Last week I traveled to Ontario for a snowmobiling & skiing weekend with my clients Mark and Ken Hutten, owners of Hutten & Co.
We were joined by spouses and Corine my business partner. (fun photos below).
The entire trip was Mark and Ken’s treat.
I Bet He Would Make More Money
A few years back we made a bet with them “If you re-invest in coaching with us, we bet you will do even better financially within 12 months. If you don’t, we will take you and your spouses on a resort snowmobiling trip.
But if you do better, you will treat us.”
We won that bet. 😉
This Trip Had Many Firsts
- Driving from Boston to Mt Washington, and then via Montreal and Algonquin park to Deerhurst Resort, Ontario.
- Snowmobiling at over 100 kph on the frozen lakes. What a blast!
- Intimate dinners with fine wine getting to know their spouses better, and vice versa.
- Ice hiking and cross country skiing in the vast Canadian forests.
- Eating chocolate eclairs for breakfast.
The trip felt like a capstone to our partnership and friendship.
Many Proud Moments
According to Mark and Ken, here are a few proud moments from the past 7 years working together:
- Tripled their revenue (Note: very hard to do in their rural part of the country.)
- Building a hugely tight culture and super strong vision, with everyone rowing in the same direction.
- Profound personal growth for both owners, plus professionally they both emerged clear and strong in their role as CEO and COO.
- Hit way above-industry average net profits, using cutting edge financial tools, profit sharing and open book management
- Buying new property, starting new divisions, developing news services; overall completely transforming the business.
They sent me a huge list of over 35 tools, habits and learning points they garnered along the way.
I was so proud to partner with these two faithful owners, and watch and help them develop their company into a world-class operation.
Reflective Insights
Mark and Ken reflected on the following after our fun event.
Mark Hutten, ”We’ll keep taking time to appreciate each other. Being in business is an opportunity to bless others in a special way. To support family and engage in community. It’s not just a responsibility, but a gift to steward well.
Our inspiration is to share tools and resources with others. To be an encourager. To give back!”
Ken Hutten “I’ve put a lot of work into my own personal growth, and Jeffrey’s help and direction has been impactful. Being pushed to read more has been very valuable.
…Over the last 7 years I’ve read more than 110 business and personal books, and this has helped build new habits in business and personal life.”
Looking Forward Is Inspiring.
We agreed that our time together was not just a celebration of the past, but also a reigniting of their future.
In Mark’s words “Looking forward, we’re inspired to keep our vision alive. To keep innovating and thriving, to be bold. To do what excites us. To lean into our instinct, and not worry about what everyone else is doing.”
He added, “We’ll focus on keeping our own story unique and memorable. That’s fun for us. Plus, clients and employees love a good story – one they can trust.”
Your Challenge: Enjoy The Moment, It Won’t Last Forever.
At our last breakfast together, we shared parting throughts.
In Mark’s words: As a result of this trip, we’re inspired to keep stepping back and enjoying the moment. Not always being too serious with each other. It’s great fun to just share, laugh, have a nice bottle of wine, and savor the experience and the relationships.
In Jeffrey Scott’s (my) words: Growth looks easy from the outside, but it’s not all chocolate eclairs and rainbows. It is very difficult, there are plenty of tears shed along the way. It’s because of the grit required that success feels special.
Make sure you like who you are working for, working with, and coaching with. The journey is as important as the goal.
Wishing you great moments this year!
Regards, Jeffrey
Enjoy the photos!
Corine and I with Mt Washington (NH) in our background, it was freezing cold! We visited my “oldest” friend who is now quasi retired and skis every day.
What a great experience following these real experts who like to drive fast. I found snowmobiling a lot like racing cars. Look far ahead, lean in, and keep things steady. I am hooked!
A bit of cross country skiing to make us feel like we exercised.
We drove down to Detroit to drop off the car (too expensive to drop it off in Toronto.) We spent our last night at the Hockney Resort (Ontario) and did more snow hiking with Greg Wildeboer and his wife Sherry from Whispering Pines Landscape.
Don’t Miss the Super Early Bird special!
Go here for details.
