Savannah: Welcome back to the Marketing on the Move podcast. My name is Savannah Abney and I am a partner and the CEO of the Breezy Company. With me today is our Chief People and Accounts, Emily Hunter, to bring some great marketing wisdom. But even more exciting is our guest we have today, Tim Fortescue. Fortescue is one of my favorite clients I’ve ever worked with. He’s an amazing communication coach, working with all kinds of massive brands like HubSpot, Asana, Meta, you name it. He is the communication guy and really understands how to help executives step into their leadership presence and communicate really well to drive business growth. So Tim, thank you so much for being here today.
Tim: Thanks for having me. It’s good to see you.
Savannah: First things first, just tell us a little bit about your entrepreneurial journey because I actually already know it a bit and it’s super interesting kind of where you started, how you got into what you’re doing. Just give us a little summary of all that.
Tim: Yeah, it was never meant to be an entrepreneurship journey. That’s the interesting part of it. Probably 20 plus years ago now, I’m dating myself. The whole dream was to be a coach for a living. I was looking for ways to coach basketball. I was a basketball coach. The dream was do it and make a living doing it. And for about 12 to 15 years, I tried turning over as many stones as I could to make that happen.
Along the way, I coached a lot of awesome players and teams that I hold fondly, but I never quite made it work. So I ended up being a high school basketball coach for most of those years. And for anyone listening, if you’ve played high school sports or if you’ve got kids who play travel or high school sports, those coaches make about enough to fill their gas tank, maybe. Now with culture of sports, I mean, it’s year round. So they might not even be able to fill their gas tank with the stipends that they get. So you do it for love and I love it. I loved it, still do, but it just wasn’t working.
And then there was this moment of serendipity. It was 2014. I’d been at it for a while and getting close to burnout. And then my day job, I had a career. My day job, I worked at the University of Michigan at the time. I was a fundraiser for their health system, their cardiovascular center. And we had this professional development workshop that was on all of our calendars. And the afternoon, we were supposed to go to this conference room and learn about public speaking. And I thought, cool, I don’t have time for this, but let me show, maybe I’ll learn a thing or two. I’ll sit in the back and take some notes and then duck out.
And I went to this workshop and I was blown away. From the minute I walked in, I was engaged by the facilitator. I thought he did an awesome job. As I sat there, I was so immersed in the content that I started thinking, this is kind of how I want my practices to look with my players in basketball. I want lots of movement. I want people not getting stagnant. I wanna go from thing to thing quickly. I don’t wanna lecture a bunch. And it was just, that was his approach.
And so at the end of the half day, which just flew by, I remember I went up and I thanked the facilitator, just saying like, this was amazing. Thank you for doing this. And I was gonna leave, but he stopped me and he kind of held onto the handshake and said, you know, you could do this. I was like, what do you mean? Like, you could do this. I’ve seen how you communicate in the exercises and in the room and you could do what I do. And if you’re ever interested, here’s my card and I’ll show you how it all works. I’m not trying to poach you from the University of Michigan, but you could take your vacation days. I’ve got some pretty cool clients.
And he had some amazing clients in this small company he was building. And so I rushed back to my computer and emailed him. And next thing I knew later that month, he was showing me, he taught me and other people how to do what he did. And then flash forward, like a year later, I was, went from being in a gym, you know, coaching high schoolers and fundraising by day to now I’m in Facebook, Twitter, Google, Nike, ESPN, L’Oréal, you know, Intel, just to drop a few big names. And it’s like, I’m leading the same kind of workshops that I was sitting in and getting more and more confident, but certainly feeling like, how am I even here? Am I even, the imposter syndrome was real.
And that was 2015. And since then it’s taken off. I started my own business in 2021. So I wanted to create more customized experience for clients. So I started 40 Watt Coaching, which is my company in 2021. And it’s been an awesome five years.
Savannah: Amazing, amazing.
Savannah: Okay, so let’s get into starting 40 Watt. And obviously we’re biased towards marketing because that’s what we do. So I just would love to hear, especially for founders and solopreneurs when they’re first getting started, I feel like there’s a lot of like fear around marketing. There’s a lot of apprehension, confusion. It also is just very overwhelming because there’s like a million things you could be doing, what’s actually worth your time. Like trying to navigate all of that is really complicated. So what were the things that you tried early as you were getting the company off the ground? What do you feel like worked? What would you do differently if you could, et cetera?
Tim: I’m smiling so big. If people are listening, picture a big smile on my face because the pain points that you just heard from Savannah were all, that’s me, that’s me to a T. I had no idea what I was doing with marketing. My background was fundraising, like I mentioned, but before that for 10 years, I was in sales. I was in pharmaceutical sales. And so the name of the game there is working through this large list of potential clients that could be your clients and whittling it down to finding the best, the best handful, like the 80-20 rule, or even the 90-10 rule. You know, most of your business is gonna come from a small group.
So I had that part down. I didn’t have anything else down other than the delivery, the ability to coach people, the ability to lead great workshops and build good content. But on the marketing side, I didn’t even have a website when I started. I had a handful of clients before I even had a website. And so I was rushing, you know, having a friend of mine who’s a designer, an awesome designer, build me a website almost as a favor after I was already a business.
And so that was my approach. My business got busy relatively quickly. I got smarter as to finding the right types of clients over the first few years, but quickly using kind of the seller’s approach and starting with my own network, really. And when I say sales, I mean, it sounds a lot more intense than it is. I mean, I was asking people in my network if they’d take a call with me and ask for advice, tell them what I was thinking about doing with my business and if they had any ideas. And a handful of them said, yeah, and I think you could actually help my team or you could help my company. And that was where it all started.
Savannah: That’s awesome. Very cool.
Savannah: Do you feel like there was a moment where things started to take a shift, where you started to notice things are actually moving forward now? What was that transition like from getting started to feeling like you’re really on the up and up?
Tim: It started in that first year. I wanted to prove that the concept was gonna work, that the concept was, can I make a living doing this my way, just me, with no clue about anything else other than delivering training content, coaching people, building curriculums. I didn’t know legal, finance, marketing, any of the aspects of a business.
And so I remember thinking, I’m gonna give myself about six months to do this and maybe nine, looking at what did I have in the savings? How far could I stretch it and how far could I go? And I remember about three to six months in where I had a couple companies that were paying clients and one or two of them that recurred, where it was like, wow, we’re gonna work together more than one time. And I started to see, okay, I’m onto something, like this is working. And I actually was leaning into what I was good at for a change in terms of the real service, not the other aspects of the business, which I was lost, clueless. But that’s where, yeah, in that first six months, it was kind of like, this is working. And that was the first click. There were others along the way, but that was the first big one.
Savannah: So kind of still going down this path, a little bit more now as opposed to back when. Let’s talk about LinkedIn. Everybody has like a love-hate relationship with this platform. I think it’s like, we all know it’s like a it’s almost like a necessary evil at this point. It’s like this thing we have to do to stay visible, but there’s also a lot of, you know, just annoyance around it too. So what do you think that LinkedIn has, what role has it played in your business? How do you approach it now? What are sort of your feelings on it as a founder, particularly for your niche, for your space? Because there are a lot of different approaches to it based on industry and things like that.
Tim: Yeah, LinkedIn is the only platform I’m actively using. It has been since the beginning. I should air quote around using because before I met Savannah, before I started working with Breezy, I was using means I posted like twice a year. Hey everybody, I’ve got a new company. I’m doing it my own way. And then like, you wouldn’t hear from me for another six months. So that was how it started.
But I still, I used LinkedIn because that was where I started looking through my network and thinking like, who can I connect with? Who can I ask for advice? Who can I have a coffee Zoom with, Zoom coffee with and talk about what I’m doing. So I was active on LinkedIn, but not in terms of content until I started working with Savannah.
So it’s been a journey with LinkedIn. I have a love hate relationship with it, mostly love of LinkedIn, but the hate part was more just, I just hated putting myself out there and videoing myself or talking about myself in any way. It’s just not me is probably a lot of people you work with. And so that was a huge leap for me to trust somebody, which was Savannah that yes, you can do this. Yes, you do have stuff that people who might not even know you could benefit from. And even the people in your network who haven’t heard from you in a while, it’s you’ve got content that could help them too. So it’s an evolving process, but yeah, that’s the main one I use and I get a ton of value from it.
Savannah: It’s funny to hear you say, you probably work with people who aren’t like me. I think you are more the rule than the exception. Most people, it’s great to hear that that was a turning point and it contributed to some of the success, but that is so normal. And I would say to anybody listening, that is absolutely the standard. And we or whoever you’re working with or finding research online about who else feels this way could be that thing that pushes you over the edge to actually get started for yourself.
Tim: Makes sense.
Savannah: I actually think that what we do so much is actually coaching. We are practitioners obviously, and we do actually produce assets and put things out there and create strategies and all of this, but so much of our job is actually just coaching and encouraging people that they can do this and that their voice matters, what they have to say has value, pushing people outside their comfort zone.
What’s kind of interesting is because you’re a coach by trade, obviously, and there were a lot of things that I learned about coaching more holistically from your content that I then have been able to use with other clients in my sphere. And there’s like a lot of like coaching and there’s a lot of, there’s a conduit throughout coaching, like whatever it is, if it’s communication, if it’s executives, if it’s business, finance, whatever it is, there’s still that through, through our e-sports, like coaching is kind of coaching across the board. And if you can learn to do that, you can really kind of set yourself apart whatever your niche is.
Tim: Makes total sense. Yeah, and to go back to the point you made at the beginning of your last statement, you are coaching, you were coaching me. It’s so much of it for people in your field, if that’s part of the audience here, I hope it’s a little, it’s a lot of handholding for somebody and reassuring and telling them that, yes, you do have something valuable to say. And yes, you can help people and you can also help your business as you’re doing it. And so, yeah, there was a huge emotional component to putting yourself out there and having somebody that you trust, that earns your trust to work with you, that’s a major asset. And I have to have people do it for me too.
Savannah: I literally do this for a living, but the staff members on our team that manage my personal content, they have to push me too. Because I’ll still say, they’ll have this idea, I’m like, oh, that’s so cringe, I can’t do that. Like, oh, I cannot film myself in public do it. Like, no, I can’t, I can’t. Yes, you can, yes, you can, you can do it. And then, you know, I tell my husband later that night, oh, you want me to do this? He’s like, oh, I’ll film you doing that, that’s fine. Like, you should do it, absolutely.
Like, you need hype people in your life, but that’s what I hope, you know, we can be in some ways for people who have a hard time putting themselves out there because it is hard. Even for people who do this for a living, it’s difficult.
Tim: 100%.
Savannah: So let me ask you this. You have worked with huge companies. You also have done one-on-one coaching with executives. How have you positioned your business to resonate with C-suite execs in these big spaces, whether it was for their whole team or if it was for them? Like, you’ve really been able to position yourself as a pretty high level individual. How long were you able to do that versus like, I mean, there’s obviously communication coaches for all sorts of levels, but yours is definitely more of an elevated approach. How are you able to kind of position yourself that way?
Tim: It’s a good question. And it’s humbling to even think about it that way because when I started five years ago on my own, it was, would anybody want to hire me? And I think that’s probably just the journey of an entrepreneur. Would anybody want to pay for my service or buy my product or whatever it is? And so at the beginning, it was, would any team at any company be interested in this? And then, oh yeah, it is.
And then sort of stepping further and further into it, I started realizing that there is a market. There’s a market for senior leaders. And so the changes I’ve made in the five years I’ve been doing this has been around the way I tell my own story. And the way I tell my story is, it’s not, it’s this, it’s the way I tell it, which that part I’ve felt pretty solid about from the beginning, but the way my website told my story or tells my story, I’ve revamped that quite a bit. And it wasn’t a design issue. It was just more, I wasn’t telling my story.
You know, it was, I want people who click on 40wattcoaching.com to come and see it, to get the look and feel of it right away. And it’s the same thing with the stories that I tell on LinkedIn or the content I put out. It’s the proposals I use, you know, the templates, the one-pagers, it’s like every asset, my goal is to try to position it in a way that if a senior leader at a company saw this and they were sharing it with their team saying, should we work with this person, that from the beginning, there’s a credibility of, you know, it looks and feels like something that we should be looking at.
Savannah: Yeah, you instantly have authority because of how you’ve presented yourself from the beginning.
Tim: And yes, and I also want to talk about that too, because that’s an intimidating way to say it. And it’s true, but also when I used to see that when I’d read other people’s content, authority and what does that mean? Does that mean that I talk about that I’m the best or does it mean that, what does it really mean? Well, what I’ve stepped into is subtle, you know, I’ve leaned into, like my style is not to be the loudest voice in the room or to be the most confident or to be the most anything. It’s to be the most genuine, the most authentic, the most relatable. And I think that’s what resonates with people.
And so when I think about authority, it’s not about being the loudest or the most confident. It’s about being the most credible. And credibility comes from consistency. It comes from showing up. It comes from delivering on what you say you’re going to do. And it comes from being vulnerable and being honest about the journey. And I think that’s what people connect with.
Savannah: I love that. And I think that’s such an important distinction because I think a lot of people think that authority means being the loudest or the most confident or the most polished. And I think what you’re describing is actually much more powerful, which is being the most authentic and the most consistent. And I think that’s what builds trust. And I think that’s what ultimately leads to business.
Tim: Yeah, absolutely. And I think that’s where, you know, when I think about the clients that I’ve worked with and the ones that have been the most successful, it’s the ones that have been willing to be vulnerable and to be honest about their journey. And I think that’s what people connect with. And I think that’s what ultimately leads to business.
Savannah: Absolutely. So let’s talk a little bit about, you know, you mentioned that you started working with Breezy and that was a turning point for you in terms of your LinkedIn strategy and your content strategy. What was that process like? What did you learn? What were some of the biggest takeaways from that experience?
Tim: Yeah, I mean, the biggest takeaway was that I needed help. And I think that’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs struggle with is admitting that they need help. And I think that’s something that I struggled with for a long time. I thought I could do it all myself. And I think that’s a common trap that a lot of entrepreneurs fall into.
And so when I started working with Savannah and the team at Breezy, it was a huge relief because I realized that I didn’t have to do it all myself. And I think that’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs need to hear is that you don’t have to do it all yourself. You can get help. And you should get help. And it’s okay to get help.
And so the process was really about, you know, Savannah and the team at Breezy really helped me to clarify my message and to clarify my positioning and to clarify my target audience. And they helped me to create content that was consistent and that was authentic and that was relatable. And they helped me to show up on LinkedIn in a way that was consistent and that was authentic and that was relatable.
And I think that’s what ultimately led to business. And I think that’s what ultimately led to the success that I’ve had over the last few years. And I think that’s what I would encourage other entrepreneurs to do is to get help. And to get help from people who know what they’re doing. And to get help from people who you trust. And to get help from people who are going to push you outside of your comfort zone.
Savannah: I love that. And I think that’s such an important message for entrepreneurs to hear. And I think it’s something that a lot of people struggle with is admitting that they need help. And I think it’s something that I struggled with for a long time too. And I think it’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs struggle with. And I think it’s okay to admit that you need help. And I think it’s okay to get help. And I think it’s actually a sign of strength to admit that you need help and to get help.
Tim: Absolutely.
Savannah: So let’s talk a little bit about networking. You mentioned that you started by reaching out to people in your network and asking for advice and asking for help. And I think that’s such an important strategy for entrepreneurs. And I think it’s something that a lot of people overlook. So talk a little bit about your approach to networking and how that’s helped you to build your business.
Tim: Yeah, I mean, networking has been huge for me. And I think it’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs overlook. And I think it’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs are afraid of. And I think it’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs think is slimy or salesy or something like that. And I think that’s a misconception.
I think networking is really just about building relationships. And I think it’s about being genuine and being authentic and being relatable. And I think it’s about asking for help and asking for advice. And I think it’s about being vulnerable and being honest about your journey. And I think that’s what people connect with.
And so my approach to networking has always been to just reach out to people and ask for advice. And to reach out to people and ask for help. And to reach out to people and just have a conversation. And I think that’s what ultimately leads to business. And I think that’s what ultimately leads to success.
And I think that’s what I would encourage other entrepreneurs to do is to just reach out to people and ask for advice. And to reach out to people and ask for help. And to reach out to people and just have a conversation. And I think you’ll be surprised at how willing people are to help. And I think you’ll be surprised at how willing people are to give advice. And I think you’ll be surprised at how willing people are to just have a conversation.
Savannah: Absolutely. And I think that’s such an important message for entrepreneurs to hear. And I think it’s something that a lot of people overlook. And I think it’s something that a lot of people are afraid of. And I think it’s something that a lot of people think is slimy or salesy or something like that. And I think that’s a misconception.
I think networking is really just about building relationships. And I think it’s about being genuine and being authentic and being relatable. And I think it’s about asking for help and asking for advice. And I think it’s about being vulnerable and being honest about your journey. And I think that’s what people connect with.
Tim: Yeah, absolutely. And I think that’s where, you know, when I think about the clients that I’ve worked with and the ones that have been the most successful, it’s the ones that have been willing to reach out to people and ask for advice. And to reach out to people and ask for help. And to reach out to people and just have a conversation. And I think that’s what ultimately leads to business. And I think that’s what ultimately leads to success.
Savannah: So let’s talk a little bit about validation. You mentioned that when you were first starting out, you were reaching out to people in your network and asking for advice. And you mentioned that you were getting a lot of validation from people. And I think that’s such an important thing for entrepreneurs to hear. So talk a little bit about the value of validation and how that helped you to build your business.
Tim: Yeah, I mean, validation was huge for me. And I think it’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs overlook. And I think it’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs don’t realize how important it is. And I think it’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs don’t realize how much they need it.
And so when I was first starting out, I was reaching out to people in my network and asking for advice. And I was getting a lot of validation from people. And I think that was huge for me because it gave me the confidence to keep going. And it gave me the confidence to keep pushing forward. And it gave me the confidence to keep building my business.
And I think that’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs need to hear is that validation is important. And it’s okay to seek validation. And it’s okay to ask for validation. And it’s okay to need validation. And I think that’s something that a lot of entrepreneurs struggle with is admitting that they need validation. And I think it’s okay to admit that you need validation. And I think it’s okay to seek validation.
And so when I was first starting out, I was reaching out to people in my network and asking for advice. And I was getting a lot of validation from people. And I think that was huge for me because it gave me the confidence to keep going. And it gave me the confidence to keep pushing forward. And it gave me the confidence to keep building my business.
Savannah: Absolutely. And I think that’s such an important message for entrepreneurs to hear. And I think it’s something that a lot of people overlook. And I think it’s something that a lot of people don’t realize how important it is. And I think it’s something that a lot of people don’t realize how much they need it.
Tim: Yeah, absolutely. And I think that’s where, you know, when I think about the clients that I’ve worked with and the ones that have been the most successful, it’s the ones that have been willing to seek validation. And to ask for validation. And to need validation. And I think that’s what ultimately leads to business. And I think that’s what ultimately leads to success.
Savannah: I was talking to friends. I was talking to people in my network, people I used to work with or people that I actually coached when I was working for a coaching firm. And I was getting validated in every situation where, oh, it’s so great that you’re doing this. You’re onto something here. I really like this for you or something like that. Which at the time, when you’re sitting by yourself as an entrepreneur, you don’t have a team, you’re thinking about your dreaming a little bit, but you don’t get a lot of that validation. Maybe from the close friends and family around you, but to hear it from somebody who could potentially be a paying client, even though they’re in your network, that matters a lot.
Tim: Yeah, absolutely. And then they also occasionally lead to business, which is the best of both worlds.
Savannah: Yeah, absolutely. Good to hear more.
Savannah: Well, thank you so much for being here, Tim. Always fun chatting with you. You have great insights. Really appreciate your authenticity and just you’re such a genuine person and tell them where they can find more about you. Maybe give you a follow, that kind of thing.
Tim: Sure, yeah. Follow me on LinkedIn. That’s the platform I prefer. Tim Fortescue, T-I-M-F-O-R-T-E-S-C-U-E. And then my company’s name is 40 Watt Coaching. 40wattcoaching.com is the website.
The quick story behind that, if I can.
Savannah: Yeah, go ahead.
Tim: I don’t even know that Savannah and I wrote about this or put this out, but—
Savannah: I think I know this story, but I don’t know if we did or not, yeah.
Tim: Back in five years ago when I was debating, should I do this or not? Should I go out on my own? I started kicking around different names and my nickname has always been 40. Fortescue is my last name. So you take this off and it sounds kind of like 40. So people had called me 40 for years and I started playing with what if it’s 40 watt, like a light bulb going off. And so I, there’s something here. My designer friend made a logo for me and I thought, okay, it’s real. And I trademarked it and I got the web domain.
And then I started teaching out in the real, out in the wild. I remember I was at a tech company and teaching a room full of technical people, like engineers, early on. And I heard somebody say, hey, why did you name it 90 watt? It’s like something brighter. You know, 40 watt is like the dullest of the bulbs, one of them. And I was like, oh man, I didn’t even think about that. I was like, my nickname isn’t 90, it was 40. So I, wait, I trademarked it. And so at least there’s a funny story. There’s a funny story behind it and it’s personal.
Savannah: Yeah, absolutely. It also matters at the end of the day.
Savannah: Thanks so much, Tim, really appreciate you being here.
Tim: Thank you.
Savannah: Thanks for tuning in to this episode of Marketing on the Move. If you’re looking for more ways to improve your marketing and build a scalable system to help your business grow, check out TheBreezingCompany.co or any of the resources linked in today’s show notes.
