Fine Art by Michelle Micalizzi
(All Rights Reserved)
My muses this week are Robin & John McCombs. Robin and John own Temperature Pro Phoenix.
WHY ROBIN & JOHN QUALIFY TO BE ONE OF THE 2016 FEARLESS THIRTEEN.
John McCombs and I are both very active members of BNI Business Leaders of North Scottsdale. Of course when it came time to get an estimate on getting a mini split AC unit for my studio John was the fist person I called. I was still inviting business owners to be part of the Art of Fearlessly Doing Business project. Honestly I did not consider the McCombs because I did not think they could qualify for the 250K Gross – 250K Net revenue requirements for the project. However, when I got a call from a very professional scheduler and then 2 qualified techs came to my home and answered all my questions so expertly, I knew that the McCombs were on a different playing field the I thought they were very early in their business. It is wonderful to see a business take off so well and so quickly.
Robin and John are both former military. They know how to run a disciplined tight ship. Both bring with them a wealth of professional experience and are dedicated to building their business. The McCombs chose the heating and cooling industry in part because they saw Robin being a woman leader in the male dominated industry. They also saw that their attention to excellence would be their best asset since 9 out of 10 installations are not done properly as per Texas A&M and ASU reports.
The three biggest things that impress me the most about Robin & John are:
- They took a leap of faith from Corporate America for John and from being a stay at home Mom for Robin to open a new to them business.
- They have right out of the gate hit numbers that many new business owners never get the opportunity to see.
- They have a very serious and directed commitment to networking and building relationships.
In a Nutshell….
The McCombs are former military that have raised 4 amazing children and now they are living the American Dream by running their own right out of the gate successful business together.
FEARLESS INTERVIEW
Robin & John took a few minutes out to answer the five Art of Fearlessly Doing Business Questions.
WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM ROBIN & JOHN ABOUT BEING FEARLESS?
1.) Women Run Businesses Rock
John and Robin are smart to notice that the heating and cooling industry is a male dominated field. Women prefer to do business with women. Forbes magazine states that “Women drive 70-80% of all consumer purchasing, through a combination of their buying power and influence. Influence means that even when a woman isn’t paying for something herself, she is often the influence or veto vote behind someone else’s purchase.” And that “ Women around the world are more similar than they are different. They are united by their brain structures, hormone levels and biological role in birthing the human race. They are also united by their roles as caregivers, relationship builders and communicators.’”
2.) The Buck Stops Here
There is a huge difference between being in charge of your department’s budget in corporate American and spending your own money to invest in a business. If you miscalculate with your corporate job you can get a bad review or at worst lose your job. As a business owner who self funds their business and or had their name on the loans and lease and mortgage you can lose everything. My Father always said it best. When you work for someone else and a mistake gets made your boss does not clean your bank account out. When you work for yourself you can lose it all and also go significantly backwards and lose money you do not even have yet. For that reason if you are an entrepreneur you not only embrace risk you slay it! The risk works both ways though no risk no rewards. The benefits of being your own boss means that you get to reap the rewards when all goes exceedingly well! That is why we all take the risk!
3.) Blessings are seen in Retrospect
Losing your Service Manager / Qualifying Partner (QP) and the keeper of reality in the first 2 months of being open is a tough blow. Yet in hindsight losing the person they thought would be their hero may have been one of the primary reasons that the McCombs are doing so well in their first year of business. They had to step up with vigor and keep the ball rolling operationally and they had to hire good people to replace a bad fit. They were forced to learn and ask for help where they might have coasted in the past. There is no coasting now for the McCombs and they are prepared to fly!
4.) Build the Right Culture from the Start
The McCombs got a lesson within 2 moths of opening their doors when a key employee proved to be the wrong fit. One of the things they learned right out of the gate is that it is important to have their culture set so that they can get the right people on the bus in the right seats at the right stop. The fact that they are growing so fast that they need to hire new employees is a good problem to have. The McCombs are approaching their hiring process strategically with the end in mind.
5.) Take a Leap of Faith
We both talked about the concept of burning the boats. There is nothing to do but conquer when the buck stops with you. When a couple makes a decision to open a business and use their own funds – there is no turning back. There is only making it happen. Every day you move forward and you just make it happen trusting that if you jump hard enough with enough enthusiasm, integrity and hard work that it is all gong to work out not only just fine but exceedingly well!
Thank you so much Robin & John for taking the time out to be one of the Fearless 13 and once again for your service to our country! I look forward to seeing you again at the Art of Fearlessly Doing Business Art Opening on May 14th at the Walter Gallery from 7-10PM.
Note from the Artist
ROBIN & JOHN’S ILLUSTRATION’S STORY:
“I don’t believe in hope! Hope is a begger! Hope walks through the fire and faith leaps over it.” ~ Jim Carrey, Comedian
The 2 things that stuck out to me about the McCombs interview was that they had to learn by trial by fire and the idea of taking a leap of faith. Trial by fire means to test of one’s abilities to perform well under pressure. The expression alludes to the medieval practice of determining a person’s guilt by having them undergo an ordeal, such as walking barefoot through a fire. Today thousands of people have done a fire walk at Tony Robbins seminars as a demonstrator of this concept. The idea being that we can master our thoughts and walk through anything we set our minds to walk through. Taking a leap of faith is the act or an instance of believing or trusting in something intangible or incapable of being proved. As a married couple the McCombs took a leap of faith on one another and their family. As new business owners they are doing it again. They are not just walking through the fire, they are leaping over it hand in hand with faith that they come out not only unharmed but triumphant on the other side. Then of course the universal sign for an entrepreneur is the light bulb. The dotted line from their feet to their head means they are all in!
SAVE THE DATES:
The Art of Fearlessly Doing Business!
Press Viewing (by invitation only): Friday, May 13 6-8PM
Opening: Saturday, May 14th 7-10PM
Conversation with the Artist: Saturday, May 21 7-9PM
Closing Reception: Thursday, June 9th 6-9PM
10% Proceeds donated to the Arizona Consortium of the Arts
Walter Art Gallery
6425 East Thomas Road
Scottsdale, AZ 85257