“Impact Venture Capitalists!”

Morning Team…

Let me put on my CEO hat for a minute. I want to talk to you about the future. For the turn of the new year, our Impact Club team is gearing up for launch. That means dialing in all of our operational processes.

Impact Club is an organization, which means it must be efficiently operated, managed, have a clear vision and be paid for. There is a lot that goes into that – not just at the local level, but also the national level, and now, as of last Monday with the launch of our New Zealand Impact Club, the Global level.

How do you pay for all this? That is the challenge.

I AM ADAMANT ABOUT NEVER BASTARDIZING THE MISSION OF IMPACT CLUB.

EVER!

TO INSPIRE THE UNINSPIRED.

TO BRING STORYENGINES TO THE WORLD.

This means, for starters, we must continually improve our operational efficiency. When we started Impact Club, my local-co-founders and I, I’d fly along with my in-house videographer to every event. I racked up tens of thousands of airline miles. And tens of thousands in travel expenses.

$1,700 vs $300

Then one day I did the math. Factoring in lost productivity, lost opportunity (of working on my own projects vs. Impact Club) and the actual cost of travel, food, lodging, etc. It totaled $1,700 to $2,300 – depending on West coast vs. East coast. By hiring local videographers though (one Lead, two support) – that expense has been cut to $600 total. And really, comparing apples to apples, $300. Because that’s what we pay the Lead. This transition, of course, did not come without growing pains.

First, we had to create a scalable hiring system. At any given time, Sarah, our production manager is hiring between 15 to 30 videographers for as many as ten different Impact Club events. How do you keep track of all these projects? That was another challenge. Then even when we hired the videographers, you can probably guess what happened – some videographers didn’t show up. Others forgot equipment that they committed to bring. Some just sucked.

Through it all though, we learned, adapted and updated our process. Sarah has spent many hours creating Lead & Support Videographer Guidebooks. Which, altogether, has dramatically decreased our operating expenses.

But it doesn’t stop there, because then you have to edit all that footage. Well, it didn’t take long before my in-house post-production team was buried. And hiring more in-house employees, for many reasons, didn’t make financial sense. So now you guessed it, another set of guidebooks.

The Editor Training Guidebooks.

Not to mention, another scalable hiring system to hire only the capable editors that could uphold Impact Club standards. For each event, this is another expense of $450 to $650 buckaroos. And while, again, there were growing pains. This process brought another huge increase in operational efficiency.

To assist our freelance partners even further, we are now creating video tutorials like theseto increase the consistency of our production. Starbucks coffee, regardless of where you get it, tastes like Starbucks coffee. Ask any chef. “Consistency matters.” If customer No. 1 vs customer No. 200 has a dramatically different experience for the same menu item, you got a problem.

So it goes with Impact Club too. We want to standardize our ‘experience expectation’ across all Impact Clubs. As you can imagine, this presents another challenge.

The good news? We’re up for it.

This is what makes us a strong team. There’s no quit in us. The infrastructure my tech team has built, soon to be unveiled and launched, will be an immense help. But there will still be challenges. There’ll still be costs. There’ll still be man-power issues. There’ll still be operations pocks and flaws.

But that’s what makes for a good CEO. The ones I’ve studied, and admire, and respect –

(and try to emulate) –

Like a good ship boat captain – he keeps ‘er off the rocks.

So…

You keep inspiring. I’ll keep wrestling the tides.

-RYAN

Co-founder & CEO, Impact Club

PS: How do you fund all this? Yes, I get that question often. The answer is always the same. My co-founders and I fund it with our own money by running other successful businesses. But if I ever run out of money or need additional funding, trust me, you will be the first know through an update just like this.

MEET MARRIO JETER!!!! (BOOM)

Why do we do it? THIS IS WHY WE DO IT.

Marrio’s StoryEngine for Communities In Schools (Cape Fear) won by an overwhelming vote margin. As I tell every Impact Club charitable presenter, tell us a story. Make is feel. Make us care.

Marrio did just that. Good for him!!! – the power of Story “at work.”

Story Transcript:

===================

I can do this. That’s what I told myself as I prepared to walk into their office and sign the forms to drop out of school. See, I know it was fear that was speaking for me, but understand, I did not arrive at this decision lightly, because my educational plight might be one that would bring tears to your eyes.

God knows I prayed for starry nights, but not even Vincent van Gogh’s sacrifice could drown out the sound of my mother’s live-in boyfriend shooting my little brother. I walked in this office, and this man, he saw me. Saw me for my worth. He told me, he said, “There’s only five things that kids need and deserve on this earth. That’s a one-on-one relationship with a caring adult, a safe place to learn and grow, a healthy start and a healthy future, a marketable skill upon graduation, and a way to give back to my community and my peers.”

He asked me, “If I provide this mortar for you, will you build a monument with the bricks that life has thrown at you? One that cannot be destroyed? A monument that says the testament of what happens when we surround students with a community of love, enabling them to stay in school and achieve in life.” So I paused, and I waited.

I thought to myself, “I can do this.” Hope began to flood my soul, and Lord knows light began to shine through the sky. I thought to myself, “I cannot give up on me. I can do this.” That’s what I told myself as I walked across the stage. Long gone are the days of my senior status with a middle school GPA. I got credits that were earned, but no lessons ever being learned. I’m strolling across this stage, and my family and friends are there to see. They’re going to see me shake the chancellor’s hand with my right, and in my left hand, receiving my masters degree.

That’s the impact that communities and schools has with wonderful, loving community just like you. God bless you.

======

That StoryEngine won Marrio $14,000+ to fund the impact that he lives to make in the lives of other’s, every day, through Communities In Schools Cape Fear. I know he thanks you. I thank you too.

(Through a well-told story, anything is possible!)

KEEP INSPIRING OTHERS!

Upcoming Impact Club dates:

Nov 13th – Impact Club Tri-Town (IN – 1st Event)

Nov 14th – Impact Club Frederick (MD – 4th Event)

Nov 14th – Impact Club Conejo Valley (CA – 3rd Event)

Dec 6th – Impact Club Boise (ID – 3rd Event)

Dec 7th – Impact Club Coeur d’Alene (ID – 2nd Event)

Dec 11th – Impact Club Wilmington (NC – 2nd Event)

Jan 11th – Impact Club Union City (CA – 3rd Event)

More announced soon…

By the end of 2017, we will have raised close to million+ to fund local charities.

-Ryan Fletcher

Co-Founder, Impact Club – forever Grateful.

PS: Encourage everyone you know to learn the Language of Story. If they do, life, business, fundraising, relationships, the attraction of opportunity, clients, money, love, etc. will be much easier for them.