Latest / Networking Unleashed: Building Profitable Connections / Networking Unleashed: An Interview with Andi Shaughnessy / Danielle Carter and Michael A Forman, Professional Speaker
Transcript
- 0:16Welcome to Networking Unleashed, Building Profitable
- 0:20Connections, the place where real people, real
- 0:23stories, and real relationships create real opportunity.
- 0:28I'm your host, Michael Foreman, and today's episode
- 0:31is special. I'm joined by two sisters who bring
- 0:35personal growth, resilience, and practical wisdom
- 0:38straight to the entrepreneurial journey. They've
- 0:42built together, grown together, and faced challenges
- 0:45head -on using connection, trust, and honest
- 0:49conversation as fuel. We're digging into how
- 0:53relationships shape resilience, how growth happens
- 0:57faster when you don't go it alone, and how entrepreneurs
- 1:00can build circles that support when things get
- 1:04tough, not just when things look good. If you've
- 1:08ever felt stuck, isolated, or unsure who should
- 1:13be in your corner as you grow, this conversation
- 1:15is for you. I'd like to welcome to the podcast
- 1:20Andy and Danielle. Each of them will introduce
- 1:23themselves, but I want you guys to give me a
- 1:26little bit of a backstory, a little bit of how
- 1:29you got here, what you told me, what you went
- 1:34through, but give me a general overview, and
- 1:37then we can start. Sure. Thank you for having
- 1:40us. As you mentioned, Andy and I are sisters.
- 1:43And so our dad owned a delivery same day delivery
- 1:47company. And we took over in 2012, about a year
- 1:52after he was diagnosed with cancer. So at the
- 1:56time, I was home raising three young children.
- 1:59And Andy was at her dream job in New York at
- 2:03the NHL. And it's just us. There's no other siblings.
- 2:06And so we made the decision, OK, we're going
- 2:08to come back to the or really go into the family
- 2:11business with little to zero experience. About
- 2:15a week, about a couple of weeks after we buried
- 2:18our dad, we had a longtime employee take the
- 2:20top three customers. And so at that point, it
- 2:24was really. Is there even a business anymore?
- 2:27And so the decision, we kept going with the decision
- 2:31to come back, but really we were in for the fight
- 2:33of our lives. I'm sure. Andy, you want to add
- 2:39anything to that? No, that really sets the stage.
- 2:42I think the biggest thing was we had little jobs
- 2:46here and there throughout our early years, college
- 2:48years, stuff like that, but nothing to do with
- 2:50running the business at all. So we were coming
- 2:53in very green. Bold. Yes. OK, I'm sure. OK, so
- 2:58your sisters and business partners, how has growing
- 3:03up together shaped the way you build trust and
- 3:06connection with others in business? Oh, that's
- 3:10a good question. I think it's all about trust.
- 3:13And really, it's just I think we had to trust
- 3:16each other first and foremost that it was going
- 3:19to be OK. And then we trickle that to our clients
- 3:24and our customers. We learned early on that they
- 3:27needed to trust us and that we needed to say
- 3:29that we could do things that we knew we really
- 3:32could and that we were honest with them. And
- 3:35whether that meant, no, we can't take on that
- 3:37work right now because we just don't think we
- 3:39could do a really good job at that. Just really
- 3:41about being honest, whether we're going to be
- 3:43late on a delivery, all the things. But I just
- 3:46think trust was a big thing. I don't think. we
- 3:50really didn't trust there wasn't a moment we
- 3:52never trusted each other yeah and I think as
- 3:55sisters growing up in a house that was encouraged
- 3:58just honesty but we it was just the four of us
- 4:02it was our mom our dad and Danielle and I and
- 4:03so communication was everything we weren't afraid
- 4:06to say how we felt it was welcomed and it was
- 4:09expected and so I think That's just who we are.
- 4:12So when we came to the business, it was like,
- 4:14we're not going to pretend to be something we're
- 4:15not. And we're not going to say things that we
- 4:17don't mean because that is not, it was, it's
- 4:19just not in our DNA. And I think that carried
- 4:22a lot of weight. It was very helpful too. Yeah,
- 4:24I'm sure, you know, in the networking and communication
- 4:28world, trust is such a major factor. And there's
- 4:33a mantra. If they know you, if they like you
- 4:36and they trust you, they'll do business with
- 4:38you. So now. Everybody knows you. You're the
- 4:42daughters so that everybody knew you. Everybody
- 4:44likes you. But let's narrow down the scope a
- 4:48little bit because everybody won't like you.
- 4:51But trust is such a major factor. And the fact
- 4:55that you two can trust one another puts you a
- 4:58step ahead of just another two people going into
- 5:02business. Owned many businesses, brick and mortar.
- 5:07From pizzerias to restaurants to ice cream stores.
- 5:11It's great. I was in it with my two brothers.
- 5:14So we had that immediate trust factor. And that
- 5:19helped us along. Okay. Entrepreneurship tests
- 5:24resilience fast. When setbacks hit, how did your
- 5:29relationships help you recover faster or see
- 5:32options you couldn't see alone? I mean, I think
- 5:36our relationship was everything. And I think
- 5:38we, that's how I think we got through all the
- 5:43obstacles was together. I don't think one of
- 5:47us could have done this alone. I'll speak for
- 5:49myself. There's no shot in the world. I would
- 5:52have or could have done this by myself or with
- 5:55even anybody else in business, anyone that even
- 5:57stayed. I think it had to be Andy. It had to
- 6:00be the two of us. We had to figure this out from
- 6:03the beginning alone with each other. I just think
- 6:06that's how we grew and that's how the business
- 6:08grew. Yeah, and we often say to each other, my
- 6:13weaknesses are Danielle's strengths and vice
- 6:15versa. And so that's huge. And we knew what they
- 6:19are. We know what they are. We're sisters. But
- 6:21in business, you learn it too. And you can see
- 6:23it pretty clearly. It's a beautiful thing to
- 6:26have as well. That's a major step. If you know
- 6:29your weaknesses, your strengths are very valuable.
- 6:34But your weaknesses, that's where the business
- 6:37can fall apart. If you two can pick up one another,
- 6:41then again, you're a step ahead. Now put your
- 6:45two steps ahead. So you went into it with that,
- 6:49I don't know about the financial aspect or anything
- 6:51else like that, but as personnel goes, you already
- 6:56have a symbiont, a togetherness that no other
- 7:01two people can have other than sisters. Okay,
- 7:05so many entrepreneurs focus on skills before
- 7:08people. At what point did you realize relationships
- 7:12were the real accelerant for growth? Day one.
- 7:18There was no skills. We did not have the skills
- 7:25to do what we did, but we knew how to treat people.
- 7:28And we knew how to be vulnerable and ask for
- 7:32help with the team that was there. And we knew
- 7:34we couldn't come in and say, this is what we
- 7:37want to do. Not that we really had an idea, but
- 7:40we knew that we had to earn the trust of the
- 7:42team and learn. From day one, we knew that people
- 7:46and how we treated people was the foundation
- 7:49of that company. So I realized that, and that's
- 7:52true in any business, that is the way you treat
- 7:56your customers or other personnel is how you
- 8:00start your business. What was your learning curve
- 8:03for your business? It was, it couldn't be more
- 8:09steep. It was everything. Like we joke, we didn't
- 8:12know what a PNL was. I didn't even know what
- 8:14it stood for. Everything. The only thing that
- 8:18we knew how to do, we had people skills. That's
- 8:21it. And so two people had stayed on when our
- 8:23dad passed. And I didn't feel like we're still
- 8:26learning their trust. It's been 13 years, but
- 8:29it was just relying on them and learning as you
- 8:34go and making mistakes. And it's okay to make
- 8:36mistakes. And it's, okay to not know anything
- 8:38we didn't know anything just getting comfortable
- 8:41with that and knowing you can learn as you go
- 8:43suppose those two employees had to be that trustworthy
- 8:49in order for them for you to because it would
- 8:53have been very easy for them to lead you astray
- 8:56oh yes or leave Or secure their own future and
- 9:01say, this is unstable and I need to, and we wouldn't
- 9:04have faulted them for that. It was such rocky
- 9:07times that I would have understood that decision
- 9:10too. But for some reason, they really, I think
- 9:13because of our dad and the history of the company,
- 9:16they stayed and they learned to trust us. It
- 9:19took a while, but our faith was in them really
- 9:21from day one. A hundred percent. And I think
- 9:23they might've just, they trusted the company,
- 9:25but what we were doing and. It had been, it's
- 9:29been around since 81 and they had been there
- 9:30for a long time. So I, maybe they, yeah. Thank
- 9:35God they stayed because we wouldn't be there.
- 9:37They felt a little, they felt loyalty to you
- 9:39because of your dad? I think to the company.
- 9:42Yeah. Yeah. To the company and our dad. Yeah.
- 9:45Okay. Okay. What's one hard moment in your journey
- 9:50where a single conversation or connection changed
- 9:54the direction of your business? I don't know
- 9:58if it was a hard and we might have different
- 9:59answers, a hard conversation, but we needed a
- 10:02line of credit desperately. And we had many banks
- 10:07turn us down. And that wasn't easy hearing no
- 10:10and no. We actually can't extend you a line of
- 10:14credit right now for X, Y, Z. But the turning
- 10:17point in the company was when a bank said yes,
- 10:21Boston Private at the time. And we're still with
- 10:23them. They're now first citizens. But that moment.
- 10:27changed the course of the company. That allowed
- 10:29us some breathing room and that allowed us to
- 10:32scale. And without that line of credit, we wouldn't
- 10:35have grown the way that we are. We still continue
- 10:37to do. So that was a pivotal moment for Express
- 10:40It. Yeah, I agree with that. Yeah. That's exactly
- 10:44what I was looking for. As sisters, you bring
- 10:47different strengths to the table. How do those
- 10:50differences show up in a way that you network
- 10:54and build opportunity? I don't know. I think,
- 10:58I don't know how to answer that. To build networking
- 11:01opportunity. I think we're a good, I think we're
- 11:04a good duo in networking. Yes. In networking
- 11:07environments. Yes. So if we could be, that's
- 11:11where our strengths and weaknesses come out.
- 11:12So we could talk about business or maybe I'm
- 11:14a little shy, Danielle gets her going. So I think
- 11:17it's more of the personalities come out and we're
- 11:19very different. So I think that helps. Is that?
- 11:23How are you networking right now? we could be
- 11:28better at it yeah we talk about this all the
- 11:31time we we could be a lot better i would rate
- 11:34us a c like maybe a b minus a c we go in with
- 11:39really high hopes and then we go in we get in
- 11:42there and sometimes we freeze sometimes we're
- 11:45not assertive to go over to a group of people
- 11:47and say oh i'm danielle this is andy we don't
- 11:50express it like we'll never do we just can't
- 11:52do that that's just not in our DNA, but we try,
- 11:56we try. We go to the events. We're invited to
- 11:59say yes. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I asked you that it
- 12:04wasn't even on my list of questions just because
- 12:06that's what I do coach people such as yourselves
- 12:10on how to do that. So I'm always interested to
- 12:13find out how somebody who has been in business
- 12:16for such a long time, how they're networking
- 12:18right now to secure their future. So I'm just
- 12:23trying to gauge that just a little bit. Is there
- 12:27a chamber of commerce where you are? Yeah. Yeah.
- 12:32So we're based, Danielle and I are based out
- 12:34of Boston, just south of it. And so that is something
- 12:37we've been members of different things such as
- 12:39that before. We haven't really taken advantage
- 12:41of it. I think now being 13 years in, I think
- 12:45we'd probably be more confident. joining a group
- 12:47like that. We'd be able to speak to it. I think
- 12:49in the early days, we didn't know what to say.
- 12:51We didn't even know what we were selling. So
- 12:53it was like, we're going to go to these events.
- 12:54It was scary. I've done BNI groups that was networking,
- 12:59but that was more like professional kind of growth,
- 13:02just being able to talk in front of people. So
- 13:04I think at this point, we're just leveraging
- 13:06our network, right? Our bank introduces us to
- 13:08people they think, so we'll go to lunch and just
- 13:11like the basics of the basics. That's where we're
- 13:14at. Okay. Okay. For entrepreneurs feeling isolated,
- 13:19what's the first step to reconnecting without
- 13:23feeling awkward, needy, or out of sync? I think
- 13:29find someone else you can help. Or find someone
- 13:37that you want to learn from. Because I think
- 13:40either way, if you can help someone, you feel
- 13:43good, and I think you feel less isolated. People
- 13:45love to share their knowledge and find a mentor
- 13:48or become a mentor. That would be, I don't know.
- 13:50That's just fine. Yeah. I was going to say, find
- 13:53people in your industry too. Some of the best
- 13:55conversations we have are people like us, founders
- 13:58of same day delivery that we get to have conversations
- 14:02with them. What's your pain point? What's insurance?
- 14:04What's yours? Things like that. So maybe find
- 14:06people. that are doing the same sort of job.
- 14:09People want to help each other. It's not like
- 14:11cutthroat competitive. Most people are good and
- 14:14want to help each other. That's very true. When
- 14:18you go into a networking event, you go in with
- 14:22what's called a servant's heart. You go in looking
- 14:26to give instead of receive. So if you go in to
- 14:31a networking event, with a servant's heart. You
- 14:35can really, you get the best out of people because
- 14:38you're looking to help them. The same way as
- 14:41I connect people on LinkedIn. If you want, you
- 14:45reach out to, you're looking for somebody within
- 14:47your industry, somebody that you really want
- 14:50to connect with. You connect with them and ask
- 14:54them, say, do you have 15 minutes? Can I bounce
- 14:57some things off of you? They'll be more than
- 14:59happy to say, sure. how busy they are, because
- 15:03they love to talk about a they love to talk about
- 15:06themselves and what they've accomplished. But
- 15:09they love to pass on the information to somebody
- 15:13else. And you get the information, but it makes
- 15:16them feel so good. Yeah. Okay, so resilience
- 15:20isn't just a mindset. It's community. How do
- 15:25you intentionally build relationships that support
- 15:28you during pressure? not just wins. For us, it's
- 15:33family. I think that our number one supporters
- 15:37during the most difficult times, and we've had
- 15:41many, has been the family. Our mother, our significant
- 15:45others, just our extended family. But the people
- 15:48that are there for you in the tough times, even
- 15:53more than the wins. So that's it for us. Me,
- 15:57anyways, I would say our family has been. You
- 15:59just need one person who believes in you, but
- 16:01can also be there for you. And I think our partnerships
- 16:06like with the bank and with our accounting team,
- 16:10things that we outsource that we've been, we're
- 16:13pretty loyal. So like these partnerships are
- 16:15really, I've been around for since we took over.
- 16:18So I think that's important to someone that understands
- 16:20your business, understands how you work. And
- 16:22they're, they're the ones that you're calling
- 16:24when you do need support in the business and
- 16:26things are going sideways. If you can, even when
- 16:30you go to these networking events, you look for
- 16:33that support. So if you have somebody that is
- 16:38a little bit more of an extrovert than an introvert,
- 16:41who's a little bit more gregarious. Now, the
- 16:44two of you are great to speak with because it's
- 16:49just the three of us right now. But put you into
- 16:52a large room. With a lot of people, it's, ooh,
- 16:55no. So you have that one person who is very supportive,
- 17:00who knows you inside and out, knows your business
- 17:04inside and out, and take them with you. Yeah.
- 17:08When you walk up to that table of people that's
- 17:11talking, the first thing you do is you're listening.
- 17:15You listen for the conversation. Is this a conversation
- 17:19that you want to be a part of? If it is, that's
- 17:23great. But you're still not going to blurt out
- 17:27what you want to say. But that person that you
- 17:30brought with you can say, oh, wait a second.
- 17:32You know what? Danielle knows a lot about that.
- 17:35Danielle, why don't you tell us a bit about that?
- 17:37And that kind of gives you an in for that. So
- 17:40that's just a little tidbit as we're going along.
- 17:43Okay. What practical habit helped you turn inspiration
- 17:48into action when it came to staying visible and
- 17:52connected? Do you have one? No. I don't know.
- 17:57That's a tricky one. Yeah. You don't have one?
- 18:01Can you repeat it again? What practical habit
- 18:05helped you turn inspiration into action when
- 18:10it came to staying visible and connected? You're
- 18:13going to have something that you do every day.
- 18:17You mean personally or in the business? Generally
- 18:20say business because that's what this is all
- 18:23about. But it could be personal. But because
- 18:26if it helped you personally, it's going to help
- 18:30you in business. Yeah, I'm not sure. Other than
- 18:34gratitude, I'm not sure. Yeah. Okay. All right.
- 18:38We'll move on to the next question. How do you
- 18:41spot relationships that help you grow versus
- 18:44ones that quietly drain energy and momentum?
- 18:49Oh, it's instantaneous. It's almost like, for
- 18:55me, we're very good at reading that, whether
- 18:58someone is our energy, the energy that we live
- 19:02in. And I think that's probably easier for us,
- 19:05I think, anyways. to spot now. We've had a couple
- 19:10hard lessons learned, but yeah. Yeah. And I think
- 19:15even the challenging ones help you grow because
- 19:18then, so I think that those are just as important.
- 19:22Actually, those are much more important than
- 19:26the easier people to work with. Just like your
- 19:29failures, you learn more about your failures
- 19:31than your successes. So I've been in business
- 19:36for 40 years. And I can tell when somebody is
- 19:41just trying to yes me to death or they're actually
- 19:46giving me input. And the people that yes me to
- 19:49death, listen, I'll yes them back and I'll move
- 19:52on. I won't be bad to them or anything else.
- 19:56I'll be nice, but I'll move on. And the people
- 20:00that I feel that would really give me that information
- 20:03that I'm looking for, that I'll stay and speak
- 20:06with. Okay, so let's bring this full circle.
- 20:10If an entrepreneur listening today wants stronger
- 20:14confidence, better connections, and more opportunity
- 20:18in the next 90 days, what's one move they can
- 20:23make this week? More confidence, stronger connections,
- 20:27and what was the third? Visibility. Stronger
- 20:33confidence, better... connections, and more opportunity
- 20:37in the next 90 days. This is your words of wisdom.
- 20:45Yeah. Like I said before, we need work in this
- 20:49area. So I think what my goal for the next 90
- 20:53days, maybe I'll commit to it as I give this
- 20:55advice, reach out to one person a week on LinkedIn.
- 20:59And this is what I want to do. Feel that I want
- 21:01to connect with, ask for a meeting, like a 20
- 21:04minute, whatever. Because I think that's scary
- 21:06for some people. And I think it used to be very
- 21:08scary for me and still is. But I think the more
- 21:11I do it, the more confidence I'm going to get
- 21:13from doing that. And the more connections, people
- 21:15are always looking to connect. People ask to
- 21:17connect with us all the time. And so it's like,
- 21:19I'm just going to connect with them and then
- 21:21have a conversation. And so I think that would
- 21:23build momentum. And that's just for me personally,
- 21:26looking at how I can be better at it. That would
- 21:28be my one piece. When you connect with somebody,
- 21:32with anybody over LinkedIn, you connect with
- 21:35them. If they try to sell you almost immediately,
- 21:40then it's a bad connection. And you don't try
- 21:43to sell them. But what you can do is bring value
- 21:47to the connection. My last, when I did a workshop
- 21:51for somebody in Ohio, I was a roofing company.
- 21:55And the way I started to speak with him, I didn't
- 21:57just come out and say, oh, look, I want to come
- 21:59and do a workshop. But I said, okay, look, here's
- 22:02an article, metal roofs against asphalt roofs.
- 22:06I linked it to him. And I said, you know what?
- 22:11I think you may find this information useful.
- 22:15And I did that two or three times. And I let
- 22:18him see the value of our connection. And then
- 22:21I started to ask him. So we break into it slowly.
- 22:25Yeah. That's what you do. Okay. This is what
- 22:29meaningful networking really looks like. Growth
- 22:33through connection, strength through community,
- 22:36and progress built one honest conversation at
- 22:40a time. If today's episode sparked something
- 22:43for you, don't let it stop here. Think about
- 22:46who's in your circle, who supports your growth,
- 22:49and who you need to reach out to next. Share
- 22:53this episode with an entrepreneur who could use
- 22:56encouragement and direction right now. Subscribe
- 23:00to Networking Unleashed, building profitable
- 23:02connections so you don't miss conversations that
- 23:06make you smarter. Now, before we go, Andy, Danielle,
- 23:11how can somebody, if they're interested in your
- 23:15service or interested in talking to you or coaching
- 23:19you or be coached by you, What's the best way
- 23:22for them to get hold of you? Yeah, I think LinkedIn
- 23:25for sure. Both of us individually on there and
- 23:27then Express It's on there too, but reach out
- 23:30to us directly and then expressitdelivery .com.
- 23:32That's our business name. Our contact info is
- 23:34there too. LinkedIn's your best bet. And like
- 23:36I said, I'm going to be a connecting goal for
- 23:39the next 90 days. Okay, great. Danielle, Andy,
- 23:42this was great. I thank you very much for coming
- 23:45on my podcast. I'm sure that all of my listeners
- 23:48will get a whole lot out of this. And if they
- 23:52call you, even better. Thank you. Have a great
- 23:55day. Well, hold on, folks. Don't go anywhere.
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- 24:53A huge thank you to our guests for sharing such
- 24:57insights today. And of course, a big shout out
- 25:00to you, our amazing listeners, for tuning in
- 25:03and spending your time with us. If you're interested
- 25:06in my digital courses, being coached or having
- 25:09me come and talk to your company, just go to
- 25:13Michael and fill out the request form. Remember,
- 25:16networking isn't about being perfect. It's about
- 25:19being present. So take what you've learned today,
- 25:23get out there and make some meaningful connections.
- 25:26If you've enjoyed this episode, please don't
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