IAM2688 – Documenting the Journey: How to Build Trust and Momentum Fast

Documenting the New Venture

Gresham Harkless introduces this special episode as a “snippet of a snippet” intended to document his personal transition into starting Blue Star Franchise. This initiative involves creating a sub-site within CB Nation called Franchise CEO to provide transparency for those exploring the franchise model. Inspired by advice from the founder of the Franchise Brokers Association, Gresh believes that sharing the raw building process is highly valuable for anyone starting any type of business. He encourages builders to remain their unique selves because no one can run their specific race like they can.

The Power of Documentation Over Perfection

Gresh highlights that the fastest way to build momentum is through documentation rather than waiting for perfection. He warns that many founders stay stuck at zero because they are waiting for the perfect logo, strategy, or moment to arrive. Instead of polishing every message, he suggests that sharing what you are learning—including what is not working—is what truly builds trust with an audience. This real-time visibility creates a connection that proves more powerful than a perfectly curated marketing campaign.

Navigating the Non-Linear Path

A central theme of the episode is that success is rarely a straight, linear path; rather, it is about following the actual lines of the journey. Gresh emphasizes that entrepreneurs do not need a massive budget or a production team to begin; they only need a phone, a voice, and consistency. By sharing both small wins and client losses, founders can build their own confidence and momentum simultaneously. Ultimately, the goal is to show up while building the thing you want to build and making the impact you want to make.

Previous Episode: https://iamceo.co/iam2687-finding-opportunity-in-challenging-times/

• Blue Star Franchise: bluestarfranchise.com
• Browse the Franchise Inventory: bluestarfranchise.com/franchise
• Is franchising right for you? Check this out to see: bluestarfranchise.com/assessment
• Franchise CEO (A CBNation Site – coming soon) – franchiseceo.co

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Transcription:

Gresham Harkless 00:00

The fastest way to build momentum isn't about perfection. It's about getting all the things right and checking off all the boxes. It's actually all around documentation. When you start sharing what you're learning, what's working, and frankly, even what's not, people start to trust you. They start to see your growth in real time. And that's what creates the connection. It's not about having the straight linear path. It's about going along the lines of the journey. And I always say success is a lot more like a plate of spaghetti than a straight linear path that we think that it is.

Hello, hello, hello, this is Gresh from the I Am CEO podcast and this is a special episode, episode number 2287 of our I Am CEO podcast. And this is actually going to be a snippet of a snippet, so to speak. I'm just doing an intro because I've been starting to document my journey into starting what is now called Blue Star Franchise. We're also going to do a kind of sub site within CB Nation called Franchise CEO. So you'll see some links in the show, notes related to that. But just wanted to give you a little bit more insight, give you a little bit more color in some of the aspects of why I'm actually doing this, because one of the things I was doing as I was going through training to start up this new business was realizing and hearing from the founder of fba, the Franchise Brokers association, that it'd be really cool to document your journey going through and building this out. I think it's something that'll be super helpful, obviously for people that are looking for and thinking about starting franchises. But frankly, if you're starting anything, any type of business, I think it's really cool to kind of just even see the journey and how it's been going from there. So I'm going to share a few of those snippets from the from the first couple of videos that have been created. But definitely, of course, subscribe to our YouTube. Check out a lot more where I figure out exactly where her Glennard post is. So I'll have that information that's available to you. But regardless, if you're a builder, continue to keep building, continue to do your thing. The world definitely needs exactly what you're trying to build and needs you to be your unique self. So make sure to run your own race, because nobody can run your race like you. This is Gresh signing out. I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

Gresham Harkless 02:02
If you're waiting for the perfect time to launch your business. Here's the truth. It's not coming. Now. Let me let you in on a little secret. Perfection is the biggest reason most founders stay stuck at zero. They're waiting for the right logo, the right strategy, the right moment. And meanwhile, someone else is out there documenting their journey and they're winning. The fastest way to build momentum isn't about perfection, is about getting all the things right and checking off all the boxes. It's actually mostly all around documentation. When you start sharing what you're learning, what's working, and frankly, even what's not, people start to trust you. They start to see your growth in real time and that's what creates the connection. It's not about having the straight linear path, it's about going along the lines of the journey. And I always say success is a lot more like a plate of spaghetti than a straight linear path that we think that it is. And no, you don't need a production team or a six figure budget. All you need really is a phone, your voice and some consistency. Post your progress, post your process. Share the first client win, share the first client loss. Record the small lessons you're learning along the way.

That's what people are really looking for. You're seeing so many changes that is not around polishing the message and being perfect. And have everything go the way that you want it to go. Because frankly, in life and in business, those things don't go that way. It's showing up while you are building the thing that you ultimately want to build and making the impact that you ultimately want to make. Because when you document, you don't just market your business, you build an audience, you build confidence in your momentum. At the exact same time, it's really powerful. So start documenting today. That's your CEO hack. To go from zero to one fast.