Beyond the Workbench

Not every job that pays is worth taking.Neither host can find a night to record. High school sports and a slow trip through East Texas turn into a conversation about what a break is for. Magnus also gives the update on his great aunt, three months after the cats were placed.Then it turns to where the hours go. Odin ran out of branded tape because finding a new supplier was less fun than tooling a belt. Magnus adds up the hours he spent building a class search app and wonders what marketing would have done with them. The money is not made at the workbench.Late in the episode, a question from Cedar Breaks Cowboy Co. He delivered 25 covers in a week and a half, sent the invoice, and learned payment would take 30 days. Odin covers what to settle first: payment terms up front, a W-9 ready, fees built into the price. Once the product ships, the leverage is gone.Leathercraft Business Mastermind interest form:https://forms.gle/m7jjm314NjkTQhir5TIMESTAMPS:00:18 - Finding a Night to Record08:16 - Remember Why You Started11:34 - The Cats, Three Months Later14:05 - Seven Habits and Mission Statements19:27 - Mission as a Decision Filter23:56 - Using What You Already Have28:34 - Money Is Made in the Office32:38 - Kanban Boards for Everything45:16 - Know the Terms Up Front55:42 - Send the Invoice, Then Work---------------------------------------------LISTEN TO THE PODCAST:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1boT5ABgRjIDEGyi7bEbjdApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-the-workbench/id1816987809YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheworkbenchpodcastAll Platforms: https://www.beyondtheworkbench.com/FOLLOW BEYOND THE WORKBENCH:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyondtheworkbenchTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beyondtheworkbenchFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Beyond-the-Workbench-61576775047322/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheworkbenchpodcastPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbenchHOSTS:Odin Clack - https://www.instagram.com/odinleatherMichael Magnus - https://www.instagram.com/magnusopusBeyond the Workbench casually dives into the world of leathercraft, entrepreneurship, and modern maker life. Hosted by Odin Clack (full-time leatherworker and retail owner) and Michael Magnus (leather marketing expert and founder of www.learnleathercraft.com), we explore everything from personal project updates to marketing strategies, retail challenges, and the business side of making.New episodes are released twice a month on Thursdays.Enjoying the podcast? Please share it with someone who you think would find value in the conversations. If these conversations have helped your business and you're interested in supporting the show, visit our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbenchEdited and produced by Instrumental Media: https://instrumental.media/#BeyondTheWorkbench #Podcast #Leathercraft #LeatherWorking #Entrepreneurship #MakerCommunity #SmallBusiness #MakerBusiness #BusinessStrategy #Kanban #PaymentTerms #CraftBusiness

The show was busy enough that almost nobody got the catch-up time they came for. In Episode 29, Odin and Magnus recap the Heart of Texas Leather Show in Waco: classes back to back, a line at every booth, and apology texts afterward from friends who never found a free minute. Both hosts also noticed a shift on the floor, younger faces and makers coming at the craft from outside traditional tooling. The classes surfaced the same three sentiments over and over: a hobby that got expensive enough that a spouse asked it to pay for itself, knowing you should be posting but not wanting to be on camera, and owning more leather than you will ever cut. Under all three sits the same question, artisan or business owner, which is a spectrum and not a fork. Out of those conversations comes a small mastermind group built around goals and accountability. The form below is gathering input on schedule, format, and price. Leathercraft Business Mastermind interest form:https://forms.gle/m7jjm314NjkTQhir5 TIMESTAMPS:01:05 - No Time to Catch Up02:28 - Learning Better From Someone Else05:57 - Why Niche Classes Fill Slower10:23 - New Faces at the Show11:46 - A Designer, Not a Tooler15:22 - Inside the E-Commerce Class22:25 - The Mastermind Group Idea34:09 - Artisan or Business Owner37:59 - Three Things Everyone Wrestles With46:45 - Lasers Getting Less Taboo --------------------------------------------- LISTEN TO THE PODCAST:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1boT5ABgRjIDEGyi7bEbjdApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-the-workbench/id1816987809YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheworkbenchpodcastAll Platforms: https://www.beyondtheworkbench.com/ FOLLOW BEYOND THE WORKBENCH:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyondtheworkbenchTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beyondtheworkbenchFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Beyond-the-Workbench-61576775047322/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheworkbenchpodcastPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbench HOSTS:Odin Clack - https://www.instagram.com/odinleatherMichael Magnus - https://www.instagram.com/magnusopus Beyond the Workbench casually dives into the world of leathercraft, entrepreneurship, and modern maker life. Hosted by Odin Clack (full-time leatherworker and retail owner) and Michael Magnus (leather marketing expert and founder of www.learnleathercraft.com), we explore everything from personal project updates to marketing strategies, retail challenges, and the business side of making. New episodes are released twice a month on Thursdays. Enjoying the podcast? Please share it with someone who you think would find value in the conversations. If these conversations have helped your business and you're interested in supporting the show, visit our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbench Edited and produced by Instrumental Media: https://instrumental.media/ #BeyondTheWorkbench #Podcast #Leathercraft #LeatherWorking #Entrepreneurship #MakerCommunity #SmallBusiness #MakerBusiness #BusinessStrategy #LeatherShow #Ecommerce #CraftBusiness

Sometimes the plan gets interrupted by 32 cats.Magnus spent two weeks helping his 81-year-old great aunt's pets. His projects stood still while he did it, but it was all for the best. Odin saw a shirt that read "Life be lifin'," and it became the frame for the episode: what happens to your goals when summer, family, and an emergency all land at once. The goal line is yours to move.Magnus also paid out the first quarterly dividends to the makers selling on learnleathercraft.com, which is something to be quite proud of. Odin reports back from Weaver Leather's Maker Camp in Ohio, where almost nobody knew who he was and that turned out to be the best part. A doorbell hanger class became a sewing machine lesson for 30 people who had never touched one. The back half gets into Don Gonzales's apprenticeship program and grading projects on margins, not looks.TIMESTAMPS:00:31 - When Life Interrupts Everything07:11 - Setting Goals That Survive Reality08:44 - Paying Out the First Dividends12:07 - Overestimate One Year, Underestimate Ten17:17 - Inside Weaver's Maker Camp22:14 - Nobody Knew Who I Was23:17 - Teaching Thirty People to Sew27:53 - Getting Out of Your Silo37:59 - Grading a Project on Margins48:38 - Heart of Texas Classes Explained---------------------------------------------LISTEN TO THE PODCAST:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1boT5ABgRjIDEGyi7bEbjdApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-the-workbench/id1816987809YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheworkbenchpodcastAll Platforms: https://www.beyondtheworkbench.com/FOLLOW BEYOND THE WORKBENCH:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyondtheworkbenchTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beyondtheworkbenchFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Beyond-the-Workbench-61576775047322/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheworkbenchpodcastPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbenchHOSTS:Odin Clack - https://www.instagram.com/odinleatherMichael Magnus - https://www.instagram.com/magnusopusBeyond the Workbench casually dives into the world of leathercraft, entrepreneurship, and modern maker life. Hosted by Odin Clack (full-time leatherworker and retail owner) and Michael Magnus (leather marketing expert and founder of www.learnleathercraft.com), we explore everything from personal project updates to marketing strategies, retail challenges, and the business side of making.New episodes are released twice a month on Thursdays.Enjoying the podcast? Please share it with someone who you think would find value in the conversations. If these conversations have helped your business and you're interested in supporting the show, visit our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbenchEdited and produced by Instrumental Media: https://instrumental.media/#BeyondTheWorkbench #Podcast #Leathercraft #LeatherWorking #Entrepreneurship #MakerCommunity #SmallBusiness #MakerBusiness #BusinessStrategy #MakerLife #WorkLifeBalance #CraftBusiness

Most people think they need an audience. What they actually need is a community. Steve Van Plew, a TV editor turned leatherworker and host of the Leathercraft Community Podcast Show, joins Odin and Magnus to talk about why he built his show around community instead of audience, and what that distinction actually changes: storytelling that builds trust, vulnerability that makes people relate, and a genuine investment in the people watching. The conversation moves into batch recording, pitching sponsors, and racing to capture the stories of the industry's older makers before they're gone. Steve also shares how a dog collar for his mini pinscher turned into a full leathercraft obsession. Featuring Steve Van Plew of Van Plew Co.:https://www.instagram.com/vanplewco/ TIMESTAMPS:00:01 - Welcoming Steve Van Plew01:22 - How the Podcast Began05:58 - Storytelling Builds Trust With Audiences12:04 - Racing to Capture Elder Stories20:44 - The Batch Recording Secret Explained25:28 - Pitching and Pricing Sponsorship Deals38:13 - How a Dog Collar Started44:41 - Attention as the New Currency48:16 - From TV and UFC to Leather56:00 - Where to Find Steve Online --------------------------------------------- LISTEN TO THE PODCAST:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1boT5ABgRjIDEGyi7bEbjdApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-the-workbench/id1816987809YouTube: https://youtu.be/kQWifxu3s8AAll Platforms: https://www.beyondtheworkbench.com/ FOLLOW BEYOND THE WORKBENCH:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyondtheworkbenchTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beyondtheworkbenchFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Beyond-the-Workbench-61576775047322/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheworkbenchpodcastPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbench HOSTS:Odin Clack - https://www.instagram.com/odinleatherMichael Magnus - https://www.instagram.com/magnusopus Beyond the Workbench casually dives into the world of leathercraft, entrepreneurship, and modern maker life. Hosted by Odin Clack (full-time leatherworker and retail owner) and Michael Magnus (leather marketing expert and founder of www.learnleathercraft.com), we explore everything from personal project updates to marketing strategies, retail challenges, and the business side of making. New episodes are released twice a month on Thursdays. Enjoying the podcast? Please share it with someone who you think would find value in the conversations. If these conversations have helped your business and you're interested in supporting the show, visit our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbench Edited and produced by Instrumental Media: https://instrumental.media/ #BeyondTheWorkbench #Podcast #Leathercraft #LeatherWorking #Entrepreneurship #MakerCommunity #SmallBusiness #MakerBusiness #BusinessStrategy #CommunityBuilding #ContentCreation #MakerLife

Chasing someone else's success is a losing game. In Episode 26, Odin and Magnus get into what it actually looks like to measure your business on the right terms and the right timeframe.The episode covers a summer check-in, corporate leather classes as a revenue stream, and why the front door of a retail shop tells you almost nothing about how a business is actually doing. Magnus brings in a concept from a leadership book he is reading about finite versus infinite games. There is no finish line in business, no single winner, no point where you stop. Odin frames it his own way: success is a river, not a pie.The back half gets honest. Both hosts admit they move past wins almost immediately and find it easier to celebrate other people than themselves. There is also a useful moment about pricing: building a simple formula that makes custom work easier for the customer to understand and easier for you to quote.TIMESTAMPS:01:01 - Summer Schedules and Routines03:32 - Magnus's New Job Update04:44 - Learn Leathercraft Updates10:25 - Corporate Classes and Team Building17:35 - Front Door vs. Back Door Business22:29 - YouTube Returns After Four Years26:23 - Preserving Leathercraft History32:20 - Pricing by the Inch37:52 - Finite vs. Infinite Games42:17 - Success Is a River, Not a Pie---------------------------------------------LISTEN TO THE PODCAST:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1boT5ABgRjIDEGyi7bEbjdApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-the-workbench/id1816987809YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheworkbenchpodcastAll Platforms: https://www.beyondtheworkbench.com/FOLLOW BEYOND THE WORKBENCH:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyondtheworkbenchTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@beyondtheworkbenchFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Beyond-the-Workbench-61576775047322/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondtheworkbenchpodcastPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbenchHOSTS:Odin Clack - https://www.instagram.com/odinleatherMichael Magnus - https://www.instagram.com/magnusopusBeyond the Workbench casually dives into the world of leathercraft, entrepreneurship, and modern maker life. Hosted by Odin Clack (full-time leatherworker and retail owner) and Michael Magnus (leather marketing expert and founder of www.learnleathercraft.com), we explore everything from personal project updates to marketing strategies, retail challenges, and the business side of making.New episodes are released on the first and third Thursdays of every month.Enjoying the podcast? Please share it with someone who you think would find value in the conversations. If these conversations have helped your business and you're interested in supporting the show, visit our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/beyondtheworkbenchEdited and produced by Instrumental Media: https://instrumental.media/#BeyondTheWorkbench #Podcast #Leathercraft #LeatherWorking #Entrepreneurship #MakerCommunity #SmallBusiness #MakerBusiness #BusinessStrategy #MakerMindset #MakerLife