Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal and business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Shep Hyken, Founder of Shepard Presentations, LLC., located in Saint Louis, MO, USA.

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

If you've ever walked away from a business and thought, "Wow, they are amazing," that's what I help my clients achieve. My official title at Shepard Presentations is CAO, which stands for Chief Amazement Officer. A less exciting description is that I'm a customer service and experience expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. We help our clients create amazing customer experiences for their customers, clients, guests, etc. Companies and associations hire me to speak at conferences and meetings worldwide. We also have trainers that do a "deep dive" with my customer service content and on-demand/online video-based customer service courses. Our clients included Fortune 50 companies and clients with less than 50 employees. Some of our larger clients include Amazon, American Express, Disney, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP, Four Seasons, Lexus, and many others. In addition to the work with clients, I've written eight books, have a weekly podcast with over 400 episodes, and have written a weekly column for Forbes since 2014.

Tell us about yourself

I started my first business when I was 12 years old. It was a birthday party magic show business. In addition to a good show, my parents taught me some basic customer service skills, such as expressing appreciation, getting feedback, how to improve the experience and the show, and more. Within a year, I was doing eight to ten magic shows a week. Eventually, I started performing in restaurants, comedy clubs, and corporate events. When I graduated college, I decided to pursue a career in professional speaking after seeing Zig Ziglar and Tom Hopkins. I had the "on-stage" experience, and I loved business. Specifically, I loved customer service. That was almost four decades ago. Since the beginning of my business, I've stayed in the lane of customer service/experience. I'm excited to work with new clients regularly. While they are learning from me, I'm also learning from them. I talk to people and read articles daily to stay on the cutting edge of my industry. I'm motivated by life. I have plenty of interests and hobbies. I play guitar, practice my magic and sleight-of-hand, play golf, play ice hockey, and have a fantastic wife and three kids.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Building and sustaining a business for almost 40 years is an accomplishment. I've had some milestones that include hitting the bestseller lists with some of my books (New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Amazon, USA Today, and others), being inducted into the National Speakers Association Hall of Fame for achievements in the professional speaking industry, and a list of clients that include some of the most recognizable brands on the planet.

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

I love being creative with a big vision for future ideas. The key is to surround myself with people who can activate that vision and support my ideas. Getting others to move at my speed is not easy. It's taken a long time, but I've learned to be a better leader and communicator. An entrepreneur doesn't ride solo and needs a good team to bring a vision (and business) to life.

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

Just three? Here you go…

  1. Success doesn't happen by accident. Have a plan. Make it detailed and assign timelines, goals, and more.
  2. Delegate. As your business grows, you must trust others to do the job you hired them to do. So, hire right and empower your employees.
  3. Remember, I'm the customer service/experience guy, but as much as we want to show our customers love and take care of them, it's just as important, if not more so, to show your employees love. Practice what I refer to as The Employee Golden Rule: Do unto your employees as you want done unto the customer – maybe even better!

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

I'll share one more idea as it applies to customer service. Customer service is not a department. It's a philosophy to be embraced by every employee, from the CEO to the most recently hired. It's ingrained in the culture. Everyone has to have a service mentality.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://hyken.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shephyken/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shephyken/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hyken
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shephyken/

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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