The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Episode #336: Neil Pasricha: How To Build Resilience & Live An Intentional Life

Full Show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

How To Build Resilience & Live An Intentional Life

NEIL PASRICHA is the the author of six books including: The Book of Awesome, a spinning rolodex of simple pleasures based on his 100-million-hit, award-winning blog 1000 Awesome Things, The Happiness Equation, originally written as a 300-page love letter to his unborn son on how to live a happy life, Awesome Is Everywhere, an interactive introduction to guided meditation for children, and How To Get Back Up, a memoir of failure and resilience released as an Audible Original. His latest book is called You Are Awesome. His books are New York Times and #1 international bestsellers and have sold millions of copies across dozens of languages.  His first TED talk “The 3 A’s of Awesome” is ranked one of the 10 Most Inspiring of all time.

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • They read a lot
  • They unplug regularly - "the genesis for all my best ideas."
    • "Create untouchable time" for yourself
• The CEO of Wal-Mart -- How did he create this time?
  • He's the CEO BECAUSE he always made this part of his way of operating.
• Neil worked in a senior level corporate role for Wal-Mart for 10 years
  • His side hustle was writing and speaking
    
    • He didn't quit his job until he had successfully built his side hustle for eight years!
• Ask yourself two questions:
  • Which of these two decisions will I regret not doing more on your death bed?
  • What will you do if it fails?
• The farmer with one horse fable: A farmer had only one horse. One day, his horse ran away. His neighbors said,“I’m so sorry. This is such bad news. You must be so upset.” The man just said,“We’ll see.” A few days later, his horse came back with twenty wild horses following. The man and his son corralled all twenty-one horses. His neighbors said, “Congratulations! This is such good news.You must be so happy!” The man just said,“We’ll see.” One of the wild horses kicked the man’s only son, breaking both his legs. His neighbors said,“I’m so sorry.This is such bad news. You must be so upset.” The man just said,“We’ll see.” The country went to war, and every able-bodied young man was drafted to fight. The war was terrible and killed every young man, but the farmer’s son was spared since his broken legs prevented him from being drafted. His neighbors said, “Congratulations! This is such good news.You must be so happy!” The man just said, “We’ll see . . .”

  What is up with this crazy farmer, right?

  Well, what’s up with this crazy farmer is that he has truly developed resilience. He has built up his resilience. He is resilient! He’s steady, he’s ready, and whatever the future brings, we all know he’s going to stare it straight in the face with eyes that scream,“Bring it on.”

  The farmer has come to understand that every skyrocketing pleasure or stomach-churning defeat defines not who he is but simply where he is.

• What do most commencement speeches get wrong?
  • Do what you love only if you're willing to accept the pain to continue doing it...
  • The grind.  A lot of small losses add up.  Can you handle the pain that you will need to endure to do what you love?
• Is it better to be a big fish in a small pond?
  • Yes.  Academic research shows it benefits you even up to 10 years after you leave the pond...
  • Don't but the $5m condo in NYC.  Continue to find places where you can purposefully win.
  • Rig the game to win.
• "Different is better than better."
• Add a dot-dot-dot...
  • Neil's mom: "I always just added the word yet to everything..."  It's not a NO, it's a "not yet."
  • You have to just "keep going."
• The two minute morning routine that takes the worry out of waking up:
  • In your journal write three things:
    • I will let go of...
    • I am grateful for...
    • I will focus on...
• Neil's goal setting:
  • Set the lowest possible goals.  Set goals that you will hit.
  • "Extrinsic goals don't work."  
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Text LEARNERS to 44222

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Episode #335: Deconstructing The Art & Science Of Public Speaking With Jay Acunzo

This is another bonus episode with my friend, Jay Acunzo.  We deconstruct the art and science of public speaking in this bonus episode. "I'm trying to help you see something different that fundamentally changes your work for the better."

Notes:

• The goal:
  • Help your audience see something different that fundamentally changes their work for the better.
  • Everything I'm doing (when speaking) is helping you get from where you're at to where you want to be.
• How to put a talk together:
  • Prompt driven -- Anticipate the questions that will be asked and answer them.
  • The coaching of Andrew Davis for Jay... "He's been really instrumental in helping me build a speaking business
    • "The Dialog Outline" -- You break up a talk you're giving into it's component pieces making it a modular talk.
      • "You're sharing the things others need to hear at the right moment they need to hear it... So they're anticipating what comes next..."
  • Put yourself in situations to "talk out your thoughts" to generate ideas... "Learn through speaking."
•  Process to prepare:
  • The value of rehearsal -- Is it needed?  How much?
  • Memorization vs. knowing your content cold → How to not sound like a robot, but still remember what to say?
  • Visual aids (PowerPoint, Keynote) -- "If I need the slides, I'm not ready." - Jay.  Slides should be use to reinforce the message.  You should never need to look at them.  They are there to be additive to your message for your audience.  
  • The 30 seconds before going on stage?  The optimal self talk... Interesting to hear the dramatic difference between Jay's approach and mine...
    • Get emotionally cross-faded.  "Wow, I get to do this.  This is so cool." (The words Jay says to himself the instant before he goes on stage."  And then... "Watch this." Assuring people that "I'm going to have some serious fun."
    • "Get ready... I'm about to put on a show." -- Use your excitement and confidence to serve the audience.
• How to start a speech:  What to do and what NOT to do:
  • The first part of the speech is the shared goal - "What does everyone in the room want?"
    • "The Vanguard." - The front line you send out to begin the attack...
  • Do NOT start by saying, "I'm so excited to be here."  Of course you're excited.  Don't waste that time.  It's too important to wander into the speech.

• Speaking Framework:
  • (Mine: story → science → practical application)
    • Story -- People remember stories
    • Science -- Empirical evidence/data to support the story
    • Application -- This is what it means for YOU
  • Storytelling -- How to become a better storyteller?  Great storytellers can rule the world...
    • Give a "feature story" -- And then reveal your hidden truth.
    • And then break it down into a methodology.
  • Engaging the audience - some speakers walk in the crowd, some ask questions regularly… The optimal ways to engage the audience
  • The element of surprise -- How to create ‘moments’ for the audience (surprise, ‘aha’ etc)?  How to ensure you are enlightening them and not just regurgitating stuff they already know...
  • The keys to Q & A and why it should never be the last thing you do on stage...
• Film the audience to see their reaction to your message... Study that to see what hits.
• How to add humor appropriately
• Coaching/feedback -- The intentional actions taken to ensure improvement.  Why you should have a coach.  Who is your kitchen cabinet?
• For corporate world mid-level managers who have to do QBR’s (quarterly business reviews) -- How can they make those more exciting?  (Most are dreadfully boring full of random stats, charts, bar graphs, etc)
• Study the 'intentionality' of stand up comedians.  Everything you say is for a specific reason.
• Be thoughtful and intentional with your actions.
• Persuasive presentations have logos, ethos, and pathos (from Talk Like TED)
  • Logos - Backing up your argument with data
  • Ethos - Credibility of the speaker 
  • Pathos - Establish an emotional connection

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

#334 Yancey Strickler

Text Learners to 44222

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Yancey Strickler is a writer and entrepreneur. He is the cofounder and former CEO of Kickstarter and author of This Could Be Our Future: A Manifesto for a More Generous World.Yancey has been recognized as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People. He’s spoken at the Museum of Modern Art, Sundance and Tribeca Film Festivals, Web Summit, and events around the globe. 

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • Selflessness - "You have to get over yourself first"
  • Have strength to know what's important
  • Flexible
  • It requires more time living into the minds of other people - "Not necessarily compassion, but 'what's going on with them?'"
  • Curiosity - A desire to know more
• Amazon thinks 'customer maximization' - thinking in the best interest of the customer
• How to get hired for the next management role?
  • Spend 1 hour a day with your current team -- Learn from them.  What's really going on?
  • Be the "go to" person for important objectives
• What was Day 1 as the CEO of KickStarter like?
  • "I remember the new fancy office... I needed to set proper expectations."
  • "People need to know how to make decisions"
  • "The weight I felt as a new CEO was very high"
  • The "on-me-ness was so high" - A huge responsibility that was felt
• The skill of "sandwiching ideas" -- Using metaphors to put together different ideas
  • Japanese cuisine
    • "Hara Hachi Bu: stop eating when you’re 80% full so that you're still hungry for tomorrow."
      • We shouldn't overfull ourselves because there is always something to learn tomorrow
• "My brain is really good at storing and making connections."
• "As a CEO/Leader, you need to be able to speak in metaphors to bring more oxygen to the situation..."
• How can we all do this?
  • Read --> Write it down --> Take notes of something interesting
  • "Metaphors are powerful."
• The power of story --> science --> application
• During his time at KickStarter, they grew from 70 employees to 155 in just a few years... What did Yancey look for in candidates?
  • Selflessness, servant mindset
  • "When they shared accomplishments, did they use 'we' or 'I'?  We like the people who use 'we'"
  • Mission driven
  • Honest
  • Not afraid to share bad news
  • "Whenever I found myself having to talk myself into something and overlook a red flag, I often found that was a mistake."
• Why did he leave KickStarter?
  • "I got tired, it took the energy out of me.  It was my identity for a decade..."
  • Had a rough 360 review (full review of people above, beside, and below him in the organization)
  • "One morning, I got to the door to leave my house, and I could not do it.  I broke down crying to my wife and said, 'I don't want to be a CEO today.'"
• Why writing is so beneficial:
  • Forces clarity of thought
  • "It forces you to accept rejection and just roll."
• Why write a manifesto(the book)?
  • "I gave a talk, had it transcribed, put it online, and it went viral."
• When deciding to work for himself:
  • "I need to treat myself as if I'm a company." -- How to properly plan and strategize as a solo entrepreneur
  • "I wrote down five options... One of them was writing a book.  I chose that option."
  • A publisher said to Yancey, "You don't need to hide. Your book is good enough without all the fancy artwork."
• Going against the grain: "I'm challenging the dominant ethos of our time."
• Bentoism - A balanced view of what's in our rational self-interest as inspired by the layout of a Japanese lunchbox.
  • Now me, future me, now us, future us.  The four quadrants...
  • Do you want do this in a small group with Yancey? Email me
• How Adele did this?
  • She used an algorithm to measure how loyal a fan was.  She used that information to help them get tickets at a decent price instead of the extraordinary prices on the secondary market.
    • This is both emotional and rational.  It's possible to be done for all of us.
• Life advice:
  • Yancey originally felt like a failure because he didn't identify with what the magazine covers were telling him: He didn't feel the urge to want to crush his competitors.  It's hard to be aware of the water you swim in...
  • Have awareness... Be curious, read a lot.
  • Have a plan... An idea of where to go.  Understand new values.
• Use the "Get To Know You Document"
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

#333: Chris Savage - How To Bet On Yourself & Scale Through Creativity

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

Chris Savage is the co-founder and CEO of Wistia, a web-based video hosting solution built for businesses. He founded the company in 2006 with the goal of helping businesses effectively market their products or services in a smarter way through video. Under Savage’s leadership and vision, Wistia has experienced 100 percent growth over the past three years, expanding the company’s client portfolio to more than 110,000 users in more than 50 countries, including companies such as HubSpot, MailChimp and Starbucks.

Text LEARNERS to 44222

Notes:

• Commonalities of leaders who sustain excellence:
  • Voracious learners - "they celebrate learning more"
  • Crave feedback - a strong desire to improve - "They are wired to want that"
  • Patrick Campbell - "He's trying hard to learn as fast as possible"
• Chris's process for continual improvement:
  • Placing people in his life to push him
    • "I go to them to push my thinking"
  • Block time to think - "Being busy is not a sign of success"
  • Spend time with customers and employees
• Enjoying the process:
  • "It was stimulating and exciting.  It took us a year to get our first paying customer."
  • The business was funded by savings.  They kept their expenses very low
• Key to a successful partnership:
  • Ensure values are aligned - "These are intrinsic"
  • Know that everything takes longer than you think
  • Have a decision making framework - Demystify the process to make big decisions
• The product strategies/options:
  • Operational efficiency - The cheapest (No, this is not optimal)
  • Product leadership - Be different
  • Customer intimacy - This will solve customer problems
• Their values:
  • Long term company thinking
  • Creativity
  • Presentation - An elevated experience. Aesthetics matter.
  • Simplicity
• Hiring - "Hiring is everything."  Qualities he looks for:
  • "How are people intrinsically motivated?"
  • "Are they excited about the craft, the challenge?"
  • Give them a real-life problem to solve -- And see how they handle it/resolve it
• Inside their process to hire a VP of People:
  • Clearly define what success is in the role
  • Do a project after the first round of interviews - "Do the job, get critiqued."
  • Build out strategy - Not a perfect plan, but have a process
  • Meet with management team, present the plan.
• Building your network:
  • "Take the weight of your friends.  You're the average of them."
  • Be proactive who you want to be --> Look for people who challenge you.
  • Reflect on that...
  • Tactically: Make connections with people who you admire.  People like honest, sincere compliments.  Tell them WHY they inspire you
• Financials: Raised angle round of $650K.  Then $800K.  All individual angels.  No venture.  They have $10m in revenue.
• Crisis:
  • "We were losing this money, we weren't having fun anymore... People tried to buy us."
    • They raised debt to do a buy back... "I felt amazing."
• Wistia:
  • Creative risk taking
  • Have to scare self - made a feature length documentary
  • Host of the Brandwagon show
  • "Take risks that scare you"
• Growth and profitability aren't mutually exclusive - "Focus on building products and experiences that people love... Growth follows."

• Use the "Get To Know You Document"
• Why joining The Learning Leader Circle is a good idea

The Learning Leader Show with Ryan Hawk

Ep # 332: David Brixey & Doug Meyer LIVE! - How To Build A Business From The Ground Up

Full show notes can be found at www.LearningLeader.com

This episode was recorded in front of 150 of our closest friends, family, and clients in Dayton, Ohio.

Doug Meyer formed Brixey & Meyer alongside Dave Brixey with a dream to give clients a different way of working with their tax professionals. In his role as Managing Director, Doug serves as a trusted business advisor to Business Owners, CEOs, CFOs and Boards of Advisors, driving value and accountability in the following strategic areas: succession & ownership planning, strategic planning, owners agreement structures, compensation planning, family business advisory & issue mediation, professional management practices, mergers & acquisition strategy, and family charter implementation.

David Brixey formed Brixey & Meyer with Doug Meyer in 2002 utilizing his insatiable entrepreneurial spirit and his financial skills gained at Ernst & Young. He is also the co-founder and Managing Director of Brixey Meyer Capital, a lower middle market private investment firm.  Since 2008, Dave has been personally involved in investing in small business to lower middle market as well as venture capital.

Brixey & Meyer is recognized as a leading provider of accounting and business advisory services in the Midwest.