Episode #459: The Subscription Attorney: Interview with Mathew Kerbis

This week Ron and Ed welcomed Mathew Kerbis, aka The Subscription Attorney to talk about, you guessed it, subscription-based lawyering. His firm, Subscription Attorney LLC was founded in 2022 and is a modern law firm offering legal advice starting at $19.99/month, to help provide affordable access to legal advice for small business owners, freelancers, and everyday people. As usual the conversation with be mind-bending.

About Mathew Kerbis

Matt founded Subscription Attorney LLC, a modern law firm offering legal advice starting at $19.99/month, to help provide affordable access to legal advice for small business owners, freelancers, and everyday people. His legal services include general legal advice, contracts, real estate, simple estate plans, demand letters, and negotiating disputes to avoid court. Learn more at https://subscriptionattorney.com. He launched the podcast Law Subscribed to help the rest of the legal profession make the same choice.

Use these show notes to follow along with audio…

Segment one:

• Why did Mathew choose the profession of law? In college he was told, “You study logic, you do well on the LSAT and you can go to law school,” Sounded good enough to him :) 

• Fast forward to today and now Mathew is the founder of Subscription Attorney, LLC at https://subscriptionattorney.com/

• Mathew has the same disdain for the billable hour as we do. Ron was sure to call this out during the first segment and Mathew was quick to give background on what brought him to this conclusion.

Segment two:

• Mathew pivoted to the founder of Subscription Attorney, LLC while building a book of transactional business in the background. His story should sound familiar to many. It took grit and lots of networking.

• The pricing model for Subscription Attorney, LLC starts at $19.99 per month which includes access to Mathew, his flat fee services, and his growing knowledge base.

• Cost CERTAINTY is something that makes Mathew’s clients very happy. The price is clear and there is no hourly rate. More here: https://subscriptionattorney.com 

• How does Mathew decide what he covers and what he doesn’t cover? His engagement agreement is publicly available on his website at this link: https://subscriptionattorney.com/#engagement 

• Mathew has a great Zoom background that includes a QR code. Check it out here (and think about doing it yourself?

Segment three:

• As your attorney, I highly recommend you listen to Mathew’s podcast where he talks about people who are innovating in the law space. More info here: https://linktr.ee/lawsubscribed @lawsubscribed

• What is the number one thing Mathew sees with his clients as a result of moving away from the billable hour and towards subscription? “THEY ARE NOT AFRAID TO CALL ME” — nailed it!

• “How much money you make is not based on your time anymore.” —Mathew Kerbis when talking about moving away from the billable hour.

• Making the cancel button PROMINENT and EASY to find means the customer/member is even more comfortable with your service.

Segment four:

• General practitioners might get to the point one day where they can subscribe to specialists on behalf of their customers/members. Mathew calls this “subscription arbitrage” and it’s a brilliant term.

• “This can’t be done” is something Mathew is not hearing much anymore. Instead, he is hearing “This is genius. Why didn’t I think of that?” more and more often…

• Shift Supervisor at Starbucks is something you will see on Mathew’s LinkedIn profile. The story behind his experience there and how he was pulled it forward is great (check out segment four of the show today)

• A big THANK YOU to Mathew Kerbis for joining us today. Check out the Subscription Attorney at this link https://subscriptionattorney.com/ 

Bonus Content is Available As Well

Did you know that each week after our live show, Ron and Ed take to the microphone for a bonus show? Typically, this bonus show is an extension of the live show topic (sometimes even with the same guest) and a few other pieces of news, current events, or things that have caught our attention.

Click the “FANATIC” image to learn more about pricing and member benefits. 

Episode #458: Disneyland on the Mountain — Kathryn Mayer and Greg Glasgow

Ed and Ron could not wait to interview Kathryn Mayer and Greg Glasgow and discuss their brand new book, Disneyland on the Mountain, released September 13, 2023. If you are a Disney fan, you do not want to miss this episode!

About Kathryn Mayer

Kathryn Mayer is a Denver-based writer and journalist whose work has appeared in numerous publications including Health, Observer, Insider, and PopSugar. She primarily writes about business, covering workplace health and benefits strategies, and she has appeared on radio, TV, and podcasts as an industry expert. This is her first book.

About Greg Glasgow

Greg Glasgow is a longtime writer and journalist for numerous magazines and newspapers in Colorado and elsewhere, including The Denver Post, 5280, and the Boulder Daily Camera, where he worked for ten years as arts and entertainment reporter and editor. He lives in Colorado with his wife and coauthor, Kathryn Mayer, and their dog, Audrey. This is his first book.

Use these show notes to follow along with audio…

Segment one:

• “Disneyland On The Mountain” is about a ski resort that Disney attempted to build in California starting in 1965. For about 13+ years, the project dragged on until it hit the Supreme Court.

• Willy Schaeffler was Walt’s partner on the “Disneyland On The Mountain” project. He escaped Nazi Germany to the US and created several famous ski slopes and rides, especially in Colorado.

• “Disneyland On The Mountain” was intended to be built in Mineral King, CA near Sequoia National Park. There’s plenty of backstory in the book at this link https://www.amazon.com/Disneyland-Mountain-Environmentalists-Resort-Never/dp/1538173670 

• Walter spelled backwards (Ret Law) was the super secret project codename for “Disneyland On The Mountain” which was meant to be built in Mineral King, CA. More here: https://www.amazon.com/Disneyland-Mountain-Environmentalists-Resort-Never/dp/1538173670 

Segment two:

• What do the University of Denver, Walt Disney, and Willy Schaeffler have in common? It’s this combination that brought Kathryn and Greg together to write “Disneyland On The Mountain” https://www.amazon.com/Disneyland-Mountain-Environmentalists-Resort-Never/dp/1538173670 

• Silver was the first mineral to be discovered in Mineral King, California. In 1965, it became the chosen location for Walt Disney to build a ski resort. 

• Harrison “Buzz” Price is the economist that picked the locations for Disneyland and Disney World. More info on Wikipedia about Buzz is at this link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Price 

• Fun fact: Robert Brandt (husband to Janet Leigh, star of the movie Psycho) was the first person to approach the Federal government and ask for the land in Mineral King, CA to be put up for bid.

Segment three:

• Planned in the 1960s, the Walt Disney ski resort was going to include skiing, sledding, tobogganing, and ice skating in the winter months plus camping, biking, hiking, nature classes in the summer.

• Ed referenced a YouTube channel and how they have a video about the topic of the book, “Disneyland On The Mountain”. More here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWEk34VwcvU 

• So what ultimately happened to the land that Disney purchased for the now defunct ski resort? Disney still owns some land in the Mineral King, CA area.

• Talking about ski resorts, Ed referenced this Wall Street Journal article today about how an Idaho town could become the next Jackson Hole https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/luxury-homes/driggs-idaho-real-estate-market-57f888c9 

Segment four:

• Eventually, the planned Disney ski resort became mired in law suits. While Disney was not directly sued, the Federal government had to represent themselves in the case regarding the planned development.

• Fun TSOE fact: Did you know that Ron has a commemorative brick at Disneyland?

• A big THANK YOU to Kathryn and Greg for joining us today. Folks, if you have ever heard of Disney (that's all of you) then you NEED to read “Disneyland On The Mountain”. Link is here: https://www.amazon.com/Disneyland-Mountain-Environmentalists-Resort-Never/dp/1538173670 

Buy on Amazon

Bonus Content is Available As Well

Did you know that each week after our live show, Ron and Ed take to the microphone for a bonus show? Typically, this bonus show is an extension of the live show topic (sometimes even with the same guest) and a few other pieces of news, current events, or things that have caught our attention.

Click the “FANATIC” image to learn more about pricing and member benefits. 

Episode #457: Simple Complexity — Interview with William Donaldson

This week Ron and Ed welcomed William Donaldson, author of Simple_Complexity to the show. Every business leader knows a business is a system, yet very few have studied systems thinking or system dynamics. This is a critical oversight, one that Simple_Complexity remedies. Simple_Complexity reveals the fundamental system archetype at work in your enterprise and prescribes new and exciting ways to reinvigorate your management thinking.

About Dr. William Donaldson
Dr. William (Willy) Donaldson has over 35 years of experience and has been CEO of 8 companies, and helped start dozens of companies. Willy is the Founder and President of Strategic Venture Planning, a management consulting firm that assists boards, investors, families, and senior management teams to maximize results.

Use these show notes to follow along with audio…

Segment one:

• Thank you to Mark Gandy for introducing us to Willy Donaldson. He interviewed Willy on April 30th https://cfobookshelf.com/the-systems-thinking-mindset/ 

• Much of the credit for getting into systems thinking goes to Willy’s father. They both have an engineering background in aeronautical and industrial engineering, father and son respectively

• The two top enemies of systems thinking are politics and academics, which might explain why you didn’t learn about this topic in school

• The book, Simple_Complexity, has the background you need on systems thinking. Here is the Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Simple_Complexity-Management-Guide-Systems-Thinking/dp/1683500741  

• Regarding systems thinking: “There are no boundaries between any of the departments or actions. They are all integrated.” —William Donaldson

Segment two:

• So WHY the underscore between Simple and Complexity in Willy’s book, Simple_Complexity? “You have to tie the two together.” —William Donaldson https://www.amazon.com/Simple_Complexity-Management-Guide-Systems-Thinking/dp/1683500741  

• Our guest today, William Donaldson, author of Simple_Complexity, loves this quote from George Box: “All models are wrong. Some are useful.”

• Willy visited the Enron website the day they filed for bankruptcy and pulled down their statement of values. They included transparency, honesty, and integrity. Of course they did!

• Unless you have the context [in a system] you’ll get completely lost. Imagine how often a manager does this and does not provide context for something. On #AskTSOE, we call this the effing debate  

Segment three:

• “We have to make our systems predictable and repeatable so that we can scale.” It’s a worthy goal but a fools errand. The model you are setting the system up for is constantly changing. You have to change as well.

• If you want to hear why Willy sometimes calls governance boards the “Chowder and Marching Society” then listen to segment three of the show. https://www.thesoulofenterprise.com/457 

• Culture emerges from the system. There is no culture in an organization initially. It’s just an assemblage of people. Your culture emerges and people pick it up. It comes from the interaction of the elements in an organization.

• Why are organizations calling people back to the office? One part of it is that if you’re not in person, you are missing out on serendipity and richness of interaction. 

Segment four:

• “Strategy is the art of being able to stay one step ahead of needing to be efficient.” —Dr. Jules Goddard

• “The future is already here – it's just not evenly distributed.” —William Gibson

• “Change brings about great uncertainty unless we are very clear and very precise with our language.” —William Donaldson; In other words, “Common language, common mental model”

• A big THANK YOU to Willy Donaldson for joining us today. His book is “Simple_Complexity: A Management Book For The Rest of Us: A Guide to Systems Thinking”. https://www.amazon.com/Simple_Complexity-Management-Guide-Systems-Thinking/dp/1683500741 

Buy on Amazon

Bonus Content is Available As Well

Did you know that each week after our live show, Ron and Ed take to the microphone for a bonus show? Typically, this bonus show is an extension of the live show topic (sometimes even with the same guest) and a few other pieces of news, current events, or things that have caught our attention.

Click the “FANATIC” image to learn more about pricing and member benefits. 

Episode #456: Booxkeeping — Interview with Max Emma

Ron and Ed welcomed accounting thought leader Max Emma, CEO and Chief Bookkeeping Officer of Booxkeeping Franchise. BooXkeeping is a nationwide provider of affordable outsourced bookkeeping services to small and medium-sized businesses. We will talk to Max about his business model and why outsource bookkeeping will continue to grow. Booxkeeping Franchise is a low-cost and easy-to-operate bookkeeping business solution for aspiring entrepreneurs. As the CEO of BooXkeeping Franchise, Inc., They find potential franchisees and offer them a turn-key opportunity to join the BooXkeeping family and benefit from our innovative accounting services, proven systems, and ongoing support. Their goal is to offer franchising opportunities in all 50 states by 2025 and to bring new life to one of the world's oldest professions.

About Max Emma
With multiple years of experience as the CEO and Chief Bookkeeping Officer at BooXkeeping Corp., Max Emma leads a team of professional accountants who provide high-quality and reliable bookkeeping services to a variety of businesses nationwide. He created a unique structure for BooXkeeping Corp., where each client gets two to three accountants working on their behalf, ensuring the highest accuracy and efficiency for their finances. Max also oversee the preparation of the income statements and balance sheets that are critical for our clients' success and growth.

Use these show notes to follow along with audio…

Segment one:

• Today’s show is really special in that we are welcoming Max Emma, co-founder of Booxkeeping. He is our newest sponsor and guest on today’s show. His origin story begins in the former Soviet Union. Hear more during the first segment.

• Max started working with Qualcomm and has been through the construction industry, the landscaping industry, and ultimately the bookkeeping industry

• A few years ago Booxkeeping became a franchisor after Max had a “crazy” idea that he could do it. With his entrepreneurial background, of course he could!

• Max’s team offers customers a fixed price, the same team on each account, and at least two people doing the work that minimizes the possibility of errors. Franchisors have responded really positively to this.

• Billing at a fixed price was an EARLY innovation for Booxkeeping and Max talked about exactly what you would expect in terms of benefits. The model pulled cash forward and reduced receivables.

Segment two:

• Max has noticed over the years that it takes less time to handle bookkeeping tasks due to advancing technology. His company has embraced this in their pricing philosophy and pass along rate savings to the customers.

• Max started the Booxkeeping business - before franchising - by white label bookkeeping for CPA firms. That is still a large part of the original firm’s revenue model.

• Ron asked about the penetration pricing strategy employed by Booxkeeping Franchise today. “Absolutely” was Max’s response and he went on to explain how the pricing is tiered.

• From a tech stack perspective, Booxkeeping supports Sage, Quickbooks, Xero, and even Netsuite. They do not discriminate but do have a singular system that was developed exclusively for their internal operations.

Segment three:

• The general idea behind Booxkeeping is that a CPA firm can buy the service and outsource the bookkeeping work themselves.

• March of 2020 is when franchising was started for Booxkeeping but it took 14-15 months to really get started due to Covid.

• The very first customer of Booxkeeping Franchise was the very first employee at Booxkeeping! Talk about “what comes around goes around” :) 

• The Booxkeeping franchise fee is $29,995, $19,995 if you have an existing bookkeeping firm and also a 30% discount for active military, veterans, and first responders. Check out more info here: https://www.booxkeepingfranchise.com/ 

Segment four:

• What is the future for the bookkeeping industry? From Max: More and more outsourcing will continue to be the trend. Businesses will continue to need day to day numbers.

• The first Booxkeeping Franchise customer 7x her revenue after getting started. She didn’t learn accounting. Instead, she learned how to sell, how to network, what to say, and what not to say

• Max Emma provided a book to Ron called, “10x Is Easier Than 2x”. Ron found it extremely profound. More here: https://www.amazon.com/10x-Easier-Than-World-Class-Entrepreneurs/dp/140196995X 

• A big THANK YOU to Max Emma of Booxkeeping Franchise for being both a TSOE sponsor AND a great guest! Check out more information about his company here: https://www.booxkeepingfranchise.com/ 

Bonus Content is Available As Well

Did you know that each week after our live show, Ron and Ed take to the microphone for a bonus show? Typically, this bonus show is an extension of the live show topic (sometimes even with the same guest) and a few other pieces of news, current events, or things that have caught our attention.

Click the “FANATIC” image to learn more about pricing and member benefits.