Who Has Inspired You?string(21) "Who Has Inspired You?"

July 18, 2022
, , BNI, Business, INSPIRE 2

I’m often asked, “Who has been an inspiration to you during your life?”
My answer is that there are a handful of people who have influenced me in terms of business and personal development. I’d like to tell you about four who have impacted my life both professionally and personally.

Michael E. Gerber

The first is Michael Gerber. Michael is an icon in the field of management. He wrote the book “The E-Myth” (entrepreneurial myth). I did not know Michael when I read the book, which I first picked up when I started BNI®. One of the things that really resonated with me was that he talked about systems, systems, systems. You have to write everything down and create systems. Make it replicable and sustainable. AND you have to learn how to work on the business, not just in the business. There are so many things that Michael wrote that I applied to BNI. I truly believe that BNI, as an organization today, exists the way it does because of the influence that “The E-Myth” had on me.

What really amazed me is that going forward almost 20 years, I finally had the opportunity to meet Michael and spend a fair amount of time with him. He visited me at my home, which reinforced my attitude about his knowledge and business acumen. He is amazing. I highly recommend that you read his book. He absolutely makes a difference in people’s business lives.

Jack Canfield

Number two is for personal development as much as business development, and that is Jack Canfield. You may know Jack from the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” book series which has sold over 500 million copies worldwide. I’ve gotten to know Jack really well and I think he is an amazing guy. He invited me into the Transformational Leadership Council (TLC), which I have been a member of now for a number of years, serving on their board and membership committee.

For somebody who has sold 500 million books and is as well-known as he is, oftentimes ego enters the room several minutes before they do. Not so with Jack. He is easy to talk to, very well-read, low ego, very intelligent, very personable, very driven, and very connectable.

Here is one of the things that I really love about him. He is highly engaged when he is at a seminar. He is up front, listening to everyone’s presentation and taking copious notes. I have learned a lot from Jack; he is a great guy. I urge people to read his books on success, such as “The Success Principles,” and read any of the Chicken Soup books – they are outstanding.

Stewart Emery

The third person is someone who may not have the name recognition as the first two, however he has really influenced me personally and has influenced BNI. It is Stewart Emery. Stewart has written a number of books including, “Success Built to Last.” I highly recommend that book. He has also written the book, “Do You Matter?” It’s about branding and design of a business, which is really good. I think Stewart is one of the great minds of our time. He has come up with some ideas that are really powerful, two of which I talk about often.

The first is culture eats strategy for breakfast. I love that concept. Culture eats strategy for breakfast. If you are part of an organization that has marginal culture and great strategy, you’re not going to do well as an organization. If you are part of an organization with great culture and a marginal strategy, you will probably do pretty well. If you are an organization that has great culture and a great strategy, you are going to beat the competition every day of the week.

The second thing that I learned from Stewart is the concept that became the basis for the book we co-authored together, “Who’s In Your Room?” The idea is that, assuming you let somebody into a metaphorical room that you create and you can’t ever let them out, would you think twice about who you let in? It’s a great concept and it is particularly relevant for BNI chapters and networking groups because if you bring people in, you realize that you are going to be with these people for a long time and can never get rid of them if you let them in. I appreciate Stewart for sharing this brilliant concept with me, and with all of us.

Sir Richard Branson

I got a chance to meet Richard Branson, entrepreneur and founder of the Virgin Group, several times through my visits to Necker Island. I’ve spent time with him there and got to know him reasonably well. He is gracious, kind and patient with people. He can connect to anyone at any level of an organization and make them feel empowered and good about themselves. He knows how to relax and have fun, and he’s a great host. I love that he has absolute laser focus on anyone he meets; he gives his undivided attention to them. He talks with that person as if they are the only one in the room, maintaining eye contact with them the whole time. I have gone to school on Richard and his ability to network effectively with all people at all levels of an organization, and I’ve learned a lot from him.

So those are people who have influenced me both personally and professionally.
Who has inspired you? I invite you to think about two or three people who have made a difference in your life and share why & how in the comments section.

I believe gratitude is a good thing. I suggest that if you know these people personally, or if you can connect with them somehow, let them know that they have influenced your life.

 

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your words

The Words to Live Your Life Bystring(30) "The Words to Live Your Life By"

March 22, 2021
, , INSPIRE, Survey, Word of Mouth 1

Last month, I was wondering which words best describe the effect of BNI® on businesses. I decided to share a post on my social media pages requesting for you to reply with your words. I was amazed when I received over 200 words as replies to that question. Therefore, I decided to copy down all the words from the comments shared on my social platforms and save them in a file. After sorting the words alphabetically, I was able to see which of the words were the most common in your replies. I was not surprised to see that five of the seven BNI Core Values were represented as half the top ten most popular words.

The most popular word of all the words received was GROWTH. Our members found that joining BNI resulted in LEARNING how to be a better business owner. They grew both personally with a positive ATTITUDE, and professionally from the RECOGNITION they received. As they SUPPORTED the other members, their own business was being held ACCOUNTABLE too and THRIVING. They were INSPIRED as a result of the COLLABORATION with the members in their chapter, even during the pandemic. The core value of GIVERS GAIN® is what our BNI members hold dear and incorporate into the culture of their businesses. These are your words to live by.

What is Your Verb?

Asking my followers what is their “one word” reminded me of my blog, “What is Your Verb?”. This blog was about a 2017 presentation from Alex Mandossian about knowing the one word that describes you best. This one word is not a noun or an adjective. The best words to describe you are verbs. According to Alex, verbs increase persuasion power and move people. The greatest thought leaders in history lived their lives as verbs. What is your verb? My verb is “inspire”.

Change your WORDS, Inspire your WORLD…

I explained in my blog, “Change your WORDS, Inspire your WORLD”, why my verb is “inspire”. I want to inspire people. Furthermore, I want to inspire people who inspire people to help others and become “their better selves”. Inspired people are not only motivating themselves, they are also an inspiration to others to perform at their highest potential.

Inspiration starts with changing your words. There is tremendous power in words, in our speech. We use words every day to communicate, to express our feelings and thoughts, but we often forget how powerful they can be and how important it is to choose them with care. Words are how we communicate and it is through our communication that we motivate others. Throughout human history, great leaders have used the inspirational power of words. What are the words that inspire you? These are the words to live by.

The Power of Words

Never underestimate the power of your words, both positive and negative. Your words can unintentionally hurt someone when expressed in a negative tone. However, when you use positive words, you inspire others to change. Your positive words can create a culture of caring. The words we use will provide insight and understanding that will create positive change.

In this video, a blind man sits by a busy city street hoping for some spare change.  Beside him is a sign, “I’m Blind. Please Help.”  People pass him by without notice until a girl stops and re-words his sign, “It’s a Beautiful Day and I Can’t See It.”  Immediately, passersby respond to the man because of the power of words.

Hope is More Powerful than Fear

In my blog, “Hope is More Powerful than Fear”, I explained that we must be careful about the actual words we use. We can foster hope in others by using words of encouragement that create the actions to inspire others. We can choose to have hope, make the most of it, and come out better and stronger. Otherwise, we can choose to be overcome by our fear and feelings of isolation. However, we know that in our times of distress, hearing words of encouragement from others can remove our fear and foster feeling stronger.  I choose to be better and stronger. These are the words to live by.

Use positive words of encouragement to change people’s lives for the good. The real power of our words is the result of these words on others.  We can change people’s lives for the good with just a few encouraging words of hope. You can change our world and make our world a better place simply with the power of your words.

36 years

36 Years of Growth, Passion, Inspiration, and Changing Livesstring(60) "36 Years of Growth, Passion, Inspiration, and Changing Lives"

October 1, 2020
, , BNI, Building Relationships, Growth, INSPIRE, Restart The World 1

BNI is approaching 36 years of consecutive growth since it launched in 1985. I do not know of any other organization in the world that can point to that. In those 36 years, there have been many disruptions including recessions, wars, and major weather events (such as earthquakes, wildfires, and tsunamis). Nevertheless, BNI has continuously grown for 36 years.

2020 has been full of many of these disruptions in addition to a global pandemic, which led to people spending most of the year in “the great pause”. However, I believe we can actually help even more people this year recover and grow, too. Today, BNI has the most comprehensive set of collateral material, educational content, and technology available to help support and change the lives of business owners worldwide. Therefore, our local BNI members have every resource needed to help support and change the lives of their local business community.

Watch this video to learn about the special tool I used in 1985 to open 20 BNI chapters in that first year. The theme for this advice will help anybody in any business.

36 Years of Passion and Inspiration

Over the years, I was passionate about spreading the word and helping more and more people succeed in their business. Nothing great in life has ever been done without a little bit of passion. Although I love the technology, processes, and systems we have today, the one thing we need for chapters to grow is passion. What first made you passionate about BNI? Think about this and share your “MY BNI” story with other business owners. Share your passion with them and help inspire them to change their lives. I want you to inspire people. I want you to inspire people to inspire other people. Take away all the stuff and you can still inspire others to grow. Trust me, I had nothing but one sheet of paper and a ton of passion for what BNI could do for others. I was passionate about helping people with their circumstances to change their lives, and we grew and accomplished great things together.

 36 Years of Changing Lives

Today, people need BNI, communities need BNI, and countries need BNI. More than they did almost 36 years ago. I believe that together we can again make a difference in more people’s lives. Let’s make 2020 BNI’s 36th year of consecutive growth. Help me in spreading our “Givers Gain” philosophy and BNI’s mission around the world. Together, we can help other business people to get through these challenging times. Let’s celebrate 36 years of changing lives with BNI.

Passion: It’s the one thing no one can give you. With passion, you can make a difference. More importantly, you can change lives. Focus on your passion and focus on inspiring more people in your community to change their lives. They need you. Now, more than ever, they need BNI.

difference

Make a Difference in Someone’s Lifestring(41) "Make a Difference in Someone’s Life"

July 2, 2020
, Gratitude, INSPIRE, Mentors, Showing Gratitude 7

My previous blog this week was about the 2020 Misner Leadership Scholarship winner, Jenna Valdez. My wife and I have been issuing these scholarships since 1999 to worthy students at Gladstone who have been actively engaged in leadership during their tenure at the school. When we issue the scholarship each year, we ask the recipient to help young people when they are an adult. We ask that they continue to be a leader by contributing to others in the future and to make a difference in someone’s life.

The leadership experience I received while at Gladstone changed the direction of my life. It was an integral part in helping to shape the person that I would become as an adult. It laid the foundation for many of the choices I made in college and throughout my professional career. There were individuals in my life who made a difference in my life. In this five-minute video, I tell the story of how one of these people really made a positive impact on my life. Back in high school, he helped to shape me into who I am today. He believed in me and gave me a chance when it seemed that no one else would. I learned from him to take time every day to make a difference in someone’s life.

Who made a difference in your life?

It is important to recognize the people who have made a difference in our lives. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge and understand how they positively impacted us. It can help us to gain clarity about ourselves as individuals about our personal values and ambitions. There probably is someone you can immediately call to mind who has impacted you and really made a difference in your life. Whether it happened recently or during your formative years, they made a difference in your life. Robert Louis Stevenson said, “Everyone who got where he is has had to begin where he was.”  Therefore, I firmly believe that our teachers, educators, and mentors play a huge part in helping us to get from where we began to where we want to go.

Please share your story below about a person you are grateful to. Let us know how they positively influenced your life and made a difference in your life. I would love to read your story about someone who impacted you in a way that helped you get where you are today.

Dream Big

Dream Bigstring(9) "Dream Big"

November 11, 2019
, , , , , , , , , , , Dream Big, INSPIRE, Law of Attraction 2

Our 2019 BNI Global Convention just wrapped up. I wanted to take a moment to thank everyone who joined us from around the world at this exciting event in Warsaw, Poland.  Dziękuję Ci. This year’s convention is all about our theme, Dream Big. Therefore, I want to share a few thoughts for those of you not in BNI on how you can reach your goals when you dream, believe, and achieve…

Dream Big

Do you dare to dream? If so, you are a results-oriented person. Dream big to help you transform your own life, both personally and professionally, and contribute to making the world a better place.

Marcia Wieder, CEO, and Founder of Dream University was our keynote speaker at our 2019 Global Convention. She spoke about the entrepreneurial mindset of having a dream for your business and how to successfully realize that dream.  I met Marcia through the Transformational Leadership Council which we are both members of and, let me tell you, Marcia is truly the best of the best of when it comes to understanding this facet of your business. Please watch this video to learn more.

Marcia explains that in business, dreaming is serious business; it’s the driving force for transformation and without vision, many companies fail.

Make a plan.

A dream without a plan is just a fantasy. It is your thoughts about believing in your dream which will lead to achieving your dreams.

In the book, “Psycho-Cybernetics” by Dr. Maxwell Maltz, he recommends “steering your mind to a productive, useful goal so you can reach the greatest port in the world, peace of mind”. If you believe in yourself and believe that you can achieve your goals. you will. However, you need to take the next step.

The “Law of Attraction” is the belief that positive or negative thoughts bring positive or negative experiences into a person’s life. This belief is based on the ideas that people and their thoughts are made from pure energy, and that a process of like energy attracting like energy exists through which a person can improve their health, wealth, and personal relationships.

Take action.

The Law of Attraction is powerful. However, “action” is part of the word attraction. Therefore, you must take action to achieve your dreams. I firmly believe taking action (beyond simply showing up) is key to achieve real results. Making a plan is meaningless if you don’t shift toward action. You can’t make improvements through thought alone. You can also start to achieve your dreams with these six simplest actions you can take.

Reach your goals and create a better life when you dream, believe, and achieve…

 

 

inspire confidence

Inspire Confidence to Refer Youstring(31) "Inspire Confidence to Refer You"

September 23, 2019
, , , , Building Relationships, Credibility, Education, INSPIRE, Referrals, Relationships 2

When it comes to getting referrals from your network, the confidence others have in you is a vital component. None of them wants to risk their personal reputation by referring to a stranger. Until you inspire confidence that referring contacts to you won’t harm their reputation with their clients, associates, friends or family, you’re still a stranger. People won’t refer you if they feel you’re going to let them down.

Your profession matters to inspire confidence

The more significant the business being referred to is, the greater the risk to the referrer’s reputation. If you’re a florist, it may take only a week or two for people who try your services to recommend you on the basis of their experience with you. The risk associated with referring a florist is usually small unless you’re bidding on a large wedding that also might be your referrer’s top client. If you’re a financial advisor, it may take you six months or a year to reach the critical confidence level. However, since the stakes are higher, your referrer stands to gain more if the results are successful.

No matter what line of work you’re in, if you don’t perform well, your referrer will learn of it and you may not get another referral from that source.

Educate others about your business to inspire confidence

Don’t assume your fellow networkers understand your company or industry well enough to refer you confidently. You have to educate them and keep on educating them as long as you’re in business.

A networking group like BNI is ideal because everybody is expected to address the group at regular intervals. Make your presentation interesting and stimulating. Tell them how your product or service improves others. Each time you speak, present a new aspect of your business. Let your knowledge and eloquence persuade them that you’re very good at what you do. You will inspire confidence and your name will come to mind whenever a referral opportunity arises.

If you’re following these simple tactics, then you are well along the road to getting all the referrals from others’ networks that you deserve by inspiring confidence to refer you.

spark in their eyes

Having that spark in their eyesstring(31) "Having that spark in their eyes"

October 11, 2018
, , Guest Video, INSPIRE, Motivation 2

While attending the 2018 BNI Poland Conference, I met Paweł Jach, Executive Director at BNI Poland. He was the Master of Ceremony of the conference. He told a story today that I absolutely love. It was about how Navy Seals are selected based upon having a spark in their eyes.

Please watch this video.

A spark in their eyes

The one thing that was consistent in those men selected was their commitment and having that spark in their eyes.  Business people who are successful also have that spark in their eyes. Therefore, what does it mean to have a sparkle in your eye? It’s an expression made up of many things. It happens when someone is excited by someone, happy being with them, at what they say, at how they look back at them. Perhaps their eyes open a little wider, to catch more light. Whatever it is, you know it when you see it, and it probably makes your eyes sparkle, too.

“Can't do” or “Won’t do”

Helping others depends on either a “Can’t do” or “Won’t do” answerstring(82) "Helping others depends on either a “Can’t do” or “Won’t do” answer"

June 18, 2018
, , , Ask Ivan, Collaboration, desperate networker behaviors, Education, Focus, How Can I Help You?, INSPIRE, Management, Motivation, Networking, Productivity, Purpose, Relationships, solutions, work ethic 4

Whatever the issues are that are holding someone back, focus on a constructive approach. If you ask them, “How can we help you?”, their answer will always be either a “can’t do” or “won’t do” answer. The person will either explain why they are having difficulty with the situation because they don’t know how to address it effectively, or they will give an answer that illustrates that they don’t really want to do this for some reason or another.

How to handle a “Can’t do” answer

Once there was a printer that was dead last on P.A.L.M.S. report in a local BNI group. We did not tell him that he was dead last. Instead, we asked him, “How can we help you?” His response was that his print shop was new and he admitted that he did not understand networking. This is a classic “Cant’ Do” response. It is our job to teach them because we were all a “can’t do” when we first started networking. We all make tons of mistakes. When someone says they can’t do something, they are open to being coached. It is our job to teach them.  If we were just negative and told the printer he was dead last, he would have quit. Instead, if we pour into them and help them, they become champions in BNI.

Where the clients come into the lobby area of the print shop, we recommended that he put up a sign where everyone could see it with slots for the BNI members’ business cards. He was instructed to get 20 copies of everyone business cards to fill sign with only the cards from BNI members. When someone took a card, they were told to say that Bob’s printing referred you. If someone not in BNI wanted to give him their cards for the sign, the printer was instructed to invite them to the next BNI meeting instead. True story! Nobody just took a card and left. They asked Bob his opinion on each of these. He gave a testimonial with everyone he had cards for. He went from last to number one in giving the most referrals. He went from being embarrassed to the top referral giver within 6 months. He was the winner of the year. He now loves BNI. We changed his business by coaching him.

How to handle a “Won’t do” answer

In this example, they give excuses: it’s too difficult… they are busy…I’m different. With a clear-cut “won’t do” answer, if you open the door for them they will leave on their own. I recommend saying, “I understand your frustration, it is ok to leave the group, feel free to come back if things change”. However, if you kick them out, they will become defiant and negative towards BNI. They blame the chapter and claim it is everyone fault. Therefore, if they don’t save face, they will fight you all the way. On the other hand, they don’t hate you if you give them the option to leave in a positive manner.

Here’s a suggestion. On rare, rare occasions – when someone is a “won’t do” but they don’t want to leave.  Tell them you appreciate their involvement and that you’ll throw them a “retirement party”. OK, not a real party – but recognize their past participation in the group and thank them for their involvement. This should be done rarely but it allows them to save face and leave. With this advice, you can cut down the percentage that will require a tough conversation by 90%. Then, only 10% of the time you need to have the tough talk about opening their classification and not renewing their membership. You want to be invested in their success, yet cut them loose when needed.

Being a member of the group is not enough.  If you are not contributing then why are you there? Being complacent is what I call a “MINO” (Member In Name Only). How can we help you to get more engaged? How can we help you to… bring more members? …bring more visitors? …bring more referrals? Whatever the issues are, just ask, “How can we help?” Their answer will tell you if you can help them.

Inspire

Change your WORDS, Inspire your WORLD…string(44) "Change your WORDS, Inspire your WORLD…"

November 27, 2017
, INSPIRE, Motivation 2

In a previous blog, What is Your Verb?, I stated that my verb is inspire. Based on that blog, I wrote some material for the BNI Global Convention and for this blog that I thought I’d share here:

I want to inspire people. I want to inspire people – who inspire people. I want someone to look at you and say, because of you, I didn’t give up. Because of you, I’ve learned so much more. Because of you, I’m a better leader. Because of you, I’m a success today. I want you to inspire people.  I want you to inspire people to be… “their better selves.”  I want you to inspire people to help others. I want you to inspire people – who inspire other people.

Inspired people are not only motivating themselves, but they also spur others on to perform at their highest potential. These people encourage others to contribute, sharing their energy and excitement through their words and actions. They are motivated by personal and professional rewards that they can’t wait to share with others, and they desperately want to motivate others to succeed.

To set your network in motion toward helping your business, make it your goal to become an inspirational person. Think of your network as a row of standing dominoes. Therefore, each domino will remain standing until you act on the first domino. To motivate change, you must tap the first domino to watch the chain reaction of tumbling dominoes. Your network is standing in place waiting for you to inspire the people to inspire others. Become inspirational and start the chain reaction.

Inspiration starts with changing your words. There is tremendous power in words, in our speech. We use words every day to communicate, to express our feelings and thoughts, but we often forget how powerful they can be and how important it is to choose them with care. Words are how we communicate and it is through our communication that we motivate others. Throughout human history, great leaders have used the inspirational power of words to inspire us to start the chain reaction.

Change your WORDS, Change your WORLD…

 

Alex Mandossian Verb

What is Your Verb?string(18) "What is Your Verb?"

January 23, 2017
, , Alex Mandossian, Brand Building, Collaboration, INSPIRE, Motivation 23

I just spent the five days at my semi-annual TLC (Transformational Leadership Council) event in Mexico.  I come away from each of these conferences with nuggets of great information.

At this conference, one of the presentations that gave me a lot of great nuggets was from my friend, Alex Mandossian.  His talk was called “Discover Your Verb.”  OK, I thought it sounded a bit weird but his content is always so great, so I didn’t care – I had to be there.  I’m glad I was.  It was in fact, amazing.

In his talk he said, the “biggest lesson I’ve learned over the years is the one thing that makes a great business person and leader is: movement!”

Albert Einstein once said that “nothing happens until something moves.” This is true in business and in leadership because without movement, change is not possible.

Alex told the story of a legendary ad man, Leo Burnett from Chicago.  He said that “Burnett once put his staff to the task of analyzing 62 ads that failed to move merchandise. Why did they fail?  Burnett said it was due to too many adjectives because adjectives (like “extremely”) don’t move people, instead they spark skepticism and doubt in our minds.  In fact, of the 12,758 words of those failed ads, 24.1% were adjectives! Translation: more adjectives means less movement.”

Alex said that in comparison, Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address contains only 13.1% adjective-to-total-word ratio and Churchill’s “Blood, Sweat and Tears” speech has 12.3%.

If adjectives are the problem, then what is the solution?  Alex said that it’s not nouns – it’s about verbs or action words.

Verbs increase persuasion power and move people according to Alex.  The greatest thought leaders in history lived their lives as verbs.

For example, Alex said: “Rene Descartes is “Father of Western philosophy.” His verb was: THINK! (“Cogito ergo sum”) “I THINK, therefore I am!”

  • Einstein believed if you stop learning you start dying. His verb was: LEARN!  “I LEARN, therefore I am!”
  • Maria Montessori believed in teaching philosophy that bears her name today. Her verb was: TEACH!  I TEACH therefore I am.
  • Walt Disney believed in dreaming. His verb won him 22 Academy Awards!  “I DREAM, therefore I am!”

Alex said, “it’s a one-word language that moves people and causes permanent and positive change!”

So – what’s your verb?  Alex asked us to pick our verb and put it on a sticky note.  I chose “collaborate” but my wife, Beth, told me that she didn’t think that was my verb!  I said, “what do you mean, my business is all about collaboration.”  She said yes that is how I operate but that is not the big picture of what I do.  I asked her what she thought I did and she said – “you inspire.”  She said that Alex told us that our verb had to be something BIG.  It had to be the big movement that we have with the people we work with.  Beth said that my role is to inspire people to collaborate.   I’d like to think she was right so – my verb is “INSPIRE.”

What is your verb?  Think BIG.  It’s the big movement that you make in your community and your world.  What is your verb and why?  Share it here.  I want to know.