Not Just Candle Talk: Burn the Rules. Build Your Legacy
This isn’t your average business podcast.
Not Just Candle Talk is the unapologetic, unfiltered audio home for ambitious entrepreneurs, creatives, and side-hustlers ready to do business on their own terms — no fluff, no fake motivation.
Founded on real experience and raw truth, this podcast dives into the real-life challenges behind the candle business and beyond. Whether you’re just starting out or scaling your empire, every episode is packed with lessons, strategies, and mindset shifts to help you build a business and a life you don’t need to escape from.
Hey, I’m Toni, and I know what it’s like to start from scratch.
When I launched my candle business, I had big dreams but limited resources — no investors, no fancy marketing team, just grit, Google, and a lot of trial and error. I built my brand from the ground up, burned out more times than I can count, and learned to pivot, scale, and get smart about what really makes money in this game.
Not Just Candle Talk was born out of my journey — the highs, the hustle, the hard lessons — and the deep desire to have conversations no one else is having in entrepreneurship. The stuff beyond the surface. The why behind the work.
This Podcast Is For You If…
- You’re tired of overnight success stories with no receipts.
- You want to make real money while staying true to yourself.
- You believe business can be both profitable and purposeful.
- You’re building your brand while managing your real life.
Not Just Candle Talk: Burn the Rules. Build Your Legacy
Turning "No Chance" Deals Into Signed Contracts: A Strategic Approach
Ever stared down a deal that seemed completely out of reach? You're not alone. In this gripping episode, I take you behind the curtain of my most nerve-wracking entrepreneurial moment — facing a five-figure deal that could either catapult my business forward or set me back months. With no industry track record and legacy competitors circling, my chances looked slim to none.
What happened next revolutionized my approach to high-stakes negotiations. I break down my "Bridge Before the Ask" methodology that transformed a closed door into a signed contract within just 72 hours. This isn't about pushy sales tactics or manipulation — it's about strategic relationship building that prioritizes understanding emotional drivers, creating genuine value, and establishing partnerships rather than transactions.
You'll learn my exact three-part framework: finding the emotional stake that truly drives decision-makers, crafting a low-risk "bridge" that demonstrates immediate value, and creating controlled urgency based on real timelines rather than artificial pressure. I've distilled this into a practical five-step checklist you can implement immediately for your next impossible deal. Since developing this approach, my close rate has increased by 60% across multiple high-stakes negotiations. Whether you're chasing retail partnerships, manufacturing agreements, or crucial investor funding, these principles will transform your approach to business development. Remember — the most impossible deals aren't lost because of lack of skill, but because we ask too soon without building a bridge. Subscribe now for more strategic insights that turn entrepreneurial anxiety into decisive action.
Collect all free downloadable checklist and access to other items including the featured Stanley on the go tumblers. https://linktr.ee/notjustcandletalk
Hello world, welcome back to Not Just Candle Talk, the podcast where passion meets profit and raw hustle meets real strategy. I'm your host, tony, and today we're diving into one of the most high stake, anxiety inducing, edge of your seat moments in entrepreneurship. Edge of your seat moments in entrepreneurship closing an impossible deal. If you have ever looked at a client, investor, a vendor or a partner and thought there is no way this is going to happen, then this episode is for you, because today I'm revealing the exact strategy I use and the same one smart founders are using to turn no chance into signed contracts. So grab your pen, because this isn't fluff, it's real, it's repeatable and ridiculously effective. Let me take you back to a real moment in my entrepreneurial journey. I was staring down the most important meeting of my life A five-figure deal that could scale my business overnight or set me back six months if it didn't close the problem. I had no proven track record in that Pacific industry. I was up against legacy competitors and, worst of all, I only had one shot. Everyone told me it couldn't happen, Even if I wasn't sure it could happen. But I used a strategy I know, called the bridge before the ask method, and it changed everything. So what is the bridge before the ask method? It's simple, but don't confuse it with being easy. It has three parts, okay, and I'm gonna break down all three parts right now. Part one find the emotional stake. Before pitching anything, I researched the decision maker. I didn't just Google them. I understood what they cared about. Were they struggled to meet a quarterly metric? Were they under pressure from investors? Did they have a public reputation to protect or build? Once I knew their emotional stake, their why, I stopped pitching what I wanted and started speaking to what they feared or hoped for Okay. Part two Offer the bridge before you sell. So I didn't ask for the deal, not immediately? Okay, I didn't ask for it. Instead, I created a micro win, something I could offer for free or with low commitment that directly solved a pain point they had right now. This could be anything from a custom report, a pilot version or maybe a test week, or even a case study with actionable insights. And here's the secret that bridge. It wasn't random, it was designed to lead them exactly where I wanted them to go, okay.
Speaker 1:Part three use controlled urgency. Okay, I didn't. I didn't create a fake FM message. Uh, f-o-m-o. I didn't create that I gave real reasons for actions. This data is most useful now because, or if we start next week, you'll beat your q3 targets and we're only onboarding one client this scale this month. That's what I told him. I'm only doing one, one client this month and that's and that's it. Okay, this creates a path plus pressure. Pressure equals process. Okay. So those are the three uh points that I hit on, uh, the three part points that I hit on when pitching, uh, what I had to pitch to this particular company.
Speaker 1:So what happened? Okay. So you asked what happened? Right? So after the meeting, they took the micro win okay, a personalized market insight deck. And you know what happened? Within 72 hours, they called me back. They said this is exactly what we've been missing. Let's talk next steps. Of course, I was happy, I was elated, right, waiting for that moment, but not so much right, we moved from not even in the room to an exclusive contract negotiation. I closed the deal not by pushing harder, but by bridging smarter. Ok, I did my, I did my research, I did my homework, so to speak. And here's the kicker I've used this same strategy in three other impossible deals since and my close rate shot up by 60%. So let's make this real for you. Okay, so let's make this real for you.
Speaker 1:Whether you're trying to close a big retail account, a major partnership brand, or maybe you're trying to get a licensee or a manufacturing deal or even a high stakes investor meeting, here's how you can apply bridge before the ask today. You can do this today. Okay, if you've got something coming up the step-by-step checklist. Five steps in this checklist Okay. So the first one is identify the emotional stake, which I went through gave an example of go beyond business. Ok, what personally drives the decision maker? Ok, so you got to find that. Step one to identify the emotional state. Step two craft a low stake win. Craft a low stake win. Okay, what value can you give them? That costs little but shows a big impact? Okay, that's step two. I repeat craft a low stake win. Step three design your bridge with intent. What that means is this micro win should naturally lead to your offer. Make it obvious and easy, okay. So design your bridge with intent. That's number three.
Speaker 1:Number four introduce real urgency. Why now? That's the question. Why now? Give a real reason tied to their timeline or goals? Ok, so that's number four. Include real urgency. Everything is of the time is of the essence, right.
Speaker 1:Number five ask like a partner, not a seller. Don't pitch Collaborate. What can we do together? How can I help you? How can I help us? All right, we're collaborating Right. That's one of my big things when I, when I, when I go to meetings, I let people know my. My last ask, or why is I'm proud to collaborate with you on this? You know that to me, that's very important. That shows confidence as well. Okay, so let me leave you with this. The most impossible deals aren't lost because of lack of skill. They're lost because people ask too soon without building a bridge. So the next time you face a closed door, remember, don't push harder, just build better.
Speaker 1:So I just wanted to touch on this because I have been in. I have been through like I say all the time, I've said this in multiple episodes peaks and valleys. All everything is peaks and valleys, right. So I've been there when some deals really didn't go through. They just didn't, for whatever reason, and I was OK with that. Yes, it hits you hard at the beginning, but you got to keep getting back up Right, back up Right. So I had to. I had to touch on this because, uh, you know, I've seen in the last uh quarter or so that my, uh, you know, my, my ask was a little different, with a certain things that I tweaked. Right, and those those things that I tweaked are in this episode, okay.
Speaker 1:So I just want to say again, if there is any like I always say with all my episodes if there is any more information on the impossible deals, or if anybody would like me to do a part two I'm always open to part twos, of course. And if you love this strategy and want more high stake breakdowns like this, please subscribe, uh, or share this episode, okay, and drop a review. You can drop a review in my little text box down on my website, wwwnotjustkendaltalkme. And hey, we're going to keep doing this until next time. Keep the fire lit, keep your mind sharp and close those impossible deals. Thank you for listening. Bye.