When Building a Brand, Start with the Why
“I shot my first free throws on that stripe right there,” laughs Path & Post COO & Owner Brad Nix to the April Lunch Circuit audience- a monthly gathering of successful entrepreneurs. He’s pointing to the free throw line painted on The Circuit’s floor- the same floor that was once Woodstock Elementary School’s gymnasium.
Fast forward over three decades later, Brad became one of a few hand-picked advisers to the Cherokee Office of Economic Development (COED) team for the early vision behind The Circuit and Fresh Start Cherokee. “How does it feel to be standing here today knowing you’ve come full circle from shooting hoops to building a culture of entrepreneurship in this very gymnasium,” asked Jonathan Chambers, COED Community Manager of Entrepreneurship in an interview leading up to the Lunch Circuit. Nix replied that he is honored to have played a role in this vision and hopes to see The Circuit become a prototype that multiplies across all of Cherokee County.
Nix is now back in the gym to speak about his new real estate brokerage, Path & Post and share what he has learned along the way with other entrepreneurs in the county. For this gathering Misti Martin, President and CEO of COED, and former classmate of Nix, stepped in as interview host in place of Chambers.
Path & Post is a realty team locally owned and operated by Nix and Becky Babcock. A set of core values drives the team which focuses on service rather than sales. “Here, the team is a collaborative environment, we don’t allow everyone to be all things to all people. This structure allows the agent to develop a work life balance and creates a culture of being excited to come and do what they do every day and work as a team.”
According to Nix, a critical strategy for an entrepreneur is taking the time to research the target audience before developing a product and being willing to make changes to a product once it is launched. It is important to take the time to identify the problem and narrow in on the solution that is the most effective and meaningful. It is also crucial to know that once the product hits the market- it’s going to break. The ability to accept that even good ideas will require tweaking and improvement is crucial for entrepreneurs. “You need to be street smart and willing to adapt to those changes that happen everyday and not bang your head against the same system.”
“What is the best advice you have received and how do you apply it?” asked Martin.
“Shut up and listen,” replied Nix, “is probably the best advice I’ve ever been given. All of the answers in the world are on your phone now, you don’t need to be spilling more information. You just need to ask your client a good question and then shut up and listen to what they have to say so you can understand their goals and desires and try to fulfill those. I try to build that into everything that I am a part of.”
Powered by Fresh Start Cherokee, located at The Circuit, and hosted by the Cherokee Office of Economic Development.
Monthly ticket only event. To join us at our 1 year anniversary Lunch Circuit featuring Woodstock entrepreneur, Jerry King of J. King Images please visit http://circuitwoodstock.com/events/.
The next Lunch Circuit will meet at The Circuit on May 9th from 11:30 am – 1:30 pm.