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True Fans

True Fans

I’m a firm believer in the power of true fans and that authenticity is the way to create them.

There are the obvious benefits to true fans. We gain evangelists, we produce revenue, and let’s not discount the fact that it just plain feels good.

There’s a secondary level of benefits when it comes to gaining true fans that’s less acknowledged: True fans make you want to be a better person.

True fans keep your drive alive.

True fans keep you in check.

They have your back when you falter, but because of them you don’t want to falter.

In the GRIT physical challenge Mike and I take part in, there’s a trainer. His name is CJ. During the challenge each member of GRIT becomes a true fan of CJ.

Not just because we’re a sick bunch of masochists and we somehow love the hell he puts us through, but also for his encouragement, his faith in us, and the fact that he expresses these things with 100% authenticity.

A lesser person would, upon acquiring true fans, get smug with an inflated ego and start slacking off – thereby losing those fans in a heartbeat.

GRIT members know that CJ is not one of those people. His reaction is the opposite – to work harder and lead by example.

When we have true fans we’re driven not just to be great, but also by the fact that we know letting those fans down is simply not a possibility for us. We won’t do it, because that’s not who we are.

If we want true fans, we must first be true ourselves. Give first, authentically and without expectation. And then be grateful, because every true fan pushes us to be our best self.

Join The Community!

Join our Facebook GroupJoin the quest for “The Sweet Life.”  Request access to our Facebook Group.  Let’s learn from each other!  GO HERE

Free Audio Book Download

Full Unabridged Audio Book “Vagabonding With Kids” by AK Turner!  GO HERE

Take The SWEET LIFE Assessment

See how you score? Identify your strengths. Discover areas in your life you want to improve. GO HERE.

Giving Back

Amanda and Mike launched an Impact Club in their hometown of Boise, Idaho in 2017, and have had a blast gathering like-minded individuals, families, and organizations to make significant impact in our community, raising over $200,000 locally and over $1.5 million nationally.  

Join Our Next Monthly CHALLENGE

Every month Amanda and Mike pick a month-long challenge that pushes us out of our comfort zone so we can grow, learn, and become better versions of ourselves.  Sometimes we design our own unique challenge and other times we join pre-established challenges. Email us to find out about our next upcoming challenge. Us@BusinessofUs.com

About Us

Our Story | Mike and Amanda TurnerWe are Mike and Amanda Turner, founders of “The Business of Us.” We are fierce advocates of helping entrepreneurial couples and families improve their lives, livelihoods, and legacies… READ MORE

The Gambler & the Investor

The Gambler & the Investor

​Ryan Fletcher, the guy who runs both the StoryAthlete and GRIT challenges in which Mike and are taking part, wrote the other day about the difference between gambling and investing.

Gambling is exciting. There’s a rush that goes along with it. Spin the wheel and who knows what might happen?

Investing is less exciting. It requires small deposits and sustained effort. Not nearly as sexy.

In terms of diet and exercise, here’s the difference:

Gambling: I go on a fad diet and order a bottle of overpriced magic pills off of a late-night infomercial (contains 10% pure snake oil).

Investing: I embrace the monotony of sustained effort over time. I make 1% gains each day. I put the effort in consistently, whether I feel like it or not.

It’s pretty clear which one is going to pay off.

As writers, we often get in the way of our own progress because we struggle with the monotony of small gains, day after day. We don’t want to make the investment.

Instead of embracing the effort required and creating in ourselves the necessary discipline, we get in our own heads and start questioning what we’re doing. Why am I wasting time trying to craft these words that might never get published/read/liked/fill-in-the-blank?

We need to push those self-doubts away, not let them occupy any space in our thoughts, and instead embrace the monotony of the process. Those who are able to do this make huge strides.

Whether you write a sentence, a paragraph, a page, or a chapter, you’re making progress if you can repeat that effort every day. Learn routine, muster discipline, and embrace the journey instead of longing for it to be over.

Invest in your writing, consistently over time, and your yield may far exceed your expectations.

Join The Community!

Join our Facebook GroupJoin the quest for “The Sweet Life.”  Request access to our Facebook Group.  Let’s learn from each other!  GO HERE

Free Audio Book Download

Full Unabridged Audio Book “Vagabonding With Kids” by AK Turner!  GO HERE

Take The SWEET LIFE Assessment

See how you score? Identify your strengths. Discover areas in your life you want to improve. GO HERE.

Giving Back

Amanda and Mike launched an Impact Club in their hometown of Boise, Idaho in 2017, and have had a blast gathering like-minded individuals, families, and organizations to make significant impact in our community, raising over $200,000 locally and over $1.5 million nationally.  

Join Our Next Monthly CHALLENGE

Every month Amanda and Mike pick a month-long challenge that pushes us out of our comfort zone so we can grow, learn, and become better versions of ourselves.  Sometimes we design our own unique challenge and other times we join pre-established challenges. Email us to find out about our next upcoming challenge. Us@BusinessofUs.com

About Us

Our Story | Mike and Amanda TurnerWe are Mike and Amanda Turner, founders of “The Business of Us.” We are fierce advocates of helping entrepreneurial couples and families improve their lives, livelihoods, and legacies… READ MORE

The Engineer & the Fork in the Road

The Engineer & the Fork in the Road

A friend of mine is brilliant. I have known Mark for twenty years, and during that time I’ve never doubted that the workings of his mind could solve many of the worlds problems (or at the very least eliminate a hundred inconveniences that you and I experience on a daily basis).

“I had that idea!” he’ll say when he sees a product on the market that he’d drawn plans for years before. “That was my idea!”

In his head, Mark has blueprinted all manner of machine, from widgets to mechanical monsters. Safety gear for fellow engineers, dive equipment, off-the-grid energy solutions.

“That may be true, Mark,” I’ll say. “But what did you do about it?”

Then begins the grumbling and mumbling. The production of a thousand reasons why he didn’t take action on his brilliance when it first occurred.

He’s the embodiment of analysis paralysis. Everything must be perfect before moving forward. The problem with that is… there will never come a time when everything is perfect.

When Mark hits a fork in the road, he doesn’t choose a path. Instead he comes to a halt.

Writers can suffer the same fate. Coming up with ideas is fun, but actually seeing them through is hard work.

The indecision, the self-doubt.

We imagine the outcome of our efforts as an endless loop of negative scenarios, every now and then interrupted by dreams of wild and unprecedented success, but only for a moment before we fall back into the loop of certain doom.

The writers who make strides in their craft move on regardless. They may wrestle with the same fears and doubts, but they don’t become mired in them.

When I think about all of the times I’ve come to a fork in the road, I can look back and see that there was never a right or wrong path. There was only the question of whether I put one foot in front of the other, or whether I let myself get stuck there, standing at the crossroads.

Did I choose a path and move forward? Or did I deliberate so long that eventually night fell and I could no longer see either choice in front of me?

How do you approach the crossroads? How has that served you?

As for Mark, one day he might yet take that first step. If he ever does, there’s a good chance he will change the world.

Join The Community!

Join our Facebook GroupJoin the quest for “The Sweet Life.”  Request access to our Facebook Group.  Let’s learn from each other!  GO HERE

Free Audio Book Download

Full Unabridged Audio Book “Vagabonding With Kids” by AK Turner!  GO HERE

Take The SWEET LIFE Assessment

See how you score? Identify your strengths. Discover areas in your life you want to improve. GO HERE.

Giving Back

Amanda and Mike launched an Impact Club in their hometown of Boise, Idaho in 2017, and have had a blast gathering like-minded individuals, families, and organizations to make significant impact in our community, raising over $200,000 locally and over $1.5 million nationally.  

Join Our Next Monthly CHALLENGE

Every month Amanda and Mike pick a month-long challenge that pushes us out of our comfort zone so we can grow, learn, and become better versions of ourselves.  Sometimes we design our own unique challenge and other times we join pre-established challenges. Email us to find out about our next upcoming challenge. Us@BusinessofUs.com

About Us

Our Story | Mike and Amanda TurnerWe are Mike and Amanda Turner, founders of “The Business of Us.” We are fierce advocates of helping entrepreneurial couples and families improve their lives, livelihoods, and legacies… READ MORE

StoryAthlete

StoryAthlete

A few people have reached out to me about what I’ve been doing lately. Mike and I have been embarking on a variety of changes and challenges. All good things.

As far as the writing and posting I’ve been doing of late, I mentioned a few times that this was part of a StoryAthlete challenge. The short definition is that it’s a 28-day writing challenge. But it’s actually much more than that. It’s about exploring your limiting beliefs, questioning the status quo, and moving toward your greater potential.

In the challenge you are not competing against anyone other than yourself. There’s your Heroic Self and there’s your Lesser Self. The Lesser Self says, “I’ll get in shape starting Monday.” The Heroic Self doesn’t say anything, because she’s too busy working out. You get the idea.

There is a small portion of the challenge that is physical (affectionately referred to as 12 Minutes of Death), but it’s only 12 minutes, twice a week. Also, there are modifications to everything (example, if push-ups are out of the question, do them against a wall). My point is that the physical component should not keep anyone who is interested from doing the challenge. Participants come in all shapes, sizes, and ages.

For me, this challenge was a game-changer. In how I think, act, and prioritize. But you have to go into it with an open mind. Turn off your editor, let nothing offend you, and trust the process.

Both Mike and I have decided to do the challenge again, so if anyone wants to join us, we’ll be in it together.

Join The Community!

Join our Facebook GroupJoin the quest for “The Sweet Life.”  Request access to our Facebook Group.  Let’s learn from each other!  GO HERE

Free Audio Book Download

Full Unabridged Audio Book “Vagabonding With Kids” by AK Turner!  GO HERE

Take The SWEET LIFE Assessment

See how you score? Identify your strengths. Discover areas in your life you want to improve. GO HERE.

Giving Back

Amanda and Mike launched an Impact Club in their hometown of Boise, Idaho in 2017, and have had a blast gathering like-minded individuals, families, and organizations to make significant impact in our community, raising over $200,000 locally and over $1.5 million nationally.  

Join Our Next Monthly CHALLENGE

Every month Amanda and Mike pick a month-long challenge that pushes us out of our comfort zone so we can grow, learn, and become better versions of ourselves.  Sometimes we design our own unique challenge and other times we join pre-established challenges. Email us to find out about our next upcoming challenge. Us@BusinessofUs.com

About Us

Our Story | Mike and Amanda TurnerWe are Mike and Amanda Turner, founders of “The Business of Us.” We are fierce advocates of helping entrepreneurial couples and families improve their lives, livelihoods, and legacies… READ MORE

On the Importance of Routine

On the Importance of Routine

My adherence to routine is amusing to some. “Don’t you want to mix it up?” they’ll ask. “What about spontaneity?”

It’s true that by nature I’m a born planner. But I also purposely engineer routine in certain areas because becoming who you want to be demands routine.

I cannot learn another language if I practice every now and then.

I do not build strength by exercising two days per month.

Meditation will not strengthen my mind without consistency to go along with it.

Reading a page of a book once a week is going to leave me terribly confused.

And of course, writing a book does not work if my writing happens only when I “spontaneously” decide to put my butt in the chair.

My friends and colleagues understand that when we meet for coffee or lunch, that commitment has to take place a few weeks out on the calendar. I’m not available for last minute get-togethers. Because only with a solid schedule can I continue building myself and my work.

Friends understand and respect your routines. Worthy colleagues operate within routines of their own. It’s up to us to keep the technological distractions at bay.

When we travel, we do so with a different set of routines. I know, routine couched inside of an adventure is weird, but it works. We maintain the routines that keep us productive and efficient, but we do so in a framework that adapts to life on the road (or in a camper van… or on board a ferry boat).

“Creature of Habit” sounds kind of creepy. Because who wants to be called a creature? And “habit” makes me think of all the bad ones. And nuns.

I’m advocating for that phrase to be changed to Queen of Routine. That sounds so much better.

Do you implement routines? In what areas do they best work for you?

Join The Community!

Join our Facebook GroupJoin the quest for “The Sweet Life.”  Request access to our Facebook Group.  Let’s learn from each other!  GO HERE

Free Audio Book Download

Full Unabridged Audio Book “Vagabonding With Kids” by AK Turner!  GO HERE

Take The SWEET LIFE Assessment

See how you score? Identify your strengths. Discover areas in your life you want to improve. GO HERE.

Giving Back

Amanda and Mike launched an Impact Club in their hometown of Boise, Idaho in 2017, and have had a blast gathering like-minded individuals, families, and organizations to make significant impact in our community, raising over $200,000 locally and over $1.5 million nationally.  

Join Our Next Monthly CHALLENGE

Every month Amanda and Mike pick a month-long challenge that pushes us out of our comfort zone so we can grow, learn, and become better versions of ourselves.  Sometimes we design our own unique challenge and other times we join pre-established challenges. Email us to find out about our next upcoming challenge. Us@BusinessofUs.com

About Us

Our Story | Mike and Amanda TurnerWe are Mike and Amanda Turner, founders of “The Business of Us.” We are fierce advocates of helping entrepreneurial couples and families improve their lives, livelihoods, and legacies… READ MORE

Producers versus Consumers

Producers versus Consumers

I read a post the other day discussing the difference between players and fans. As in, are you watching from the stands? Or are you out there on the field?

In the world of creators, I see this as producers versus consumers.

Maybe you love movies and you watch them all the time – that’s the consumer in you. But if you love movies to the point that you feel it’s a calling, then you’re also a producer.

You’re not content with your position on the couch (aka in the stands). You want to be on the other side of the camera or writing the script or designing the set or in some other way involved in the production of the content you so love.

In committing to move, to achieve, to advance toward goals and dreams, we force ourselves up off of that couch and take a step into a scary world.

We do this when we realize that the idea of staying on that couch is more horrific than any monsters we might have to confront along the journey. Staying on the couch becomes more depressing than the prospect of failing. We’re driven and we can’t ignore it.

Consuming content is still important.

If you play ball, you should watch a lot of games.

If you write, you’d better read more than anyone you know.

And if you make movies, you should be watching them.

It’s research and data collection and an enjoyable hobby. We’re all consumers.

But if you want to be a producer as well, then of paramount importance is honoring your drive to have a role in bringing that content to life.

Join The Community!

Join our Facebook GroupJoin the quest for “The Sweet Life.”  Request access to our Facebook Group.  Let’s learn from each other!  GO HERE

Free Audio Book Download

Full Unabridged Audio Book “Vagabonding With Kids” by AK Turner!  GO HERE

Take The SWEET LIFE Assessment

See how you score? Identify your strengths. Discover areas in your life you want to improve. GO HERE.

Giving Back

Amanda and Mike launched an Impact Club in their hometown of Boise, Idaho in 2017, and have had a blast gathering like-minded individuals, families, and organizations to make significant impact in our community, raising over $200,000 locally and over $1.5 million nationally.

Join Our Next Monthly CHALLENGE

Every month Amanda and Mike pick a month-long challenge that pushes us out of our comfort zone so we can grow, learn, and become better versions of ourselves.  Sometimes we design our own unique challenge and other times we join pre-established challenges. Email us to find out about our next upcoming challenge. Us@BusinessofUs.com

About Us

Our Story | Mike and Amanda TurnerWe are Mike and Amanda Turner, founders of “The Business of Us.” We are fierce advocates of helping entrepreneurial couples and families improve their lives, livelihoods, and legacies… READ MORE

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