How to Master Business Growth Strategies for Success With Tyler Lordi

As entrepreneurs, we all face the challenge of scaling a business while maintaining the values that define our brand. In this episode, I sit down with Tyler Lordi, founder of GRIT Media Group, to explore his journey of growing a business from the ground up while navigating the evolving responsibilities of leadership. Tyler shares the pivotal moments that shaped his leadership style, emphasizing the power of generosity, adaptability, and listening. We dive into how he scaled his business using effective business growth strategies, from making the difficult decision of when to hire to maintaining company culture amidst rapid growth. Tyler reflects on the influence of his faith, his approach to leading a team, and how overcoming fear is crucial to success. This conversation is filled with actionable insights for leaders at every stage, whether you're just starting out or looking to grow your team.

Connect with Tyler Lordi:

If you're ready to take your business to the next level with proven business growth strategies, I encourage you to connect with Tyler Lordi. Visit GRIT Media Group at gritmediagroup.com to learn more and see how Tyler’s team can help you scale your business.


Books Mentioned:

• How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie 

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Chapters

• 0:00 Leadership Evolution: From Family Business to Entrepreneur
• 5:00 The Challenge of Scaling and Leadership Growth
• 10:00 Building Company Culture Through Business Growth Strategies
• 16:29 Overcoming Fear in Business Decisions
• 21:29 Leading with Generosity and Faith
• 26:29 Practical Business Growth Strategies for Entrepreneurs
• 31:29 Future of Leadership: Adapting and Thriving

Transcript

Dr. William Attaway: 0:00

I'm excited today to have Tyler Lordi on the podcast. Tyler, after graduating from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a degree in sports management and business, decided to help his family business. He was a manager in all aspects and helped to 5X the business growth. From there, his passion for helping businesses grow spread. He started Leads by Lordi and then, soon after, grit Media Group. His goal is to help other business owners grow their online presence while reaping the benefits of consistent lead flow and predictable sales. He and his team specialize in so many aspects of digital marketing SEO, web design, paid ads, social media management and lead management. Grit Media Group embraced the quote by Zig Ziglar you can have everything in life that you want if you'll just help other people get what they want. Grit stands for give rise, inspire and thriveire and Thrive. Tyler, I'm so glad you were here. Thanks for being on the show today.

Tyler Lordi: 1:09

Yeah, thanks for having us Appreciate it.

Intro\Outro: 1:12

Welcome to Catalytic Leadership, the podcast designed to help leaders intentionally grow and thrive.

Dr. William Attaway: 1:19

Here is your host, author and leadership and executive coach, Dr William Attaway host author and leadership and executive coach, dr William Attaway, and I would love to start with you sharing just a little bit of your story. I hit a few high points there, but I'd love to hear more about your journey and development, particularly as a leader.

Tyler Lordi: 1:38

How did you get started, I mean, I think, as a leader. I was pretty lucky because my dad I could say he was a leader obviously his whole life. You are as a father. As soon as you have a kid, you become a leader and he was always that for me, obviously, growing up and then coaching soccer, he was my soccer coach. Obviously. I worked for him after college so he led me through business, so he taught me how to be a soccer coach. He obviously taught me how to be a business person, how to work for someone and how to start your own business. So he was really, you know, the first leader in my life and has really developed a lot of my leadership skills today.

Dr. William Attaway: 2:19

So oh, so good, you know, when you started grit so oh, so good, you know, when you started Grit, you were pretty intentional about what you wanted to see happen, and I love the acronym right. Can you tell me a little bit about how that came to be?

Tyler Lordi: 2:35

Yeah, I mean, like you said it was, it was leads by Lord I first, um, and we weren't intentional. Obviously, we were just trying to make some money, right, just like I think most people do when they first started business. And you know it got to the point where I really had to dig in and, you know, figure out what do I want to do, right, what do I want to accomplish, who do I want to impact? And that's how grit really came to be. And, like you said, the Zig Ziglar quote hits the nail on the head there. And so that's kind of where that acronym came and it seems catchy and you know we could use it for different things, but you know it has a lot to do with our core values as well and those have, you know, really shaped over time.

Tyler Lordi: 3:27

But yeah, I mean, my wife and I were just sitting around one day and we thought what more can Leads by Lord I be? And that's really how the acronym came to be. It took us, honestly, like 20 minutes maybe to come up with it and it just it clicked and it made sense because you know we want to give in every level right, obviously, to our kids now, to our customers, to the church, and every aspect we want to give. And then, obviously, to do that, to be successful, you have to rise to the occasion, right? I think that's where a lot of people stop. They stop right there. They don't. They maybe have that, that heart to give, but they don't rise to that occasion.

Tyler Lordi: 3:58

And then you have to inspire along the way, and I think that it will come natural as, as you can take action there and then, obviously, through it all, you're going to thrive. So and again, in every aspect of life. It's not just marketing, it's not just business, but in literally every aspect. Because, let's be honest, when you run a business and even in life, like, there's just so many different factors, there's so many different factors in life, faith, business they're going to come at you all at once sometimes and you have to be ready for it.

Dr. William Attaway: 4:29

So you know, like me, you're a person of faith and you don't shy away from that and you don't hide that. You start with, give you lead, with generosity in this, and it feels like that comes out of your faith. Would that be accurate?

Tyler Lordi: 4:49

Yeah, definitely, yeah, absolutely. I think you know, obviously, in the teachings where we're we're told to give and be humble and all that. So, um it, that was just such an easy first part of of the company. Um, and you know, just going along the the quote of Zig Ziglar if you, if you give, you know as much as you can, you're going to get everything you want out of life. So, and I think that kind of a good transition would be not just to your clients, but to you know, your, your employees, um, you know again, to the family, everything that, that, that guy walking down the street, you know the person that you're going to hold the door for, I mean, they can be at every level.

Dr. William Attaway: 5:32

Yeah, you, you lead a team now and as that has continued to grow and your, your business has continued to grow and thrive. You know, leading a team can be a little bit different than, uh, than when it's just you, you know, or just you and the closest team.

Tyler Lordi: 5:48

I thought raising kids was hard.

Dr. William Attaway: 5:54

I think that's a trip hazard for a lot of people. I think when they get to the point where they're hiring people and they got to lead a team, that's a point where they really begin to struggle. Was it a struggle?

Tyler Lordi: 6:04

I think I'd be lying if I said no Do I think I thrive at it. No-transcript. And I'm proud to say I know some of my employees have been with me for three, four years. So yeah, it's definitely a struggle, but it's so rewarding as well.

Dr. William Attaway: 7:23

That's so good. I think leading a team is certainly challenging, but one of the things that I think is most challenging is trying to change in ways that are unhealthy, as people bring in their baggage and their experiences from other teams, from other companies, and they start to try to want to change things. You talked about the culture that you have and the values that you have. How do you keep that consistent? How do you communicate those to new team members and to existing team members in a way that keeps the North star directly in front of you?

Tyler Lordi: 7:57

Yeah, man, I don't know that there's a perfect answer. I definitely don't have it, but I think you know a lot of you know we're taught to obviously have our core values as a company and and you know I'll be the first to say our our probably onboarding process, where, like this would really come into play, uh, and people would kind of buy in, isn't as strong as it should be, um, but I think that our success, um, from kind of just winging it, right is uh, not shoving it down people's throat and just kind of letting them, uh, grow with you because, like you said, everyone's going to be different and they're going to have their different core values.

Tyler Lordi: 8:31

They're going to have their different experiences from other companies. You're going to have to adapt and let them learn with you and, at the end of the day, as long as you have your core values and you have that end goal in mind, it doesn't necessarily matter how you get there, as long as you get there, as long as everyone's on the same page. So, definitely, things are not going to be perfect. You're going to have differences, but can you effectively work through them together. And I think that's more important than you know being set in stone in certain things that you know you don't want to necessarily change, because I think when we don't change, that's when things break and that's obviously when you know you have churn from employees and you have, you know, some problems.

Dr. William Attaway: 9:15

That's really good. I talk often about culture and I believe every team, every company, every business, every organization has a culture. You either have one you designed on purpose or you have one you didn't mean to have. But you have a culture regardless, absolutely. If you were to describe Grit's culture, how would you describe that culture regardless, absolutely? If you were to describe grit culture, how would you describe that Ever-changing?

Tyler Lordi: 9:37

I think we, that's good, yeah, no, I mean, we have a really good core group and you know we have morning meetings every day and you know I love to just keep it light. I like to talk about what everyone did over the weekend. You know what is everyone up to lately? Anything everyone did over the weekend, um, you know what is everyone up to lately? Anything new and exciting.

Tyler Lordi: 9:56

Because, at the end of the day, listen, we're, yes, we have a job to do, but we're all people. We're people first, um, and we have families, some, some of us and, um, we have, uh, aspirations that beyond obviously just work because, let's be honest, it's just work right. You know, to me faith is most important. So you know, if I can get a chance to talk about you know, what happened at church on Sunday or whatever it is, I'm going to do that because that's most important. So that may be a sneak peek into maybe the culture. Like I said, it's not all sunshines and rainbows. Maybe the culture, like I said, it's not all sunshines and rainbows, but you know, I would say definitely lighthearted and I like to go off the motto work hard, play hard. So you know, let's have fun, but let's let's get our jobs done, so I like that.

Dr. William Attaway: 10:45

Yeah, as you have grown and developed the company, you've had to grow and develop as a leader you know you're not leading at the same level. You did three, four, five years ago and the same thing is going to be true three, four, five years from now. How do you stay on top of your game? How do you level up with the new leadership skills that you and your team and your business are going to need you to have three, four, five years from now?

Tyler Lordi: 12:45

Yeah, I mean, obviously, talking to people like you, right, that's that's extremely important to have mentors and different people that you can reach out to and look up to. But I think a lot of it just going to come from, as long as you're willing, right, the conversations you have with your team on a daily basis, or quarterly check-ins, whatever you guys do um, the answers are usually right in front of us, right, and I think we just need to be willing to accept them and then be willing to change and adapt and grow with those. Um, because you know I think you mentioned before you know people have baggage and it's never going to change and it's going to be, it's going to be messy. So you can either, you know, rise to the occasion, you know, or not. And if you don't, if you choose not to, then you know that's where it's going to get messy. That's good, you know even more so.

Dr. William Attaway: 13:37

That's good. Are there habits that you find helpful in your life that help you stay in that perpetual learning posture and that growth mindset?

Tyler Lordi: 13:47

I mean prayer for me. Yeah, you know, just all day. Yeah, you know I like to just again keep things light, listen to music. Again, keep things light, listen to music. And I think one of the most important things is just listen in general, not to music, but just to people, just actively listen, be slow to respond. I think that's the biggest habit I could recommend to anybody. So really take it in and don't be quick to speak.

Dr. William Attaway: 14:20

That's so good. I think listening is one of the most underrated and underutilized tools in a leader's tool bag. Yeah, when you leverage that, it's a game changer. When people feel listened to and heard, they lean in. If you think about grit and where it is today and where you want it to go from here, what is one thing that you want most in your business?

Tyler Lordi: 14:45

I think I always struggle with this question and answer on every level, to be honest, because I have a generic answer to it and it's really just to impact as many people. I'm here for the journey and I think we talked in the past about, you know, it doesn't matter if I'm holding a door open for someone you know or helping 10X their business. To me, impact is impact at every level. So, you know, ultimately that's it just to impact as many people as I can. That's it Just just to impact as many people as I can. And whether that's right or not, whether I should have a, you know, a top line goal, I don't know. But that's, that's the journey and the mission we're on and we'll see what comes from that.

Dr. William Attaway: 15:28

You know, I don't think there's one right answer to that question yeah, and, and I think this is a case where, you know, this really reveals so much of the heart that I see in you and in grit, again, starting with generosity. You know, it's no accident or happenstance that you began with that word, with give, because I think that's so reflective of who you are and who you aspire not just to be as a person, as a leader, but your, your company as well. So, when you think about that, if that's the, if that's the goal, if that's one thing you want most, what stops you from that?

Tyler Lordi: 16:06

I was actually just thinking about this. I think it's hard as a business because there's hard decisions we have to make when it comes to finances. Like you can't, at the end of the day, run a business technically without money, um, so there's hard stops of. You know someone doesn't pay their bill on time. You know you can be lenient, but at what point you got to have a line, right, you got to draw that line and um, you know, that's where a lot of times, you know it can stop for sure, um. Or or if an employee maybe let's just say, messes up, you know, over and over and over again, right, there's a lot of different scenarios. So at the end of the day, um, there won't be people without the business being healthy. So you have to make hard business decisions, first and foremost to be able to then give Um. But it doesn't obviously change, you know, the the ultimate goal.

Dr. William Attaway: 16:56

So yeah, Well, and and you have obviously that's been part of your rhythm is being willing to make hard decisions. I see over your shoulder the seven-figure agency plaque. You don't get to that level without making hard decisions. Most people will not get there. Hard decisions are part of the journey. It's easy, I think, for somebody to look at you, tyler, and say, oh wow, you know, his journey's just been up and to the right. He's never had to deal with the same challenges I deal with. He's never had to deal with the same problems I deal with. If somebody's sitting across from you and says that, what's your response?

Tyler Lordi: 17:38

I probably said the same thing when I was starting out. It's so funny. I was just thinking about this exact thing and I remember when I first started my company, we were at an event, I think in Vegas, and I'm sitting next to a guy that was probably in my spot. Now he's the guy I'm chasing. But I thought, you know, it's natural, how did he do it so fast? How can I, how can I do it Right?

Tyler Lordi: 18:07

And so it doesn't happen overnight, and it certainly didn't for us. I mean, especially going part-time in the business first and then full-time, like it was a big transition. So I was just and it's so funny, I was talking to a potential client the other day who said the same thing hey, that guy's doing more, they're doing, they're going faster. They grew in one year and it's taken me three or four. And I'm just like listen, we're all on our own path, it doesn't matter about anybody else, it doesn't matter, as long as we're true, as long as we stay consistent, we're going to get to where we want to go, you know.

Tyler Lordi: 18:44

So yeah, I've been there, been there, done that, said that, and I, I think I still do. Let's be honest. I think I still do and I think it's healthy. I think we should, we should have you know, we should strive for people, we should chase people, but understand that it's our journey, it's our path. We're on and we need to focus on that.

Dr. William Attaway: 19:03

That's fantastic perspective. I talk about the comparison game as one that nobody ever went. Yeah, you know, either you compare yourself to somebody who's not as far along as you are and you can tend to get puffed up and say, wow, look, how far along I am. Or you compare yourself to somebody who's way farther down the road than you are and then you begin to feel like, well, why can't I? It's a game nobody wins, and yet we all seem to play. We all seem to say, well, this will be different if I play it, the same results every time.

Tyler Lordi: 19:35

Yeah, we get so hard on ourselves. Even my, even my five-year-old, you know, playing baseball and he strikes out. Hey, you just need to hit three out of 10 to get into the hall of fame. You know what I mean. So true, so true, so I mean I think if we look at that outlook in business and in life, listen, we're going to strike out seven times, but as long as we can stay consistent and hit three out of 10, we're going to the hall of fame.

Dr. William Attaway: 19:58

I love that perspective. That's great. I was talking to one of my clients earlier today actually, and he's he's been implementing something that we talked about and I've been teaching him. You know, don't say people's no for you, don't say people's no for them. You know, so often we're just like I'm not even going to ask because they don't want to, they won't. I'm like, don't say they're no for them, you go ahead and make the ask. And so he's been finding some success with that, as he's done that. Make an ask. He wouldn't have made to find the great responses. But this morning he made an ask and was completely shut down. Just boom, just I mean hard, hard shutdown Right.

Dr. William Attaway: 20:36

Yeah, Just I mean hard, hard shutdown, right, yeah. And it was like oh oh. I was like, hey, you know what. It happens to me too. That's okay. Just because you don't say somebody's no for them doesn't mean sometimes they're not going to say no. That's the reality, right? It doesn't mean we stop asking, that's right, Because we want something better for them, right. And if we keep in mind what we want for them, not what we want from them, then we're never going to stop asking because we see something better. Yeah, thinking about your journey so far as a business owner, I imagine, like most of us, you've gotten a lot of advice, some that you asked for and some that you didn't. What is some of the best advice you have received so far in your journey?

Tyler Lordi: 21:22

Oh man, I think so much. I think one of the things I try to do is obviously go to events as much as possible, so sometimes it's overload Um, sometimes it's overload Um, um, best advice, best advice, um, you know from obviously a very early age, and I think I learned this definitely from my dad was, you know the, the listening part? Um, yeah, just listen and uh, eventually the, the customer, will tell you what they want. Um, they'll tell you what you want as long as you show up, as long as you show up. So, uh, I think a lot of people kind of go off of what you said or they're afraid to show up because they're afraid of rejection. Um, if you show up and just listen, they'll, they'll tell you what they need and what they want, um, so I think that's I mean, like I said, I probably could think of maybe a million more, but definitely just listen and just be there. I think that's solid.

Dr. William Attaway: 22:27

As a continual learner. I would imagine that you are constantly taking in information, and I love to read. I imagine that you have read more than a few things. Is there a book that has made a big difference in your journey, Something that you would recommend to the leaders who are listening? If they haven't read this man, you should put this on your list.

Tyler Lordi: 22:48

Yeah, we were just talking about this the other day at a conference and I don't know why I always go back to this one and I just think it's so important and it's how to win friends and influence people. Yeah, that's one of my favorites. Um, so, definitely, definitely. If you haven't read that one, read that one. But I will say my one of my all-time favorite books is the alchemist. And it may be not, you know, a leadership book or anything like that, but the alchemist is definitely a good read.

Tyler Lordi: 23:15

And I think it's just a good perspective on life and I think it can shape a lot of things. So you know, like I said, not a business book or anything, but I think having that outlook, then moving forward in other reads, is pretty good.

Dr. William Attaway: 23:33

You know, I haven't read that one. Now I'm going to add that to my list. There you go. Yeah, I haven't read that one. Now I'm going to add that to my list, thank you, there you go. Yeah, tyler. So often people leave a conversation like this with one big idea, one big takeaway that they walk away with. If you could decide and define what you want people to walk away with one big idea what would that be?

Tyler Lordi: 23:53

Well, I'm not going to say listen again, because I think we've said that a couple of times. It's okay if you do.

Dr. William Attaway: 23:57

I'm not going to say listen again, because I think we've said that a couple of times, it's okay.

Tyler Lordi: 23:59

If you do, it's good advice. That would definitely be a good one, for sure. I think one of the biggest things is don't be afraid. I think fear holds us back from so many different aspects of life, especially in business, and even myself I've struggled with fear a lot. Just don't be afraid. You never know what's going to be on the other side. So just take the leap. Whether it's your first hire, starting your business, trying something new, yeah, just take the leap, don't be afraid.

Dr. William Attaway: 24:30

Great advice, Tyler. I know people who are listening are going to want to stay connected to you and continue to learn from you and more about what you're doing. What is the best way for them to do that?

Tyler Lordi: 24:43

Yeah, I mean they can reach our website gritmediagroupcom and all the contact information's there.

Dr. William Attaway: 24:49

Perfect. Thank you today for your time, for your generosity and sharing so much of what you've learned so far in your journey. Tyler, I know the best days are yet to come.

Tyler Lordi: 25:00

Thank you for having me. I appreciate it.

Dr. William Attaway: 25:01

Thanks for joining me for this episode today. As we wrap up, I'd love for you to do two things. First, subscribe to this podcast so you don't miss an episode, and if you find value here, I'd love it if you would rate it and review it. That really does make a difference in helping other people to discover this podcast. Second, if you don't have a copy of my newest book, catalytic Leadership, I'd love to put a copy in your hands. If you go to catalyticleadershipbookcom, you can get a copy for free. Just pay the shipping so I can get it to you and we'll get one right out.

Dr. William Attaway: 25:38

My goal is to put this into the hands of as many leaders as possible. This book captures principles that I've learned in 20 plus years of coaching leaders in the entrepreneurial space, in business, government, nonprofits, education and the local church. You can also connect with me on LinkedIn to keep up with what I'm currently learning and thinking about. And if you're ready to take a next step with a coach to help you intentionally grow and thrive as a leader, I'd be honored to help you. Just go to catalyticleadershipnet to book a call with me. Stay tuned for our next episode next week. Until then, as always, leaders choose to be catalytic.