Dane Espegard lives life by design. He and his wife, Brookelyn, identify specific dreams for their life, and then take the steps to achieve those dreams. For the past several years, Dane has been spreading this dreams mentality throughout his entire organization. His people are living their dreams, and results in the organization have doubled in the past 5 years.

If you aspire to live more of your dreams and help others around you to do the same, the time is now and the place is here. Thanks for letting me introduce you to my amazing colleague, Dane Espegard.

TODAY’S SHOW NOTES

Q&A WITH DANE ESPEGARD

Q: Tell us a little bit about your background and how you got started with Cutco/ Vector.

• I was working at McDonalds but quit when I graduated High School. About a month later I saw a newspaper advertisement and came in for my interview.
• My parents weren’t really positive about the job but I convinced them to let me try it out.

Q: What were some transformational experiences along the way for you that have yielded some valuable lessons?

• The year between my Sophomore and Junior year in college I really wanted to be promoted to the Pilot Manager position but my manager decided to give the position to someone else. This ended up being a really great experience and I learned that just because I really want something in a moment doesn’t mean that it’s right.

Q: What are some other key experiences that you want to tell us about?

• That same summer that I didn’t get the Pilot Manager position I was the Sales Manager and one day after the first day of a training class a girl came up to me to let me know she didn’t think she could get one of the assignments done because her parents were going through a divorce.
• She went on to be one of the reps that just consistently did 5 appointments a week and the office became her place to hang out.
• At the end of Summer I got a letter from her basically thanking me for always believing in her, and saying that she would have ended her own life had she not worked with us that summer.
• After summer was over she never worked with us again but her life was forever changed.
• That was a moment I realized I could do a lot of good working here at Vector.

Q: Were there any other experiences or lessons that stand out to you?

• My first summer as a Division Coordinator (DVC) we had a great year and it all seemed to come pretty easy. In fact, when planning the next year’s projections, we didn’t plan for any challenges so when we had a really challenging summer I was somewhat questioning if I should quit but I knew I should at least wait to make that decision until our Strategic Leadership Conference (SLC).
• At SLC I really focused on listening intently and one thing I noticed was a theme was that all of the best managers were really committed to personal growth. I realized that I had reached my potential as far as my natural ability was concerned and it was time for me to go to work on myself and my business.
• After developing a morning routine of reading and working out every morning, the next year we had 11 out of 12 months of growth.
• I now recognize that I can grow my business as much as I want to but it’s always going to be a few months to a year out from how I’m growing personally.

Q: Your team name is the Dream Team and I know that you have shaped your organization around this principle of pursuing one’s dreams — inside and outside of the business.  Tell the audience a little about this, how it evolved and how you’re shaping people’s vision of pursuing your dreams.

• This all started the year I became a District Manager (DM). Matthew Kelly came and spoke to all the managers in Cutco/ Vector and then I read his book, “The Dream Manager.”
• “When someone has hope in the future they have power in the present.”
• I wanted to create a new culture in my organization where we are dreaming of what we want to accomplish in and out of the business. I knew that culture starts with me so I made a dreams list and then started booking some of the things on that list.
• I brought this concept to my team and we started making dreams list for my staff and with my District Managers.
• And now it’s evolved to doing a Dreams Retreat where we go to a kids camp and get time together outside of the office and do a few dream sessions.

Q:  Besides the idea of writing down your dreams on a list, what other advice do you have for people who want to live more of their dreams?

• Look over your list and identify which ones are short-term and which are long-term goals.
• Then take action right away — book the flight, apply for the marathon, etc.
• One of the great mistakes people make is not realizing how much today matters.
• We also encourage “dream stealing” through having everyone share their dreams and often times people will take that dream for themselves and put it on their dream list.

Q: As you look ahead 5 to 10 years down the road, what are you most excited about?

• My family for sure. My oldest will be 3 in a few days and my youngest will be one shortly after that.
• I’m also excited about the future of Cutco/ Vector in using new technologies and new channels to sell our product.

FINAL THOUGHTS

• I love when Dane talked about realizing his talent, energy charisma, and work ethic would cap out at a certain point of achievement and that what was really important was that he got involved in the process of actively growing every single day by advancing his personal growth.
• Meeting Matthew Kelly and reading the “Dream Manager” helps to identify your dreams, making the list, and review the list from time to time. Do something to take action on those dreams right away.
• Live life by design!