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The Harder You Work the Luckier You Get

Editor @ Global Man August 25, 2020 No Comments

Arif Anis Malik: Crises in the past have inspired great leadership icons. If we as humanity have been waiting for a sign, then THIS IS IT!

    By Srishti Kapoor

Introduction

The 2018 edition of the Power 100 British Parliamentary Review listed Arif Anis among the 100 most influential trailblazers in Europe. Author of I’MPOSSIBLE,  ‘Follow Your Dreams’, and ‘Made In Crises‘, keynote speaker and executive coach Arif Anis has 20 years of experience in delivering transformational results, uplifting lives, and impacting people, policies, and narratives. He has spoken as a contributor/ keynote at several global universities including the University of Oxford, Cambridge, UCL, Hong Kong University, SOAS, London School of Economics, and many others. As an international human capital expert, Anis has coached top coaches, corporate leaders, heads of states, movie stars, and CEOs.

As an international keynote speaker, Anis has shared the stage with global icons in the field of leadership and influence industry including President Donald Trump, President Bill Clinton, Prime Minister Imran Khan, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Prime Minister Theresa May, Prime Minister Tony Abbott, President Musharraf,  President Nasheed, Tony Robbins, Tony Buzan, Daniel Goleman, Richard Bandler, Jack Canfield, Richard Branson, Robert Kiyosaki, Paul McKenna, Brendon Burchard, James Caan, and many others.

Anis also served as an Economic Senator at the European Economic Senate. Anis strongly believes in supporting social causes. Anis supports HRH Prince of Wales’s British Asian Trust. Arif has recently co-founded One Million Meals campaign to serve the NHS staff and vulnerable people facing the food crisis during the lockdown that received global recognition. He is a trustee of the world’s largest microfinance loan provider Akhuwat that has disbursed around 4 million interest-free loans (more 800 million U$D).  Anis’s initiatives have been featured at BBC, ITV, Sky, CNBC, The Telegraph, Yahoo, and many other global platforms.

How did you feel when you were announced as a winner for the Global Man Award, 2019?

The announcement came as a huge surprise. Particularly for an immigrant in the UK who started his journey three decades back as a shepherd. Also, the nominations were awesome. The likes of Andy Harrington were nominated from the UK, and I thought I did not have much of a chance. I knew Mirela and was appreciative of her amazing work for Global Woman. However, I am also aware that sometimes awards and recognition are more about your public profile and presence. So, the nomination itself came as a surprise. When I heard of getting shortlisted among finalists, I said: “Huh, you gotta be kidding“. Winning the Global Man award in a star-studded event at Hilton was the moment of a lifetime. It was kept confidential till the last minute, so I was pretty much out of breath when my name was announced. At the same time, it was a fulfilling moment. You know when you feel acknowledged on a global stage after serving for two decades, speaking to more than a million people in 42 countries, writing books, doing charitable work – and then you get this pat on the back. It all seems worth it with a huge expression of gratitude. I won Brian Tracy ward of excellence in 2017 but being the Global Man of the year was the icing on the cake.

As a leader and successful influencer, how do you face one of the biggest challenges of the century, which is coronavirus?

Unfortunately, you are right. Coronavirus is for our century what Spanish Flu, World War I and II have been for the 20th century. Its ramifications are huge, and, in many ways, it seems, our world may not remain the same as it was when the clock struck 2020. The global Corona conflict has rammed people into trenches. Invisible, lethal, viral weapons have replaced visible whistling bullets and thunderous bombs. As we don’t know who is calling the shots, it is difficult to tell how we can call a truce with imperceptible enemies.

In my view, COVID-19 is not just a medical challenge, but a spiritual challenge too. To defeat COVID humanity need to follow the path of self-purification, compassion, nonviolence, God and Nature. This pandemic raises serious questions about the way this world has been run in the last 5-7 decades, by using greed, power, lust and obnoxious use of the privilege. This pandemic has laid bare what was already obvious, but we buried our heads in the sand like ostriches.

We have a chance to do something extraordinary. As we head out of this pandemic, we can change the world. Create a world of compassion. A world where we are kind to each other. A world where we are kind no matter what class, race, gender, what creed or the job tag we have. A world we don’t judge those at the food bank because that maybe us if things were just slightly different. Let love and kindness be our roadmap. If the world after coronavirus is not going to be a much more greener, much more environmentally friendly and much more vegetarian, much more just and equal, then human beings will deserve a much worse virus than coronavirus.

Throughout the centuries, an earthquake or a volcano or a pandemic or a tsunami shake the world. There is always a message in the shake-up. Wake up! I am sure we would get rid of coronavirus. Say, in a year, or two or three. But I fear what comes next. We go back to our routine stupidities, namely the wars, supporting the dictators, fuelling divide through extremism, voting for politicians without integrity or character, destroying the forests, killing earth’s climate etc. This is worse than the pandemic itself. I pray that we don’t resort to what life was when the clock struck 12 am on the 31st of December 1999. Let’s finally wake-up.

In my upcoming book, ‘The Big Reset‘, I have discussed these aspects in detail. The book will be released worldwide in August 2020.  I also co-authored a book “Leading in Crisis” with Qaiser Abbas that is coming out in July, focused on similar insights.

There are several types of a leader, so which one do you reckon you are? And what are the key principles that you stick to?

I must say that in the last two decades, my idea of leadership has undergone a huge transformation.  I started following charismatic leaders, but I have concluded that servant leaders are the best. A servant leader, as the name might otherwise suggest, is far from being someone who follows along blindly. In fact, some of the greatest leaders of our time embody the true definition of leaders that serve first. A servant leader is an incredibly strong figure head who focuses on serving and empowering others and leads with their team in mind.

There are principles we can stick to being a servant leader. A servant leader is one who values the views and contributions of others. They actively solicit feedback and weigh any possible decisions carefully before concluding. A servant leader believes that everyone is valuable and is deserving of trust and respect.A servant leader cares about the well-being of others and finds ways to lift their teammates up, not bring them down.Servant leaders are willing to share wisdom freely and understand that their knowledge can help others improve both personally and professionally.

They are passionate about growing other leaders others and like to think of their team or organization as a community, rather than a workplace. A servant leader can focus on more than tomorrow’s goals. They care about the future success of the organization and will adopt choices representative of that fact. Servant leaders are also tenacious. They don’t give up easily and believe that the mission of the organization is too big to let go of. Servant leaders lead with a sense of purpose that drives them to make everyone around them better. Empathy, listening, persuasion, humility, commitment, foresight and awareness – all the key principles of a servant leader.

Most people have goals and aims in their life, as you have mentioned in the previous interview with Jim Hotaling that you had seven things that you wanted to achieve by the age of 35, and you did it. What are your next ambitions and “impossible” goals to concur both for yourself, as an influencer and a leader?

I think I was more like a kid in the candy shop while I was growing up. Perhaps, we all go through those phases when having a dinner with Miss World or becoming a best selling author or speaking to a crowd of 20,000 or rubbing shoulders with presidents or other ‘hot’ goals, that I shared with Jim, I had while I was in my 20s. However, the big question is ‘what is next?’ These milestones don’t attract me that much when I look back and reflect. It seems I am more invested in the ‘impossible‘ goals now. Somehow, I have woken up to the darker side of our existence, and it pains me seeing that much of hunger, inequality, and injustice. I lose my sleep on seeing the likes of George Floyd under the knees of the oppressors, losing their breath, in various parts of the world in the name of race, creed and other divisive elements.  I must make it clear that I have not given up in the human capacity of doing good, rather I am more convinced than ever that we all can make a huge difference through a concerted effort. Mentoring more than a million masterminds is also one of the crazy goals I plan to accomplish in the next ten years.

So, in the list of my ‘impossible‘ goals, now are the goals to combat hunger and provision of the level playing field. I have dedicated a good chunk of my time to Prince of Wales’s British Asian Trust, Akhuwat and One Million Meals. I am chief executive of Akhuwat Trust UK, that represents Akhuwat which is the world’s largest interest-free microfinance provider with more than 750 million U$D disbursed among more than four million people. One Million Meal is a not-for-profit, volunteer-led initiative, which was set up by me, famous food preneur Suleman Raza and Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Bilal Bin Saqib at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. It aimed to serve the NHS hospital staff, keyworkers and vulnerable people impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, through fundraising, collaborations, and partnerships by involving sociopreneurs, entrepreneurs, philanthropists, charities, food industry, corporate enterprises, and local communities. The main focus of the campaign was to serve food to people in crisis beyond any division of colour, creed, race, gender or orientation. Live demand from hospitals was passed to Italian, Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, and continental restaurants in the area with good hygiene rating for delivery. In three months,  One Million Meals managed to support 203 locations (NHS trusts, hospitals, agencies, schools, food banks) across the UK, by serving 47 NHS hospitals by delivering more than 100,000 meals and nutritious drinks to doctors, nurses, paramedics, key workers on the frontline risking their lives along with homeless and vulnerable people suffering at the hands of the pandemic. As the lockdown has been lifted, now we aim to serve millions of meals through the charity in the long run. We received acknowledgements from David Beckham, Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office and the Royalty – but the real honour has been to be able to serve itself.

Do you believe possibilities come to you just by luck or do you reckon you need to earn it? And if it is by earnings, what would your advice be on how to earn that possibility?

Well, coming from a small village Angahin Pakistan from a Godforsaken part of the world to the centre of our civilization has been a long journey. However, after coming across and working with the most influential people in the world, I discovered that the harder you work, the luckier you get. You earn it by sweat and blood, by walking out of the comfort zone, by challenging yourself and shedding your old skin and habits. It is a GRIND, my friend. Luck can be a break or a chance, but that is it. Once I conducted research and wrote an exclusive on the winners of the lottery. Found out most of them got worse in life, lost to addictions of various types and lived with fractured lives, even after winning millions of pounds or dollars. You would have your fair share of rise and fall, success and failure, applause, and curses, and no one is exempted. In my life, I have not come across anyone lucky enough not to be scarred by life. No one will come out alive, as they say. Yes, higher awareness, compassion and love are luck, and I have been lucky enough to receive them in abundance.

In your book, you have said,”Change yourself before you change the world”. Nowadays, what change the world is seeking right now, in your opinion? And what should an individual do in order to make an influence on that change?

That is a great question, and it is the heart of the matter. Somehow this pandemic, the ongoing protests of Black Lives Matter and the systemic failure of leadership all over the world make one thing clear. We gotta change. We need to acquire better habits, routines, drills, and practice. We may be comfortably living in our apartments or houses. We may not be getting affected by hunger during this time of despair. But there are so many people out there who may not have eaten a proper meal in the last few days. The turmoil caused by the COVID 19 pandemic is playing havoc in the lives of millions of people from all around the world. We are all in this together. We all can do our bit. Let’s feed the hungry and help the less fortunate among us. Together we can make this world a better place.

Recently, I have co-authored another book with my friend and best selling author Qaiser Abbas. It is titled as ‘Made in Crises‘. It should be out by September 2020. In Chinese, the character for the word crisis is made up of two symbols, danger and opportunity. A crisis is the ultimate test a leader can endure. A crisis can swiftly reveal a leader’s capabilities and strengths, but it can also expose the underlying weaknesses. The unpredictable, dramatic, and highly charged events surrounding a crisis profoundly affect the people in an organization and threaten its very existence. A crisis is a condition of instability in social, economic, political, or international affairs, leading to a decisive change. Most of us are ordinary people until a crisis finds us and gets extraordinary out of us. It is an interesting study of how various crises inspired great leadership icons and how these symbols of prominence stirred a distinct set of events. While crises do upset us and hand our existing world upside down, they do us one favour, and that is they urge us to change.

The change is obvious. We can not shut our eyes to the call now. It ‘too shall pass’ but to me matters more what remains when it passes or what comes next. We found out we don’t need guns, bombs and missiles and weapons of mass destructions. We need hospitals, doctors, nurses, ventilators, and access to immunity and healthy diet for all of us. We don’t need demagogues and jerks as leaders but humane people in the position of power. We need less of Donald Trumps but more of Jacinda Arden. We need leaders who flex compassion as a muscle instead of bullying the less fortunate. And the biggest of all, we need to change ourselves to share our meals, our fortune, our luck, our success, our stardom with the less fortunate around us. We can not build islands of arrogance and ignorance of misery. We are all in it, together! If this pandemic does not change us, nothing will. If we have been waiting for a sign. THIS IS IT!

Lucas Serby – A Swedish Star in the Making

Editor @ Global Man July 23, 2019 No Comments

By Fatima Gorezi

He has already worked with some of biggest stars of the movie and entertainment industry of today and there’s no sign of him slowing down: Lucas Serby is a young Swedish actor, model and creative currently situated in New York City. He is a graduate of the prestigious American Academy of Dramatic Arts, the oldest acting school in the English-speaking world, and an institution that has previously been home to acclaimed alumni such as award-winning actor, director and Sundance Film Festival founder Robert Redford and Hollywood Golden Age legend, Oscar winner and Spartacus himself Kirk Douglas. Lucas was the first of his graduating class to book a part in a professional New York theater production, and has been seen on stages all around the city and on TV by millions since then. He talks to us today about what made him take the leap to pack up his things and move to a different country, what drives him as an actor and overall creative,  and what it’s like to be a part of one the fastest changing industries in the world.

So I’m very curious, what was it that made you decide to move to a completely new country to pursue your dreams? Because as I understand it, you’d never been to New York City before moving there and you didn’t know anybody there?

Yes, that’s true. You know, I was watching this TV show, Sweetbitter, on STARZ pretty recently. It’s about a girl who moves to New York City to… get away, I suppose, but at a job interview she’s asked why she decided to move there all by herself and her answer is “it’s kind of a calling, moving to New York” or something similar, but I think that that’s definitely what it was for me. It felt like a calling. I’m a big fan of Marlon Brando and James Dean and they both got started in New York, so being the romantic that I am I just thought to myself that “of course, there’s no other place to go or that I should go to”.

And bringing it back to you moving there all by yourself without knowing anybody in the city. Did that scare you?

You know what, it didn’t at all. Looking back at it now I feel like I should’ve been absolutely terrified, because New York City is huge and it was a completely new city to me at the time, and that would have been the normal reaction. But I wasn’t. It just felt right to me, like it was meant to be.

Also, my first night there I was staying at a hotel right around the corner from where I was going to go to school, and this was right in the middle of New York Fashion Week so there was a lot of models staying at that same hotel and I got to talking to one of the girls outside, and she asked me what I was doing there, if I was there for Fashion Week and so on. So I told her that I was from Sweden and had just moved there to pursue acting, and after a bit of talking she told me that she wouldn’t mind introducing me to her manager and she gives me her email address and asks me to send her a picture to forward it to him. So I do, and I get a response from the manager basically saying that he thinks I look like James Dean and that we should work together. Nothing really came of it in the end, but I always took it as a sign that I had made the right choice.

Obviously acting is a big part of your life, what was it that made you want to pursue it?

Well, I started working as an actor professionally in Sweden in my early twenties, but I’d say my relationship with acting goes back way beyond that. If somebody were to ask me about my first love, my answer would always be “movies”. Movies have always been a big, big part of my life for so many reasons, for example one of them being my mom who used to be a movie critic when I was growing up, so I had the privilege of getting to watch a lot of films, many of which that hadn’t even been released yet, so I was very lucky. That definitely fueled my interest. I also had a very vivid imagination as a kid, and I loved to reenact scenes from my favorite films, for instance, one of my earliest childhood memories is pretending to be Simba from the Lion King in pre-school.

A good quote that sums it up, I think, is from an older video I saw of Heath Ledger, another actor that I really look up to, may he rest in peace.

His agent asks him: “So how long have you been acting?”

Heath replies “About… 20 years.”

Steve, his agent, notably confused goes “How old are you?”

“20.”

I always liked that one.

You say you started acting professionally in your early twenties, what made you decide that it was time to really get into it, so to speak?

It had always been there in the back of my head. Always. But life is life, and things happen, and after school I found myself working in an office, unsure of… Well, unsure of a lot of things in general really. But I was lucky. Incredibly lucky even. At the office where I was working we were an incredibly tight-knit group of people, and the CEO and Founder, who is still one of my closest friends today and like an older brother to me, taught me that I was good enough at a time where I really needed to hear that. It really taught me the value of having a supportive group of friends and the importance of surrounding yourself with people that inspire you and always want what’s best for you. So I just want to give a shout-out to Aria Asgari, I love you brother.

So anyway, I think I just realized at one point that I wasn’t supposed to be working in an office for the rest of my life, and, as cliché as it sounds, realized that you only have one shot at life so you might as well take the chance and pursue what it is that you really want to do.

Tell me a little bit about how it is working as an actor professionally in New York and Sweden respectively. What have your experiences been like?

They’re obviously two very different places! But starting from the beginning, I started off in Sweden with not a lot of experience except for a couple of amateur shows, so at first I had no clue what I was doing. I had a few small parts here and there and worked as an extra for a bit, and then it started to finally feel like it was going well when I got a part in the Swedish comedy TV show Jävla Klåpare which aired for a season in 2016. But I quickly realized that as somebody who didn’t have an education as an actor and with very few contacts, Sweden did not have a lot of opportunities, which is why I started looking into moving to the US, which had really always been the plan.

New York City on the other hand is a crazy place. There are so many opportunities, and there’s so much going on, and I’ve been lucky to have met some great people there who have really taken a chance on me. It made me realize that it’s all about who you know. You can have a lot of credits on your resume and a fancy education, but what really matters is if people want to work with you, as a person. We’re also at a point right now where there’s a big shift happening in the entertainment industry, and being in New York City when all of this is going on, you just kind of feel that you’re in the middle of it all, and it’s very exciting.

So tell me about your work in New York, what have you been up to since you started working over there?

I actually started booking jobs even before graduating. I was very eager to start working, and I started going on auditions during the time that the school set up so-called “mock auditions” for us to practice for the real thing. So I’d be in school going on a fake audition, and right after I’d have to leave because I had to attend a real one. It was a very interesting experience.

The first job that I booked was a full rendition of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale with the absolutely fantastic theater company Classics on the Rocks. It was about 3 hours and 30 minutes long, and it was amazing. It was just a great thing to work on right after school because everybody was just so passionate about the work, just like it should be. It’s definitely still one of my favorite productions that I’ve been a part of to this day.

Other highlights include playing Sid Wells on the Investigation Discovery show In Pursuit with John Walsh in an episode that premiered to 1,36 million viewers, and of course working with the Scandinavian American Theater Company. I got to play the part of Jonte in a production of the extremely talented Tanja Lorentzon’s play The Courtyard. I got to work with some brilliant people and the play was seen by a couple of actors that I really admire.

Currently I’m promoting a film called Dead Air which I’m really excited to be a part of. It’s kind of an homage to 80’s horror movies and rock music and it’s a lot of fun. It’ll be playing at several different film festivals this year so I’m really excited about that.

And you’ve also been working as a model over there?

Yes, I’ve been fortunate enough to see what that industry’s like as well. Acting and modeling are similar in a way, but very different in another. They’re both a lot of fun, and I’ve had the privilege to see these big fashion events up close, working with brands such as Louis Vuitton and Ralph Lauren. I hope to do more of that in the future as well.

Finally, you’ve already achieved a lot in such a short amount of time, what is the source of your drive and motivation?

Honestly, I think that, to me, the entertainment industry is one of the most important industries around. What we get to do is to tell and share stories that need to be told, and it’s just such an honor to me that I get to do that for a living. If I can have an impact on just one person’s life through the work that I do on stage or on screen, then it would have all been worth it in the end for me.

Lucas can currently be seen in Dead Air which premieres July 27th at the Peekskill Film Festival.

Soft Words on Hard Days- Strengthen Your Team

Editor @ Global Man January 4, 2019 No Comments

By Keith Martino

Charlene’s always a step ahead.

Across the crowded Dallas Metroplex, corporate cowboys and print shop tabloids alike regale her as the reigning champ. For good reason! In a rough and tumble industry like commercial printing, Charlene makes difficult decisions daily. She hurdles declining margins. And she seldom flinches under financial duress. She is amazingly resilient.

Technology obsolescence is a constant threat in Charlene’s world. To make matters worse, upstart competitors constantly circle her customer base like a pack of wolves at feeding time. Clients demand more for less. Yet Charlene remains committed to providing a premium quality service at a profitable price. She refuses to knuckle under. Technology traps and pesky competitors are merely external irritants that she will always be engaging.

But when Charlene’s management team gets crossways with one another, that’s a different matter entirely. If peers begin to question each other in an overtly aggressive manner, and life gets too tense too fast, that’s when Charlene calls timeout. She realizes some level of dissonance between departments is normal. But she also knows that too much employee conflict within the four walls of her spacious facility can be a fatal blow. She is instinctively in tune with the temperature of her in-house climate. She sets the mood. She monitors any mischief.

And Charlene understood the escalating labor issues she observed one recent Monday morning couldn’t be tolerated. Open antagonism certainly wasn’t going to create camaraderie or gain positive momentum in her shop. Not on Charlene’s watch! Tossing in the towel isn’t her style. She is a seasoned strategist and she responded with swift resolve and determination. In fact, her recent tactical move caught everyone (even her closest confidants) off guard. She picked up the phone and made an unexpected call. She tapped a resource no one supposed she had cultivated. We answered on the second ring.

Charlene invited us to come in and interview her senior team. Her mantra, “No topic is off-the-table!” She asked us to help quell the storm and objectively identify the rabble rousers. She realized her proximity to and appreciation for certain long term employees made it difficult for her to seem impartial. And she wanted the facts not the fables.

Charlene also wanted to ensure her executives had the tools to extinguish future forest fires before they became catastrophic. It had been a while since they had received training.

So how did we help Charlene combat the combative mood? It was a three step process.

1.We probed past the easy alibis to understand the super sensitive issues.

2.We repeatedly raised the topics that senior executives didn’t want to confront.

3.Charlene took action on our findings. Fast!

Charlene had the political will to fix whatever department(s) needed repair. She had the relationships it required to apply the appropriate pressure in just the right spots. She simply wanted a fresh set of eyes to see beyond steeped perceptions and active landmines. And she needed someone with unbiased ears to listen with empathy to employees who were deep in the heart of her team.

Don’t Let Petty Differences Crush Your Corporate Values

It’s often difficult to distinguish between the political ambitions of certain employees and the real business requirements.

Remember… Those who talk most often don’t know. Those who know often won’t talk.

Getting past the road noise and listening to the hum of your automobile engine is a skill that your trusted auto mechanic must possess. Sometimes it’s equally valuable to bring in a trusted advisor to hear from your team. It neutralizes politics and shows you want the truth.

Once you have successfully developed the right set of values to underpin the foundation of your culture, you must be relentless in the pursuit of excellence. Get your employees up to speed on how to connect the values on your wall plaque with their daily behavior. Reward success.

Charlene’s determination to maximize the impact of her consulting investment to stabilize her company’s culture made it possible to turn her situation around quickly. Her proactive commitment to stay a step ahead of troublesome problems continues to serve her well. It’s been our experience that effective women entrepreneurs have a distinct sensitivity when it comes to building a bond with their often male dominated executive teams. Successful women often notice broken relationships first.

And in tough times the most potent women business owners hold the ace of spades. Their use of soft words rebuilds the confidence of their team. Differences in key departmental interactions get recalibrated. Stated differently, women often sense the pain and relate best to those injured unnecessarily. They also recognize the crucial nature of maintaining healthy alliances.

Never forget… When peers begin to question one another in an overtly aggressive manner and relationships get too tense too fast, that’s when Charlene calls timeout. How about you? As CEO, instinctively measure the temperature of your climate. You set the mood. You are the Empathizer in Chief.

No one does it better!

 

Keith Martino, author of Expect Leadership

Martino is head of CMI, a global consultancy founded in 1999 that customizes leadership and sales development initiatives. Martino is the author of Expect Leadership, a series of four leadership books –The Executive Edition, in Business, in Engineering, and in Technology.  After more than 20 years and numerous awards at FedEx, Xerox and Baxter Healthcare, Martino and his team were recently featured in an article published by Women in Technology International.

 

 

Skip Archimedes – ‘How positive psychology is influencing wellness coaching’

Editor @ Global Man December 10, 2018 No Comments

By Fati Gorezi

Skip Archimedes is a ‘Transformational Coach’ and internationally acclaimed Speaker and Author, dedicating his life to helping people overcome the physical, financial, personal, nutritional, emotional and spiritual problems in their lives to become the best they can be. His mission is to bring back energy, positivity, achievement, health and vitality into the lives of those who have lost that focus along the way. He says that we should all be living healthy, vibrant, fulfilled lives up to and beyond the age of 100 and improving all the way.

What are a few of your success stories regarding your journey as an entrepreneur?

The first one I remember clearly like it was yesterday, was an idea I came up with at school and came very close to being expelled. I had a very simple idea of selling 50 numbers from 1 to 50 for £1 each totalling £50. I would then draw 3 numbers after I had sold all 50 numbers and the 1st prize was £15, 2nd prize was £10 and 3rd Prize was £5 and I would keep £20. Without knowing any of this was wrong I ran this for many months and everyone including myself loved it. Even though I was totally innocent I was introducing gambling to the school. When the teachers found out I got called in to see the Head of the school and I was told I was going to be expelled from school for the behaviour of encouraging people to gamble. It was only when my step-dad spoke up saying that I had showed great signs of an entrepeneur by not lying to anyone and actually generating an income through initiative. They spoke for some time and it was agreed that if I stopped my little lottery then I wouldn’t get kicked out of school. This hooked me into making things happen and spotting and creating opportunities.

After being told I would never walk again, I learnt from Bruce Lee about activating the Mind, Body and Spirit and getting in tune with universal energy. When anyone does this, the most phenomenal things start to happen in their lives simply because all resistance is gone and flow states emerge. I went back to gymnastics and won the English ‘Sports Acrobatics’ championships. I then got approached by an agent who said I had a very commercial look and would be great for doing acrobatics in TV commercials, pop videos and for live shows etc. I soon landed my first TV commercial and got paid £10,000 for a single day of filming which I loved because I had never earned that amount of money in that short time before and this was over 20 years ago. What I soon realised was that I started getting creative with ideas for things that I could do in shows and for filming that no one else had thought of. I spoke to the clients to find out what they were looking for and then I started making suggestions whilst on set for ideas that I thought would add more value. The response was amazing and soon I started to be the ‘go to’ guy for bringing acrobatics into different environments and I ended up working with incredible companies like ‘The Royal Opera House’, ‘X-factor’, many TV commercials and pop videos, Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber, ‘The Royal Albert Hall’ and artists/bands that would fill stadiums. Basically, I would come up with ideas for adding a flavour of acrobatics into the mix. This was before ‘Cirque Du Soleil’ became popular – so basically I was in the right place at the time with the right talent and creative ideas and I loved it because each contract was a different adventure. And, as far as the business side went, I could literally charge what I liked because no-one else was doing what I was doing – so for a short period I had an open market which was great.

While all this was growing, I started to come up with my own stage show ideas and soon ended up owning and producing shows and sending these shows out on tours all across Europe. One that became very popular was an explosive and dynamic show that involved dancing, acrobatics, fire, stunts, great showmanship and this particular show was a male cast only and was produced for female audiences so we added the element of tease into the production which made it a very unique type of show. I had no clue that this was going to explode, driving audiences crazy all over Europe. I ended up with 16 guys working for me and we would do sell-out theatres with audiences from a few hundred to thousands of women at each event. No one before had produced such a show and we literally dominated the European market and had lots of copy cat groups pop up. But we were known as the industry leaders. It was a great way to see many countries, meet so many great people and I soon found that travelling was becoming one of my best teachers because I learnt that there are so many different belief systems and some serve and some don’t. I feel blessed to have had that chapter because not only did we have lots of fun with so many celebrations, there was millions of pounds made – which is always great.

Since then I invested some of the money I made and owned different businesses, but found that the ones I always did best in were the ones I had passion and drive for that served a specific need. The businesses that really make positive changes in peoples lives are the one’s where that sense of fulfilment really shows up because in my mind, success without fulfilment simply equals failure.

I have faced many challenges, as we all do, but learnt how to turn my challenges into my blessings. I got asked to share these techniques with others and before I knew it I started public speaking to share these life changing nuggets with more people. I then started running my own live events, workshops and retreats around the world. I could see that the processes and experiences I started taking people through were helping people to transform on so many levels. I had never experienced this before and I found it so humbling to be able to assist in improving the quality of people’s lives through these powerful teachings.

I care deeply about doing my part in helping to create a better world, plus I had a real hunger for serving at the highest levels. It became apparent very quickly that a lot people were, and still are, feeding their minds and bodies with things that are draining them of energy and having detrimental effects on them.

I also started to learn the truth about truly nourishing the body and mind – and found that we have drained essential minerals from our soils on a global level. For example, our fruits and vegetables only contain 5-20% of the nutritional value compared to 100 years ago. Natural food is simply a shuttle system to be able to get the nutrients in the food into your body. If the minerals are no longer in the soils then how do they get into our bodies? The answer is – they don’t! This quote got me doing my research: “You can trace every, disease, every sickness and every ailment to a mineral deficiency” – Dr Linus Pauling. This amazing gentleman is a 2 X Nobel Prize winner which, in itself, is pretty remarkable.  I didn’t find anyone who contested what he said and through my deep intensive research I soon realised that eating healthy wasn’t enough in todays world if you want to really get the most from your mind, body and life. I knew supplementation was needed, so I looked into that world and continued my research.

I couldn’t believe that all the supplements and superfoods I found weren’t at the standard I would be satisfied with putting into my own body. This, to me, was shocking because these were being sold as health products but were actually doing people more harm than good long term. I ended up starting my own line of ‘Superfoods’ and didn’t put in any bulking agents, fillers or sweeteners and only used the highest quality of ingredients – and also ‘no cheat’ farming techniques. If people knew what was going on behind closed doors and what the harmful effects are of so many supplements I think people would be seriously shocked because the industry isn’t regulated yet.

My strategy was to create the most effective superfoods available that would serve the human body and mind at the highest levels. I knew this would not satisfy a lot of people’s sweet palettes for taste and thus would potentially put off sales. Not a good plan for a business! However, I was looking at this from the angle of simply serving the human body and mind with superfoods and nutrients at higher levels than what was already available. I had to let people know that “It tastes so bad, that you know it’s good for you!”.

Ironically, serving at that level, people really starting noticing a difference in the way they looked and felt and then – as their taste buds started changing – they actually started liking the taste which was great. It’s funny that when you eat and drink things that don’t serve you, you get addicted to those things. And the things that are actually good for you don’t taste good. So many people are out of balance because of poor dietary choices and unfortunately for them, they are suffering for it.

To be able to produce these superfoods that are helping people every time they ingest them is something I’m super proud of. I could have sold out and used cheaper ingredients and cheat farming methods that so many brands use to simply earn more profit. However my motivation was in producing something that was of the highest quality available. I never wanted my name or face on the Superfoods but all the experts around me said that people don’t buy into brands today as much as they buy into people. It was said that I’m a living breathing version of someone who has daily demands and responsibilities at high levels. I’m doing business all over the world and travel all the time in and out of different time zones so I need to be on my game consistently. I’m running and working on so many projects and need to have constant clarity, focus and to take actions so that we continue to grow and serve more people. It didn’t make sense from a business point of view to have my name and face on these superfoods but it felt like the right thing to do – to be a living example that these superfoods serve those with a busy lifestyle. They want to be sure that their body and mind can still be nourished at the highest of levels on a daily basis.  For me these superfoods are the building blocks that help me to recover, detox, nourish, revive, recharge and energise so that I don’t just survive but I really thrive. And that’s what these do for others who use them too, which of course is a great thing.

Tell me a bit about your professional background?

I never had any formal training in business which I’ve found does have it’s advantages – because today things are moving so fast. I was lucky because I owned my own Companies so always had the mindset of serving at that level. All the responsibility ultimately ended up on me – so I would always have to figure things out to make things work. Of course I made lots of mistakes, and usually we learn the most when we know what doesn’t work, so we can learn to do what works. I’d like to think I’m a fast learner and learn from my mistakes. Its important to move on and to keep adding as much value as you can. I’ve found myself doing all sorts of tasks and jobs and as long as I bring a good vibe to the table I seem to find the needed solutions always presented themselves at the right times. I have been really fortunate to have had so many great CEO’s, Managers, Business owners and Celebrities that include movie stars, pop stars and one of the Dragons from the TV show ‘Dragons Den’. They all say that my teachings have had the most profound impacts on their lives which is always very nice and humbling to hear.

What inspires you in everyday life?

I now find that the simple things in life inspire me; like nourishing my mind and body with great nutrition, moving my body in fun ways, getting out in nature, meditating to help let go of what isn’t serving me and reconnecting to what will serve; creating and building great relationships and basically living what I teach. Plus, I enjoy working with teams on common visions. I’m sure you’ve heard this: “teamwork makes the dreamwork”. I love feeling those goose bumps all over my body and this is a sign for me that we are on the right path with something and I feel blessed because these always happen multiple times throughout each day. In short, for me its all about helping to raise consciousness and to bring about more awareness to people’s lives so that they can truly live their dreams.

‘’Living Forever Young ‘’? Is this possible?

A massive ‘YES’ jumps out of me to answer that. Firstly I’m living proof because, at 45 years old, I literally feel better today than I did in my 20’s. As well as teaching this amazing lifestyle to people all over the world, the person I’m most proud of is my mother. She was overweight, in and out of hospital with many operations, had high cholesterol, low blood pressure, arthritis, a cupboard full of pharmaceutical drugs and couldn’t walk from one side of the room to the other without being in serious pain. She came to one of my retreats and afterwards lost 28 pounds in body fat and started ‘Living Forever Young’ and continues to do so today. She only started when she was nearly 70 years old and has turned into someone who is hungry for life again. She is a living example that it’s never too late because she now does yoga most days, swims about 100 lengths when she swims, and is more active now than she was 10 years ago.

In the last few years my mum has travelled all over the world for different adventures which she never thought was possible at one point. To see those positive shifts in someone whom I care deeply about and having nothing but love and admiration for is one of the best gifts ever – because she has added another 30 years onto her life and she gets to enjoy the freedom we all deserve. Of course this works especially great for business people because we must learn how to override the stresses of the corporate world and be in a position to add great value BUT the first person we need to learn add value to is ourselves.

What is the formula to ‘Living Forever Young’?

Unfortunately it isn’t something I can write in a single paragraph because its combination of many elements working in harmony with each other but the formula is contained within my book ‘Living Forever Young’ and the secrets can only be uncovered when you actually apply to them to your daily life. This book is a game changer because nothing tastes as good as ‘Living Forever Young’ feels. You basically handle all forms of stress better and lock into a way of living where you thrive in every environment because your mind and body function better – and the side effects are more productivity whilst looking and feeling better, which we all need more of.

What is your greatest strength?

One thing that many people comment on is my everlasting energy. And we need energy for everything in our personal and business life, otherwise things can get on top of us and once the stress takes over (whether its physical, emotional, financial, mental or nutritional) it’s game over for thriving. Along with having this abundance of energy I’ve found that keeping a child-like (not childish) spirit, keeps me learning new things everyday. Some may say I should grow up, but children learn faster than most adults. They seem to naturally have more natural joy and wonder plus they have more energy. They speak more truth and they are now teaching the elders new things because of technology. It’s so important to be able to learn fast in todays society otherwise you can get left behind and by keeping some of the powerful traits that children have, I think it adds more strength and wonder to one’s life. Plus you dream bigger, and, as an adult, you then get to enjoy making those dreams come true.

What is special about your lifestyle?

I simply live what I teach and that means everyday I get to do things I love and am passionate about. Every month I’m in pretty much in a different country and time zone so I get to see so many beautiful places around our amazing planet with amazing people which I’m very grateful for. Whilst on my travels and adventures I always make sure that I have lots of fun creating as many memorable and magic moments as possible whilst serving. There was a time when I never dreamed this was possible – but I’m living proof that this lifestyle works on so many levels.

How are the current innovations happening in positive psychology influencing wellness coaching?

Anything positive is always a good thing and there are many coaches all using different techniques to help their clients. I personally feel that if you’re going to take on responsibility to coach someone then you need to have a high level of understanding psychology in depth – otherwise you simply won’t be able to serve at levels that really help the client to breakthrough their challenges. Taking a holistic approach to the study of human strengths can only be a good thing because all the successful people I meet seem to create positivity and find strength from that.

In your opinion what is the mindset that new entrepreneurs require in order to actually succeed in a digital world?

I actually think that the mindset needs to direct all entrepreneurs so that they never sacrifice their own health for their wealth. In my seven week online programme called ‘Connect NOW’ (for Limitless Empowerment) I teach entrepreneurs how to activate themselves and to create the right balance so that the body, the mind and spirit can all function at higher levels which will help produce better results. You’ve heard the saying, “use it or lose it” and the same goes with your mind, your body and your spirit. So many people then take action but in the wrong direction which then does them more harm than good.

If you don’t use your mind, body and spirit correctly and consistently, they won’t function well and you may even risk things shutting down on yourself which could be disastrous for yourself and your loved ones. Through the seven week journey on ‘Connect NOW’ you simply use the activations for your mind-body-spirit and let the force of life start working through you. This plugs you into life where you have more balance, more alignment, more energy, more creative solutions and a lot more fun – even if, at present, you have a busy and stressful lifestyle. The reason this is essential is so that we spend time away from things that are digital to work on ourselves – so that when we do use technology we learn to use it efficiently and productively. This, I actually think, is something very important to address because technology is only going to keep evolving. But we, as humans, must unplug from the addictions that can cause the body, mind or spirit to suffer. Learn how to activate your body, learn how to properly activate your mind and learn how to open up – so that life, universal intelligence, source energy – call it what you will – can pulse through you at these high levels. Then you’ll want more and more because this is life at its best – and ‘Connect NOW’ assists in giving people this. This entire programme is actually digital but it does teach you how to go inside to find the answers you seek whilst helping you to create the body you’re proud of inside and out. The only thing that is with you from the day you’re born to the day you pass is your mind and body and this will teach you what most people never get to learn in their lifetime. The digital age is one that I think is serving humanity and business well in general, because ultimately it allows more truth to be shared. Ignorance isn’t bliss in today’s world so learn what you can from the digital world because it is great. But you must also learn how to unplug from it too.

I would like to gift a place on my ‘Connect NOW’ for Limitless Empowerment by sponsoring someone. Simply send me a private message on facebook explaining why I should gift you this seven week journey where your mind, your body and your spirit will be activated within you, so that you function as the best version of yourself. I look forward to seeing why I should select you for this life changing experience. You must be committed to your greatness and committed to serving yourself and others at higher levels. This will have so many positive impacts on your business because you will become a better leader. I believe we need more honest and authentic leaders in our world today and it would be my pleasure to assist you on that journey.

Do you have a favourite quote regarding business/entrepreneurialism that you would like to share with the readers?

“As soon as something stops being fun, I think it’s time to move on. Life is too short to be unhappy. Waking up stressed and miserable is not a good way to live” – Richard Branson.

 

Les Brown – You have greatness within you

Editor @ Global Man September 17, 2018 No Comments

 

*This interview is transcribed from the Global Woman Show with Mirela Sula

Today I feel very fortunate to have met an amazing person called Les Brown. I hardly need to introduce him because almost everybody knows about him and the way that he has touched the hearts of millions of people around the world. I am so happy that I can now share my interview with him that I know is going to inspire all the women who support the ‘Global Woman’ platform.

Les Brown, thank you so much for being with me today and giving your time to ‘Global Woman Magazine’. You know women love your work so please tell us more about what you do.
I am very glad to hear that you appreciate my work and I am very happy meeting you. But there’s something important that you said to me. I asked you about something that I want to get done and you said, “Anything is possible” and you said it with such conviction. That’s exactly the mindset that people must have, because, according to psychologists over 87 % of people’s negative ‘self-talk’ goes undetected by the conscious mind. But you have deliberately programmed yourself to believe, as an optimist, that anything is possible. And when you said that I believed it because you didn’t just ‘say it’ but you spoke with great conviction. This is what I say to Speakers when I train them. That having conviction is more important than the actual words you speak. So – I guess what I need to say is, ‘Thank you for blessing me with your presence’.
Your own story is incredible – and probably there are a lot of people who are feeling a bit down and trying to find excuses or complaining about politics or the situation of the world or, of course, they come from a poor family background or from a dysfunctional family. There are lots of reasons to complain about things – but you never seem to complain.
I do talk about things that have happened to me, but I don’t allow them to stop me. My new book is called; ‘You have got to be Angry’ and it’s about saying to yourself, “Here’s something I want, and I am going to get it in spite of the fact that it’s an unfair world – and also it’s not right that women doing the same work as men in the USA get paid less than the men get paid”. We all know that such inequality is simply not right. I was once working in a job that claimed that if you are the number one salesperson you become the Sales Manager and you will then get a bonus and I did it for six months in a row but they passed me by and then I was required to train other people that they would put over me. Clearly that was not right or fair. The only reason they did it was because they had the ‘complexion of connection’ and ‘I had the complexion of rejection.’ However, I decided I was going to ‘make it’ in spite of everything. Helen Keller said ‘when one door closes another door opens’ but most of us spend time trying to open a closed door rather than creating a door ourselves that we can then walk through unchallenged. In other words, we need to be able to live our own dreams and there are many women who have always had to fight against all the odds to make it through. There’s a gentleman by the name of Fred Astaire and back during the time he was in Hollywood they said he was the greatest dancer in the world – but the young lady that he danced with – she had to dance with him step for step but backwards and in heels! So, what I’m saying is that women have always had to be persistent to make it against all the challenges they have had to face. My mother adopted seven children and I was one of the seven. She made it against all the odds and although she didn’t have a great education she definitely had a PhD in ‘Mother’s wit’ and she always found a way forward even when there didn’t seem to be a way! Women have always had to do that and that is why I am excited to be a part of this interview and to be in the presence of women like you.

Thank you. So basically, you are saying that there is a lot of injustice out there in the world, but our duty and responsibility is not to complain about the unfairness women face but to prove that we can make anything possible if we face up to the challenges.
Yes. You have to do it ‘in spite of…’ Communities and countries are created by people and they can be changed by people and the secret is to maintain commitment through all the frustrations and disappointments we are going to encounter. We must all attempt to change the way that we function and also attempt to change the way women are treated – and in attempting to change the way we treat each other we need to understand this is a human problem. Human beings created it and human beings can therefore resolve it!
Well, as human beings we usually tend to see the problem not the solution. But not all the people have this ability to turn their perception in a direction that can guide them to the solution. Is there a secret to making this happen?
You know Einstein said “I don’t think I am so smart. I just have more patience than most people.” Most people want change to happen directly but it’s not that kind of world. You have got to be willing to be patient and it takes persistence and it takes going through some frustrations and disappointments and setbacks and things happening to you that you cannot anticipate. Some setbacks and problems just keep coming back again and again and I believe that sometimes angels are dispatched – and I believe that those angels support us by saying, “You know what? She’s really determined and she’s not gonna stop or ever give up.” That’s tenacity!
They did this study once and found that with a certain mathematical angle a spool of thread – after it’s released – hits against a two-ton steel beam. After so many hits – ‘pip pip pip’ – eventually it will begin to vibrate and then eventually the beam will move. Well, that’s what you are doing. That’s what we are doing in tapping into the consciousness of people and helping to create a different kind of world and changing how women should be seen not as just ‘receptacles for men’s orgasms’ but as thinking, feeling human beings who have something to give and something important to contribute to life. And it takes time to reverse that conditioning. I saw in the newspaper yesterday an article about a beautiful young lady that was raped and killed by her uncle. What kind of society have we created and what kind of mindset can give someone the permission to be that inhumane to another human being? It’s going to take time to reverse that sort of thinking and that type of behavior.
It feels that the shift is happening in the world and that more and more women are waking up. It feels like we have been sleeping for a long time. Now it’s time to wake up, to come to a higher level of consciousness, to connect with ‘higher self’ inside us and to see things like you just said. But sometimes we can’t anticipate things and we don’t have control over things. We can take responsibility for certain things we do in the world – but how can we coordinate and co-create with men? Not by feeling that we are against them or that we are separate but by working together. As we all know – we have left the world in men’s hands for a long time and it looks very messed up. So how can we get to the level when men see us as partners?
Think about where the world would be now if those who are in control had been inclusive in their thinking rather than exclusive. In other words, if women were allowed to participate and if people were allowed to participate even though they’d had an accident, even though they had slanted eyes, even though they came to the table with different sexual orientation, even though they might be in a wheelchair. Where would we be if all the thinking that’s available on the planet came together to collaborate and to work together with a mindset that said; ‘We can solve this. We can create a different kind of world’. Where would we be now? It’s like the way it was in the USA for coloured people in the USA. I am 73 now, but when I was a kid I would get on the bus with my mother and people would be seated in the back and there were seats up front where white people sat and even though there were some free seats there, mama said, ‘’keep walking Leslie’’ and I had to go past a yellow line to sit down. I said, “Why we can’t sit up there?” and she just said, “You can’t”. But the only reason we couldn’t sit there were because we were black. So that culture effectively said, ‘you are less worthy’. That culture and those laws in Society were designed to make people like me feel inferior.
I was invited to speak at the beginning of my career in Florida and unbeknownst to me they thought I was a different Les Brown. So, when I knocked on the door at the back of the theatre a guy said, ‘’May I help you?” I said, ‘’Yes, I am Les Brown’. He said, ‘’You are Les Brown’s driver?’’. I said, “No – I am Les Brown”. He said, “You are not Les Brown the bandleader!” I said, “No I am not”. You know he looked at me and then he was trying to spit on my shoes. I was so glad that he didn’t spit in my face because if he had I wouldn’t be here now. I would have grabbed him. He said, ‘follow me’ and people were already seated in the theatre and they had these album covers of Les Brown the bandleader. And this guy went at the microphone and says, “Ladies and gentlemen – Les Brown!” He then looked at me with contempt and walked off without shaking my hand and greeting me. So, I walked up to the microphone and I’m thinking, ‘How am I gonna deal with this?’ Everyone in that room were shocked because they only knew black people as football or basketball players but not as a Speaker. I am the only black face in the room and then I looked up and there was a sign that says, ‘You have the power to seize the hour’ and then I looked at the audience and I said to myself, ‘Right, I need to take control of this room. So, I said ‘I want you to think about why we are here. We have the power to seize the hour, to recognise your children and to give commitment to these young people because they are being moulded into who they will be in the future. I said, ‘Let’s give them a tremendous round of applause’. I knew they were gonna clap for their children. I needed to be strategic, so I said, ‘And all the parents would you please stand up? There are many people that loved you and believed in you and prayed for you – right up until this moment where we are now. Let’s seize this opportunity to recognise them with love and respect. Give them a tremendous round of applause!’

So you created this crazy energy in the room?
I just increased the energy by taking over the room and filling it with love and appreciation. After that they looked at me as if to say ‘Okay. What are you going to do? We will listen to you now.”

All this power and this energy. Where does it come from? What is the source?
The source is in all of us, who we are behind our eyes. We are all the same and so what I do is call for that source which I call ‘greatness’. I believe that when you are pursuing greatness you don’t know what your limits are – so you act like you don’t have any limits. And then I looked at the audience and I said, ‘You all have greatness in you. I don’t know who you are, I don’t know anything about you but I you all have greatness in you and we all speak from that place – the universal language of acknowledging each other and seeing the value in each other and loving each other.
That began to dispel the rejection, the hostility, the racism in the room and they began not to focus on my colour but focused on me as a human, because at the end of the day and – Jane Elliot said this – it’s not a black race and a brown race or a yellow race and a red race – it is just one race and it’s called the human race. It is brought together by love and God is love. Women are the greatest embodiment of love for me and I am here because of two women. One gave me life and the other gave me love. God took me out of my biological mother’s womb and placed me in the heart of my adopted mother and I think that there is a shift that is taking place and women are the pioneers of that shift. Women will help move us into a different future that Mother Teresa spoke about when she said, ‘’Lord I know you know how much we could bear, and I could bear”.

I am sure a lot of women will resonate with you and so much admire you for the fact that you speak so highly about your mother and the way that you put her on a pedestal. Can you share with us something that you never shared before about your mother?
Interesting that you said that. I had a moment with myself last night praying for my son and I asked myself is there something I have not done? As a kid I had a congestion of the lungs and another friend named Gramps he had the same condition. We were ten years old and we would sit in the back yard with two chairs side by side. One day I came to the backyard and Gramps had died. I remember that night when Doctor Johnson came over as doctors used to make house calls at that time and said, ‘Mamie give Leslie these drops every two hours’ and she had to be up all night to do that. Then she had to go to work on Miami Beach to cook for families with hand-me-down clothes and I remember distinctly my mother hands trembling as she was getting the drops out and putting them into my mouth and she‘d wrapped me in some leaves called ‘Palmer Christian’ leaves and was saying, ‘God don’t take my son, take my life, let me die, but don’t take my baby”. She didn’t give birth to me, she didn’t carry me for nine months and she is asking God to take her life and allow me to live. So, when I was praying for my son the other day I said, ‘God I had not asked you to do this. What mama can love me more than I love my son Calvin. I beg you take my life but give my son more time. I am 73 and I am an old man now and I am okay with going now so take my life instead.” I told this story on the Internet and a lady texted back. ‘God don’t listen to this fool. The God I serve could do it all – he could save you and your son. We don’t serve a limited God”.
What I learned from, my mother is that we must push forward in spite of everything. She believed everything is possible and that’s the kind of mindset that we must have to leap and grow our wings on the way to understanding. If you are not willing to take risks, you can’t grow. And if you can’t grow you can’t become your best, and if you can’t become your best you cannot be happy and if you can’t be happy then what else is there but to walk by faith and not by sight alone.

So you sometimes have to say ‘yes’ but you don’t always need to know how you are going to get there?
The key is to make a commitment. That’s what it will take for us to create a culture in our cities, in our countries, in the world and in the work place for women to be seen as equals. We just need ‘the will to do it’. What will it take for us to reduce the sexual abuse, the physical abuse, the domestic abuse and violence to women and children – those who are powerless and voiceless. Just the will to do it! What will it take for us to stand up to the universal bullies – the most powerful bullies on the planet? Everything that exists is because somebody had the will to do it.

You seem to be enjoying your life a lot now?
Yes. Because we don’t know how much time we have. Someone asked me, ‘What do you want your legacy to be?’ and I said, “I aspire to inspire until I expire” and I always tell my children that when they say ‘Your dad is dead’ don’t allow them to embalm me for three days! Come down to the funeral home and bring a microphone just in case!’ I’m here to teach people to live fully and not die empty. We have to develop the courage and the willingness to follow our life purpose in spite of the fact that we might live in an environment where women are treated inferior or in an environment of racism that does not recognise humanity. You must decide ‘I’m gonna do this no matter what’.

You mention a lot in your speeches that lot of people probably hope to have an easy life because it is difficult to lead a hard life, but you have turned this around and said that when life is hard work then your life is going to be easier. I really love that idea. Can you tell us more?
If you do what is easy your life will be hard. But if you do what is hard, your life will be easier, and we must be willing to do hard. Let’s talk about struggle. I am reminded of a little boy going through an area in the forest when he saw a caterpillar trying to come out of a cocoon. So he watched and he observed and after a while a butterfly came out of the cocoon and hit the ground of the forest fluttering its swings and then flying off. And a few weeks later he came through the same area and saw another butterfly struggling to get out of the cocoon and naively he decided that he wanted to help it to come out faster. He took a safety-pin out of his pants and he made a little incision and the butterfly fell out of the cocoon, hit the ground and fluttered his wings and died because it was the struggle itself that gave it life. The struggle itself – when the dream is big enough – means the odds don’t matter. In life you will always be faced with a series of god-ordained opportunities brilliantly disguised as problems and challenges. Challenges will introduce you to a part of yourself that you might not know right now. We must embrace the challenges because we grow through the challenges of life.

Thank you for this area of our discussion because this is very important especially for women who have realised that if they want to connect with their power and to stand in that power they also need to become more entrepreneurial. Financial freedom is where get most of the power because a lot of women are abused because they are dependent on the finance of other people. A lot of women are starting their own journey as entrepreneurs and starting their own business, but they are facing a lot of challenges. A brilliant idea is not always easy to achieve and so they give up. What is your advice and your wisdom to share with women entrepreneurs to motivate and inspire them to keep going and to be successful?
Three things. My mother was an entrepreneur when she could no longer work at Miami Beach for these wealthy families because they fired her. So, my mother had to become an entrepreneur and she didn’t have multi-level marketing during that time it was like a lottery. She sold moonshine and she sold homebrew. I never talked about it on stage because I don’t have the emotional bandwidth to do it without crying because at one time she went to prison. So, one of the things that I am training Speakers is never tell a story that you are not emotionally capable of handling yourself because this is no place for therapy. What I learned from my mother is she always said, ‘Every tub must stand on its own bottom’. My mother become an entrepreneur and she made a commitment to my birth mother that we will that we will never go to bed hungry – and we never did. We always had a roof over our head and we always had clothes on our back.
Women have always been the catalyst to say, “I am going to provide for this child or these children.” I remember talking to a man who should have been paying ‘Child Support’ and he said, “Oh they’re gonna let the mother take care of him instead.” I said, “But she didn’t get a child through immaculate conception – so you played a part in this child’s life too – so you should participate.” But a lot of guys who I call ‘sperm donors’ just walk away and leave the woman to struggle and make life difficult for her. That’s why the ‘Global Woman Magazine’ is so important in teaching women. Now is easier than before because of technology. These are women who are becoming entrepreneurs and becoming healthy through the comfort of their home with a computer. There are more women now that have a level of independence and more women who have a strong sense of identity. When your life has a sense of identity it gives your life a sense of purpose and a sense of direction and so they are now women who don’t just see themselves as wives or as mothers but as a global entrepreneur. They are living a life of contribution, not just standing in the shadows but can live and be fulfilled and make a difference to the planet. Women now have more access in certain areas of the world than ever before and that’s a good thing.

Gil Petersil: Strategic Partnerships Can Work Wonders

Editor @ Global Man September 12, 2018 No Comments

By Fatima Gorezi

There is a belief that you are the ‘average’ of the five people you spend the most time with. Indeed, your immediate circle determines your lifestyle, your income, and even your health. So, it is vitally important to choose these people consciously and wisely. The most efficient way to do that is through proper networking and strategic partnerships. We talked about it with Gil Petersil, a leading networking mastery coach, serial entrepreneur, innovator and public speaker.

Can you tell us more about your early life and your first steps in business?
I spent my childhood in Israel growing up in a traditional Jewish family. Later we moved to Canada and it’s there that I made my first money at the age of 14. My father would often go to Israel on business. One day he asked me what to bring from there for my birthday. I requested a box of audio cassettes with national Jewish songs. Right before Hanukkah (which happens before Christmas), I sold all these cassettes almost instantly.

The reason was that I was selling them at the shopping mall, where I could meet more interested people. Moreover, I did that on Saturday, when my competitors didn’t work over the weekend enjoying themselves. Of course, such a success was a true inspiration for me and I decided to venture into entrepreneurship. During my early years as an entrepreneur, I made attempts to engage in the restaurant business, bakeries and even mobile apps. Some of these efforts were more successful than others. But it was then when I realised: you never achieve anything on your own. No matter what move you make, you always need the right people to help and support you. So, I started paying a lot of attention to business networking and I saw how it helped me reach my goals faster and easier. Afterward, I decided to focus on networking and turn it into my primary field of expertise. Now I teach it at business schools and business events.

What motivated you to get involved in being inspirational for change?
Actually, it all started with my mentor and, I now daresay, my business partner Tony Robbins, the #1 life and business strategist in the world. At first, he was my virtual mentor and a role model as to how I should be developing my life.

Now my company “Meet Partners” which is based in Moscow are exclusive representatives of Tony Robbins in Russia and his number one partner in the world. We annually bring over 2000 Russians to Tony’s events in different countries. After one of the first Tony’s seminars that we went to, our Company’s focus moved from doing events where people can connect through networking to events where people can connect through education. Later on, when I developed a personal connection with Tony, he told me: “Stop running businesses. You are a Speaker and this is what you should be focusing on.”

I took Tony’s advice because management is really not my strength. I now hire great managers to handle all the operating procedures. Instead, I give speeches at global events where I teach people how to achieve any goals in business and life through the art of networking and the power of resourcefulness. When someone tells me how inspired they were by my speech and especially what great results they have obtained, it makes me a happy man.

What major challenges and problems have you faced? How did you handle them?
I would say that the major challenge for any entrepreneur is self-doubt. I lost motivation many times and I disconnected from the world of big goals. About seven years ago I went completely broke. I lost all my money, but the most terrible thing was that I lost faith in myself. I’m so grateful to my wife Katya who never stopped believing in me even when I stopped believing in myself. She is the one who always helps me overcome insecurity.

Therefore, my advice to the folks who are facing a similar challenge: don’t try to handle it on your own. Find someone who you can lean on in your troubled times. And stay away from those who tell you that your failure was inevitable because life is unfair, or any business is dangerous. I’m sorry to say that some people are happy to see you fail. It’s not because they are evil, it’s just that they want to feel better about themselves at your expense. So, the clear message is stand strong and associate with the right crowd.

What keeps you up at night when you think about Strategic Partnerships and moving from integration to optimisation to transformation?
My whole life is about serving people and Strategic Partnerships are one great way to do it. When you find a partner, you both can add more value to your clients and make them happier. There is one common misconception about partnering up with another business. Some entrepreneurs think that they need to find a Company which is working in the same niche and join forces with it. In fact, a partnership is when you find a business which is different from yours, but you have the same target audience. For instance, one coffee company partnered up with a car dealer. Now the car showroom has a cozy sitting area with free coffee. The coffee company gets support from a strong brand, the car dealer enjoys great coffee and the clients receive an excellent service that motivates them to come back and recommend the car dealer to their friends and colleagues. Everyone is happy.

Such cases always inspire me because I see how beneficial they are for all parties. And from my own experience, I see how Strategic Partnerships can really work wonders. For example, five years ago I could not imagine that I would become a strategic partner for Tony Robbins. Now he is coming to Moscow and is giving his first Russian seminar on September 1st, 2018. It’s a big amazing event, not only for Tony and me, but also for thousands of Russian people, and this is exactly what counts.

How is it in business, working together with your life partner, and how do you balance personal and business life?
Having the same person as both my business partner and soulmate is truly an exception, a great fortune. I always say that it’s not a good idea to mix personal and business life. Even when you start your business based on friendship, you run the risk of losing both, business and friendship. However, I don’t want to discourage anyone from starting a business together with your loved ones. After all, there are no rules without exceptions and our family business with my wife Katya is a living proof.

As for finding the right balance between business and family, we have a few life-hacks for that. The first one is planning. You write down all your goals, both short-term and long-term. That way you allocate time for everything that is important to you: visiting relatives, attending a global business event, having a romantic dinner with your wife, etc. By the way, Katya and I have a tradition: every month we go to a new Michelin-starred restaurant. And that is our method number two: traditions and rituals. Observing a daily, monthly, or a yearly tradition is very helpful. No matter how swamped we are, we always make time for each other and of course our little daughter Elly. And finally, I highly recommend talking to your partner about everything. Communication is the key to a healthy relationship. Don’t store up your resentments and grievances, talk about them, talk about your feelings. When your relationship is built on complete trust and you can openly discuss any problem, you succeed both in business and marriage.

What is your definition of women’s empowerment?
Of course, I believe in equal opportunities for men and women – but I also believe in a natural difference in genders. Thus, to me, ‘women empowerment’ means enabling women to achieve their goals using their unique female energy. I think that by nature women are more loving, compassionate and empathic. I would love to see more women bringing that to all spheres of life, including politics and economics. It will definitely make the world a better place.

My wife is from Russia and all Russians celebrate a big holiday on March 8th called the ‘International Women’s Day’. Historically, it was a feminist holiday designed to raise awareness about women’s rights. But gradually the 8th of March became a day of men’s declarations of love to women. I never miss the opportunity to congratulate all my female followers on social networks. I always say how grateful I am to all women in my life for their encouragement and support, for making us, men, better versions of ourselves. Both men and women have their strengths and weaknesses. So, what we really need to focus on is complementing and empowering each other. Therefore, my slogan with regard to this issue is: don’t compete, complete!

What are some key characteristics of an empowered person?
First of all, it’s taking responsibility for your own life. An empowered person will never blame the circumstances, the government or other people for any problem that he or she may be facing. As Bill Murray put it in the iconic movie “Groundhog Day”, “We make choices and we live with them.” So, an empowered person learns to make choices and deal with their consequences.

Secondly, it’s constant growth and development. No matter how successful you become, there is always room for more. And this is where life-long education comes in. Empowered people are curious and motivated to improve their skills. Therefore, they never stop learning: from books, business events, from others, and so on. It’s important to know what skills you lack to achieve a new goal and how to obtain them. But being aware of your skill gaps should not let you down. An empowered person is also self-confident and knows how to deal with fears and limiting beliefs that prevent them from growing.

Finally, an empowered person is a great communicator. The ability to maintain an open dialogue at all levels is essential. Through good communication skills, an empowered person inspires and empowers others changing their lives for the better. Of course, these are not all characteristics of an empowered person. Among other traits I can name such things as being proactive, innovative, making quick decisions, and the list goes on.

What advice would you give to those who want to give up due to a lack of empowered feeling, thinking and action? (e.g. What is an important first step)
As a strong believer in networking and the power of human relationships, I would advise seeking support from others. Reach out to those who respect you and the things you do. Look for them among your family, friends or colleagues. First, there is a chance they have been in a similar situation. In this case, they will be happy to share their story and let you know how they managed to overcome such crisis. What’s even more important is that these people will not let you give up because they appreciate what you do. They don’t want you to quit. Therefore, they will encourage and motivate you not because they want to cheer you up but because you make their lives better. So, if you feel a lack of empowered feelings, let other people empower and support you.

What do you want to achieve from this life and what is the future holding for you both on a personal level and in your business?
I’m very grateful for the blessed life that I have. Sometimes I even get to thinking: can I really want more? But as I said before, life is about constant growth and development. I want to continue changing people’s lives for the better because this is what fills me up with joy and purpose.

As for the future, it is whatever we make it. I am sure that there will be more amazing people coming into our lives, more opportunities and certainly more challenges. Of course, no one can guarantee that the future will be flawless and cloudless. But as the famous entrepreneur, Sara Blakely, said, “The secret to success is failure”. So, I am not afraid to make mistakes or to fail. As long as I have the two most important women by my side, my wife and my daughter, I am sure that we can achieve anything.

Andy Harrington -You have the Power to Achieve Success

Editor @ Global Man August 23, 2018 No Comments

By Fati Gorezi

Andy Harrington is ‘The Sunday Times’ best-selling Author of “Passion into Profit – How to make big money from who you are and what you know”. At age 29 Andy Harrington was working in a call-centre for an insurance company making just £1500 per month. Frustrated with his dead-end job he borrowed £10,000 from the bank and started a business that has now pulled in more than £50,000,000 ($78,000,000) in revenue. Having sold his company Andy has gone on to Coach Hollywood movie stars and some of the world’s best speakers through his Public Speakers University and Professional Speakers Academy. Andy is also the founder of “The Professional Speakers Academy” that helps business people position, perform and pitch their way to profit. He has shared the stage with Sir Richard Branson, Anthony Robbins, Sir Alan Sugar, Brian Tracy, Paul McKenna and Bob Proctor of ‘The Secret’ to name but a few.

Could you please tell us a bit about you and how you started making money?
I left school with no real qualifications to speak of and at age 15 I was working in a supermarket stacking shelves. My first pay packet was £42.21 for a week’s work…! At age 21 I joined an insurance company and sold car and house insurance on the phone and did this for seven years (this is where I had my first taste of being a speaker/trainer. Then at age 29 I started my first business in I.T recruitment. Within the first five years we generated revenue of £21,000,000. Then at age 34 I was inspired by Tony Robbins and started on the journey of becoming a professional speaker.

What were the main challenges you faced early on your entrepreneurial journey? And do you still encounter them to this day?
The early days are always exciting in any venture and you need to make decisions fast and work super hard to get sales on the board and build a customer base. The biggest issue early on is not hiring someone to take away the tasks that slow you down and prevent you from doing the higher revenue generating tasks. Today this is not a problem as I have a great team of people around me, so I can do the work I love.

If you could go back in a time machine to the time when you were just getting started, what would you do differently? And what advice would you have given to yourself if you could only relay one piece of advice to your former self?
To not chase the money but instead to do the work you love with people you love spending time with.

Do you think that entrepreneurialism is something that is in your blood? Or is it something that can be learned?

Most entrepreneurs who did not have entrepreneurial parents are non-conformists, they are people who want to go against the grain. Many times, they are also out to prove themselves. People with entrepreneurial parents will have grown up with it “in their blood” as it were and have probably always just known they would create a business or join the family business.

Can you tell us more about ‘The Professional Speakers Academy’? What is the mission?

The ‘Professional Speakers Academy’ is an incubator for entrepreneurial people to learn how to design, develop and deliver their core message that defines what they do and who they do it for. We teach and mentor forward-thinking business leaders how to serve and sell their clients by creating a signature talk. This talk is delivered one-to-many on stage or screen in such a way they are positioned as a specialist authority in their industry to win massive numbers of clients, so they are in demand and can raise their prices.

What is the one accomplishment that you are most proud of?
‘The Professional Speakers Academy’ is one of my greatest achievements and legacies. Although I am also very proud of my event ‘The Power to Achieve’ weekend www.powertoachieve.co.uk as this gives people clarity on their old coping mechanisms and empowers them to embrace their past and be grateful for it so they can live in the here and now where they have the power to create the life they deserve.

How do you see the role of women in business and as speakers on the big stage now and in the future?
Men are primarily driven by testosterone, the hormone that makes you want to win. The problem is sometimes this means men will seek to win at all costs and take stupid risks. Women are driven by oxytocin which is the hormone of togetherness which helps bring harmony, cooperation and community. The testosterone and oxytocin drives are needed for the creation of human beings and so they are also needed for the creation of organisations. This means women’s voices are needed in the board rooms and on the stages of the world. If it’s all men, there will be growth, but it will NOT be sustained growth and so any boom will inevitably be a followed by a big bust.

In your opinion what are three things that women and men need to know about finances?
Keep your spending under control. Invest in systems and people. Money moves to people with a mission.

You have written a book called ”Passion into Profit – How to make big money from who you are and what you know.” What are your top secrets for public speaking and presenting skills that you would care to share with ‘Global Man’ readers?
Craft a story that shows your audience why you are doing what you do and why you care. This builds trust and credibility as it demonstrates the journey of how you got to where you are now. Clients need you because they have a problem they need to solve. They need a recipe to follow, a strategy to implement so you must build a framework for your talk that clearly lays out how you can move the client from pain to gain.

Who has motivated and inspired you towards success?

I was originally inspired by Tony Robbins. I attended his event and decided I wanted to be up there on that stage one day – perhaps even alongside him. Tony’s events were different to anything I had experienced, they were exciting and engaging. I wondered if I could do something similar albeit on a smaller scale. I noticed the only FREE preview type events available in the UK were for investing. I decided to put on my own FREE preview events to teach the personal development work I had learned from Tony and from studying NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming). I wasn’t very good in the beginning. I didn’t have a structure for the event and I didn’t know how to put an offer together and I didn’t know how to sell from the stage either. Perhaps more importantly I felt inauthentic as if I was ‘borrowing’ a lot of Tony’s content and regurgitating what I had learned in my NLP courses.

Over the years I developed my own content and my own ideas on personal development. I also learned how to structure my talks correctly and this led to a big increase in the number of people attending my events. Today I am the founder of ‘The Professional Speakers Academy’ an incubator for entrepreneurial people to learn how to design, develop and deliver a presentation that gets them noticed and wins them new clientele and I am proud to say we train and support some of Europe’s very best speakers. Four times a year my ‘Power to Achieve’ event continues to inspire tens of thousands of people to break free from their shackles and create the lives they deserve.

What is the biggest mistake you see people make when it comes to their finances?
Everyone has a number on their head of how much money they believe they are worth. This acts as an internal compass guiding them to opportunities to move towards and ones to move away from. To make more money there has to be a reason for it. In my seminars I ask “Raise your hand if you know you will make £100,000 in the next 3 months? Normally I will get less than 5% of the audience raising their hand. Next, I say, OK what if you believed that unless you make £100,000 in the next 3 months you are going to die! Now, who knows if they could make £100,000 in the next 3 months?” Now everyone in the room is raising their hand. So, what happened? Did these people suddenly become more intelligent? Did they get more resources? No – just ONE thing was different. They had a very strong motive. The most important part of the word motivation is motive. Your motive is your reason ‘why’. In all my years of working with people to help them improve their lives I have found THE most potent force is your WHY. Many people have a weak ‘why’ which leads to short termism and a general malaise of just settling and a lack of ambition and drive. It is our drive that causes us to get creative and to serve others in the pursuit of our own mission.

Can you tell us more about your marketing strategies and what is the formula for your international success?
The life blood of any business is sales and the lifeblood of sales is marketing and the lifeblood or marketing is new leads. To get new leads you have to go where attention is. Attention was traditionally on newspapers, radio and television. The problem with this media is it’s very expensive and very untargeted so only the big players can play. But today attention is on the screen of a mobile device and primarily on social media. Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube and Twitter are the new places where attention is. To succeed you must develop content that is either educational, entertaining or emotional and ideally all three. These 3 E’s equal the fourth E which is ‘Engaging’. Once you start getting views, likes, comments and shares its time to move to phase two. Phase two is designing content that has a ‘call to action’ built in too (otherwise known as an advert) but the key here is to not make it look like an advert and to still have content that is engaging before asking them to click a button to go to your website where you can capture the lead and evolve the relationship to become a paying client.

What is your experience of working with women? And what is your opinion about their talents and skills?
Women are incredible. They bring a drive that is consistent and constant (men tend to work in bursts) They are also generally more empathetic and help stay true to the values of the organization. Women are needed in the workplace more than ever. Not women behaving like men – but graceful women who focus on building their communities and not focused on beating their competition.

What is special about your lifestyle?
I get to enjoy a lot of time with my family. I have a great team that I can delegate a lot of the operational side of the business to. This affords me the opportunity to stay creative rather than being bogged down with the day-to-day activities. I get to turn up to my events knowing everything is taken care of and I can just focus on my audience and making sure they have an experience they will never forget.

What ’motto’ in life do you live by?
My favourite quote is “Why try hard all your life to fit in, when you were born to stand out” I like people who go against the grain, who challenge convention and push the boundaries of possibility.

What is your dream or ultimate goal, either private or professional?
My goal is to leave the world better than when I entered it. That I took part, that I played the game. That I created something that outlives me. My hope is that my ‘Professional Speakers Academy’ will continue to be the first choice for entrepreneurial out-of-the-box thinking people to design, develop and deliver a message that helps them with their mission to serve and make their difference to the world too.

What are your plans for the future?
To be fortunate enough to still be madly in love with my family, and to do the work I love for as long as I live.

For a FREE copy of Andy’s Sunday Times bestselling audiobook:
www.passionintoprofit.co.uk/audio

Matthieu Kaczmarek – Finding Business Success and Building Loving Relationships

Editor @ Global Man May 2, 2018 No Comments

By Fati Gorezi

Matthieu Kaczmarek was born in Lille in the north of France where he lived until he was 20 years old. He then moved from Lille to Limoges, in central France, in order to follow a master’s degree in ‘Computer Science and Engineering’. He started his professional career in IT consultancy in Brussels in 2008 and worked for major companies such as ‘BNP Paribas’, ‘Orange’ and ‘Total’. In 2013 he decided to create his own company to continue working in IT consultancy and to generate some new ideas. He also launched ‘Consult & Event’, a wedding planning agency, at the end of 2013. Since then he has organised and coordinated several weddings in Belgium. At the end of 2016, he decided to launch ‘Le Grand Amour’, which is the brand that he is currently using for all the marriage events that he organises. In 2017, with Stella Bida, he decided to create ‘Innovation Strategy Results’, a company that helps business owners and their staff to be in control of their innovation cycle in order to get more clients.

How do you remember the beginning of your career?

During my studies I had the opportunity to travel for my different internships in the UK, Turkey and other countries. As I felt like a world citizen I wanted to continue travelling and working away from France in order to develop my mind within different cultures.

I had the choice between two opportunities: one in Columbia and one in Brussels. It was a hard choice to make but I decided to go to Brussels, the “European capital city”. It was a great symbol for me to live in a place with more than 170 nationalities in order to continue developing my mind. I have never regretted this choice as I met my wife there and built my own ecosystem there.

What motivated you to follow your dreams and to create your own company in IT consultancy?

After five years as an employee, I wanted to have the ability to choose my clients following my own expectations and to complete my own training plan from a technical point of view.

I started with a first client, then a second one and since then it has never stopped. When you have the feeling that you are doing the best for your clients then you are aligned with your mission.  Now I have accomplished one of my goals in life: having my own company.

At the end of 2016 you launched ‘Le Grand Amour’. Can you tell us more about this brand?

The objective of ‘Le Grand Amour’ is to create unforgettable moments for couples with amazing romantic surprises and marriage proposals. Frequently, men and women want to surprise their loved ones but cannot split themselves between the organisation of the event and the surprise itself – or they have an idea but don’t know how to make it happen.

My personal objective is to provide happiness to couples and special moments where they feel fully connected to one another in order to experience true love. When your partner takes time to think about your relationship and finds the idea that will make you feel in love again, that’s a beautiful situation to be in.

Since the end of 2016, ‘Le Grand Amour’ organised multiple surprises across Europe and so far, we have never heard a “No” to a marriage proposal! 2018 has now been launched with a lot of new romantic events planned and we are very excited about it!

What are some tips that you can share with us in order for people to improve their business?

The first one is to ‘WOW’ your clients in order to make them press the ‘buy again’ button. That’s why I have launched, with Stella Bida, ‘Happy Clients = Higher profits’ a Company that guides small and medium B2C business owners to improve the client experience they provide to their clients.

The second one, learned and adapted from one of my Coaches, JT Foxx, is the speed of implementation of your ideas. If you implement ten ideas a month while your competition implements a maximum of one or two how far ahead of them will you be after a year? Even if an idea is not a good one, you will grow because you know quickly if it works or not.

A lot of people see only the success that you have achieved – How many times you had to fail before this?

When I started my wedding planning company, I was struggling with the marketing and the business strategy bits and I lost a lot of time and money in trying to do things without consistency.

The most important thing is to learn from your failures in order to grow. So, when I started to learn and was coached by another business man, my sales started to grow. I also met wonderful people that are helping me to develop my skills and providing me with opportunities like Mirela Sula, the founder of Global Woman Network. From that time, I haven’t faced any major failures. As mentioned before, I implemented a lot of ideas every month to develop my businesses. Sometimes it doesn’t succeed as expected but I have limited the risk.

What is your vision for the future?

From a business point of view, I am sure that the ability of a Company to offer tailor made experiences and products to their clients will be a key factor. But most importantly the human factor will be the key element. In the hyperconnected world, it will be so easy to have everything we want in a short time that the human relationships provided by a Company will be the key differentiator. People buy from people even if there is a lot of technology involved.

From a personal point of view, the future appears exciting. The development of knowledge in all scientific domains will provide opportunities that we cannot even imagine yet. I am sure that those developments will lead to big changes in the way we think about the life we have on earth.

Q7-What are three steps that you encourage women and men to take to empower themselves?

The first step is to assume that you have to change something in your life if you want to achieve new challenges. Either you need training because you are not good in a domain or you need to change the people you are surrounded by.

For instance, regarding training, I noticed that it was important to always be in learning mode. Why is it that we concentrate so many years learning in school, but when reaching adulthood and during career years, so many people abandon training and treat it as the last level of priority? It is fundamental for me to encourage people to sharpen their actions continually, by learning critical business skills such as marketing, accounting, strategic thinking, branding or negotiation.

Regarding the people that surround you that I mentioned above, it is sometimes difficult to admit it, but there will always be some people around you that are not happy and excited by your new way of thinking or your wish to evolve. It can be due to jealousy, fear of losing contact with you, or because you might expose their own failures. So, you need to take care of your mind by filtering out the people that are don’t need advice from.

The second step is to believe in yourself. If you don’t believe in yourself or your idea it will automatically be reflected in the way that you present yourself and your Company. The first reason why customers don’t buy is because they don’t trust the credibility of the offer you have offered them. Lack of personal confidence sometimes means you will listen to anyone that might have an opinion about your business even if they have never launched a business themselves.

The third step is to find a good Coach that is a more successful than you – and that will help you to think about new ideas and prevent you from making mistakes. I started without any training or a good Coach and I have therefore lost time and money – but once you have a good Coach you will shine like the star that you are.

 

Luca Spaghetti- A name to remember

Editor @ Global Man April 30, 2018 33 Comments

Luca Spaghetti- A name to remember

 

By Fati Gorezi

Luca Spaghetti was born in Rome, Italy. His name, but above all his nice surname, has become famous thanks to his meeting with Elizabeth Gilbert, the author of the bestseller “Eat, Pray, Love”, which then became a film with Julia Roberts and Javier Bardem, in which Luca was present as a character because of his name. Being connected to a great book (and later a film)  brought  many changes  to his  life.  Now  Luca is a  completely charming writer too. His first book “Un romano per amico”, is published in thirteen countries.

 ‘Eat, Pray, Love’, The story of Elizabeth’s life, literally, became a sensation in many countries captivating millions of readers (and later viewers) All of the “characters” in her book are real people and you are one of them. How do you feel about that?

Well, first I have to say that I didn’t know I was going to be in the book. When in 2003 Liz explained to me her project she told me that her book was going to be a ‘sort of biography’ but I couldn’t imagine a “real” biography. When she sent me the draft of EPL and I read my name for the first time I fell down from my chair. Then I started to appreciate it and the book became a phenomenon and people began to search me out and asked me: “Are you the Luca Spaghetti of EPL? Do you really exist?”

Then the movie came out where I am depicted as being bald and fat – but the problem wasn’t that I’m bald and fat in the movie but that the production team tried to make me become a Roma fan!!! Probably you know that in Rome there are two soccer teams, Lazio (The Good) and Roma (The Evil). And when we went with Liz on the movie set in Rome one night to meet Julia Roberts I met “myself” for the first time and I saw the actor who played me (Giuseppe Gandini) coming with a yellow-and-red Roma’s scarf on his (my!) shoulder.

At that time I said laughing: “I need a lawyer! It’s okay being bald and it’s okay being fat – but I’ll never be a Roma fan!” So they took mercy on me and I returned to being a Lazio fan in the movie.

You became a tour guide/guardian angel to Liz (the protagonist) How would you describe your relationship and friendship with Elizabeth Gilbert?

A gift! When a common friend wrote to me to say she was coming to Rome for three months and asked me to take care of her I was scared. I knew she was a writer and I thought of her as a very boring, intellectual, snobbish and a sophisticated person. Then, day by day, after some “penne all’arrabbiata” and a few glasses of wine I discovered how wonderful she is. I learned from her how to stop hiding my feelings and now I’m not ashamed to say: “Leave your door open always and take care of those you love.”

And we also found out a lot of things that we have in common: we have the same way of protecting our friendship deeply and strongly and we have the same sense of humour and we love eating. Most of the people remind me how lucky Liz and I are to have such a great friendship. And I completely agree. Even after her great success she’s still the same girl I used to know.

Being a person in a great book (and later film) what changes have been brought to your life?

First of all, I am now at peace with my last name! When I was child I suffered a lot, then, on becoming an adult, I learned to laugh about myself and I started to think that it wasn’t such a giant problem, and now I am a good friend with my last name. My grandmother always used to tell me, “Your last name is going to bring you luck! When people meet you it will make them happy and a little bit hungry too.” Now I can say that is absolutely true!

It has brought me luck and a lot of new friends and experiences like becoming friends with my idol James Taylor, becoming a member of the ‘Carbonara Club’ as Ambassador, and it has given me a funnier and happier life.

The book marks a revolution for women. An uprising and a rare search by Elizabeth Gilbert about how women should rise again after every failure and seek success. In your opinion what are the biggest challenges that women face today?

Probably their equality with men based on all the recent stories about abuse in the media and economic factors in terms of pay and remuneration. In a civilized and equitable world women should be paid the same as a man but I’m afraid it still isn’t so. Economically there are some tasks that have different remunerations if the worker is a man or a woman. My wife, for example, is the Director of a chemical laboratory with two hundred people. She is the first woman trusted with this task and she’s happy and appreciated. But many of her colleagues are sure that if her job was done by a man he would have better pay. Personally, I prefer to work with women. I have two girls who work for me and I would never change them for men. Every day I work with clients who are women and every day I appreciate their skills. I’m happy that Liz is a fantastic living example of every positive thing a woman could dream or plan to be.

You are a completely charming writer too. How would you describe your experience of writing books?

Thank you. A fantastic experience and the realisation of a dream. When I was a kid I dreamed of becoming a soccer player, then a songwriter like James Taylor, and at 40 years old I discovered that writing was easy for me. This was, and still is, a great lesson to me. I tried and I loved it. I started just to tell the EPL phenomenon seen through my eyes – the story of an ordinary guy with a special last name, who was born and grew up in the most beautiful city in the world and how a friendship and a book changed his life. Then I found that writing is one the best ways for me to let my emotions come out and so I went on. I’d love to write more, but often my other work doesn’t leave me so much time to do it – so I try to exploit every free minute I have.

What we should know about Italian women and men?

You should know that Italian women are the most beautiful women in the world and that Italian men are the most charming men in the world (not me of course!) Italian women and men are the funniest creatures on the planet, the best cooks, the most elegantly dressed, the insuperable wine makers and of course, the most romantic lovers in the universe. Of course I’m kidding, but I can swear we all have a great sense of humour too.

Adam Markel – PIVOT Your Way To Success

Editor @ Global Man April 20, 2018 No Comments

Adam Markel  

PIVOT your way to success – reinventing your life and your business

By Gulia Lucci

Adam Markel is a speaker, author and entrepreneur who inspires, empowers and guides people to achieve massive and lasting personal and professional growth.

A recognised expert in the integration of business and personal development, Adam speaks and mentors around the globe in the areas of business, entrepreneurship, leadership, and transformation. His latest book is the best selling “PIVOT: The Art and Science of Reinventing Your Career and Life”. Adam also hosts the ‘Conscious PIVOT’ podcast, where he shares his insights on pivoting in today’s fast paced market and interviews experts, innovators and influencers to share their stories and wisdom in the areas of business and life. Adam is the CEO of “More Love Media”, a Company dedicated to empowering individuals and businesses to re-imagine, refocus, and capitalise on change in order to thrive.

How would you describe your early life?

I grew up in Queens, a borough of the City of New York and I had a wonderful childhood. We didn’t have a lot of physical space or privacy in our little four room apartment (where my younger brother and I shared a converted dining room space as our bedroom), but we had lots of love, good food in ample supply, and encouragement to speak freely. I was sensitive to my surroundings and remember not wanting to step on the dandelions that stood between me and the grass field leading to Public School 169. That sensitivity could be sensed by other kids who were finding their way as well. It resulted in bullying and I was on the receiving end from time to time. Slowly I figured out the process of survival – fight or flight was not an abstract concept for me between age 6 and 14. I learned what it took to stand my ground and also how to avoid conflict. I loved my small world and the few friends that I could truly be myself around. Through sports and some pivotal moments of self-trust I developed self esteem and confidence to speak up and out and even defend others that were not ready to do so themselves.

 How did you go on to become a motivational speaker?

After spending a few years as a middle school English teacher I returned to school and studied to become a lawyer. I spent 18 years as a litigation attorney and represented the side of the underdog and disenfranchised many times. After several years of doing “ok” my practice became financially successful representing more businesses and banks. At a certain point though, I could sense that my enthusiasm was disappearing and in its place was anger and impatience. I would wake up in the morning feeling dread and anxiety about the day ahead and I felt out of control. At a certain point, when I could not stand those feelings any longer, I picked up a book called “The Road Less Travelled” by Dr. Scott Peck. When I was done reading that book my life was different. I could see options including not settling for the way I was feeling. I knew I had a chance. I knew I could make it to the next peak even though I didn’t know how. I devoured book after book and eventually invested in coaching and workshops to take my new energy to an even higher level. I had increasingly more frequent moments of clarity and eventually decided that what I was experiencing could also help others. I set a goal to become a transformational speaker and trainer and over the course of two years I reinvented my career and became a lead trainer and later CEO of a large personal development training company in San Diego. I wrote a book about the process of career transition called “Pivot: The Art & Science of Reinventing Your Career and Life”. The body of work that has been developed from Pivot has enabled me to speak all over the world.

What are your secrets in terms of motivating people?

I love people with all of my heart and soul. I tell them what most other people won’t say to them. I see them. I hear them. I respect them. And I don’t accept their limiting beliefs or limiting behaviors as the truth.

 What has helped you to become more effective in growing your business?

I have showed people how to create clarity and make better decisions, how to take baby steps so they can get into momentum and how to take better care of themselves so they can be resilient as they continue to pivot into a business and life they can love.

‘’The Art and Science of Reinventing Your Career and Life’’ is your latest book. Can you tell us more about it?

Pivot is remarkable in its usability. The book details the “process” of making small changes that lead to massive growth and even transformation over time. The book is foundational because it provides a detailed program to create clarity, take action, and plan for the road ahead. The book also helps people to create powerful new rituals or master habits to find greater self-love and self-trust. There is a 21 Pivot Plan to further support the process and provide continuity for the reader’s journey.

What are your three top tips for personal development?

My three top tips for personal development are (i) It is so important to both learn and practice unconditional Self-Acceptance and Self-Love. This means taking excellent care of your body, your mind and your spirit. Find fun and new ways to keep it exciting. When teaching about relationships we call it ‘FLY’ or ‘First Love Yourself’. (ii) We must all continue to develop master habits which include gratitude, presence and forgiveness. I personally have both a morning and an evening ritual, which I find are the keys to my Inner Peace.  (iii) To continue to be a constant and never ending learner we must make sure our minds are the fertile soil that we nurture and garden with tender loving care – everything grows from there.

What would be your four pieces of advice for women who want to start a career in business?

First, authenticity is key! Women must develop their business practices as authentic women, rather than ‘pretend men’ which can be pretty tricky in the business arena. I’ve found that it is necessary to conduct business in any way that is genuine and right in your heart and to share that message with others from a place of service.  Next, the most successful women entrepreneurs I have met, and many who I mentor, all are exceptional at conveying their message and enrolling others around them. My third piece of advice is that I always recommend that all business owners, men and women, learn the skills of pivoting because change is a constant in our world. Change and disruption are always taking place and the way we manage and make the most out of change is the difference between succeeding in the long run or not. Lastly, I also recommend finding mentors or coaches to work with since they have knowledge tools and experience that save us time and money – I still work with coaches and mentors to this day and they are worth their weight in platinum!

What is next for you?

Like most people, I am always pivoting in one way or another. I am always looking for creative opportunities, projects that inspire and challenge me and I make sure to tend to the garden of my mind.  I am excited to be working on my next book, “The Next Pivot” and seeing what gems I can share with others. I am also learning more and more what unconditional love really looks like, for myself and others, and embodying and sharing it with everyone I meet. Our company “More Love Media” holds the big vision of helping people actualise their dreams in their career, business and life through our ‘Pivot Incubator’ and ‘Speaker Mastery’ training.