Want an extraordinary client acquisition system implemented in your lead generation process for guaranteed massive business growth?
How is your client acquisition system working in your business?
How are you managing the prospects and customers you’re working with? Do you have all approaches covered?
After listening to or reading this episode you’ll have a better understanding of the different dynamics involved in client acquisition systems!
We’re making conversations about client acquisition count, with Michal and Ana Bohanes – Episode 88!
Michal and Ana share insights on working together – using a ‘good cop, bad cop’ routine.
Big take-away quote from this conversation about establishing effective client acquisition systems with Michal and Ana Bohanes:
“You do need to connect with people on a human level. I’m not a fan of spamming and doing just cold call where you just pitch them right away, none of that. But it is also a numbers game.”
Michal Bohanes, Making Conversations Count – (June 2022)
(Hard of hearing? Transcript here).
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Who are Michal and Ana Bohanes? And what do they know about client acquisition systems?
Michal and Ana Bohanes Alpha Lead Academy is a client acquisition system that helps businesses increase their leads and conversions.
Positioning themselves with a balanced approach, they help clients increase their accountability and weed out any distractions that may be preventing them from reaching their business goals.
Prospecting for new leads is a key component of the system, with Michal and Ana making sure to carefully consider the client’s needs before making any decisions.
This client acquisition system has been incredibly successful for the Bohanes’, with many businesses seeing massive growth after implementing it.
If you’re looking for a way to guarantee success in your lead generation process, you’ll definitely want to take a listen to the episode via the player, or click to read the transcript if you prefer.
Scroll down to continue reading this episode in which Michal and Ana share how they effectively manage their client acquisition system!
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Balancing being ‘Germanic’ and systems obsessed with being gentle and encouraging.
It’s not easy to balance work and life, especially when you feel like you’re constantly being pulled in different directions.
On the one hand, you have to get your work done so that you can maintain your high standards and meet your deadlines.
But on the other hand, you also have to make time for yourself and spend time with your loved ones .
For Michal Bohanes, it’s all about finding a balance between being systems obsessed and being gentle and encouraging.
In this conversation, Michal and Ana discuss the importance of having a system in place to help you manage your time and keep your client’s best interest at heart.
Let’s dig into the ‘mind weeds’
It’s no secret that having the right mindset is key to success in any field.
But when it comes to business, many people forget that the mind is just as important as the numbers.
In order to achieve great things, you need to be clearheaded and focused. And that means getting rid of all the ‘mind weeds’ that can hold you back.
In this conversation, Michal and Ana discuss the importance of weeding out distractions and staying focused on your goals. They also share some tips on how to stay accountable and avoid getting bogged down by negative thoughts.
Quote from episode – click here for full transcript
“We recently moved in the previous house. Our garden was full with clover. And that was a wonderful analogy because we were at some point we let it just grow. And then at some point our garden looked like a moon crater landscape because we just had one day decided to rip it all out and to just start all over again. And this was a wonderful analogy. And we use it, of course, for content because it’s such a bright and beautiful and juicy analogy with this kind of stuff that you mentioned. It’s the equivalent of mind weeds.”
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Have you established proper boundaries?
It’s essential to set clear boundaries with clients from the get-go in order to establish trust and respect. When there are no boundaries, it can be difficult to maintain a healthy client relationship. It’s important to be firm but fair, and make sure both client and consultant understand what is expected of them. By establishing proper boundaries, you create an environment where both parties feel comfortable and can work together effectively.
This is definitely the skillset that Ana brings to the team here.
Quote from episode – click here for full transcript
“I grew up with two Hispanic parents, and in the Hispanic community, everything is really you just depend on everything and everyone in your house and you have to help each other because you’re blood. So I grew up with this feeling that I needed to help everybody. And it wasn’t until I worked on my attachments that I had to bring out what is a secure attachment. And this was actually before I met Michal. I literally put it in my living room, put it on the wall, and I said, this is what I need to become. And I kept reading it and reading it and reading it, and I had to sort of build that fence around my garden where I said, these are my boundaries and no one can get through that fence unless I open the door for them to come in. So when it comes to clients, sometimes the reason why clients have such a hard time is because they do not know how to explain to their partners or even their own clients what their boundaries are. Because they feel that if they do not comply with everyone’s wishes, then they’re not going to be liked. And then again, that’s a deeper issue. Right. So it comes back to us as running our business. If someone is not doing the work and they know that I’m invested in them because we’re having weekly calls or I’m asking them how they’re doing, but if they are doing what they want and I see where they’re heading, then at some point I just have to say, all right, I have my boundaries, that I give what I can and I try to give my best to them, but if they’re not going to do the work, I cannot let this affect my life because then that runs into my family and then that depletes my energy.”
So what do we need to know about having a client acquisition system?
When it comes to client acquisition, having a system in place is essential for ensuring that you are getting the most out of your client relationships. By taking the time to implement a process, you can make sure that you are meeting your client’s needs and expectations, while also growing your business.
This is what Michal and Ana teach their clients so effectively.
A client acquisition system will help to streamline your client interactions, making it easier to track progress and communicate effectively. It can also help to identify areas where you can improve your service delivery.
A client acquisition system will help to ensure that your client base is happy and growing. In turn, this will lead to more referrals and more business growth.
You’ll learn….
This episode of “Making Conversations Count”, in which Michal and Ana Bohanes share their views and insights on having an effective client acquisitions system covers:
- Good cop, bad cop! Ying and Yang!
- Mind weeds and clover take over
- Sorting out the boundaries
- Michal and Ana’s conversations that counted – (and why Michal closed the door!)
Wendy’s takeaway
“In this episode we get to understand the importance of doing some proper planning and having a client acquisition system in place in order to maximise results from client relationships.
Michal and Ana Bohanes, a husband and wife business partnership, use a good cop, bad cop routine with their clients which they find to be effective.
The stuff around mind weeds and being accountable was also incredibly powerful and I think listeners will definitely get a lot out of it!”
Michal and Ana’s Links
Please do let us know your take-aways from this episode by leaving a comment at https;//makingconversations.studio/Review-Michal-and-Ana
New to this site? Learn more about Making Conversations Count podcast:
“Making Conversations Count” is a podcast from WAG Associates founder and telemarketing trainer Wendy Harris.
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Spoiler alert: want to read the conversation that counted in this episode about a client acquisition system with Michal and Ana Bohanes?…
You like to ruin the plot twist huh? OK, not judging. Here you are.
We like to ask everybody that comes on the show for a conversation that created a turning point. So I’m even more intrigued this time because I’m talking to a couple who run a business together, so I’m going to let you have the floor and share that conversation with us.
The funny thing is that this conversation also was between us. So you have a couple of conversations. Actually, the life changing conversation was me telling Ana, at some point I need to backtrack here. We met online, but not in the way how people meet online these days. We met in a Facebook group of another coaching program. We were simply students of that person, both entrepreneurs and getting our own coaching program there. And so we met in that group and we started talking. We became accountability partners and this meant a daily Whatsapp, voice memos? Are you on track? Are you doing the work?
And on different continents.
From different continents. I was in London and Ana was in Florida.
Michael was wagging his finger at you.
With the mindset, which is where he’s getting at.
Exactly. And I at some point hit a rough patch in my business to a point where I just couldn’t figure it out, couldn’t get clients. It was really tough. And so I talked to Ana about I was wondering if I should just sell my London flat to move into something cheaper so that at least I could solve a temporary cash flow issue and survive. I expected that she would support me in this idea, at least that she would tell me, yeah, great, it’s an option that you have in your back pocket. And what she said next was that turning point. She said, get rid of the back door. There is no plan B. If you keep thinking about plan B, plan A is not going to work out. And if you even keep thinking about this all the time, you are cultivating the weeds in your mind’s garden. You constantly do this, and then every time you talk to a prospective new client, you are allowing this conversation, the inner conversation, to dominate your thinking as you are talking to that client, it will influence the conversation. They will sense it because you’re coming at it from a place of lack rather than abundance. Okay, I’m summarising a very long monologue that I got from Ana at some point into a couple of sentences here. And that was such a life changer for me because I could see how this conversation that I kept having, not only is the plan B wrong, don’t even consider it.
But you’re allowing it to become an excuse.
Yes, exactly. This part of your conversation is similar to as if you are eating Twinkies for breakfast. It’s bad food for you. So even thinking about these things is even the process, not even entertaining it out loud, but even thinking about it is already poisoning you. And that was a big mind shift for me to a point where fast forward six months and we decided to get married. So I’m fast forwarding quite considerably here.
There’s now roses in the garden!
So that conversation was, I think, in January 2019 or so. And in April 2019, we met for the first time. And in August, I asked Ana if she wants to marry me. Here we are. Already three of us.
Yeah. We also brought the dog from Florida to Austria.
I would say that that’s a good way of sowing seeds and seeing a good harvest.
Yeah, absolutely. So that was definitely a life changing conversation for me.
So for you, then, Ana, when it came to answering Michal’s question, was it just obvious that that was what was going on because of the way that you were sort of in dialogue with one another?
I was just so devoted that he would just not do something stupid like that. I was like, what are you thinking? You want to have a second plan? Because your first plan, like you said, like the self fulfilling prophecy, you want to have a second plan in your pocket just in case you want to sell the only thing you have invested, really, like your apartment in London, you want to sell that. So then you have the money, then you feel secure, and then you think, life is also going to change. That’s not going to change anything. What needs to change is your mentality. You need to change the way that you’re thinking and looking at things. Oh, wait, that thing is going to chase you everywhere. No matter where you move, it’s always going to come with you. So it’s not the situation that’s the problem, it’s your view of the problem. So I was just going at it. I was going at it and I made sure that all the strengths, as you’re coaching someone and you let people speak and you just listen to them, you learn to see what are the strengths, what are the strings you need to pull in order to sort of help them maneuver them into the right direction. So I just start pulling the strings with the things I was telling him and then things just slowly start playing into his mind and falling in place and saying, yes, this has been the thing that has been running my life and my mentality about my business for some time, and this is the mentality that has gotten me to the place where I’m at now. So if I do not change that, nothing else will change. So it was a crucial moment for both of us because we were both building our businesses and I had a full time job back then and I really wanted things to change. And I really had seen Michal as a man with values that I respected. And I saw him, I was like, I’m going to marry this man. Like, literally. I saw his picture and I was like, I just have a feeling that he’s the one. And I told my mom, that’s my husband and she said, Okay, act like it. And I said, Okay, cool. We’ll see. And so in the back of my mind, I had this plan where I was like, I have one plan. So this is part of the plan that things need to change in order for us to work, because I would not be able to marry a man who’s, like, with this mentality, because then I will jump on the same boat. So it’s all part of the plan. Right. What strings do you need to move in order to make the things change? And so that this is the woman I’m going to marry.
As you can see, in the end, all coaching is manipulation.
Hey, it was to your advantage.
It was to my advantage.
We both gained a lot, right?
Yes, absolutely.
As an outsider looking in, I would say that it comes from a place of love that you’d invested. You’d seen something quite special in each other. Not just that accountability, because you can be accountable to somebody and give lip service. But clearly you shared on a much deeper level than just, have I done the work? Yes, I have. And this is what my next plan is. You’ve opened your hearts, really, to talking about life and much more than just what it was that you met for.
Absolutely. That vision. Right. Like, sharing a vision with someone, you got to be able to be a team. If there’s no team in us, there’s no future.
So front doors only? No back doors allowed.
Yes. To be fair, that is really daunting. And this is like the drug that we give them after they’ve been with us for a while. So it’s not the thing that we advertise. Hey, when you join us, you have to make it work. And so, no, it’s more easy. You have the choice, but ultimately cutting off options and burning the ships. Right. Hernan Cortes did this. They burn the ships once you arrive somewhere so that you don’t retreat. That is the thing that I did that Anna helped me do, and that has really brought us to where we are right now.
Right, but then there’s a reframe. You see, that’s where I’ve hidden. But then there’s the reframe. It’s not about like, we won’t let them in when we won’t let them in. The secrets when they come in. We will tell them later. No, it is a reframe. It’s not if you only have front doors, you’re going to work it out because you’re going to make everything work to your advantage. Reframe.
Fair enough.
Well, see, front door to me just says freedom, and a back door just says escape. And I know that, oh, God, my own upbringing, my mom is the master of running away. So in every situation that I’ve ever applied, I will always be looking at, so if it doesn’t work out, what is my plan be, then it’s being conscious enough, then, isn’t it, to go well do you know what? I really hope it doesn’t come to that. You’ve got to trust in yourself that it’s not going to come to that, because that’s really not what you want.
I mean, imagine if you would have carried that conversation into your marriage, because my mom was the same way and I had to just completely cut that off and create, like, boundaries, where it’s like, I’m creating myself as a different woman. I’m creating myself as I say I’m going to be, not as the women in my life and my family have been. So it’s a constant recreation of who you need to be, not who your ancestors were. If it comes from a negative place. Or run away.
This comparisonitis can really paralyse us, can’t it? We will compare ourselves to others and say, but we’re unique, and then in the next breath we’ll go, but they’re earning X amount of money, so I should charge that amount of money. Well, why should it be the same if you’re unique? Life is full of questions. You too, and you’ve just given me lots more. But I’ve really enjoyed chatting with you both to understand where you’ve come from, where you’re going and how you help. We always encourage listeners to carry on the conversation, so, of course we’re going to stick a load of stuff on the show notes and on the website and what have you. But for people that have got their listening gear on right now, where’s the best place for them to come and find you? If they want to hang out.
Just find us on LinkedIn. That’s the easiest way. Michal Bohanes, Ana Bohanes. And we can start the conversation from there. There’s plenty of resources that we offer, but you find that all on the LinkedIn page. So best to connect with us there, say where you have challenges and maybe we can meet for a little ChinWAG, as you like to say.
Yes, because, like with all ChinWAGs, you just never know where that conversation will lead.
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You’ll read about:
You’ll hear:
Blaine and his TEDx Talk (1m02s)
Chief Results Officer? (3m47s)
Observations of business owners and entrepreneurs who struggle with results (12m19s)
Change doesn’t happen quickly enough but stick at it because it’s worth it! (23m25s)
Blaines’s conversation that counts (30m13s)
Blaine and his TEDx Talk (1m02s)
We all have these little idiosyncrasies that we like to hang on to... 21 seconds... an hour. If I was to say to my daughter, you've got all day to tie to your bedroom, guess what? It takes her all day to tidy her bedroom. So it's got to be the same in business. If you tell me I've only got 20 minutes to do something, I'll get it done with spare time!
Yes. Everything from when people argue for the limitations they get to keep them, to it's the lens that you look through that actually creates your life. So I call it the lens of the future, but that is so key. And then finding practical ways to program the subconscious mind to help you. Right. I did a TEDx Talk where I asked people to change the unlock screen on their phone. And so now, for years, I've been getting great feedback from people saying that made a big difference in their life. So whatever you're trying to bring about, you put that on your unlock screen. You can also have your family stuff, and then you can make a customized image. But many people have nothing. They have, like, the default unlock screen, which is interesting, but you see that screen, you unlock your phone 60 to 150 times a day. So it's a real strong way to keep putting what you want to bring about, what you think about what you bring about. It's a way to program that subconscious, but it's super powerful, and you're so right. That how you see it creates the reality. And if people get that, that's a big breakthrough.
Confession time. I did the unlock screen on my phone, and it was a picture of myself in actual fact, when I felt that I looked the best, I was slimmer, no Covid pounds. And it has been working because initially I was looking at it and thinking, this is I really don't like this. But it has had an impact. It's changed with what I eat, the what I drink, the getting up and moving more. So I'd say to anybody, just give it a try!
Yeah. Agreed. A lot of this stuff is self evident. Just try it for a little while. And you may not see it consciously, but your subconscious mind is still seeing it. And maybe you change it. Maybe you turn it to the side or you add some words to it. You can also kind of mix it up. I like to mix mine up every couple of weeks, but it's having the same core thing on there,
Chief Results Officer? (3m47s)
No, it is interesting. So what got you to become the chief Results officer then, Blaine?
So, for me, there were two moments of dawning comprehension where the world changes almost on a single thought. And for me, the first one came in college. I went to Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, and I've always been kind of maybe like you and the listeners. I've been a little bit of a seeker, a seeker of knowledge. How can I do better? What could I do better? And so I saw this ad for an audio cassette tape. So I'm kind of dating myself. This was back in the 80s, but when I went to college and I sent away for this audio cassette, which was an abridged version of "Think and Grow Rich", it was actually this guy Earl Nightingale reading "Think and Grow Rich". And I got that audio tape, and then I subsequently purchased the book, and I realised there that "Think and Grow Rich". Now, the book is about Think and Grow Rich, but the riches can be anything. It could be financial, he talks about that, but it could be harmonious relationships, your health. And that's where this concept of what you think about you bring about. That was where I first got that. And I realized, now, wait a second, I'm in a lot more control than I realized. And I had a lot of success because of that initial reading of that book. And actually, I met my wife. We've been married 30 years, so I met her.
Congratulations.
Yes. That was kind of the first thing that started me on the journey there and started kind of taking control of myself a little bit more. But then the big change, the big dawning comprehension moment number two. I came back from a business trip, my degree's in computer science, I was working as a software engineer, and I came back from this long business trip, and my son Beau, he was one year old, and he was, like, giving me the cold shoulder when I came back. And I said, hey, Beth, what's going on? What's wrong with Beau here? And she said, well, you were gone so long, he kind of forgot who you were. And I was like, what? I mean, that hit me emotionally pretty hard at night. And I realized when I was a kid, I'd come home to an empty house. Both my parents worked. And so that night I had this moment of dawning comprehension, and I made a clarifying decision. Now, when you make a clarifying decision, it kind of like, cuts out a lot of other decisions, cuts out a lot of noise and really focuses you almost like a laser on one thing. And that decision was that I was going to be a work from home dad. And so it took me a year. It took me a year to get there because we were kind of conservative and wanted to save up enough money and have living expenses in the bank. But anyway, a year later, my wife said, if you can make more on your side hustle thing, whatever you're doing here from home, and you make more money at that than you do from the job or even the same, then you can go, you can cut away the job. So I did that. So it took me a year, but I did that and I left my job. And that was 27 years ago. And so for the last 27 years, I've been working from home, running businesses that really have no daily operations. So I've been able to do a lot of self development and that's what led me on the course to become the Chief Results Officer. I started helping people. I created a company called Selfluence, which is really kind of the art and science of influencing yourself. But more than that, it's the power that you already have to influence yourself. You don't need any special software, you don't have to buy anything else. You have it all kind of within you. And I started helping a lot of mastermind groups and they said, hey, you're helping us get results every week. We're going to call you the Chief Results Officer. I'm like. Oh, I like that. So I like the title. I took the title and then I went to the US Patent Office and I registered the title. So now I can say I'm America's only Chief Results officer. But anyway, I've been doing that and I think that's why I'm here. I think God has me on the planet to help people take control of their lives by taking control of themselves. So that's what I've been doing. Now, pretty much 27 years from home, kids are out of the nest now, so I have a lot more time to serve clients than I did before, but I really do enjoy it.
What a benefit for Beau, really? And gosh, we say this so often on this show is that there are things that you can do that can help and aid us, but ultimately it comes back to self. It doesn't matter. So you're saying that you decided to do something. Reminds me of Rob Begg who's a past guest as well. He's also a mindset expert and he says if you decide, you've also got to commit and that's effectively what you've done. So there's a lot of entrepreneurs out there that I think they decide that they're going to work for themselves, but they don't commit. Do you see that it goes hand in hand?
I do. And I think there's a third component, and that is the action right there. There's a famous joke. Three birds are sitting on a tree, one decides to fly off. How many birds are left? And the audience typically says two, but no three. One made a decision, but they didn't fly off, they didn't take the action right. So I think what you think about, you bring about that. It's a combination of you make the decision right, and then you need to commit to that decision, but your commitment shows up in action. And so it's the action steps you take that kind of determine if it's real or not. And I will say that many decisions and desires kind of die on the vine because they're not strong enough for that person. And you can tell they're not strong enough if they don't want to wake up early, stay up late, and really put the action behind it. Right? And that's where you see the people really begin to move forward, because it's even taking the action. Even if you're going in the wrong direction, at least you're moving. They say you can't steer a parked car. You got to be moving. You got to take action. And it's in the action that really you kind of learn more about it, and then it can either grow, or you might realize that you're heading in the wrong direction. But that's okay, because it's in the knowing of where you're going. That's the fun part. And I like to tell people, you can't change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction. So if you figure out where you want to go, you can point in that direction and then start to move there. But in turning and facing, like, whatever it is you really want in life, you're going to feel the energy chemically. You're going to get excited about it, you're going to feel it.
It's a bit like stepping out into the sunshine, isn't it, and feeling it on your face. It is that much of an impact. But that's great course correction, isn't it? If we have these navigation systems built in, we are also tied to the magnetic force. So why do you think we have moved away so far from what comes naturally to us? Blaine, what's your take on that?
When you can get back to these core things? It feels good, it feels right. But today, more so than any time in the history of the world, is that there are so many distractions, and the level of distractions are so high. And everybody that I know has one of these, which is a smartphone, a cell phone. And so that can be like the greatest tool of productivity or the most evil distraction machine known to man or woman. For me, it's the level of distractions number one, and the loss of think time. That would probably be number two. Of time where you are... it's almost like more shower time, where there's no phones, there's no electronics, there's no outside world. People need more of that. I tell them, your phone has airplane mode. That's not just for airplanes. You can use it during the week, too. But I think lack of Think Time and distractions are the two things that pull you away, maybe even from who you are, who you want to be, your self development. So switching, that is possible, right? So switching, removing distractions. Right. So my family isn't super happy about it, but I've removed all the rings. Dings and dings. My phone never rings. If I'm expecting a call, maybe I'll look for that. But typically, I never answer the phone, and I've really cut down the distractions, number one. And then number two is I put a lot of think time back into my day and into my life and I think that makes a big difference.
Observations of business owners and entrepreneurs who struggle with results (12m19s)
What's your observation then, Blaine, of working with entrepreneurs and business owners that are struggling with that productivity and getting the results that they need? What's the first place that you sort of get them to be doing something slightly different?
I serve primarily business owners and the number one problem is overwhelm. Too many things to do and they're typically a day behind or more than a day behind things. And so what I like to do is first of all, show them that there is something to go after and I call it a day ahead. And so I like to take entrepreneurs from being a day behind to just being behind to being caught up, to being ahead to being a day ahead. And there is this thing, I call it the day ahead lifestyle which I live most days now, not every day, but most days I'm a day ahead. So when I wake up there may be some appointments like this podcast, but all the to-do's are done. Like I have no to-do's for the day and I'm working on tomorrow's to-do's. And so this concept of moving into that just first of all know that it's possible to be a day ahead. And my wife is back in school now getting a master's degree and she likes to be a week or two weeks ahead on homework and other things so you can get there. But the first thing is you've got to handle the overwhelm. And so typically what I see that works the best is to do some kind of a mind dump of all these things that you have to do. Now if you just do a mind dump alone, you're going to be more overwhelmed but guide them through. So get out a piece of paper and start to write down what are all the things that are top of mind. They're swimming around, oh, I've got to do this for this client or I got to do that. I've got these appointments, I've got to do this with the products, whatever it is. You have all these things swimming around and write all those things down and spend at least 15 minutes doing that and then take maybe a five minute break and then come back, maybe go a little bit deeper. Also, sometimes I provide a lot of prompts, a lot of questions to kind of pull more and more stuff out of your head and get it on paper. So the last time I did that in a big way, I ended up with 453 items on my list.
Wow!
Super overwhelming. Look out. Yikes. But the key is that you must immediately process the list. So it's in the immediate processing of the list that the overwhelm begins to subside. Because what I mean by processing the list is that you put an end next to things you can do now, something that takes less than five minutes. If it's a bigger project, I also say, look, why don't you write to the right of it? What's the next step on that? It might just be scheduled meeting with so and so, send somebody an email, something that's quick and fast. But you write an N next to those things that you can do now, and then you write an S next to things that need to be scheduled. They need to be done in the next, let's say, a week or so. And then D is next to things that you can delegate, you can give to someone else. Not that you're going to do it, but you could do it. It's possible to delegate. And then L, which should be the most used letter of all, stands for later. And those are things that are not pressing, let's say, in this week. Now, sometimes people do it just for the day. Like, what am I going to do today? Some people might do it for a month or a quarter. But one of those things that you can let go a little bit, you can put on the later list. And most of the time, like out of my 400, I don't know, probably 300, something of those were later items. But they're out of my head now and they're on paper. And then what happens is then you go after you take maybe 30 minutes and do a bunch of the Ns, get a little... start winning the battle of the brain chemicals, get the dopamine going, the serotonin, you're getting stuff done, you're moving forward. Then the bigger ones, you schedule those into your calendar, maybe you see what the next small step is again, win early, win often. And that starts to get them out of the overwhelm and get them into kind of high value, productive action. That's one thing I do. The other thing is that all entrepreneurs and business owners, most people, want to compress time. And so I do have a framework called the 30 Minutes Hour. It's how to get an hour's worth of stuff done in just 30 minutes. So sometimes I walk them through that framework as well, because if they can compress time, they're winning.
Yeah, there's a lot about what you've said there that comes back to feeling in control of the situation, isn't it? And thinking is just energy, isn't it? You've got all these thoughts and they're just randomly popping in and out of your attention span... by putting them down on paper makes perfect sense because you can look and it not take up your attention of worrying about it because you've already decided how you're going to do something with it. Is it next? Is it later? Is it a big thing? But it frees your energy up to be laser focused on the tasks that you really do need to do. And there's just that feeling of striking off things off your list, isn't there? That satisfaction of done that, done that... the fact that you've gotten to the end of a list is an achievement itself. But getting into the habit of doing that on a daily basis, that's got to be where the results are coming from.
Yes, you're exactly right about those open loops and all that thing that's swimming around in your head that you have to keep remembering, right? And when you get rid of those things now you've got some more room, some more capacity and you even feel better, like you said. And then also you're right about the checking off the list. A lot of times I'll ask business owners, have you ever done something and it's not on your list but you write it on your list so you could check it off? We've all kind of done that. But that gives us the dopamine that like physically shows up. You get a little square of dopamine in your brain and it feels good. Your body, your mind, it wants you to get stuff done, right? So it rewards that. So you are right. And a lot of it is how you think and what you think about you bring about and how you think makes all the difference and actually changes your reality. I call it the lens of the future. But how you say or say to yourself or how you think the prediction of the future is going to go, that is what you're going to end up creating, right? So the story I like to tell about that is let's say that I say, Wendy, look, I'm sorry but today is going to be one of the worst days of your life. And so then you go out and you're like, I don't know if Blaine's right or not. And then you're almost hit by a car and you say, wow, look, Blaine was right. I was almost hit by the car and you're shaking and you're like, oh my, what else is going to happen? And physically, brain chemical wise and physically, you get scared and you kind of get small and you're worried about the rest of the day right? Now if the same morning I said to you, Wendy, today is going to be one of the best days of your life. You're looking through a different lens but the same thing happens. You're almost hit by the car and you go, well Blaine was right. I was saved. Like, why was I saved? God still has something for me to do on this planet. I'm still here. And then you're exuberant. Now there's a little fear from the accident almost happening but right out of that you come up and you're not down, you're up. And the brain chemicals and your physiology is all like, this is a great day, what else is going to happen? Great. And so the same circumstances happened, but you created the reality based on the lens that you're looking through, and that is some of the biggest brain science and discoveries that are happening now is that you create that world based on that lens. So have you found that to be true in your...
Yeah, all the time. For me it comes down to language and it can be habitual. It's conditioned what we pick up from other people. You know that saying of who you surround yourself with, if that's negative, then that brings you down. I'm a positive kind of person in the main and it's hard if you're the only positive person sort of bringing the negative people up as well. So yeah, for me it's an energy thing. Everything is around energy and if you use the wrong language, it's like saying, oh, I nearly got hit by a car, but Blaine said it was a good day. You go, my luck was in and yet, it's got absolutely nothing to do with that. So it reminds me a little bit of the Matrix movie series that literally you can design the life that you want. How badly do you want it?
Yeah, agreed. And you're right about the people you hang around with. And I'm all for helping people, but I don't like maybe a third of the time I can be around people that are, let's say, at a lower frequency and have issues and I want to help them. And then a third of the time I like to be around people kind of my own energy level. And then another third of the time though, I want that higher energy. Right. I want to be kind of like you said, moving up and it can be tough. The other thing is if you're stuck in that lower energy or in that I call it head trash...
It's a good term.
Yeah, everybody has head trash. Now, my head trash, because I do a lot of things, is small and it's in the corner, but it's still there. And actually I do this thing called a mind shower every morning to kind of take the head trash out. But I like to tell people who are stuck with a lot of head trash that the solution to pollution is dilution. So if you ever see like if there's a liquid, a dark liquid in a beaker, the more clear water they add, it'll get less and less and less and less and soon it will be clear. What I find is the ratio is different for everybody. Like I need maybe a five to one ratio. So if I have 1 hour around negative people and bad things, I need 5 hours of positive. I got to pour in the positive to dilute down that negative. But realize that it is a bit of a battle, but like you said, what are you pouring in? Who are the people you around? What are you listening to? What are you watching? What foods are you eating? That all has energy and vibration, too. So you can really pour in so much of the higher vibration stuff that it does begin to minimize and kind of there's this little point where it'll flip over and you'll feel like you're in control of those thoughts rather than those thoughts and that negativity being in charge of you.
Change doesn’t happen quickly enough but stick at it because it’s worth it! (23m25s)
And you're right, really. That energy, the dark water into the clear, that's like recharging a battery, isn't it? When you need to go and find some positive to sort of just, you know... and I would say that people give up too soon. You can be adding clear water in and adding positivity into that dark water. And it could just be that you're just frustrated that the change is not happening quick enough. Please just stick at it because it's worth it.
Yeah, it is worth it. And realize that there's some people that will pour the dark ink back in the water, right? So you have to start to guard the inputs of your life, guard the inputs of your brain and your body. Because sometimes people don't even mean to do it. It's unconscious to them, but they are negative towards you or low energy.. so yeah keep pouring the positive and keep pouring it in big doses. I remember my favorite mentor is this guy Jim Rohn... I don't know if you remember...
Yeah, I know Jim Rohn.
Yeah, he's my favorite guy. I got to meet him and host him at an event one time and for him, he had this series, it's called The Power of Ambition, which I listened to on audio cassettes. Again, back to the dating myself. But I listened to that program 50 times in a row because I was at a point in my life where that's what I needed and I could finish the sentences of that program, but that's what I needed. That's what I needed to really get through some tough times. I mentioned before that I broke free from my job. But if you realize at that point we had a one year old son, I had a 50 hours week job and I started two other businesses at the same time. I mean, my marriage almost didn't make it through that year. So now we made it through that year and many others. But there are times where you got to lean into something, leaning into a mentor or whatever that positive thing is for you. But today there's so much available online and through things like Audible.com and podcasts like this, I mean, fantastic stuff that you can be pouring in that positive on a constant basis and you can do it at the same time as doing something else, right? You're driving in the car, pour in the positive. You're exercising poor in the positive, doing household chores pouring the positive. My wife and I were cleaning this weekend, and I was listening to a book on tape and just pouring in the positive.
Yeah, no, Neal, the producer, he'll be laughing at this now because he basically says, Wendy, in your world, there is no room for excuses. And there isn't really, because I understand that people can get into a position or a situation and not realize that they've gotten there, but there is always something that you can do to get yourself out of that. There are no excuses.
I like to say, when I lost my excuses, I found my results. That's a little quote I like to say. And you're right. And the other thing people need to be clear on is it's all about you compared to you, not you compared to other people. Now, if you want to change your happiness, you can compare yourself. Right. So if my ego is getting too big, then my wife can say, well, how much money does Oprah make every year? Okay? Yeah. I'm very small. But the opposite is also true, is if I'm feeling down, my wife can say, how many of your friends have no job and the freedom that you have. Right. In that comparison, you can regulate your happiness, but for your results, it is best to compare you to you. Right. Let's just better your best. And for me, this definition of success is kind of you moving towards your goal, whatever that is. So it's very personal, whatever that personal goal is. And if you find yourself in this situation, you can begin to move out of that situation and celebrate just maybe those first steps out of that situation. Right, so you're comparing yourself to you. So, yes, you can change direction overnight, and then you can begin to make measurable progress in a reasonable amount of time as compared to where you are. Right. And so, yeah, I think that's a valid point on happiness. And then also, no excuses for you getting better. Now you're human, so you're going to have bad days. That's right. But you just want to ride again, get back on the horse, ride again, and ride a little bit better. Figure out some way that you can ride a little bit better. So you go a little bit longer and you get a little bit closer to where you want to be and who you want to be.
And like you said at the very beginning, Blaine, growing rich and success is not necessarily about numbers in a bank balance. It can be how you want to live and who you want to live that with. Your reasons why.
Yes. Maslow's hierarchy of needs is there. I mean, you need a certain amount of money for food and shelter and those things, and if you're struggling there, then there's a lot of help. Right? I mean, the Internet, podcasts like this, books like Think and Grow Rich, there's a lot of resources there. But you have to take the step like you have to have the desire and then, as we said earlier, make the decision, commit to the decision, but then take some action behind that decision. Right. And when you feed the decision with action, then you're going to find out, is this really something good for me or not? And most people find that it is. And then they start moving forward. And then it's funny that when you start moving forward, it's kind of a little slow and slogging in the beginning, but as you get out of the mud and you get out of that and you start to go faster and faster and faster, typically then things start to move really fast. That's exciting as I see that in people when they adopt, say, a new habit and then all of a sudden now everything else in their life is kind of taking off.
It is just about making that start. If you make the start, you're already ahead of where you were.
Yes.
Blaines’s conversation that counts (30m13s)
It seems only right, really, at this juncture, to ask you about a conversation that created a turning point for you. I've got a feeling that it may link to what you were talking about with your career change and things like that, but you might surprise me because of course I never know what's coming next.
That's exciting.
So what was that one conversation that changed your life either for business or for personal?
It started as a conversation and changed my life. And that was actually Jim Rohn. And so Jim Rohn, a friend of mine, introduced me to Jim Rohn and then I was able to actually host him at an event I was running. And I got lucky because he had a house in the Phoenix area and this event was in Phoenix and he happened to be there. So it was very easy for him to come to this event. And so he came to that event and I got to hear him and share the stage with him. But the things that he said that evening had a big impact on me. Right. And one of the things he says is it's not what happens that determines your life future, it's what you do about what happens. And that was the beginning of kind of the lens conversation as well. But he said that, so it's not what happens that determines your life future, it's what you do about what happens. And I realized in that moment, I realized that I didn't have to worry about circumstances, the economy, the pandemics, and all these different things that's going to happen to everybody actually. But it's my response to what happens that determines the outcome of my life and my businesses. And then he went on to say the other thing he said that night was don't wish it was easier, wish you were better. And I was like, Whoa, that was big. Don't wish for less problems, wish for more wisdom. And he just got me to switch it to see that praying and begging for things to be better or easier, that was just going to fix the thing one time. If I increased my wisdom and I got better, that's going to increase everything for the rest of my life. And so that started me on a nice trajectory. But it was that conversation that night with Jim Rohn that I think led me to this course of becoming the Chief Results Officer. Now, having the time to do that with my son. Having the inputs was the "Think and Grow Rich" book. But it was that conversation that night. He also said, profits are better than wages. And I was like, oh, poof, I've got to do more of my own business. So that was it.
Wow. I know, previous guest Brad Sugars, he was influenced by Jim in a big way, and he talked about that on the show as well. Isn't it interesting, because we've already kind of touched on this, that just by switching your language out just changes the end results of what you want to be creating.
Agreed. And a couple of years ago, I read this one book called The One Thing by a guy named Keller, and in there he said and some people say different ways he says, when you argue for your limitations, you get to keep them. It was just that language right there. That's where I realized, now, wait a second, let me say that again. Let me hear that for real. When you argue for your limitations, you get to keep them. And so what happened is that was the trigger for me kind of processing my own language, right? So if I start to say, I'm too old, I'm too this, I'm too that, I can't this, I can't that, won't all that almost negative kind of self talk. And it was on big things and small things, I realized it was almost like the predefeated mind, I'm never going to try that thing, because I've just accepted that limitation. And then I started hearing that language in other people, and now I can't go anywhere without hearing people arguing for their limitations all the time. But it's gotten so good in our family or in some businesses, masterminds that I work with, they'll say, oh, now Blaine is going to say you're arguing for your limitations there. But that consciousness around what you say is so big, and that can be kind of that pivotal point in your life, is when you start to listen to and process that self talk. That's big.
Yeah. Awareness. Self awareness. It can be a real driving force... or not. Well, thank goodness for Jim Rohn. Honestly. Thank you, Blaine, for sharing your story and so many different productivity hacks that we can apply to our own business and go away. I'm going to just go and sort out my mind trash later. I got to do another dump.
And I will say, look... on the head trash. The thing that has helped me the most and my clients is really that concept of the mind shower. Meaning like most people take a physical shower every day, but how often do you take a Mind Shower where you kind of wash out your mind and take out the head trash? Now there's apps. I use an app called Headspace, kind of a meditation breathing app, but I do that every single day. And I've done that now because the app tracks like 1500 days in a row. I've done this Mind Shower, just a little thing like that. Now I like a ten minute Mind Shower, but if I don't have time, I'll do a three minute Mind Shower. But doing that, I do that first thing in the morning, every morning. And that's made a big difference because I feel like at the beginning of the day, I'm kind of taking control of my mind showering it out, cleaning it out a little bit, but then also getting that lens ready for the day to make the most from the day.
Yes, it fits with your computer science background as well. It's almost like you're defragging the system and every day just hit reset. And then that head trash writing everything down in such a big overwhelm. It's not going to be that big anymore, is it? Because you've already got a handle on it, right?
Agreed.
I've had an absolute blast. I know who to reach out to now when I need either some head trash or a Mind Shower. Thank you.
I have thoroughly enjoyed this and I just want to take a moment to thank you. This is not easy to put all this stuff together and put it online and you have a big results ripple, queen of conversations here. You have a big results ripple and I will bet that you are touching lives not yet born that somebody 20 or 30 years from now is going to find this stuff and it's going to make a difference. So I want to congratulate you on that and leave you with this. That the bad news. The bad news is time flies. The good news, you're the pilot. So pilot well.
Thank you. I've got to go and cry now.
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TL;dr - want the episode summarised in one paragraph, and in your own language? Here is it.
ENGLISH: “And the boundaries are so important already to be set at the beginning. A friend of mine had that with his dad who was running a business and he told me that one of the things that his dad does right away from the start is that he really is very strict and brusque and bordering on unfriendly so that the tone is set. And the employees who come in, it’s sort of like a blue collar work, construction property management and so the people he gets in are very like blue collar. And if he has a reputation of being a very exacting, precise boss who’s not very friendly, he’s not going to do much chitchat with you. You start out on this level of borderline respect. If you’re too pally, too chummy, then the risk is much higher that it’s much more difficult to then get if they don’t perform, to become a little bit stricter with them. And my friend really told me is that he’s able to then ease off once he sees that individual people perform really well, that the expectations are set. But this boundary setting that he does is so crucial that he starts out as the stern, brusque, ordering or unfriendly guy who then is able to ease off rather than the other way around. So I think this is one of the things that we need to not in a brusque way because we’re in a very different business, but we also need to set the expectations at the beginning when we onboard a new client, that we really communicate to them clearly that your result, despite the guarantee that we offer you, your result is entirely in your hands.”
ARABIC:
"والحدود مهمة جدًا بالفعل ليتم وضعها في البداية. كان لدى أحد أصدقائي هذا الأمر مع والده الذي كان يدير نشاطًا تجاريًا وأخبرني أن أحد الأشياء التي يفعلها والده فورًا منذ البداية هو أنه حقًا صارم جدًا وفاضحًا ويقترب من عدم الود حتى يتم ضبط النغمة. والموظفون الذين يأتون ، يشبهون نوعًا ما عمل ذوي الياقات الزرقاء ، وإدارة ممتلكات البناء ، وبالتالي فإن الأشخاص الذين يستقبلهم هم مثل ذوي الياقات الزرقاء. إذا كان يتمتع بسمعة كونه رئيسًا صارمًا ودقيقًا للغاية وليس ودودًا جدًا ، فلن يتحدث معك كثيرًا. تبدأ في هذا المستوى من الاحترام الحدودي. إذا كنت صديقًا جدًا ، ودودًا جدًا ، تكون المخاطر أعلى بكثير بحيث يكون من الصعب الحصول عليها إذا لم يؤدوا أداءً ، وأن تصبح أكثر صرامة معهم قليلاً. وأخبرني صديقي حقًا أنه قادر على التخفيف بمجرد أن يرى أن الأشخاص الفرديين يؤدون حقًا حسنًا ، أن التوقعات قد تم وضعها ، لكن هذا مقيد يعد الإعداد الجاد الذي يقوم به أمرًا بالغ الأهمية لدرجة أنه يبدأ كرجل صارم أو فظ أو منظم أو غير ودي يمكنه بعد ذلك التخفيف بدلاً من العكس. لذلك أعتقد أن هذا هو أحد الأشياء التي لا نحتاج إلى القيام بها بطريقة فظة لأننا في عمل مختلف تمامًا ، لكننا نحتاج أيضًا إلى تحديد التوقعات في البداية عندما نقوم بتكوين عميل جديد ، وأن نتواصل حقًا لهم بوضوح أن نتيجتك ، على الرغم من الضمان الذي نقدمه لك ، فإن نتيجتك بين يديك بالكامل "
SPANISH: “Y los límites son tan importantes que ya deben establecerse desde el principio. Un amigo mío tuvo eso con su padre, que dirigía un negocio, y me dijo que una de las cosas que su padre hace desde el principio es que realmente es muy estricto y brusco y roza lo hostil para que se establezca el tono. Y los empleados que entran, es algo así como un trabajo de cuello azul, administración de propiedades de construcción y por lo tanto, la gente a la que ingresa es muy como cuello azul. si tiene la reputación de ser un jefe muy exigente y preciso que no es muy amigable, no va a charlar mucho contigo. Empiezas en este nivel de respeto límite. Si eres demasiado amigo, demasiado amistoso, entonces el el riesgo es mucho más alto que es mucho más difícil de conseguir si no se desempeñan, volverse un poco más estricto con ellos. Y mi amigo realmente me dijo que puede calmarse una vez que ve que las personas individuales se desempeñan realmente bueno, que las expectativas están puestas, pero este límite El escenario ario que hace es tan crucial que comienza como el tipo severo, brusco, autoritario o antipático que luego es capaz de calmarse y no al revés. Así que creo que esta es una de las cosas que necesitamos no de manera brusca porque estamos en un negocio muy diferente, pero también debemos establecer las expectativas desde el principio cuando incorporamos a un nuevo cliente, que realmente nos comuniquemos. a ellos claramente que su resultado, a pesar de la garantía que le ofrecemos, su resultado está enteramente en sus manos.”
FRENCH: “Et les limites sont déjà si importantes à fixer au début. Un de mes amis avait ça avec son père qui dirigeait une entreprise et il m’a dit que l’une des choses que son père faisait dès le début était qu’il est vraiment très strict et brusque et à la limite de l’inamical pour que le ton soit donné. Et les employés qui entrent, c’est un peu comme un travail de col bleu, la gestion immobilière de la construction et donc les gens qu’il reçoit sont très comme des cols bleus. Et s’il a la réputation d’être un patron très exigeant, précis et peu sympathique, il ne bavardera pas beaucoup avec vous. Vous commencez à ce niveau de respect limite. Si vous êtes trop pote, trop pote, alors le le risque est beaucoup plus élevé qu’il est beaucoup plus difficile d’obtenir ensuite s’ils ne performent pas, de devenir un peu plus strict avec eux. Et mon ami m’a vraiment dit qu’il est capable de se calmer une fois qu’il voit que les gens fonctionnent vraiment eh bien, que les attentes sont définies. Mais cette limite Le cadre qu’il adopte est si crucial qu’il commence comme un gars sévère, brusque, ordonnant ou hostile qui est ensuite capable de se calmer plutôt que l’inverse. Je pense donc que c’est l’une des choses dont nous avons besoin de ne pas être brusques parce que nous sommes dans un secteur très différent, mais nous devons également définir les attentes au début lorsque nous intégrons un nouveau client, que nous communiquons vraiment clairement que votre résultat, malgré la garantie que nous vous offrons, votre résultat est entièrement entre vos mains.”
GERMAN: „Und die Grenzen sind so wichtig, dass sie schon am Anfang festgelegt werden. Ein Freund von mir hatte das mit seinem Vater, der ein Geschäft führte, und er sagte mir, dass eines der Dinge, die sein Vater von Anfang an tut, darin besteht, dass er ist wirklich sehr streng und schroff und grenzt an unfreundlich, damit ist der Ton vorgegeben, und die Mitarbeiter, die reinkommen, das ist so eine Art Arbeiter, Bau- und Liegenschaftsverwaltung, und so sind die Leute, die er reinholt, sehr wie Arbeiter Wenn er den Ruf hat, ein sehr anspruchsvoller, präziser Chef zu sein, der nicht sehr freundlich ist, wird er nicht viel mit Ihnen plaudern. Sie beginnen auf dieser Ebene des grenzwertigen Respekts. Wenn Sie zu Kumpel, zu kumpelhaft sind, dann das Das Risiko ist viel höher, dass es viel schwieriger ist, wenn sie keine Leistung bringen, ein bisschen strenger mit ihnen zu werden, und mein Freund hat mir wirklich gesagt, dass er dann nachlassen kann, wenn er sieht, dass einzelne Leute wirklich Leistung bringen Gut, dass die Erwartungen gesetzt sind, aber das ist gebunden Welche Einstellung er tut, ist so entscheidend, dass er als strenger, schroffer, befehlender oder unfreundlicher Typ beginnt, der dann in der Lage ist, sich zu entspannen und nicht umgekehrt. Ich denke, das ist eines der Dinge, die wir nicht auf schroffe Weise tun müssen, weil wir in einem ganz anderen Geschäft tätig sind, aber wir müssen auch die Erwartungen am Anfang setzen, wenn wir einen neuen Kunden an Bord nehmen, die wir wirklich kommunizieren ihnen deutlich machen, dass Ihr Ergebnis trotz der Garantie, die wir Ihnen bieten, Ihr Ergebnis vollständig in Ihrer Hand liegt.”
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Hear what people are saying about the show
Sometimes this means I change something I do, or something I would say, and other times it’s a real opportunity for reflection.
Thanks for sharing your guests with us Wendy, the podcasts are brilliant.
We all have pivotal moments and Wendy manages to find the right parts, showcasing the reasons why someone is who they are.
It’s those details that we connect to and come to more understanding of why people do what they do.
Wendy is a natural host and makes people feel at ease to share their stories.