Podcasts about so rob

We've been told a thousand times, never talk about religion and politics on the podcast. We've done it a couple of times, and despite making some people mad, everything turned out okay.   In this edition of the Husker Doc Talk Podcast presented by the Rimington Trophy, Dr. Rob Zatechka and Travis Justice talk about the "V" word. Get your mind of the gutter, not that "V" word. We are talking about vaccinations. Depending on how you feel, this might be the same as talking about religion and politics.    Why talk about this now? Well, COVID cases are increasing not just in Nebraska but all over the country. Husker Head Coach Scott Frost has said he's not yet comfortable with the team's vaccination rate. The Delta variant of the virus seems to be affecting young adults and children more than the older population. A high percentage of people being hospitalized and dying are unvaccinated.    Since Dr. Rob is a doctor, he's more than qualified to give his opinion on the matter. He's just lucky enough to do a podcast where he can talk about both of his passions, medicine and football! Seriously though, are games at risk? Is the 100% capacity limits at risk?    Let's say they do postpone or cancel games or even reduce the crowd size. What happens to your ticket? Chad Carr from Ticket Express is on the show with Ticket Talk and clearly explains this companies policy.    We can only have these deep conversations while drinking beer! So Rob's wife Jennifer stopped at McCue's Nebraska Taproom in Kearney and picked up a crowler from Highway 14 Brewing Company in Albion.    Less than four weeks until the season kicks off. Do you have the right gear? Husker Hounds has three locations in Omaha, and you can buy online by clicking here! Husker Hounds has the biggest and best selection of anything you want Big Red!   When you listen to this episode, please give it a rating or a like on your podcast streaming service. If you feel so inclined, take the time to provide us with a review!    Twitter Dr. Rob Zatechka-@doctalksports Travis Justice-@traviscreates   Questions? doctalksports@gmail.com  

In this week's episode of the You Own the Experience Podcast, our co-host Rob Mann sat down with Billy Davis, Director of implementation and customer success of Herefish by Bullhorn, for a Recruitment Automation Office Hour. The duo and former coworkers answer participants questions on automation, how automation affects marketing sales and operational strategy and why data quality is vital. This was a live session with participants writing in questions. So Rob and Billy will be addressing people who you will not actually hear. This week's episode is brought to you by Great Recruiters, Able and Leap Consulting Solutions. Please remember to rate, review and share the episode, and you can subscribe to all of our updates at www.ableteams.com/podcast.

We continue with Rob Zettler from the Tampa Bay Lightning. He transitions to coaching from being a player. Rob attended a coaching clinic with Roger Nielsen and met up with Ron Wilson who became the head coach of the San Jose Sharks. So Rob went from the radio booth to the bench coaching. We get into the player - coaching relationship and what goes into being a good coach. Rob also talks skill sets for the NHL for coaches. He also goes into working for Brian Burke and Ron Wilson in Toronto. Great stories about their time with Lou Lamoriello at Providence College. Rob really breaksdown what it is like to be a head coach in the professional ranks.

In PART TWO of this week's @EchoChamberFP https://www.instagram.com/echochamberfp/ we look at the new British relationship dramady AND talk with it's director and co-writer Col Spector You can watch the conversation here: https://youtu.be/QVyuKyzVuqQ 'I'm Not in Love' is written & directed by Col Spector with Radha Chakraborty co-assisting on the writing. It's a tale of love and what it means to be in a relationship. Rob (Al Weaver) has been with Marta (Cristina Catalina) for a while. Everything was comfy BUT they're now in their late thirties, all their friends are married with kids and Marta wants a baby of her own. So Rob has to decide, does he want to have kids, does he even still love Marta or is he just going through the motions. So we follow along as he explores his feelings, seeking advice from friends, visiting past loves and testing the waters with new ones. Is the grass greener, or is he missing what's right in front of him! Our film is: I’m Not In Love Digital & DVD Release Date: 12th April 2021 Director: Col Spector Cast: Al Weaver, Tessa Peake-Jones, Cristina Catalina, Morgan Watkins & Sinead Matthews Credit: Central City Media, Genre: Comedy Running Time: 84 min Cert: 15 Platforms: Amazon, Apple iTunes, YouTube, Google Play, Virgin Media & Sky Store Trailer: Here. https://youtu.be/iziLkcrxCNg ------------ *(Music) 'G.D.F.R.’ (feat. Sage the Gemini, Lookas) by Flo Rida - 2015 --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/eftv/message

The Medtronic 770G pump was released in the United States just a few weeks ago and Robe Howe is one of the first to use it. Rob shares his first impressions and tells us what he'd really like to see in pump technology. (Rob is a paid ambassador for Medtronic, but they did not clear or review his comments for this interview). Rob & Stacey spend a lot of this episode on other issues, talking about whether people with type 1 are "disabled" and what it means to use that word. Rob talks about achievement bias (and explains what that involves) and a lot more. We also find out about his fun modeling gig with Express and about his COVID-adjusted wedding in 2020. Previous episodes about Medtronic here, including our in-depth discussion about the 770G and what else is on tap. Our first episode with Rob Howe (all about using so-called Walmart insulin) In Tell Me Something Good – legislative action, a diabetes blog gets a shout out and a new tip makes a difference for a site location. And Stacey makes her predictions for 2021. This podcast is not intended as medical advice. If you have those kinds of questions, please contact your health care provider. Check out Stacey's book: The World's Worst Diabetes Mom! Join the Diabetes Connections Facebook Group! Sign up for our newsletter here Tell me something good links: New Washington State Law Caps Insulin Price type 2 blogs ----- Use this link to get one free download and one free month of Audible, available to Diabetes Connections listeners! ----- Get the App and listen to Diabetes Connections wherever you go! Click here for iPhone      Click here for Android Episode Transcription  Stacey Simms  0:00 Diabetes Connections is brought to you by Dario Health. Manage your blood glucose levels increase your possibilities. By Gvoke Hypopen the first premixed auto injector for very low blood sugar, and by Dexcom take control of your diabetes and live life to the fullest with Dexcom. Unknown Speaker  0:22 This is Diabetes Connections with Stacey Simms.   Stacey Simms  0:28 This week, Rob Howe is one of the first people in the US to use the new Medtronic 770Gpump. We'll talk about that. But our conversation got a lot more personal, including a discussion about whether most people with diabetes consider themselves disabled and everything that goes along with using that word.   Unknown Speaker  0:47 I want  to say like I Rob Howe, professional athlete, the guy who's goes and speaks and is like, you can do whatever you want. I identify as disabled, I am disabled, I have a disability. That doesn't mean that I'm not going to wake up tomorrow. And if my blood sugar's high, I'm just gonna quit and be like, you know, sayonara team   Stacey Simms  1:01 Rob is also a podcaster. And he turned a few questions around on me, we went a few places I wasn't expecting, including my hard “no” stance on Disney guest passes from years ago, and a lot more. And we do talk a lot about the 770G as well. In Tell me something good legislative action, a diabetes blog gets a shout out and a new tip makes a big difference for site location. Plus, at the very end of the show, I'm going to do my predictions for diabetes in 2021, technology,  community, and more.   Stacey Simms  1:32 This podcast is not intended as medical advice. If you have those kinds of questions, please contact your health care provider. Welcome back to another week of the show. I am your host, Stacey Simms, and we aim to educate and inspire about diabetes with a focus on people who use insulin, my son was diagnosed with Type 1 14 years ago, my husband lives with type two, I don't have any type of diabetes. I'm the broadcaster. And that is how you get the podcast. I released an episode on New Year's Day about the COVID vaccine. And we've had a big response to that the episode was about health care providers with type one who had received the very first batches some of the first people in the US to get that first of two COVID shots. But the response was mostly people wanting to know where they fall in the priority order for receiving it. Dr. Ponder Dr. Steven Ponder was in that episode. And he's an endocrinologist in Texas. He had been trying to get Texas to allow type one into the higher tier. But it looks like this is going to vary state to state, I would urge you to jump into our Facebook group. It's Diabetes Connections, the group and I'm just start a thread. Let's try to get everybody up to speed whatever state you're in, link up the health department look up a news story that you know of let us know what's happening where you live. Here in North Carolina, they're talking about chronic conditions for one of the phases but it's not clear if it's just type two with type one will be included. As Dr. Ponder said, How are they going to check? Right? Do we really want the people giving the vaccines to have to worry about you know, give me your paperwork or your type two type one. Where's your doctor's note? I mean, it's already so much less efficient than we all had hoped. I do think they are making good progress. As I'm taping this at the end of the first week of January. Here in North Carolina, where I live, they have announced that they will be using the National Guard to help out which I think is terrific. And as I mentioned with a husband who's got type two, with my 16 year old who has type one who is eligible for the vaccine, we are going to watch closely to see when it is our turn. But again, I'm hoping we can get a big Clearinghouse going in the Facebook group with information with sourced information about when and where the vaccine will be available, where you live. My talk with Rob Howe about Medtronic and this talk really did turn into something more. It's not a typical interview for the show. I think we'll get to that in just a moment. But first Diabetes Connections is brought to you by Dario. And one of the things that makes diabetes management difficult for us. It really kind of annoys me and Benny, it's not really the big picture stuff, right? It's all the little tasks adding up. Are you sick of running out of strips? Do you need some direction or encouragement going forward with your diabetes management and with visibility into your trends help you on your wellness journey? The Daario diabetes success plan offers all of that and more. No more waiting in line at the pharmacy. No more searching online for answers. No more wondering about how you're doing with your blood sugar levels, find out more go to My Dario dot com forward slash Diabetes Connections. My guest this week has been on the show before with a very different focus. Rob Howe joined me two years ago to talk about so called Walmart insulin which he used for a while as kind of an experiment if you want to hear how it went. I will link up that episode from 2018. Just go to Diabetes connections.com click on this episode or the show notes wherever you're listening We have a pretty robust search on the website as well if you prefer to search it that way. Rob is the host of the podcast, diabetics doing things. He is a former Washington Generals player. That's right. He's the bad guy. He was on the bad guy team against the world-famous Harlem Globetrotters. And this year, Rob became a model in a very cool campaign for Express and he got married. So Rob has a lot going on. And we've talked about quite a bit of it here. There is also a video of this interview over on our YouTube channel on Diabetes Connections over on YouTube, if you prefer to watch it's kind of fun to be doing more video interviews, let me know what you think about that. In addition to the audio, Rob is a brand ambassador for Medtronic, and he started using their newest pump, the 770G in December, we talked about that, and then had a conversation about everything from the word disability to why I never got Benny, a guest assistance pass at Disney. In fact, I put my foot down and said no to what he calls achievement culture within the diabetes community. Always great to catch up with Rob how from diabetics doing things, podcasts, and so many other things in the diabetes community. You become the go to emcee, I see you all over the place at virtual events. Thanks for jumping on. It's great to talk to you again.   Rob Howe 6:13 Yeah, thanks so much for having me. I've become what I call, and literally no one else says this except me. I'm the host with the most Insulet on board. So yeah.   Stacey Simms  6:23 Oh, I'm gonna steal that the next time I introduce you, I'll make sure to say that please   Rob Howe 6:26 Please do.   Rob Howe 6:28 I love it. Well,   Stacey Simms  6:30 listen, we've got a lot to talk about today, I want to start off by just jumping in because the latest thing for you really has been not a change of technology. You've been a Medtronic guy for a long time. But you've got the latest version of Medtronic pump. So tell me, when did you start using the 770?   Rob Howe 6:49 Yeah, so I am very fortunate. I've worked with Medtronic for a long time. And I've been a patient of Medtronic for even longer. So today, as of recording, it's December 16. And I think I've been on the Medtronic 770Gnow since December 1, right around there. So it was in the first wave of of Medtronic, folks, employees Ambassador group to get access to the new pump. And it's exciting. I mean, I think for me, I've been on the 670 g now for almost three years. So you know, one of the criticisms of the new pump is that it really isn't very different, in turn from a technological standpoint, except it does have what we've always been very critical. And I mean, we as the diabetes, greater community of the 670 was that there was no Bluetooth connectivity to the phone. So I think this is Medtronic response to say, Hey, we hear you we got to have Bluetooth connectivity. And it's great. It actually, the app is super intuitive, the mini med mobile app and it has your basically your sensor glucose like you would normally see on your pump display, but it also has your 24 hour time and range. So just a quick little swipe, you can get over there and see your your 24 hour numbers, which is kind of nice, especially if you've had a really good day, you can see that you know those high time and range numbers. So it's exciting. And you know, I think for people who are, you know, really into the nitty gritty, it's also a new transmitter for the sensors. So it's still the Guardian three sensor, but a new GL three transmitter, which just has a few of the, you know, annoying, calibration tweaks that some people have, I think more vocal people than I have have, for sure lamented. So the the new transmitter is excellent and has fixed a lot of the challenges from the early days.   Stacey Simms  8:26 We talked to Medtronic a couple of weeks ago, and I'll link up that episode in the show notes here to go through all of the features and what's coming next. But it really is interesting how so often these companies and it's not just Medtronic, I would kind of compare it to Omnipod dash right so they have one version, then they almost have a stop gap, which has some improvements but isn't the big shiny thing that we're waiting for you know the if you're looking at the technology so carefully, which will be the 780 which is out in Europe and will be out soon. But you know, I have heard a couple of people who have used Medtronic for a long time like you have say the phone stuff would be nice but I don't really need it. And now that you have it, you really look at it more i mean i don't have diabetes and so I'm trying to get myself from following Benny so often to not looking at it 24 seven, but was it really that different for you to kind of just look at your phone more than your pump   Rob Howe 9:15 right now. I'm operating mostly from home so there isn't a you know, work meeting where I would feel better about pulling the phone out versus taking the pump out of my you know, pocket and I am an insulin pump in the pocket person so I don't wear like a holster or anything like that. And obviously Medtronic pumps have tubing, but I think it's nice to just be able to you know, you're on the phone all day all day. Anyway, I'll admit I spend a lot of time on my phone and being able to click over in the night. You know, I think that's been the time that I've used the app the most when you know in when I'm laying in bed,   Stacey Simms  9:47 I think it's huge to have it on the phone. My kid is a pump in the pocket kid too. And he would never look at it. If he didn't have to. He's on the phone and it would you say maybe a couple of directions. He it would be really a big deal. If he suddenly lost that which he hasn't even had for that long, right? Well, anyway, you get used to.   Rob Howe 10:04 Exactly. And I think that's where I think as consumers, and this is sort of my you know, before getting more and learning more about what goes into diabetes technology from a FDA approval standpoint, and all of the sort of hurdles that they have to go through, you know, I was sitting there streaming a movie on my iPhone on an airplane, and I'm like, wow, if I can stream a movie on my iPhone on an airplane, we for sure should be able to look at your blood sugar numbers on a phone. But I'm very much like Benny, I love the phone, very familiar with the interface, I use it quite a bit. So I think, you know, in terms of having that convenience, it's just so nice. It's kind of just takes away, you know, I think Medtronic has really done a nice job in past years. And also going forward of really relieving that mental burden and making diabetes integrated into your life. And this is definitely something that makes diabetes just more integrated in the way that you already use technology, the way that you're already on your phone. And I can get a push notification. Now my alert on high if I'm, you know, I got my high alert set at 160 get the alert on high, it pops up in my phone, just like a normal notification. And I can take care of it then. So yeah, I really love it. And I think that's kind of like what you said with Benny, you get really used to it really quickly of having it there and having those numbers all the time. So it's just nice to have it a little bit more integrated into our everyday life.   Stacey Simms  11:15 Are you a big auto mode guy? Do you use the features of the 670. And now the 770   Rob Howe 11:21 I am I stay in auto mode. I'm a big auto mode guy. And I think the criticisms that I see of it online are fair, and it's not perfect. And I think Medtronic has done a great job of talking about those, you know, initially, this was like 1.0 of the hybrid closed loop systems, you know, so the algorithm is now in technology world is a little dated. But now, like you said, mentioned 780 coming soon, in the US. You know, the next version of that, I think is really exciting. But for me, I'm an auto mode guy. And I think the the biggest example I'll give for listeners is I love to play golf, I have a weekly golf round that I play on Sunday mornings, and I set it on auto mode. And before auto mode, I would go out and you know, my basil would be what it was and I have to set a temp target or attempt basil and you know, even before cgms I just basically have to have gummy bears stashed in my golf bag. And on auto mode. Thankfully, you know, I go in with no insulin on board in the morning if my morning starts off really smooth. And I can go through my entire round walking or in the cart and not have to worry about correcting and not have to worry about high so it's it's really nice. I love auto mode. That Blue Shield gives me a lot of confidence.   Stacey Simms  12:25 That's awesome. It's funny though, looking at as we're recording this on video I can see into your house is basketball stuff all over the place. Now I know you're big basketball player. We've talked about that we talked in the past. So I'm interested that you brought up golf and rather than basketball.   Rob Howe 12:38 Well, you know, I'm aging gracefully, Stacy. Like, you know, I think I still love playing basketball. And I think that's one thing that sentimentally I think there's been so many terrible things that have been taken from us because of COVID. And the thing that's been really eating away at my heart, and my soul is not being able to play basketball and because it's just not safe. And I think in Dallas, especially we have so many cases and I've been able to do some training in a gym, by myself wearing a mask, but I just missed competing and I think golf, you know, you're competing against yourself. So it kind of scratches my itch a little bit. So that's been my COVID pivot.   Stacey Simms  13:14 That's awesome. I've been playing golf since I was 22. So I'll take you out sometime when we got   Rob Howe 13:18 ready to say no more. I'm ready.   Stacey Simms  13:22 You know, one of the things that really made me smile in the last couple of weeks was that terrific video you posted. Your it was it was announcing the partnership you have with Medtronic now but the video itself was so great. It was you know, if you haven't seen it, we'll link it up. How would you describe that like an athlete grabbing a sponsorship or getting recruited for a team?   Rob Howe 13:42 Yeah, you know, I, I was stuck on this concept of signing day. And this announcement, this announcement kind of felt like that. And for me, you know, I've worked with Medtronic for a number of years as an ambassador as a consultant. And now kind of deepening that partnership into a more formal role. It just came to mind. And I thought, you know, this is true to who I am as an athlete, and seems like a fun way for and you know, that's a big part of what we're working on together is doing some outside the box, maybe not traditional Medtronic type announcements. And I would classify this as sort of in that realm. And I'm just very fortunate that my team and Medtronic is so on board with hearing sort of outside the box ideas. And so getting to produce this fake press conference about my signing day and learning that there are no Medtronic hats and having to get a Medtronic hat made for me to put on so now I have like the one on one of one Medtronic cat, which I love. It was really cool. And the response was great. And again, I just I'm glad that my team didn't roll their eyes at the pitch. They were like, Oh, yeah, this actually sounds great. We'll we'll do this. And I can only imagine as it went through legal what legal was thinking of just reviewing that video, so very fun. That is funny. I   Stacey Simms  14:48 think I have one of the remaining animus shirts left in existence from what I used to do appearances for them.   Rob Howe 14:54 Yeah, you gotta gotta save that merge. It's like it's retro. You know?   Rob Howe 14:57 That's really funny.   Stacey Simms  15:04 Right back to Robin just a moment, but first Diabetes Connections is brought to you by g Volk, and almost everyone who takes insulin has experienced a low blood sugar and that can be scary. A very low blood sugar is really scary. That's where Jeeva kaipa pen comes in. It's the first auto injector to treat very low blood sugar. chivo hypo pen is pre mixed and ready to go with no visible needle. That means it's easy to use in usability studies, 99% of people were able to give GMO correctly. I'm so glad to have something new, find out more, go to Diabetes connections.com and click on the G book logo. g Vox shouldn't be used in patients with pheochromocytoma or insulinoma visit g VOCA glucagon comm slash risk. Now back to rob, and he is talking about new technology that he's looking forward to.   Rob Howe 15:52 I'm very excited about the integration of the phone as the software back end to the pumps and the devices. I think that adding diabetes technology to the Internet of Things is a huge milestone in healthcare. It's a huge milestone for people with diabetes. And it's just going to make this whole user experience more intuitive. I think the DIY loop community has shown how you know how powerful it can be when technology and people helping each other and really dialing in features that they need and that are important. And working with some of these larger manufacturers, I think kind of opened up this Pandora's box of questions for these bigger companies to ask themselves are our technologies right for our customers, are we meeting them where they are, and I'm sure as you encountered in your conversations with Medtronic, that's a big focus for them right now is meeting patients with diabetes where they are. So you know, you've seen this year now the acquisition of companion medical, to bring multiple daily injections into the Medtronic suite, which previously they were a pump company. And I think now they're really focusing themselves on being a diabetes technology company, which is cool. And I think it's good for patients good for Medtronic good all around?   Stacey Simms  17:01 Well, it's interesting, because for years, people were saying, you know, this stuff's got to look better, you live with it, it's on your body, you want it to look less like a medical device. And there was a lot of pushback from people within the community, as well as on the technical side, who were saying who cares, just make it work better. And I think we are at a place now at a point now where there is enough, even though there seems to be fewer pump companies, there's enough competition, that they do have to look good, they do have to feel better. I mean, I don't remember what you used when you were first diagnosed, but it's changed a lot in the Gosh, in the almost 14 years I've been he's been using an insulin pump, it's not a brick anymore.   Rob Howe 17:35 Right, it doesn't have a Gameboy screen, it doesn't look like a calculator, you know, I think all that really comes down to me is just user experience in general. And you look at iPhone, for example, and the transformative qualities that that piece of technology has had on society in general. And I think that that is sort of the the gold standard now and that filters down to healthcare companies, something that we talked about in my agency world is that, you know, most people, when they think of competition, they think of, you know, immediately in their industry, their top two or three competitors. for consumers, they don't look at it necessarily that way, they're looking at you online as your competition is Apple, and Chase, and Amazon. And if your online experience, if your device experience doesn't mirror those, and isn't on par with those companies, which is really unfair for a lot of businesses, a lot of brands, because they're they don't have the ability that or the scale or the infrastructure to deploy at that level. But if you're not on par with those companies, users will tune out, they're looking for best in class. So I think that's been a big shift for all the major diabetes technology companies, and I think outside of diabetes as well.   Stacey Simms  18:40 Alright, let's move on just one of those other issues, you and I saw a conversation online that we wanted to talk about, I think this was mostly on Twitter, where the word disabled or disability, it's interesting when using that with diabetes, because Ben, he was diagnosed before he was two. And all I heard for this first few years was he can do anything, it's not going to stop him. But then you get to school. And it's like, he needs a 504 plan because he has a disability. And he's covered. I have my own take on it. And I'm curious what you think is the person who lives with diabetes? Is that a bad word for you?   Rob Howe 19:11 You know, that's really interesting. I seen that conversation. I think I want first of all people to know that I see both sides. I think I see people who argue on one side or the other. I you are seeing and I think for me, it's very similar to your story of Benny, you know, I was told from the get go from the jump that whatever dreams you have for your life are still within reach. I have perpetuated that idea at the beginning of all of my talks, all of my messaging, I believe I'm living proof that you can do things with diabetes if you want to and take care of yourself. I mean, there's other factors involved, obviously, but at the same time, I think denying the fact that you're disabled denies all the hard work that you put into your life to stay alive every day. And let's be honest, I think none of us would put the amount of work mental, physical, financial into anything else that we put into diabetes without compensation, expected compensation or some sort of like just reward you know, and I think that's really where it nails home for me is like if you factually like scientifically, under the Americans with Disabilities Act or the ADA, people with diabetes have a disability. That doesn't mean that you can't do the things that you want to do. But it also doesn't mean that you're not disabled. And what really reinforced this for me was a few months ago, there is a documentary on Netflix called Pistorius, which is about Oscar Pistorius, the Olympian who was born with defects in his legs, and he runs on the Nike blades, the legs that that allow disabled runners to run. And he competed not only in the in the Paralympic Games, but also against non disabled athletes. But in this documentary, and obviously, tragically, he murdered his girlfriend, killed his girlfriend, and you know, is on permanent house arrest, I believe it was so interesting to see the rhetoric by which he referred to his situation, his disability, and he's like, I don't identify as disabled. And that was something that I think, in the early years of my life with diabetes, when I was a younger man, less gray hair. But I identified with that I was like, I don't want people to treat me differently, I want to show them that I can do this. But when you deny that disability, again, when you when you close yourself off from things like diabetes community, when you close yourself off from benefits, like your 504, when you close yourself off to identifying as disabled or taking advantage, God forbid, you don't take advantage of the concessions that have been granted to you because of the struggle and the burden that you're carrying because of this disease. You know, I think you close yourself off to all the work that you're doing. And that's really where I want people to know that like, hey, yeah, I at face value, am a fit, athletics, successful, quote, unquote, successful person with diabetes, but I very much identify with Own your disability, that doesn't make you and I think there's a lot of conversations about ableism that I think we as a culture need to do better about because I think you alienate people who are disabled by saying, Well, I'm not I don't identify as disabled or I have a disability, but I'm not disabled, I think those are our negative, you know, negatively affect people who you know, really identify as disabled. So I want to say like, I Rob, how professional athlete, you know, the guy who goes and speaks and it's like, you can do whatever you want, I identify as disabled, I am disabled, I have a disability, that doesn't mean that I'm not going to wake up tomorrow. And if my blood sugar's high, I'm just going to quit and be like, you know, what, sign our team, but it What it does mean is that I see you out there struggling, the burden of diabetes is taxing, I feel you, I see you. And I think it's better for all of us to just work harder on accepting the fact that with diabetes, you have a disability that allows you some advantages, and allows you access to some things that people without this disability don't have access to. And to deny yourself that is, I think, a disservice to yourself.   Stacey Simms  22:57 It's such an interesting topic, because you really centered on what bothers me the most about it. And that is that as a society, we look down on disabled people in our language and our actions, it's just baked in. And it's come out so much better in the last few years that we're even able to talk about it. You know, even in the elections, I never thought about that. You know how we don't help. We don't even make it equal access for people with disabilities. And so there's this whole society burden of not wanting to admit that we have anything wrong with us, because then we're stigmatized, it doesn't even it's not even just diabetes. But I also think that, you know, trying to raise a child with type one, many would never say, I don't think he would say even today, and you know, it's not it's his voice is not mine to speak for, I don't think he would say I have a disability, I don't think he would raise his hand like you were doing. But I do think that he should, because all of the fights that have gone before, you know, it's easy, or it's easy, it's never easy, but it's easier to be a elementary school kid or a middle school kid. Now with a pump or a CGM. And with all the education and with a 504, than it would have been in the 70s, or the 80s, when a kid was doing shots and couldn't leave to go to the bathroom, and we've heard all these horrible stories or an employee back then it wasn't protected. And I will say he's had an easier because he has a lot of access and a lot of privilege, you know, these words that we throw around, but he really does. He's got me as his mother with a big mouth and a microphone. But also, you know, I guess I'm trying to say is all that work that went into protecting people with disabilities, as you said, it's really important to honor now, and to understand that if you're a cashier, and this happened in North Carolina, and in other states, leave your cashier at the Piggly Wiggly, and you need to treat your blood sugar with juice, and they won't let you you're covered. You're not gonna lose your job, we're gonna get paid back. And that's the kind of coverage that I think we need to think more about. But I will tell you a funny story about how I didn't help me and I stand by this when we went to we've gone to Disney World many times never been to Disneyland. We live on the East Coast but we've been to Disney World many times. We've never used the disability pass or the guest assistance. Pass or whatever they call it. The reason is, because when we first started talking about it, it was presented to us like a reward. It was like, Oh, you have diabetes, you have this great thing, and you can cut all the lines. And it wasn't presented to me as, hey, Benny might have a low blood sugar or might have a high low blood sugar, you know, high situation, you might need it. And I said to myself, I'm a crazy Disney planner, like, I am good to go. We don't wait in lines, whenever because I plan it. I'm, I love it. So we never did it. And I've talked about this, I was called out on it at a conference, once we're just having a casual conversation, and somebody in their 20s said to me, you know, you're doing him a disservice, because you're teaching him that he shouldn't take advantage of what's out there. And I said, Well, he shouldn't because it's not a reward. And she said, it's not a reward. It's not like a golden ticket, it's there if he needs it. And if you don't need it, fine. But if he needs it, when he goes, he shouldn't feel bad about using it. And she reframed the whole thing for me, and we still haven't had to use it. But I have definitely been less judgmental, and Kinder about other parents that I know who have used it. So if you're somebody that I've, I've been snarky too. I apologize. That's what I think   Rob Howe 26:05 that speaks to your capacity to learn, Stacy, I mean, you know, we all this would be shocking, probably not to no one. But we don't always make the right decision. You know, and we learn new information. And we reframe conversations. And, you know, I'll piggyback on that I, when I was younger, I was traveling a lot for basketball. And I like to get on the plane early, because I was like, Oh, I'm flying Southwest, I'm in the the B section, I'm not going to get a great seat. But since I have diabetes, that's, that's all good, I can go get whatever seat that I want. And then I stopped doing that. And I did that bait for a couple of reasons. I think consciously, I would see people who needed real assistance to board the plane early. And I wanted to be respectful of their space. And whether it's wheeled wheelchair access, or, you know, just extra medical supplies, I find that the you know, like the the accommodation that is made on airlines for people with diabetes is mostly to make sure they can get their medical supplies nearby on with them. And I, for the most part, my supplies, because I'm a dude probably are always a smaller footprint than some of my lady counterparts. And also, maybe I'm just a little bit more of a free spirit and be like, Hey, you know what I'm going to take, I'm going to be out of town for a week, I'm going to take two or three infusion sets and a couple of miles Insulet in my backpack, and we're going to go for it. So it was always close by to me anyway, and all that to say I don't do it today. But I know it's an option. And if I feel like the flight is oversold, or I'm gonna have to make a quick connection, and I want to make sure that my medicine is within reach, I will take advantage of it because I know it's there. And I think having that knowledge and being willing to accept that assistance except those accommodations. And and knowing that that space is available for you is positive. Yeah,   Stacey Simms  27:51 I mean, for me, as I have learned and changed my mind, and I probably will continue to my philosophy is now if you need it, or think you might take it, it's there to help you if you think it's going to you know it be if there's someone else's more need. If you know you don't need something, right. It's like parking in a handicapped spot. When you really don't need it, you're driving your grandmother's card, it's got the ticket on it, and you're just like I'm in a hurry. Don't do that. Right. But you know, but if you need it, use it. And don't be embarrassed or ashamed. And I hope all of you don't even know how to if I'm even saying this the right way.   Rob Howe 28:27 I think there is there is shame wrongfully pointed out, people who look. And I think that's back to that sort of ableism narrative perpetuated in this country. You mentioned like the election. I'll give you another example. Governor Greg Abbott in Texas is in a wheelchair. He had a there was an accident when he was a child, and it caused him to be paralyzed from the waist down. So while I don't agree with a lot of the things that he does, politically, I stay away. And there's been a very big movement online of people who disagree with him, staying away from the low hanging fruit of making fun of his wheelchair, and his disability, because that's not what makes him make poor decisions. from a policy standpoint. That's just the easiest, most that's just like a kid, when you're young kids pointed the first different thing that they can see. And oftentimes, that's very hurtful. But we are adults. And we can see that, you know, that that's unproductive. And I think, again, coming back to not not alienating anyone who has a disability. It's it's more focusing on policy and actual, you know, politics in the case of Governor Abbott that are detrimental to what's going on here, not his disability, I think his disability is completely off of the ballot.   Stacey Simms  29:37 Yeah, it should be it really should be in the diabetes, so much of what you all deal with is invisible, or, you know, you're able to make it invisible. So it's even harder in some ways. So I don't know. And I   Rob Howe 29:48 mean, I think even even on that point, there seemingly is a stigma to, you know, letting your diabetes be shown. And I think there's a lot of people who share they're now very proud of their cgms they're proud of their pumps. To wear them out. They're proud of sharing their numbers on social media. I you know, I get a lot of laughs from people sharing your 69 blood sugar's with me and, you know, I think that that sort of empowerment and saying hey I can I can be publicly facing with this and there's a community with that is great because, you know, look at me I'm like the poster child for some of the negative achievement culture things around diabetes I am you know, handsome white guy who used to have a six pack and you know, got to play sports and live his best life. And you know, he's not held down by his diabetes and what you don't see our bloody sights. And you know, all of the adhesive that you got to wipe off your arm after you change the site, or, you know, the feeling of less than after you're at a pool party pre COVID, and your site got too wet and you got pulled out really easily and you have to go home, you know, or just waking up on a vacation with a high blood sugar and it ruined your day. Like, those things don't always get shown. And I need to be better about sharing some of those low moments personally, on our platforms. But you know, just because you're not you don't look like a Olympic endurance champion with, you know, hollywood abs and a great tan and you know, living in your best life always time in range at 100%. If that doesn't sound like you, that's super okay. And I see you and that doesn't mean that your life with diabetes is less than I think there's there's downsides. And I and I've benefited a lot from achievement, culture and diabetes, but my love, I'm an I'm an achiever, that's what I try it. That's, that's sort of wired into me. And, you know, as I get older, I learn more about myself and why I do things. And I love following the rules. I love having a structure so I can try to achieve that's just what speaks to me.   Stacey Simms  31:40 Wait, I need to ask you though. Okay. I love everything. You've said, achievement culture, though. I'm not up on that as the world's worst diabetes. Mom. I mean, I'm kidding. But you know, I'm all about mistakes. And that's been my platform. And I mean, my brand, I have to call it that. But that's truly how I parent and I've never gone for more I'm what does it cheapen culture mean? Is that that you can do anything? Or I'm only showing the beautiful stuff? or What   Rob Howe 32:04 does that mean? I think that's part of it. I'll reinforce something that I'm sure will speak to you, in a way think about podcast guests. What's more interesting to someone who like at face value, we have two people, we've got a mom with three kids who gets her kids to school on time, leaves with diabetes, and you know, is just juggling a regular life. Or we have you know, two time Olympian bobsledder who, you know, has been around the world 50 times and you know, has been on the ESPN body issue or whatever the case, right? So at face value as a journalist, who are you going to pick for the more juicy story? Yeah, the bobsled guy, the guy, the boss like guy. And I don't know, any type ones that bobsled. So I think it's a good sport, because I'm not singling anybody out in particular. But I think as a diabetes community, I have also been guilty of like, Oh, I'm in this position where I can go speak or I can have, you know, people follow me and they follow the podcast, and I get these opportunities to represent people with diabetes. So I got into this sort of negative pattern of thinking where I was like, What do I have to do next? Like, what is my, I've already given my podcast, talk to all these jdrf chapters? Well, they're not going to invite me back next year to give the same talk, I've got to do something else that achieve something else. So like, right now, even the talk that I give is called from professional basketball player to professional diabetic. And inherently in that title, while it is good, and people click on it is ableism. And it's like, oh, you're only worth speaking at these events. If you achieve something crazy, like proven playing pro sports. And I think I'm really trying to be more aware and more, not cautious is the wrong word. But just more mindful of the things that I say and the things that I do that are rooted in an achievement culture that rewards extraordinary feats, and also tends to erase living a normal life and making that unsuccessful.   Stacey Simms  33:56 I'm going to arm chair psychologize on why it didn't resonate with me, moms aren't allowed to have achievement culture, we are not allowed. And I'm using that term very loosely, because Screw it, I'll do whatever I want. You won't allow me. But truly, if my brand was the best diabetes, Mom, I got it right. And you don't or professional mom, right? You're not going to see anybody talking about that, because we don't talk about moms that way. And I think that's, I know, this isn't about me, I'm glad to have you on as a guest. But I couldn't help but share that because of what you said, I was thinking to myself, How on earth would I achieve something like that? Or what can i and it's really interesting to think about it in those terms. And I think a lot of diabetes moms, what resonates with us is you know, oh, I'm the worst I made a mistake. I'm failing my kid, I got a report card. You know, it's all this negative talk. And that's a problem in and of itself. And you got other things to work on. You got to worry about. I'm succeeding. I'm great. You want to bring me to talk because I'm doing so well. It's so fascinating how we can do this.   Rob Howe 35:00 You know, and I think too, you know, speaking to diabetes moms, which I love, and I think that's a demographic of people, I never thought I would get to meet as intimately as I have. And, you know, I think people like me, and people who achieve are great to show to kids, you know, because hey, look at look at Rob, he's living his best life. He has a podcast, he talks about diabetes, he's not embarrassed. And I live for those moments where I can be the person that I needed when I was 16 years old, and have somebody who's accessible and wants to give back and wants to have those hard conversations and can say, you know what, I do see you man, like, you know, your 16 year mom doesn't know what's going on. You don't want to talk to her. And somehow I managed to remain young looking enough that I can communicate with somebody, hopefully,   Stacey Simms  35:43 you when you talk, you're like with Newsela What are you like, 30?   Rob Howe 35:46 I'd like 32. So yeah, I mean, I see. But you know, Stacy, you're not on tik tok. Right, you know, you know, if you put me on Tick tock, I'd be so canceled. I can't dance. You know, I mean, so I think for me, I just want to try to remain like as tuned into what people with diabetes are going through, that they may not even be aware of. And I think this is in this sort of chronic, all the chronic things that we're juggling, I think chronic focus on achievement, within, you know, some of the diabetes online community cultures is important for us to call out and I think I've benefited from it. And it's important for me, it's important to me, that I make sure to bring people in, who maybe haven't benefited from it and use that to highlight important stories, because you know, what's crazy, and surprised me back to the podcast example, when I first started, and I was really, really digging into what episodes are resonating with people, the one that was far and away the most resonant of my first like 15 episodes, was really the most simple basic, it was a story of a type one mom and how she prepared for her first and second pregnancies with T one D. And, you know, for me at the time, like a 27 year old jock tech bro. I was like, you know, it was a great conversation. And my my friend, Lindsay, who's my friend in real life, did an amazing job. But I never would have guessed that that would be the one that would have taken off of the first group. And it wasn't necessarily the achievers. It's the people who achieve in spite of there being no big reward publicly.   Stacey Simms  37:15 Yeah, well, I think we need and I know you'll agree with this, we need everybody in this community, right? We need the people who go up Mount Everest meet the people sitting at the desk job. But what has resonated with my listeners is anybody they can learn from. And I think it's interesting. And especially at first you want those high, high achieving successful people, those Olympians, and those rock stars, because as a parent of a kid, you can look at this person and say, Okay, this person was type one is super successful. So my kid probably has a pretty good chance of being a mid level executive, you know, at Staples, or whatever, right? They're going to be okay, or IBM, I shouldn't, whenever IBM even exists anymore, I'll show my age. But, you know, we do need those other people who have shown us how it's done something as complicated as a pregnancy with type one to something as simple as, it's not really that simple. But how did you transition from elementary school to middle school with your kid, right? Those are the things that we all want to learn. And I think what's really cool about social media, and somebody like you who's you know, super big on Instagram, and all that stuff, is you get to show, as you said, the cool looking stuff, but you know, it looks great, it looks perfect, but then it's also a chance to show all those crummy site changes. And those days when you don't feel good. And you don't have to polish it all up. I mean, you just snap a picture or talk about an Instagram. And you do that all the time. I think it's great.   Rob Howe 38:29 Yeah, it's new. You know, I think maybe I've even mentioned it before in this pod. But in 2018, at ADA, I found this poster board study in the in the poster Hall, talking about the ANC outcomes and involvement in the diabetes online community. I mean, just that sort of osmosis of encountering people with diabetes on a regular basis, and the things that they do makes you better at diabetes, I don't know. It's just it's normalizing. And I think that's what's so important, and what the Internet has brought. And I think even still, I'm even more learning about sort of the micro communities and diabetes, where you're able to find people that look like you people that are interested in the things that you're looking for. And otherwise, like, where would you find those people. And you go back to when Benny was diagnosed, you basically had the only people in your immediate area were the people that you could stay in contact with early blogs, maybe kind of just starting to sprout. And now you can just go to some of these big diabetes accounts and search for people or look on the hashtag and look at the locations and say, well, wow, there's somebody with diabetes there. You know, I got to be a part of this really great campaign this summer with express a global brand, you know, and   Stacey Simms  39:34 Oh, yeah. Wait a second. Wait a second. Tell me about that. Because that wasn't diabetes, you're like this, like a model? I mean, right. Or model. What was that? That was amazing.   Rob Howe 39:42 I can I guess I can put like publish model on my resume. Now. You know, what's cool about that campaign, and first of all, the Express team was really great to work with. They're all pros. And I think just hearing sort of the creative outline of what they were trying to do as a person with diabetes as a person with a disability as a person with something that makes them different, was just really cool to be there representing people with diabetes. So they sent out like a cold casting call, it had a bunch of stuff, as you know, or maybe not like, I'm very interested in fashion, I love style is something that I just I don't know why you   Stacey Simms  40:16 post your outfits on Instagram,   Rob Howe 40:19 feel free to gather fit pics are my thing. I love them. And you know, my wife and I are currently you know, just having a turf war over who needs more closet space. And I will not lose, I will not lose that, that I just don't put it on put on record. But the cool thing about Express was they said, Hey, we're looking for people who are on Instagram, but it's not a requirement. We're looking for people who have some sort of social good or community type. It's not required. We're looking for people who have an interest in fashion, but it's not required. And I was like, wait a minute, I have all three of those things. Let me like really try to get this. And so it was a cold call. I put together a pretty good application and response. And then I set it and forget it. And like it was 90 days later until they got back to me. And I sort of put it out of my mind. And they said, Hey, Rob, like, we're really excited to have you part of this campaign. Like, can you talk on this day? And I was like, wait a minute, did I book it? And they said, Yes. And so it was really cool to be able to out a big panel. I know, first of all, I was all over the world. inexpressive. I mean, it was a year of COVID, obviously, so not as many people saw me, but like on the front page of Express calm, very visible. And I was not just a model, I was representing myself, I was like Rob, like, hey, Rob is the Express model, and he lives with diabetes. And that was something I had never experienced on a mainstream level before. It's one thing to go to these diabetes events and celebrate those all together. But to be different on a panel full of other amazing superstars, frankly, like, who have achieved way more than I have. I was there as a person with diabetes. And I got to talk about like at base level what type 1 diabetes is and talking about the insulin affordability and talking about what it's like to have an insulin pump attached to your body at all times. And to see people be like, wow, I had no idea about any of that was just really cool to be a part of and like tan France from queer. I was the host on one with tan France. It was unbelievable.   Stacey Simms  42:07 Was he nice?   Rob Howe 42:08 Oh, yeah. Oh, how can he he's like he was so giving. He seems like the nicest guy, an absolute Pro. And honestly, I've done a lot of interviews. I was admittedly not really super nervous for our conversation today. Because I know you and I figured it would be nice and easy, but I was like sweating bullets. Getting ready in my like this in this office in here for 10. France. I was like, like, What's my name? Like? What do I do just like to make sure I don't stumble, you know, but it was a really awesome experience. I'm so grateful to have had the opportunity. And, you know, hopefully it's the the first of many. That's awesome. You know,   Stacey Simms  42:39 I worked at Express. When I was in college, I worked at the express in the carousel center mall in Syracuse. So if you shopped there in 1991 or 92, I helped you out. Not you, Rob, you're looking like you're looking through the time. You were not there. It might be wondering. Well, the   Rob Howe 42:57 thing I was actually thinking about is my wife was born in Cheryl in New York. So he was born in 1991. So maybe her mom this call   Rob Howe 43:05 is over?   Rob Howe 43:06 Yeah. Yeah, sorry. Technical difficulties were not cut off. But yes, my wife is a is younger than I am. Which is really funny. And yeah, that's a small world. I didn't know that. You had the upstate New York time?   Stacey Simms  43:19 Oh, yes. I went to Syracuse University. And then my first job was in Utica. And then I moved back to Syracuse for my another job. And then I came to Charlotte where I am now. I was up there for 10 years in the snow.   Rob Howe 43:30 Oh man. very snowy. Very Yeah.   Stacey Simms  43:31 But I grew up. I grew up in New York, so not too far.   Rob Howe 43:33 People were asking me like, so do you shop at Express. And I said, You know, I haven't shopped there recently as much. But when I was getting my first job, and I needed to get rid of my college, bro clothes and like, put on some real professional clothes I went to express so it was like cool to be like, oh, they're like, yeah, like, that's a big part of the consumer that we're trying to reach. And you know, really people who have an interest in fashion, this is a first step for them. And it was it was cool to be very, I felt very seen and very, the team that express was awesome.   Stacey Simms  44:01 That's terrific. Yeah, I worked there. And then I got a job at a radio station in Syracuse. And then that was the end of that. never looked back and worked weekends. Why are   Rob Howe 44:09 you found it you found your Yeah,   Stacey Simms  44:12 I knew what I wanted to do was very cool. Are you going to be working on things like that is modeling something you would like to continue to pursue or the fashion industry?   Rob Howe 44:20 Yeah, tell me what you're advertising I do to being a model for Express wasn't on my vision board for 2020. But I don't know, it was cool. It was just just to be a part of it to, you know, be in front of camera. Like you mentioned, I work in advertising and have been parts of shoots like this, behind the camera and working on the campaign and working on the creative direction, but to be in front of the camera and kind of collaborate with people whose jobs I know intimately. And it was a very small crew because of COVID. And they came they came to Dallas and it was cool to just be able to be in a small collaborative group of people who like I was just a photographer, the director and the videographer and myself. And we just got to hang out all day and talk about ideas and be creative and Yeah, I think I would love to do that again.   Stacey Simms  45:01 Nice. You know, we've been talking for a long time, I didn't even ask you or congratulate you on your wedding, which happened this year. Yeah. So congratulations on that. That's Thank you big, big,   Rob Howe 45:10 wiseguy big fan of my wife.   Stacey Simms  45:13 Good to hear good to hear what's up with you all in 2021. I mean, you're moving ahead with Medtronic. Moving on with the ad agency, you are married, man. I mean, 2020 was a difficult year, let's admit that. But any anything on top, I think I'm almost afraid to plan for 2021 in a way,   Rob Howe 45:29 me too. I I don't want to get too far ahead of my skis, you know, I think we are still a ways away of putting COVID completely behind us. And I also want to be very present in like, how What a tragedy it is. And I think even personally, within my friend group, there's been some very recent developments that are just awful. So I think we need time to heal. And I think we need time to, you know, mourn sort of our old selves, you know, like it or not one way or the other, we're all different because of 2020. And hopefully, we can build sort of on the ashes of everything and be better to each other longer term. We got some cool projects. I think this this question came from Peter from the, from the Instagram story that I posted the other day. And, you know, we're I have a cool series that I'm working on called more than a diabetic, which is going to be debuting next year with some awesome community members. So that's up first. You know, in terms of brand partnerships, obviously, Medtronic has a couple other long term partners that I've had that I want to do some deeper, cooler campaigns with, I'm sort of in a, I don't need new stuff I really want to care for and sort of nurture my existing relationships. And my existing, I don't know whether partnerships are you know, I have my a lot of irons in the fire, I don't need more irons, I need to just really focus on you know, my relationship with my wife, my relationship, my family, my my two businesses, and really focusing on being a good steward of what we have and continuing to do, right for people with diabetes. That sounds like a great plan. I want to have some fun, you know?   Stacey Simms  46:55 Yeah, definitely. And hopefully, we can see each other again and travel a little bit towards the end of the year. And I would just love that. That would be wonderful for me.   Rob Howe 47:03 Yeah. If I want to manifest anything for 2021, I put my hands in the air because I'm manifesting this my manifesting. Okay, if you're listening, you're missing out. I want to go on a honeymoon with my wife in 20. Oh, love that. That would be a fun thing. Travel, you got my wheels turning, I love to travel. And I have missed that sort of being held down at the house this year. So Excellent. Well,   Stacey Simms  47:22 I hope we can do that. I'll keep you posted on anything I can help with. Thank you so much for spending some time with me, Rob, it's always fun to catch up. And you caught me, you know, me talking more than I usually do on these interviews, I think but thank you.   Rob Howe 47:33 I like that. I think it's just the my inner interviewer. And, you know, thank you for all the work that you put in Diabetes Connections. I think when you're a diabetes mom, there's so much work that goes into that anyway, and I just applaud people like you. And then frankly, there aren't that many like you at this point. You've been doing this a long time and do a great job. So I hold you in high regard. I'll just leave it at that you do a great job and I appreciate you.   Stacey Simms  47:55 Well, that's very good. Thanks, Rob.   Announcer 48:02 You're listening to Diabetes Connections with Stacey Simms.   Stacey Simms  48:08 I'll link up lots more information about the topics we spoke about, especially the Medtronic pump if you'd like more information on that, and you can go back just a couple of episodes. We had the folks Medtronic on in the fall of 2020. To go through all of the details. I'll link that up in this episode as well. And I'll put a link into Rob's Instagram where you can see everything we talked about. He is quite prolific on Instagram and his wonderful wedding photos, the modeling, even the Medtronic signing announcement that I kind of teased him about there. It was great to talk to him and I hope it was okay that I talked so much. It was odd to be on the other side of the microphone, but it was fun to hopefully you enjoyed it as well. We are going to have my favorite segment of the week coming up Tell me something good. But first Diabetes Connections is brought to you by Dexcom. It is so hard to believe with Benny 16 years old now, almost six feet tall that he was ever a toddler. And I mean it was also just like it was yesterday. It's bananas. When you have a toddler diagnosed with type one. You do hear rumblings for a long time about the teen years people start scaring you about that right away. But when it hit us at full force a little early, I was really glad we had Dexcom Benny's insulin needs started going way up around age 11 and along with the hormone swings all the growth, I cannot imagine managing diabetes without the dexcom continuous glucose monitoring system. We can react more quickly to highs and lows. see trends adjust insulin doses with advice from our endocrinologist. I know using the Dexcom g six has helped improve Benny's agency and his overall health. If your glucose alerts and readings for the G six do not match symptoms or expectations, use a blood glucose meter to make diabetes treatment decisions. To learn more Just go to Diabetes connections.com and click on the Dexcom logo.   I got a bunch of Tell me something good submissions this week. So if you are not featured and you popped one into the Facebook group. Please stay tuned I will be sharing them in the weeks to come. Corinna posted a great article from Washington and New laws taking effect this year from Washington State caps the cost of insulin at $100 per month health plans issued or renewed after January 1 2021. Must cap Insulet co pays deductibles and other forms of cost sharing at $100 per 30 day supply. I'll link up that article and I do think we're gonna see more and more legislative action this year and next year when it comes to insulin so Corinna thanks for sharing that and Corinna’s blog also got an honor. Recently, she writes type two musings, and she was featured in an article on everyday health about the top type two diabetes blogs to watch this year. So I'll link that up as well if you haven't checked her out. She's a longtime advocate and blogger in the diabetes community. Thanks for sharing that. And just a little good news from Carol Who says I discovered the secret to five sites use six millimeter cannula instead of nine millimeter, whatever works. The thigh site is one that Benny has struggled with. He just does not like it. He's done it here and there over the years. And you know, it's just not his favorite. So Carol, I'm really glad that that worked. You know, we used a longer canula for a while and if you're not familiar for not a pumper. So the canula is how the pump gets the insulin infuses the insulin under the skin, you have usually an inserter of some kind, it puts a needle under the skin immediately withdraws and leaves a tiny canula six millimeter or nine millimeter under the skin where the insulin drips through when Benny was 10 or 11. And we kind of noticed his insulin use going way up. We didn't really think about the cannulas and the insets being overwhelmed. We thought well, maybe we just need to use a longer inset maybe it's a problem with scar tissue. And we switched to the nine millimeter for a couple of months. It made zero difference for him. It was one of the things that led us to untethered, which if you're new to the show, we used a combination of long acting and pumping for two years when Benny's insulin needs went way, way, way up. And it took a lot of the strain off the inset. It helped him measurably it was just wonderful. His insulin needs have gone down. He is 16. He is coming out of puberty. And so we are off untethered. But I didn't mean to be under there, Carol. Sorry. Thank you so much for sending that in. And I'll add something good in that Benny has started back with wrestling practice. Now this season is going to nothing like any season in the past. I'm not sure they'll ever even actually wrestle for the rest of this school year. But we're back practicing. They are either indoors with masks, I think when they're outdoors, they're wearing masks depending on where they are and how close they are together. But he is really psyched to be back with the wrestling team and working hard. And he's really been working hard all this year. And I'm really proud of him. I don't like to say too much. I'm very superstitious. I'm knocking on wood even as I'm talking, which is why I don't brag about him more. But isn't that ridiculous, but I am superstitious, but he is doing well. And it's cool to have the wrestling practices back again. So that's my Tell me something good. Please feel free to email me with your good news or post in the Facebook group when I ask and just tell me something good.   One of the conversations we had in the Facebook group recently was about predictions for the new year. And I meant to give mine during the last episode, I want to put this on tape so you can laugh at me. We can play it back next year and see if I cut anything right. So here were my predictions. And this was about diabetes technology. I'll go big. I think we're gonna get Tandem bolus by phone approved that has been submitted according to investor calls, I think we're gonna get that approved and rolled out by third quarter of 2021. I think we're gonna get Dexcom g7 approval and rolled out by the third quarter of 2021 as well, that one I don't think has been submitted yet. So that one might be a little bit more hopeful. But come on. I do also think no direct to watch. Sorry, for g7 I still think you'd have to use a phone. But I do predict that the DIY crowd will find a way to crack it. And you'll be able to go direct from the g7 transmitter to a watch. That's very, very helpful. And it's also set up with zero knowledge about what it would take to do something like that. Love you guys. I have no idea. I think you're all geniuses. I think we're gonna get Omni pod five powered by horizon. Not until the fourth quarter. I think they're just a little bit behind only because I mean COVID delayed everything and my understanding is that have not submitted yet. Omni pod folks, you are more than welcome to come on the show. I'd love to get an update about that. Let me know. And I do think we'll also see another viable CGM competitor ready for submission to US FDA by the end of the year by the end of 2020. I think it will be submitted.   So those are my technology predictions. I think, as I've said, really, in this episode in many in the past, I think this is going to be a big year for conversation and education about insulin pricing, not just because the democrats are in charge in DC because let's face it, they didn't do anything last time around about insulin pricing, but I am very encouraged by the education and the advocacy. Frankly, the impatience among many people I'm seeing now, I think it is going to be different than last time around. Look, don't misunderstand my comment. Nobody said anything about insulin pricing for 30 years under any administration, it h

As a project manager, Rob Kerr was accustomed to evaluating options and allocating scarce resources for maximum impact. The magic happened, however, when he started taking those tools out of the office and applying them to life: 'We were making better decisions as a family. We were being a bit bolder with our choices... I thought, okay, this is working for us.' So Rob brought together his framework for bringing project management into real life and united it with his passion for entrepreneurship to create Project Future, a tool to help would-be entrepreneurs evaluate their options and set up a successful business.  Along the way he learned a huge amount about writing, collaboration, illustration, and overcoming his fear of appearing on video... 

Episode 13 of the White Shark Interest Group Podcast, Facebook's' largest White Shark specific group, covering science, conservation, news, photography, video and debate.We are once again joined by the legendary Rob Lawrence (African Shark Eco-Charters, BBC, NatGeo, Discovery Channel, Shark Week) for an on the ground update on the shark populations in South Africa, specifically False Bay.Copy /Paste "news" articles keep reappearing claiming the role of the Orcas attacking Great White Sharks is the main factor in their numbers declining these past years. So Rob gives us further updates and insight, and once again generously shares his knowledge of the area, being the man who has travelled to Seal Island, False Bay more than anyone else alive today.This is a MUST LISTEN podcast and a rare chance to spend time in the company of a true pioneer and advocate in the shark world.Join us at the White Shark Interest Group with the thousands of other shark advocates to EDUCATE, CONSERVE, and PROTECT these amazing Great White Sharks.Rob and his team at African Shark Eco-Charters can be found at: https://ultimate-animals.com/ Join the White Shark Interest Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/whitesharkinterestgroup/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whiteshark_interestgroup Website: http://whitesharkinterestgroup.com/

Joined by David Gregory and Kyle Raymond! Monoliths are in the news. They're popping up everywhere. So Rob has a million dollar dildo idea - the Dongolith. Get ready Mark Cuban, we've got an idea for the Shark Tank! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/rob-garguilo/support

Rob Angel is a speaker, author, and entrepreneur. He recently published his book, Game Changer: The Story of Pictionary and How I Turned a Simple Idea into the Bestselling Board Game in the World. In 1985, using a few simple tools, a Webster’s paperback dictionary, a No.2 pencil, and a yellow legal pad, he created the phenomenally successful and iconic board game Pictionary®. Putting together the first 1,000 games by hand in his tiny apartment, Rob mastered all the needed business skills, including sales, marketing, and distribution, before selling the game to Mattel in 2001. Today, he makes his home in Seattle where he is involved in philanthropy and mentors young entrepreneurs.   “It’s ok to miss an investment. I’d rather miss 10 great investments than go into one bad.” Rob Angel   Worst investment ever What do I do with all this money? When Pictionary® became a worldwide bestseller, Rob made a lot of money. He was about 28 years old at the time, and he had no idea what to do with the money. He reached out to a couple of friends who also had a lot of money and asked them for advice. Every one of them told him first to figure out what he wants for his life. So Rob took time and thought about it. He decided that what he wanted most was freedom. So every investment he made from then on was focused on giving him financial independence and freedom of time. Going against his investment vision About four years ago, Rob received a call from a friend with an investment idea that would make him 56X his investment in four months. Of course, it sounded too good to be true to Rob, but the guy spun him a story that captured his imagination, and also, he trusted this friend. Rob looked at the paperwork, and it didn’t make sense to him, but he just couldn’t help himself. His gut feeling pointed Rob at all the red flags, but his ego made him go ahead and invest in the idea. It was just a scam Rob gave his friend a check and sat back, waiting for his investment to kick in. When the day that Rob was to get paid came, he got nothing. He waited a couple of days, still nothing. After a few weeks, Rob went looking for his friend, but he was nowhere to be found. It was now quite clear that he had been scammed. Rob wasn’t too concerned with the money that he lost, but he was angry with himself for going against everything that he knows about himself and investing. He was mad that he had let greed lead him to make his worst investment ever. Lessons learned Listen to your intuition Listen to yourself and your gut instinct. Don’t let your brain and your ego override your intuition. Trusting your gut will save you from making your worst investment ever. Stay true to your vision When investing, stay true to your vision. Don’t let the excitement of the moment distract you from what you want to achieve. Plan for your success Don’t plan to fail; instead, prepare for your success. It’s ok to have a plan B, but plan for your success and what that looks like. Doing so will help dictate your business, your growth, and your investment strategy. Andrew’s takeaways Be open, aware and present Usually, we’re caught up in all of the excitement of the day, and we miss out on the opportunities around us because we’re not present and living in the moment. Look for inspiration around you We’re all standing on the shoulders of giants, and we get ideas from other people all the time. So be open to learning and drawing inspiration from people surrounding you. You might just get your next big idea from them. Invest for the long term Warren Buffett’s success in investing stems from his ability to watch grass grow. When investing, go in for the long term. Careful, thoughtful investing is just a simple long-term waiting game. It is not a game of excitement or buying and selling. Start investing early enough and let that grass grow. Learn to move on When you make a mistake, no matter what you’re feeling, happiness, joy, shame, etc., feel it, then move on. Don’t let it eat you up. Don’t let it ruin your next investment. Actionable advice Trust that little voice in your head. If you can get past that little voice, then go ahead and do your research. Then go ahead and see what the investment looks like. Listen to your intuition. We’re all smart, we all know what we need, and we all know what we want. Just pay attention to it and be disciplined about it. No. 1 goal for the next 12 months Rob’s goal for the next 12 months is to sell his book and have fun doing it. Rob is trying to sell Game Changer on Amazon. His goal is to talk more about what he did right and what he did wrong. Hopefully, it will resonate with people, and they can avoid some of the mistakes that Rob made. Parting words   “Just go out and do it. Find your aardvark.” Rob Angel   Connect with Rob Angel LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Website Email: info@robangel.com Andrew’s books How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market My Worst Investment Ever 9 Valuation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them Transform Your Business with Dr.Deming’s 14 Points Andrew’s online programs Valuation Master Class How to Start Building Your Wealth Investing in the Stock Market Finance Made Ridiculously Simple Become a Great Presenter and Increase Your Influence Transform Your Business with Dr. Deming’s 14 Points Connect with Andrew Stotz: astotz.com LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube My Worst Investment Ever Podcast Further reading mentioned Rob Angel (2020), Game Changer: The Story of Pictionary and How I Turned a Simple Idea into the Bestselling Board Game in the World

Felix has a bracket made of the Modern Rock tracks that reached number 1 in the year 1996 — a big time year for his old dad Rob. So Rob is picking the winners, round by round, and the final winner goes up against Boyz II Men, "On Bended Knee" for the title of KDSY Reigning Champ. Hope you'll drop by synopsish.com to see all the stuff Rob's making with family and friends. Blog posts and podcasts about all kinds of pop culture. Thanks for listening. Take care.

Face it, it's been a tough week. So Rob, Peter, and production assistant Matt rattle off their favorite purchase experiences of the quarantine.

It's Tuesday which means it's another episode of Ask Rob & Rob, and they're changing things up today.  Coronavirus has naturally ramped up the number of questions we've been getting through. So Rob & Rob have decided to combine some of the popular ones.  The main question we've been asked is around buy-to-let mortgage holidays. There appears to be a fair bit of confusion about how these work.  Rob & Rob have addressed the situation to give property investors a better understanding. Here's what you can expect them to answer: Can I get multiple mortgage holidays? I have properties with several different lenders, will they all honour it? I've got a property that's currently empty between tenants, can I get a mortgage holiday on it? If I take a mortgage holiday do I have to defer the rent to my tenant?    As the demand for letting property right now is likely to drop, should landlords be taking a reduction in rent?    Well…tune in and you'll find that one out!    With all the negative news going on right now, the Rob's are always here to answer your questions and keep you updated on the property market.    So sit back, relax and have a nice cuppa while The Robs keep you updated on the most asked questions.  Do you have a buy to let or property investment related question for Rob & Rob? You could feature on the next episode by giving us a call on 013 808 00035 and leaving a message with your name and question (normal UK call rates apply).    Or if you prefer, click here to leave a recording via your computer instead. The next question on Ask Rob & Rob could be yours.  Have you joined us over on the Property Hub Forum yet? Our online community is friendly, informative, and the members are waiting to welcome you with open arms. So get yourself over and introduce yourself. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It has been a slow week..... So Rob and Bff talk about a little bit of this and a little bit of that.  Got a topic or comment? Holla at us: frommyexperiencepodcast@gmail.com fmepodcast1@gmail.com Follow us on Instagram Rob: komplete_vision Bff: camaro_xoxo the show: fme_podcast facebook" www.facebook.com/groups/frommyexperiencepodcast

In the last episode, we discuss how to pay off debt and save for an emergency fund, as well as the need for a budget, and today we discuss our financial future - which can be difficult for some to consider when they’ve got another 30 years of teaching to go! But it’s so important that we start early because when it comes to retirement savings, time is your friend! So Rob discusses how to plan so that you can have the lifestyle you want when you retire, how you can retire earlier than planned, and how the financial independence movement that’s taking storm can benefit you.  Sign up for the New Educator Conference in Santa Clara, CA at CTAGO.ORG The Simple StartUp: A Beginner’s Guide To Starting Your Own Business  ChooseFI K-12 Financial Literacy Curriculum  Rob's TpT store  Pinterest  Rob's new blog (coming Feb 2020)  Recommended Podcasts for learning how to manage your money: ChooseFI Afford Anything Stacking Benjamins Teach and Retire Rich (teacher-specific) One Million Apples (teacher-specific) Facebook Group ChooseFI Educators - has lots of great financial tips for teachers who are looking to improve their financial situation as well as a community for encouragement! Love this show? Become an AWESOME SUPPORTER! Want to ask a question and be featured on the podcast? Let your voice be heard! Click here to find out how you can be a part of the podcast by asking a question! Listeners who leave a voicemail will be eligible to receive a FREE Teachers Need Teachers sticker! Click HERE to find out more! Got questions, feedback, or want to be on the show? You can email me at kim@teachersneedteachers.com Connect with me Subscribe to Apple Podcasts, Google Play Music, or Stitcher Join my Facebook Group where I occasionally podcast live Message me through Instagram or Twitter

Dr Rob Bell from Indianapolis in this USA is a renown Mental Toughness Coach, Speaker and the Author of 6 and soon to be 7 Books on the subject. In this interview he shares his top insights from working with elite level athletes across a number of sports and corporate athletes as well. He discusses his approach, his philosophies around developing mental strength to optimize performance and upgrade your life and the tools and perspectives he uses with his athletes. Dr Bell says: Mental Toughness means performing your best when it matters the most AND dealing with the adversity and setbacks that we will face. If performance is important in your life, then both of these are inevitable, so it isn't a matter of "if", but "when" mental toughness is needed. The odd thing is that many people don't actually need to be mentally tough in today's society. These people are comfortable on the sidelines. I'm not sure about you, but we just survive in mediocrity, not thrive. Our goal is to be the BEST at getting BETTER." You can learn more about Dr Bell and his work, his books and courses at www.drrobbell.com. His books include No One Gets There Alone Don't Should On Your Kids No Fear Mental Toughness Training For Golf 50 Ways to Win Hinge   Mental Toughness - The Key To Success with Dr Rob Bell Timestamp:   4:20 About Rob 5:32 About the hinge  7:50 hinge moments 11:05 lisa's hinge moment 14:34 Rob's coaching stories 17:45 a new level, a new devil - being excited vs being fearful 24:02 focusing on success vs focusing on segnifficance 28:32 Mental Toughness Hacks 33:28 reprograming our subconscious & choosing our tribe 37:52 Scarcity vs Abundance mindset   We would like to thank our sponsors:   Running Hot - By Lisa Tamati & Neil Wagstaff   If you want to run faster, longer and be stronger without burnout and injuries then check out and TRY our Running Club for FREE on a 7-day FREE TRIAL Complete holistic running programmes for distances from 5km to ultramarathon and for beginners to advanced runners.   All include Run training sessions, mobility workouts daily, strength workouts specific for runners, nutrition guidance and mindset help Plus injury prevention series, foundational plans, running drill series and a huge library of videos, articles, podcasts, clean eating recipes and more.   www.runninghotcoaching.com/info and don't forget to subscribe to our youtube channel at Lisa's Youtube channel  www.yotube.com/user/lisatamat and come visit us on our facebook group   www.facebook.com/groups/lisatamati Epigenetics Testing Program by Lisa Tamati & Neil Wagstaff. Wouldn’t it be great if your body came with a user manual? Which foods should you eat, and which ones should you avoid? When, and how often should you be eating? What type of exercise does your body respond best to, and when is it best to exercise? These are just some of the questions you’ll uncover the answers to in the Epigenetics Testing Program along with many others. There’s a good reason why epigenetics is being hailed as the “future of personalized health”, as it unlocks the user manual you’ll wish you’d been born with! No more guesswork. The program, developed by an international team of independent doctors, researchers, and technology programmers for over 15 years, uses a powerful epigenetics analysis platform informed by 100% evidenced-based medical research. The platform uses over 500 algorithms and 10,000 data points per user, to analyze body measurement and lifestyle stress data, that can all be captured from the comfort of your own home Find out more about our  Epigenetics Program and how it can change your life and help you reach optimal health, happiness, and potential at https://runninghotcoaching.com/epigenetics You can find all our programs, courses, live seminars and more at www.lisatamati.com    Transcript of the Podcast:   Speaker 1: (00:00) Welcome to pushing the limits, the show that helps you reach your full potential with your host, Lisa Tamati, brought to you by Lisatamati.com Speaker 2: (00:11) How everyone listed. Somebody here at pushing the limits today. I have a real treat for you, but before we get underway, I'd just like to encourage you to hop on over to our website and to check out all our flagship programs. We have an online run training Academy running hot. It's called a holistic run training. Whether you are doing your first half marathon marathon or doing ultra marathons or even if you're just taking your first steps, check out our system, what we do and how we can help you achieve your goals. We also have an Eaton genetics testing program. This is absolutely my blind stuff. I've just been away actually on the weekend doing some more training. On this. And this is a personalized health approach. This is taking the last 20 years of hundreds of science work from festing different science disciplines. Bring this all together into one online tool that will enable you to get insights into you and your genes. Speaker 2: (01:12) Like [inaudible] before. You'll be able to understand exactly what foods to eat and what time of the day you should be eating, what types of exercise to you, but you're learning so much more than just food and exercise. It's all about how your brain works, what hormones are dominant in your body and what a fixed means will have and what time of the day these are these are happening. You'll get information about what types of work you'll be put at, what times of the day you should be doing different types of activities. Just insights that will absolutely change your life, blow your mind. I'm really, really excited about this genetics program because it's no longer a one size fits all approach, which it has been throughout history up until this point of time. Now we can look at who you are, how your genes are expressing and give new personalized recommendation. Speaker 2: (02:08) So that's our second bag ship program. And the third one we have is mindset here, which is all about developing mental toughness, a strong mindset so that you can achieve the things in life that you want to without all the problems getting in the way and stopping new wrench in your potential. So check those all out at Lisatamati.com. Now, today I have Dr Rob bell on the show and he is from Indianapolis in United States and dr Rob is an author, a coach, and a speaker. He's trained hundreds of executives and athletes of all levels and across all sports. He's the author of six books and soon to bring out his seventh and you're going to get so much value out of today's show. So without further ado, I'd like you to introduce you to Dr. Bell and one last thing before I go. Please, please, please give the show a rating and review if you enjoy the content that really helps the show get exposure and really helps our ratings on iTunes, et cetera. So I really, really appreciate you doing that right over to Dr. Bell, everybody, Lisa Tamati here at pushing your limits. Fantastic to have you with me again on the show. We've got a very exciting geese. We've got to the Rob bell all way from Indianapolis in the United States with me today. So welcome to the show that grew up. Speaker 3: (03:33) Awesome. Thanks. Thank you. Thanks Lisa for having me. Speaker 2: (03:37) So Rob and I have connected by LinkedIn as you do these days. And I have delved into Rob's work and what he's done and he's a meeting toughest coach and an author and a speaker. Someone who speaks my language obviously. And I just loved what he was doing in his work, so I wanted to share that with you guys and my audience and to maybe get some insights from Rob about about me to toughness and he works with a whole lot of different types of athletes and corporate to golf to, to NFL, I think, or you'll be able to share. So, dr. Rob, welcome to the show. And thanks for being here. So tell us a little bit about yourself. Speaker 3: (04:22) I mean, well, thanks so much for introduction. And I mean, again, we connect over LinkedIn and I was like, wow, like this, this lady's amazing. Like, look at all the races she's done. So anybody doing like those ultra marathons, like Badwater like yourself and you know, the salve there in the Sahara. I mean, I'm all about, I mean, not just I'm in my, my whole life is just dedicated I think just to helping people get to where they want to go. So it's just being the coach and, and you know, as well as I do, I mean, the, the greatest satisfaction I think we get as a coach is just being that small part. And that piece of, you know, I think what we're always trying to get is just that one moment that, that one point in our lives, and I call him these hinge moments where we don't know what it looks like, but if we can make that small difference in that person's life. So helping them connect with who they are, with who they're going to become. And I always preach and I know you, you're on the same vein, but you know, no matter how bad things aren't, our life only takes more. It takes that one moment, that one person, that one event to make all the difference. And that's why I just love no one. I do. So I mean I've been blessed enough to just always kind of follow that passion and just leave me here, the podcast today. So I'm excited. Speaker 2: (05:34) Absolutely. And you actually have, why you have seven bowls, six books in the seventh one on the way. Is that right? Your books is called the hinge. I know. And so this is all about hinge moments in sport does it, right? So what do you do? Speaker 3: (05:51) Well, so I say like every door has a hint. So if you hear about doors opening and closing in life, that's of the hinge you hear of a rusty door. It's not the door that's rusty at all. It's the Hinsey gets rusty. And so always say is every, you know, a, a door without a hinge hinges a wall. It just doesn't work. And so what the Hanjin is, the answer is going to be that one person that's gonna be that one moment or one event. Sometimes that one decision that makes all the difference in our lives. We just don't know when that's coming. We can't connect the dots in our life looking forward, but can only connect the dots looking backwards and seeing the impact of that one person or that one moment made in our life. And when it comes to, you know, mental toughness, like I said, it only takes one. Speaker 3: (06:34) Now we might not know the hinge connects sometimes two weeks, months, years later. The impact of one person saying you can't do it, you're not going to be good enough. Or one decision or that one person that we, that we met that connected us to somebody else. And since we can't know when that moment's coming, that's the importance of being present and not taking any day off and making sure that every moment that we do and every person that we meet matters. Because it does. Because we don't know when that moment's going to happen. And that's, that's the real point about the hitch. Speaker 2: (07:10) That's a real insight. Yeah. I hadn't even thought about this. This just opened up my mind to a new way of thinking. I hadn't thought about that at all as being, I was sort of thinking hinge moments, those, you know, crucial moments. And, and in the sporting event where, you know, either we left or it went right and you succeed, but you're saying the opportunities are going to come towards us, these opportunities, but we don't know or see them necessarily as really important pivotal points. And if we're not paying attention and if we're not out there actively looking for these hinge moments then we're gonna miss them and miss opportunities in our lives basically. Is that right? Speaker 3: (07:50) Yeah, absolutely. And I mean a lot of, a lot of these come when we're, when we're not even ready for them, you know, and one of the half iron mans I did, I mean one of the hinge moments was somebody to stop the change my tire for me. And I have no idea even what I was doing in the race, how to change a tire. And that changed my entire life. Just that one moment. And we're going to have several hinge moments throughout our lives. But I think that's the real importance. And, and that's the part that I really think is, is so crucial is no matter how bad our situation is, right. No matter how bleak and outcome looks, no matter what, it only takes one. That's what we're getting. Speaker 2: (08:29) Yeah. Actually I, I re listen to that little video on your website about the doctor. Rob was in a, in a halftime, it was one of your early first ones. I believe Tony wasn't signed up with no training at all. And then suddenly your talk gives up and then you standing on the side of the right guy. What do I don't disappoint? People that are riding past you as they doing it. Rice. Yep. Named some nice person. Decided to sacrifice basically their position in the rice to help you out, help you change a tire and get you back on the road. And prior to that, what was your way of thinking before and what was it afterwards? Speaker 3: (09:13) Well, I mean I think like people don't think people don't do things to us. They do things for themselves and it's kind of the two by four principle and no matter what, no matter what the kind of situation is, I mean it was, it wasn't like I was a bad person, but when it comes to racing, you do that suit best that you can. I asked myself in the question when this guy stopped and I would tell people about this, what I have stopped and the answer to that point, Lisa was no, I wouldn't have stopped. I wouldn't even have thought about it. But once he stopped, then I started exploring then other professional examples of why would other people stop their own race and what was it about these individuals that they got that I didn't get. And so now every race that I go into isn't focused really on how I do every race is who am I going to be able to help. Speaker 3: (10:03) And then it's one of the things I just kind of pray about, put me in a situation Mark and help somebody. And so then the whole viewpoint changes. And the reason why is cause you know, we can't help out others in life without also helping out ourselves. And that's the part that we never get. I mean, if anybody has volunteered before, it's a perfect example. We volunteered. No one leaves volunteers situations helping out kids at a hospital saying, boy, those kids are so lucky that I was here to help them. We say the opposite, right? We say, boy, those kids helped me more than I ever helped them. Yeah. Why is that? Would they give us where they gave us perspective, right? They gave us an appreciation and gratitude for our own problems. I'd gladly take that stuff and we cannot help out others. But that also helping out ourselves. That's the point about getting outside of our own head. If we can just focus on other people, that's how we get outside of our own head and that's how we help ourselves at the same time. So it's, and I think it was like Gandhi or author Ash that said it, you know, one of the most selfish things you can do is to help somebody else. Speaker 2: (11:05) Wow. That's real. It's really insightful. And I tell you what, you're getting into Oak marathons now of light and you've got a hundred model. You, you said you were hoping to play next year, a hundred mile are coming up this year. Yep. What I've, one of the things I love about ultramarathons, and this is how it's changing slowly, but it's very much not about the winners. It's, it's, it's different to say iron man's where it's really competitive and crazy. Most people are doing outwards because they have a personal challenge that they're trying to overcome themselves. It's, it's, you know, me versus me sort of situation for most of the people, the top couple of esteem going for the placings. But for most people understand that it's all about survival and getting to the finish line some which way, and the moments that I've, in my school where I've been literally people saved my lives, people have helped me. Speaker 2: (11:58) I've helped other people in medical situations where you're in dire straights. I mean, one comes to mind. I was running across Nigeria a 333 K race. I'm terribly organized, one of the most poorest, most dangerous countries on earth. Civil war going on. I got food poisoning an hour into the race, passing out and really deep trouble. And one of the other girls comes past me in the race. You know, I'm alone, unconscious in the same, she gets me, you know, wakes me up, gets me out, warms me up, stays with me, keeps me on my feet, drags my ass until the next checkpoint. You know, it took a good couple of hours that she lost out of that in a, in a race that's, you know, on the edge of crazy. And that, that's sort of a sacrifice for someone that she didn't even know, you know, she'd meet two days before and was just phenomenal, you know? Speaker 2: (12:54) And it's those sorts of moments that you think, wow, this is more than just about, did I get to the finish line or not? This is about humanity and this is about, and you know, you, when you, when you go outside of yourself and you, you might be suffering in an ultra somewhere, right? And you're just like, Oh my God, I don't know how I'm going to get there. And then you come across someone who's in worse shape tell you what you like, focus fully on them and you'll forget that you're suffering and they're not an arrow to go buy a new guy. Like, where did my pain go? It's absolutely amazing how when you focus on someone else, your own suffering disappears or diminishes. That's the point. Like when we're stuck in center head, that's when we're behind enemy lines. The only way to get out by an enemy lines is turn your thoughts towards helping somebody else. Speaker 2: (13:48) I mean, think about it, right? When we started encouraging others in those races, we're encouraging ourselves at the same time. So church is, so that's the, so if anybody wants to get actually any of your books, where do they go? They just go to www.drrobbell.com or have they always said that's the best way. Yeah, www.drrobbell.com and and the book on so no one gets there, gets there alone is also sort of a story that was the story of the half iron man and the guy's not going to change my tire. Absolutely. Yeah. And nobody does get there alone in life in general. We all need a team of people and we all need to stand on each other's shoulders, so to speak, to, to reach the top. Tell us a little bit about now your, your work with the athletes that you worked with and some examples perhaps of, of amazing experiences that you've had and things that you've seen in your time as a coach. Yeah, I mean, Speaker 3: (14:53) Yeah, I was saying, I mean I was, I was blessed enough to know early on in my life, this is what I wanted to do. And I got into the field because I was the athlete that would always think too much and no one can, no one could ever help me out, at least never go in, would always say, Hey, those butterflies go away and playing baseball then everyone away for me. And you know, I had a really, I had a hinge moment when I got to college and that was because I was partying way too much. I thought I can play baseball and party in college and be the best, no accountability, what could go wrong. And I, and I fell off a 80 foot cliff in college and you know, fraction my back broke my arm and that was the end of sport. Speaker 3: (15:31) And yeah, that was a hinge most of my life because from that moment on now, everything was different. If that didn't happen, I don't know if I would have taken that psychology class. I don't know if I would've had that one professor who had just spoke right to my soul and I knew I want to do with my life. And you know, always, always be in the ultimate sports honk. And it didn't matter what it was, but if we're trying to do something to the best that we can I just discovered early on that everyone needs a coach. Speaker 4: (16:06) Okay. Speaker 3: (16:06) There's all these demons that I think get in the way of us trying to reach greatness and what we're doing and really as a coach and, and you know, as well as I do, I mean, it, it does take a team and there are no shortcuts. There are no shortcuts to it. And our job is to point out the blind spots in people's lives. I think there's many ways, many routes up to that mountain. There's not one route. And which is going along the journey with athletes and helping them get to where they want to go as just been absolute blessing. I mean, you know, with any coach, I mean there's two types of coaches, those that have been fired and those that will be fired. I've been fired before, you know, so I've been at the lowest of lows. And then when in in the highest of highs you know, our job as coaches sometimes to work ourselves out of a job that's not, that's not the best business model. Speaker 3: (17:02) I don't know. Somebody, I don't know, somebody selling insurance that wants to come in there and be like, boy, I don't really think you need me anymore as insurance sales. So if we're trying to work ourselves out of a job because you know, we're trying to build them up in their capacity, you're gonna get fired. So, I mean, that's, there's just so many examples. I mean, it's just I really just focus on the office that we have and what's the office? So my office is a swimming pool. My offices, you know, is there going to be that golf course sometimes? Is that executive board, but other times, I mean, it's a you know, it's the race track. It's, it's going to be you know, on a, you know, at the tennis match. And then that's, that's the best part. It's just what the office looks like. So you, you, you try and cut Chinese leaps, end Speaker 2: (17:50) Corporate executives. So in all types of sports, what are the, some of the biggest things that in general now people are struggling with? Like is there a couple of central themes that people just keep coming back to that you see again and again as being a major Speaker 3: (18:09) Problem for people on their bridge? Sure. So I think when whenever we hit a new level, there's going to be a new devil. And so a lot of the difficulties when we get like that success and how do we deal with that if, if I've got to boil it down in what I think like the essential mental skills come. I mean obviously the building block of all mental toughness is, is going to be that motivation, right? It's going to be that persistence is, gets back to our why. You know, your goals, your, how are we willing to do the things that we don't want to do? Yeah. After that, then it comes into confidence and I mean confidence that, that trust, that belief in ourselves. And what we're trying to do. There has to be that belief. I believe that everyone has that, but it just gets really muted throughout our lives. Speaker 3: (18:59) A lot of times when we listen and then to that wrong voice, we're not, I think it comes to confidence. What I believe is that we have to adapt the philosophy that it all works out in the end. If it hasn't, then you know what? It's just not the ENT. And that's, that's a big part of what people suffer with. I think another one then it comes back to then focus like how do we build our confidence to what we're focused on? Are we focused on the excitement? Are we focused on being nervous? If we focus on being excited physiologically? I said same exact thing, right? Like we are palms get sweaty. Like we get real anxious, you know, it gets rolling. Our thoughts are a lot, but boy is that nervous or is that excited? Because I think it's excited. It means I want to be in this situation something good can happen. Speaker 3: (19:45) Being nervous means I don't want to be in the situation. This is a threat. And then being able to train our mind to focus on everything is an opportunity. That's how we build a confidence in ourselves. And then that, and then I think that last field, so we got the, the motivation, the confidence, the focus. And then I think that last mental skill, which I suck at is how do we let go? Mistakes. If you show me, if you show me an athlete that can let go mistakes, I will show you somebody that's mentally tough. So I like to say this, our confidence focus is how we build our confidence. How we refocus just reveals the level of confidence. Wow. What I mean by that, if you show me an athlete that makes mistakes and still stay school calm and collected, well what they're really saying is I don't need everything to go my way in order to be successful. And we know bad stuff's going to happen, right? But it's all about how we adjust from that. If you show me an athlete that his or her cool when stuff starts going bad, I'm going to show you somebody that never had any confidence to begin with and then they got to play the mental gymnastics and not as well as competing against themselves. That's where it gets really tough. Speaker 2: (21:00) See, this is a journey for you as I'm making toughness coach, it's not like it's, it's an easy thing we've got at once and we've, we're away laughing and we're never ever going to have a problem again. That doesn't quite work like that. Speaker 3: (21:11) No man, people were, people make more fun of me when I get upset because it's like, wait a minute, I thought you're supposed to be good at this stuff. Speaker 2: (21:16) Yeah. You know, I have moments, Tobin, I'm thinking, you know, you just watch your own behavior sometimes and you're going, hang on a minute. This isn't cool and I'm glad I was watching. Speaker 3: (21:29) Right. It is. I don't think we were really made to coach ourselves. Speaker 2: (21:32) I think we need others to coach us. Very, very good point. It's hard to get out of your own forest and see the trees when you're in the middle of it and someone who has that seed perspective on you can give you a lot of more insight into your behaviors that you're not actually even seeing. And I really love that challenge versus, and I have been in mind, you know, things that I talk about, the challenge versus the threat and changing your cause. It actually changes your physiology when you're standing at the start of a massive race and you start to feel fear and step B, feel nervous and Oh my God, am I trying enough? And all of those things that are going to be absolutely no good to you, they're not. They're not going to help you and your performance then by changing the narrative and your story, like you said, exciting opportunity. Speaker 2: (22:19) This is amazing what you know, what a chance to have that releases actual hormones in your body. The more testosterone you get, more bold feeling rather than the nerves. And that can just change your perspective. And it's a subtle change. Sometimes it's not, you know, like a massive thing. But it'd be enough just to get you over the line and get you going. And we all know like that waiting around for rice can be the worst time once you're actually on the way and you're five Kaizen. It's like right, I got this. But those nerves at the beginning can be pretty bloody horrible, can't they? And that's I can imagine with someone like golfers, I don't play golf, but the mental toughness, a completely different type of mental toughness, but the ability when all eyes are on you and on the, you know, one sick and when you hit the ball, they must have some special challenges as its own. Speaker 3: (23:10) Yeah. And that's it. Cause there's so much time in between shots, you know, but that's why we need people like you to the poor my life and to coach me up cause I can't push myself. Speaker 2: (23:19) Well I had, I loved me to help me get to that a hundred miler that would like, and we can swap some, I need some coaching on, on the mental toughness. How do you do this? How do you bring it across? Be, you know, cause you've obviously been doing this a long time seeming books as let's say in lots and lots of athletes who are Olympic athletes and corporate people and you know, Ben have really had massive success working with you. That's always exciting to connect with and you know, amazing people. And this is, this is one of the selfish reasons I have this podcast. So I get to meet cool people like you. So this is not all selfless. Once again now you see it on your website, there was a quote there that I really resonated with. If you only focus on success, then you'll never reach significance. But if you're living in a life of significance, then success will follow. Yeah. Quote. so if you're focused on Jess winning all the time, just on the money, just on the whatever it is, it's all gold. It's not going to bring you the joy in life. Actual the legacy, if you like. Is that right? Speaker 3: (24:31) Well, that's absolutely true. And the, and the reason why is because well let's use Mount Everest as an example, right? I mean the, the year it takes in terms of preparation, the four to 30 to 40 days of actual hiking, they spend what, 10 15 minutes at the top and when did most of the deaths occur on the way down from Mount Evers? And so I mean, if it's all about the journey, it's all about the process and it's all about who we can help along the way. That's how I think that we get real significance in our life. The fact of you know, even those that hold up the trophy, even those that fly back with a gold medal from the Olympics, there are people that had that feeling lease of, boy is that it? Or okay, okay, now what? Now I've spent my whole life for this and I got it. Speaker 3: (25:25) What now? And, and, and that's the part, right? The new level, new devil. If we focus on other people and making that impact along the way of our journey them, that's how we just focus on, you know, success is going to happen from us. And that's the part of just being able to focus on that process. And be able to make that impact. Those with elite athletes, I mean there, there has to be selfishness there because of how much time it takes. But at the same time, how can we help others along that journey and, and using our skill and our craft and our God given talent to help others. That's how we get that. That's how we get that significance. Speaker 2: (26:11) Yeah. And so it's not just about that gold medal and most people who have, who have a gold medal or something massive success will also understand that it wasn't them alone that got them there. Unless, you know egomaniacs but most of them will understand that this was a team effort. You know, and this was and like you say, we're not all going to be on the gold medalists. We're not all going to be world champions. So it's defining success, insignificance as well. Like the significance for me, like I want to have an, I knew obviously the same, want to have an impact on, on many, many lives and change lives with the knowledge that we have and help people through the journey and help them avoid the problems and the, you know, fast track them to, to success and help them reach their full potential. Speaker 2: (27:06) And therein lies the significance more than the couple of finish lines that are, you know, reached or the podiums that I've managed to reach in the middle that's hanging on the wall. That's all great stuff. But at the end of the day, I think you and I at least when we get to the end of our days, want to look back and go, wow, that all right. I helped a lot of people and I made a big impact in the world and I left the legacy. And these are, these are words that I think you know really, really important for us to have in our vocabulary and to be thinking about, it's not just the individual moment, it's not the selfish endeavor. And I mean, as an athlete I was, when I look back over my younger career and stuff, I was selfish to the point of, you know, I didn't understand I was selfish, but I expected everyone else. Speaker 2: (27:58) But there were doubts around my mission. You know, I was very mission oriented and very focused and that was the only thing in the world that was important. And I understand now that we added a lot of sacrifice on the behalf of other people, had to sit price for me to get there. And you know, you do lead that single-mindedness to, to achieve those sorts of things. But understanding now it's a bit more older person that you there isn't the only macro of success in the, yeah. So Dr Rob what book are you working on at the moment and what are some of the other sort of mental toughness tricks that you can help people gives people, you know, there are a lot of people suffering out there. There are a lot of people with lacking massive self confidence and self belief. They've been told perhaps their whole lives, they're not good enough, that they're not the right shape and not the right height. They're not the right one either to be good at something. Have you got any words of wisdom for them? Speaker 3: (29:03) Sure. I mean the, or the next book that I'm working on, it's called puke and rally. How, how champions adjust. And I know you get this one cause you thrown up and racist too as well. And it's not, yeah, it's not about the puke, it's about the rally and the fact of, you know what? Everyone in our life, everyone has puked. So no matter what, everyone has had setbacks, everyone has had failures. They are inevitable. That is going to happen. The only way to do it is to sit on the sidelines of life. And then you just live a completely different life. You know, if you want to be in the game, there's going to be, there's going to setbacks. And I believe, and if anybody listening that that resonates with this, that it's not about the setback, it's about to come back. Yeah. That's, that's what matters. Speaker 3: (29:51) So it's about the rally. It's about how we rally on your point. I believe this is everyone that has reached high levels of success was told you can't do it. That's a dumb idea. Don't try it. Why is that? Cause I haven't come across anybody that's achieved anything that has, you know, you especially with your mom were told by doctors, there's no way that that person's going to come back. And what does it do? Well, it Galvin not yes it has proved people wrong and I'm going to prove them wrong and that motivation, but it also has like in order to do something, you better believe in yourself. And so if we listen, I mean we got to really thank the people that say you can't do it because they're the ones that are given us a diner, are going to galvanize our own spirit, our own soul and our own confidence towards achieving that goal. Speaker 3: (30:45) And no matter what it's going to be there. Now I think it's really difficult to like coach that way. You know, you can't coach that way. I mean, but I do it all the time. Sometimes I can in short situations tell my pro golfers, boy, there's no way you get this ball up and down and say par and you know what it does, I'll watch me. Right. I'll show, I'll show you. Yeah. And that's the point is who is it that tells you you can't do it? And then what's the other voice say? What's that true voice? Cause like I said, I believe everybody has that confidence muscle. It's there, you know, it just sometimes getting muted so much in our life. But what is that voice really saying and allow that voice instead to be able to come out. You know, a lot of times what I think is we as individuals, I mean we, we hear that voice that we were as a nine year old kid, you know, from our dads saying, you know, how could you strike out? How could you miss up? And then that's the voice that we got in her head. Well, if that's the voice in our head, then what's the real voice that want? And that's, that's the key is just allowing that real voice then and be able to come out and, and sometimes, you know, we've gotta be able to tell ourselves and yell at ourselves rather than just listen to it. Speaker 2: (31:57) Yeah. And, and, and this is, and we've all had those naysayers in their life. And I know in my life I wouldn't have got there inanely of the things I did if I didn't have those people. And if I wasn't trying to prove something, and some people might say that that's a negative motivation, but I actually think that this is a really powerful tool that we can use to really fire the furnaces, to push through those hard times, those obstacles, those times when you want to give up and you think about those people who said you couldn't do it, and you're like, nah, I want to keep going, even though it's painful. When I want to quit, I'm gonna keep on going. And I think that that's a really powerful, and what you see at about the nine year old child, we all have this inner child. Speaker 2: (32:41) I believe this, this kid who took on staff without sautering it, which has landed in our subconscious and then become a part of our thinking mechanisms. You know, when we were paid ugly, told as kids, and often these were teachers, appearance or whatever, we're just having a bad day, you know? But they were telling you things and that they weren't perfect. But when you hear this repeatedly becomes a part of your subconscious programming, and when that becomes the, the voice that sees you useless at sport, you were too dumb to go to university. You're to this, whatever that was that was programmed into your brain. And as an adult, you've got a heck of a job to override that in a subconscious thinking. Is there some ways that you've found to get around that, that programming that we had as kids when Speaker 3: (33:36) Just Speaker 2: (33:37) Put into our subconscious without us even thinking about it? Speaker 3: (33:40) Yeah. The best thing we can do is tell ourselves rather than listen to ourselves. You know what I mean by that is you got to tell yourself what it is that you're going to do here. When you tell yourself then commit to it. When you commit to it, it gets done too often. If we listened to it, then we hear that, well, that voice in the back of my head, you've got to tell that voice sometimes where to go and that it doesn't have a vote in this kind of situation here by confidence. Yeah. Confidence in doubt. Like they live in the same house, but it's confidence. His house now it is a squatter, like it just lives there. Rent free. Well, if there's somebody that overstays their welcome, I'm going to, I'm going to tell them where to go. Right. At least I'm gonna say like, look, it's been a little bit too long. Why don't you just hit the road? But we think you know that doubt that that has a right to live there. And that's the part is tell yourself what you're going to do. Don't listen to yourself. Speaker 2: (34:31) Yeah. And program the stuff that you want in there. So then whether that's through affirmations and outfit gnosis and being around people who are positive, giving the support, the coaching, the mentors, the tribe of people that tell you you can or these things will happen slowly. Speaker 3: (34:51) We assist who you are and what you're capable of. Speaker 2: (34:56) That brings me to the point, you know, the five you have it on your website too. The five people that you hang around with the most. I think it was something, something around there. And so w who you will become. And I think this is also a very important point that we need to bring up. Speaker 3: (35:13) Well, I mean, we, we are, we're a, you show me your friends. I'll show you your future. So true. I mean, if we want a higher net worth, you've got to hang out with people that have a higher net worth. It's just, it's so important because the mindset's different. You know, they, the conversations are different. You know, if you look at any kind of any kind of sport team, I mean, I'll take baseball for instance, but I mean, well, I mean, let's just look at the all blacks, right? The starters are hanging out with the starters all the time. Those are sitting on the bench and not playing. They're hanging out with one another because the conversations are different. And you know, I love the all blacks when it comes to the culture because man, they're focused on the team and boy and I don't know how many little kids are there that aren't thinking, boy, I want to be one. Speaker 2: (35:58) Oh yeah. Everything. Speaker 3: (36:01) And that's the part, I mean, we've gotta be able to hang around successful people and winners, not people that were better than just so we can feel good about ourselves. Yeah. Harrison game. And that doesn't work. Speaker 2: (36:14) Yeah. So when you're hanging around people that you are actually at the top of the class, and if you like, then you don't really, but when you're hanging around people who challenge you and stretch you scare the hell out of you sometimes. Those are the ones that are going to help them change and develop and grow. So pick your tribe carefully is a, is a, is a hugely important message to take away from that one and get the coaching you need and get the support that you need around you so that those naysayers, when they come calling and they will come calling, don't have the control in your mind. And when you do have those naysayers or then you use it as fuel to overcome. Absolutely. Man. Yeah. You find ways to get there. So not people Speaker 3: (36:57) And this, and this is the point, Lisa, and I need you to, I need somebody, show me somebody that that reached success that did not have, somebody said you can't do it. Yeah, maybe there is, but I haven't seen it yet. Speaker 2: (37:10) We've all had those people want, I mean, yeah, I've had them all less through my life and in there can be your family, be your best friends. And it's not to say they're not good people. There may be reasons why they are saying this to you. I know, you know, parts of my family. It was like fear for you because they're scared that you're going to get hurt, you know, or going to fail. And what happens then? And so that can be well-meaning naysayers, but they can still be nice. I as, and we have to get ourselves away from that and listen to the people who've done it and listen to the people who tell you you can do it and that you're going to get there and give you a pass to get on your way. And that's why it's really, really important. I want us to just talk a little bit about scarcity mindset versus the abundance mindset and why it was competitive world that we live in. Speaker 2: (38:03) You know, we don't have to be, well, if I help that person, I mean, classic example, so mental toughness coaches, right? We could be going, well, I'm not talking to him because he's competition, you know? Or I can go, wow, he's got insights that I don't have and perhaps I haven't sliced the, you don't have. And we can. Yeah, we can. We can learn from each other and we can grow. And that's a, that's a classic example of the mindset we both have, which is an abundance mindset and not a scarcity mindset. Do you see a lot of the other, you see a lot of the scarcity mindset and how do you. Speaker 3: (38:37) I mean, you know, I think we all possess, I still possess it. You know what I mean? I, I think true success, true success is when we can root for everybody. Because then what that means is, is, you know, and I, I grew up sometimes I would go to my wife's you know, Thanksgiving and they'd have these meals, but it's a big Italian family. And if you don't get in there, that's going to be gone. Speaker 2: (39:01) Well, right? Speaker 3: (39:04) Yeah. I mean, so if we approach life that way, then what we're saying is, is that there's one piece of pie for me. If I don't get that piece of pie, then it's gone. Look, there's the, being able to root for everybody means that I can still have my slice and you can be successful too. Being able to root for everybody is true success because it means just because that person's successful doesn't mean I can't be successful too. And then we're not playing a zero sum game, then we're playing a game of abundance and then just the game changes, you know, we're playing on a different one. That's the part where I kind of look at like how often am I room for other people and if not, then I'm coming from the point of scarcity. The real part about that and the scary part is then that's what I start projecting. Know the people only when I can get that abundance mindset in here, then, then I'm able to give that away. Speaker 2: (40:01) Yeah. Without being, these are my little pressure steams when no one else is giving them and having that mindset of I have to hold everything in and my knowledge or my, whatever it is, skills or whatever is a scarce thing. It isn't just about one, one point. There's only one slice for you. It's actually lots of highs when you start walking in. And I think just adopting that attitude in life makes you a more generous and caring human being for other people. So doctor, I'm thinking very much for all of these insights today. I really appreciate your time and I hope we will get to have a few more sessions like gruesomely I'd love to swap notes and maybe work on an idea or two with you. And dr Rob also has his own podcast. Can you tell us where people can, can listen to your show wants? Speaker 3: (40:49) Oh well yeah, it's a, it's 15 minutes of mental toughness either on my website, www.drrobbell.com or or Apple. I am and I look forward to having you as a guest on their tool. I can collect is, yeah, cause your book will be coming out. Thanks. Fantastic. And that would be great. Speaker 2: (41:06) No, it'd be absolutely fantastic to do that and I can't wait to do, to do a few things with you, Dr. Rob, I'm very glad that I found you on LinkedIn. It's been fantastic and I'm sure that my listeners would have gotten a lot out of today, so I really appreciate that. Dr Rob bell.com six books Siemens on the way. Go and check those books out. There's also a 30 day challenge on, on Dr Rob's website. Make sure you check that one out as well. And if you've got any questions, I'm sure Dr Rob will help you. If you've got, if you've got anything that you want to know from him, so please reach out to them. Have you got a Instagram handle or a Facebook or anything? I do. It's you know, with Twitter and Instagram says D R or B B E L L. Easy. So doc, Rob, thank you very much for your time today and we'll be in touch again soon. Speaker 1: (41:55) That's it this week for pushing the limits. Be sure to write, review and share with your friends and head over and visit Lisa and her team at lisatamati.com.  

In today's episode of Talk of the Town- Your Ipswich Town F.C podcast. All three lads are back together. Sadly Martin Missed the Blackpool game due to a family emergency So Rob and Neil take a look ahead at the weekends league fixture against Blackpool. Where Ipswich Town was once again backed by a very strong Ipswich faithful with a big gate t Portman Road on Saturday. The lads then look ahead to the game against Wycombe on Tuesday night and give their opinion on the current affairs at Ipswich Town and what the score will be on Tuesday night Don't forget you can also get your Ipswich fix on;Youtube Spotify Google Podcasts - Just search Talk of the town- Ipswich Town podcast Itunes - Just search Talk of the town- Ipswich Town podcast Just search Talk of The Town- An Ipswich Town F.C podcast or click on the link to be taken to the relevant platform Martin, Rob and Neil three of ITFC'S biggest fans unpack the mad world that is Ipswich Town F.C Follow Martin on twitter https://twitter.com/HdrMartinFollow Rob on twitter https://twitter.com/RobDavies6Follow Neil on twitter https://twitter.com/NeilMowlesCategory

In today's episode of Talk of the Town- Your Ipswich Town F.C podcast. 3 lads have become 2 as sadly Neil Mowles has resumed M.I.A ! So Rob and Martin take a look ahead at the weekends league fixture against Blackpool. Where Ipswich Town will once again be backed by a very strong Ipswich faithful with a big gate expected at Portman Road on Saturday. However, this podcast is recorded without mentioning the FA cup game to Lincoln as that was yet to play. Martin and Neil also discuss Colchester utd away in last weeks lease trophyEmyr Huws has made the famous Ipswich Town news board TWTD. Is this the first murmur of discontent from ITFC and Paul Lamberts side How have Ipswich Town gone about protecting players this year and nurse through long term injuries at Portman RoadMartin discuss his Football Manager 2020 content stuff and plans he has going onRob poses the question of whether the rotation policy is doing guys like Dozzell and Huws any favours Don't forget you can also get your Ipswich fix on;BuzzsproutSpotify Google PodcastsItunes Just search Talk of The Town- An Ipswich Town F.C podcast or click on the link to be taken to the relevant platform Martin, Rob and Neil three of ITFC'S biggest fans unpack the mad world that is Ipswich Town F.C Follow Martin on twitter https://twitter.com/HdrMartinFollow Rob on twitter https://twitter.com/RobDavies6Follow Neil on twitter https://twitter.com/NeilMowles

In today’s episode, I’m talking to Rob Sperry, author of the book, ‘The Game of Networking’ and voted as the Top Network Marketing Business Coach in 2017. We're going to talk about why network marketing. On this episode we discuss why it's so important for you to show up consistently with your message, why it's important to have integrity, and we're going to have you walk away with some very, very, very clear steps, if you're wanting to grow in the next 30 days. Keynotes discussed: This is a big tip. I went back and I looked at not just my post but my ‘likes’ and I an assessment. (06:45)My ability to learn went through the roof because now there was even a more compelling reason. (08:17)You have certain routines in your day that gave you that perseverance, that strength. (08:56)I started focusing more on the income producing activities. (11:50)I think the biggest mistake is, people misinterpret duplication and they confuse principles and techniques. (22:40) Learn More About The Content Discussed... Rob Sperry: http://robsperry.comRob’s Podcast: Network Marketing BreakthroughThe Top Summit The Top Summit EventThe Game of Network Marketing: http://thegameofnetworking.comThe Camp Elevate Facebook Group: hereBeth's Instagram: @bethholdengravesBeth's website: https://www.bethholdengraves.comProfit HER Way Course: https://www.bethholdengraves.com/profit Be sure to leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and share it with a friend that would get some value!Beth's website: https://www.bethholdengraves.comCamp Elevate: https://www.bethholdengraves.com/camp-elevate Episode Transcript... Beth:We’re going to talk about why network marketing, why it’s so important for you to show up consistently with your message, why it’s important to have integrity, and we’re going to have you walk away with some very, very, very clear steps, if you’re wanting to grow in the next 30 days. Welcome to ‘You’re Not The Boss Of Me’. If you are determined to break glass ceilings and build it your way, this show is for you. I’m your host Beth Graves and I am obsessed with helping you to not just dream it, but make the plan, connect the dots and create what you crave. Are you ready? Let’s get started. Hey everyone. Welcome back episode number 10 we are in double digits and today I have one of my favorite humans on earth, a mentor, he has been a friend. I have the ever so famous Rob Sperry with me today. Hello Rob. Rob:I am so mad at you. I just got back from Maui and I’m wearing a coat right now indoors because I’m freezing, because it’s snowing in Utah, and you’re just bragging about how you’re in the Florida weather. So I know, I know I got to come around. I’m going to come around, but we’re going to have some fun, and yes, I don’t even know when we first started chatting. I just remember opening up chat and I have like five awesome voice messages from this gal named Beth who’s absolutely crushing it, and now has become one of my closest friends in network marketing. We’ve talked about anything and everything and I’m sure that’s what we’re going to do today and have a lot of fun. Beth:So I want to talk to you about, I was going to do this formal intro with Rob and I think what my mind always goes to is, how does someone start doing what Rob is doing? And so let’s back up. We’re going to talk about why network marketing, why it’s so important for you to show up consistently with your message, why it’s important to have integrity and we’re going to have you walk away with some very, very, very clear steps if you’re wanting to grow in the next 30 days. That’s what we’re going to talk about today. Rob, remind me of that list. That was just off the top of my head. So I became intrigued. All of you listening know that my entry into saying ‘You’re Not the Boss of Me’ was finding Network Marketing, realizing that if I did a few things, a lot of things every single day, made more connections, gave people the opportunity to take a look at what it was I was doing. And I developed a team that had community along with my leadership, I was going to be able to replace my first goal, which was only to replace what I would be making as a teacher. And so I started hounding free content and I kept coming across this dude in his car doing these Facebook lives and I was, I kinda did the back research. He’d made millions of dollars in Network Marketing. He’s now a mentor, I didn’t even know that they existed when I first started. So Rob, share about your journey and then I want to share a little bit about how I missed that mastermind. And you kept sending me pictures of yourself, like and with my friends. I have this FOMO, I want to talk about some of the things that Rob does, but I, obsessively consumed his free content and I didn’t just consume, I consumed and took action and shared, because it’s free. He still does a ton for free, but talk about that. You started showing up in your car on Facebook live and now you’re a published author, a bestselling author, you run a mastermind. He was speaking all over stages. You can’t even really get a time with you and it started with you and your car. Rob:It started with the car and always starts before that, right? I mean, I’ve been in the profession of Network Marketing, or industry. Is it profession or industry? I’d still go back and forth on that. I don’t know. Beth:It’s a, and yeah, let’s call it, let’s find a name for it and then start that. If you guys, if you’re listening and you have the, do you think it’s a profession or an industry? Screenshot this, find us on Instagram and we’ll have a conversation with you about what that word’s going to be because we’ll just start a thing, that’s how things get started. Rob:We’ll create it. So prior to Network Marketing, I was a tennis guy. I played, and that’s where Beth and I get to have fun tennis conversations. She loves tennis, I love tennis. But I played semi professional tennis. I was playing college tennis as well. And then after that I ran a tennis club for four years. Met a lot of very successful people, transitioned to the Network Marketing profession. Thought it was the last thing I would ever do. I thought I was the worst style or personality because I got called into the tennis club for being so bad at selling tennis memberships. I increased revenue threefold because I was a networker. But as far as selling memberships, I didn’t want to convince anyone, as either they saw it or they didn’t. So I thought it was against my style, Personality. Long story short, I got involved. I became the number one recruiter out of a million distributors. And it’s not because I was anything special. I had great mentors, I was crazy coachable and I outworked everybody. So that was the short version on and on and on. Different things. A lot of highs, a lot of successes. Way more failures though. Way more learning lessons. Way more is this thing gonna happen. Like I thought, right, going back and forth, all the good stuff. But then yeah, I transitioned into coaching and Beth, most people don’t know this, this was not a goal of mine. I made fun of coaches. They said, if you can’t build, coach. So be careful of who you make fun of. I’m like, yeah, these are the people that can’t build. That’s why they’re absolutely coaching. So I just started doing Facebook lives more so cause I felt like I had made really good money, but I was bad. I was a bad public speaker for the amount that I had made. I was not very good at all. I was not very comfortable. I didn’t feel like I was myself. So I just said, this is a great way for me to get better at speaking at communicating and providing value for my teams to be able to consistently watch. So I slowly started doing it. And then I sold my position and got completely out of building and Network Marketing, and all these companies say, Hey, can you do a little coaching for our team? Can you do consulting? So I’m like, okay, so then I started committing to doing three plus videos every single week, and I’m just doing random places, right? And she said, I do it in my car a lot of times because you know, the kids were really, really loud or I was at random places. I’m like, yeah, just do it in the car, do it in my office, do it wherever I’m at. And I go back and I look at some of those and they had, I mean this is after Beth, I built a business in 40 plus countries. And I tell all of this to give you hope of, we all have our weaknesses. I had on some of my Facebook lives, three comments. Beth:Oh my gosh I had built a business in 40 countries. You would’ve thought that those people would’ve just been nice and give me courtesy likes and comments right Beth?. You would of. Beth:I would’ve, I would’ve given you some emojis. Thumbs up, right? Rob:I mean something. That’s what I would’ve thought of. But guess what I found is after I started doing them, I got a little bit better. I got better at telling stories. I got better at communicating the information. I found, you know, where you can have your pauses and where you have your energy. Right? I got better. I started building an audience. As I started doing them consistently, I just started learning. I started self-assessing. This is a big tip. I went back and I looked at not just my post but my lives and I looked at the last 30 and I did an assessment on the three that people liked the most topics and the topics that I didn’t get much engagement. It wasn’t a different version of me. They were all me. What did my audience resonate with? And so I would do a self audit. And as I started doing that audit, it helped me just to keep getting better and better and better and better. And so I just put a ton of free content. You know, we hear all the time, it’s what you put out into the world. It’s the value provided. It comes back full circle. I think sometimes we hear that we roll our eyes, but honestly if you study the greats and you look at how much free value they put out, right? And content. And how it does come back background. I was estimating that I had done, before I sold my first course, it was something like 300 plus, either lives or videos. I mean that’s an insane amount. I’m not telling you that you have to do that, I’m just giving perspective on it. So that’s a lot, now when I go back and think about it. But it helped me so much, not just for building my brand and audience but also for me becoming obsessive on freaking out. Cause I didn’t know what I was going to talk about next. So I started deliberately listening more, and reading books. I was already reading and listening to a ton of books, but now I had more of a purpose, right? And it started paying attention more to all trainings in advance, and other Facebook lives. So my ability to learn went through the roof because now there was even a more compelling reason because I was freaking out. I was thinking, Oh no, I’m supposed to do another live or video tomorrow. The next thing, I have no idea. If people have heard me so much, what am I going to say? How am I going to say something different? What am I going to do? So it’s been quite the journey. And the more I learned, the more I learn. I’ve got a ton more to learn. Beth:Well that mindset of, I mean many people with three comments would have quit. But you have, because I’ve learned from you, you have certain routines in your day that gave you that perseverance, that strength. So what I love on this podcast is I always ask my guests, what are the things that you do daily that allow you to have that perseverance, to have that strong mind, to have the discipline to keep going when it doesn’t feel like we want to keep going? Rob:Yeah. So everything begins and ends with purpose. If the purpose and vision isn’t big enough, you’ll just quit. So if you’re going to the gym and you’re like, yeah, I’m gonna, I’m going to get shredded or I’m going to have that great body for this vacation. If the purpose is big enough, you’ll keep going. But if it’s like, yeah, I just want to go cause it would be nice because I’m supposed to, you’ll quit. So it always starts with that purpose and the reason why you’re doing something. And then after that, I’ve got a whole success formula. But in short for me, I’m a firm believer of show me your minimums and I’ll show you your future. And I believe that willpower is a muscle that needs to be exercised that can help you out with everything. And I know when I say I’m going to do something, I’m going to do it because it’s a muscle that I continually exercise. So for me, yes, I haven't missed a week working out in the last decade, an entire week, and I travel a lot, I've been to 15 plus countries in the last 18 months. I never miss date night when I'm in town, and do something with my kids every single week when I'm in town. I have missed some sort of spiritual reading like the Bible, only one time in the last 11 years. I haven't missed reading personal development, even one day in 10 years, I haven't missed not one day in 10 plus years. Now it's 11 years. But for me, those are small things. But those things helped me to practice that discipline and willpower. And they also helped to give myself confidence. Look, if you say you're going to wake up at 6:00 AM and you never wake up 6:00 AM, you just took out a withdrawal of trust in yourself. So I'm constantly looking for small victories. I'm constantly looking to create minimum goals, cause I know we all have those B Habs, they carry audacious goals where it comes from the book of degree. Well there's huge goals. We're dreamers. That's great. You still should have this, but what are the minimum goals than non-negotiables that you're gonna set yourself up, right. For success. And so I'm constantly doing that and that's all I did in my business, when I went through the times where you know this, I made less than $400 in my fifth month in network marketing and I didn't know if I was supposed to laugh at that check or just cry when I saw the check because I had quit my job. So I was working 80 hours a week in network marketing and I made that little and I'm just thinking, what have I gotten myself into? Then I started focusing more and more on what are the income producing activities. How do I stay in those? How do I focus on just doing my best? If I need to go back and get a job, I can, but don’t be grudged network marketing because network marketing for most people when you start, it’s actually dessert. Dinner is your job. And eventually maybe you’re making enough that you can make that choice depending on what your goals are and how things happen. So I wasn’t going to be grudged dessert because I quit way too soon in my job and I just started focusing on gratitude and income producing activities and things got better and better and better. Trust me though, I still had those huge doubts, downtimes, right? Where we all go through those plateaus. But, it was a learning lesson. It was definitely was a process. And last thing I’ll say, Beth, I know you would say the same thing is I’ll take tough over good any day. Tough can handle a bad day, bad week, bad month, bad quarter, good without toughness, has bad day, bad week, bad month, bad quarter, and their egos just can’t handle it. So they create all the excuses on why this isn’t going to work and they panic in the moment. So it’s important that you have long term vision balanced with short term urgency. Did you hear that? Long term vision, short time vision, short term urgency. Beth:So I want to piggyback on that because I find that, and I know that you see this too, that we have so much that we hear about mindset and affirmations and set those big audacious goals and people aren’t producing because they’re not involved with income producing activities. So for someone that’s in marketing, we have people listening, mostly network marketers because they’re going to see our names, but many that are building online businesses are like, I have humans that aren’t even in marketing, but it’s consistency of those income producing activities. If you are going to say to someone, if you were starting in a network marketing business today, what would be your income producing activities, your non negotiables. I’m doing these every single day. Rob:Working in this business is talking to brand new people. If you aren’t talking to brand new people, you weren’t working in this business. Too many people make the plan for the plan or the plan and they come back to Beth. They’re like Beth. I watched six Facebook lives today. I watched two zoom trainings. I did two hours of personal development and bests, like, that’s incredible. How many people do you talk to? Well, my friend Julie, I dropped the hint that these products are so good. So it was an indirect approach and there’s this other friend named Joe who I’m thinking about reaching out to. So yeah, I’m, you know, I’m all over this. I’m crushing it in too many times. We’re working in our minds because we’re used to trading time for money and in a job you work X amount, you get paid X amount. And so people come in and they want to find a way to fill up their time where they’re busy and they’re working because that’s their association from most of their lives. And this business compensates you based on what you do. And for those of you that have online businesses that are listening, that are entrepreneurs, it’s the same exact same thing for network marketing or non-network marketing, right? You figure out what those income producing activities are. So working in this business is talking to people. That’s number one. Number two would be doing some sort of third party validation. Whether that’s messenger chat, you know that you create, whether it’s a three way call a zoom, even if it’s an offline meeting, they just need to hear another voice. I’ve found that people that don’t have success almost always it’s, they aren’t talking to enough new people in. They aren’t doing enough third party validations. It’s one or the other or both. That’s it. Now the rest of the stuff can go along with it. It can be, you know, you gotta add to your lead list. You talking with team members. But again, too many of us get caught up where we’re reaching out to our team members because, and I’ll make fun of myself because this was me when I started because I was the super supportive applied. And so it’s, Hey Becky, how can I help you? I’m here for you. Anything you need girl. Now if I said that as a guy, anything you need girls, she’d slap me. But anything you need, I’m here for you. I got you. I got your back, right. I’m here for you. Oh, let me send you another YouTube video to watch. Here’s another Facebook live. Ooh, did you study the comp plan? Ok, most of you have systems inside of your companies that work in this business talking to people, they’re putting in front of new people, still love on them. I’m not telling you to abandon them at all, but the best way to lead them is to lead by example. You can tell them every single day how much momentum you’re in and how excited you are, but as Ralph Waldo Emerson says, what you do speak so loudly, I cannot hear what you say. Speed of the leader, speed of the pack, and it’s absolutely true. So you’ve got to get back to that and then I would track it. How many new people did you actually talk to? How many third party validations did you actually do? I would have an accountability partner buddy that you’re reaching out to and you’re just texting every night and what you did or didn’t do in a positive way. You can say, today I got my butt kicked, or today didn't do anything, but tomorrow I plan on reaching out to three brand new people, X, Y, Z as you go and fill that out. But it's really just getting people focused. And I think about this, Beth, all the podcasts, right? Your podcast, my podcast, Facebook live trainings, free content, team trainings, everything, conventions...all of that is there for what? To build, belief, to give you enough vision and confidence in the companies, the products and profession/industries/whatever else new you all create for Beth and I to call it, right? And all of that is just to get you to reach out to new people. Think about it, look how simple and crazy that is. That's what it's for. Right? So that's what my response would be. And most people, they don't even track their numbers, which is crazy. You’re running a real business, right? Where right. All business, they don’t track it crazy. Beth:Well and I just spoke to a leader that I respect greatly and even me at this level. I said to her, okay, she just hit this incredible bonus and I said, well, tell me what are you doing? I was, of course it’s like for me, what diet? How did you lose that weight? How did you build that? And she just said, do you want to know what I did? I reached out to 201 people a day to see if they were open to watching a video about what it is that I did and she said, I went back to the basics and I know that some people are saying, well that feels spammy, but if you’re putting out valuable content that is pulling people toward you, I was not warmed up. I was not given like, Hey girl, what’s going on? I see your son’s killing it on the ice and hockey. I was sent a text from my friend flare that said, I want you to take a look at this opportunity and at this product the product is working for me. I have studied, I want you on board. When can we talk? That was how I was recruited in. I had third party validation from four people that day and I was challenged to get my first customer in using the tools. I had never put the product in my body. I was using the tools, being honest, saying, Hey, I’m getting started with this. I’m on a health journey and let me introduce you to my friend Elise. Let me introduce you to my friend Sheila, and it is so basic because even, and I’m a little old school meets new school, I love content. I love the pull method, but at the end of the day, if you want someone to sit with you at lunch, you’ve got to ask my husband. Finally, this is a great story. I love this because we won’t go into are two truths and a lie. You guys, if you have never gone to a mastermind with Rob Sperry, literally I laughed until my stomach hurt and I walked away with so much value. We’re going to give you how to get those pieces, but I went to Utah, I missed Mexico. We’re not even going how I had such FOMO and the friendships still. I still get texts from Cynthia almost every week. The check-ins, the accountability, the laughter, and then the value that we had. So I’m putting that, that’s just another tangent to go on. But if you were to, this is my husband, he wanted to go out with me and he kept being kind of elusive. He’d be like, Hey, let’s grab some dinner. And we were all riding horses in the same barn. We had this competitive show circuit. It’s like tennis. It’s like anything. And I would invite like five people to come cause you know me Rob, I don’t do anything alone. And I’d invite five people to come. And finally after he paid for like six barn dinners, I’m like, Hey, John’s paying for everybody for dinner. Let’s go. I was in my twenties I mean I didn’t really process that much. And finally he called me, he said, listen, I want to go out with you alone. Will you go to lunch with me tomorrow at the moose preserve? And I was like, Oh yes, that’s a yes. He finally didn’t beat around the Bush. And that’s the piece of it. Let’s talk about this because this is on everybody’s mind. We have a lot of people out there. We care about attraction marketing. We don’t tell people what we do. We pull them toward us with comments and I do all of that. But on the backside I am straight forward. Here’s what I do, what problem am I solving for them? And I get right to the point. And that’s sometimes not a popular way to do it. It’s worked for me and I won’t change that because success leaves clues. What are your feelings when you have someone that’s, Oh no, I would never like I feel that maybe prospecting is a dirty word for some people. Rob: So it’s interesting. This has been a really big insight for me. I think the way you just phrased it was perfect in the sense that anyone that tells you that you have to message someone right away. And that’s the only way to do it is wrong. Anyone that tells you that you have to wait is wrong. So they’re both wrong and they’re both right. But where people are wrong is when they think that it’s a one size fits all. You’ll talk to a lot of leaders that say, if I would have been approached directly right away, first message, I would have never said yes. You talked to other leaders, right? Where if I would not have been approached directly, I would have said no. So now people are trying to figure out what, and the biggest I think mistake is, is people misinterpret duplication and they confuse principles and techniques. So now they start teaching techniques like their set principles of everyone has to do with this way and they take the duplication to the extreme, where now they’re trying to turn everybody into robots and they stifle their creativity and their authenticity. And so what I tell people is to be the bold version of themselves. Now I know that the bold, authentic version of yourself, I know that can be an overused cliche statement, but let me tell you what I mean by that. Do what’s gonna make you feel the most comfortable but still both. And what do I mean by that? If you’re someone Beth, that’s where you’ve had success, where maybe if she knows you, it’s always going to be the first message. Maybe if she doesn’t know you, it’s going to be the first conversation and not first message. Right. I’m giving you examples. If that to her is that bold version of her. That’s what she should do. If you’re someone that says, Oh, I would never do that. Great, and then maybe it’s your second or third conversation. All I’ll say is this. If you don’t know someone and you’re just sending them a link, you’re spamming them. And if you’re feeling like you need to have five or six conversations, I personally believe you’re, you’re overdoing it. So it’s always somewhere in the middle is the principal. And of course it sounds really nice and cute to say, well, let’s approach them how they want to be approached. How do you know you don’t? So it doesn’t work. It sounds good, but it doesn’t work. So approach people on how you would want to be approached. Beth:Wait, that’s golden. Say it again. Rob: Approach people on how you would want to be approached. That’s how you’re going to feel that that’s how you’re going to be able to be more bold. Because if you’re someone that doesn’t want approach someone until the second or third conversation and your leaders are telling you have to approach in the first message, you’re, you’re not going to feel like authentic version of you. And if it’s the opposite of you’re someone that says, Hey, I want to get straight to the point, am I applying, is telling me and my leaders are telling me that I have to wait until a third conversation. You’re getting, you’re going to be like, this just doesn’t feel right. So that’s, that’s what I suggest. Beth:Well, and, and we can go into all of the different styles of people that you’re talking to. We did a lot of that training at your mastermind of really understanding, if I was an animal, I wouldn’t be a shark. You know, what is Beth like to do? She likes to have fun. She wants to be at the mastermind, but I also have a little bit of that shark in me, but I don’t care about the details. Tell me what to do and I’ll do it and there’s just, we were talking about tennis before we got on. I played today with a woman that has a total untraditional style. She switches hands, she LOBs the ball, she hits these angles where Rob would never play tennis that way because he’s going to drill this top spin forehand to the deep in the corner. So you pop the ball up and you can win the next point coming in. I’m just guessing that’s your style, but it’s the same with network marketing, but at the end of the day, are you winning? What are your results? Do you need to train to get better? Yes. I always say learn and earn on the same day, listen to a training over in Tgon nation and then go put it to work and it’s not always going to feel like perfect the first time, but also be intuitive. Ask more questions. Right? I get messages all the time, like 15 sentences a link and I wish they would have started with, Hey, I noticed that you’re in network marketing. Can I share something with you? Are you open to a new product or just like a conversation before a copy and paste. And I always turn around and the other thing is, is I don’t want people to get pissed off at network marketers. So many people are like, Oh, not those people. I just look at it as not being educated. So I always turn back around and say, I lead a team of 11,000 I’ve become really good at this. Can I give you some advice? Because I love this industry and I want you to have success. And thinking about that now, that human that just sent me that message, if she’s looking for some coaching, if Rob was giving her that advice, I’m sure you get pitched all the time and you have kindness and compassion and you’re there to serve and help. They’re going to turn to you when they need something. It’s, it’s just, it’s the law of reciprocation. It’s being a good human. And, and I also think that if your mindset is, Oh, should I send the message? Oh, should I not? If you are confident and you have belief in what you’re doing and what you’re sending of what you’re sharing, it’s genuine. Like when you asked me to come to the mastermind, you had such confidence and what you could do, the guests you were bringing, the community that I would meet, you weren’t like, Oh, should I ask her? Should I worry if that’s too much money for her to spend? You told me what was going to happen at the mastermind. You were excited. You couldn’t wait to share the guests and to share the list of other speakers. And that’s what I think happens is we worry so much. It’s like if you have belief, just be you, right? Rob:I think a lot of it though for people with exactly what you’re saying is the fact that the fact that they make commissions on other PayPal, which sounds so crazy and weird, they struggle because they feel like even though they know they’re givers, they are worried about the perception of coming off as takers. Oh, well you just want me because of this. So I think that’s a big thing for people is trying to figure out how they can convey that they’re givers and truly feel like that. Because yeah, I mean, how many time we’re selling everything. There’s a great movie coming out and you’re selling go see it. Or even if you haven’t seen it or you’re selling after you saw it or a great restaurant and you’re helping out and you’re actually selling on people to go buy things all the time on things that you absolutely love. If you got the, the new iPhone and you love it, you’re selling people by telling them how incredible the photos are and it’s so worth it, but you make nothing off of it. So you’re a true giver. You’re okay making these big huge corporations money. But then when it comes to helping you achieve your dreams as well as your teams achieve your dreams, we, we just felt like, ah, I can’t do that. I can’t do that. Which is just crazy to me and I understand it cause I Island through it as well. Right? So it just takes time to overcome those limiting beliefs and truly understand and realize what you have and also get at communicating. And guess what? Some will understand someone, no matter how good you get at communicating, and that’s part of your role is if you want to stop playing small and you want to start to achieving even more of your dreams, you got to get over what other people think. That is one of the hardest things for everybody is just to get over what others think. The fear of judgment is the mother of all fears. Think about it. If you’re an entrepreneur, network marketer, list all your fears, fear, success, feeling, fear, failure, fear of inadequacy, fear of public speaking, fear of rejection. List them all. Now remove the fear of judgment and none of those exists. Think about that. That’s the mother of all fears. So everyone’s just being more descriptive on their specific fear of judgment, but that’s really what they’re talking about. So you’ve got to understand that and hit that head on and say, you know what? There’s Darren Hardy says, the greatest determining factor of who shows up at your burial is the weather. Why do we have so much fear of judgment? They’re going to judge you no matter what. They’re going to judge you because you’re too skinny. They’re going to judge you cause you’re too fat. They’re going to judge you because you never work out. They’re going to judge you because you work out too much. They’re going to judge you because you’re super ultra successful. They’re going to judge you because you’re not. They’re going to judge you because you do too many Facebook lives. People are going to judge you no matter what. So don’t let them dictate your future and stop playing small because God didn’t put you on this earth to play small. Didn’t say, Oh well I’m going to send Beth down to this earth and she’s just going to be a below average human being. Sounds pretty funny, right? Thinking that way, but that’s how we act. Many of us. Beth:So, have good news because you can head over to Rob’s podcast and we’re going to continue this conversation and we’re going to talk about how you can connect with Rob. I want to end with this and then the conversation continues cause there’s a back to back podcast recording because we knew you wanted more of us. I mean come on. This is like the, I don't know, what’s your favorite talk show? You don’t watch TV back in the day. Did your parents watch like a talk show or a Johnny Carson? Rob:Everything on all the news. They can tell you everything that’s going on in the world. That’s where I get my updates. I just ask him on Sundays every other week. I know what’s going on in the world in 20 minutes. Beth:My mom does the same thing. Okay. If you had to share one book right now that’s on your mind besides your own cause, we’re going to and I want you to tell us how we can grab your book and you have all different ways to connect. I want a shout out to that. If you want to meet Rob and me, we’re both sharing a stage at the top summit in Naples, Florida in February. We’ll put a link below for you to grab tickets for that event. But what is the one book right now? Someone’s like, okay, I need to overcome this judgment, this fear, I need to make this happen. What book would you think should be in their ear buds? In their hands? The Bible, but the, the next piece of it? Rob:Yeah, if we’re talking fears, there’s different ones. I think probably the best person that’s talking about it in her way, which I love, is Brene Brown and she talks a lot about vulnerability. There’s dare to lead. There’s braving the wilderness. I mean, she’s got five or six really good books and she’ll talk about the power in vulnerability and no one’s ever become great without the vulnerability and the necessary tasks that come along with it. So I love that. I can’t remember which one, but one of the books they recorded is actually her speaking life for the audience. I loved that because you got to hear it a little bit more of a sense of humor and different things. And so that would be a really, really good book. You got it right there right now. Beth:And I didn’t tag you as like a Brene Brown fan, because I consume, I love, I love, love, love her. Now Rob Sperry, how can people tell us there’s a million ways you offer a ton for free. How do people connect with you? How do they get some trading from you and get into your world? Besides me, who was like scroll, scroll, scroll stock. Like and you just showed up in my Facebook feed one day and that was because your consistency of showing up and, and then I asked you, I now know what it was. I asked you a tennis question about something to do with tennis. I wanted to find some common ground. I should’ve just said, Hey Rob, I think you’re super cool. And I just wanted to indirect approach with to me, yes, I was talking to a celebrity. Oh that’s how we get connected with you. And we’ll add all of that down in the show notes. Rob:Oh, I’ll go, well first off you guys gotta continue on with the podcast. So go follow me on network marketing for breakthroughs with Rob Sperry, whichever podcast you prefer the most, you can search it as you know it’s really, really easy to find. It’s it’s everywhere and that’s the first thing. So you can consume a ton of free content, lots and lots of in depth trainings as well as interviews first place. The next place is if you follow me either on social media, I’m consistent there. Or if you go to RobSperry.com and is he going to RobSperry.com there’s things like a free ebook help you on never running out of leads and recruiting. So that’ll pop up there that you’d be able to do to see. I’ve got free info graphics to help you out with social media and building your business that I give out there. I’ve got courses in there. And then the last one would just be, I won’t talk about the mastermind cause the mastermind we’ve talked about and you’ll see it on RobSperry.com I have both the six and seven figure earner mastermind, which we ended up with 26 at the one in Maui, just this last week top earners, which was incredible. And then I have a six figure breakthrough. So if you haven’t made six figures yet and you want the blueprint for that, we don’t do fluff from these masterminds. These, it’s not me talking at you, it’s answering your question, strategizing with all you in sharing my strategies on how you can go to tgonnation.com and that’s my ongoing monthly subscription, only $27 a month. And that’s where you’ll get motivational Monday. There’s 60 plus trainings from six and seven figure earners you get access to, you get social media tips, lots and lots of good stuff. So those are all the places that you can go and hopefully learn. Find one thing right? You can take and implement and learn in your business. I’m excited just to continue this podcast with you Beth. Honored and privileged to be on with you. Because sometimes you’re on with people you don’t really know at all, right? It’s a lot easier for us sometimes like a little awkward, especially for an introvert like me who’s, who’s found a way to be extroverted in certain situations. But Oh, last thing I gotta give props to Beth. Remember how we talked about in the last mastermind on creating a sweatshirt with sunglasses? Beth:Oh yes. Because Rob is an introvert and he travels with a hood up, sunglasses on probably your headphones. Rob:I gave those out there and I started out the training there as this is the most important training of the entire mastermind. So people are really like, Oh my goodness, this is going to be serious. So this is for all of you. The most important part of the podcast is what I gave out to all these top earners. You said the top eight introvert hacks to avoid talking to the person next to you on the plane. These are the top eight max. We’ll go through fast. Number one, headphones on. Do not make the mistake of putting your headphones on late. If you wait to put your headphones on after the introvert. Next you sits down. You are a great risk of having a conversation. Where are you are from and you may be forced to fake laugh. This has been known to cause introvert nightmares for about three weeks. That’s tip number one. I mean this is, this is some new stuff. Number two, Huddy time. Put that hoodie on ASAP. Do you meal feel like a complete weirdo, which is exactly the point. Number three sunglasses. This may be a little extreme, but we all know that sometimes we have to go above and beyond to solidify our position. What are you willing to do to have introvert success? This is my insurance policy. Strategy number four, do not make eye contact with the person next to you. If an extrovert makes eye contact with you, it is all over. The battle is lost and you will need to learn from this awful failure. Number five, wear a surgical mask. Yes, this may be the craziest to them all, but really is a win when you avoid germs and people. Number six, window seats are proven to create 32.3465 63% less conversations. Number seven, wear an eye mask. And number eight, this is the kicker, this is the last one. Fake it. You got to fake it. A percent of the time. It works every time. And then I finished with this. Be aware of extroverts telling you how much talking to new people or talking to people on airplanes. It’s helped their business. It’s a trap to convert you to the other side. So I mean this is, I mean this is some in debt, you know, it took me some time to create this. So that’s what I will finish with for everybody. Just to make sure that you know that you introverts, I got your back, you extroverts. Now you know all our secret sauce tips on how to convert us. Beth:Yeah. And I’m the one on the airplane that’s making eye contact with you. No. Where do you live, Rob? Rob:I know. That’s why I had to create all these tips that I can. Beth:Yeah, now I know. Now I know. All right, so we’re going to end this podcast. We’re heading on over to where Rob, say it again. Maybe your podcast marketing breakthroughs with Rob Sperry. Yes, so meet us over there. Yeah, and as always, both of us would love a five star review. Let us know, leave it for us over on iTunes that shows us that you’re loving the content. It keeps us going and keeps us up in the ratings so that you can find us like I did at Rob with a Facebook scroll, which completely transformed my business. Not only the numbers, but also the energy and gratitude that I had going forward. So we’ll catch you guys over on Rob’s podcast. Thanks, Rob. We’ll see y’all soon. Thanks so much for hanging out with me today and You’re Not the Boss of Me. I’m hoping that you’ve found one thing that you will do today that will allow you to move forward to that big, audacious goal. And I have a favor to ask of you, and that is leading me a five star review over in iTunes every single week. I read your reviews. I love hearing what you have to say, and it allows me to bring you more to get more people to interview that are doing the thing, breaking the glass ceilings, creating what they crave, and helping you with your game plan. So leave me a five star review, and when you do, I enter you to win the, you’re not the boss of me swag, so make sure you leave it and we’ll reach out to you if you’re the winner. Thanks so much for hanging in with me today and we’ll chat with you soon.  

They still hear it all too often ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad changed my life!' So this week on The Property Podcast, Rob & Rob are going back and taking a revised look at the book and sharing the lessons that they took away from it, and what they just don't agree with.  In today's episode you can expect to hear what the five key lessons are that you should take away from this book, but also the two things that you should be very careful of. This beloved motivational book is now 20 years old! But it still seems to have a huge impact on people's lives. So Rob & Rob are going to explore why this book is so influential, their experiences, recap key lessons and let you know what they think of them now with the benefit of hindsight.  Here are the five lessons Rob & Rob learnt from the book: Be in control of your finances - Your employer or government will not. Passive Income.  Good debt vs bad debt. Pay yourself first. Keep your job and invest. And what don't they agree with?  You'll have to tune in to find that out.   This week's news story is a 22 page report from HomeTrack on the current rental market, which is a quarterly report. Luckily the BBC website has summarised the report and what the key take away points are.  There's a number of cities where the rents are up, and wage growth has been relatively strong this year too. So even though there's plenty of locations where rents have increased, there's only three UK cities where rents have risen faster than wages, resulting in renting becoming less affordable. These locations are Nottingham, Leeds and Bristol.  Looking at the report, there's an odd mix of locations that are put together, but on the whole, it seems that Rob & Rob were right at the beginning of the year when they pegged certain cities as places to invest this year.    In other news (and just in case you missed it!), yesterday we had a new YouTube video go live! You can now head over there and find out how to invest £50,000 - a question that The Robs get asked all the time. So head on over, give it a watch, and don't forget to subscribe.    You won't be surprised that this week or Hub Extra recommendation is in fact the Rich Dad Poor Dad book, but as an added bonus, we're also recommending Rich Dad Poor Dad 2: Cashflow Quadrant. These are by far the two strongest books that you need to read, so go grab a copy and let us know what you think of them.    We'd love to hear what you think of this week's Property Podcast over on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. You might even have a topic you'd like us to cover in the future - if so, pop us a message on social and we'll see what we can do. Make sure you've liked and subscribed to our YouTube channel where we upload new content every week! If that wasn't enough, you can also join our friendly property community on the Property Hub forum. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to ‘Getting to the Truth in this Art’. This podcast is dedicated to artists of all sorts from rapper to Baristas. There’s no set definition of art. Previous guests on this podcast include DJ James Nasty and Eze Jackson. Also, this podcast was fueled by Trump’s comments about Baltimore. Rob Lee thought it is important to show the reality of Baltimore. There’s too much external and internal focus on crime and negativity which depersonalizes a community of people, ideas and cultures that make Baltimore unique and familiar. He thought putting together a podcast with people he admires in and around the city would be better than releasing weekly diss tracks against the POTUS. This week Rob Lee sits down with Aunt Kelly from Aunt Kelly’s Cookies as well as Kris of Sophomore Coffee. Both businesses are operated by unique, artsy folks, Kelly at Aunt Kelly’s Cookies and Kris at Sophomore Coffee, that chose to set up shop in Baltimore. These are real people who are doing something positive in Baltimore and want to succeed here. Aunt Kelly's Cookies fka Aunt Kelly’s Cookies “WE ARE SO COMMITTED TO MAKING DELICIOUS COOKIES FROM SCRATCH!  Fresh Ingredients, Chewy with a Crunch. Pure Butter Crunch Goodness!” The above message is from Aunt Kelly's Cookies Official site – that commitment is tasted in every bite. Rob Lee visited the bakery during the summer for an event on Antiques Row in Baltimore. He was surprised that a shop baked butter crunch cookies since typically Linden Cookies has that style sewn up, locally. Weeks later Rob went back wanting something sweet and he met, Aunt Kelly, learned about the story behind the bakery and, of course got some cookies. Aunt Kelly’s cookies presents a sense of nostalgia with the Butter Crunch cookies, which were a staple of middle and high school cafeterias in Baltimore, and Baltimore, since the physical location is on Antiques Row. Check out Aunt Kelly's Cookies and tell them MTR Podcasts sent you – 857 N. Howard Street Baltimore, Maryland 21201. Sophomore Coffee Rob Lee drinks a lot of coffee. Much like beer, Rob is a snob for coffee meaning he won’t drink just any coffee. So Rob had apprehension when he first visited Sophomore. He thought it would be the hipster coffee place. It is but in the best, warmest and most inclusive way. It’s hipster in the since that there’s a variety of people and items from Vegan Donuts to Oat milk. They’re accommodating, knowledgeable and welcoming. Coffee and coffee education is what comes to mind when thinking of Sophomore Coffee. They do it right. Sophomore makes the coffee experience an enjoyable experience. An experience that Rob does weekly. Getting coffee from Sophomore is like visiting your friends. The coffee experience is more important than going to Dunkin’ and getting some slug. The coffee experience is one that should be looked at with eagerness. Sophomore captures that. Check out Sophomore Coffee and and tell them MTR Podcasts sent you –  2223 Maryland Ave, Baltimore, MD 21218 Listen to our first episode Rob Lee interviews DJ James Nasty. Do remember to check out all the podcasts on MTR The Network including Unofficially Black and Mastermind Team’s Robcast. We’re a Baltimore based podcast collective. Also, check out MTR The Network’s comic, Attorney’s at Claw. This comic is loosely based on Rob Lee, Dann D and Just_Greg. It’s a comedy comic about cats fighting for justice as long as it doesn’t interfere with video games. We’re here to be a voice in and around Baltimore city. Tell us what you think – who should we interview next? Who’s doing something positive around Baltimore?

Welcome to ‘Getting to the Truth in this Art’. This podcast is dedicated to artists of all sorts from rapper to Baristas. There’s no set definition of art. Previous guests on this podcast include DJ James Nasty and Eze Jackson. Also, this podcast was fueled by Trump’s comments about Baltimore. Rob Lee thought it is important to show the reality of Baltimore. There’s too much external and internal focus on crime and negativity which depersonalizes a community of people, ideas and cultures that make Baltimore unique and familiar. He thought putting together a podcast with people he admires in and around the city would be better than releasing weekly diss tracks against the POTUS. This week Rob Lee sits down with Aunt Kelly from Aunt Kelly’s Cookies as well as Kris of Sophomore Coffee. Both businesses are operated by unique, artsy folks, Kelly at Aunt Kelly’s Cookies and Kris at Sophomore Coffee, that chose to set up shop in Baltimore. These are real people who are doing something positive in Baltimore and want to succeed here. Aunt Kelly's Cookies fka Aunt Kelly’s Cookies “WE ARE SO COMMITTED TO MAKING DELICIOUS COOKIES FROM SCRATCH!  Fresh Ingredients, Chewy with a Crunch. Pure Butter Crunch Goodness!” The above message is from Aunt Kelly's Cookies Official site – that commitment is tasted in every bite. Rob Lee visited the bakery during the summer for an event on Antiques Row in Baltimore. He was surprised that a shop baked butter crunch cookies since typically Linden Cookies has that style sewn up, locally. Weeks later Rob went back wanting something sweet and he met, Aunt Kelly, learned about the story behind the bakery and, of course got some cookies. Aunt Kelly’s cookies presents a sense of nostalgia with the Butter Crunch cookies, which were a staple of middle and high school cafeterias in Baltimore, and Baltimore, since the physical location is on Antiques Row. Check out Aunt Kelly's Cookies and tell them MTR Podcasts sent you – 857 N. Howard Street Baltimore, Maryland 21201. Sophomore Coffee Rob Lee drinks a lot of coffee. Much like beer, Rob is a snob for coffee meaning he won’t drink just any coffee. So Rob had apprehension when he first visited Sophomore. He thought it would be the hipster coffee place. It is but in the best, warmest and most inclusive way. It’s hipster in the since that there’s a variety of people and items from Vegan Donuts to Oat milk. They’re accommodating, knowledgeable and welcoming. Coffee and coffee education is what comes to mind when thinking of Sophomore Coffee. They do it right. Sophomore makes the coffee experience an enjoyable experience. An experience that Rob does weekly. Getting coffee from Sophomore is like visiting your friends. The coffee experience is more important than going to Dunkin’ and getting some slug. The coffee experience is one that should be looked at with eagerness. Sophomore captures that. Check out Sophomore Coffee and and tell them MTR Podcasts sent you –  2223 Maryland Ave, Baltimore, MD 21218 Listen to our first episode Rob Lee interviews DJ James Nasty. Do remember to check out all the podcasts on MTR The Network including Unofficially Black and Mastermind Team’s Robcast. We’re a Baltimore based podcast collective. Also, check out MTR The Network’s comic, Attorney’s at Claw. This comic is loosely based on Rob Lee, Dann D and Just_Greg. It’s a comedy comic about cats fighting for justice as long as it doesn’t interfere with video games. We’re here to be a voice in and around Baltimore city. Tell us what you think – who should we interview next? Who’s doing something positive around Baltimore?

This episode has been a long time coming! I am super excited for us to be kicking off the Thinkific mini series here on the podcast. Today we’re speaking with Rob Balasabas who is a Social Media and Community Strategist with Thinkific. He is the first episode in a six part mini series where I’m going to be speaking with more people in the Thinkific network including employees and super users! I really felt that it would be beneficial to start this series off with a member of the Thinkific team up there in Vancouver. And Rob and I are always in contact because I am so connected with the Thinkific community. I just felt that he was a perfect person to bring on to just kind of talk a lot about what the platform is. And also what the platform can do and how it can help entrepreneurs and business owners deliver their courses. At its core, Thinkific is an online course platform. Rob says that Thinkific tries to make it as easy as possible for people of all types of business deliver their online content to their audiences. From solopreneurs to entrepreneurs. From small brands and teams and businesses to enterprise or mid market companies. Thinkific want to helps people in business to build their online courses, their training programs, and then their memberships. According to Rob, If you dig into it a little bit deeper, you'll learn that it's much more than that. There are people behind it. And that's what Thinkific tries to really focus on. It's not just the people that are creating the courses. Rob says, “We love them.” They are the ones that are paying for the subscriptions and they keep the lights on. But Thinkific also really cares about is their students, right? So the people that are purchasing or taking their courses. So Thinkific wants to make sure that the experiences for their students and their members are really good. It's seamless and smooth. And so then, that in turn, really helps their course creators succeed. If their students are having a really easy time consuming the content, that helps their course creators succeed that much more. If you go to the Thinkific website, you'll see a lot of their course creators there. You'll also meet a lot of their team members there. So Thinkific tries to really humanize this tech company that's been built. I think that's a really good way of describing Thinkific. There is definitely a human side to this tech company. I've had the opportunity to have one-on-one conversations with a good handful of the Thinkific employees. Those conversations have taken place both in person and over a video call. To me that has been an incredible, incredible thing to help me to help the Tech of Business audience determine if Thinkific is the right platform for them. There are different levels of how you can use Thinkific, but let's start kind of at the beginning. If someone's brand new and they want to come in at the base level, they're coming in and they can create a couple of courses. Then they can sell them. It's all FREE to get started and it's out of the box. It works. You don't actually have to use anything else. I wanted to discuss what functionality is built in to that base level. Thinkific does have a free plan. It literally costs $0 million per month. On this base level, you can create up to three courses, which is plenty for most. Most people create one or two flagship courses. You can also have an unlimited amount of students. So you can have as many students take your course and it’s still free. And the big thing is that you can integrate directly with Stripe or PayPal to accept payments. This means you can make money and sell your courses and not to have to pay us anything. On this base level, you'll have all the things that you would need in that free plan to launch your course. It would include all the video hosting. So if you want to upload as many videos as you like, you can do that on this free plan. You can use all of the different lesson types, quizzes, presentations, and audio lessons. THIS IS ALL INCLUDED IN THE FREE PLAN! Thinkific has made it so easy for everyone to get started. When a business is growing and starting to evolve it’s so important to have a tool that you can use, continue to learn more, and use over time. I think that that helps lower the barrier to entry to try out Thinkific. And what I also think is very beneficial is when someone signs up as a student in your free school or all the way up at any level, there are some emails that can be automatically sent right on sign up. They can be sent on a weekly basis reminding people of their course that they've purchased and that they are signed up for. There are different things that are kind of built into the system to help that student of yours succeed. That keeps us as course creators, as entrepreneurs, out of the customer service, password reset, those types of functionality. The fact that Thinkific has made it so easy and useful for even base users might be one of the many reasons as to why someone would think this is one of the things that makes Thinkific better and different than other course platforms. Rob shared there's all the different features when it comes to course platforms. Everyone has their own feature that they may want for their course. And everyone’s needs may be a little bit different. But he thinks what really draws people in, and if you go to their Facebook group, you'll see the support is just outstanding! So that's something that they as a company really tries to stand behind. Rob shared that the platform is great. They have a ton of developers working around the clock, launching tons of features. I know this to be true because I’ve spoken to and met a ton of them in person when I had the pleasure of visiting the Thinkific offices in Vancouver. The platform is great, but the people behind it are incredible. Rob shared with me a rule that they have in their office. That rule is that they need to answer every email, every day that comes in. So there's nothing that goes over to the next day, over 24 hours. “All of our team members, we do emails, like we'll reply to emails. It's just baked into our culture, baked into our calendar. So there is a portion of my week where I actually dive into customer emails and replying to emails and things like that.”- Rob Balasabas And their Facebook group is just very supportive. They have a toll free number. So I think the thing that a lot of people will come to is that they really like that support. So having that support, that's really like the one main advantage that Thinkific is really very proud about over other platforms out there. If you are an entrepreneur, you know how important it is to have a support system that you can reach out to when you are trying to accomplish a task and something happens. During this Thinkific series you’re going to get conversations that I'm going to have with course creators who are using the platform effectively. I've got some great ones lined up. I'm so excited for you guys to listen to those and to enjoy those stories. But there's more that the platform can offer! These types of things take place in the next couple of tiers. Once you're using a platform, you want to use as much of it as possible. One of the things that oftentimes people come to me for is they want to integrate Thinkific with their email marketing provider that they're already using. That's something that happens quite often. Or they want to get update status and they want to be notified in ways or get action information in other ways. So when I'm talking email marketing integrations, I'm talking Zapier's integrations. So those are probably the two big things that people come to me for. I asked Rob if those are the ones that he generally sees people wanting to implement first? Or where did people put touch points and interactions between Thinkific and their other online tools? According to Rob, the Zapier integration is a really key piece with a lot of the course creators because it opens up the doors to whatever they're already using. That’s something that as the company and as a platform, as a team, we really are not in the business of trying to build everything for everyone. So we're not building a CRM. We're not able to build an email automation tool because there's already really great ones out there. So what we've decided to do instead is make it very easy to integrate with those existing tools that our customers are already using. So a lot of those tools, we have direct integrations with. The ones that we don't, we leverage with Zapier. (THIS IS WHERE I HELP WITH THINKIFIC!) Rob shares that he finds that that's really one of first things that people want to do once they've figured out how Thinkific works. So the thought process is deciding that this is the platform you’re going to use. They then learn how to upload and build courses. Then they think, “Now how do I communicate with my customers, my list,my database? How do I an offer later? How do I segment them?” This is where they start trying to see if Thinkific has direct integrations for the tools they are using. However, they may be using tools or apps in their business that don’t have direct integrations. This is where Zapier can come into play. If you're very technical and understand how Zapier works, Thinkific has ZAPs that will enroll students and unenroll them and other different zaps that it works really smoothly. So this is how it works. In Zapier you've got triggers zaps, which means that when something happens on Thinkific, it triggers Zapier to do an action. And you have actions, which means something happens outside of Thinkific and it sends information into Thinkific. So it's a two way street. That is one of those pieces that you don't have to know as the entrepreneur how to make that work. You just have to know that that functionality exists. That if you want to do your sales outside of Thinkific, you can get your students enrolled. If you want to enroll people and have them pay inside Thinkific, but you want to update your database, your CRM, your email list, you can do that. It's a matter of just knowing that those are the options that are available. Let’s talk course development, course tools, and structuring courses. There are so many ways that people can deliver their course content and structure their courses with modules and lessons. I want to kind of paint a picture of what it looks like in Thinkific as you're putting together a course. But also what the student experience is when they are taking that class, when they are taking that course. The student experience something that Thinkific focuses on a lot. Some of the things that they really look at include how students can progress through the courses as easily as possible. The more the students consume of a particular course, the better for the course creator, right? So that's a completion rate. “So the higher the completion rate, the better it is for the course because then the students are getting the most value from that course. This then leads to referrals, which then leads to them purchasing other courses that a course creator is also selling down the road. It improves their community. If they have a community, then there's good sentiment about the course inside the community.” - Rob Balasabas So Thinkific looks at that very closely. Because of this they create a ton of different things. Thinkific is ALWAYS updating. They've just updated the way that the student experience looks. Then there's so many different ways to structure a course. Some courses are very long. And some courses are short. Some courses are stand alone courses. And some of them are bundles. It really depends on what that course creator is teaching and who their students are. It depends on what kind of course it is and what space they're in. But in general, they've tried to build in little future features in their course platforms like prerequisites and assignments. These are those little things that will give that experience of almost like being in a classroom. So inside this Thinkific course, you're going to give information. You're going to teach them something maybe through a video, a presentation, or PDF.Then you can use an assignment to make them do something. You are going to make the students take that information they just learned and go and create, for example, that Instagram account. Then put that link to the Instagram account here. Or their assignment may be to optimize their LinkedIn profile. Then they would take a picture of it and upload it to an assignment lesson. And then the course creator can kind of see these things and evaluate them. They can then give their students feedback and either pass or fail. Then the student can move on to the next lesson. So it's just like being at school. That feedback is really important. And so that assignments feature has been a really popular one with a lot of Thinkific’s course creators. So when you're thinking about creating a course and you're thinking, “Well, I don't want to force people to go linear.” Guess what? You don't have to. This prerequisite is an option that doesn't even have to exist. You could just have everything open. And all the work for any one module could be contained in a single lesson. It could be a downloadable PDF, a video, and some questions to ponder. And that could be it for that particular lesson. So it really depends on how you want to structure things. The nice thing is that when you get really good at understanding how your student is going to progress through a course, you can go back and restructure things. You can be like, “I want to move module four to module two because I'm finding that that would be a better progression.” Course creation in Thinkific is drag and drop. I think everybody at this point in time knows that drag and drop means it's pretty easy to go in and move things around. And it’s really nice that everything is drag and drop. When it comes to creating the course content there are so many options. There are: Video modules Text modules The assignment module Audio modules Downloadable modules Quizzes Surveys Multimedia modules (which is an interesting one, but I would say don't start with that one.) Exams There's so much functionality that you can build into this. And what’s more is that Thinkific acts as your video host. Excuse me while I geek out for a minute, but THAT IS HUGE. When it comes to hosting video, generally speaking, you have an expense associated with hosting video for business. Whether you're using Vimeo Pro, Wistia, or you're using some of the other up and coming video hosts that are designed for business videos, you are going to have to pay for those. With Thinkific your videos are included. The videos that you have on your landing pages and the videos that you have inside your course modules, those are available to be hosted at no additional charge. So that is definitely a value add for sure I love that. I think that this kind of helps complete the experience because there is an aesthetic to having a video that was designed to look right inside this platform. And because I think if Thinkific took the time to host the videos, they're also taking the time to make sure that those videos that are hosted in a way to look good in your course. And I think that that's their thought process of keeping it relevant, keeping your students top of mind, keeping your experience top of mind as of course creator, as the entrepreneur who is investing their time, resources, and energy into Thinkific as a tool. This is something that they've spent quite a bit of time on, not just showing up on like desktop, but also on mobile. Those things seem really easy when you are a student and it helps courses fit into your life. It shows up perfectly.They have optimized it for literally every single type of dimension and size. Then as a course grader, there’s more to it than just uploading your videos. You can also customize the thumbnail if you like. So it looks nice. You can upload your post captions. You can also change the appearance of the play bar. So you can even brand the play bar to the color of your brand or you can remove the bar completely so that people can fast forward. And then if you'd like, you can also see the analytics. This means you can see things like the number of plays and how much of the video has been watched. Data is something that drives business. We all know this. Anytime that you know more about what's happening with your content, with your online presence, with your courses, with your students, anytime you know more information, then you're better off. It's not just watching how far have people watch the videos. You can also go in and you can drill down into individual users to see when did they sign up. Also, you can see when they signed up. And how far have they gotten in the course. You can find out what they have done? You have a lot of details that you can drill into so that if somebody paid $1,000 for your course and didn't get past the intro module, it may be an opportunity to reach out to them and say, “Hey, what's going on? How can I help you?” So having that data available right inside the dashboard, right inside the users area, is very, very helpful and beneficial. Data is really important. This is why Thinkific has already integrated Google Analytics and all those things. If you want to dig even deeper, they have an integration with Mixpanel, which gives you way more data that actually happens inside of your course. This because Google Analytics can't get data from inside your course because it's a private space. But Mixpanel can so you can see how much time your student has spent on particular lessons and what they clicked on. So we've got Mixpanel for data. And we've got Brillium for the exams. What other integrations does Thinkific have? Well, Accredible is a for certificates! For payments, there are integrations with Stripe and PayPal directly. Also with payments, if you have a membership site, Thinkific has a direct integration with a tool Stunning. With Stunning, Thinkific will help retrieve any failed payments for any subscriptions you have. So if you're a membership site owner, this is a really cool integration. Some other integrations include: Zapier Infusionsoft Facebook Pixel Segment.io MailChimp Constant Contact ConvertKit Aweber ActiveCampaign Disqus Sumo Sumo is a pretty interesting marketing tool. It helps you create buttons that pop up on your landing page when somebody's, for example, going to exit your landing page. This button will pop up and prompt them not to leave yet and then offer that person some type of promo to keep them or at least get them to opt in. Other than humanizing a tech company, what is it that helps potential Thinkific course creators get over that hurdle and make the decision to go in on the platform? As far as features, there's really two types of people. There's the people that are just starting up and they don't really know what the potential is yet because they've never built a course. So the fact that Thinkific has a free plan and in that free plan they can have unlimited students is key. They can also accept payments. It's very low barrier. That's a really big key for people that are just starting up. Then you have the other type of people who are already quite established. If they're migrating, say from another platform, then they just love the service. They love the service and the ease of use. Thinkific is able to migrate their tools. They have a team that will help those established business owners migrate all their students as well. So then they're able to manage even at scale. So Thinkific is able to help people that are just starting out and the people that are scaling because we have features to do so such as groups. Groups is where they can group together different groups of people or different groups companies or clients. So let's say that Rob has a course on LinkedIn. And he has a group that he’s working with inside Microsoft and then another group that he’s working with inside Apple, And he puts them all on the same course, but then they are segmented into groups within that course and all of the reporting is all segmented. Established course creators love that. It's just really easy for them. It doesn't take them a whole bunch of time to manage their courses. They like that there is higher tier plans. I think that there is something for everyone with a platform like this. I mean you don't have to spend money to get the product that you want. But you have to understand what that product is going to be able to do for you and for your business. In a nutshell, Thinkific is going to help you deliver your courses in a streamlined, organized manner. And it's as simple as that. There's a lot of bells and whistles you can add to your Thinkific course. Take it back to being able to deliver and teach so that your students get the success that they are looking for. So that they see you as the expert, as the”Go To”, as the person who is going to help them take that next step in their business journey or in their social space. Coming up on the series, we've got all sorts of different types of industries. We've got someone who's helping people to a certain type of business. And then we've got people who are learning an instrument. How different can you get? One's totally professional and another one is a passion. It goes to show you can host any kind of course. Most of the people who listen to the podcast are business owners. You may be listening right now and say, “No, I don't have a course in me, but I know my neighbor, she makes the best quilts.  And she wants to teach people how to make quilts.” It could be just the perfect thing for you right there. What advice or recommendations would Rob give to someone who's saying, “I think I want to create a course. I want to deliver something pretty awesome to my community”? His advice is really leverage the team that's in place at Thinkific. They really do try to make sure that they are available. Not just by email, but also like inside our Facebook group and inside their community, and by phone. His advice is just to jump in. Know that when you jump in with Thinkific that you will have support. There's going to be resources. And there's going to be a community of other course creators that have gone through or maybe going through exactly what you are going through, trying to understand and learn this platform, and really understand the space of online marketing. Inside Thinkific’s Facebook group, they don't just talk about online courses. They're talking about other types of tools that you may or may not use or want to use in your business. So Rob says to just jump in. They have a free plan. So they’ve tried to do the work of removing that barrier of cost and finances. They did that so you can just jump in start creating. They even have templates you can use. There's experts like ME that you can also reach out to. They are in their Facebook group and are there to support you and answer any questions and help out. Know you're not alone when you come into this. Thinkific has some incredible success stories. He’s heard so many awesome ones. And they aren’t just from people selling business knowledge. They are from people who are just sharing what they love to do. And they do it for free! But now they get to do it and they have built a business around it. Rob shared a story of a friend of his, Mo. Mo loves to draw and so now he's teaching people how to draw and be hired as a storyboard artist. And there's another lady in San Francisco who is teaching people how to stitch. She just loves to stitch and make like quilts. She launched and then did like a five figure launch in a matter of a couple of weeks. It's a really interesting time where somebody can just document what they already love to do and create a step by step, and then get to build a business around it. It's, it's really amazing. So So you may be saying, “Jaime, how do I get to Thinkific?” You are going to go to techofbusiness.com/thinkific. That is my affiliate link. That is how I can let Rob and everybody over at Thinkific know that this series was a success. So be sure to use techofbusiness.com/Thinkific. Using this link also gets you some bonuses Connect with Jaime: Instagram: @techofbusiness Twitter: @techofbusiness Facebook: @yourbiztech LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaimeslutzky/ Email: jaime@techofbusiness.com Connect with Rob/Thinkific: Facebook Group- Thinkific Studio Facebook- Thinkific Instagram: @thinkific YouTube: Thinkific Tutorials als

This month on the Discover CircRes podcast, host Cindy St. Hilaire highlights five featured articles from recent issues of Circulation Research and talks with Matthew Stratton, Rushita Bagchi, and Tim McKinsey about their article on Dynamic Chromatin Targeting of BRD4 Stimulates Cardiac Fibroblast Activation. Article highlights: Vincentz, et al. HAND1 Enhancer Variation Impacts Heart Conduction   Zhuang, et al. EC-Klf2-Foxp1-Nlrp3 Regulates Atherogenesis   Quintanilla, et al. Robust Targets for Persistent AF Ablation   Lambert et al. Characterization of Kcnk3-Mutated Rats   Myagmar et al. Gq Mediates Cardioprotection Transcript Cindy St. H:       Hi, welcome to Discover CircRes, the monthly podcast of the American Heart Association's journal, Circulation Research. I'm your host, Dr Cindy St Hilaire, and I'm an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh. My goal as host of this podcast is to share with you highlights from recent articles published in the August 30th and September 13th issues of Circulation Research. We'll also have an in-depth conversation with Drs. Matthew Stratton, Rushita Bagchi, and Tim McKinsey, who are the lead authors of one of the exciting discoveries presented in the September 13th issue. Cindy St. H:         The first article I want to share with you is titled, "Variation in a Left Ventricle–Specific Hand1 Enhancer Impairs GATA Transcription Factor Binding and Disrupts Conduction System Development and Function." The first author is Joshua Vincentz and the corresponding author is Anthony Firulli, and this work was conducted in the Departments of Pediatrics, Anatomy, and Medical and Molecular Genetics at Indiana Medical School in Indianapolis, Indiana. Cindy St. H:         The heart's ventricular conduction system, or VCS, is composed of specialized muscle cells that propagate electrical signals through the working myocardium of the ventricles to coordinate the rhythmic contractions of the heart chambers. Disorders of the VCS can lead to certain types of arrhythmia. Genome-wide association studies have identified a number of single nucleotide polymorphisms, or SNPs, that appear to increase the risk of VCS-mediated arrhythmias. Two such SNPs are located in the upstream region of a gene encoding for Hand1. And Hand1 is a transcription factor that is involved in left ventricle development. Conditional cardiac Hand1 ablation during embryogenesis leads to ventricular septal defects and hyperplastic arterial ventricular valves, and a reduction in Hand1 expression could lead to morphological, and therefore functional defects. Vincentz and colleagues hypothesized that these SNPs might reside in an enhancer element, and that's a region of DNA and a promoter that allows for the increased expression of a gene. The region containing the SNPs is highly conserved from mammals to reptiles and includes two sequences that allow for the binding of GATA transcription factors. And GATA transcription factors are well known to drive cardiac development. So this team used CRISPR-Cas9 technology to show that the deletion of the enhancer impaired normal VCS morphology and therefore function. And they did this in a mouse model and in the in vitro electromobility shift assay (which frankly was one of my favorite love-to-hate experiments of my PhD). So this group did their own electromobility shift essay and showed that GATA-4 binds to these enhancer sites. And together, these results support a role for Hand1 in the formation and function of the VCS and offer insights to possible arrhythmia etiologies. And what I really love about this paper is that they could actually go from a SNP in a GWAS to a functional role of a protein, which is great. A lot of times with GWAS studies, you have no clue what the heck is going on. So this was a beautiful study where they actually could link a single nucleotide polymorphism to differential expression of a gene. Cindy St. H:         The next article I'd like to highlight is titled, "Endothelial Foxp1 Suppresses Atherosclerosis via Modulation of Nlrp3 Inflammasome Activation." The first authors are Tao Zhuang and Jie Liu, and the corresponding authors (there's three of them) are Zhongmin Liu, Muredach Reilly, and Yuzhen Zhang. The Liu and Zhang teams are from the Key Laboratory of Arrhythmias of the Ministry of Education of China, and the Research Center for Translational Medicine at Shanghai East Hospital, which is part of Tongji University School of Medicine in Shanghai. And the Reilly team is from the Cardiology Division in the Department of Medicine and the Irving Institute for Clinical and Translational Research at Columbia University in New York, New York. And I have to say my good friend Rob Bauer is also a coauthor on this article. So Rob, I hope you're listening. Cindy St. H:         Chronic inflammation contributes to atherosclerotic disease and is a major pathological mechanism contributing to the dysfunction of the vascular endothelium. So leukocytes, which are inflammatory cells that float around in your blood, leukocytes can adhere to the endothelial layer, and then they can migrate through the endothelial wall into the wall of the vasculature. And it's this activity, along with the uptake of oxidized LDL and the formation of a little fatty streak, that is the start of atherosclerosis. And now Zhuang and colleagues have identified that the transcription factor Foxp1 is a potential regulator of vascular endothelial health. So first they showed that while healthy arteries express Foxp1 robustly, atherosclerotic endothelium from both mice and humans exhibits reduced expression of this transcription factor. The team then generated atheroprone mice that either lacked Foxp1 or overexpressed Foxp1 specifically in the endothelium. The mice lacking Foxp1 were shown to have exacerbated athero with much larger plaque sizes and increased macrophage infiltration into the vessels, while overexpression of Foxp1 had largely the opposite effect. It actually curtailed progression of atherosclerotic disease. The team went on to examine the atherosclerosis-suppressing mechanism of Foxp1, showing that the factor suppressed expression of the inflammasome components in the endothelial cells. Cindy St. H:         So all together, these results highlight that Foxp1-mediated regulation of the inflammasome is a potential targetable pathway for atherosclerotic treatments, and having a new targetable pathway is important, as the CANTOS trial, which provides proof of concept of the inflammation hypothesis of atherosclerosis in humans, showed robust effects in only a small subset of the population tested. Thus, there is a need to identify other means, a plan B if you will, by which we can control the inflammation that contributes to atherosclerosis. Cindy St. H:         The next paper I want to highlight is titled, "Instantaneous Amplitude and Frequency Modulations Detect the Footprint of Rotational Activity and Reveal Stable Driver Regions as Targets for Persistent Atrial Fibrillation Ablation." The first author is Jorge Quintanilla, who is also a corresponding author alongside David Filgueiras-Rama, and they are from the National Center for Cardiovascular Research and the Center for Biomedical Research in Cardiovascular Diseases Network in Madrid, Spain. Uncoordinated contractions of the atria to the ventricles of the heart is called atrial fibrillation, or AFib, and AFib causes symptoms such as heart palpitations, dizziness, and taken to the extreme, AFib can actually cause death. To correct such rhythm problems, doctors can ablate certain regions of the heart suspected to be driving this misfiring. In an ablation procedure, a catheter is inserted through the blood vessels and into the heart. An electrophysiologist then identifies the locations of the heart that are sending abnormal electrical impulses, and with either delivery of tiny pulses of painless, low-level energy or using a catheter that has a cold tip to freeze the misfiring areas, the electrophysiologist can ablate and hopefully stop  AFib. The problem is that this approach often fails, and AFib still occurs or can reoccur after a length of time. So Quintanilla and colleagues wanted to develop a more personalized medicine approach to treating AFib. So to do this, they wanted to make it something simple, something affordable, and something that hospitals currently have access to. So they used the standard electroanatomical mapping system to track the amplitude and also the frequency modulations of the electrical signals from the hearts with AFib. And they found that regions with high and stable instantaneous frequency signals were the drivers of fibrillation in the hearts. When these regions were ablated in pigs with persistent AFib, the misfiring stopped in almost all cases and was sustained. The team went on to test the system in three patients with Afib, and two of the three remained arrhythmia-free without drugs for at least 16 months. So with further development and testing, this frequency mapping could potentially replace systems that are currently in use, and more importantly, this could provide a more accurate and patient-tailored way to find and ablate the drivers of AFib. Cindy St. H:       The next paper I want to highlight is titled, "Characterization of Kcnk3-Mutated Rat, a Novel Model of Pulmonary Hypertension." Oh, now that was a nice title. That was nice and short. The first author is Mélanie Lambert, and the corresponding author is Fabrice Antigny, and they are from the INSERM Hôpital Marie Lannelongue in Le Plessis Robinson, France. Cindy St. H:       Pulmonary hypertension is a rare but life-threatening condition where the adverse remodeling of the pulmonary arteries causes an increase in the blood pressure that's needed to push the blood through the lungs, and this high blood pressure causes the heart to work harder, and it leads ultimately to right ventricular hypertrophy and heart failure. So genome-wide association studies have identified a number of mutations that have been linked to pulmonary hypertension and these include several loss-of-function mutations in the gene encoding for a potassium channel, and that's a protein that can release potassium from a cell to the extracellular environment. And the particular one that has been found to be mutated in pulmonary hypertension patients is Kcnk3. And this channel regulates the resting membrane potential of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. To date, it is not known how the loss of Kcnk3 contributes to pulmonary hypertension. To start to unravel this mystery, Lambert and colleagues created a full-body knockout of Kcnk3 in rats, and they used rats because that's a much more robust model for studying pulmonary hypertension than some of the murine models available. These knockout animals exhibited an increased pulmonary artery pressure. They also had faster heart rates and they were more susceptible than their wild-type counterparts to both pharmacological or hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension. These Kcnk3 knockout rats also had evidence of remodeled pulmonary vasculature, and this vasculature showed signs of endothelial dysfunction, altered vaso transcription, and altered neomuscularization. In in vitro studies, they used pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells that they isolated from these knockout rats, and these cells showed increased activation of proliferation markers, which is another signature of pulmonary hypertension. And this was also mirrored in human pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells that were treated with a Kcnk3 inhibitor. So together, this work starts to uncover the role of Kcnk3 in pulmonary hypertension pathogenesis. And it also provides the field with a novel model system from which people can learn more about the role of membrane potential of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells in pulmonary hypertension. Cindy St. H:       The last paper I want to highlight before our interview is titled, "Coupling to Gq Signaling Is Required for Cardioprotection by an Alpha-1A-Adrenergic Receptor Agonist." The first author is Bat-Erdene Myagmar, and the corresponding author is Paul Simpson from the VA Medical Center in San Francisco, California. So like their name says, G-protein coupled receptors interact with G-protein subunits to propagate the signal when a ligand binds. The protein G alpha q has long been considered a key mediator of cardiac hypertrophy. And that's because in mice, when this Gq protein was overexpressed, it induced hypertrophy, myocardial apoptosis, and contractile failure. However, this sub unit Gq can interact with a multitude of G-protein coupled receptors that themselves bind a variety of ligands. So which receptor or which signaling pathway specifically is responsible for the hypertrophic phenotype? Recent studies by others had shown that stimulation of the alpha-1A adrenergic receptor prevents cardiotoxicity and heart failure. So Myagmar and colleagues asked whether this cardio-protective alpha-1A stimulation is dependent on the alpha q subunit. So using mice with a mutant version of alpha-1A that allows the binding of the ligand but does not couple with the Gq subunit, the team found that alpha-1A induced cardioprotection was absent. The mutant animals were more likely to die than their wild-type counterparts when hypertrophy was induced pharmacologically or surgically. And furthermore, in the mutant myocytes themselves, the group observed that alpha-1A induced ERK signaling, which is essential for the receptors cardioprotective activity, was impaired. So together these results showed that alpha-1A-induced cardioprotection is dependent on alpha q, and actually it showed that alpha q signaling is not always maladaptive. Cindy St. H:       Now we're going to move to our interview with Drs. Matthew Stratton, Rushita Bagchi and Tim McKinsey and we're going to talk about their great paper titled "Dynamic Chromatin Targeting of BRD4 Stimulates Cardiac Fibroblast Activation." Cindy St. H:       Okay, so now we're going to have our interview with Drs. Stratton, Bagchi, and McKinsey on their paper titled, "Dynamic Chromatin Targeting of BRD4 Stimulates Cardiac Fibroblast Activation." So welcome, everyone. Dr Tim M:          Thank you. Dr Rushita B:    Thank you. Dr Matt S:          Thank you. Cindy St. H:       I was wondering if you could just all maybe go around and introduce yourselves. Dr Tim M:          Sure. I'm Tim McKinsey. I'm a professor in the Division of Cardiology at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. I also direct a newly formed fibrosis center on campus. It's called the CFReT, the Consortium for Fibrosis Research and Translation, and our goal is to understand new mechanisms that regulate fibrosis and develop new therapies to treat scarring, or fibrosis, in organs. Dr Rushita B:    I'm Rushita Bagchi. I'm currently a postdoctoral fellow in Dr McKinsey's lab. I grew up in India, and that's where I did my undergrad and master's degrees. Then I moved to Canada to do my PhD focusing on transcriptional regulation of cardiac fibrosis under the supervision of Dr Michael Czubryt. After that, I transitioned to Dr McKinsey's lab here in Denver to enhance or add to my expertise of transcription by studying epigenetics, and especially trying to find the underlying mechanisms that cause cardiovascular disease. The nice thing about this position for me has been that I have been able to constantly build up on my experience studying tissue fibrosis, but at the same time, Tim has been very generous and has let me develop projects of my own as well. Cindy St. H:       You're lucky. That's awesome. Thank you for joining us. And Dr Stratton. Dr Matt S:          I'm Matt Stratton. I'm an assistant professor in the Department of Physiology and Cell Biology at Ohio State University. I did my graduate training at Colorado State University in neurodevelopment and neuroendocrinology and then moved to Tim's lab for a postdoc and assumed my current position this past December. Cindy St. H:       Wow. How's it going? Dr Matt S:          It's going well. Starting a lab is a lot of fun and a lot of stuff going on. Cindy St. H:       Yeah, I'm four years in now and at the same time you feel brand new and excited and then, oh my God, what am I doing? So that's great. Well thank you all for joining me. So I really like this paper, mostly because I'm also a vascular biologist. I kind of focus more on the heart valves, but I have a real interest in cell phenotype transitioning and cell shifting, and so when you started to talk about chromatin remodeling and bromodomain protein, I was really interested and wanted to hear more. So maybe we can start by telling everyone what is the clinical need that your paper at base is trying to address? Dr Tim M:          Well before we get into that, could I start by saying that we're honored to have our work published in Circulation Research. We're really grateful for that. I also want to point out that this is the result of a very detailed collaborative effort involving at least six other labs, including the labs of Charles Lan at Baylor College of Medicine, Jun Qi at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Kunhua Song and Maggie Lam here in Colorado, as well as Sap Haldar and Deepak Srivastava at the Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco. Without this collaborative effort, none of this would have been possible. Cindy St. H:       That's great to hear and I'm really happy you mentioned that. Team science is so important, and I feel like we almost can't get these big, groundbreaking papers unless we really work as a good team, so thank you for highlighting that. Dr Tim M:          So we're really interested in fibrosis, which is a hallmark of heart failure. Fibrosis can actually be a good thing for the heart. If you have a myocardial infarction, you need a strong scar to form to prevent the ventricle from rupturing. But in response to chronic stress like hypertension and other things, you can get this longstanding fibrosis that results in cardiac dysfunction. That's because fibrosis is essentially a scarring process and one of the things that that does is to create a stiff in the left ventricle that can't relax effectively. Unfortunately, despite the well-known roles of fibrosis in cardiac disease, there are no targeted anti-fibrotic therapies for the heart, and that's really our focus in the lab. We've had a long-standing interest in epigenetic regulation of heart failure and cardiac fibrosis, and we've known for some time that inhibitors have a family of epigenetic reader proteins called the bromodomain and extraterminal proteins, the BET proteins. Inhibitors of those BET proteins can block cardiac fibrosis in rodent models and improve cardiac function. What we knew going into this work is that systemic delivery of those compounds was efficacious. But as you know, the heart is made up of many different cell types. So we really wanted to understand if the efficacy of these compounds was related to effects in resident cardiac fibroblasts. Cindy St. H:       Excellent. So what is the role of a cardiac fibroblast in a healthy cell, and where does that go awry? Dr Matt S:            So in a undiseased heart, fibroblasts are necessary to provide structure, right? They lay down the extracellular matrix that really holds the heart together. Without them, you would not have a good pump function. Where they go awry, I mean, that's one of the things that we're trying to study, right? They become proliferative, they become contractile, and they secrete, or we call them super-secretors, of extracellular matrix. So TGF-beta is really a known signaling molecule that kicks the fibroblasts into this activated or myofibroblast state. We use that in the paper as a agonist for our cultured cells. Cindy St. H:         Great, thank you. So what was the hypothesis you were testing in this paper? Dr Matt S:            So what we wanted to know, if BRD4 and BET proteins are important for this activation of cardiac fibroblasts? So going from a quiescent fibroblast to a proliferative and super-secretor of extracellular matrix fibroblast in the heart. And those experiments hit right away. I mean, we did those experiments, and it was quite dramatic that if you use JQ1 to inhibit these BET proteins, you completely blocked this myofibroblast differentiation. We went in and did some siRNA and shRNA work to show that really BRD4 appears to be the main culprit of the BET protein families. Cindy St. H:         Rushita, could you tell us a little bit about what a bromodomain protein is and what maybe specifically BRD4 is in relation to the other bromodomain proteins? Dr Rushita B:      Sure. So when we talk about the chromatin, there are various players in there that are known as, in general, chromatin modifiers. So you have enzymes that add acetylation mark on lysine residues on histone tails, which is basically DNA is wound around these histones and those histones have lysine tails, but you have the big acetyl group sitting. Now when you have this acetyl group sitting, this makes it more accessible for the transcriptional machinery and allowing gene transcription to happen. Those enzymes are known as histone acetyltransferase, the ones that add the acetyl mark there. The ones that take it away, which is what our lab has been studying for a long time, and Tim is a known world expert in the field, those are known as histone deacetylases, or HDACs, which basically remove those acetyl marks and compact the chromatin, thereby suppressing gene expression. This BET proteins or bromodomains are transcriptional coactivators. So this bromodomain is actually in charge or takes up the duty of identifying these acetyl marks on the lysine residues and therefore, tells the transcription machinery to come in and allow gene transcription to happen. There are a few BET proteins. Of them, BRD4 has been studied extensively in cancer as well as in the heart. But as Tim mentioned, the role of BRD4 has been studied vastly in the heart in terms of the cardiac myocytes, but not so much in the non-myocyte population, which is where our work stands out really well and starts highlighting the role of this specific chromatin modifier protein in activation or control of profibrotic gene expression. Cindy St. H:         Yeah. So correct me if I'm wrong, but my understanding is, you're going to need a little bit of the cardiac fibroblasts remodeling in the early phase. But where it is really detrimental is when that overcompensates and overproliferates and throws down too much matrix and then is bad. So do you see your study as a way to kind of target that window of where a potential treatment might be applicable? Dr Tim M:            Yeah, we think that BRD4 is a nodal regulator of cardiac fibrosis and therefore, an excellent therapeutic target. The challenge will be developing selective BRD4 inhibitors that are safe, as well as effective. We know that BRD4 is not only expressed in cardiac fibroblasts-it's all over the body. But we think our work provides an entry point to the development of highly selective BRD4 inhibitors for fibrotic indications, including heart failure. Cindy St. H:         So that's one of the things I was wondering, how specific your drug is to BRD4 versus the other ones, but also you mentioned the myofibroblast versus the immune cells infiltrating the heart. Do we know what BRD4 is doing in those cells in this system? Dr Tim M:            BRD4 is definitely pro-inflammatory, and BET protein inhibitors like JQ1 are anti-inflammatory, that's for sure. Interestingly, there's a BET family inhibitor called Apabetalone, RVX-208, that's in Phase III clinical testing for people with atherosclerosis. So if that's successful, it will provide proof of concept that you can target this family of epigenetic readers to treat cardiovascular disease. I also wanted to point out that JQ1 was initially discovered by Jay Bradner's lab, in particular Jun Qi, who is a coauthor and collaborator on this paper. Cindy St. H:         Oh, very nice. Okay, good conflict of interest too, I guess. So maybe you guys can talk a little bit about how you managed to get this huge team of scientists together efficiently, and what were any hang-ups? Matt is laughing a bit, but you two are the lead authors, Matthew and Rushita. How did you two kind of lead the way on this and divvy up this huge project? Dr Matt S:            So it is definitely a project management-style approach I think you have to take. I mean, there's a lot of communication, really a lot of communication with bioinformatics, analysts, and getting the right sequencing done, and that was fun, but it took a lot of effort. And once you get this big data, how do you present it in an intelligible story and how do you pick things out that may lead to new discoveries, right? So we highlight Sertad4 in here as a gene that's very much BRD4-dependent. And I think this is a proof of concept for using this genomics, and particularly BRD4, as kind of a molecular string to pull on to unwind this puzzle. So that was a lot of fun. And you know, Rushita was super awesome in helping with this project. Dr Rushita B:      Yeah, I think having stared at cardiac fibroblasts for six years during my PhD definitely gave me the confidence that I could step up to the plate and deliver what was necessary. And like Matt said, there was a lot of omics-based stuff that we did in the paper. And that is actually one of the key highlights, because we see papers or manuscripts that are published that have RNA-Seq, ChIP-Seq and proteomics, but I believe the strength in our article is the combination of all three. So we were actually able to do overlapping ChIP-Seq and RNA-Seq experiments, and then there was proteomics involved. So we are looking at it at the genomic transcriptome and protium-wide changes that are happening all together, put in one manuscript. And the beauty of this work is it has now created data sets that people can mine and get more information out of. And this is something that will definitely continue to drive our future studies in the lab as well. Cindy St. H:         Can you maybe expand on that? Could you maybe describe briefly for the audience what ChIP-Seq is and what RNA-Seq is, and really the power that is created when you can couple those techniques with the same samples? Dr Matt S:            Sure. So BRD4 was the center point of the paper, right? So we did BRD4 ChIP-Seq and RNA Pol II ChIP-Seq in fibroblasts treated with TGF-beta or not. So in ChIP-Seq, you basically immunoprecipitated your target protein, and that brings with it, if it's bound to chromatin, that brings with it the DNA that it's bound to. And then you can sequence the DNA that comes out of your immunoprecipitation and map that to the genome, and you get a very nice picture of where is BRD4 enriched, and where does it go after stimulation like TGF-beta, when the fibroblast becomes a myofibroblast. So you can line all these up and you can pick out what gene changes we think are directly dependent on BRD4. That's something that we like, because we now know that BRD4 is a good target, right, so that kind of pulls it together. Cindy St. H:         Great. Thank you. What else do you want to bring up? Dr Matt S:            I think understanding how signals get translated to changes in gene expression is obviously something that the field is very much interested in. And because BRD4 is basically a step away from RNA polymerase II, it gives you a little bit more specificity in knowing that that's a disease-activated pathway, right? So trying to figure out what directs BRD4 to new locations in the chromatin and cause it to be removed from previous locations in the chromatin is really an interesting area of research. So we did a pathway screen basically using inhibitors, and we use Sertad4 as the readout, right. And we found that a p38 inhibitor was able to block the ability of TGF-beta to induce Sertad4. And we were able then to show that p38 had a role in targeting BRD4 specifically to the Sertad4 locus. Dr Tim M:            I wanted to say, you know, one of the challenges with this project is that fibroblasts are difficult to work with. You would think that they would be easier to work with than a myocyte. But when a fibroblast hits a plastic cell culture dish, it rapidly transforms into an activated cell, because that plastic has a very high tensile strength. So it took a lot of optimization to figure out methods to culture these cells to maintain them in a quiescent state. Cindy St. H:         What did you do? What was that trick? Dr Tim M:            I mean, it involves changing cell density, changing the constituents of the medium, and doing other things. Cindy St. H:         Science magic. Dr Tim M:            Yeah. Dr Rushita B:      And I'll just add to that. The nice thing about being able to contribute to a study like this is also that, like Tim said, fibroblasts, they change phenotype rapidly. You take them out of a biological system, whether it's a heart or any other tissue, you plate them out in cell culture, they start changing. The nice thing about the in vivo study, the RNA-Seq that was done using the in vivo study with JQ1, was that we used a very simple pressure overload model known as the TAC model, which is a very well-established and accepted model worldwide in the field of cardiovascular disease, treating animals with JQ1. So we isolated fibroblasts, but the time from the isolation of cells to the time an RNA was prepared was an hour or two. So we made sure that we minimally exposed them to culture conditions in the lab, so we retained their biology. So what we did on plastic dishes before, although they were plated on plastic, and we had RNA-Seq done on those cells, like Tim said, we did optimize the conditions. And then being able to similarly treat or use the cells that come from an animal directly and both of them contributing to a similar cohort of genes or pathways that we can look at, that has definitely given immense strength to this manuscript. Cindy St. H:         And that's why it's in Circ Research, so it's a beautiful paper. Very well done. So I can't imagine all these hearts that you had to isolate and get single cells of and culture. What kind of days were you pulling? What was the actual boots on the ground of getting this done? How did that work? Dr Tim M:            It wasn't uncommon for me to get emails from Matt and Rushita at very odd hours of the night or early in the morning. Dr Rushita B:      Yeah, it was like we had the animals being sacrificed, hearts taken, and running to the cell culture room to do everything under sterile conditions. Most important thing- I think what worked out really well is we made sure we had all the reagents prepared ahead of time, so that once the heart is out, it's weighed, because we were also looking at hypertrophy because of the TAC model. We weighed the heart and it goes into your BST right away. Cindy St. H:         I try to teach that to my lab. It's like the cooking idea of mise en place. I make them lay out everything in the cell culture hood ahead of time, and it's all in the order and you just boom, boom, boom, boom. Dr Rushita B:      And a lot of our experiments were done later in the evening, so the nice thing was we had access to multiple centrifuges, which is usually a huge plus. And I still remember Matt being on one side, I'd be on the other. And then we had help from members of the lab as well. They were running between the cell culture room and the centrifuge. So it was actually quite fun. It turned out really well. Cindy St. H:         I'm picturing like those old water brigades to put out a fire where like a bucket is just passed. Is that what this was? Dr Rushita B:      That was very similar to the situation you just talked about. Cindy St. H:         That's great. It sounds kind of painful, but also kind of fun. I guess lastly, maybe one of you can end with telling us what are the bigger picture results of this, and what are the next steps in terms of maybe possibly translating this to the clinic? Dr Tim M:            Well as I mentioned, one of the things we're trying to do is to selectively inhibit BRD4. We're also trying to inhibit it only in cardiac fibroblasts with the hope that we'll be able to improve the therapeutic index of BRD4 inhibition. So create a situation where patients can tolerate this anti-fibrotic therapy better than if it was delivered systemically. We're also looking at other regions of BRD4. BRD4 contains the bromodomains, and those are the targets of JQ1, but there are other interesting domains on BRD4 that we're actively pursuing. Cindy St. H:         Thank you. And Matthew, what are you doing in your new lab, or is it just set up right now? Dr Matt S:            Well I have a K Award from the National Institute of Aging. Cindy St. H:         Congratulations. Dr Matt S:            Thank you. To look at BRD4's role in the heart and cardiac aging. And I also have a couple projects based on some of the mining that we've done from these datasets. So hopefully those lead to good publications and follow-on grants. Cindy St. H:         Well, if this is a good start, I'm sure they will. And Rushita, what are your next plans? How long have you been with Tim? Dr Rushita B:      So I've been here with Tim for almost four years now, so I'm pretty much in the final leg of my postdoctoral training. So I'm still continuing to work on tissue fibrosis projects, including the heart. But I have been able to develop a new field of interest and something that Tim has entrusted me to carry on in the lab in the field of cardiometabolic disease, but definitely with an epigenetic focus. So hopefully in a year's time I see myself having an independent academic scientist position. My dream job will be to be at an academic institute where I can lead a research team which focuses on deciphering or trying to even find the most basic molecules that define the underlying mechanisms of tissue fibrosis and cardiometabolic disease. Cindy St. H:         That sounds like a great plan. Very best luck to you. Dr Rushita B:      Thank you. Cindy St. H:         Do you guys want to add anything else? Dr Tim M:            The field of cardiovascular epigenetics is in its infancy and we still have a lot to learn. Cindy St. H:         And I'm sure all of you will do your parts in moving that field forward. So with that, we're going to end our interview with Drs. Stratton, Bagchi, and McKinsey. Thank you all for joining me and thank you to the listeners for listening. Have a great day. Dr Tim M:            Thank you. Dr Rushita B:      Thank you. Dr Matt S:            Thank you. Cindy St. H:         That's it for highlights from the August 30th and September 13th issues of Circulation Research. Thank you for listening. This podcast is produced by Rebecca McTavish, edited by Melissa Stoner, and supported by the editorial team of Circulation Research. Copy text for highlighted articles is provided by Ruth Williams. I'm your host, Dr Cindy St Hilaire, and this is Discover CircRes, your source for the most up-to-date and exciting discoveries in basic cardiovascular research.

My friend Rob and I got into a conversation over lunch about the concept of creative literacy. We’re not really taught — even in liberal arts and creative arts academic programs — how to manage and follow through on great ideas. Everyone can experience a brainstorm — but most creative brainwaves end without follow through. And what a lot of people don’t talk about is the overwhelm that comes from a high creative state. There is an anxiety that accompanies having a ton of ideas flowing all at once. We talk a lot about how to get to those creative flow states, but when you’re in the middle of one it's kind of the worse time to have to wonder what your process should be. Or to worry that you don’t have one. HOST LINKS - SLADE ROBERSONSlade's Books & Courses Get an intuitive reading with Slade Automatic Intuition FACEBOOK GROUPShift Your Spirits Community BECOME A PATRONhttps://www.patreon.com/shiftyourspirits Edit your pledge on Patreon TRANSCRIPT My friend Rob and I got into a conversation over lunch about the concept of creative literacy. Even in liberal arts majors and creative arts academic programs, we're not really taught how to manage and follow through on great ideas. Everyone can experience a brainstorm — but do you have a system of rain barrels and cisterns and wells in place to make the most of that when it does happen? As Rob pointed out, most creative brainwaves end without follow through. And what a lot of people don’t talk about is the overwhelm that comes with a creative state. There is an anxiety that accompanies having a ton of ideas flowing all at once. We talk a lot about how to get to those creative flow states, how to get into them, but when you’re in the middle of one it's kind of the worse time to have to wonder what your process should be. Or to worry that you don’t have a process. I’m experiencing a high creative flow state right now. A lot of people I talk to are also feeling that. And it’s great. Energy has been stagnant for months, for me anyway. For a few years for some of us, also me. Everything is kind of in Aries in right now and there’s a lot of creative energy and a desire to take action and it's all sort of pouring in now. So Rob was kind of asking me, what are some of the tools that I use to manage that, or is there a way that I can break that down and actually share part of that process. I think I can do a pretty good job of grounding it a little bit in some systems and tools, especially to help with this idea of overwhelm. So I'm not so much concerned with 'I don't have any creative inspiration'. This is specifically about, what do you do when the fire hydrant is on and it is all running into the street and there's a sense of panic about that. My favourite go-to magic wand is a list. Lists are magical. They have an ability to change the perception of things. The perceived size of items or problems or concerns, your perceived scope of the To Do cloud that's around your head versus the actual list that ends up on paper in front of you. There's this anxiety about forgetting things, more than anything, right? So you kind of keep all these balls in the air mentally. You're spending a lot of mental energy just launching balloon after balloon after balloon after balloon, and they're all tied to you and all floating around you in this little cloud. And one of the things that lists do is they allow you to put those items somewhere so you don't have to worry about forgetting them anymore and that sort of frees up the bandwidth. You can take the balloons down and there's not so much of a cloud around you. I'm going to talk about checklists in just a bit, which is also another specific way to free up bandwidth. But there's this high that goes along with taking action, taking risks. It feels sort of good. It's profound! And you can really feel on fire when you're in that state. But the dark side of that energy is what happens when it runs its course or burns out. There's a crash. That caffeine, that sugar high, that drug is going to crash at some point. And then you're going to realize that you expended a lot of energy starting things without following through on them. And you won't necessarily have the energy left over to follow through, if you spin it in the wrong way. You know what I mean? Another tool that actually presented itself to me in a really obvious way when I was travelling with Rob last fall was this idea that we should focus on manifesting people, not things. Not the stuff, not the To Do list items, not the resources. Focus on manifesting people who have those things. You look at that list you made, and maybe there's 25 things on it. When you manifest the right person, they may come with 10 or 12 of those items already taken care of. Or they may have the resources to tick those boxes for you, without you having to do anything other than asking them. Collaborate. That's what I mean by manifesting other people. That can be an instantaneous thing. It can be a stranger on the street that you stop and ask for directions. In that moment, you're manifesting a person that can tell you how to get to where you're going. It's collaboration, whether it lasts 30 seconds or a couple of years and it's a more formal relationship. Reach out to experts. Instead of telling them about your great new idea, ask them questions. What do they actually want in the area of your big idea? So you can kind of gear the questions that you ask them towards the area that you're interested in, rather than you telling them what you're making and getting their feedback on it, ask them what they want in the area in which you're proposing a solution or an idea or a venture. They'll tell you what to make. They will literally tell you exactly what's missing, what they wish existed, and sometimes they'll even help you make it. The number of times that I've been given resources just because I reached out to someone as an entrepreneur in this phase of my life, let's say in the last 15 years, there are so many times that I have reached out to a coder, a developer, a software engineering expert, a publishing industry person, whatever it might be, and come at them in the right way, with a really curious and respectful desire to participate, people can pick up on that authenticity. Now if someone is closed to helping other people, that's their issue. You're not going to manifest them anyway. Cross them off your list if you accidentally catch them in your net. Focus on manifesting someone who is open to participating with you. Just to give you an example of what I'm talking about, more recently with the audiobook production part of my business that I'm moving into, which is one of my big creative new states right now. And when I say I was in a high creative state, a lot of it is around audiobook production. That's one of the new irons in the fire. I was looking for some resources online, looking for some books on Amazon. I found one in particular that looked really techy. Because I have more questions about some technical stuff, to do with software and file types and less about getting in the spirit of You-Can-Do-It. I'm not looking for that kind of pep talk. I was looking for something a little bit more specific, and I ran across this author's book and he was a Dutch person. It was still a book written in English but he was Dutch. I looked him up on Facebook and saw that he did live in Holland. I noticed something in his book that felt kind of like a sign to me. There were examples that he was using about different kinds of studio space that exists, that you can access, as an independent producer of an audiobook. And he linked to a story about my home city, Chattanooga, Tennessee, where our public library built a really state of the art sound facility and they use it for learning purposes and school programs. But I know a couple of people who do their podcast there. It is something the public has access to. He mentioned it as being a cool resource that our city had. Because of the timing of my reaching out to the Universe, looking for that magic carpet ride of links on the internet that take you to all the things that you were looking for and it all feels perfectly aligned and stuff. So I was having one of those moments with his book. So I just decided to send him a friend request on Facebook and then I followed it up with a message explaining why I'd sent him the friend request. And I told him the story, the connection with Chattanooga and I asked him a really technical question that I had, threw some jargon at him, so he would know that I could kind of speak his language and that I was looking to get a more geeky answer from someone. He was so excited by the interaction that within just a few messages back and forth, he told me about this course that he built and that was available on Teachable and it was an expensive class! It was like, $1500 or something to take this course, and it was really techy looking. And he offered me a coupon code to access the course for free if I would give him some feedback about it and let him know if that was what I was looking for. There were things about it that needed to be changed to make it more accessible for other kinds of authors. I mean, that's just an example of something that happened. So when I say 'Manifest the people', that's what I mean. Take the opportunity. Someone crosses your path and you think, I'm going to Facebook message this stranger. Just do it! I mean, what's the worse that can happen. They can decline your friend request or not answer your message. Or if they seem rude or not open, fine. Keep on moving. But I can't tell you the number of times that I have reached out to someone who is an expert and they were very generous with their time, their information, and sometimes with their resources. When I was bootstrapping my business, trying to build something online, I got a lot of help from a lot of people that way, and it's one of the reasons I was able to do it at all. People like to share their wisdom. They like to be acknowledged for having it. It's often hard earned. They like to have sort of heirs receive their information. People who care, because no matter who you are, you are what filled your work in. Your family doesn't care about your work, and your friends don't want to hear you talk about your work. Your peers want to hear you talk about your work, and who really values what you do, are the people who are driving down the same road behind you. That's who you want to talk to. Because that's your opportunity to make a difference for someone else, and I think it's motivated by an impulse to sort of go back in time and save yourself, you know? So when someone approaches me wanting to know about how to do a podcast or something, I already have a list of resources ready to go. So I'm just gonna copy and paste and email it. I'm so excited to think that all the research that I did and spent maybe weeks or months on, can now be reduced to a single email for someone who really wants that information and is gonna go do something with it. That's really exciting to me. It brings me joy. So don't underestimate the fact that everyone else likes to do that too. We like to be on the end where somebody's asking us to share, and when we're on the end where we're asking for the information, we often feel like we're bothering people. Now I do think you need to keep your emails succinct. Don't tell people long drawn out stories about your life. Keep it brief. Really really respect their time and think about the fact that you may be one of 50 people who's sending them emails like that, right? It's really easy to answer something that's short and specific and a lot of people who have taken time to build resources or expertise in a certain area, do have things like checklists that they can send you, or a favourite resource or website that they can point you to. So make it easier for them to do it quickly. I think you're more likely to get a favourable response. TIME is the one thing that is limited. It’s the one thing that you can’t make more of. And this is one of my tools, actually. This is one of my subheads in this episode, is this idea about time. You can find more resources. You can manifest more people. You can make more money. But you can't make more time. So that's one of the big things that you have to deal with when it comes to creative overwhelm, creative productivity, getting shit done. If you can work the time part out, then you can graft a plan onto that. So time is the one thing you can be really strict about. If you're religious and disciplined about the time, then you can be creative and you can flow within that structure. And you can play. You can be a little bit more loose and happy. This is where I use 3x3 strategy. But you can’t use 3x3 unless you can identify 3 blocks of time each week. My mentor in writing and publishing and productivity is Tim Grahl. You hear me talking about him when I talk about marketing a lot. Steven Pressfield, who I also talk about, is partnered with Shawn Coynes in a publishing company called Black Irish Books. You've heard me mention many times Steven Pressfield's War of Art as one of my big creative bibles. And Shawn Coynes Story Grid is that type of work specifically for fiction authors and screenplay writers. Tim's latest book was published by these guys. He's friends with them. He works with them. So Black Irish Books published his latest book called Running Down a Dream. It's a really personal story about Tim trying to start his own business. A lot of failures and anxiety and psychological stuff really that he dealt with. It's super vulnerable and very confessional and just really cool. It represents a lot of why I like him and admire him so much. In addition to being willing to share how much he sucks at certain things, he's also really, really great about identifying systems and sharing them in this way that I talk about. That mentors have this really genuine authentic impulse to put out their recipes for others. So in Running Down a Dream, which I'll link to, on this issue of time and creative project management, he talks about a few steps that address this in particular. And one of them was to first identify what the shortest path is. Meaning, find the thing that's going to get you there the quickest. The minimum viable product, or maybe it's the aspect of a particular platform that's the easiest to execute. Sometimes there are things that we can do within a month and then other things that have a much longer timeline. So find the shortest path to get you in the game. And then stop doing everything. I don't really remember from this note if I meant, stop doing all the stuff, or if he literally meant, you just kind of stop working on stuff. And you make your focus just listing everything you do in a day. Again. Some list making. But you write down literally everything that you do. And you circle the essential items. And for five days, Monday through Friday, you do an experiment where you only do the essential things. Only those things that you circled that you absolutely have to do, like feed your children, go to work. His advice is, you do that for Monday through Friday, and then you kind of evaluate it over the weekend. You journal and you take a look at really how your time is getting spent. He say he does this once a year. He goes into a great detail about this in the book. I'm just giving you the bullet points, the highlights. His advice is, you create systems for those essential things. And we talk about systems at the level of things like, 'keep your keys in a bowl by the door' because finding your keys every morning is an essential thing that needs to happen and it can take a ridiculous amount of time or it can take one second. Part of the reason how you can ensure that these essential things get done efficiently is to create a system for them. A system for finding your keys in the morning can be: put your keys in the same damn place all the time. Another thing he talks about is creating checklists for everything you do for multiple reasons. Because at some point, you may want to delegate some of your activities and it makes it much less personal when you have this really nitpicky well thought out, well groomed, list of steps as opposed to trying to train someone in the moment and maybe yelling at them for not doing it in a certain kind of way. It's less personal if there's a checklist that exists so part of one of the things he's talking about throughout his advice is this idea of preparing your systems in such a way now so that they have time to evolve and sort of be trimmed down to their essential selves. And then be shared with other people more easily, because the idea is that if put these systems in place now while it's just you working, at some point there will be other people working with you. Because you're going to manifest the people to help you. And you can pass these lists off to them. When you create checklists, you can also identify which items can be outsourced in some way, either to a computer app or to some kind of online service, or to an actual person. But all these things, even the 'keeping your keys in a bowl by the door', frees up bandwidth. It frees up mental bandwidth, which anxiety loves to hog, your mental bandwidth. Running around with your hair on fire, looking for your keys every morning, is anxiety. So if you're going to carry all this creative stuff coming in, you need as much bandwidth to focus on that stuff with as possible. You don't need to be worrying about little stuff that can be taken care of by simply having some systems in place. Okay. Another thing that he talks about is deciding on your goal. What's the goal? The immediate goal. Not the five-year plan necessarily, but again, the shortest path. Let's get from A to Z. In my case, it's like what can I execute in the next three months? What phase of this project can be executed. And then you need to get clear about what is driving you in the first place. He has this theory that he shares called the 3 F's - Fortune, Fame or Freedom? The idea is that you can have some of all of those things. You can have a little fortune, you can have a little fame, and you can have freedom too. Sometimes they all go together. But there is one of those things that is motivating you more than any other. And if you're clear about what is motivating you, sometimes it changes the way in which you choose to work. It changes the things you choose to work on yourself versus the things that you delegate to other people. So there's a little bit of a character analysis happening there where not only are you getting clear about your project and your goal, but you kind of need to know what it is that's fueling you in the first place. Because you may need to go get more fuel some time. And knowing what part of you is going to light up... It's important. It'll come back up, especially when you run out of steam, or when you're in a low point in the process. What is it that's going to keep you going? After talking about those principles, he gets to this whole thing with scheduling creative time. His advice around that is very similar to the Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. This concept of having artist's dates. My version of that is the 3x3 strategy. I have a major new project that I need to find a whole new string of 3x3 slots for. Two years ago I did the 3x3 to start this podcast. I spent three months, and then I launched it, and you know what? A lot of those time slots remained in place. Monday, Wednesday, Friday. In the mornings I work on podcasting stuff. Sometimes that's interviewing people. Sometimes that's recording a segment like this. Sometimes it's tinkering with the... putting the stuff on my blog so that you can play it from my website. You know, whatever it might be. But I'm always doing something in these designated time periods. Now, yes I was able to shrink some of that and reclaim it after I got it going and got some flow and some ritual around it. I was able to create some checklists and some systems. But here I am now and I'm like, ooo, I have a new project. I can't stop the ones that are going on, so I actually have to find time. I don't know where I'm going to find it. That's the point. Now I have to find more, and it's a limited resource. And I'm looking for three actions per week for three months. That's the 3x3. So where am I gonna find another time slot? You have to be really honest and brutal with yourself, but you can find it. I hear these horror stories of people who get up at 4:00 in the morning and do it. Write their novels before anyone wakes up and their day gets started. I hear even worse horror stories about the people who stay up at night after their kids are asleep and work into the wee hours of the morning. I am not into night time working at all, so it has to be morning for me. I know that. Okay, so being really brutally honest with myself, and making a list of everything that I actually do in a day, the first thing on that list would be a little cluster of activities that take place in the first hour I'm up, that include waking up, feeding my pets, drinking water, making coffee, turning on the news. Depending on how I'm feeling, sitting down and drinking that coffee with the news on in the background. Checking my email, looking at Facebook and seeing if I have instant messages. All that kind of stuff. Probably a lot of us reach for that in the morning. I do that for an hour, honestly, so I can steal that from myself for something important. I can man up, I can take that hour of leisurely morning stuff and I can use it for work. At least for three months, right? Let's do it for three months and see what happens, because that's the point. I'm gonna execute, I'm gonna get this thing out there, then maybe it won't take so much time. Or I may find some other strategies working in it. Or it could be the case that with a lot of projects, once there's a launch, or once there's an end to one phase going into another, sometimes the time demands change. But right now, I'm thinking if I can steal that hour, that early morning hour and just be a grown up, I can get a lot done with that. Because this podcast takes about five hours a week to produce. And if I have to do another comparable audio type project, that's five more hours that I can rescue. So that's really useful. And here's a little secret tweak to my 3x3 that I don't usually mention because it's not elegant. It doesn't go along with the 3 so well. I do 4 or I do 5. Because if I'm going to find that hour, three times a week in the morning, I might as well do it every day in the morning four or five times. That also allows for disruption. Something happens one morning. Okay, fine. I've got 4 other to work with. My goal here is just to do it 3, so I'm building in some padding. And, you know, if you can do it 3 mornings, you can do it 4, right? And maybe you still have that one morning that you take it easy and you do your coffee and your news or your journalling, whatever. I think that's kinda healthy. Maybe you just reward yourself on Fridays. I do the lazy thing that I always like to do. The other tool or insight for me is how important quarters are, in terms of managing time and projects and running a business and all that kind of stuff. We're talking about the seasons. 3 month periods. The hardest thing to cope with for me in this entrepreneurial world is the roller coaster. There's a roller coaster of money. It's either feast or famine. There's a roller coaster of work coming in. It's either flowing and everybody's wanting a piece of you or it's like a dead zone. The sales are flat. You're not moving at all. Or it's an emotional roller coaster. It's like up and down, highs and lows. It's like, yay! I'm awesome. I'm brilliant. And then the lows are, omg, I suck. Who am I to think I can do this? All that stuff. What I found is that quarters are a more realistic time span for analyzing things, like financials or productivity. Quarters sort of smooth out the roller coaster into more of a trend line. Not so much a jagged up and down but more of a smooth flowing line. Many projects or project phases will fit really nicely in a quarter. 90 days is a really good rough draft period, first draft period for a longer book project. And a quarter is really good for a re-write/edit period. And then another quarter is really good for a launch in marketing period. You see what I'm saying? There are some projects that you can entirely finish in one quarter, like launching a podcast. I did it. Planning a whole year is too much. You know what? Reality changes too much. So quarters are the right amount of time to execute something and then to evaluate if anything's changed before planning a whole other set of stuff. Quarters' also enough time to execute an emergency contingency plan if you needed to. If you really needed to shift gears for some reason, or you needed to make up for lost income. Or let's say you're like, "Oh man, I really mismanaged this whole thing. I need to go get a job for some cash flow, maybe just temporarily." But 3 months might be a decent amount of time for you to go and find a job if you need to go back to work. Or 3 months is a reasonable amount of time to work through some kind of rough patch, you know what I mean? But the time to sit down and plan all this is now, while you're fired up. There is a tendency to want to go be in the center of the hurricane and just feel the magic and the flow coming through your body and straight to the canvas … But when you come down from that high, you're usually spent. You don’t have the motivation to continue at that same speed. And you didn’t save enough motivation to put a more realistic system into place either. And the last thing you feel like doing is, "Oh, I'm going to create a system!" right when you crash from your caffeine sugar creativity high. So… If you’re in creative overwhelm, or even just really in the zone with wanting to make a project happen… take a few hours. Whether you're feeling really on top of it or you're feeling like you're drowning. Take a couple of hours. Go have some tea or some coffee. Do an artist’s date at a cafe. Take your laptop, your tablet, your sketchbook. Go have a meeting with yourself and make a big ass list. Just make a big list. Then identify the three blocks of time. Pull them out of your ass, out of thin air, they are there if you really want it badly enough. Steal them from some other lazy, unproductive part of your life. And then, start sorting those items on your list into quarters. What goes in the first month? What goes in the second month? What goes in the third month? Divide it up in 3s. If you find you have a whole lot of leftover stuff that doesn't go somewhere and needs more time, call that Phase 2 and do that in the next quarter. Once you start to see this on paper, your own Miss Busy will take over and start putting it all together. Psychologically what it does is, it just takes a lot of feelings that you have about what's coming in, and it takes a lot of anxiety that you have, that you're going to somehow lose one brilliant piece of this puzzle and puts it somewhere safe and makes it manageable and changes your perception about how big and terrible and awful and scary it is. Now, once you're at that point, go manifest the people who are going to be involved. This could be some kind of incubator program. It could be a small business workshop. It could be a meeting with a CPA. It could be sending emails to your heroes or sending Facebook friend requests to the big fish in your genre. Sometimes a class that you might sign up for can be part of your 3x3 AND you know what? If you want to make ME one of those people, I’ll walk you through the 3x3. One of my most recent client wants to launch a podcast … and this is really cool. Because I’ve done this. And I did a 3x3 to do it. I already have some lists to work with. So I'm like, Yes, I can walk you through that plan. Let’s do it. I know for sure how to get from A to Z. This is actually my favorite kind of job in the whole world. Like, that kind of mentoring. And you get all the bonus of my fabulous psychic ability. Seriously. 3 Sessions with me over the course of 3 months... What’s your project? Hit me up.

So… Rob finally did it! He ventured down under and to the land of the long white cloud, New Zealand! It was a trip filled with so many new and exciting experiences! We hope that you enjoy this episode because New Zealand is a really, really special place. Some of the places and activities mentioned… Read more

 Find out why cookie-cutter marketing does not for your business Learn how to present your offerings and avoid getting lost to the sea of sameness Discover how Rob teaches entrepreneurs to think differently towards their business and why establishing an empathetic connection is one of his most effective strategies Resources/Links: Sign-up for Rob's Webinar:How thinking like Apple can get you remarkable results - with less effort bit.ly/addwater-why Summary Rob Gemmell is the Creative Director at Apple, award-winning industrial designer, entrepreneur, and consultant to over 100 businesses into a hands-on consulting and coaching practice. Rob’s common objective across all clients: Attracting and keeping high-profit customers and clients. And doing so with less effort and uncertainty. In this episode, Rob Gemmell talks about how he helps entrepreneurs who provide professional services to think differently and radically transform their business. He shares the importance of training your mind the way Apple does by internalizing the three core principles. He also shares how Apple's marketing philosophy endures all challenges. Check out these episode highlights: 00:55 - Rob Gemmel's background as Creative Director at Apple, award-winning Industrial designer, Entrepreneur, and Consultant 01:43 - Rob's ideal client: current or former executives who provide professional services or knowledge or experiences 02:30 - Finding expertise and clarity about offering: problems Rob for his client 03:25 - Competing on price versus proficiency: typical symptoms that Rob's ideal clients manifest 04:05 - Fake Marketing mistake clients does before coming to Rob 04:54 - Rob’s Valuable Free Action - Change description of their business that they have in their mind 06:10 - Rob’s Valuable Free Resource - Sign-up for Rob's Webinar:How thinking like Apple can get you remarkable results - with less effort bit.ly/addwater-why 07:35 - Rob’s Valuable Marketing Tip: Internalize the three core principles of marketing get the ebook here: Apple’s Three Pillars of Marketing Tweetable Takeaways from this Episode: “Start with empathy and then lead that into what's unique about the way you deliver your services or the knowledge that you bring to it.” @robxgemmellClick To Tweet Transcript (Note, this was transcribed using a transcription software and may not reflect the exact words used in the podcast) Tom Poland: Hello, have you want to very well. Welcome to another edition of marketing's the invisible. My name is Tom Poland has always been me out to you from on the sand. A little Castaways beach in Queensland. Australia joined today by Rob Gimmel. Rob, good day and welcome and where you're hanging out. Rob Gemmell: It's a pleasure to be here Tom. Thank you. And I'm joining you from Napa, California. Tom Poland: Napa, California the land of wine and honey. Rob Gemmell: Absolutely correct. Tom Poland: So facts Rob. He's an award-winning industrial designer, so that tells you that he has the ability to think big picture as well as a detail orientated, which is quite rare. One of the very interesting is about Rob folks is that he's not only an industrial designer, but he's also a creative director formerly with apple. So he knows how Apple thinks, develops products and services and markets them. He worked directly with Steve Jobs for a number of years and so, therefore, I had the privilege of learning directly from the feet of one of the greatest product designer and marketers on the planet. And in fact, in history over the last 25 years, he's built on this thinking and these practices in his own business and working with over 200 clients. So Rob, pretty impressive background. Love your work. I've been through the three pillars. I'm enrolled in your course. Thank you. It's transformational thinking level.

[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent="no" equal_height_columns="no" menu_anchor="" hide_on_mobile="small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility" class="" id="" background_color="" background_image="" background_position="center center" background_repeat="no-repeat" fade="no" background_parallax="none" parallax_speed="0.3" video_mp4="" video_webm="" video_ogv="" video_url="" video_aspect_ratio="16:9" video_loop="yes" video_mute="yes" overlay_color="" video_preview_image="" border_size="" border_color="" border_style="solid" padding_top="" padding_bottom="" padding_left="" padding_right=""][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type="1_1" layout="1_1" background_position="left top" background_color="" border_size="" border_color="" border_style="solid" border_position="all" spacing="yes" background_image="" background_repeat="no-repeat" padding_top="" padding_right="" padding_bottom="" padding_left="" margin_top="0px" margin_bottom="0px" class="" id="" animation_type="" animation_speed="0.3" animation_direction="left" hide_on_mobile="small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility" center_content="no" last="no" min_height="" hover_type="none" link=""][fusion_text] Watch the live interview below P025[/fusion_text][fusion_youtube id="https://youtu.be/5cDvVVhoRo8" alignment="center" width="" height="" autoplay="false" api_params="&rel=0" hide_on_mobile="small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility" class="" /][fusion_text] Transcription (was completed by automated process. Please ignore any speech-to-text errors) [00:00:02] Ok. So welcome to another session of get sellers calling you podcast. And this is where we focus on helping realtors get more sales and get more sellers calling them and I'm excited to have a special guest a friend of mine for many years now and the real estate world. Genny Williams also known a.k.a. as the six figure coach. So Genny how are you doing. [00:00:26] I'm doing great because I get to hang out with you today. So thanks for having me here Beatty. No I didn't mean to talk over you but you know that's already in the past couple of conversations that we've had. I use the word genius to describe you and calling you by name. So that's exactly how I think of you and have throughout the years. Thanks for letting me be here. [00:00:53] Well I appreciate that because I think that actually goes both ways because a lot of that stuff I've used and some of the stuff I've used in my teaching and and what we apply in helping our clients I actually stole from you. [00:01:08] So you know that you know that this is what's really interesting you know and in English when you steal from someone else. It's called plagiarism but in marketing is called research. So I've done a lot of research with you. [00:01:23] And anything that I have learned from being in the trenches or the mistakes I've made please use them. That's if we can just have everybody short cards and learn from everyone else's mistakes. My gosh we'd be so much better off right. Absolutely. [00:01:41] Well let me do real quick. [00:01:42] I'd love to have you a quick introduction of who you are a little bit about your real estate career and maybe you said also just how folks listening in or watching in can kind of get a perspective of who is this beautiful blonde haired bombshell that's on the video. [00:01:58] Who is this crazy lady. That's right. The crazy lady. Yes I am completely passionate about what it is that I do mostly passionate about people but all things marketing in fact I am obsessed. And one of my sellers recently said that you are totally obsessed with this. Yes I am. So I've been selling for I've been in the real estate business for 22 years and for the past 10 years really 10 to 13 years I have been training coaching and mentoring agents and even providing marketing services for real estate agents that have huge businesses. So as much success as I had when I sold the first time around my clients hundreds of clients that I've had throughout the years have had far far greater success at sales and building teams than I even did. And so so much fun. I get to see all of the research that we've poured into their businesses and what works what doesn't work. And recently I was invited to be a national trainer for a XP Realty and jumped in love the company so much and I've worked with all kinds of companies and all kinds of companies here in Birmingham and I live in Birmingham and work from home but I'm also across the country have worked with many different real estate companies. [00:03:29] When I saw the power of this land I mean I jumped in full fully committed and laughed all along one to one clients to pursue this. So it is pretty much a big deal. Did that just really two months ago. So it's new. I am selling again and I'm also I've put all of my whole years coaching into an eight week program that is group. We do at Facebook and a secret group and I love it. [00:04:01] I'm loving life right now so that's exciting to pull you out of coaching and back into real estate. [00:04:08] That says a lot because I've been for you are I've been in sales I've been in training I've been creating systems and I'm often tempted to to jump back in so that that says a lot. That's pretty exciting. [00:04:22] It is exciting but I feel like I've got the best training to see what other agents made successful. I'm heading in to practice so I feel like a lot of those like we were saying no shortcuts. I have this time around and what when you introduce the podcast about how to get sellers you know calling you more. That's the whole goal. That is it. That is the whole goal. And yesterday I mean I had a full day's work in front bothersome and had a listing appointment late in the evening want Erin to the House eight thirty nine ish but my phone rang the entire time from the time I got out of the listing appointment until I got home with other sellers calling me and walked in and said I'm not sure if I can keep at this pace my husband said but this is the dream and really it's it's happened in only two months. So I definitely have found a couple things that surely work and I can't wait to implement more. I've just been busy. [00:05:29] Well you know so you've now created all this huge interest. [00:05:33] What in the world are you doing that in to has got your phone ringing off the hook with sellers so. What's that. What does a super super super secret. I'm taking notes right now. [00:05:45] Well you're going to laugh at me at first because through the years you know I'm a huge fan and you've heard me say this over and over the people that are going to help you the quickest reach your goals or the ones you already know love and trust and they know love and trust you. [00:06:00] So I am a database database database person so I haven't been in sales for quite some time through the years. If one of my clients said I have a buyer who's looking for a house like this I would say Oh I sold a house you know to so and so and so and so you know seven years ago give them a call and see if they wouldn't sell. So I had given out my sphere of influence and my past clients and my database to other people for all of these years I look good. And it's time for me to have my own gate again to reach out and I have about 40 people and that was stretching it because my sphere of influence are real estate agents. That is where I have been and all my love and attention has been there for all of these years. And you can't go back and be a jerk and say Hey remember when I gave you that client I need it back and relationships don't work that way. [00:07:00] So that's funny. So you gave away your business. Now you're trying to get back in so. So still. Well let me make one quick comment because I heard something a moment ago. So this is an Internet interview. [00:07:12] So if there is some degradation of the video the audio I just know we're doing it over the Internet. So you go. So you've only got a list of 40 people right now where have you expanded that. Probably interrupted you where you're going oh no you're totally fine. [00:07:27] Again please just stop for a second. So yes I have about 40 people I have not expanded that match but what's funny is that people who know love and trust me are the same that I've had in the coaching business and they are my referral partners they're my lenders they are my stager they are the people that sponsor my events and because I've always made sure to give give give give give to them they have given to me. And when I have reached out there they are ready trust me. So I am working with a lot of their friends family clients relatives their sphere of influence. So the very first thing that I had to do was to get back in announcing that I'm in real estate. So one letter that SNL announcing I got two referrals off of it out of 40 people actually had an event where 12 people came was all and. But having a so I can only invite 20. And it was a very small intimate event for ladies that we build baths bombs together. [00:08:41] And it was called You're the bomb that bomb party. So. That was fun. But getting face time back with people again and letting them know that I'm here to help them in real estate. And it didn't hurt that a very first listing that I took which was also a referral from someone that works with get a real estate line. He is not social media. [00:09:05] Npr marketing person at his best friend needed to get his household. He was relocating to Seattle. And you know I had to interview with him. I had to interview with the guy who works with me right because he hasn't seen me in this arena. He's only seen me helping other agents and had interview with mom and with Dad. Once they they were comfortable I ended up selling that house in just a few hours. And so having the success from that I can take. And I had those conversations with other people. [00:09:40] So. So tell me now so you've got some great relationships with. [00:09:44] I'll call him vendor type relationships in the industry. But if if I'm not a new agent but maybe a new agent but if I'm a typical agent I may not have quite the strong relationships there. You know what is. As a coach for the last 10 or ten years of abuse. Have you seen as you have seen these these large agents really start to grow. What are some of the things that you have found to be most effective in growing your business. [00:10:17] As a brand new agent in fact I'm a mentor XP to brand new agents that have closed less than one that joined the company. So I am with them helping them get and production. We have to start with zero. We have to start with the first thing. So of course naturally the first thing I'm going to tell them to do is exactly what I just did. You have to get a list of people who know love and trust you. And that is the first step. The goal is to get to 150. So I'm working on getting to 150. I've had to be very intentional on going out and meeting new people in the community that are connectors. For instance I started a radio show specifically about the area that I live in and target and work. It's called Life along 280 in Chelsea and because of that high reach it allows me to promote other small businesses that are also in that area from there and building great relationships. And I am working with connectors the mayor of Chelsea was one of my first guests and so he's someone that I need to know that he needs to know me and the value that I bring. So I work with these brand new agents and tell them we've got to start there. We've got to start with the people who know love and trust you then we want to move into how do we meet the connectors that are going to make a difference. Quickly right. Has we. If we don't have a quick start. People will get very very discouraged. [00:11:54] You know you're preaching my song because I love working with the personal list. [00:12:02] So in terms of building that list any any inside secrets of things on how to make it easier because here's something real interesting and you'll probably you won't get a kick out of it but you'll I'm sure you will recognize this validity know as we work with other clients and really strong producing agents all. So how many people do you have in your past clients sphere of influence and other people you know list and they'll go maybe 50 and something. Hold on you do 15 million a year and you only got 50 so what are some things that if if I want to build that list out. OK. So this actually a two to four question for why is it so important. And the easiest way to build it out. [00:12:47] Ok. So if people and the list is so important because again these are the people that trust you. So they're going to be more likely to refer you but you have to train these people to be your foot soldiers. They're not just going to know what to do. They have to be taught and trained what services you bring to the table how you can help and how they will not be ashamed or embarrassed to refer you because my husband actually he's a homebuilder and he has gotten to the point where he's like I'm not gaming out any names because people do a great job for me and then they don't show it for other people. It makes me look bad. So we don't want that. We want to train people to feel confident that they are giving the right choice because people do worry about that. You know they want to make sure we all want to look like heroes. So we want to look like a hero when we give someone's name. We want our guy to win because they're the best guy. Right. So it's so important because of that. When you teach them how to fight for passing your name along or getting people to actually work as a sales part of your team an unpaid sales part of your say. [00:14:02] How do you do that. How do you how do you train them how do you get them over and overcoming that fear that being a shame. Sure. Like you're your husband you know I'm not going to stop giving out referrals because they are you know they never go anywhere or or it comes back to me negative. [00:14:19] So how do you do that. [00:14:21] Well you have to keep the person who referred you completely updated at all times just had this conversation just want you to know I've gotten this this and this Don just want you know for instance I had someone that like a mentor relationship like you were singing send me a one of her really close friends if I'm hundred and or five hundred plus thousand our house to put on the market it goes love this week and it had been on the market previously with a different agent. That's a fantastic agent an agent that I've worked with. That I led. And this is actually happening to me over and over and over and over again. And it's I'm not I'm not sure if I'm handling it well but I'm doing that to try to make sure that I stay respectful. However she has been sending me updates. He said that you've done this and you've done that and you've done this. And let me just tell you it's a breath of fresh air and he's so happy he's told everyone here and this and this and this and this. So it's really keeping that person in the process and letting them know that you are working that you didn't abandon it. That they you're doing everything to make them look good. [00:15:33] You know that that's really interesting I was interviewing another agent recently he's. I don't know. [00:15:39] Probably 20 million in volume. The cool thing is he he works maybe 30 40 hours a week or less. And one of the his big pet peeves is this whole communication channel. But you're taking it to an interesting level because his focus is always stay in communication with the seller with your client. But you're saying at the same time you're stay in communication with your referring person at the same degree you would be doing it with one of your clients. [00:16:07] Yes. Now you have to fill that out just like you do with any relationship. Some people are not going to want to hear it. They're like Okay great yeah I know you're mean. It's rough. But especially to jumping back in. And I've been extremely nervous because I have been helping other people for so long. I know that everybody is just like waiting right waiting to say Oh yes. She thought she knew everything. And I feel the pressure of that of course. So that extra confidence is important to me and I am overdoing it right now. I'll probably chill out a little bit later but I can tell you that it's working. And it is constantly making her think of new people to send to me. [00:16:56] So let me let me go back to a little bit. So these are the things that you're doing right now. [00:17:01] Once you've gotten the referral you mentioned about training people to be your foot soldiers and to not be ashamed of referring to is the not being ashamed or referring to is it does that only come once they refer you and then you make them shine or is there anything you can do ahead of time. So it's like if I were an agent and I knew your husband and you weren't in real estate OK. And anything I can do to kind of help him not be ashamed to referring me. I mean how do you how do you do it on the front end or is it always on the back in. [00:17:35] Well I think you solidify on the back end for that next one but when someone's nervous on the front end I mean you have to be able to provide your value you have to show why you're different. You know what is it about you wash your hair are you going to better be very clear. So we have personal brochures that lists out you know 10 or 11 things. Let me just make it easy for you. Why hire extra living at XP Birmingham. That is our whole branding as selling. And I've got it listed out clearly. You don't have to think about it. These are just the bullet points and this is why. And these are testimonials from vendors. These are testimonials from the client that was sold their house and you know a few hours. These are testimonials from people that I've sold houses for over and over and over again and it's all in there because you have to have a confidence level if you are brand new. You can still have testimonials and you can have testimonials about your work ethic about who you are as a person about the unique things that really stand out. You still have 10 reasons 10 beautiful reasons that will be different from everyone else to hire you specifically. [00:18:48] Ok cool. So the second question I want to understand because I run into this a lot. [00:18:54] You know people say you know I've only got 40 or 50 people on my list and you want them to get to 150. How do you get there. You know do I really know that many people. What have you found any seekers to try to get to start going that list up yes. [00:19:13] Actually I've got a great shortcut and that is and I'm happy to share it with anyone. And Betty if you want and you know people will contact you about this. I do have Michael Myers 7 all memory jogger and he is the author of seven levels of communication is just something that I use he gives me permission to use it as long as I mentioned his name. And it's been a huge part of what I do since the day that I met him because it really prompts you do that and bank teller that always knows your name that you may not have stopped to learn their name. But think about how many people there in front of all day long. And I can tell you when I was in Mississippi selling the bank tellers helped me out so much because I went by every other day to see them and make my rounds around town. And I remember one bank teller telling me one day I came in to bring fliers of the newest listings so that they would know that I had for sale and this girl said to me I'd been waiting for you to get here all day. I spoke to this woman she's ready to put her house on the market and I said she has to speak to you. And and that's super important. I mean we want to target and make sure that we have people who cut hair. Think of how many people there in front of every day a week. Think of the PTA president. How would a leadership role that they are in and how many people that they speak to everyday. That small group leader at church. Do you know I have a client that you can trace back almost every bit of his business to church. Really. Yes. And that's very powerful. So you know people always joke and say Gaza I'm doing the wrong one. And you probably didn't. You're probably just not being visible with your values. [00:21:00] So when you talk about looking for people who are connectors These are the people you're talking about those people who are at least this is what I'm interpreting right now. [00:21:10] Now the teller the hairdresser the PTO president the small group leaders those people here and in groups of people as opposed to that person you think well I think this person can connect me to their own personal friends. You're looking for those are in the marketplace with lots of people. [00:21:28] Yes that's exactly it. And sometimes to you have to prompt and. You can't just hear a lot of people say as long as you live on people let them know you're there they'll send you business that is not true. You to ask for the business. Now you don't have to ask for it and a rude aggressive way. Or assume that you're going to get it through language. [00:21:52] You will want to always say that you are happy to help. And you know making sure that you make the comment to refer. I can always handle it. And here's the here's the here's the magic question that I like to use Here's the script that I want people to use at least 10 times a day with new people they haven't met yet. And you can set it up anywhere you want to and your style. But this is it works and and you are all about research so you'll like the research behind this. And you've probably heard me say it before but set it up any way you want to and I'm going to set it up and then I'll share it with you the piece of it. The magic. So they don't know if you know what's going on in the real estate market right now. It's a crazy shortage. I've had buyers calling and calling and calling. There's just nothing we've exhausted everything in MLS right now. And I just want really good people to be able to take advantage of this appreciating market and the seller shortage that we have. I'm desperate though to help these people. What three people do you know that need to sell a house in the next 60 days I like that line. That is what I mean. And I made it my style my natural style. I added in the sense of urgency I added in my passion for helping people. It's not sales. It is I am desperate for your help. [00:23:17] And that reminds me. I don't know if you know I won't mention his name just in case but he's an agent here in town a friend of mine. [00:23:25] His name is Rob and he was telling me of it's really funny because you know sometimes the real travel hit on a goldmine and they don't even know it. So he had a friend that wanted to buy a house in the certain area. He couldn't find one. So Rob wrote a letter that says I have a client he's working in this area. He can't find a house if you're interested in selling could you please call me and so you put it in these all these mailboxes. He said I picked up two or three listings. None of them were the ones that my my client wanted. And I said Rob did you do it again. You said right. Yeah I know. [00:24:04] We actually have a letter that for our patient clients that is already written that has had success time and time and time again for reverse prospecting. That exact way. And yes I had one client pick up two listings in one neighborhood for that and actually sold it to the people that he was working with the buyer that he was working with. So that absolutely does work. And no because it works agents normally don't do it again. [00:24:32] They just kept. [00:24:33] Hey I've got to come back to one of these things. [00:24:36] So because the personal list is so valuable your group of 40 has been ringing your phone off the hook basically. Yes. Talk to me if you were just to list off the top of your head. Who are those connector type roles so that people on this call they can start to make a list of people that fit those roles. Who would they be. [00:25:00] So a lot of times it's going to be your lenders that have leadership roles they're going to be in front of a lot of people. It's going to be your PTA presidents it's going to be your little league coaches and coaches even high school little league baseball football basketball have so much influence. And parents just want a piece of them. And those are really good people to have in your world. I know nothing about sports that would be ridiculously phony of make to add those people into my world. All right introductions are important. So using the triangle and trust and Michael also states that in his book is very important so if you are meeting with someone that you feel is a connector then you want to ask them. I'm out here really trying to get to know people in the community so that I can help people buy here sale here. Who do you recommend that and meet right away and that way you will get a couple of names and then you say would you mind calling them and introducing me so that I'm not calling colorfully and if you start getting into other people insurance salesman just think about how many people they know. And oftentimes we forget to market to them. It doesn't matter if they already have a real estate agent you're just wanting to go in and find a way you can help that person and they will figure out how to get you a referral. They may never use you. It doesn't matter it doesn't matter. Show your value and they will have people that aren't connected to an agent come your way. [00:26:54] I love that. So now we've got this list built. OK so I've got my list of 150 or 200 or more. [00:27:02] What do I do next. How do I maximize driving consistent business from that list. [00:27:09] And you got one you've got to communicate right. And then you have to do it often. You have to be so visible these days it's not something that you're going to send out once a month or once a quarter. And agents are terrible about will I send out one Christmas card every year you're going to be lost in the shuffle and you're never going to be heard of again because you're not visible in their role and you want to make sure that people know that you care about them. If they only hear from you one time a year when it's expected at Christmas. That's not a whole lot of care and that's not a whole lot of concern. And really it's all about you. So a couple of things to you don't want to get into the fallacy of well that didn't work. I sent it out four times and nobody called me. When you have to have the right message and you have to be very very consistent I find that you better be sending you know at least 30 at least 30 touches to your clients and it doesn't have to be money. But it's much one on one personal attention as you can give is where you're going to get the most value. [00:28:20] So tell me. So we've got to communicate. First off I immediately think OK. Does that mean I'm texting them. Does that mean I'm sending them an e-mail calling them. [00:28:31] What what do you find. And I'm sure it's probably a mixture of all that but I also say yes. [00:28:37] Yeah. OK. OK. So what do I say. What do I do. I've got this list too I just started dialing them and saying hey you know it's good to talk to you and you know let me check it off and go to the next one or help. [00:28:51] How can you guide me. What I say on that because I get this all the time with agents. [00:28:56] You do. I absolutely do. And you have a great system in place for helping people do that as well. If for some reason you want to try to do this on your own. And if you're very busy it is going to be overwhelming. So it's great to have some personal resources to help out because you won't be consistent. And then when you're not consistent you're going to have those peaks and valleys peaks and valleys peaks and valleys and you need something working behind you as you're in appointments all day long because you can't do it all. You can't be personal to 500 people at one time. It's very difficult to handle that because it snowballs. The reason we won't 150 I want to make sure to give the science behind that as well is because one hundred and fifty people in your sphere of influence communicated with on a regular basis will produce it's proven all the numbers have been done. All the statistics come in over and over and over again 30 sales for you per year at one hundred and fifty thousand average sales price will get you on your six figures. And that is truly the path to take it. So I like a combination of things. And some of the things that I'll do is I'll just sit there and text people and I don't do it in a group. Some things are good for Gary and I use it for anything that I have for free. I'll share it with you. I use an app called group text and it's free. I think they may charge just a little bit to download it now but whenever they respond it'll come just to you and it won't come back to the group. Do not ever send a group message to everyone how embarrassing and unprofessional is that. Yes. And I had agents do that to me all the time. Somebody sent me the other day a great message because I'm a part of a condo complex and somebody responded I thought she was talking to me and I was like I'm so sorry you're not on my contact list to worry. [00:30:52] Oh my gosh this embarrassing. [00:30:57] I will just sit down if I have free time and go Hey how's it going. What's going on in your world. You always want to make everything about them. It's not about you it's it's it's about them until you have an opportunity or it to be about you and asking back most of the time when you're about other people they will ask you what they can do to help you. So I had one of my really good friends ask the other day if I would buy a sign for the ball field and baby my child was at that ball field from the time he was four years old up until the time he was 18 he played baseball all those years and he was on the high school team and her child was on the high school team and it was time to sell signs and I said Yes get me some referrals. I mean seriously I could say that right. And of course we have a connection and she laughed at me. She's like You can't think of anybody right now and I'm like No there's somebody. That ball field right now because she was at a work day at the ball field that is thinking about meeting. Go ask him. She came back and she's like oh my gosh so-and-so I was moving as soon as graduation happens they're going to Florida blah blah blah. And then she was like This is their address. This is their contact number. And then a few minutes later she goes oh so I said they were. Right. And so she gave me two great leads just by doing that. You can't get away with that with everyone. [00:32:24] She's one of my really good friends. But she asked me for five hundred dollars it would be right to ask back a percent then that could potentially pay me back for that in a nice and in a great way. So when you start with personalization like that the events are a great thing. I have lots of clients do you maybe and that's where they'll have three here. Seventy five people show up and I will watch the referrals or and from that because we have to prompt people to refer you to an event. You don't want them just come in soaking up everything and leave and you do you want to have a great time but we have referral cards that we'll put out in each one of the seats. With the magic question on it what three people do you know and we give you more lines than three and they'll. They'll bring them out. I'll watch it pour out of the seats and turn those in. So anytime you can provide fun and value for people the other things of course are going to be a mixture of maybe some greeting cards some emails does not need to be listing after listing after listing if you do take a listing that you want to share you can email that to everyone in bed something about that house in that email. We use MailChimp it's free and you can send that out and say in the subject line please please share this with someone who. And then describe who that person is that's perfect for that neighborhood or for that house itself so that you can get some shares out of it. [00:33:59] Because you're asking for interaction you're asking for help. It's not Roma. Look at me I did this. Look at me I did that. You're gonna put that in and you're gonna sprinkle it in. Because you want your success stories there because you want that confidence to refer that that just gives you some sense some good ideas there and there are lots lots more and you can do newsletters are a great thing to do. [00:34:21] You just need a mixture not don't hammer people with emails costly they don't have value you know this is interesting because what it sells like is and I know it is you're taking a very deliberate approach to nurturing the list you're in your free time you're just taxing little personal messages you're doing the maybe events you're doing these events over here sending something to Melcher you're just always there but it's really deliberate. So it sounds overwhelming. [00:34:51] How do you how do you systematized How do you how do you structure it so that it doesn't fall through the cracks and you're up and down and up and down like you were talking about earlier well the best way is to plan out everything that you're going to do for the whole year and schedule it so then you can have a really good feel for when you need to have things ready. Now working with agents for many many years we did that with custom marketing plans. And it is very difficult to get their approval and okay. And then the time lapses so it can be a struggle but just sitting down and then reviewing it once a quarter we said we were going to do this winter our deadlines to have it ready. When do we need to approve it. When is it going out. It doesn't have to be completely written some of your greeting cards can be and some of your events can be some of your calls and text messages can be planned but you can kind of like the e-mails you know find what your topics are going to be it's got to be value. So it's either what's happening around town this week are here's some money saving things you can do for this week you know ways that you can give back. So it's not all real estate real estate middle estate and you can be flexible with the messages and those that are getting a good topic and those things will help you get it done. But you know what my real answer is is just call you and you can take care. [00:36:17] Yes. [00:36:18] Well we'll put it in an unabashed plug at them at the end. [00:36:25] I mean I know I've done this job for many years just get someone else to do it. [00:36:29] It's you know it's what's really funny. Not to plug guys but just to springboard off of that. [00:36:37] When as we started working with a lot of agents across the country one of the thing the common theme people people said they did business with us is because they don't know what they're doing number one or number two they just need something that's automated because they captured. They keep trying. And it falls flat and then they forget to do it and they just want something consistent and there's a lot to be said on that. I want to shift topics a little bit and go off at an angle real quickly because before the call started you know we're talking about your Christian faith. And talk to me in terms of how how does that influence what you do as a realtor and and how do you kind of apply it as a realtor then or does it make an impact at all. [00:37:26] Yes actually it does today. It hasn't always and I'll be extremely honest about where I've been with all of this. I was raised in a household that I wasn't allowed to go to church. My dad was Catholic and my mother was Southern Baptist. And they didn't see the need for choosing and deciding and pitting us. There were certain path and I believe that my mother had a lot of scars from religion from the whole deal so it wasn't talked about. It wasn't. I just didn't believe because there was nothing for me to believe. I wasn't compelled by anything I've had different people reach out to me throughout the years though. I had one man that I was a bat girl for the baseball team when I was in high school and he was had some mental issues but he was so faithful he was so faithful. And for my 16th birthday he just prayed for me all the time he bought me saved his money bought me a Bible that had my name engraved on it and it I mean it was really so special. But I am stubborn that didn't move me much. It moved me because he thought so much of me to do that. But now looking back I see where that came from. You know that was just trying to soften me up and listen and I did. I just kept doing my own thing. [00:39:00] And it really is not until the past few years that I have recognized and realized and become a strong believer and dedicated my business to Christ and pray every day that his grace shines through me and his light shines through me for every person that I meet. Not for a gain but just that they see you know that I am a light of his. And now I think I've shared with you. I am actually on a core group for a church planet here in my town of Chelsea so we've come a long way with all this is a long way. [00:39:43] So. So as a Christian you want to really just kind of live out your faith as a real estate agent. OK. Is there anything so you pray about it in the morning. OK. And pray for your business. How else do you use your faith. How else do you live it. [00:40:03] When I say I had my long prayer book but it's never there it usually sits right here and I write my prayers out every day and dedicate my business to Christ. And you know I am just now getting into learning more about tithing and what that means and the commitment of that and being faithful to that because I've always done offerings instead and found someone that I needed to help and poured my love my money and my energy into them. And I'm still doing that. I'm helping a friend right now doing everything she can to get her out of foreclosure so that she can stay in the house with her two special needs sons. That's my number one mission right now. It's so. And don't get me wrong please baby. I am the biggest potty mouth. I am such a center. And it's just amazing that we have that love and grace through Christ that we get redeemed every day. So I don't take that lightly and it means a lot to me and I try to make all my decisions based on what is good for others. [00:41:23] So let let me maybe moving off a business platform a little bit Anderson personally in terms of your relationship with Christ if you were just kind of sum it up put it means to you and and how it's impacted you can you just kind of share some candid thoughts on that yes I can and I can articulate many things. [00:41:50] This is harder to articulate I feel because it's so powerful it is so much bigger than who we are what we do for a living. You know I strongly feel like we are here to make a difference and to show love through everything that is that we do. That doesn't mean I don't get frustrated that I don't get angry that I'm not the biggest road rage there. But to step back from that and say hey my duty is to make sure that I show grace and love through everything that it is that I do. So I feel like that's what it means to me. I found a way through a lady that worked for me for years who I adore found a Bible study and we were actually doing it in our office and inviting all the business partners to and coaching clients to come and take part in it. And it just completely blew me away and moved me that we we did part two as well and now she has a new book out and she lives here in town and it is she's so smart and intelligent she knows all the Hebrew she knows Greek she knows every interpretation of every word and it made so much sense to me when I started learning through Tricia what Grace really means. And she had an encounter also with Christ. It's just so touching and to me it's completely changed my perspective my outlook it's really changed how I feel and see the world and see you know my love for Christ. [00:43:34] So the outlook that's changed. OK so let's talk about perspective. [00:43:37] Let's go backwards in time to that point before that bible study or before things really started to take off with just your faith and understanding this measure of grace and compare it here versus here where you are now. What's the perspective that's changed. And how does it change your life. [00:44:00] Well for one I decided to just surrender and dark trying to control everything on my own because I am not good at that. [00:44:15] I me I'm not and let myself you know do what I can to go down the path that has already been laid out for me instead of me trying to control every path and because last year was complete proof to me that I do not know do not make the best decisions and a really tough year last year. And nothing. Nothing bad but it's not ideal. And just since I had done that this year based on those beliefs that I learned I learned logically on through Tricia's teachings and really digging in to all the studies of grace. Honest just so powerful my perspective today is just let it go and let God let it go. [00:45:13] Let it go and just amazing to me that opportunities come in everywhere. I said to Zach who works with me and I said to my husband they yesterday said God is telling me he wants to pay me from every single direction. If I just stay faithful that he's got this Kiva because yesterday I had a stellar after stellar after stellar call I had a listing appointment I had new agents joining XP with me and I had a speaking engagements. And it just rang off the hook yesterday and it's like what are you even worried about. [00:45:52] Well that's so true you know and you know the Lord really does take care of everything. [00:45:57] I'm going to blow your mind on one part so you know it says in the Bible that he prepared beforehand all of the good works and so all of the things that we're struggling with that we're worrying about. The Lord has already made provision for them is just a matter of trusting him to deliver that provision. Does that make sense. Yeah absolutely it does. One of the things that I find in terms of receiving that I think it's sore. I think it's in mark the passage of because there are several passages in the Gospel where Peter is walking on the water and apologize my light just went out the above one of them is the passage it's a little bit more in long gated and it says that he steps out of the boat and he starts walking on the water. And as soon as he takes his eyes off of Jesus and puts his eyes on the wind and on the natural he becomes afraid and he sings and Jesus reaches out and grab him and says you a little faith. Why did you doubt and here's the thing that's been so remarkable for me on that is we see the same situations where like a little laboratory Okay we have walking by the spirit walking by the flesh the identical situation but two completely different outcomes based entirely where you put your focus. And when we get in those tough times and we put our focus on ourself and on the situation it seems like we just keep dropping down further and further and getting tougher and tougher times. But once we put our eyes on the Lord and trust him and provision then it seems like everything starts to calm out and and work. Does that make sense. [00:47:39] Absolutely I see it completely. See it in other people's lives all the time and it's always easier to see other people's blessings or other people's gaps more so than ours. That yesterday it was a perfect example of being showered with gifts and knowing that you actually are walking the right path. [00:48:03] So for me it's so true. We're getting close to the time of wrapping up. [00:48:09] Is there anything else that you would like to share anything that we've talked about. Anything from business from personal. Anything else before we start to wrap up. [00:48:21] Yeah. Two things really. And when I did not mention one of the other things that I've had to do to build my sphere of influence and that call expired listings. And that's been fun for me. When the very first phone call I made my hand was shaking like this. [00:48:39] No I understand. [00:48:40] Yep. I just haven't done it in so long and so I had one of my clients who I adore and she's at peace with me. She made her come to the house and sit in front of me and she made calls I made calls you make calls I made calls because I knew that I wouldn't do it and I would find every excuse not to do it. If she wasn't here making me and I was doing it I was making excuses while she was here. I need to research it. Now you don't you just need to call him and I want to see what it looks like. No you just need a call. I said well if I say this and she goes you tell us what to say every day. I said You're right. And I made the phone call and the heart was just pounding. He probably heard it on the voicemail. It went to voicemail and I left a message and said you know. I don't know if that's going to work but I'm gonna give it another push. So I went over to the house and I left. I wrote a letter about a recent real estate transaction that I was involved in and that was kind of similar to what I saw with with his house and a laugh on those big popcorn turns with the letter by his door and didn't hear anything. And a few days later he called and he said we just had the best voice mail for me. We loved it. Your voicemail was the best. Your letter was the best and oh my God I wanted one of those popcorn tins for Christmas and didn't buy one. [00:50:10] I love it and it's five dollars right. And he said you have to come over. [00:50:16] You have to remember they loved everything I said until we got to the price. And I'm just gonna be honest with people I'm just not going to be one of those. I'm going to list you for this and try to get you down later because rarely does that work out. So I did crush their spirits but it was a house that had been on the market three different times and didn't have one showing so I had to be completely honest. But it made me feel good because the very first then called going back and I got the appointment. And that's what we need every single time we have to have appointments nuclear appointments or what feeds us. And I am super hyper focused on that listing appointment. The buyers will come they will show what they will come out of the woodwork. They will call on your signs. They will call from your Internet presence. They will call from your Facebook presence. Don't worry about chasing the buyers. They will show up in your world find the listings that you can help. And so the second thing I wanted to say was is that one of my clients who came to me years and years and years ago he had he was worn out worn out and he had closed 60 transactions and he said I want to do more but I cannot work on that a minute. [00:51:29] And that was because he was working all the buyers and I said we've got to shift you to a listing agent. And he asked What's ideal what what would you want to. What's the area you would want to own. And he gave me a city and he said never sold anything in that city. I said doesn't matter. I don't know about you yet. And that's when I called you and I introduced you to him and put your plan for direct mail in place and it seriously was crickets crickets crickets crickets crickets crickets. Oh my gosh did we stop it. No I think you should hang in there than me go in. Oh my gosh I don't know. Now he would say no let's keep going. And it was almost overnight success after the 12th month because what we were saying about the research before it takes so many times to train foot soldiers these people don't know you and to be visible. It takes that consistency over a length of time and nobody wakes up today and says oh my gosh baby I want to sell my house today. [00:52:32] You know that's so true. I want to go back to the first of the last comments you made. [00:52:39] Cold calling because I think it's so typical of what happens is we get scared to pick up the phone and it's that fear this inside our brain has nothing to do with reality. OK right. Oh yeah. You know in fact I heard someone say that what you believed to be true becomes your reality. So yes we just get scared of it. But I love. I think there are three takeaways that I get out of that no one. You're doing what you have to do. It's uncomfortable but you're going to pick up that phone and doing I love the fact that you got a friend and you say hold me accountable. [00:53:15] Ok. Hi it's me in the face right. That's right. You're my accountability partner. [00:53:21] You know if I if my wife and I got off tangent but on tap on on target my wife and I will go play tennis and we're just easy social tennis players. And I'm not out there very aggressively. But then we say OK let's make a let's make a deal on who wins and what's going to happen. And then I don't give up. So you know you sometimes you just have to make that happen. I'm sorry. I love that. The other thing I loved is that you didn't stop at the voicemail but you took a handwritten note and a gift. And as soon as you mentioned that I thought back on one of my other clients that for every listening appointment he drops off some information about himself and a gift before his listing appointment. And frequently if he's in a comfort competitive environment you'll always get the listing. And almost every time that a homeowner will lean over and say something like you know the gift got to the deal. And so you can't underestimate just that 10 a popcorn of whatever you do just as a nice gesture. [00:54:25] You're right. Well as it's stands now it's another thing to say your business means so much to me I went to this little bit of extra effort and that's why I named the branding for selling extra living. Not only have extra but that we make an extra effort because so few people make extra efforts or effort at all. So I don't want to say that I provide service. I want to show you. And that's just a way to prove that you are providing value and you're willing to do what it takes to help someone out. [00:55:02] I love that. So I said earlier where we're trying to close off and I think that was maybe 10 or 15 minutes ago. So I keep getting I kept getting sucked in because it's so much fun talking with you. [00:55:14] But we do have to close has to be sensitive to our listeners out there but now I don't know are you. Yes I know so you're training with the expert you're doing your own production. If if if someone if someone wants your help. Is there a way I mean are you still doing anything in the coaching ranks. OK tell me a little bit about that and how people can engage with you can contact you learn more. What what's that. How to do it. How did they do that. [00:55:44] Sir we and very active on Facebook and we have a fairly large following on Facebook and get a real estate line. That's the name of the coaching company that I have. Get a real estate life because we help people actually get a real estate line. And you can look it up on Facebook or you can go to get a real estate life dot com. I have baby what's called six figure intensity and it is what it says. It's six feet your intensity it is the path I've taken a whole year of one on one coaching and put it in 16 sessions that last for eight weeks. So it's two sessions a week for eight weeks and we do it in a private group on Facebook and it is examples it's materials it is heavy. How to use what to do every single day to fill your calendar at all based on mastic speed your day a point system that I created years ago to ensure that you aren't fooling yourself and you're actually being productive. I'll give you my cell number. It's 2 0 5 2 2 3 1 0 4 4 and text is normally the fastest way but I can tell you my phone's been blowing I have about three hundred and nineteen text messages I have to answer today so it still is the fastest way for me to get back with you and I'd love to meet you if you just want to chat and let me just saw photo personal endorsement for Genny on that she really does a great job a lot of the top producers here in our city they've been coaching with her and that's one of the reasons they are top producers so let me really strongly encourage you to do that. [00:57:28] So we ought to wrap up but if you do like this podcast I guess Heller is calling you. Be sure to subscribe to it. Be sure to like it if you're on iTunes or Stitcher or doing watching it on YouTube. And we've just been able to share some some great stuff with you. Genny thank you so much for your time and thank you for sharing your life. [00:57:47] Thank you so much for allowing me to be here. Always on chat with you. [00:57:52] I do too. I do too. We all have a great day. [00:57:54] And thank and then let me start to record. [/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container] !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s) {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)}; if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0'; n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0; t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script', 'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js'); fbq('init', '2169469429763697'); fbq('track', 'PageView');

GUEST BIO: Rob Lambert began his career as a tester, creating The Social Tester blog before moving into Engineering Management.  He likes to share his experiences and the lessons he has learned in the hope that others won’t repeat common errors.  Rob is also an occasional speaker, an author and a podcaster. EPISODE DESCRIPTION: Phil’s guest on his show, today, is Rob Lambert. He began his IT career working in the field of testing. He spent years building an agile team and coming up with a process that reduced release cycles from years to weeks. A way of working that is now used across the world. These days, he runs his own consultancy company. His focus is on helping managers and leaders to find the right people, retain them and develop their skills further. KEY TAKEAWAYS: ­­(1.00) – So Rob, can you expand on that brief introduction and tell us a little bit more about yourself? Rob explained that he started his IT career by testing software. But, he always wanted to get involved in the creative industries by writing books and making films. It was that desire which led to him starting his blog and took him on his publishing and public speaking journey. He is kept very busy by his three kids and the demands of his work, but still finds the time to write his blog and publish a book every couple of years.  When it comes to writing, Rob takes a disciplined approach. Every day, he just takes himself away, shuts off everything else and writes solidly for an hour. Usually, he produces 500 to 1000 words. Over the course of six months to a year, that adds up to at least one book. (3.01) – Phil asks Rob for a unique IT career tip. Rob says that one of the things he teaches is learning to “trade your freedoms wisely”. Before you join an organization you need to stop and think about what freedoms you are trading to work for them. Organizations place all kinds of restrictions on you. They have rules you have to follow. Things like what you wear, where you work, which platforms you can work on, rigid processes you have to follow. All kinds of things, we never think about. If you end up working in an environment you hate on projects that bore you using clunky tools and processes, inevitably, you will feel frustrated. Think about your principles and values too. Rob and others involved in IT HR are seeing a lot of people burn out. Often, it is not because they are working long hours. It is usually because they are working for a firm that does not share their values and principles. (5.06) – So, evaluating your right decision before you make a commitment? Rob says “Yeah, I think so.” Sometimes he goes into some less than stellar organizations and finds some really talented people, who could do a lot better. Yet they stay. Usually, it is because their most important freedoms are being met. Perhaps it is the salary, the fact the location is right for them, the team is good or that the projects they work on are interesting. Phil sums it up by saying it sounds like you need to find a fair balance between your values and the company you work for. Rob agrees, but says that sometimes that is not possible. In that situation working for yourself can be the right solution. (6.45) – Rob is asked to share his worst career moment by Phil. A few years back, Rob got obsessed with wanting to earn more money. It led to him switching jobs. The interview was carried out in a swish, glamorous environment, but because the job was with The Ministry of Defense he did not get to see the actual office he would be working in. When he did, his heart sank. It was in a terrible state of repair, ceiling tiles falling off, holes in the wall. Nothing was happening, everyone was playing solitaire. It was awful - within 8 days he upped and left. Luckily, the next gig he found was perfect for him. (9.08) – Phil asks Rob what he learned from that experience. Rob said, it taught him to never be driven by money alone. It is never enough compensation for doing an awful job. He also advises you not to take a job without seeing the workspace you will be working out of first. His third tip is to think carefully about the freedoms you will have to give up. (10.27) – Phil asks Rob what his best career moment was. Rob is most proud of his time at NewVoiceMedia. While there he and that team took release rollout lead times down from 14 months to basically weekly releases. During his time there, they went from being a startup to employing 120 people and hired some of the best people in the industry. Employee retention and engagement was high and finding new colleagues was not hard. With hard but effective work, everything fell into place and the company was recently acquired. (12.18) – Phil asks Rob whether there are things he has taken forward from that experience. Rob says it taught him how to become a manager. Across those 7 or 8 years he interviewed about 400 people and discovered his talent for HR and building successful teams. Those are the skills that have taken him to where he is today. (13.28) – Phil asks what excites Rob about the future for the IT industry. The fact that companies are moving towards respecting their employees more is a promising sign. Firms are looking more at people’s individual strengths and allowing them to expand their skills and fulfill traditional roles in different ways. It is an environment that encourages people to thrive. It enables people to grow and carry the businesses forward at the same time. (15.13) – What drew you to a career in IT? Rob was studying media science at university at a time when the internet was in its infancy. He was learning to take complex scientific subjects and working out ways to share them using the media with ordinary people. At the time, the internet did not seem important to him. Rob ended up doing all kinds of mundane jobs while at uni, for example, working in a snack factory. When he left university somehow he ended up as a software tester. That was it, suddenly, Rob found himself in the world of IT and he enjoyed it so much that he made it his career, (16.19) – What is the best career advice you’ve ever received? Interestingly, for Rob that advice came from a book rather than a person. The book is called Growing a Business by Paul Hawken. It was written in the 80s and is basically about setting up and running a mail order company. But, the book is packed with great general advice that is still relevant today. The thing that caught Rob’s eye was the quote “a good business has interesting problems and a bad business has boring ones.” Now, when he looks for his next job he asks himself if the problems he will be solving will be boring or interesting. It is a great way to make sure he only works for the right types of companies. (17.09) – If you were to start your IT career again, now, what would you do? Rob says that he would do pretty much the same. But, he would have learned a technical skill and how to communicate well, at an earlier point in his career. If you are a technical person with good communication skills finding good work is really easy. (17.57) – Phil asks Rob what he is currently focusing on. Rob responded by saying that he is working on growing his management and consulting business. He is also working on his training arm by running more workshops and courses (18.38) – What is the number one non-technical skill that has helped you the most in your IT career? Rob’s response was – “without a doubt, good communication skills”, which are essential. To help the IT Career Energizer audience to learn these skills, Rob shared a link to his book “10 Behaviors of Effective Employees”, which you can download for free, from this page. (19.10) – Phil agrees, he says that sometimes we forget that communication is a two-way process. We tend to think about communication only from our own perspective. Not the other person’s. Rob agreed, no matter what you think you have done if the other person still does not understand. You have definitely not communicated effectively.  (19.47) – Phil asks Rob to share a final piece of career advice. Rob says it is really important to treat people, like people. Treat everyone the way you would like to be treated. If you are a manager build the type of team that you would personally enjoy working in. BEST MOMENTS: (2.29) ROB – “I just write, and in that one hour a day, you maybe get, I don't know, 500 to a 1000 words out. Over the course of six months to a year, you've got yourself a book.” (3.59) ROB – “You have to be very careful about how you choose to trade your freedoms.” (9.17) ROB – “Don't ever be driven just by money alone. Because, you know what, it never compensates for what can be an awful job in an awful environment.” (17.40) ROB – “Our industry is sadly lacking very technical people who can communicate and articulate with nontechnical people.” (19.15) PHIL – “Sometimes we forget, the communication is a two-way thing.” (20.04) ROB – “You're never more than, you know, two or three LinkedIn connections away from someone who may or may not have worked with you in the past.” CONTACT ROB LAMBERT: Twitter: https://twitter.com/Rob_Lambert @Rob_Lambert LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertlambert/ Website: http://cultivatedmanagement.com/

Show Summary: (Full Transcript Below) Blind Abilities presents this chat with Jo Fishwick, as Jeff Thompson caught up with her in Teignmouth, england. Joe is the Chairperson of VI Talk, a Charitable, Incorporated Organization (CIO). VI Talk is aimed at people with a visual impairment, anyone who knows someone with a visual impairment, or someone who has a connection with an organization or group that offers services or support to visually impaired people. VI Talk is on Facebook, with seven individual groups for your choosing and on twittersharing ideas, information and support. Jo shares her story of growing up in the UK with a visual impairment, her schooling, her journey into volunteerism and employment, her work at Cliffden Hotel in Teignmouth, and her challenges as a VI parent. Join Jeff Thompson as he chats with Jo, an old and dear friend, as only Blind Abilities can present. Thank you CheeChau for your beautiful music. You can follow CheeChau on Twitter. Thanks for Listening! Contact: You can follow us on Twitter @BlindAbilities On the web at www.BlindAbilities.com Send us an email Get the Free Blind Abilities App on the App Store. Get the Free blind Abilities App on the Google Play Store Full Transcript: Meet Jo Fishwick: Charitable Pioneer, Assistive Technology Coordinator, Wife and Mother Pete Lane:           Welcome to Blind Abilities. This is Pete Lane. We'd like to introduce you to our guest, Jo Fishwick. Jo is visually impaired an assisted technology instructor, a wife, and a mother. Jo is also the chairperson of VI Talk, an ongoing charitable organization who's goal is to equip blind and visually impaired folks in the UK to not only manage their blindness, but to thrive. Speaker 2: Welcome to VI Talk. Sharing ideas, information, and support. Jo Fishwick: We started just as a Facebook group, as a voluntary group in January 2014. Then we got an Audioboom channel in March 2014. We started doing link days, which basically is an opportunity for blind or partially sighted people, or anybody who works in that field to get together. I had to transition from using print to braille and I was so glad I was prepared for that. Although it was still difficult, you know, it was great. So I run a braille support group on Facebook for anybody who's learning braille, or just wants a bit of extra help, drop me a message on Facebook, and I'll approve your request to join. The same with the VI Talk groups. We've got seven of those now. A glutton for punishment, us. Pete Lane: Jo is also a good friend of our own Jeff Thompson, who had a chance to catch up with Jo while he was visiting the UK. Jeff Thompson: Indian summer? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, it's lovely isn't it? Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Glad I'm here right now. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, you couldn't have picked better. Pete Lane: We're at the Clifton Hotel, which is in teignmouth. Jo Fishwick: Six or seven acres now, yeah. It was owned by Guide Dogs back in the day. Well, owned by Guide Dogs, but run by the RNIB. Pete Lane: Sharing her story. Jo Fishwick: It is lovely. I feel very lucky to live here. Been here for six and a half years now. Pete Lane: And her advice. Jo Fishwick: You've got to be patient with yourself. Don't expect everything to happen in a day. It is a grieving process. Losing your sight, it's a form of grief. Because you're losing something. It's very precious to you. Pete Lane: Now, let's join Jeff Thompson, and our guest, Jo Fishwick. Jeff Thompson: Welcome to Blind Abilities. I'm Jeff Thompson, and I'm in Teignmouth, England, and I'm sitting here with Jo Fishwick, and she is the ... what title would you call that for the VI Talk? Jo Fishwick: Chair of VI Talk, because it's a charity. A charitable incorporated organization, which is just a different form of charity. Jeff Thompson: And you got a big event coming up here this month. Jo Fishwick: We do. We started doing link days, which basically is an opportunity for blind and partially sighted people, or anybody who works in that field to get together during the day, at an event, and we're going to have speakers. So we've got one at Bradbury Fields, which is a local blind society up in the northwest of England, in Liverpool. So, we've got four speakers coming along. So we've got somebody talking about employment, and they're going to be offering opportunities for people in that area to get some employment, hopefully. Jo Fishwick: We've got somebody talking about sports and activities, hopefully motivate people to get involved with that kind of thing. And we got some technology, and we've got Bradbury Fields themselves talking about their services. Jeff Thompson: A big day? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, it's good. Then we've got another one in London in November. Similar kind of theme. Just a chance for people to get together, but with some social time as well. Because the feedback we get is people want to learn from each other. It's that kind of thing, isn't it? When somebody's done something and they pass that on. Someone thinks, "Well, if they can do it, maybe I could have a go?" Jeff Thompson: Oh yeah, experience is the best teacher. Jo Fishwick: Absolutely. Jeff Thompson: And you started this back in the Audioboom days? Jo Fishwick: I did. We started just as a Facebook group, just a voluntary group in January 2014. Then we got an Audioboom channel, well audio boo as it was then, in March 2014. It was actually you who kind of gave me the heads up on how to proceed with that. So, thank you very much for that. Then two years down the line, more or less, February 17th, 2016 we were granted charity status. The rest is history. Pete Lane: Welcome to VI Talk, sharing ideas, information and support. Jo Fishwick: Hi everyone, it's Jo, and I have with me Dawn. Dawn:                Hi. Jo Fishwick: It's a pleasure to introduce the first time on VI Talk, Ben, who I met at Sight Village, and he has a really interesting project to talk about. Hi Ben. Ben:                 Hello. Hi, thanks for having me. Jeff Thompson: Now Jo, a long time ago we talked about braille, and you gave this great talk about braille. Braille is very important to you. Jo Fishwick: It is, yeah. Very important. I learned braille when I was 12, and thank God for that, because I lost ... well, I kind of knew I was probably going to lose my sight, but nobody knew exactly when. They insisted I learned braille at 12, and I got a detached retina at 14. Smack bang in the middle of my O levels in CSE's for those who remember those days in Britain. So I had to transition from using print to braille, and I was so glad I was prepared for that. Although it was still difficult, it was great. Jo Fishwick: So I run a braille support group on Facebook. For anybody who's learning braille, or just wants a bit of extra help. Maybe they're changing from what we call standard English Braille, to UEB, which means that everybody's kind of together in braille, I guess. I love it, I love having notes in front of me. If I'm doing meetings, committee meetings for VI Talk, I just like to have notes in front of me, and braille just allows me to do that. Jeff Thompson: How can they find that Facebook page? Jo Fishwick: If you search braille support group, you'll find it. There's a couple of questions to ask you why you want to join, and if you're visually impaired, or work in the field of visual impairment. And just answer those questions. Or drop me a message on Facebook, and I'll approve your request to join. Jo Fishwick: The same with the VI Talk groups. We've got seven of those now. Glutton for punishment, us. So, we've got our main group. We've got the resources group, we've got sports travel, book club. Just recently we've opened a music one, and also arts and crafts. So people can share their idea of what they do for hobbies and things in the arts and crafts field. And hopefully encourage other people to have a go. Jo Fishwick: So there's people that already post about knitting, crocheting, sewing, all sorts of things. Jeff Thompson: You guys have got it all locked up? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, just if somebody comes to us and says, "What about this?" We'll think about it and we'll go. Yeah, we did get asked to open a dating group, but we kind of said no, it's a bit too complicated, the whole dating scene. Yeah, we thought the whole kind of safeguarding thing and you know. Jeff Thompson: It's where they can find people by other interests like knitting. Hey, go for it, you know? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, definitely. Sport, you know, get on the sport group or travel group. With travel it doesn't have to be that you've gone on some accessible travel or anything, it could be that you've gone mainstream, but you found it particularly useful, and helpful and that maybe staff at the hotel or something, or in a resort have been great. Come and tell everybody about it. Jeff Thompson: And you have a guide dog sitting next to you. Jo Fishwick: I do. I have Bruno. He's a golden retriever. He's a bit hot, it's very hot here today. So, he's a bit warm Jeff Thompson: Indian Summer? Jo Fishwick: Yes, lovely, isn't it? Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Glad I'm here right now. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, you couldn't have picked better. Jeff Thompson: We're at the Clifton Hotel, which is in Teignmouth. We're sitting down on the ground and some people are coming by, but we found a bench way down here. What is there, six acres, seven acres? Jo Fishwick: Six or seven acres now, yeah. It was owned by Guide Dogs back in the day. Well, owned by Guide Dogs but run by the RNIB. Now it's been bought by Starbud who are a company that holds some Holiday Inns, some [inaudible] hotels, and some Great Western, I think it is. They bought [inaudible] which is up in the late district in the northwest of England, and the Clifton, which is down here in lovely sunny, Devon. Jeff Thompson: This is my third time being here, and it's still a great place. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, it's lovely, it is lovely. I feel very lucky to live here, been here for six and a half years now. Jeff Thompson: What is unique about the Clifton Hotel if you are visually impaired? Jo Fishwick: So, the Clifton is, even though it's mainstream now, all the staff are trained in visual awareness. So if you come as blind or partially sighted person and you maybe need guiding around the hotel, you need to be shown the route to your room. They'll show you around the hotel. What they can't do is personal care, obviously that's a bit too much because they don't have the staff here to do that. But they have braille menus. There's braille on all the doors and large print as well. Large print menus. There are guide dog runs here. So your guide dog is catered for. Jo Fishwick: They can also order in dog food for you. So if you ring them in advance, rather than traveling on the train with a big bag of dog food, you can order it in from the hotel. They can also supply dog beds, dog bowls, and there's a grooming room here as well. There's even a dog shower. So if your dog's been on the beach, you can take your dog into the dog shower and give it a little wash down. Jeff Thompson: Oh, that's sweet, and we're not that far from the beach at all. Jo Fishwick: We're not. You can walk through the grounds and there's a gate at the bottom of the gardens, and there's a code for that. You put in the code, and you're probably about no more than 100, 150 meters I'd say. Walk down this pretty safe path, really. Then you're on to the sea front. There's an outdoor café there so you can grab yourself a sandwich or a breakfast or something. Or just sit and have a coffee and listen to the sea. Jeff Thompson: That's about five minutes walk? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, I'd say so. Yeah, no more than that really. Jeff Thompson: And Teignmouth is right on the English Channel? Jo Fishwick: Mm-hmm (affirmative), yeah, it's near to Torquay and Exeter. We've just been to Plymouth today, haven't we? Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Jo Fishwick: So that was nice. So, yeah, there's lots to do here. There's a zoo and there's other places of interest. There's a museum in Teignmouth, just a small museum that's quite interesting. Lots of pubs, and places to eat. Last night for example, there were 10 of us, went out for a meal weren't there, in one of the local pubs. Jeff Thompson: We even had some great musicians come in there. Jo Fishwick: We did, they were fab. You did a recording, didn't you? Jeff Thompson: Oh yeah, they were playing American folk music. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, and Lori got up and had a sing, didn't she? Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative), Crazy by- Jo Fishwick: Patsy Cline. Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Jo Fishwick: Yeah, yeah, it was really good. Speaker 7:           That's my wife from Minnesota. Speaker 8:           Thank you, that was the best one of the evening sweetheart. Better than this bloke down here, I'll tell you. Jeff Thompson: So, Jo, what was it like for you growing up and going to high school as you transitioned into your career and stuff? Jo Fishwick: So, I was born with a sight problem. So, they always knew that I would lose my sight. Although it wasn't kind of explained to me as a young child, because I guess it would be too scary I suppose. So I lost the sight in my right eye when I was about six or seven, although I don't really remember that now. When I got to 11, it was decided that my eyesight was deteriorating badly. So I was at school for partially sighted children. So I had to go to one that could teach me braille, teach me how to use a long cane. So I went to boarding school in Liverpool in the northwest of England, as I said before. Then I went to a residential college in Hereford, in England. Went there for three years, did lots of business studies. Audio typewriting, that kind of thing. Then I really struggled to find work afterwards. So I kind of just kept going and going back to college. Re-learning, getting new skills. I qualified as a complementary therapist. Qualified as a computer programmer, so jack of all trades, master of none. Jo Fishwick: That's where I met my husband in 1995, on a computer programming course. I just couldn't find work, just couldn't get a foot in the door really. So started VI Talk because I wanted to help people, but also I guess something to do, really. Then in 2016, there was a job going at the Clifton Hotel for an assistive technology coordinator as part of the RNIB online today project. It was a lottery funded project to help visually impaired people get online, to learn how to use mobile technology, and get started with that or advance further with it. Jo Fishwick: The then manager at the hotel said to me, "You should give that a go." I was like, "No, I'll never get it. I just won't get it." She said, "All joking apart, but you can do it with your eyes shut." So I went for it, and got the job. I was like, "Wow." I was in my forties and got my first job, first paid job and still doing that now. I'm contracted until the end of January next year. But I'm going out and about in different areas of Devon now, and Somerset, and Cromwell, so all southwest of England. Teaching other people how to do what I've been doing. So how to teach visually impaired people how to use technology and supporting local blind societies when they do events for blind and partially sighted people. So, helping with iPhones, Android, Alexa, all that kind of good stuff. Jeff Thompson: And you probably bring the VI Talk business card? Jo Fishwick: Well, you know, sometimes. In the process of braille and some of those at the moment. So you see, braille comes in again, so yeah. Jeff Thompson: Could you tell our listeners what it's like, because you're a mom. Jo Fishwick: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Jeff Thompson: What was it like raising a child as a visually impaired person? Jo Fishwick: Oh, wow, gosh. My daughter's 16 now. So she's gone off to college. It was interesting. My husband, Rob, was at home. He wasn't working at the time. So I guess I had help there. So we kind of worked as a team. Because we lived what for me was a struggle. We lived in a quite a rural village, in the northwest of England. And the transport links were pretty rubbish. So to get a daughter to nursery, or to get her to school was now an impossible for me to do. So Rob had to be around, really. I lost my mom before Jody was born, and so that was really a struggle for me. Because I obviously wanted her around for all her advice. So we were kind of a lot on our own. So it was just learning, just as you go. Jo Fishwick: I didn't have many VI friends, but then really I kind of left, not deliberately left I guess, but just dropped out of the blind community quite a lot. But I just think you just get on with it. I think you just get on with it. I think you've got to get stuck in. You just can't be afraid of it. You get all those silly questions. You'll be out and someone will find out you've got a child and they'll be like, "Oh, how do you feed a baby when you're blind?" And you'll be like, "Well, you try giving a baby Weetabix." You know, with your eyes shut. Jo Fishwick: I think you just have to be prepared. You have to be well equipped, you have extra cloths and water around to clean up mess and you just have to really just be determined I think, and just find work arounds, but you do. I think don't let anybody tell you that you can't be a mom or a dad. A dad as well. I've spoken to VI dads and you get ... on the school playground when you used to do pick up and some of the parents don't want to interact with you because they just don't know how. But it's the same old thing, isn't it? We all experience that at sometime in our lives. Whether we've got children or not. Which can make it a bit tricky because your child gets all the questions. "Oh, your mom's blind is she? What do you do? What can she do? How can she do things for you?" But I think your kids grow up really quickly, and they learn ... I mean, Jody's been able to guide since she was able to walk really. I used to be a hand on her shoulder and we'd go off and do things together. Jo Fishwick: Moving down here to Teignmouth has been the making of all of us I think. She's made so many good friends. She's sighted, but down here, and I think partly because of the hotel, everybody just takes it in their stride. Because they've all seen guide dogs and long cane users before. It's like, "Oh, it's just another guide dog. Oh, no, it's just another long cane user." And everyone's just really quite nice about it. There's not as much discrimination I don't think, in this area, luckily. Jeff Thompson: They get it. Jo Fishwick: They do get it, yeah, they really do. You go into a shop or a bar, or whatever and they're happy to help. And they're happy to carry drinks. I'm not saying that doesn't happen in other places, but I think they're just so used to it here. They just take it in their stride. Jeff Thompson: Yeah, like in Minneapolis we have two schools about a mile apart. So there's always about 20 or 30 students milling about, and interacting with society and stuff. So they get acclimated to it, and that really helps. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, I think it does. They just happy to go out of their way to just treat you like anybody else really, but to just give you that little helping hand if you need it. Jeff Thompson: So, Jo. What advice would you have for someone who is in the shoes you were in when you were younger? Or someone who is starting to have challenges with vision, or reading the printed word and stuff. What would you say to them? Jo Fishwick: I'd say give yourself time, it's little steps. I think you've got to be patient with yourself. Don't expect everything to happen in a day, and it is a grieving process. Losing your sight is a form of grief, because you're losing something that's very precious to you. So I think you've got to give yourself time. Don't be afraid to reach out to people to tell them how you're feeling, and to seek that help and support. There is support out there. Sometimes it takes a while to get that support. But tell your family, tell your friends. You may lose some friends along the way. People do, because they just don't know how to behave around you. But you'll also make some other friends along the way. And some probably good friends, and lifelong friends. Jo Fishwick: Persevere, but have patience with yourself. Just carry on, don't give up. You'll feel like it sometimes. I have moments when I lost my sight. I can remember being 14 and lying on my mom and dad's bed and telling them that I was not going back to school. I was not doing my O levels. I was jacking it, that was it, life was over, rubbish. My mom and dad were brilliant, and they just encouraged me. I went back and took my exams, and carried on. It is possible, things are possible, don't let people tell you. I mean, obviously there are things you're not going to be. Jo Fishwick: You're not going to be an airline pilot. And you might have to even, if you lose your sight later in life, you might have to change career. That's a challenge, and it is difficult. You may not find work, but there's voluntary work and there's a lot of things you can do to help other people as well. There's a lot of organizations, charities out there that you can get involved with. Jo Fishwick: I think just give yourself time, and don't be afraid to reach out and ask for help, and tell people what's happening. You'll get there, you will get there. Jeff Thompson: So Jo, here's a technical question. Since you're in the technology, iPhone, or Android? Jo Fishwick: iPhone for me, iPhone. That's a really tough one. I find Android quite tricky, I'm an apple girl. However, when I go out and do say Living With Sightloss courses that we have over here, I always take Android, Apple, and I also take a Synapptic phone as well. Which is something I don't know if you have in the US, but we have it here. If you've got limited vision, it kind of pairs everything down into one nice, neat menu. It's got really good contrast on it. Jo Fishwick: If you want a phone, or a tablet, just to do ... you don't want it singing or dancing, but you want to do things on it, Synapptic is quite good. So I do try and keep an open mind, but for me, it's iPhone all the way, I'm afraid. Jeff Thompson: So do you get a keyboard with it? Like a Bluetooth keyboard? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, I do. I have two Bluetooth keyboards. I have a full size one, and then I have a folding one, which is a tri fold, so it's almost full size when you unfold it. It's got an aluminum back, so it's quite sturdy if it gets a bit of a knock in your rucksack, or your bag. Yeah, I generally have a Bluetooth keyboard with me, because I'm a touch typist as well. So I can just chatter away on the keyboard. Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Now when you say touch typing, will you explain that do us? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, so touch typing is when you don't look at the keyboard. So I was taught to touch type when I was at primary school, which again, is one of the best things I've ever been taught. You know where all the keys are, so you know what finger does which key on a keyboard, typewriter, or a computer keyboard. So you can get up to really high speeds. It's great. If you've got sight, and maybe you're losing your sight and maybe you know that eventually it's going to go, then I would learn to touch type. Because I think it's a really, really useful skill. Jeff Thompson: Well, Jo Fishwick, thank you very much for coming on here, talking about VI Talk, talking about the changes that happened in your life, and all the paths that you traveled to get to where you are today. You've been successful at doing that. I really like what you're doing with your charity, VI Talk, and getting other people connected. Jo Fishwick: Thanks Jeff. Pete Lane: This concludes Jeff's chat, with Jo Fishwick. Thanks so much Jo, for joining us on Blind Abilities. Also, special thanks to Chi Choi for his beautiful music. Thanks so much for listening, and have a great day. Pete Lane: For more podcasts with the blindness perspective, check us out on the web at www.blindabilities.com. We're on Twitter, we're on Facebook, and be sure to check out our free app, in the apple app store, and the Google Play store.

DESCRIPTION Business, education, wealth, mind-set, strategy, leverage, success, legacy, giving back and mentorship are all topics covered in this episode of The Business Mentor Podcast as Jay Dhillon interviews multi-millionaire and serial entrepreneur, Rob Moore. Learn how Rob went from £50k+ in debt to running multi-million pound businesses by seizing opportunities and ignoring conventional wisdom. Plus, a free giveaway for the first 5 to claim! KEY TAKEAWAYS I just want to know a bit about your past, Rob, how it all started, you can go as deep as you want? OK. I will do the short version. When I was very young my Dad had pubs, bar, clubs, restaurants. The most quintessential entrepreneur ever, big was the cash in his pocket. I just wanted to be my Dad. I had a pretty good upbringing, I haven’t got that excuse. I also got pretty good grades at school, from sort of eighteen to twenty-five I got stack in the education system. I went to uni, where I did architecture, but did nothing with it. Literally, the next day I went to my Dad's pub and then I found myself £40k/£50k in debt. After uni and getting a car loan for a car, spending to much money on credit cards I found myself over thousands of pounds in debt. Then my Dad had a nervous breakdown in his pub, suffered of severe depression and bipolar personality, got sectioned and we didn’t see him for a good while. What I normally ask at this point, as it’s a mentoring show, is there any mentors you’d like to shout out, a particular one that’s influenced your life and helped you along the way Rob? I’ve learned from John De Martini, over the years he has really helped me, he’s taught me about balanced forces, upsides and downsides. Secondly, my business partner, Mark, in many ways he’s a business partner and in many ways he’s a mentor, he taught me about managing my money properly and being more grounded and detailed and focussed. What do you say to our listeners, should they start a business or go to university Rob? I am very clear on this, it’s an easy answer. If you want to be a doctor, a dentist, a lawyer or a pilot, you should absolutely go and do the degree and the post-grad on that subject. If you want to be an entrepreneur, you want to run your own business, if you want to be your own boss, then I don’t think you need the best way to go. I think podcasts, doing courses, listening to your business mentor podcast, investing in courses, in education, getting mentors. Getting out there and doing it, making mistakes on the job. So, you’ve taken it into Property Business, which you’ve done really well, you’ve got over 800 properties. You then quit that journey to then write books, and then set up a training business. How did that come about, Rob? Some people say, “When you’re digging for gold, some people are digging for gold and other are selling the shovels.” I like to dig for gold, and sell the shovels. If I have dug for gold, and found some gold in property, I have done alright for myself. I can also grow my brand, my business and my profits by writing books, doing podcasts and running courses, I dig for the gold and I sell the shovels. Once you’ve learnt something you want to teach it. We are hardwired to pass on our knowledge. For start-ups now, an entrepreneur coming in, is there a bit of advice you could give them, Rob? It’s equal first on biggest mistakes. One bad thing to do is to listen to conventional wisdom and common sense because conventional wisdom will give you conventional results and most common sense isn’t common and it isn’t sense. So the world will tell you, learn from your mistakes. I think it’s better to learn from someone else’s mistakes. It’s cheaper! It’s also less of an emotional rollercoaster. So Rob, if there were two books that you’d recommend apart from your own to somebody to read, which two books would they be? I get asked this question a lot. Books are like time stamps on your life and they can have different importance at different stages of your life. I’d say Arnold Schwarzenegger’s autobiography Total Recall. What I love with what Arnold’s done is that he’s self made, not that I have anything against people who’ve inherited wealth and made it because that's just as hard by the way. I like that he’s self made and in different disciplines. Apart from your career as an entrepreneur, are there any skills that you’d recommend people to do? Leverage. Because nobody, especially me, is good at everything. In fact, the better you are at one thing, the worse you’ll be at everything else. If you think of a genius you know, they’re probably so focussed on being good at that, they’re probably not that good at other things. The people who grow amazing careers in business, sport, whatever, they focus on what they’re great at and they leverage everything else. If you watch any sports people, and you think, “Well they’re not leveraging, so they do it themselves.” Tiger Woods had about four golf coaches, he’d have a putting coach, a chipping coach, an iron coach, a psychology coach, a fitness coach, dozens of coaches. He’s leveraging. BEST MOMENTS Tell me what mentoring means to you, Rob? How it’s helped you? Number one is; if you’re struggling to go to the next level, you’re trying to solve going to the next level, where you’ve never been before. There’s no proof, you don’t know how to do it. Someone has already been there, done it and solved it. Number two is that they’ve got a fresh and different approach. Number three is accountability. When you give something away to charity you forget about it and the goodness comes back to you. What would you like to be remembered for, Rob? OK so I’d just like to be remembered that I got in peoples’ face, interrupted the habits in their life that they weren’t happy with and I helped them create a better life. I went to Property networking event and I’ve met my business partner Mark Homer. Mark got me a job with his boss in a property company, totally responsible we were sorting out the sourcing properties. We went out viewing thirty properties a week, we were flying around the world doing deals from developers, we saw the good, the bad, the ugly, we saw it all. It was such a great education, also as it turns out my business partner had some money. He never told me and we started buying properties with his money and our families money. We got from 0 to 20 properties in 2006, then 20 to 50 in 2007 and then 50 to about a 100 in 2008. In 2008 I wrote my first book, “Property Investing Secrets”, that opened another world of property training books, podcasts and everything else. I’ve spend twenty-five years wanting to be a millionaire and doing absolutely nothing about it. Then twenty- six to thirty-one, just after five years I became a millionaire and yeah, it’s been a crazy ride. What would you say was your biggest mistake, Rob? One of my biggest mistakes was not taking opportunities earlier enough when they arose, so I had probably seven years’ worth of chance to get into property, from eighteen to twenty-five. own. You can’t regret the past, if you see it like that then you’re never going to be move forward. But if I’m going to be honest, I’ve had a lot of opportunities in my life. The breakages are part of what you fix. I can’t see them as mistakes, I can only see them as lessons. VALUABLE RESOURCES fiverr.com 99designs.com Money The Disruptive Entrepreneur Property Investing Secrets ABOUT THE HOST Jay Dhillon is a well-established entrepreneur and has built up many businesses from start-up to success. In 2005 he built a business from 0 – 500 employees with a turnover of £5 million per year and this with no investment apart from his savings. This business brought in major clients such as Land Rover, Jaguar, Toyota and New Look just to name a few. His passion and skills have since allowed him to build many more businesses. Today Jay has multiple business in various sectors. His achievements for his work have been highlighted in a visit to Buckingham Palace to meet with Prince Charles. From humble upbringing’s Jay feels that anyone can be successful in the business world. Over his 18 years within businesses, he is now sharing his knowledge and skills to help other inspiring entrepreneurs succeed in the world of business. CONTACTS jay@businessmentorpodcast.com Jay’s Website Jay’s LinkedIn Rob’s Facebook Rob’s Instagram Rob’s LinkedIn See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

So Rob, Tori and CV from "We Here Man" talk about what they are currently listening to and their opinion on some of the latest music to come out. Got a topic or comment? Holla at us: frommyexperiencepodcast@gmail.com Follow us on Instagram: FME_Podcast facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/frommyexperiencepodcast itunes podcasts: From My Experience Podcast Google Play: https://play.google.com/music/m/Iggs6tyacot25mjcxa2dr6yejxa?t=From_My_Experience_Podcast Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=171523&refid=stpr Anchor: https://anchor.fm/fmep Youtube link to the show: www.youtube.com/channel/UCat9VlDdR4R0fhbEFPtPt7A Soundcloud: @frommyexperiencepodcast Radio Public: https://play.radiopublic.com/from-my-experience-podcast-691BbQ

       So Rob gets a crew together, including the man that gave him this idea, Ken. Amongst the crew is Ballsac, Ken, Newty, and Jake from the NFW Commentary Podcast. Ballsac/ Rob takes Ken's idea of rewatching all the Marvel movies in order before Avengers : Infinity Wars. The first up is Captain America : The First Avenger. We give our thoughts on the movie and we also chat about the Avengers : Infinity Wars trailer. Rob brings a special guest , his nephew and nerd partner Justus, for a little more trailer talk at the end of the show. Enjoy this Babble of a commentary and look for more.   Email : Xpodables@gmail.com   Twitter : @theXpodables   Rob : @darthballsac   Ken : @knslacker   Newty : @newty28   Jake : @jakethesnake54   NWF Commentary Podcast : https://www.horrorphilia.com/horrorphilia-network-of-podcasts-i-z/nfw-movie-commentary-podcast/   Unholy Mofos : https://unholymofos.podbean.com/    

Welcome to Tuff Love with Rob Kandell. The inspiration for this show comes from the song 88 lines about 44 women by The Nails. So Rob decided to do 22 questions in 44 minutes. The order of the questions is random, the identities of the people who asked the questions has been kept private and Rob hasn’t pre-prepared these answers so they’re all genuine responses in the moment. Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share! Here’s How » Join the Tuff Love Community today: robertkandell.com Tuff Love Facebook Tuff Love Instagram Tuff Love YouTube Tuff Love LinkedIn

Welcome to Tuff Love with Rob Kandell. The inspiration for this show comes from the song 88 lines about 44 women by The Nails. So Rob decided to do 22 questions in 44 minutes. The order of the questions is random, the identities of the people who asked the questions has been kept private and […]

Coach Rob received a question about what could be causing an athlete's fatigue. So Rob has decided to share some of what was discussed with this athlete on the Endurance QuickCast this week.

Welcome back to Tuff Love, with Rob Kandell. This show is on one of Rob’s favorite topics: how to flirt! This show is about being truthful and real, and if something happens that affects the show, Rob will talk about it. So a small caveat to this episode is that he is feeling a little down today due to a conversation about this very topic with Morgan. Rob has found that there are Perils of Flirting. One of which is that other people will be affected. Rob has an open, honest relationship with Morgan. The concept that Rob has talked about many times on the show is that withholding is lying. When you withhold information, you lie. So Rob has an agreement with Morgan to discuss the people he flirts with. Recently he started flirting with somebody and Morgan got triggered. Then her trigger hit Rob’s trigger. Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share! Here’s How » Join the Tuff Love Community today: robertkandell.com Tuff Love Facebook Tuff Love Instagram Tuff Love YouTube Tuff Love LinkedIn

So Rob and Vixen decided to take a look at how social media can be a thorn in your side before you even realize it. Be careful of what you click on and who and what you follow. Enjoy! If you want to be a guest or have comments or questions, email us at frommyexperiencepodcast@gmail.com Join us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/frommyexperiencepodcast/ Music by J create- On A Chill Mode

So Rob finally pulled the trigger on Playstation 4 Pro so has spent his conveniently timed week off getting intimate with Sony's supercharged console. Obviously, the first port of call was Naughty Dog's magnificent Uncharted 4, but Dishonored 2 came bundled with the machine so some time has been spent with that too. And then there's the machine itself, which it turns out really is a serious piece of gaming kit. It's all about Sony on this week's #NOTplaying Podcast!PS4 Pro https://www.playstation.com/en-gb/explore/ps4/ps4-pro/Dishonored 2 https://dishonored.bethesda.net/Uncharted 4 http://www.unchartedthegame.com/en-us/Contact us on Email at: notplayingpodcast@gmail.comFollow us on Twitter: @notplayingpodYou can find the show notes for this show at www.notlistening.co.ukIf you're listening on iTunes, please give us a review!Music kindly provided by Miracle of Sound https://www.youtube.com/miracleofsoundTo Check out other shows in the Collection visit:http://barkerpodcasts.webs.com Including the #NOTwatching Podcast: http://www.spreaker.com/show/the-notwatching-podcast

Today the world lost a great actor in Alan Rickman to cancer. So on this emergency edition of the 'Wasting Your Time' podcast Rob and John celebrate the life and career of Alan Rickman the only way they could with 'Dueling Rickmans'. Duelling Rickmans' is something that Rob and I have been doing for about 3 years which is our impression's of Mr. Rickman having a conversation with one another. We have wanted to do an entire episode of the show as Alan Rickman. So Rob texted me today and said we have to do this now. So here we are the first 30 mins is our Dueling Rickman's. Yes we do joke around while we look back at his career but we truly did this cause we loved the actor and this is our way of giving praise to Hans Gruber, Severus Snape, Alexander Dane, or however you want to remember Mr. Rickman. We did this by doing our terrible impression of him. #RIPAlanRickman Also on the show we have our first reactions to the Oscar nominations, as well as a sneek peek at the next episode which we will name our favorite movies of 2015, and fully breakdown the Oscars and give our picks for who will win. All this and more on this very special 'Wasting Your Time'

A multi-national Dum Tee Dum opened the show which this week was sponsored by Water Aid. Speakpipe might be playing up – so calls were limited this week. As a result Roifield was desperately filling – linking tv zombies to botulism and salmonella in chicken where with some surprise he could reveal that the incidence of salmonella in US chickens is decreasing. Sounded like a ramble in the countryside for me. K J England blames Rob for hiding Scruff in the silage – but this is pretty unlikely as the silage was made after the flood. So Rob is probably innocent on this count and was exonerated by both Lucy and Roifield. Much of the episode descended into discussion of preparing future episodes whilst unclothed – something for which Roifield declared he was all up for it. Nakedness was also key to the tweet of the week. Johns the tenth and eleventh were appointed. And in recognition of JoJo Sexy Heels there will be no more shop news until after... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

  Highlights of my conversation with Colin Hewitt ·         Insights into pitching and attracting the right venture capital ·         The impact on the business of working with an investor ·         Experience of being part of the Xero add-on eco-system ·         Forming CodeBase a co-sharing space and the Edinburgh start-up scene   Note: After this interview was recorded Float won Xero Emerging Add-on Partner of the Year 2014 Transcript Heather:        Welcome Colin to Cloud stories. We’re so pleased to have you here. Colin:              Hi Heather, good to be here. Heather:        What’s the weather like in Edinburgh at the moment? Colin:              Well it’s a little bit cloudy at the moment. We had a good stretch probably about a week of good weather. It’s come to an end unfortunately today but we’re hoping that’s it’s just temporary. Heather:        Sensational. So Colin, I’ll start with a really hard question upfront. Who is your favourite superhero and why? Colin:              My favourite superhero? Well, I’m not sure if you have the same superheroes as you do in Australia but I was always like a big Spiderman fan. Heather:        Sensational, that’s Scottish Spiderman version. Colin:              Scottish Spiderman, of course, yeah. I like the way he had a spider sense, you know, how the spider sense was tingling. That’s always a good line and sometimes I think have that as well. Heather:        The spider sense. That’s a good heading for a story about you. Sensational, thank you for that Colin. Can you share with us what your business [Float] does Colin? Colin:              Yeah, so our business Float is a piece of software that we’ve designed to try to help business understand a bit more about their business. Really the main thing that we focus on is how much cash is in the business and what your bank account’s going to be at any point in the future. So we think that’s one of the most interesting or the more interesting parts of the business. You can get lots of insightful management reports but sometimes you just want to know, can I afford to pay for this and will there be enough cash at the end of the month to pay the salaries? That’s what we focus on at Float. Why is it important to have a forecast or a cash management system in place? Colin:              Yeah, I mean the story of where we got Float from is I used to have a web design agency, and we were always asking that question of, you know, is there going to be enough to do X or Y, and having to go back into a spreadsheet was a painful process because it was always out of date and we always felt well, hold on I can answer your question in a couple of hours when I’ve put in all the figures. So yeah, having a forecast is really … is definitely important but certainly it can be a bit of a pain to manage if you don’t have it updating automatically. Heather:        I know that spreadsheet pain. When did you start your business Colin? When did you start this business which is Float. Colin:              So Float … there was kind of an overlap period. We started as a side project while we were running the other business, so I think we started in about 2010. It was me and my co-founder. So he was working on it in his spare time. I had the idea, I had the spreadsheet and I said, “This is what I’m looking for,” and he thought it would take about three months. So four years later, we’re still working on it. It was a sort of gradual start but my co-founder came on board full time I think in around the beginning of 2011. Then I sold the web agency in the beginning of 2012. So we’ve probably had about just over two years being full time on Float. Heather:        Sensational. Did you come from a numbers background? Colin:              Not at all. I actually flunked my Maths A level exam. Heather:        You didn’t need to share that with us but it was interesting you said coming from a web design business into numbers which a … Colin:              No, absolutely. I guess where I came from was I was the one who was having to deal with the numbers. We were using spreadsheets to run our business and I thought our spreadsheet was pretty darn good. I’d worked on it quite hard and it did everything that it needed to do. It just took so long and we actually started using cloud accounting software. We used a package initially called Free Agent which is great for our really small business, also another Edinburgh company, and then we just realised that it was amazing to have a lot of that stuff automated all of a sudden and in the cloud. It took a lot of pressure off me but then it didn’t have the forecasting part that was really important to me, so we still had to use the spreadsheet for that. But yes, I wasn’t a numbers person naturally but I’d kind of come to this out of necessity. Then I found I kind of had a little bit of pleasure just about getting everything to match up to the penny but it probably took me a lot longer than it would for some other people. Yes, numbers weren’t my strong point. I had no background in accounting, and when we spoke to some accountants about forecasting and read about forecasting, it all seemed very complicated. We just thought, “Gosh, it’s got to be simpler than this.” Even some of the language, just clarifying, was a helpful starting point. Yes, so we really approached it from a non-accounting point view and then tried to get back to some of the corporate language from accounting as we’ve gone on. Heather:        That’s an interesting perspective to take it from certainly. I’m a great believer that everyone can get their numbers, so it’s exciting to hear someone coming from a different side but sort of coming to the numbers party. Where did you get the name Float from? Colin:              Good question. So what we really like … for me the concept of cash flow is like a wave, you know. Sometimes you’re up and sometimes you’re down and when we look at our cash flow graph, it is much more like a wave; we’d get high points in the month and then low points. It was always trying to make sure that the low points weren’t too low. So we sort of have this nautical theme, you know, riding the waves of cash flow and making sure you don’t sink and all this kind of thing. We explored a lot of nautical themes, thinking about life boats, binoculars so you’re looking out over the horizon and all that kind of thing. So we really like the nautical concept of now beginning your way through the business. Yeah, we’d also liked concepts that were about flow, so it was flow, flow, flow. Then we sort of thought, “Float, that works, you know.” Then somebody pointed out that there is also a concept of cash float in a business, you know, you’ve got enough cash in a till to get you started at the beginning of the day. So it all came together pretty nicely for us. Heather:        Serendipity. Colin:              Yeah, we’ve played with the few different variants but Float was the one that stuck. Heather:        So what are the waves off coast of Edinburgh? Colin:              Well, unfortunately they’re not great for surfing because it’s sheltered but if you go up to the north of Scotland, I think you’ve got some of the best waves in the world. But yeah, for the Edinburghers’, it’s not a great … you don’t get a lot of great waves unfortunately. Heather:        So you weren’t inspired by looking at your window and seeing the floating boats coming? Colin:              Well, I also grew up with the North Coast of Ireland, so I was quite used to being in the sea. Heather:        Yeah, I think it’s always good to have a name that has that connotation attached to it. Colin:              When we started off the business, we actually had a lot other parts in the graphics. It was a lot more fun and we’ve kind of grown up a bit but we had light houses and sharks and all those kinds of stuff. View the other Float logos here: http://blog.floatapp.com/2013/11/01/7-steps-to-our-new-logo.html Heather:        I went and had a look at those. Colin:              Did you? Yeah. Heather:        So if listeners are listening, go and have a look at floatapp.com blog. I think if you just do a search for logos, there’s a list of all different logos that you’ve got there. So you’re based in Edinburgh, what’s the internet connection like there? Colin:              Yes, it’s great actually. Scotland seems to have … they’ve really invested in that. We’ve just moved into a new building with a lot of other start-ups called CodeBase in Edinburgh. It’s right next to the Edinburgh castle. Heather:        Oh wow. Colin:              We’ve got a fibre line directly into the building and we get about one hundred megabytes up and down which is incredible. It really makes a big difference just having that consistency. Heather:        That’s amazing. That’s really good. So you’ve moved into Codebase, is that an incubator or a sharing spacing? Colin:              Yeah, so it was interesting, I actually spent a bit of time over in Boston and went to see some incubators there, one called Techstars. Came back to Edinburgh and just said, “Look guys, there’s no point all being on our own. If we were in together, there’d be a lot of synergy, a lot more sharing of knowledge.” Just at that time a building came up and about fifteen start-ups all decided to move into it together. We worked on it, we painted it, we stripped out the carpet. It was a really good experience for the local sort of start-up community. Heather:        Sounds like a reality TV show. Colin:              Yeah, it was. It was a really interesting time just sort of getting the work together and the community forming. That was about two years ago. Then from that building, once there was enough start-ups in that building, we realised we could do with more space and we found this other building which is obviously huge. So there was lots of room to expand. There are about 300 people in here now. Heather:        Oh my goodness. Colin:              Yeah, they’re all working on sort of technology start-ups and a lot of shared talks at lunch time. It’s really … if you’ve got a problem with something or other, we can go and ask somebody else who’s an expert from another company. It’s great, we really love being in here. Heather:        Sensational. So if someone is in the start-up innovation space and they’re visiting Edinburgh, should they pop down into Codebase? Colin:              Definitely, yeah. Heather:        Is that a sort of okay. There’s an open invitation, arrive at the door? Colin:              Yeah, come and see us. You can come and work in our office if you need a desk for an afternoon. Yeah, Codebase is great. It’s really helped Edinburgh and sort of set us up as one of the main start-up hubs in Scotland. It makes such a difference to your business having all these around. Heather:        No, it certainly does. I liaise with some of the ones locally to us and the people in there say that it moves them ahead so much faster than if they were at home doing it, which is interesting. It’s the ideas, I guess, and the connections that you’re making and the inspiration that you’re gathering. Sensational. Now, I have to ask, while this interview is taking place, the Glasgow Commonwealth Games are on at the moment, have you travelled across to them? Colin:              You know what, I haven’t. Heather:        You’ve got to go. You’ve got to go. Colin:              I watched the opening ceremony on TV. That was probably the main investment that I’ve given in my time to the Commonwealth Games. Not that I don’t enjoy it but it’s just been such a busy couple of weeks. Yeah, and apparently it’s quite difficult to get tickets. Edinburgh and Glasgow are … Heather:        Just go to the town. Enjoy it. Colin:              Yeah, there’s a bit of a rivalry between Edinburgh and Glasgow. Heather:        I know. Colin:              They’re about 40 minutes away. I think it’s always a sort of thing of which one should really be the capital city of Scotland. Maybe we’ll go over for a day just to soak up the vibe. Heather:        Soak it up. Colin:              Yeah. Heather:        I know that … I went to the Sydney Olympics Games which is slightly different but it was amazing. We just got the crappiest tickets to anything we could and we really, really enjoyed it but I digress. We enjoyed it and it created a lot of memories for us. It didn’t matter what it was, it was such a good vibe, and you can’t work all the time. Colin:              I will take your wisdom and put it in my diary. Heather:        Sensational. So Colin, late last year you received a significant investment of a £110,000 from Rob Dobson, the tech incubator. Now, Rob Dobson for the listeners, I hope I’m saying his name correctly, was the founder of a mobile phone software company. So with this investment; What insights do you have to share with our listeners who may be keen on attracting a significant investment into their business? What insights do you have to share to them about that? Colin:              That was a good time for us but it was also a very hard time because we’d been pitching for a while, probably about a year of trying to raise some funding. The first piece of advice was that we were probably initially pitching to the wrong audience. The investors that we were pitching to weren’t software based, that was not where they made their money. I think it’s difficult to always understand the software business if that’s not your background. So, when we spoke to Rob, it was a completely different kettle of fish. He really understood it, he really got the prospect, and having run a business himself he understood the pain points. So definitely aligning the investor with the story of your own business is really important and will save you a lot of time. The other thing would probably be making sure you tell a good story. Sometimes it’s easy to kind of play … I find you can play yourself down and certainly in the UK, we don’t like to brag. We can kind of say our … you know, “The business is okay and we’re doing all right.” Actually, you need to tell the story in a way that’s going to caught their imagination and make them want to be a part of the story. Yeah, I’m really thinking a lot … we’re actually going into another funding round pretty soon and just thinking about how do we tell the story? It is a great story, you know, it’s something we’ve put our lives into and we’ve got a real passion about. It’s all about telling that story and really painting the picture of the possibilities of the future. We want to grow a great company and think this product can be wide reaching and really make a difference in the lives of business owners. So yeah, it’s all about putting that compelling story together so that investor can get excited about it as well. What tips do you have about sharing your story? Do you work through a process of that? Do you work with someone to help you do that? Does it just come to you while you’re drinking? Colin:              Well, I think if you sit down and really think it through it terms of where did the idea come from, what really gets me excited about this, what’s my dream for this company, and you start really tapping into some of the bigger picture stuff first of all … especially for me, it’s easy to get bogged down in the details, you know, how you’re going to do something. Then that tends to become quite small picture, like we’re going to add this, we’re going to add this feature next month and then we’re going to hire one more member of staff, and then we’re … you’re thinking through a very specific plan whereas the story has to come from a much deeper place of the beginning of where the idea came from to the end of where you can go to. If that’s not an exciting enough story then it brings up a few questions as well. One thing I find helpful is actually asking other people, to say, “How do you perceive the story of Float? What are you seeing?” Then sometimes they’ll say, “Well, I think this is incredible that you guys manage to go for so long without raising any money,” or “I think, you know, what you’ve achieved with a small team is amazing.” Then you sort of think, “Oh yes, that’s a good point, I didn’t realise that.” So having other people feed back to you what they perceive the story will help you understand things that are actually true but you’re missing or you’ve neglected to include. Actually I had a breakfast with Rob yesterday and he was sort of saying, “I was getting prepared for this next funding rounds, here’s some of the ways that I see this, this product is innovative, the space is really hot right now and there’s all this activity happening, there’s more and more people moving into the market.” You know, just hearing him describe it makes you think, “Oh yeah, that’s true.” When you’re in it for four years, you sort of … it becomes you don’t get the same perspective, so having another perspective is really helpful. Heather:        Is Rob Scottish or is he American or is he something else? Colin:              Yes, he’s English. Heather:        Oh he’s English, okay. Colin:              So, unlike many good Englishmen, he’s moved to Edinburgh with his wife. There are so many people that I meet here who I ask them where they come and they say it was because of a woman or a man. So they moved up after he sold his business. You know there are some great schools up in Edinburgh and they have some family up here as well. They looked around and decided Edinburgh was the city. Yeah, it was good for us. Heather:        Sensational. So Rob Dobson has joined your firm as a director. Apart from the money and the investment, how has he impacted … how has he becoming a director impacted Float? Colin:              I’m a big fan of Rob because I think … we spoke to a few other investor and they all have very different agendas. Rob manages to walk the line very well between pushing us and not interfering too much, so it doesn’t ever feel like we’re working for him but he really provides us sort of mentoring and just a constant push, you know, because sometimes it’s easy to kind of not have that when you’re running the business if you don’t have a board set up. So Rob really just pushes us, he was pushing me the other day about how much money we want to raise, how fast we want to grow. It’s easy for me to think that the first step is about survival and the small picture, and he sort of lifts us out of that and says, “No, I think we can do more here. I think there’s more potential.” So Rob really brings a different perspective, especially because he’s been there before. He’s done it, he’s grown a business, he understands the process, and that gives him a lot of credibility in terms of if somebody else was saying that from he hasn’t been here before and done that, you don’t tend to listen to them the same way.  Yeah. Heather:        Absolutely, yes. It’s interesting because the newspaper headline that ‘a small tech has received a large amount of funding’, you sometimes think, “Oh, that’s going to be good,” or “That’s going to be bad.” So it’s always good to get your insights in finding that right person and you obviously have done that and it’s working out really well for your business. When these people do it, the passion, which is their baby, their small business, is taken in another direction and it’s kind of heart breaking. Colin:              I think that we looked at another investor at the same time as Rob and it was much … you can tell that the incentives were much different for the other investor because he was looking for board fees and consultancy fees. He was going to take a very active role. It’s a very different place when they’re seeing it as a monthly income, whereas Rob’s never taken anything from the business. He just really wants to see it succeed. Heather:        That’s sensational. I hope we don’t get an influx of people going and harassing Rob after this. He sounds like the greatest man in the world. Colin:              Yeah, he’s a good investor. I’ve definitely introduced a few people to him. He seems to manage to see everybody. He picks the ones that he likes but we need more people like Rob up here. Hopefully there are a few Edinburgh companies that are going to be having a few big exits soon. We’ve got a great company called SkyScanner here that are doing quite well, and everybody is hoping that they’re going to get their IPO away soon and make few people some money so they can go back and invest it into the start-ups here too. Heather:        Sensational. So your product, Float, integrates with Xero. What has your experience been as being a part of the Xero add on ecosystem? Colin:              Yeah, it’s been amazing really. When we started building Float for Free Agent, we felt Free Agent was the best piece of software out there. We felt that Xero was nice but it was a bit bland. At the time, there were roughly about the same number of users in the UK but what Xero managed to do in terms of growth over the last three or four years has just been incredible, and we realised that at some point we have to get this integration with Xero built. That actually took us about a year to do. So it was really a big investment of our time and resources to rethink how Float was going to work because there’s such a larger … Xero has a lot of larger companies. Free Agent is typically freelance … freelance one or two people businesses, so the volume of transactions is quite small. We moved to Xero. It was the big investment of our time but we really recognised that they were the ones that were leading the way. The degree I think about Xero is the support that they give to us and the encouragement and saying … that feeling of, “We’re going to help promote you. We want this to work, the add-ons Market page, the add-on support team. Yeah, everything has been really good there, and just a willingness to promote the add-on, that was really a step up for us. We probably saw about a ten times increase when we launched for Xero in terms of signups. It was a big step up for us. Heather:        Sensational. Did that affect your infrastructure then? Colin:              Yeah, it did actually because we launched it in September at Xerocon in London … Heather:        Oh, okay. Colin:              Last year and basically we soon realised that a lot of the larger companies weren’t able to … we weren’t able to get all the information displayed in time before the browser timed out, we were trying to load everything in at once. So we had to then take another couple of months to rebuild Float in order to allow for these much more significant companies, some turning over upwards of a million dollars a month. It was a big change for us, so we have to rethink the whole thing. In terms of hosting, we host it on the cloud and it’s really … that wasn’t such a big issue. We can scale that really easily now which is such an advantage for cloud businesses that were … you know, before we might have to have upgraded our servers and changed everything around, and now that’s really not been the problem. It’s more just been about how we build the software and how we handle the page load speeds and all that kind of stuff. So if Xero releases an update, say it releases an update next Sunday, do you have to do something in your backend or is that okay? It’s just goes with the flow? Colin:              Yeah, it’s fine. Nothing that Xero do on the actual Xero app should affect us because they have their API teams separately. It’s really only when they change something in the API that affects us. More often than not, the API is a little bit behind what the main office is doing, so we’ll only get access to certain data, you know, typically a couple of months later. There hasn’t been, touch wood, there hasn’t been problems yet in terms of Xero changing something, that we haven’t come across. Generally it has been changes for good so we get more and more information that we need. Because that’s always been the thing with cash flow forecasting is it requires a vast amount of data to achieve it. That’s always been the thing, trying to get that in the right place. Colin:              Yeah, there are a lot of transactions that we need … we actually forecast right down to the transaction level. So we’re building up a whole report based on your transactions. It’s not a report that we can just pull out of Xero. We have to only start from scratch and build out ourselves, so we put in a lot of information. As I said, that’s a challenge. I know you use Xero in your business; do you use any of the add-ons from the Xero eco space in your business? Colin:              Yeah, I’m a big fan of Receipt Bank. It’s something that … I met the guys a few times up in Edinburgh first actually. Didn’t really feel the need for a time, and I think I was chatting to Michael at Xerocon and just thought, “I’m going to give this a try,” and really haven’t looked back since then just in terms of processing all my expenses. Now, we’ve actually upgraded to the business version and we send our invoices as well. You know, it just saves me so much time. So we’re looking for a system … we’re looking for a complete system basically where we don’t have to have any much touch on the bookkeeping side of things. Receipt Bank is a big part of that and, you know, they’re improving all the time as well. Heather:        Yes, they’re definitely evolving. Was Michael wearing his kilt at Xerocon? Michael:         No, I haven’t seen that. Heather:        Haven’t you? Every time he wears the kilt, he wins a prize. That’s the theory. Colin:              Ah, I’ll have to bring my kilt over then to the Xerocon Australia. Heather:        Yes, you will. Oh my goodness, if you turn on a kilt, you definitely win a prize. Colin:              That’s it. Heather:        That’s the rule. Colin:              That’s the secret, okay. Heather:        Michael’s obviously not sharing that secret. Colin:              No, he hasn’t. Heather:        There are many photos of him in a kilt at Xerocon. Colin:              Okay. Yeah, so the other one we’ve been looking at is a new one that you probably won’t have heard of. It’s more in the UK but it’s called CreDec. What they do is they connect into … they set up a box payment system, so in Xero you can just mark all your bills as paid on a certain date and they’ll actually then set up a box run and it will just go automatically for you when you approve it. That’s quite a nice one to have when you go into your bank account and sort of do all the pay run and pay all the bills. Heather:        So it kind of creates a bank file does it and then extracts the income and pays … extracts the money and then pays it? Colin:              Yeah. Heather:        Okay, and what was the name of that again? Colin:              It’s called CreDec I think. Heather:        Okay, sensational. Colin:              They’re pretty new. They’re also Edinburgh based. I’m not sure if they’re just the UK at the moment but the concept of having that complete system is really great. Heather:        Yes, it is. I don’t recall them being … hearing of them in Australia but I’ll check and I’ll include them in the notes for show listeners. So, in your business, can you share with us any other useful tools you actually use in your business that other listeners may benefit from? Colin:              As a product business, we feel that customer support and feedback are absolutely crucial. So we use a product called Intercom to do that. It’s a relatively new product but it’s absolutely fantastic in terms of it lets us send automatic messages to users, it does all our internal communications with the users, and we can send out newsletters. It makes building newsletters really easy as well and it also uses our support system, so anybody can write to us from within the app and we can assign that to one of our team and everyone can track their responses as well. It’s kind a like Zendesk from that point of view but also MailChimp. Also it’s having the auto messages going on at fixed periods during the trial is a useful part of it as well. This can be in-app notifications that just pop up on the screen or they can be emails. It’s a great way just for us to say, “We pushed a new feature,” or “We’d love to get some feedback on this if you’re interested, get in touch,” that kind of thing. We really try to maintain a close relationship with our user and that’s a tool that I think is fantastic if you’re a product company. You’ve got a web based product. That’s one thing we use. We use Evernote quite a bit just to track all our documents and keep little notes of things rather than trying to have a complex filing system where you have to dig around for a lot of things. Evernote seems to work pretty well. We use an app called Trello to do our product management and bug tracking. Have you heard of that one? Heather:        Yes. Colin:              It’s like a sort of card based thing, you can drive them around. That kind a keeps us organised. Those are kind of the main ones. I’m always looking for new tools to bring us up to the weekly integrating but it can be a bit of overkill as well. Heather:        Yes, there can be and sometimes you have go and test one for a while to see whether it’s actually going to fit in with what you’re doing. You can see how it fits in for other people but the way you’re doing it, you either have to perhaps change your methods or sometimes they just fit right in. I have one last question for you Colin. Colin, what would you say to a 17 year old about to leave school who wants to be the next Colin Hewitt? He wants to found a tech space, he wants to found a tech company, he wants to attract funding, and he wants to live the dream?   Colin:              Wow, there are a couple of things. One is you need to discover what it is your passionate about and don’t try and fit yourself into some mould that isn’t you because that’s just not going to work. I think for me, I find … at 17, I would have said, you know, “Go to university if you can. Go and get some experience,” because I didn’t have a clue at 17 that I wanted to do a tech company. It was actually after university that I worked freelance for a bit and then came up with that concept. “Spend a little bit of time in America,” I think because there’s a really … there’s a real sort of positive can do attitude you can pick up over there which is actually where I get the courage and the idea to start my first company. Heather:        How old where you when you started your own company? Colin:              21, 22, and it was just that can do Californian attitude, people saying, “Yes, go for it, why not.” I kind of came back to went, “Yeah.” That’s the attitude. It’s always about the level of passion and energy that you can muster because there will be hard times and you have to kind of be able to ride those out. The other thing I think is for us ending up with Float was something we found because we worked in a business. I’d say that it’s an evolution. If you do something you love then it’s often within that process you’ll actually find a real problem that needs solving. That was the case for me but I think that often guys at 17, the apps that they come up with, the ideas that I’ve heard are all very much around something like you want to go out with your friends and you don’t know where they are so you want to be able to have an app that finds your friends. That’s just not … the chances of you solving that problem socially on a B-C level, is going to be really difficult. Whereas actually if you go and work in an industry, it’s much easier to solve a problem that there’s a niche of people that have rather than trying to be the next Twitter or Foursquare or something along this lines. So I think at 17, you’re going to perceive a very different view of the world. Building up experience and working with good people and sort of learning what you like and what you don’t like about the way other businesses run is a good principle but also not to get sucked in. One of the things I was tempted to do is just go and get a job straight out of university with a big software company. I kind a resisted that and I’m glad I did because I think you can get sucked in for a quite long period of time when you get comfortable, and then you don’t want to try anything new. So if you’re not feeling it, sometimes holding off and just taking some time is a good option rather than jumping in. Heather:        Excellent. Thank you so much for sharing your story with us here Colin today. We really appreciate it. It was really interesting. Colin:              Yeah, pleasure. Heather:        If people want to get in touch with you, they can go to your website at floatapp.com or they can go and knock on the door of CodeBase. You’ll be there with a cup of tea waiting for them. Colin:              Yeah. Heather:        Thank you so much. Colin:              No worries Heather. Good to chat. Mentions ·         Float website http://floatapp.com ·         Float logos http://blog.floatapp.com/2013/11/01/7-steps-to-our-new-logo.html ·         CodeBase http://www.thisiscodebase.com ·         Sky Scanner http://www.skyscanner.com ·         Receipt Bank http://www.receipt-bank.com ·         CreDec http://www.credec.com ·         Intercom https://www.intercom.io ·         Evernote https://evernote.com ·         Trello https://trello.com Contact Heather Smith http://www.heathersmithsmallbusiness.com/ https://twitter.com/HeatherSmithAU/ https://www.facebook.com/HeatherSmithAU   http://www.linkedin.com/in/heathersmithau

In a mission statement somewhere, it was said GI Joburg regularly discusses GI Joe-related Top Five lists... But we can't remember when last we did one of those. So Rob, Paul and Steve each have one in mind. But they're keeping it hush! Also, with JoeCon 2014 wrapping up just prior to the episode, the guys discuss what caught their eye from the coverage so far. Marauderinc's Kickstarter, Acid Rain, Cobra Condors, funny helmets - you'll find it all in Episode 33! 

This ep ain't gonna be up in the itunes no more so grab that shit here: http://drop.io/hammerdownsomethingelse44Hey everybody, So Rob had some work shit where he was out of town last weekend or something. Honestly I don't know for sure, but this week I'm going to be in New Orleans when we usually do the show. So, here is something we put in the can last month for just such an occasion . Our intense Ghostbusters Commentary. It features Rob & myself (as usual), Colin, Ang Yang, and mostly Greg (regular e-mailer, and big time GB fanatic). You will see the biggest proof of this when Dan Akroyd makes his entrance. So, sync it up or just use your memory. If nothing else I feel it is extremely informative. It doesn't seem to me like the glasses do anything.Subscribe in a reader

So Rob and Noa decided to be cunts this week and have "other plans". Rob is at the Brutal Truth/Pig Destroyer/Repulsion show, and Noa decided to go to Israel. So we semi-proudly present to you another Metal Injection LiveCast Mixtape. This compilation features troubled teens, sex toys, washed up metal singers, soon-to-be-washed-up metal guitarists, hard drugs, radio personalities and perverted game shows. So yeah, it's basically like every other show we've ever done, but more tightly edited. You're welcome. Note: We will be off the air again next week as Noa will still be in Europe and Rob will be in Europe as well so there will be another mixtape. If you have a request for a bit we should include, leave it in the comments. We will be back with a live episode on August 14th.