Building Brick by Brick with Torrey C Butler

0:01Boom! Shake the room, Fire Nation. JLD here and welcome to Entrepreneurs on Fire, brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals with great shows like I Digress. Today, we'll be talking about the process of building brick by brick. To drop these value bombs, I am brought to Tori Butler and the EO Fire Studios. Tori is an award-winning author and the CEO and founder of Scribble, a social networking service for authors, writers, and creative minds to network and connect. And today, at Fire Nation, we'll talk about brick by brick, the first investment you should make as an entrepreneur.

0:38We'll talk about standing out in today's noisy world and quitting, believe it or not, and so much more. And a big thank you for sponsoring today's episode goes to Tori and our sponsors. Business Made Simple, hosted by Donald Miller, is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. Business Made Simple takes the mystery out of growing your business. Join my friend, Donna Miller, each week as he shares value bombs on topics like the secret to making better marketing decisions. Listen to Business Made Simple wherever you get your podcasts. Ever thought of giving a TEDx talk?

1:14It's one of the most powerful ways to share your message with the world and four-time TEDx speaker Taylor Conroy from Thought Leader can help you get there. Visit thought-leader.com to join Taylor's free training where he teaches you how to land a TEDx talk and spread your message to millions. Tori, say what's up to Fire Nation and share something that you believe about becoming successful that most people disagree with. Hey, JLD, thanks for having me. Hey, Fire Nation. I actually give you two things. The first thing I think is when you're an entrepreneur, there's no such thing as pride. If you have pride as an entrepreneur, That means you're limiting the doors that can possibly be open to you.

1:58And the second thing I would say is the first investment that you make as an entrepreneur is free. It's not in the LLC. It's not in a trademark or patent. The first investment that you'll make is investing in yourself. And that's where it all starts at before you get into any monetary value or into any business. So I'll offer those two things I believe in. I love both of those messages and Fire Nation. It should make you not surprised at all that today's theme is all about building brick by brick. And that first brick, investing in yourself. And Tori, your story's pretty darn cool. I mean, especially for a veteran like myself, I love these type of success stories where you went from the military to an award-winning author and founder of the Scribble app.

2:47Tell us the story. I grew up not really wanting to be anything specific in life, but how I grew up with a single mom, I knew I had to make something out of myself. So that's kind of really how I structure myself in life. I saw my mom day to day, you know, just just trying to make ends meet and try to figure things out. So at a very young age, I was very locked in into, you know, there has to be something better in life as far as, you know, making things happen. So when I locked in on life and locked in on my purpose, I mean, I had to be like 10 years old. So from that point, I took everything, you know, seriously, schoolwork, everything I did was with a purpose.

3:31So from my high school days, I was able to go to college. I went to college, and four years after that, I went into the military. So, and again, that wasn't by design. That was just by me staying locked in into I know I need to do something and make something happen. So four years into my military service in 2020, I published my first book called Where Do I Go From Here? But before I published that book, I spent about four years writing that book. I give you a cool story. In 2016, I had the inclination to write a book. For some reason, that idea came to me. Now, when it came to me, this is what I did.

4:17I went to a friend and I asked him, I said, hey, man, I got an idea to write about a book. What do you think? And he laughed at me. And when he did that, I didn't pursue writing a book. And that right there where I just described is where a lot of people mess up at. A lot of us have a vision on things or idea about things. And the first thing we do is go seek validation from somebody else to approve the idea that we had. That's where I messed up at. And that's where a lot of people messed up at. So just because of what one person said, I didn't start writing a book until a year later when the idea came up to me again.

4:56And that's when I decided that I was going to take control of my life and my decisions. And I was going to do what I wanted to do. And that's when I started. So I published it. Fast forward, published it in 2020. And about six months after I published that book, this is before Scribble was even a thing or thought of. six months after I published that book, I began to reflect on the writing process, more so from an outside-looking-in perspective. And I saw how really confusing it was, how the lack of resources, the lack of information, and the lack of camaraderie, in a sense, wasn't there. So I had the bright idea to do something about it.

5:37And then that's another tidbit. There's not a lack of ideas in the world, but there is a lack of people that's willing to act on different things. Because how many times have you seen on TV that somebody invented something and you're like, dang, I thought of that, or I could have thought of that. But the only difference is that person actually did something about it. So again, six months after I published my book, I had that thought to do something about it. So that's what I did. So I spent a year researching. And mind you, I don't have a background in business. I don't have a background in really anything.

6:15But again, a lot of this stems from my childhood and just being so locked into being geared to tour. You have to make things happen. So I apply that to everything. So I spent the year researching from business tips to failures in business, you know, just kind of learning from people's mistakes to how to start a tech company for dummies, like just all kinds of stuff. You should see my Google browser. And, you know, once I got enough answers for myself, I took a leap on faith and I started Scribble. So Scribble is a social networking service for authors, writers, and creative minds to network and connect again to bridge that gap that I saw during my writing process.

6:56So we launched in 2021 and we just relaunched May 18th of this year, 2023. And we have over a thousand downloads and people are really taken to this app and really, really gravitating towards the idea of it because it's meant to be that one-stop shop and that place where authors, writers, and creative minds can really come and not only network and connect, but create opportunities and give opportunities. So that's really what that's about and the long-term goal that I have for that. So my entrepreneurship journey started in 2020 and it's constantly day-to-day process. Well, I do love how you shared at the beginning of the show that the best investment that we can make as entrepreneurs is in ourself, and that's our first investment.

7:47And it's so hard as an entrepreneur to really understand what that means and what that looks like. So can you talk a little more in depth about this philosophy? One of my big philosophies, and I quote this with my team, is building brick by brick. and simply what that means is taking this a step at a time and that's important especially in today's age when you know the young minds are getting tainted with this instant success or this instant gratification of what success looks like or getting rich in 36 minutes it doesn't work like that it really everything takes time and in time that's when you learn the process and in the process, that's when you learn about yourself.

8:29You get a chance to pivot. You get a chance to change lives. So I have my team embedded in that philosophy. We build brick by brick. We don't take shortcuts. We take this a step at a time because even in this idea, this process, this business that I have, Scribble, it was built from nothing. And I have another term from mud, the sculptures. I really took an idea and turned it into something, but that can only happen if you take the process a step at a time. So that's what my team does. That's what we do. And brick by brick, that's just really just believing in yourself and then canceling out all the outside noise and really just focusing on what it is that you want to do and produce to the world.

9:15Fire Nation, what if you woke up every morning and just had that attitude that I'm going to build what I'm building brick by brick. I'm not trying to build the chimney first. I'm not trying to build the entire foundation in one day. I'm putting this thing together brick by brick. And that actually really reminds me of a book that I read back in 2012, right when I was starting this business. It's called The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson. And that whole book's philosophy was just get 1 % better every day in one area that improves your business. And that just takes so much of the pressure off because you realize that it may not sound like a lot day to day, but week to week, month to month, especially year to year, man, that compounding effect has incredible ramifications in a positive way.

10:00And we have so much to talk about, Fire Nation, around this line when we get back from thanking our sponsors. Are you ready to close 2023 out strong by surpassing your revenue targets? Q4 is the time to make it happen. But in order to do that, you need the right tools to help you fill your pipeline, nurture prospects, and close deals. Lucky for you, there's the new HubSpot Sales Hub. With HubSpot's Sales Hub, you're able to supercharge your sales process so you can find, track, and close deals all in one powerful, easy-to-use platform. Imagine having your data, tools, and team all in one place.

10:33Picture being able to prospect smarter with the new prospecting workspace, which makes connecting with customers easier than ever, looking to create more content to fuel your sales process. HubSpot's AI assistant can help. As you can tell, Sales Hub is great alone, but it's even better when united by HubSpot's smart CRM. Leads don't slip through the cracks. Data is connected across marketing, sales, and operations, and teams can better measure their impact on the bottom line. Stop sticking to the same old strategies and start closing more deals with HubSpot's Sales Hub. Make the switch to HubSpot's Sales Hub at hubspot.com slash sales.

11:08As you know, I don't run entrepreneurs on fire all on my own. I'm incredibly grateful for my assistants, JM and Tapu. It takes a team of people to make this show successful, just like it takes a solid team to make any business successful. So if you're hiring, how do you find the best people for your team? Zip Recruiter. And right now, you can try it for free at ziprecruiter.com slash fire. Trust me, you'll be grateful you tried Zip Recruiter for your hiring because they make it so easy. First, their matching technology scans thousands of resumes to find the most qualified people for your job fast.

11:40Zip Recruiter also lets you send a personal invite to top candidates to invite them to apply. See why so many business owners and hiring managers are thankful for Zip Recruiter. Four out of five employers who post on Zip Recruiter get a quality candidate within the first day. I'd be super grateful if you could go to this exclusive web address right now to try Zip Recruiter for free. Zip Recruiter dot com slash fire. Again, that's Zip Recruiter dot com slash F-I-R-E. Zip Recruiter, the smartest way to hire. Do you have a message inside that you know is meant to be shared with the world? Giving a TEDx talk is one of the most powerful ways to share your message with the world, and Thought Leader can help you get there.

12:19Thought Leader is a speaker coaching company that has helped over 550 and counting coaches, speakers, entrepreneurs, authors, and experts land TEDx talks. Thought Leader is not affiliated with TED or TEDx, but they're able to get these results because their founder, Taylor Conroy, is a four-time TEDx speaker himself and past EO Fire guest. You might be thinking a TEDx talk sounds great, but where do you start? Taylor has put together a free training that is going to teach you how to land a TEDx talk in as little as 90 days. Join Taylor to learn exactly what TEDx organizers are looking for in their speakers, how to write a talk that goes viral once it goes online, and more.

12:55Visit thought-leader.com slash fire. Join Taylor for his free training and get your message out of your head, out of your heart, and out into the world where it belongs. That's thought-leader.com slash fire. Tori, we're back and let's talk about rejection because you were rejected time and time again from venture capitalists. Let's talk about how you stayed focused on the goal. Even though you had limited funds, even though you had limited assistance, you kept building brick by brick. Tell us how, tell us why. With any project, with any business, with any person, you have to have a foundation first.

13:35And my foundation before I embarked on any journey and before I go and do anything is that I believe in myself because you're going to need that, that one little line belief. You're going to need that throughout this journey because you're going to have to fall back on that because as you alluded to, there's going to be a lot of no's. There's going to be a lot of doors cut. There's going to be a lot of things to not go your way. But if you believe in yourself, which is that foundation, then you're able to press through. So how I was able to do that and really just the process and the progress that we have now is not it's not pretty.

14:12It's still not pretty. You know, I'm able to do certain things, but that's because of the things people don't see. They don't see the 50 rejections in my inbox or they don't see the the 30 unanswered calls from, you know, people that I've reached out to that don't reach back. you know, people don't see that portion of it. They just see the outward portion. So I just want to let people know that, you know, in conjunction with building brick by brick, you know, take your goal, take your whatever it is that you want to do, really take it one step at a time, really hone in on what the mission is, what the goal is, what you want to do, and then focus on that.

14:53And if you focus on, if your focus is to always be a helping to people, then you can never lose. Fire Nation, wise words from somebody who's had the experience of rejection, who's had the experience of perseverance, and who's continued to build upon a success. But Tori, I want to focus on the noise that's out there in the world today because there's a lot of it. There's new social media platforms being launched every day, new influencers coming in, people are getting screamed at from every single direction. Twitter becomes X. Instagram and Facebook launch threads. I mean, it's a minefield of noise out there.

15:32How the heck can a beginner stand out? This one word is very important with anything and it's intent. I've learned that people don't buy what you do, but they buy why you do it. And I'll say that one more time. People don't buy what you do, but they buy why you do it. It's thousands of people with the same exact business across the board, but what would make one business or one person stand out? That would be that why you do it. So again, you just have to be intentional. You have to be genuine with what you want and what you're trying to get people to buy into because there's so many scams and so many schemes and so many businesses and so many things out there.

16:14And it's so many unintentional businesses and people out there, you kind of just weed through it. But what will make you stand out is always being intentional and always putting the people first. Because your business and you as the person, as an entrepreneur, you'll be nothing without the people supporting you. So again, you have to, it's not about what you do, but it's about the why, why you're doing it. And again, if your intention is to always be intentional and put people first, you can never lose. Fire Nation, Tori said it a couple times, but man, it is so worth repeating. You need to understand, you need to absorb the meaning behind these words that people don't buy what you do, but why you do it.

16:57Can you answer that question right now to yourself? Can you think about what that would be for you and your business? And Tori, here's a word we don't hear often on entrepreneurs on fire? Quitting. But I want to talk about quitting. What do I do when we're ready to give up? That's great, JLD. You touched on that because it's common. It is common. It is the norm in this process because entrepreneurship is a process. It's not a one-stop shop. It's not when you make your first million, you made it. Once you make that, it's about maintaining and keeping and pressing forward. So that's always going to be a part of the process.

17:41But how I deal with when I'm ready to give up, what does Tori C do? Here's what I do. Anytime I'm ready to give up, I stop and I just appreciate where I am today. I think about 15 years ago, 20 years ago, 25 years ago, and I think about that version of me. And I know that version of me would be so proud of the person that I am today. So anytime that you feel that you're wearing off course, or you're ready to give up, just stop and appreciate where you are and how far you've made it because that small gratitude in yourself will allow you to reconvene and essentially get back in the fight on where you're trying to go.

18:24And I know a lot of this and what I said really was the nitty gritty of stuff. Notice I didn't really talk about me trying to necessarily sell a product or me talking about authorship in the way that I want you to buy something or the tech company in a way that I want you to. I was talking about myself and my process, and that's what it's all about, the process in itself as an entrepreneur. That's what I don't want people to gloss over. That's what I don't want to gloss over when hearing people speak, is that there is a process behind the business. There is a process behind what you see, and hopefully I broke down a little bit of my process and my story to get where I'm at today.

19:07You did, brother, and you used a word that I want to repeat, which is gratitude. And Fire Nation, if you can wake up every day and just take a second, because it doesn't take very long, to sit down, take a deep breath, and just think of one unique piece of gratitude in your life. It can be the wind on your face. It can be the chair that you're sitting on. It can be, of course, your children, Just don't have that be every single day because it's supposed to be a unique piece of gratitude that makes you grateful for everything around you, for everything you've done, for all that you've accomplished.

19:44And Tori, we've accomplished a lot on this call today. So thank you for that. And I want you to step back and say, what's the one thing that you really want Fire Nation to get from our conversation today? Never give up. Never give up. If things are not working out for you, do not give up because understand that the people that you see and the people or influences that you look up to, everyone had to start somewhere. Nobody woke up in a position that they are. And if they did, they're not from this earth. Right. That's not realistic. So just do not give up. Take it day by day. Take it step by step.

20:24Celebrate the small wins, because even with a step, that's still a step. right? It's still a step in the right direction. So celebrate yourself, celebrate the small wins, take it step by step, build brick by brick. Step by step, brick by brick, Fire Nation, such wise words. Tori, if our listeners want to connect with you, if they want to learn more from you, what is your call to action for our audience today? Definitely. You guys can follow me on all social platforms at ButlerTheDon, or you can follow us, our website at TheScribbleApp.com. It is available on the App Store and Google Play Store.

21:01You just type in Scribble and we're right there. Fire Nation, you're the average of the five people you spend the most time with. You've been hanging out with TCB and JLD today, so keep up that heat. For links to everything we talked about, visit eofire.com. Type Torrey, T-O-R-R-E-Y in the search bar. The show notes page will pop right up. Tori, thank you for sharing your truth, knowledge, value with Fire Nation today. For that, we salute your brother and we'll catch you on the flip side. Pleasure. Hey, Fire Nation, a huge thank you to our sponsors and Tori for sponsoring today's episode. And Fire Nation, are you ready to rock your very own podcast?

21:43Check out our free podcasting course where I will teach you how to create and launch your podcast for free. Freepodcastcourse.com. I'll catch you there or on the flip side. Business Made Simple, hosted by Donald Miller, is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. Business Made Simple takes the mystery out of growing your business. Join my friend, Donald Miller, each week as he shares value bombs on topics like the secret to making better marketing decisions. Listen to Business Made Simple wherever you get your podcasts. Ever thought of giving a TEDx talk?

22:19It's one of the most powerful ways to share your message with the world and four-time TEDx speaker Taylor Conroy from Thought Leader can help you get there. Visit thought-leader.com to join Taylor's free training where he teaches you how to land a TEDx talk and spread your message to millions.