Bernie Borges [00:00:00]:
Hey there. Episode 197 is another On My Mind episode. I love these On My Mind episodes because it’s my time, my opportunity to share with you something that is on my mind. Now in the previous episode, episode 196, Mark Daly shared his personal journey in a vulnerable conversations episode, and it was vulnerable. Now you see, Mark’s business partner had passed away suddenly, which for several reasons resulted in the business that he and Mark had dissolving. Then Mark embarked on a roller coaster entrepreneurial journey after more than 30 years in a successful career in technology sales and leadership roles. Now, as Mark shared his story, I worried that you might think that his story was all about business. In fact, I even made the comment during the episode that my podcast is not a business podcast, and I didn’t wanna get too far into the weeds on the business details of Mark’s entrepreneurial journey.
Bernie Borges [00:01:11]:
Instead, I wanted to explore his emotional journey and, really, the role that his family is playing in this season. So in preparation for this On My Mind episode, I thought about the key takeaways for me from my conversation with Mark. And I figured if they’re my key takeaways, then I should share them with you. So here are my 5 key takeaways from my conversation with Mark Daley on episode 196. Now, please, I want you to listen all the way to the 5th takeaway because they all fit together. Alright. Takeaway number 1. Mark bounced back from this tragic loss of his business partner.
Bernie Borges [00:01:58]:
Now he didn’t discuss this in a lot of detail, and I can certainly understand why. But I can only imagine how hard it must have been for him to carry on with the business or at least attempt to. And, unfortunately, the legal matters really prevailed. And, apparently, it didn’t end well. However, Mark persevered through this tough season in his life, which has led to his new business venture, and that is rebirthing the Rome brand. And that leads me to my second takeaway. Takeaway number 2 is Mark’s strategic approach to reviving the Rome brand is driven by a deep conviction and a passion that really shine through in our conversation. Now we spoke about what an iconic brand Roam was back in the 19 eighties.
Bernie Borges [00:02:54]:
In fact, I mentioned that I was a user of the Roam phone system at an employer in Silicon Valley in the 19 eighties. And, at this time, Roam was leading edge telecom technology. It even had special features that allowed businesses to be more productive. And one example that Mark shared is where lawyers can press a button to track billable time when they’re on a call. Now that said, remember, Mark’s story is not about Rome, the telecommunications pioneer of the 19 eighties. Instead, Mark’s story is about falling in love with an idea. And against all the advice of everyone around him, believing in it so strongly with so much conviction that he is all in. And Mark’s business plan is to reconstitute a strong company culture and the values that were true of Rohm in the 19 eighties.
Bernie Borges [00:03:58]:
And he plans to do it by focusing on AI and cybersecurity service offerings. Now let me get to takeaway number 3. Remember, they all fit together. Number 3 is the importance of family support and the influence that it’s had on Mark’s drive to succeed. Now Mark has the full backing of his 3 adult children and his wife. During our conversation, I kinda got the sense that his family didn’t quite get his conviction for this idea at first. But once they understood why Mark is so committed to rebirthing the Rome brand, to breathe life into it with the same values and the same culture, they rallied behind him in full support of his pursuit. So takeaway number 3 is the importance of family support when you’re chasing a new career idea in your midlife season.
Bernie Borges [00:04:58]:
Takeaway number 4, the significance of corporate culture and the lifetime relationships that can be built in the workplace. Mark spoke about Rome’s great products, but what he reveres the most about the company is the culture of the company and the relationship that he built during his 27 year career there. He shared a few stories about how people from Rome trust him implicitly. And when they’re in need of advice, they call him. And he he even talked about the Rome Facebook group that he’s in that’s comprised of 1,000 of former Romans, as they say. And they have a common bond from their time together at this great company. Now Mark is committed to bringing back this culture in a way that creates a feeling, and I used that word specifically. And he validated that he wants to create a feeling like what he and his fellow Romans felt when they first said that Rome was a great place to work.
Bernie Borges [00:06:07]:
Now you may not know that the phrase great place to work today is a copyrighted phrase. Companies around the world seek to earn this coveted certification, great place to work, and a digital badge that they get to display their great place to work status based on meeting very stringent criteria. Now according to Mark, Rome was one of the first companies to even use this phrase, great place to work, long before it became a thing, especially a copyrighted thing. Alright. This leads me to takeaway number 5. Thanks for hanging with me. And that is the power of passion and purpose in midlife and the impact that it can have on guiding your next steps. My friend, this is really my biggest takeaway.
Bernie Borges [00:07:00]:
It is the accumulation of takeaways 1 through 4. In fact, I hope that this is your takeaway too. I don’t want you to get caught up in the details of the Rome story. Maybe you think it’s interesting, and maybe you don’t. But please don’t get too caught up in those details because this story is really about chasing a dream in your career at this phase of your life. In Mark’s case, he’s in his sixties like me, and he is chasing a new career dream. Mark has commitment. He has a purpose.
Bernie Borges [00:07:37]:
He found his why, and he’s going after it. Now I didn’t ask him, but I have no doubt that he would regret not going after this dream if he had allowed others to talk him out of it. But he’s not listening to the naysayers. He knows what he wants. He knows why he wants it, and he’s going after it. Go, Mark. Now, what about you? What dream do you have that you wanna chase? Are you listening to the naysayers? Are you letting a voice in your head talk you out of it? Has someone suggested that you don’t have enough runway as was suggested to Mark? Look. I encourage you to use Mark Daley’s story to get motivated to chase your dream.
Bernie Borges [00:08:26]:
It doesn’t have to be an entrepreneurial dream. It can be a career dream even in your current place of employment or business. Now if you’re a business leader, think about how your employees have their own dreams. Are you encouraging them to chase their dreams? Consider how powerful this motivation can be for your employees, and it really has the power to reignite a fire, a passion, a new level of energy that can be extremely fulfilling for them and have a great impact on your business. So if you’re a business leader in search of doing this with your employees, I invite you to get in touch with me. I’d like to help you ignite a fire for your employees and in your business. Hey. That’s a wrap for episode 197, an on my mind episode.
Bernie Borges [00:09:16]:
I hope what’s on my mind is on your mind too with inspiration to chase a dream that can boost your fulfillment. And hey, speaking of fulfillment, remember, if you’re 80% fulfilled, you’re doing great. Hey, this is Bernie Borges, your host to the Midlife Fulfill podcast. I’ll see you on the next episode of the Midlife Fulfill podcast.
