The AG45 Soul Aligned Strategy Podcast, hosted by Katherine Breuss, explores the intersection of business, personal growth, and enjoyment. In this episode, Katherine interviews Tyler Marcus, CEO and co-founder of Gradmor, a company specializing in workforce intelligence using data and AI. Tyler discusses the evolution of his business and the importance of soul alignment, which he discovered through personal growth and internal reflection. They delve into the impacts of AI on workforce productivity, the importance of aligning personal and business goals, overcoming imposter syndrome, and being adaptable in business strategy. Tyler emphasizes the significance of meditation and yoga in achieving personal alignment and how it positively influences business success. The conversation concludes with insights on evolving strategies and the importance of aligning with external opportunities while staying true to one's personal values.

[00:00:52] Katherine Breuss: Tyler, welcome to the Soul Lined Strategy Podcast. It's great to have you, and I would love for you to introduce to everyone else who you are, and tell us about your business.

[00:01:06] Tyler Marcus: Sure. Yeah. So my name's Tyler Marcus, CEO of Gradmor founder, co-founder. Uh, we started the company in 2017. Uh, I've been running the business for eight years. Uh, our main business is workforce intelligence, it's helping businesses understand how to improve workforce productivity, performance efficiencies, using data, data science, analytics, and now ai, depending on what the situation is.

Uh, our business has evolved, , over eight years and not only has my business evolved, but I feel I've evolved with it, , as it's grown. Uh, that's, that's, that's the essence of what, what my company does.

[00:01:43] Katherine Breuss: Very cool. And especially, I bet, your business with everything that's going on in terms of AI and how work is changing, I could see the real, need for what you do.

[00:01:55] Tyler Marcus: Definitely. Actually, when we started it, I felt we were a bit early in the cycle of data and analytics within people and talent. Uh, it was mostly enterprises were focused on it. But now, since AI has become more mainstream, smaller businesses are starting to realize the value of that data.

As when you're using AI chat GBT or something, you're how can I apply this to make us more productive? So people start to think more about it as opposed to being why do I need data around employees and people? And, when it's really one of the key parts of a business success.

Uh, it's, it's changed how people think about this topic. Which has made our business, easier to, to, work with companies and, and go beyond what we doing. So.

[00:02:39] Katherine Breuss: I can echo that. I, I currently work with a business in Illinois and data analytics has become one of their number one strategic priorities over the next few years.

Um, looking at it from all realms. So, if businesses aren't looking at it, they should.

[00:02:55] Tyler Marcus: Yeah, no, definitely. it, and data analytics has been, in marketing we use it. I'm, I'm, my background's in marketing, digital marketing, data science. I worked in digital marketing for seven years.

Facebook ads, Google, AdWords, things that. Data was always that's how you drive your ads, right? If you're optimizing ad campaigns, you would use data to make the cost per click drop or to increase conversions, everything. Same thing in sales. People use sales data to drive business, but when it comes to people and data, a lot of times they don't really understand how to leverage it.

What can be used? Um, I, I obviously, if your company's 10 people, it's very hard to use people data because you don't have enough sample. Once you get up to a couple hundred or more, depending on your business use case and what you're doing there is, there is potential applications to not drive better business, but to make your revenue increase cut costs.

Like people don't realize the power of people data. In business success and it's, it's even now today, sometimes it gets overlooked, but it's starting to become a little more, , I don't mainstream if you want to call it, or something along those lines.

[00:04:01] Katherine Breuss: Cool. That's a really, really cool, I'm, I know I'm learning more about, data and how to utilize it from working with businesses who are, or wanting to.

So, , very cool. And I can appreciate getting into a business maybe sooner than the market isn't necessarily ready for it, because when I was in Asia, that happened to me as but I'll save that story for, for another time. So, as a G 45, we. Are all about soul aligned strategy and for, the power when a business owner really understands who they are, what they want, and integrating that, , and aligning it to their business.

So I would love to hear from you, , how soul aligned you are and the impact that has made on your business.

[00:04:53] Tyler Marcus: Great question. I, the concept of soul alignment for me, has come in the past few years, I. I started the company eight years ago. We started the company and obviously when you're your entrepreneurship journey, I feel a lot of it is your own personal journey is has to be aligned with it because you're, it's forces you to grow in a certain way.

And if if you don't, you either are very stressed or disconnected or you quit because there's no, you don't have anything tangible holding onto what you're trying to do. And I, I felt in the first. Like two years, three years. It was a struggle for me. And post COVID, it was a struggle because COVID we had a business and then COVID ruined it in a sense of what we were doing because of the changes that happened and it forced a readjustment.

So we almost had two businesses in the same eight year frame where you had this startup version and then you figure it out and then we have to restart it back up again. But what I realized is when we were doing it the first time, I felt we were misaligned with what we wanted to do personally.

So we were let's do this stuff because it makes us money and this is what we wanna do. But then you're ending up doing things that you don't want to do. The problem with that is you end up draining energy, I find over time you're doing things you don't enjoy. It's working at a job and then being I hate what I'm doing, but now you're doing this all the time.

It's very hard to really wake up in the morning and wanna push yourself, or do it the way. Mm-hmm. So what we learned is how do we do things that add energy to what we're trying to do and what's the impact we're trying to make? Yeah. So if for me, I get the energy from business development, right?

So I'm, my whole thing is networking and events. I get energy from that. I could do that 10 hours a week. Most people are I, they're burned out. I'm I don't, it adds energy for me, but that's me. Like my personality is I it. So if I'm doing my ener, my things that are more that and spending less time on things that I don't find add energy in my business partner the same way you, I we outsource it or we find another solution because we used to try to do all this stuff and then we're doing things you don't and then you're why am I even doing this?

Meanwhile, if you put all your energy into things, you're good at. You compound that. It adds up.

Yeah. Right.

[00:07:10] Tyler Marcus: So when about soul alignment, a lot of it's who you are as a person, authentic to yourself and how that comes out for what you're doing. a lot of times when we start companies and we do things, we get disconnected from it.

'cause we feel then you have to do this because the media says you have to do that. Right? Or hustle. You have to be, you're not pro if you're not spending all your time on social media. Well, that's not for me, but hey, my power is in person we can outsource social media. Or maybe that's not a strategy we need.

So that's how about it and I think. Then you enjoy the journey more and you start to be more present and it comes off more with people 'cause they're wait, this person's pretty tapped in now there, there's a lot of reasons why and it often gets overlooked more than anything.

Yeah.

[00:07:50] Katherine Breuss: I love, I really love that you brought the energy drain into it because how we see soul alignment. Ultimately, you are getting results. And you're enjoying the journey and results mean different things to different people. You know, in terms of what that is and what I see, a lot of businesses, they're either getting one or the other or they're getting neither.

And some I'm going, what are you doing? Like, get a job 'cause you're gonna end up making more money, spending your time better and, enjoying the journey overall. But I love the fact that you said that you're the first go round you felt was more of a, of a energy drain.

Yeah. And that's probably, a really good clue to someone that maybe they are spending their time on things that aren't necessarily feeding them or nourishing them and draining them. And that could be a first clue that maybe you're not aligned.

[00:08:54] Tyler Marcus: Right. Yeah. I, that is, that is because it's you're doing something that you feel you have to do and that it's over, it's fine for a few months, but over the years it can start to wear.

It does. It's over time you're why am I, I. Spending five hours a day doing things I don't enjoy. Yeah. For the thing I started myself.

[00:09:15] Katherine Breuss: Well, here's a question. So for those who are sitting in the first, first few years, and they might not have the resources, they're, they're, you are having to wear all hats, when you are, in the first few years of a business, what would be your advice in terms of the whole energy drain versus energy?

Inspire or, that's

[00:09:41] Tyler Marcus: a great question. I, alI think here's the thing, I don't know if you can hack the journey in some senses, right? Like you launch a company, you're gonna do everything you can to try to get it going. That's gonna require to do things that try things that you don't probably like.

it's the nature of it, right? It's it's, you're, you're gonna be forced to do that. over that journey instead of, I feel part of the problem is we get caught up in that and it's we're trying to do these things, but you have to see it as I. We're testing these things out and then this is not a permanent thing.

And if it starts to become and you're growing your business, maybe after a year you can start being where's my energy best served? a lot of times we go in, we don't really know that, I knew that I doing business development, but I don't think I really truly understood , this is why I it and here's how and here's how I can build off that.

I think. So the first year or two is you have to see it as a discovery. In a sense, and it's, I don't think you can be expect to be fully, solely aligned within the first three months. it's very hard to, unless you're very set on what you're doing. So I wonder, I, part of me thinks it's part of the journey to have this suffering moments.

I know it sounds pretty you have these suffering things to build better. But there, there is a purpose to it and it's to help you define what truly matters and where you really excel.

[00:10:59] Katherine Breuss: So you hit it, you hit the nail on the head in terms of the purpose, what truly matters.

Um, because even, yes, we are what we're saying, you and I, we're not sitting here saying that. Okay. Once your soul line, you are gonna be waking up and being life is great and I love everything I do. You know, there are gonna be e even when you are soul lined, there are gonna be things that you're doing that it's ah, I'd rather be doing something else.

But it's not that you're doing it all the time, and when it funnels up into this bigger why and really understanding who you are, those. Little things that maybe aren't your favorite thing to do, don't seem to bother or drain you as much if you didn't have that alignment at that higher level.

[00:11:50] Tyler Marcus: Yeah, no, totally.

Like, that's really, that's really a great point in a sense of how do you figure that out? And I, I, I think being, being aware of it is better. Like I was never really aware of, I wasn't my first year of working in my company. I'm trying to achieve soul alignment.

Like you don't really think about being aware of it. You that over time. After much suffering, you're how can I, where, where am I? Like when you start to realize where am I spending my best time? And if I double, triple down, quadruple down on those things, the results are gonna be there.

Because you're in a place of flow essentially, right? It's like. I cutler's book about flow states. Like you are, because you're in your most best place. You're not in a place of doing things that are taking away that, that piece of it. So that's a really important, important distinction.

Um, my advice for early stage founders is use this as a discovery, help figure that out. What does that mean to you? Like, what do you, and you could get better. Like if I, if I knew six months in that Hey, your soul's aligned with this, maybe I would've allocated my time better.

Or done something, honestly. But there is gonna be, there was always gonna be a growing pain part of it. You know? It's, it's not, it's, and there's a purpose for it, I guess. Just to help you build

[00:13:07] Katherine Breuss: Absolutely. And, suffering. We learn from it as long as we, as long as we are aware and, and are willing to look in and evolve and grow.

[00:13:18] Tyler Marcus: Right. Well, and the thing is with suffering with anything, it could go one or two ways. Like you can grow and evolve or you can. Honestly create mental stress for yourself or, yeah. And it could build within you. So you wanna make sure that you're seeing it from that perspective of this pain is leading to a fail forward type mentality.

A growth, not as taking it personally and being this means I'm a bad business person. Right. Or there are times where I had imposter syndrome where I was all this, it was maybe I'm not, good at this. And then you start to dream, that's not good.

'cause now you're you're losing your confidence. By your own self-sabotage, you know? Uh, those, those types of things are very important to understand when you're building something or working on something. Uh, and that mentality shift, is what makes you better on a day-to-day basis, unfortunately, like.

Uh, we're all subconscious in a sense of people's, when, when someone's in a relaxed state, people pick up that energy mm-hmm. More than if you're seeing stress, they pick up the stressful energy. It's we to think we don't, but we are, the energies do matter. Like it's all subconscious.

you could, in the sense when, a really good speaker walks in the room, right. Or you could pick up a certain energy. There's certain reason it's under great, there's a certain energy to their essence that captures that. And that's why historically really good like.

Like, let's use Barack Obama or anyone, that's a really good speaker. They capture a certain gravitation. That is what it's a, as a subconsciousness. It's not what they're saying, right?

[00:14:51] Katherine Breuss: They show up in a certain way. You feel it. You absolutely feel it. we are all made up of energy.

We are. That is, that's who we are. We're energy. And our, our. We give and take off of each other. So a hundred percent everything you've said, I am one hat's off that you are saying it because not a lot of people speak this way. Um, but you're spot on and, and we've all, I love that you brought up imposter syndrome and in a lot of ways, I find that it's such now an overused.

Term, but it's true. I have yet to meet a human being who has not said at one point they have felt a fake, or that they didn't have the confidence or imposter syndrome. And what's interesting is that. I feel that if we are all more real and more soul aligned, we show up more authentically and with more vulnerability and that energy of Hey, it's okay.

We're both humans. We've both made mistakes. You know, we've seen the good, the bad, the ugly. And we can learn and grow from each other. Um, and, and that's the other thing that I want to see more owners experience because it can feel very lonely as an owner and a CEO of a business.

[00:16:23] Tyler Marcus: Totally. Yeah.

And imposter syndrome, I don't most successful people have it. that's the other thing. And it's part of, I had, I used to have it a lot with my, data work. It's my, my data science abilities. I've this imposter where I wasn't good enough. It's based on what?

, You know, where you think I'm not I'm not good enough to be doing this stuff. And it's you literally been doing this for 12 years, 15 years now. , Why are you doubting yourself? And sometimes it's because you're stuck in a tech bubble too. Like I'm in conversations with high level data science people, they're also in the top, percentage of data analysis.

So you start to think they must have knowledge, everybody else. But it's most people don't have that knowledge. Like, most of my clients, on a, if I'm working with talent, hr, they're the opposite of data and they're, they're met for different reasons and it's the stuff I'm doing is, I, I, that imposter syndrome is hurting me because.

It's coming off as maybe you're, you're not confident in what you're doing when you're giving them huge impact in how they think of things. So I, I feel that having a understanding of impostor surgery and where it comes from can be helpful. And a lot of mine came from being in school or something and not, who knows because not being good enough or grades and you're this pressure.

I went to such a, a very academic high school, I was used to being put under high pressure situations at a very young age. That obviously has two sides to the coin, right? I feel there's the good and bad of that.

The good thing is you're used to that, right? So I'm used to being in high pressure situation, right? Because I've been doing it since I was 14. Problem with downside is that you doubt yourself a lot because you're am I good enough? Right? You're all these other people are better than me.

And it's like. So you have this double sized coin, how can you use that as a superpower versus a negative, right? If I'm used to high pressure things, it allows me to relax better maybe in a meeting, versus feeling doubt. Like, it's everything I feel has anything has two sides to the coin of how it can be perceived in your head, right?

So it's that, that's, that's really how about it.

[00:18:25] Katherine Breuss: Yeah. Um, that's, I, and I love that you said superpower because we, point people to their superpowers and connect that back many times in terms of with their business strategy , and bringing their superpower more to it because the business owner.

You are the engine behind it. So how you show up in your mind in the sense of you're the one that's making decisions, you're the one taking action. And how aligned you are within yourself absolutely impacts. Everything you do and, and the way I see it is this domino effect of you have soul aligned people, not only you, the business owner, then the people in your business, and then that domino effect, that energy that goes and then beyond out to your customers, your clients, and then the communities and that whole ripple or domino effect, um.

Yeah, that occurs. Um, that's what really drives, that's what really excites and, and, and drives me.

[00:19:32] Tyler Marcus: the soul alignment thing too is a lot of it is as business owners we become very, self, I don't wanna say self-centered, but we could become it's all about what we're trying to build.

I feel when you have more of the soul alignment, you start to see it more as the impact and things you're doing. So when about my business now, we started in this way and I feel it was very much here's what we're trying to do with our workforce stuff. Since I feel I've been more aligned, I'm more how can I help these people do this?

Um, I now, I'm starting two other businesses for because I find that I work better as serial entrepreneur than I do as a one business owner. But also I'm thinking about how, how can this make an impact in the Milwaukee community, right? Or what I'm trying to do.

And I feel when you're tapped in that way, you don't become as self. Absorbed in what you're trying to accomplish for yourself, you start to because the concept of the soul, a lot of it is through connection and through impact. we don't have to go down the road of souls and how they, how our lives may have, may have, have happened, but when you think about concept of the universe and all that, it is from that.

Standpoint, it's not from a self-absorbed standpoint. Mm-hmm. So that's the thing. So it's, that's where the alignment comes and it's it's much more natural for me to think about how's this gonna impact the greater community and what we're doing? Yes. Like workforce can help make things efficient, but are there other things that I'm doing that I could tie in that help?

And that's really one of the key DA key points to it as well.

[00:20:57] Katherine Breuss: I love it. Well, if there, Tyler, if there was one thing, or piece of advice that you would give any business owner, and particularly when it comes to this, soul alignment piece, what would that be?

[00:21:11] Tyler Marcus: So, my thing is meditation and, and yoga, as I find that, that was the biggest thing.

I, there's something about it forces you to go inward. Over time. Now people with meditation, they're I, no, I found you. It, it compounds. It's one of those things you have to do consistently, but I find that forces you inward and then you start to, you start to be more in tune with yourself, even from a business perspective.

So I find that that's my, I, if I was here's your one thing I would say, do something along those lines because I think. That then you really start to, you feel more and you're more in tune with what you're aligned with because you're not out outward. Right. You're now, you're balancing out the inwardness.

That would be my suggestion.

[00:21:54] Katherine Breuss: Another fabulous point because, it is very dangerous and if, if any of anyone out there is connecting their, um. Enjoyment or their purpose or their who they are to the external. It's a very dangerous place to be. It should always be pointed inward, to you. And curious Tyler, what yoga do you do?

[00:22:18] Tyler Marcus: So I'm a hot yoga person. Like, it's, it's, they do vinyasa ish. Uh, there's a little kinda lean influences, but it's, I'm very into hot yoga because for me, I'm a little a DD, yoga sometimes, my mind will wander in a more, when it's hotter. It forces you to, to be in tune with your breath because it, that regulates your body temperature.

More people, if you're in your breathing zone and it's a hundred degrees in the room, you're regulating your body temperature and you're keeping your heart rate at a limit. If your mind starts to wander, you're not focused, you can you could start to feel a little vertigo. So it's almost it does force you to act in that meditative state.

So I've always, I've been a hot yoga person. I used to do yoga, but now I'm consistently a hot yoga person. Because of that, I find it keeps me more focused, when I'm in class and that that reverberates for me.

[00:23:07] Katherine Breuss: I get that. So I am, 'cause I, when I lived in Asia, in Singapore and I did quite a lot of yoga with other things, I'm an Ashtanga yoga teacher.

Uh, or certified. I wouldn't say I'm a teacher. I don't actively teach. I took it from my own personal, I really wanted to understand it. Um, doing it in Singapore is doing hot yoga.

[00:23:27] Tyler Marcus: Yeah. Yeah, pretty much, right? It's always hot yoga in Singapore,

[00:23:32] Katherine Breuss: it really is. But I will say there is something really, when it is hot, it, it does make, it does make yoga in my personal opinion.

Um, I. Easier to connect and easier. Well, one, you're warmed up your body will stretch more. It can also be dangerous, but anyway.

[00:23:49] Tyler Marcus: Yeah. Well, yeah. Not suggest ob Yeah. Like in the wrong circumstances, but yeah. Do I suggest someone with a heart condition who's do that? No. Like, there's, there's certain elements where it's not an ideal thing.

Um, I find for me, for, I found it keeps me more focused because my, my thing is that I can get very distracted. Easily, a lot of founders, too, they could be a little ad most of my friends who are entrepreneurs are have a little A DD or I guess in, in the sense that they're we're all cra running around this allows you to come back to the center in alignment.

So that's, that's where I found it. But a lot of the Eastern influences around this stuff, is helpful. Like I, I know I mentioned Buddhism before, parts of Hinduism too, certain eastern religions. They, they speak a lot about the soul in its own way and align in its own self.

And there's a lot to learn from that in how you operate a business. I know people think that might sound farfetched, but there is in how you think about what you're doing and how it aligns with what you're trying, what, what your purpose is. And it allows you, they, you the tools to tap into that in a way versus the western culture we're very much results driven.

It's the nature of the west to be here's what we're doing. And even our religious concepts can be that. there is elements of benefit to understanding and learning historically about, those types of religious taoism, the balance of the yin and yang. But those things matter, in, in how you approach what you're trying to accomplish and it will make it easy.

Absolutely.

[00:25:20] Katherine Breuss: Absolutely. Like you don't, if you have results, but you're not enjoying the journey, in my humble opinion, it's what's the point? You know? Yeah. And if you enjoy the journey, but you're getting no results, again, I'm what's the point?

[00:25:33] Tyler Marcus: Like, exactly. Exactly. So it's or Yeah, and, and the thing is, is a lot of people fall into I'm doing really great, but I'm not really enjoying this.

And it's you gotta take a step back and be how can you make this more enjoyable? Or maybe it's not what you expected it to be, but. You gotta, you gotta find that happy medium. Mm-hmm. Balance of it, the results, purpose, alignment. That's what you want. You don't wanna be I'm doing all this stuff, but I don't feel it.

This is why people who work in, jobs that make a lot of money sometimes feel disconnected. Right. Many corporate people who work in corporations that make. Like, top 1% money, but they still don't feel great. And it's why is, that's not good either, because you're getting financially wealthy.

But in the end, your present day to day is what matters because that's what the, it is about in the end because how you feel in the moment, it's not necessarily how you're gonna feel when you retire or something. Uh, there's, there's a lot to be said.

[00:26:33] Katherine Breuss: Yeah, there's this, this statement that I hear a lot of people, owners as as, employees that say, I'll be happy when, and the moment I hear someone say that, I know that they're coming from an outside in approach.

And that's where it's we gotta start looking inward in order for you to get the outward, coming towards you. So Tyler, if there was one thing where you are now in your business that you want to evolve. Or grow? What would that be?

[00:27:05] Tyler Marcus: So specifically in the business itself or any my, my, my business strategy or, and could be anything,

[00:27:12] Katherine Breuss: anything, any in terms of your next for you that kinda I really wanna focus on this next growth for myself and or for my business.

What would that be?

[00:27:22] Tyler Marcus: Great question. Uh, I feel as I'm always evolving and I feel as a person, as you, as you should be, that's also one more thing is I. The involvement of yourself is part of it. I, I to compare it to musicians, think of the Rolling Stones or versus other bands.

Okay, Rolling Stones, they've been musicians since 1965 up till now. Their music, if you listen to it in 1965, listen to it in 1977. Their albums, you listen to their albums in the eighties, their music evolves with the time. Right. At the sixties it was more psychedelic, rock the seventies, it was more, had a little disco vibe.

The eighties, it had more of this synth. That you have to think about your business that way. So when about my business, it's I'm, I'm always thinking about how are we evolving now with ai? We're evolving more into that because that's the time, and now that's what's the focus is, right?

And our whole thing is how can we evolve our business with the times? And that's what we're trying to align with as much as possible. So for us, our growth could be, now is a lot of it's with manufacturers where, how could they apply AI to help worker productivity. In a unique way, right.

And help those things. So, but in five years. That might not be the case. You know, five years ago, if you asked me where we were with the business, it was about getting people to understand people analytics. Like no one really did it except the, except a, a Fortune 500 now. It's people, some people are trying to get it.

It's different. So it's a different time. So. for us it's more about evolving into and aligning with the times and how we can fit into that as it goes. Nice.

[00:28:55] Katherine Breuss: And that is important. I'm, again, I'm glad you mentioned this too, because it's about soul alignment and when you are soul aligned, you are more likely to also be able to see then what's external and then aligning.

With the environment around you and where it's not necessarily about jumping to the next thing, but it's being strategic and smart. Um, and it sounds you and your team think very much in that way.

[00:29:20] Tyler Marcus: Definitely. Yeah. No, that's, and that's, a key part of it. you're right.

I think being more tapped in allows you to see more externally, which sounds counterintuitive, but more opportunity for some reason it's and, and in different ways that you didn't think before. Right. It's and that's because you're releasing, maybe I don't wanna call it fog, but it's there's this, you are, you are percent, it's, it's you're, you're releasing this fog that's blocking the, the what you're trying to see through the clouds.

So now you're able to see all these opportunities because you're not, you're energy is not being focused on things that are draining you, bringing you down, not aligned. And your brain then goes to things that are. It,

[00:30:00] Katherine Breuss: I love how you said that and, 'cause you're absolute, it is a fog and it's if your cup is already full and it's full of fog or not necessarily stuff, stuff that's draining you, there's no room for anything else to come in.

Right. And very said, Tyler. It has been a real, real pleasure and I've really enjoyed our conversation and not only, learning more about you and your business, but also your journey, with your business and, and being soul aligned. So I really appreciate your time.

[00:30:37] Tyler Marcus: Oh, thank you Katherine.

Love this conversation. I feel we could talk for hours about it

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