Ep. 142 | From Midwest Roots and Early Life Tragedy to Enterprise Success

Phil Crawford on Leaving the Midwest, Loss, Sales Success, and Ending Unnecessary SufferingThe Success Flow podcast introduces an in-studio interview with one of it's Co-Hosts, Phil Crawford. Phil recounts growing up in small-town Missouri with strong church-centered community and work ethic, being inspired by travel with his aunt, and moving to Arizona for college with dreams of playing golf. He discusses joining a fraternity as a junior and the accountability it taught. Phil shares being adopted, time in the system, and losing his father at 12 and his mother to breast cancer after he graduated at 22, along with how he masked pain in his 20s. Professionally, he describes shifting from marketing at MasterTax/ADP to joining startup WebFilings/Workiva, building a sales career, learning confidence with executives through “equal business stature,” and using self-help, meditation, and subconscious work to reduce fear and “unnecessary suffering” via his Focusacti Group.00:00 Meet Phil Crawford00:21 Podcast Refresh Update01:16 Midwest Roots and Values02:45 Travel Spark and Arizona Dream04:18 Chasing College Golf05:29 Student Life and Fraternity Lessons08:01 Big Brother Mentorship09:32 Adoption and Losing Parents12:10 Masking Pain in Twenties13:43 Career Pivot After Acquisition15:36 Marketing vs Sales Wake Up16:48 Leap to Workiva Startup17:41 Gut Feel Career Pivot19:10 First Sales Role Proving Ground20:13 Building Skills Without a Playbook21:48 Facing C Suite Intimidation24:27 Books That Break Ruts27:38 Meditation Identity Shifts30:43 Ending Unnecessary Suffering34:27 Authenticity and Closing ReflectionsFollow the SuccessFlow Podcast on ⁠Instagram⁠: @successflowpodcastTo connect with Phil and contact directly: ⁠https://phillipcrawford.com/⁠ X: ⁠https://twitter.com/PhillipCrawford⁠ Instagram: @flowstatecrawfordTo connect with Steven and ways he can help:⁠Founder/Creator: ⁠www.oppoflowmindset.com⁠ Small Business Payroll - PHX Franchise Owner: ⁠wwww.journeypayrollhr.com⁠ Instagram: @steven.oppo.flow Acknowledgements:The Intro and Outro Music credit to Holden Peyton.This podcast episode is produced and published by Dolphin Podcasting, LLC. Launch your podcast today at ⁠www.DolphinPodcasting.com