Transforming Challenges into Opportunities: RJ Snider's Path to Success at Howell Rescue Systems

Wayne Herring00:00:00 - 00:00:37
Hey, business builders. I'm joined by RJ Snyder today. RJ, as you can see, if you're watching the videos coming to us from Howe Rescue Systems, Howe Rescue is in yep. Thanks for the point over your head. Howe is in Dayton, Ohio, but they serve, basically, eastern half of the United States and provide rescue tools to help get people out of cars. So nobody wants to be in an accident. But if you are, we'll all be happy that people have good tools. Fire departments have good tools in their trucks, but the other things you you guys do is provide service to make sure that everything stays up to snuff and is ready to go.
Wayne Herring00:00:37 - 00:01:02
And you can provide training because I had never thought of that until I met you and Spencer Howe, RJ, but it you know, now I get it. It's like, why would you know how to open up a car that has been in an accident with these, tools that you have? It takes some training, be able to do it right, not have something shift and hurt somebody. So really glad that you're here with us today, RJ. I'm looking forward to this. So yeah. Thanks.
RJ Snider00:01:02 - 00:01:08
Yeah. Thank you. Looking forward to it. This will be the 1st official podcast I've ever been on, so we'll see how it goes. Yeah.
Wayne Herring00:01:08 - 00:01:58
Cool. Good to be the first time. So everybody on this podcast, partially what I'm trying to do is introduce members of the business builders community to you so that you can decide, would you like to join? Would you like to have a conversation with me about getting in here? And, also, anybody that joins, we want you to have a quick resource where you can get to know other members of the community. Because partially, the way this thing works is there's a whole lot of smart people that are on the growth path and that are intentionally coming to our calls and taking that time out of their schedule to think about what's the next move, how do they get a little bit better in multiple areas of life. And so the the people really matter. So we'll hear more about RJ as we develop this. And, also, RJ is a member of our right handers group. So that's a little bit unique.
Wayne Herring00:01:58 - 00:02:32
We have business owners, and then we have right handers, meaning that key person on the team that either you have or that you'd like to have or that you're hoping develop develops out of the folks that are already around RJ. You're one of those people. And, we have you in a small group of other right handers where you can talk about how to manage up sometimes, lead in an upward direction, and also then how to lead the people that are on your team. So that's another unique piece of what's going on here. So, RJ, enough of me talking. Tell us a little bit more. Who are you? Why are you here? What's going on in your world?
RJ Snider00:02:32 - 00:03:08
Sure. So my name is RJ Snyder. You might hear Charles. Technically, that's my first name. I never go by it, and it's been a long, interesting road to get here. So give you a little bit of background, and I think some of that lends to, you know, sort of what makes me good in this right hander position, and and we can kinda delve into that a little bit. But so, basically, my background has always been, for the most part, marketing and sales. If you take out the premed part first, I actually wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon and decided that was gonna be way too much school, and it was too boring.
RJ Snider00:03:08 - 00:04:08
So switched over to marketing and sales. I went to the University of Toledo in Northwest Ohio. And from there, ton of internships in in different industries, actually moved to Florida with my now wife and did spend some time doing hospitality, sales and marketing, and really developed, I'll call it, the customer service portion of sort of my expertise kinda down there in the hospitality industry and had a couple of kids. My wife's family's from Dayton. So we moved back here, kind of bounced around. And I think at this point, I've hit every industry except for food service directly. That was never one I really wanted to get into, but one of the marinas I worked at in Florida actually had 2 restaurants, so I've seen that side of things as well. So moved back here and wasn't really sure where the career path was gonna take me and ended up finding a marketing position with Howe Rescue.
RJ Snider00:04:08 - 00:04:45
So kinda leveraged the marketing background and very quickly saw the potential in the company and the growth trajectory that we could be on. And if you haven't already, give Spencer's podcast a listen because he talks about that sort of transition from his dad to him, and he's done a really good job. And so it's exciting, man. Honestly, I think the growth and and my drive to kinda learn something new every day has kinda put me into this now director of operations position underneath Spencer and getting to drive the company into the future is super fun. So that's kinda where I'm at.
Wayne Herring00:04:45 - 00:05:26
What's the journey to get in that director of operations position or the right hander position? And it's 2 things going on. One thing is I heard you say you saw the potential in the company. So I'm always thinking about the people listening. They would want to be the kind of company that that that a guy like you and their or a woman like you and their company would say, this is, wow, there's potential here. This is a place I wanna be. So I'd like to hear more about your journey to see both in terms of why it was attractive to you and the potential you saw in it that would engage that drive that you have? And then, also, what do you think they were seeing in you that helped put you in that position?
RJ Snider00:05:26 - 00:06:28
Yeah. For sure. So I think the first thing that I'll kinda come back to you know, in the past, I looked at bouncing around between all those different jobs and this and that as a negative. But as of more recently, it's definitely a positive because I've gotten to see a lot of different company cultures. So that I would say, 1st and foremost, when I came on board, the culture was set up in a way where if you had something that you thought was a good idea, the flexibility was there to sort of chase that down a little bit or prove the idea a little bit before maybe going full steam ahead, but that was very encouraging for my personality, which was very much, hey. This, I think, is a good idea, but I don't know until we try it. So that was sort of fostered very early on, and that, I would say, solidified the the loyalty that I have. Like, it was a comfort level for me to bring up an idea and then know that I had the backing to sort of figure it out.
RJ Snider00:06:29 - 00:07:44
So that was probably step 1 to me getting to where I'm at now was the culture was already there in place, and it sort of fostered that. And then, really, it wasn't a super easy journey at the beginning, if we're being honest. I came on board as the marketing manager or marketing director, whatever you wanna call it, and that position was one that really did not exist in the past at Howell. So it was basically like, here's your blank piece of paper. Figure out what it means to be the marketing guy at Howell Rescue, which was fun, and it takes a certain personality type. But, you know, I kinda thrive in that sort of environment, that sink or swim, figure it out, and go from there. Really up until Spencer came on board, it was I could see from talking to the service guys and the sales guys, there was huge potential in the market that we just from, like, a brand awareness standpoint, like, our brand wasn't even recognized in all of the fire departments in Ohio, and that's, like, our main state. So right there, I knew that there was so much room to grow inside of the state that we live in.
RJ Snider00:07:44 - 00:08:16
So then extrapolate that out across the eastern US, and the numbers get pretty big pretty quick. So like I said, up until Spencer came on board, it was everybody had kinda been operating the same way for the last 30 years, which was fine. But in order to kinda get to that next level, it was gonna take some change and some drive and a lot of effort, really. And I was doing what I could. And a lot of people were kinda resistant to it, and I wasn't really in a position to metaphorically put my foot down, I guess. I hadn't gained that trust in that position yet. Spencer came on board. He's got a very similar mindset.
RJ Snider00:08:16 - 00:09:00
We hit it off very early on, and he saw the same similar vision that I saw for the company. And once that transition started to happen, it was hang on to the rocket. So from there, it's just him and I got to working very closely together, and I'm very much a figure it out type of person. So it's that coupled with the experience in a lot of different industries led me from marketing to becoming a sales manager for the company and managing a team of guys underneath me for a little while, trained up another one of the sales guys to sort of fill that role on the sales side, and then I moved over and am now focused on sort of fine tuning the operations of the business.
Wayne Herring00:09:00 - 00:09:10
Have you had jobs in the past where you think the people you were working with missed your talent or gifts and didn't take advantage of it?
RJ Snider00:09:10 - 00:09:47
Oh, yeah. For sure. And like I said, a lot of this is just gonna come back to culture. But the one of the worries I had when I actually started for Howell was that it was a very family run, family owned business. I've seen the other side of that where it doesn't work, and I know how hard it can be to work with family. When we moved back from Florida, my wife's stepdad runs a a printing company here in Dayton, and they do fairly well. They're a a wide format printer, so they're doing really big jobs, you know, billboards and that kind of thing. So I started on there, and and I was doing some sales and marketing for them.
RJ Snider00:09:47 - 00:10:16
And, honestly, sort of the same scenario that is not a success story. There's a lot of potential in that business. They're a very small business. Their territory is very small. And with some effort and some time and some planning, it easily over a 5 year time, and I kinda laid it all out for him. I was like, we could probably 10 x this business. Right? Like, there was fair potential for something along those lines. And the family dynamic didn't allow it.
RJ Snider00:10:16 - 00:10:45
The ideas I was coming up with were like, yeah. No. It's a good idea, but maybe not right now. So it was like those sort of responses, and I got very frustrated very quickly and nothing against my wife's stepdad. We we'd still go get a beer together or whatever it is, but I was like, you know what? Creativity wise and drive wise, this just isn't a good fit for me, so I think I'm gonna have to go find some other things. So so yeah. Sure.
Wayne Herring00:10:45 - 00:11:14
And some people, because they get to work with lots of business owners or in some cases, we have a conversation and I don't end up working with them. Some people would like to have a business that kinda works and it's wash rinse repeat, and it pays the bills and not go through the discomfort of pushing through to something else. Because there's something there, like, sometimes slightly envy people that could do that can find contentment and happiness. So that's an okay path too.
RJ Snider00:11:15 - 00:11:33
Yeah. Absolutely. I honestly, I could say it about Howell Rescue. When I came on board, the business as it stood in that point in time probably could have operated indefinitely at that level, and I think a lot of people would have been fine with that. And I'm not one of those people. It's always grow. What's next. There's always something more to learn.
RJ Snider00:11:33 - 00:11:47
Right. So that's just kind of the way I was brought up. And luckily there were some people that I found that came on board or were within the company that shared that similar mindset. And it was enough to generate that sort of push into the future. So
Wayne Herring00:11:48 - 00:12:28
So from what I've heard is that you have a diverse background. You've got experience in lots of things, and there was a time you thought that that was a shortcoming. But lo and behold, now here you are, and you're a little bit of a renaissance guy and you're curious and you learn about a lot of things and you see that in the right spot, that that's a huge value to people versus specialization. So I hear that when I'm thinking about having a a strong right hander, number 2 type person, the diversity, the experience. The other thing you mentioned was drive. And what I heard in that last bit is that drive also has to meet opportunity or they have to sync up. If they don't, it's not really gonna work. Yeah.
Wayne Herring00:12:28 - 00:12:48
And some of this, I would imagine, that you've been on a a journey of maturing, and you use the term. There's been times in the past where I wasn't quite really able to, quote, put my foot down or learn how to respectfully say that I get what you're saying, but I believe we could do it this way. So that's developed over time and
RJ Snider00:12:48 - 00:12:49
Absolutely.
Wayne Herring00:12:49 - 00:13:26
Seem yeah. So it seems to me that business owners, if they really wanna have somebody like you, like a right hander, they need to learn to cultivate that. They need to ask for it, and they need to sometimes probably clear out hurts or misunderstandings or somebody gets bent out of shape, and you need that resiliency. The other thing I heard you say was I'm a figure it out guy, and we're getting ready to get on this call. And I said this is gonna come in somewhere. I've got this microphone, which is a nice microphone, and I'm not always a figure it out guy. I'm just a charge ahead, keep doing it. So you helped me out and did some problem solving and figured this thing out, and you've had a microphone like it in the past.
Wayne Herring00:13:26 - 00:13:42
And that's a very small thing. There's lots of other things you figure out. But I I really like that figure it out. I'm a figure it out guy. I think a lot of business owners would like to have that. Can you talk about what's it like? What what does that mean? What's it like being a figure it out person?
RJ Snider00:13:44 - 00:14:30
Yeah. For anybody listening, that's a double edged sword. Right? And I joke internally with the team here. You know? When I first started, I reluctantly let people know that I knew a little bit about computers. And now one of the hats I wear is essentially, you know, ahead of Right? So it's it's an interesting position, and I welcome it. Right? I think it goes with the thriving in chaos or whatever you wanna call it. I feel like I get bored fairly easily, so I think the chaos or the problem solving is, for me, is, like, my way of sort of feeding that creative need. But it's it's sort of something that I think is kinda tied to the experiences that I've gained over the years.
RJ Snider00:14:30 - 00:15:19
It's I have a lot of different experiences to be able to sort of pull from in different industries and stuff like that. So we'll come across an issue or something that needs some attention, and I'll be able to bring up an example from one of the restaurants. And it has nothing to do with fire service, but the process and procedure that took care of that problem directly relates to whatever it is we're dealing with. So there's a lot of that, and like I said, it's a double edged sword because my phone actually, you guys probably heard it. Somebody chimed into my phone, like, 5 minutes ago. My phone doesn't stop ringing because it's one of those things where if you can't figure it out, call RJ, and and he'll kinda help you walk through it. So it's time consuming, but like I said, I do enjoy it.
Wayne Herring00:15:20 - 00:15:28
So that was one of the things I was gonna ask you because we're positioning this as other business owners would probably like to have a right
RJ Snider00:15:28 - 00:15:28
hand person
Wayne Herring00:15:28 - 00:15:49
Mhmm. That figures it out. And then, also, I think you can speak to other people that have this double edged sword blessing and curse thing going on. How have you learned to develop some boundaries, or how have you learned to to say no or ask people a question, let them solve it on their own? Like, what's going on there?
RJ Snider00:15:49 - 00:16:30
Yeah. That's of all the things, probably been the most difficult thing for me to sort of put into place. And not even saying no, but really, like, being able to delegate some of that and train people and put other things in place so that I don't have to shoulder at all because it was always being the figure it out guy. The problem would come to me, and then I'd figure it out. It was easier for me to do it than it was for me to pass it off to somebody else and try and walk them through all the intricacies of that particular problem. Right? So I think it might come with maturity. It's just I don't know. It comes over time.
RJ Snider00:16:30 - 00:17:22
Honestly, working with you has been a huge benefit just putting a a thought process to it and not letting it just be something that I just do in the background. But, like, consciously, if somebody asks me something, thinking through, okay, do I really need to help them with this, or is this something that is a teachable moment or stuff like that? So it's been a difficult process, but I will say that now I've been super open and honest with the team. We have an awesome leadership team, and I've gone to them and said, hey. If you want some of this other stuff to happen, I'm only one person, so I have to be able to delegate this, this, and this. And they're super understanding, and it's fantastic. And so now some of the other guys on the leadership team jokingly will call, and and they'll say, this is only my second for the week, so I think I'm still okay. So they have, like, this running budget of calls that they're allowed and stuff. So it's been really good, honestly.
RJ Snider00:17:22 - 00:17:43
The one thing I'll say that I've probably learned that has helped the most is I'm only one person. And if we really want to grow the company, then there has to be things that are important, and there has to be things that I pass on to other people. So once I sort of dialed that into my personality a little bit, it got a lot easier.
Wayne Herring00:17:43 - 00:18:34
And you said, I tend to get bored. I figure something out, and then I get bored. And then in this case, you're also recognizing that you can't do everything. And I do believe that you've hired a pretty strong marketing person or that you came in as marketing at Howe Rescue, but you have managed to go make a request. Because it's also easy for a business owner sometimes to have a guy like you and then think, well, RJ will do it. RJ will handle that. And you know what? If I don't have to hire somebody else and I don't have to pay somebody else, why would I wanna do that? So you've you did manage to either make a request or you worked with leadership to identify that that was the first place to put a pretty key employee and and start teaching them so that you can move on to something else. Right?
RJ Snider00:18:34 - 00:19:24
Correct. Yeah. That was a huge step for a while there when we kinda had this vision and things we wanted to update or change on the operation side, sales side, whatever it is, I was still the marketing manager, so I was still doing that whole entire job plus some. And it just kinda goes back to that being honest with your team thing. I went to Spencer, and I went to the guys, and I said, I'm drowning. I cannot take on anything else. So if we would like to continue moving forward, I need somebody to take over some of the more heavy marketing stuff, video, shooting, photo, editing, all the time consuming stuff. And, luckily, everybody kinda saw the need, and I was able to run an interview process, and we found Kyle, and he's awesome.
RJ Snider00:19:25 - 00:19:52
Honestly, he's a godsend and has a really strong video and photo background. And we basically have a half hour weekly marketing meeting at this point, and we kinda cover his projects that he's working on. And I'm still able to kinda give my input, which I really enjoy. I think the marketing side of things is still very creative, and I still have that side of my brain that needs fed. So it's a win win. Honestly, it's worked out really well.
Wayne Herring00:19:52 - 00:20:15
That's great. Couple just, like, 3 more kinda headings in my mind. 1 is, so so here you are. You're in this family business. You're a key employee right hander, if you will. Got all these things we talked about, drive, figure it out factor. And, you know, mama told me it was rude to talk about money, but we're gonna talk about it a little bit. We don't have to talk about, like, specific dollar amounts.
Wayne Herring00:20:15 - 00:20:19
Right? But in a general sense, I'd like to talk about compensation.
RJ Snider00:20:19 - 00:20:19
Sure.
Wayne Herring00:20:19 - 00:20:57
So here you are working in a family business. You're a high capacity player, and you're developing more capacity all the time. That's developing a new muscle when you hire a marketing manager, then you learn how to get them up to speed and make sure you're not overmanaging them, but you're having that weekly meeting. I I just hear continued growth in when you talk about that. So here you are, family business. And it this also would count for a nonfamily business where it's just founder, is the sole owner right now. It would it would apply there too. I had a mentor.
Wayne Herring00:20:57 - 00:21:46
Her name is Liz Fitch, and she did a lot of recruiting for my team back when I was building a team in the family business working with my dad. And she talked to me and first introduced me to the concept of well, first of all, it's like taking a good hard look at what we're actually paying people and not fooling ourselves and thinking that we're gonna spend a low amount of money and get a high capacity person. She straightened me up in that way. She was pretty brutally honest with me. But, also, she said, Wayne, the money has to be there, but it's a lot more than that. She said there's financial compensation, intellectual compensation, and emotional compensation. Intellectuals that I have drive and purpose, and they're they're matching up with a company that sees that and wants to go in the same direction I do. And I'm and I keep learning like that kind of thing.
Wayne Herring00:21:46 - 00:22:21
And then emotional compensation is I feel good about being part of a team. I feel valued. It's different for everybody. But how do you in in your position, it's kind of keeping a sober view of reality and knowing that we're growing, and it's not like there's an infinite amount of money. And the other thing is that I didn't start this company. I'm not the founder and the owner, but yet I wanna make sure I'm fairly compensated too, and I have to have these conversations from time to time, not continuously. How have you managed that, like, making requests and looking at the whole big picture, not just dollars, etcetera?
RJ Snider00:22:22 - 00:22:27
Yeah. For sure. You know, I've requested ownership shares, but it hasn't really gone anywhere yet.
Wayne Herring00:22:27 - 00:22:28
Maybe it will.
RJ Snider00:22:28 - 00:22:30
Somewhere. Yeah. I don't know. Maybe. Like, you
Wayne Herring00:22:30 - 00:22:31
and maybe other people. Who knows? Yeah.
RJ Snider00:22:32 - 00:22:59
And I'll say it in my personal life. That's probably what me and my wife butt heads on the most, and she's in the the medical side. She's a physical therapist, so it's it's very black and white. It's very like, you get your 3% every year, and that's basically it. Right? It's very cut and dry. Mhmm. And in this business, it's very flexible. I do understand the point in which we are at a business is fluctuating month to month at this point.
RJ Snider00:22:59 - 00:23:45
And so long as the company grows, like, everybody does well and all that. But if we have a down year, it's, you know so I grasp all that. Right? So it's been interesting, and I think I like to call them intangible benefits. Right? There's things that really make me loyal to this company that are not monetary. And if my kids have a game or a baseball game or gymnastics or whatever, like, I can leave at 2 o'clock on a Tuesday and not come back for the rest of the day, and nobody questions it. And there's a lot of emotional benefit to that. I'm willing to be in more agreeance on the pay side of things because of those other benefits. And it's all very open, and the conversations are never shied away from, which I really enjoy.
RJ Snider00:23:45 - 00:24:36
So if I have an issue, I can go talk to Spencer at any time, and he's like, okay. Well, let's figure it out. Right? So we just did we actually just went through, like, a round of compensation analysis and did that at the beginning of the year. End of last year, I talked to Spencer and I said, hey. I do wanna talk about compensation because I've moved up into this operations role. I've taken on a lot of responsibility, accountability, and I'm loyal as the day is long to how rescue systems, but I do also understand that my position has value and worth and you know what I mean? So there is for anybody listening, even if you do love going to work every day, it still doesn't mean you get to undervalue yourself. Right? So I think that's something to keep in mind. What I was able to do, and I think our culture allowed it, is I wrote Spencer a 5 year financial plan for where I wanted to be within my position.
RJ Snider00:24:37 - 00:24:52
And he said, I love this. I will do what I can to get you as close to those numbers as possible. So I wrote it down and said, here you go. Here's what I want. Right? So there was a little bit of, you know, that no BS side coming out. So
Wayne Herring00:24:53 - 00:25:21
Well and somewhat you've earned the right because it's also maybe you've explicitly said it or is implicit and detectable and can be felt that you're not the kind of person who believes, hey. I want that in 5 years, and that's just what I want. It's more like, I would like to be able to have this in 5 years, and I totally get and understand that I'm gonna have to grow as a leader and a person and generate that kind of value for the company.
RJ Snider00:25:22 - 00:25:22
Like,
Wayne Herring00:25:22 - 00:25:28
it's not just a one way thing with you. It's obvious that you want both of those, the company to thrive, you to thrive.
RJ Snider00:25:28 - 00:26:03
Absolutely. And that was some converse and it kind of, like, spun off as some conversation Spencer and I had maybe a year and a half, maybe even 2 years ago at this point where he had some company goals, and he said, listen. If we can get to these sort of goals, then we have some more freedom to increase salaries. And and I'm like, okay. Great. I'm on board. Let's do it. Right? And for me, I fully understand that my position, the salary is a cash out from the company directly, and I do understand, but directly, I do not bring in money for this company.
RJ Snider00:26:03 - 00:26:11
Right? There's a lot of other value that I do bring, but my position is not like a sales rep. You can tie revenue directly to their position.
Wayne Herring00:26:12 - 00:26:12
Mhmm.
RJ Snider00:26:12 - 00:26:26
And this I this probably goes to the way I was brought up, but, you know, there's nothing that I expect from this company without earning that revenue or that benefit or whatever. Right? So
Wayne Herring00:26:27 - 00:26:52
Yeah. That's really good. Hey. So I have you in, like, this serious mode where you're, like, kinda good. Oh, you're laughing. RJ, for everybody listening, and if you were to come to Business Builders, RJ is one of the most fun guys you'll ever have around the Camp Fire, and he's a whole lot more than this, like, high producer business guy. Pete, tell us a little bit about what do you do when you're not working and figuring out your family, and those are things that are all important to us. Yeah.
RJ Snider00:26:52 - 00:27:11
For sure. Yeah. I have I sometimes I'm too extroverted. It really, like, drives my wife crazy, and she's not the way that I am, but we balance each other out. So Yeah. I have to try and sometimes, like when we sit around a campfire, like, I'll just talk the whole time, and I have to, like, consciously be like, no. I should probably let other people talk and make jokes. So it's fun.
RJ Snider00:27:11 - 00:27:29
I like to have a good time. And if you're not having fun, then really, what are you doing? But, yeah, I have 3 lovely children. I have Leila, Lucas, and Lincoln. Leila's 8, Lucas is 5, and Lincoln is just over 1a half. So my hands are more than full. Lots of stuff.
Wayne Herring00:27:29 - 00:27:31
Extra 1. You can use an extra one.
RJ Snider00:27:31 - 00:27:45
Yeah. For sure. Maybe 6, 7. I don't know. So we're just playing zone defense at this point, and it's good. We're having a good time. And, yeah, I mean, we're starting to get to the point now where Lincoln's a little older, so I'm getting some of that balance back. I love to be outside.
RJ Snider00:27:46 - 00:28:06
I've played every sport under the sun, but if if you get to know me, I'm kind of a closet nerd a little bit. So board games, video games, love it all, but I love playing disc golf. Love playing ultimate Frisbee. Those are kind of like fringe sports that some people don't know about all the time. Last live camp, they had a disc golf course at Sweetheart Lake that I went and played at, so that was fun. So
Wayne Herring00:28:06 - 00:28:23
And you do that right. You kinda nerd out about that too. You got out your bag with the Oh, yeah. This and were explaining it. And I was like, dang. I thought you just took a Frisbee out there and kinda chucked it into the chain hole deal that they got. Yep. But, no, that's not the case at all.
Wayne Herring00:28:23 - 00:28:24
There's a lot to this.
RJ Snider00:28:24 - 00:28:48
Yeah. It's fun to you know, I always joke that I, like, collect hobbies. Right? Like, I get really into things, and disc golf is 101's that's kinda stuck around. But it's fun for me to explain things like that that people may see or not know a bunch about. And we always have a really good time. Like, if we go to trivia nights, like, I'm fairly good at trivia. Just go. There's a lot of random stuff just kinda rattling around up here, so
Wayne Herring00:28:48 - 00:29:40
it's fun. Yeah. Last question or last kind of little path to tie tie this up is so you're a member of Business Builders, and I'm glad you're here and glad that Spencer brought you into the group. This is certainly, not ashamed to do a bit of a plug for our group for the right person, and so we can do that. And then, also, I think there's people in your seat out there that won't ever become a member of business builders either, and I'd sure like to help them find find a similar group or find people that are gonna activate the best in them. So the question I'm asking you is to serve people that might join us and also people in general that are going to mastermind or group coaching or a community so that they can thrive. So what do you get out of being in business builders? How has it helped you, and how do you get the most out of this program?
RJ Snider00:29:41 - 00:30:21
Yeah. And I'll take it back for 2 seconds before we talk about that because this is my experience over the years. Right? I've had people come to other business I've worked for, come to me as business coaches. Right? There's always the negative one. So I was skeptical when Spencer brought it up, but Spencer found success with it and told him I'd give it a try. And it's the genuineness of the people that are a part of this group is really where the power is. And it's just the willingness to help whether they're small business, big business. There's a lot of different people.
RJ Snider00:30:22 - 00:30:47
And I remember that first live camp that I went to, and I showed up early, actually. And there were a couple of guys in the cabin as it was, I think, Mark and Kane maybe was there. Yeah. And immediately, they were like, oh, I think you're in the wrong house. I don't know what you're talking about. And I was like, oh my gosh. I'm so sorry, guys. Like, I just totally walked into this cabin, and then, obviously, they're kidding.
RJ Snider00:30:47 - 00:31:47
And I'm like, oh, I'm a fit in here. So it was just like that immediate comfortability. And, yeah, it's there's you probably have the quote better than I do, but you're the aggregate of the 5 people that you hang out with the most. Right? So if you are trying to foster your sense of drive and creativity, then hang out with people that are driven and creative. Right? If you go home and sit on the couch and watch TV and you're like, okay with that, then that's fine. But if you're looking to grow the business that you own or looking to move into this position that I'm in or if you're in this position and you want to grab it by the horns, then pick up a book. You read a book about building a business or podcasts are great. I think even outside of being a business builder, I think some of these podcasts that I've listened to, there's some really good stuff that comes out of this that's just kinda like, Yeah.
RJ Snider00:31:47 - 00:31:51
Maybe I should try that. So I think it's one of those things.
Wayne Herring00:31:52 - 00:32:36
Yeah. Thanks. We have a really great group of people in our world and yet genuine and willing to help is absolutely true. And I I think a thing that is unique, and you carry this as well, is we we're willing to look at our own thoughts and talk about that openly, like, for good or for bad. It's a group of people where rather there's just not a lot of trying to maintain appearances in our group. There's a whole lot of, like so I do think some things really well, and there's no reason to hide that, and I'll share that if I can. And then there's a whole lot of, like and I screw things up. And when I screw things up, we try to clean it up and and make it right.
Wayne Herring00:32:36 - 00:33:32
And, yeah, it's such a tremendous group of people who are willing to share to that level. Because I think most of the time, we live in this social media world where people are trying to always post their highlight reel and everything that, you know, they, yeah, that they think it should look that way, and we don't only play that way. And as you said, like, people talk about there's tears a lot of times because people talk about personal stuff and struggles at home, and we we bring all those things in. So, yeah, there there are other people that have come before you on the podcast that can help in other areas of life. And if somebody is an employee of a big company and they wanna be a little bit more like RJ and listen to what you just talked about and think about how to approach compensation conversations or how to think about, is it a revenue producing role or a nonrevenue producing role. There's been a lot of gold gift wrapped here, so thanks for showing up and sharing in this way.
RJ Snider00:33:32 - 00:33:37
Yeah. Of course. Happy to share. I won't shy away from conversations. So
Wayne Herring00:33:37 - 00:33:40
How can people reach you if anybody wants to connect for a further conversation?
RJ Snider00:33:41 - 00:33:52
Yeah. Easiest way, just hit me up on email probably first. It's just rjsnider@howellrescue.com. That's
Wayne Herring00:33:52 - 00:33:54
great. Thanks again, RJ. Go get them, man.
RJ Snider00:33:54 - 00:33:55
Appreciate it, man. Thanks.
Wayne Herring00:33:55 - 00:33:56
Yeah. Bye.

00:00 Intro to business community for potential new members.

05:26 Embracing diverse job experiences leads to growth.

06:29 Creating marketing role, building brand awareness challenge.

11:48 Diverse background and drive are valuable traits.

14:30 Diverse experiences aid in problem-solving, time-consuming.

16:30 Conscious delegation leads to open and honest teamwork.

20:57 Liz Fitch taught Wayne about recruiting principles.

23:45 Employee advocates for fair compensation in role.

28:48 Promoting Business Builders group and serving others.

32:36 Podcast guests share personal struggles and advice.

33:41 Contact me first via email at rjsnider@howellrescue.com.

1. What specific strategies did RJ Snider use to negotiate his compensation with his employer, Spencer, and how did he present the value of his role within the company?
2. How did RJ demonstrate his understanding of the company's financial dynamics and his commitment to contributing to its revenue before expecting benefits?
3. In what ways does RJ's personal and professional growth align with the ethos of the Business Builders community, as discussed in the episode?
4. How did RJ balance the challenges of being underutilized in previous jobs due to family dynamics with his drive for personal and professional growth?
5. What insights did RJ share regarding the company culture at Howe Rescue Systems, particularly focusing on flexibility and encouragement of new ideas?
6. How did RJ overcome the struggle of delegating tasks, and what were the effects of hiring a marketing manager to take over some of his responsibilities?
7. In what ways does RJ's approach to compensation negotiations reflect the broader conversation around fair compensation and the importance of intellectual and emotional benefits alongside financial compensation?
8. How has RJ's involvement in Business Builders and other social circles impacted his career growth, as well as his ability to foster personal and professional development?
9. What specific books, podcasts, or other resources did RJ mention as valuable sources of knowledge and insights for personal and professional growth?
10. How does RJ's journey and experiences align with the themes of openness, authenticity, and genuine connections within the Business Builders community, as highlighted in the episode?