00:09:31.380And so I really think of, you know, we got to remember, guys, when we start work and we create our own jobs and we create our own businesses, the only thing you're doing is solving people's problems.
00:10:06.840So my experience is that something that is urgent, something that is required, those are really important parts of, you know, is it a required problem?
00:10:55.300It's required because masculinity is not something that's, like, we can just go without.
00:10:58.920And it's painful for a lot of guys, and it's also painful for a lot of girls, to be honest.
00:11:04.040And so, again, how can we solve painful, urgent, required problems?
00:11:09.300Those are the questions I want you to ask.
00:11:10.840How do you know if it's painful, urgent, and required?
00:11:13.780Because I imagine when somebody considers starting a business, they are looking at it through the lens of their own experiences and cultures and backgrounds and beliefs.
00:11:22.140And that may not resonate with the vast majority.
00:11:26.240And you're out here trying to solve a problem that maybe just doesn't exist, although it exists in your mind.
00:11:32.100Yeah, you've got to surround yourself with safe, brutally honest men.
00:11:35.860They're going to tell you the truth about what's going on, right?
00:11:56.300And so, again, just because we're passionate about something doesn't mean we get to make a business out of it as well, right?
00:12:01.580We need to be careful to make sure that we're building a business that, sure, you know, we really love this stuff.
00:12:07.080And if you can hit a home run where the fact that what you're passionate about happens to also be painful, required, and urgent, then that's a fantastic home run.
00:12:15.000But the more important thing is if you want a business to work in, if you want to be a provider, if you want to actually make this thing make money, then it's more important that you're answering those idea problems than getting a perfect bullseye with your passion.
00:12:27.740And I imagine if you spend enough time thinking about this, and you talk about dreaming as well, that you're probably going to find where they intersect.
00:12:34.300It might not be your first thought or your first idea, but there's probably something in your life where you can find an intersection between what you're excited about and what is, like you said, urgent, painful, and required.
00:12:57.800Because the sad thing is that a lot of guys, they'll dream a bad dream, and then it'll discourage them the fact, oh, maybe I'm not qualified to be an entrepreneur.
00:13:07.420And it creates an experience or a filter on their mind that says, oh, you know, I've tried that before and I failed, so I'm, like, going to stay away from that.
00:13:13.740I'm going to go back to, you know, punch the card at 9 to 5.
00:13:15.900And so, yeah, we've got to be careful about what dreams we actually chase.
00:13:21.580And so how do you decipher which are the dreams that are valuable?
00:13:25.660Is it just coming back to that formula, or is there something more at play here to decide, okay, is this worthy of pursuing?
00:13:31.240Yeah, you know, for me, there's a few things that I've always thought about in terms of a dream that you shouldn't chase, right?
00:13:36.680There's things like, you know, you don't want to give up what you want most for what you want now.
00:13:42.300That's one thing is you don't want to give up what you want most for what you want now.
00:13:45.180And, you know, I ask myself a couple questions, like, in five years, is this going to lead me to where I actually want to be, right?
00:13:52.380And so a lot of times we get really excited or enamored with, like, this thing that we're really passionate about for, like, a short period of time.
00:13:59.800I think most men have the results that they planned for, which is to say that they didn't plan for them.
00:14:04.360You know, and so for me, I've always been very intentional.
00:14:08.480People look at our life, and they go, oh, my gosh, Dale, like, you live on this great farm.
00:14:12.120You have this – you live in the Northwest, and you've got this great, like, view and family, and you guys do good money, and whatever it is, right?
00:14:18.340And I go, you know this wasn't by accident, right?
00:14:23.800Yeah, totally, and we've been very careful to not get enamored with the things that we want now that will actually screw up the entire plan of what we want most.
00:14:34.680You know, and I talked about earlier is that we've got to be careful that our dream isn't deeper than our pockets, right?
00:14:40.180Yeah, that's a very valid point for sure.
00:14:43.660I've seen a lot of guys just ruin their financial – they'll pull from their family's financial security to chase this dream.
00:14:50.800Again, I just think that's irresponsible, and I think that planning and preparing – if you need to save $50,000 to start your business and do it right, do it right.
00:15:34.180And it's going to create that safety place where you can actually look back and go, okay, we made calculated decisions that created a business that we're passionate about, that was painful, that was urgent, required problems that we solved.
00:16:00.720And this is something that I've been through exactly all the processes that I've been through.
00:16:04.280I want to talk about building maybe an audience or a tribe for lack of a better term and really getting your message out there and resonating with other people.
00:16:13.380Because I think there's a lot of guys who might be listening to this who have an idea.
00:17:22.060Like every single week is far better than like a burst of content and then like nothing for three or four weeks, right?
00:17:27.600And I think you say, if I remember right, something along the lines of if you can't consistently produce it, then they're just going to go somewhere else.
00:17:32.960I've seen you say something to that effect.
00:17:35.640That's why consistency is so important.
00:17:37.300If you don't entertain, you know, I would say educate, elevate, and entertain your audience, then you are totally allowing someone else to come and swoop in and grab that person's attention from you.
00:17:48.440So for me, I mean, I roll out a podcast every week, you know, for the StartupCamp.com podcast.
00:17:55.080I make sure that I'm posting on Facebook and Instagram, Facebook every single day, Instagram just about every single day, and Twitter just about every single day.
00:19:28.280What I'm telling you is that you are worth following.
00:19:30.660And it's actually you're worth following more than your business idea or your really beautiful brand that you designed or your really great photography.
00:19:39.640And it's hard to believe, but once you kind of get that confidence and you become more familiar with that, the fear drops off a bit.
00:19:46.200You know, you go, oh, okay, like I actually do have value to add to this society or to this industry or to this community of people.
00:19:52.100And I know that's certainly been true as we've done this is the more – it's really fascinating.
00:19:55.780The more I share myself and put my face out there and share my personal views and experiences and backgrounds, the more connection that I have with my potential audience and or customers.
00:21:17.500I mean everything from your headshots and your website to your social media grammar and your logo must represent beauty and intentionality in every aspect.
00:21:25.320Great online leaders pay attention to the details.
00:21:29.720And one thing that I always tell people is that exceptional design tells potential followers if they care this much about the smallest details, then they must care about me.
00:21:37.260And that's what it tells you if they don't care about the small details.
00:21:39.740Then you go, well, that's just a looking glass into the product experience I'm going to have with them.
00:21:45.340This is almost along the lines of the way you do one thing is the way you do everything, right?
00:21:59.060Because I think there's a lot of people, and this is really fascinating to me, that actually thinks their site or their product looks good when in all reality it looks anything but good.
00:22:07.500Is it just a matter of surrounding yourself with people who are better than this at you or what does this actually look like?
00:22:13.760So design is one of those things that it has nothing to do with the tools.
00:22:17.220It has everything to do with your eye, right?
00:22:19.120We have to remember that a designer is someone who can create things more appealing than someone else with the same resources, the same tools, and the same time frame.
00:22:29.960Okay, so what I mean by that is like, okay, you give my friend who's not a designer $10,000 to decorate an office, and you give me $10,000 to decorate an office.
00:22:39.180We have the same resources, the same time, the same tools, but mine ends up looking way better.
00:22:58.420And so you need to work on training your eye.
00:23:00.740And so, guys, what I do is I hop on Pinterest, and I just look at really great typography.
00:23:05.980I look at really great interior design.
00:23:07.820I mean everything because I look at fashion and style and woodworking and leatherworking and book cover designs and all these different areas.
00:23:16.520I just kind of keep a pulse on that stuff.
00:23:19.120You have to have kind of this highly sensitive persona to design.
00:23:22.440And the more you develop that eye, the more you'll start to see that flow out of the things, how you buy and how you curate and what you show off and how you build and orchestrate the things that you're trying to design.
00:23:33.420Yeah, I think one of the books that I really like is Austin Kleon, Steel Like an Artist.
00:23:40.140Yeah, and I think that's what you're talking about here is looking and getting inspiration from other areas and saying, I like that, but I don't like this.
00:23:46.880And start piecing these things together to create your own brand using what other people have put out there and made available.
00:23:52.760Yeah, you know, design for me is – this is going to sound weird, but hopefully this will maybe help you guys – is about a heart of hospitality.
00:23:58.860I've always defined hospitality as the act of showing someone their value.
00:24:03.200Like that's what hospitality is, right?
00:24:04.620So when someone comes over to your house and you don't care about them and you don't take care of them, you're not hospitable, right?
00:24:12.480As entrepreneurs, it's our duty to show our appreciation to our customers, but more than that, it's actually to remind them of their worth.
00:24:21.020And design is built on the heart of hospitality, churning out experiences that drive people closer to you.
00:24:26.780For example, in business, good design tells customers that if they care about the small details, remember, they care about us.
00:24:35.360And on the contrary, an entrepreneur whose product or customer experience fails to exceed the expectations of the customer tells people they must not care about me.
00:24:45.340A house prepared to appear orderly or relaxing or inviting is a statement of your personal expectations, but it's also a direct expression of how valuable your guest is to you.
00:24:56.040And so the heart of design is when people leave your business and feel better about themselves, not just better about you.
00:25:02.460That's a huge takeaway in terms of how you develop that heart of design.
00:25:06.340And so, yeah, how well designed is your business, its website, its products, its service, communicating value to those who purchase it?
00:25:14.100Are they being treated as a cherished guest in your home or are they just a stranger stopping by?
00:25:20.480Again, I talk a lot about design in the book because it's something I'm obviously really passionate about.
00:25:24.680Outside of design, what are some other pitfalls that somebody who's wanting to turn their passion into their profession should be on the lookout for?
00:25:33.380You know, for me, I guess the difference that I have in terms of most men is that I don't believe that if you have a multimillion dollar business and you got a massive platform and you're on your third divorce, then you're not successful.
00:25:46.380Okay, like I don't care how much money you have, who you come home to is far better than what you come home to, right?
00:25:53.000What we're seeing is these guys that gain the whole world and lose everything, right?
00:25:57.400And so for me, I'm a big advocate on there's a total difference between a man who can have a million dollar business, a huge platform, and on top of that, have a fantastic marriage, have children who respect and love him, have good relationships, have his integrity, not addicted to pornography, not addicted to dishonesty or whatever it is in their life.
00:26:19.540But to have control over their spirit, that is a totally another next level of maturity in a man.
00:26:26.220And I know a few of those guys, a couple of them have, you know, five, ten kids, I mean, like serious responsibilities at home, also have, you know, 40 acres of property.
00:26:35.360On top of that, they sit on boards and they have a multimillion dollar business that they're running and a marriage that's on their 30th year, right?
00:26:41.400Like that's a totally next level type of guy.
00:26:43.760And that's the kind of guy that I try to aim for.
00:26:46.240And so when you're building your business, I'm just not interested in the man who is forsaking those things.
00:27:30.040But I got a family who's sitting next to me, and I have love, and I have depth in relationships, and he doesn't.
00:27:37.800But it's long-term thinking, and a lot of men get lost in the pursuit of a business when they really need to be focusing on their personal lives.
00:27:46.360So how do you begin to take what might be a side business or something that you have to be hyper-involved in, specifically with you launching this thing, to now this has systems.
00:28:14.580You don't go up to your wife and go, hey, I'm going to start a business, and I'm going to be working hard for the next 11 years, you know?
00:28:19.620Like, you know, no, you go, I'm going to be working hard for the next five months, but I promise you, honey, when this is done, I'm going to take a hard break, regardless of where I'm at in October or whatever month it is, right?
00:28:31.780You've got to put an end date on those seasons, right?
00:29:00.580And so I look at those things, and I go, okay, this is the integrity and character of manhood.
00:29:05.300And this is what makes great men and what makes fantastic businessmen.
00:29:09.980Man, let me take a quick minute to tell you about our exclusive brotherhood, The Iron Council.
00:29:16.200I have thought a lot about the times when I've been successful in life, and I've also thought about the times when I haven't been so successful.
00:29:23.540And I can trace the difference back to building a strong network of knowledgeable people.
00:29:29.460And that is why I launched The Iron Council.
00:29:50.300I mean, you are just one of a handful of men who are willing to do what is required to have success.
00:29:55.660But when you join The Iron Council, you'll have access to 280 other men from all over the world with their own set of experiences and background and ideas and insights.
00:30:07.020And most importantly, they are dedicated to helping you reach your objectives.
00:30:11.580So if you want to learn more about what we're up to inside The Brotherhood, The Iron Council and reserve your seat at the table, head to orderofman.com slash iron council.
00:30:20.760Again, that's orderofman.com slash iron council.
00:30:24.140Now let's get back to that conversation with Dale.
00:30:26.020You know, I know as a lot of guys get started with this, they're in this phase of like, okay, I'm ready to launch.
00:30:35.240Talk to me really briefly if you can about messaging because I think this is important too and maybe even understanding and knowing your audience as you do this because I know this is something that I personally have had struggles with but have – I feel like I'm honing this down and have done fairly well.
00:30:51.260But I know this is a big area for a lot of guys starting businesses.
00:31:16.200Yeah, you're not helping or assisting them get to where they want to be.
00:31:18.740Yeah, so that's one thing is that I would say your communication must always come from a place of empathy.
00:31:23.920That's a key to a man who understands how to run a business.
00:31:28.360He can step into the shoes of the customer, of his employees, of the people that are following him and understand how to speak to them.
00:31:35.080The second thing in terms of launching, people often think that launch day is the Super Bowl when in reality it's actually the first game of the season.
00:32:02.000And so we have to really remember that as we start because a lot of us will start burnout and then go, oh, like, you know, I just missed out.
00:32:10.160I spent all my money or whatever it might be.
00:32:12.480Again, that's another huge part of a successful launch of your first business.
00:32:17.180Is burning out just a product of a misunderstanding of the expectations or is it something more?
00:32:23.080You know, burning out is, for me, is a sign of a man who's not in control of his own life.
00:32:28.000And sure, it happens to us all, but we need to recognize the triggers pretty early.
00:32:34.140Burnout isn't something that you fix with a weekend at the lake, you know.
00:32:37.760Burnout is like, I need two months off.
00:32:40.520It's the most ineffective version of yourself when you're burnt out.
00:32:44.560You know, one thing that we did for our family for burnout, I was burning out like crazy.
00:32:48.260I had 50 employees down in Southern California at my company and ruined my life.
00:32:52.160You know, I was just working 80 hours a week.
00:34:03.260Yeah, I just go out any time of the day, and I just start, you know, I carry a 9mm, and I just bring it out there and boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, and train with my wife.
00:34:11.460And again, yeah, just the freedom to do that kind of stuff.
00:34:13.420I mean, I spent 27 years living in just city madness, and I'm just thinking, why the heck did it take me this long to get here?
00:34:21.180Yeah, and I think at the end of the day, and I think you attest to this as well, is really what we're doing here and we're talking about is creating a life that you enjoy and being the designer of your own life.
00:34:32.940As we wind down, do you have any additional thoughts on how a guy might be able to create that life, whether that's through the visualization or dreaming process or making this work or follow-up?
00:34:42.460Like, yeah, I think, you know, it's pretty common in the statistics of today that less men are getting married, you know, and it is harder.
00:34:49.240The women are harder to get married, too, at this point, too.
00:35:10.940And so for me, I just think that, like, the most successful, I guess, program that I've ever been on is marriage in terms of the fact that I've got a chance to deal with myself inside of a covenant with another woman.
00:35:25.080You know, I'm not dealing with another woman.
00:35:27.460I'm dealing with myself for the first time.
00:35:30.820You know, and so I just really encourage men, like, if you're a 38-year-old man and haven't been married yet because you haven't, quote, haven't found the right one, it might actually not be that.
00:39:03.180It's basically a 30-day guide to turning that dream into a business.
00:39:08.140So if you're interested in that, you can pick up a copy of the book at orderofman.com slash 117.
00:39:14.100And you'll also get the rest of the links from the show there.
00:39:17.100In the meantime, gentlemen, check out our exclusive brotherhood again, the Iron Council and tap into a network of high caliber men who you will not find anywhere else.
00:39:26.740We'll help you identify exactly what you want, how you're going to get it.
00:39:30.660And we're going to hold your feet to the fire to make sure that you do.
00:39:33.500You can learn more at orderofman.com slash Iron Council.
00:39:36.900I will look forward to talking with you on Friday for our Friday Field Notes.
00:39:40.600But until then, guys, take action and become the man you are meant to be.
00:39:45.240Thank you for listening to the Order of Man podcast.
00:39:48.240If you're ready to take charge of your life and be more of the man you were meant to be, we invite you to join the order at orderofman.com.