Harness Your Goals & Turn Dreams Into Reality - Dave Miller

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal and business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Dave Miller, Co-Founder of Pursuit Institute Coaching and Consulting, located in Chatham, ON, Canada.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

My wife Delynn and I run a mindset coaching and consulting company with two main tiers of customers. Our signature offering is a program called "One Thought Away," designed to get people unstuck, break through limiting beliefs, and create total abundance in their life. Our customers range from people looking to get healthier, wealthier, or who are out to improve the relationships in their lives. When we built this program, we realized through a mastermind group that we were running for other coaches who needed help with business development. We took all of the programs we have, the marketing and tools we used to build a business, and now offer it to other coaches who are in need of help growing their own coaching business. They maintain their identity and business but have full access to everything we offer.

Tell us about yourself

I have been in business for 21 years now. I began owning a health club when I was 19 years old, which expanded to owning several over the years. During that time, I also lived out my childhood dream and became a police officer, which I have done for the last 15 years, retiring from it in late 2021. I took all of those years of experience in both owning a business and working with the public to really expand my knowledge in a lot of areas. One thing I realized, I was always selling. Whether a product and service or unfortunate "bad news," I was selling. I learned a lot about persuasion and human psychology in this process. 10 years ago, Delynn left her role in healthcare management and began working in the natural health and coaching world, which transitioned to being a mindset coach. She worked under Bob Proctor at the Proctor Gallagher Institute for a few years, gaining tons of valuable experience before venturing out on her own. When I decided to leave my career, we joined efforts and combined many years of experience together. Every day we are motivated to connect with people and help them live truly fulfilled lives. We know from our own experience that our mindset and the stories that we tell ourselves can be our worst enemy or our best friend. It is amazing to watch people who feel trapped in their own minds and life break through and create something for themselves that they never thought would have been possible.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest accomplishment as a business owner is creating something entirely from the ground up. Owning health clubs has been great, but they were always already established. With Pursuit Institute, we took all of our passions, thoughts, and ideas and transformed them into a successful reality. It was really a testament to us that when you put your mind to something, with a strong vision and passion that it can be created.

What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?

Infancy and growth. At the start, you are learning so many new skill sets and trying to balance your time while generating revenue. You have to be able to wear multiple hats and understand the many different areas of business. Marketing, sales, finances, and product development are all important. It's easy to focus on the areas you are passionate about and ignore the others, but that can be fatal to your business.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

1. Starting a business - Start by determining what you have knowledge and skills in and what you are passionate about. It's so important that you have passion. Many entrepreneurs quit when they hit a roadblock. They quit because they weren't passionate about the idea, to begin with. Once you have that in order, look for market gaps that need to be served. Is there an existing service similar to your idea, or can you do it better? What are the problems and pains that society has that needs a solution? Once you can fill the gap in these areas, you have a great starting point.
2. Run a Business - Create a plan and get organized. Remove the chaos in your life. If that is not in order, your business will feel it. You must set aside time for the things you do not like to do. Determine if you need a team around you and have a budget for that. If you just wing it and hope for the best, your success is left to a coin flip. What gets managed gets done.
3. Growing a Business - How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Some days you will feel like you were so stuck and didn't accomplish much, and other days like you moved mountains. You need to look for regular feedback. This can come from yourself, your team, and your customers. Early on, no one expects you to have it perfect. Generally, people are very forgiving of you in the early stages. Continue to watch the market and look for opportunities to advance and grow your business. Be smart with your budget and aggressive when you need to be. There is always a risk in running a business, but you can stack the chips in your favour with research, feedback, and patience.
4. Lastly, combining all of these together, do not wait until you know how to do everything or for everything to be perfect. If you wait that long, you will never start, and someone else will swoop in and steal your ideas!

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://pursuitinstitutecc.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepursuitinstitute
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepursuitinstitute/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/pursuitinstitute/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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