I was recently interviewed by Authority Magazine to talk about the 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Became A Founder.
Here’s a recap:
Ryan Englin is the Founder and CEO of Core Matters, a company dedicated to helping small to medium-sized businesses build better teams and become the employer of choice by transforming their hiring and retention processes. With over 20 years of experience in hiring and retention, Ryan is passionate about providing blue collar businesses with the tools they need to attract, hire, and retain top talent, which has earned him a reputation as a thought leader in the industry. When he’s not working, Ryan enjoys spending quality time with his family in nature.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
My decision to focus on hiring and retention strategies for small to medium-sized blue collar businesses is deeply rooted in my personal experiences. Growing up, I watched my dad, an owner/operator, work tirelessly to keep the business running. Often, the whole family would pitch in to help in the shop, on the floor, or in the warehouse. It wasn’t long before I could drive a forklift and help keep the warehouse in great shape.
Looking back, I realize it was a lack of good people that kept my dad at the plant, instead of home with our family. This sparked my vision to create positive work environments for 500,000 employees by helping small to medium-sized business owners hire and retain the right people.
Can you tell us a story about the hard times that you faced when you first started your journey?
The financial piece was the hardest. I had never been an entrepreneur before, so not only was I figuring out the business side of running things, but I also had to quickly learn sales and marketing strategies. My taxable income was a couple thousand dollars my first year in business! It wasn’t until a few years in that I finally started making regular, predictable money. All of that struggle was the result of the steep learning curve that comes along with being an entrepreneur. I just didn’t have processes and systems in place. I had to learn everything. Once I realized that, things got much easier.
Where did you get the drive to continue even though things were so hard?
After a decade in corporate America, I knew I would never go back. I love being an entrepreneur and working for myself. That’s what kept me going, even on the most difficult days.
So, how are things going today? How did grit and resilience lead to your eventual success?
Now business is going great! I have an amazing team in place and we serve our clients well. I’ve had the opportunity to speak to large audiences, host a podcast geared for Titans of the Trades, and even wrote a best-selling book about how to Hire Better People Faster. All of this was possible because I stayed focused on my purpose and vision. Grit and resilience are the foundation to entrepreneurship. When things get hard and you want to quit, you just have to push through it.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
Several years ago, I had someone helping me with my online brand — getting my social media accounts updated, adding content, etc. One day, someone on my internal team let me know our LinkedIn headline had been changed to say: Creator of the Core Fit Firing System. Firing, not Hiring. A simple mistake, but such a glaringly obvious one. To this day, I don’t know how long it was posted incorrectly.
I’m a stickler for precision and attention to detail. From that day on, I knew we had to have a better quality control process in place to show the world how much we cared about our employer brand. I’ve learned that I can’t do everything, but I also can’t blindly trust someone I don’t know even if they have a fancy title behind their name.
What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?
I think Core Matters stands out because we really want meaningful change. We want to make the trades cool again. One of our Core Values is that we serve others. We truly believe in putting other people’s wants, needs, and dreams ahead of our own. Not because we have to, but because we want to. Everyone on my team is 100% bought-in to this value and our clients really feel it in the work we do.
Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
The best way to avoid burnout is by staying true to your purpose and vision. You have to know why you’re doing what you’re doing. You have to stay aligned to the change you want to see. When that’s always top of mind, it’s easy to thrive, even on the most exhausting days.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
Mike Toney has shifted my thinking on so many things. He’s especially impacted the way I think about business, relationships, and communication.
I’ll never forget the time he stopped me in front of a group and called me out for being a jerk. I stopped in my tracks. I had no idea. In that moment, I thought I was being a little playful and feisty; adding to the dynamic discussion. It turned out that’s not how it was coming across to the group. I got a very humble lesson and learned a lot in that moment.
Mike is someone I know I can always count on to give me honest, straightforward feedback. I trust him to keep it real, even when it’s hard to hear, and that’s something I value deeply.
How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?
At Core Matters, we help companies become the employer of choice. By teaching them to attract, hire, and retain the right people, they’re able to build incredible teams and scale their company like they’ve always wanted to. More importantly than business growth, we help our clients create an environment where their team and their families thrive. From there, it’s a ripple effect: their teams are more engaged and serve customers better. This changes communities and brings so much goodness to the world.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me before I started leading my company” and why.
- You need systems. Without systems, you won’t get anything done. The E-Myth by Michael Gerber was a book that changed my thinking on so many things. It was the first business book that I ever broke out a highlighter and a notepad. It’s packed with insight that shaped my path as an entrepreneur. From the idea of the franchise model to creating repeatable, scalable systems, it changed the way I do everything.
- Align everything with your vision. When you know where you’re going, everything else is a lot easier. The more clarity you get, the better and faster you move. When I first started out, I knew in the back of my mind where I wanted to go. But when I brought in a consultant to really dig into this, I realized I wasn’t aligned with my business partner. In fact, we were so far apart, he didn’t even want to participate in the exercise. Once you’re clear on the foundation of your business, you can start to grow a team of people who are truly aligned with where you’re going.
- Hire slow, fire fast. We talked about this in corporate a lot, but the reality was we couldn’t do it. There was always 90 days of hoops to fire someone with HR’s approval. As time went on, I figured out how to reduce that HR time to 30 days and before I knew it people were sending their struggling team members to me so I could fire them faster. It’s hard to fire fast in corporate. But if you own your own business, you can speed things up. Of course you want to work with your employee first, but as soon as you know the issue can’t be resolved, it’s time to move forward.
- “Work supports life, not the other way around.” I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Sabrina Starling on my podcast. She’s amazing. She’s written a lot about this topic and even delivered a TEDx Talk on it. We live in a world where hard work, even obsessive workaholic tendencies, are praised and rewarded. But as an entrepreneur, I’ve learned that my business depends on me being well. If I’m not functioning at full capacity my team and my clients suffer. Over the years, I’ve taken this lesson and gotten better at carving out time for clarity breaks and time away from work. If you can’t truly disconnect from work and enjoy doing the things you love, your business isn’t as strong as you think it is.
- Sometimes you have to wear all the hats. Whether I like it or not, sometimes I have to wear all the hats. That means doing things, even when I don’t like it. I’m talking about you, marketing and sales. Along the way, I’ve learned that these two fields are two very different skill sets and critical to the success of a small business. As you grow as an entrepreneur, you can slowly outsource the “hats” you don’t prefer. Outsource the work you’re not as good at ASAP. Until then, it all has to get done.
Can you share a few ideas or stories from your experience about how to successfully ride the emotional highs & lows of being a founder?
The number one thing that’s kept me sane on this entrepreneurial rollercoaster is my support system. My wife has been with me since before my corporate days. She’s watched me struggle and watched me win. She truly understands the core values, vision and purpose behind Core Matters. There have been times I wanted to quit, but after a conversation with her, I’m back on track and ready to tackle whatever comes my way. She is always on my side and incredibly encouraging. If you don’t have a supportive spouse, you have to find a mentor or a peer group. It’s going to be impossible to ride the emotional highs and lows without a community. In the beginning, it’s a grind. And the beginning can last a long, long time. Use your support system, trust them to call you out if you’re getting off track, and find a sense of belonging with people who are there for you.
You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
If I could start a movement, I would want people to realize that construction jobs are cool. The people working in the field already know it. It’s time we share that with the world. At Core Matters, our purpose and vision are closely aligned. We aim to challenge the status quo and make the trades cool again. We need to create work environments where families and communities thrive. Leaders have to be selfless to accomplish that. They have to give more to their team and create an environment where they thrive. From there it’s a ripple effect — your team will serve your customers and your community better when they’re better cared for. When you take the next step and create a company where families thrive, that’s incredible. It’ll change your entire community.
