In the episode featuring Paul Orfalea, co-author Anne Marsh, and the book "Copy This," the discussion delves into Orfalea's unconventional journey as the founder of Kinko's. Despite his dyslexia, ADHD, and a non-linear thought process, Orfalea's entrepreneurial spirit enabled him to build a $2 billion empire from a 100-square-foot copy shop, challenging the stigma associated with learning disabilities. The episode highlights Orfalea's unique management style, his superstitious nature, and his cost-conscious approach to business, which included high-margin, simple operations without inventory like Kinko's. Orfalea's story is a testament to turning perceived deficits into opportunities, as he joins a historical lineage of innovators who thrived despite educational systems that undervalued their potential. The conversation also touches on the emotional toll of selling Kinko's and Orfalea's subsequent efforts to repurpose his life post-sale, emphasizing the importance of asking questions and dreaming big.
"Paul says to me, hey, do you want to come out with me? I need some local information about rental rates." "He will not let a black cat cross his path." "We saw eight properties in what had to be under an hour." "Never lose money all the way back." "He puts offers on six of them and ends up buying four."
These quotes highlight Paul's approach to business, showcasing his decisiveness in real estate, attention to detail, and superstitious nature.
"I was the shipping manager and my job was to send out all the profit and loss statements to each of the stores every month." "I became a partner in the organization with five stores in the Bay Area, and I eventually sat on the board of directors."
These quotes summarize Speaker A's progression within Kinkos, from shipping manager to partner and board member, emphasizing the company's growth and success.
"More than half the books that I'm covering on the podcast are coming from listeners." "How I turned dyslexia, ADHD and 100 sqft into a company called Kinkos." "We're not dealing with a normal person. He's a crazy misfit."
These quotes discuss the podcast's sourcing of content and introduce the book "Copy This," highlighting Paul's atypical background and the founding of Kinkos.
"Of the eight schools my parents enrolled me in, four expelled me." "I graduated from high school 8th from the bottom of my class of 1200." "Today there are more than 1200 Kinko locations across the globe, and revenues from those stores topped $2 billion annually."
These quotes contrast Paul's difficult educational background with his remarkable business accomplishments, offering hope to individuals with similar challenges.
"When tearful parents come up to me to talk about their child's learning disorder, I ask them, oh, you mean his learning opportunity." "I didn't know it at the time that I opened my first kinkos, but there's a long history of innovators and achievers who owe their particular brilliance, at least in part, to their deficits."
Paul offers a positive perspective on learning disabilities, suggesting that they can be a source of unique strengths and contribute to success.
"Anybody can sit in an office thinking about what people are doing wrong. My job was to get out and find what people were doing right and then exploit it." "All I knew was that I could sell what came out of it."
These quotes reflect Paul's hands-on management approach and his belief in the fundamental role of sales in business success.
"I'm extremely human. I struggle with my temper." "The dark side of the Kinko story, is that the company was built, at least in part, on emotional extremes, most of them my own."
Paul's openness about his emotional challenges shows the human side of building a business and the importance of managing one's flaws.
"It didn't take long for me to conclude that I was basically unemployable. The only hope for me was to go into business for myself." "My mom dreamed her own dreams... She never relied on the bleak assessment of others."
These quotes highlight the transformative power of entrepreneurship for individuals who struggle in traditional employment and the importance of self-belief and family support.
"Paul was shaking all over. He told me, Danny, I've got this great idea. I realized I could start a copy shop myself. And I knew a place that needed one. My girlfriend at the time was a student 2 hours north of Los Angeles, up on the coast at the University of California at Santa Barbara." "The place was so small, by the time we needed a second machine, we had to lug it out on the sidewalk."
The quotes demonstrate Paul's realization of a business opportunity and his immediate action to capitalize on it, despite limited resources and knowledge of the machinery.
"I'm selling a way to relieve your anxiety." "He was stressed out and in a hurry. It was a state of mind. All of us at Kinkos would come to be immediately, or, excuse me, intimately familiar with."
The quotes highlight Paul's strategic insight into the true value proposition of his business—alleviating customer stress—and how this understanding shaped the company's service approach.
"You need to think harder before you can work hard." "Staying relatively inaccessible was the only way to stay on my business."
These quotes encapsulate Paul's philosophy of maintaining a strategic focus and ensuring that one's business activities align with long-term goals rather than short-term tasks.
"I went around campus handing out flyers." "We also targeted the faculty by going into their departments and pretending we were supposed to be there."
These quotes illustrate Paul's hands-on approach to marketing and his innovative tactics for expanding his business's customer base.
"It's almost like it's very analogous to what nature does, right? There's no top-down hierarchical systems in nature."
The quote reflects Paul's belief in decentralized experimentation and organic growth, drawing parallels between his business model and natural processes.
"I became ambitious again." "I wanted coworkers who would be empowered, entrepreneurs who tried to instill a sense. We tried to instill a sense of entrepreneurship in all of our workers."
The quotes emphasize the transformative power of perspective and the significance of incentive structures in motivating and empowering workers, which were central to Paul's management style.
"He reminds me very much of like Paul. It's just like this no frills business. Just take care of your employees, focus." "On the service you provide to your." "Customers, and don't overcomplicate things."
The quotes highlight the speaker's admiration for a straightforward business approach that prioritizes employee welfare and customer service without unnecessary complexity. This philosophy is likened to that of Paul, suggesting a successful model to emulate.
"Our plan for expansion was a pretty simple one. I got the idea for how to grow by playing the board game risk when I was a kid."
This quote explains how the speaker's childhood experience with the game Risk influenced their strategic approach to business expansion, teaching them that geographic boundaries need not limit growth.
"Being frugal, he says, we were really frugal. I would me, we talking about his partners at the time and him. We'd sleep in our cars to save on hotel rooms." "Spenders won't be cautious with their store profits."
These quotes convey the speaker's strong belief in frugality as a fundamental business practice, extending to the point of personal sacrifice and careful selection of partners based on their financial prudence.
"Paul also, in addition to putting all his warts and ugliness of him out in the book, talks about, I have adhd, I have dyslexia."
This quote reveals Paul's candidness about his personal difficulties, which is presented as a testament to his character and the challenges he has overcome in his life and business career.
"The only perspective that matters is the customers. So he says, I never walked in the back door that was used by my coworkers. I always walked in the front door so I could see things from the customer's perspective."
This quote underscores the importance of always considering the customer's viewpoint in business operations, suggesting that even the route taken into the store can impact understanding and empathy for the customer experience.
"Some of our partners created an inhospitable climate for customers. Some posted negative signs."
This quote illustrates the negative impact of not considering the customer's perspective, highlighting the importance of a welcoming environment and the detrimental effects of seemingly small negative actions.
"Take the service you provide your customers seriously, but have fun with everything else."
The quote encapsulates the philosophy of maintaining a serious attitude towards customer service while also ensuring that work remains enjoyable and fulfilling for employees, fostering a healthy work-life balance.
"And this is why we all did business differently. Dave, one of his partners, admired and sought to emulate big blue chip companies like General Electric."
This quote demonstrates the diversity of business approaches among partners and the understanding that there is no one-size-fits-all strategy for business, with each partner bringing their unique perspective to the table.
"But if it's your own money on the line, you have a completely different attitude. You want to find out all the dirt."
This quote emphasizes the difference in mindset between those who have a personal financial stake in a business and those who do not, with the former being more invested in uncovering and addressing issues within the company.
"Not interested in power, but in the deepest sense, I'm really not. Power to me, means having to do a lot of work."
The quote highlights Speaker A's view on power as being synonymous with excessive work, which they wish to avoid in favor of other activities.
"You rarely hear people talk about their dark sides, especially business leaders, which is a shame, because successful businesses aren't usually started by laidback personalities."
This quote underlines the notion that business leaders often have intense personalities, which can include a "dark side" that is seldom discussed publicly.
"No one's perfect. I failed to reach up to meet my own expectations."
The quote reflects Speaker A's self-awareness and acknowledgement of personal shortcomings, as well as a desire to improve.
"By 1990, when we had about 450 stores, I remember discovering my liability was many times greater than my net worth."
This quote illustrates the immense financial pressures and risks associated with business expansion.
"After I retired, I started taking Prozac. And believe me, it's a much more pleasant experience living in my own skin."
The quote reveals Speaker A's personal journey towards better mental health and the benefits of seeking medical help.
"As long as a person had passion and gumption, I could forgive a lot."
This quote suggests that Speaker A values passion and courage in others, even if it comes with difficult behavior.
"The copy business appealed to me because it fell perfectly within my circle of competence."
The quote conveys Speaker A's preference for businesses that are easy to understand and manage.
"I always told my partners to give the glory and take the money."
This quote emphasizes the philosophy of prioritizing financial success over public recognition.
"No matter what anyone says, walking away from something you spent 30 years nurturing is going to take a toll."
The quote captures the emotional challenge of detaching from a long-term business venture.
"For emotional reasons, I just can't go inside the stores anymore. I don't know if I ever will again. It's too difficult for me."
The quote expresses the lingering emotional attachment and difficulty in moving on from a business once sold.
"I always believe that the definition of success in life is when your kids want to spend time with you after they've grown up."
This quote reveals Speaker A's belief that true success is measured by the quality of one's relationships with family, particularly children.
"Learn to be immature at least some of the time. It's taken me my whole life to figure out that I don't have all the answers."
The quote suggests that maintaining a curious and open-minded approach to life is valuable, even into adulthood.