My Confessions that led to Massive Breakthrough - Pt 1

I vividly remember a scene in the second Matrix movie when the Frenchman was explaining - Choice and Consequence; or Cause and Effect.  This dialog has stuck with me ever since I watched the movie.  In this scene, he discusses choice, but we do not have the power to choose our consequence.  He discusses the true power is in "Why!"  What is your "Why?"

Once you understand your "Why," you can then choose your actions to support this.  The challenge in life is that most people do not understand his/her "Why."  Without this understanding, we are essentially powerless because we base our decisions on emotions, feelings and the influence of others in that moment.

This is also true in business. Why are you in business?  How do you select your clients?  (That is right, how do you select your clients?  Too many people just accept anyone who agrees to give them money even if they are not a good fit for you.)  What kind of client service do you give?  How do you become EXCEPTIONAL!  If you do not base your CHOICE in your WHY, then your choices are random, and far too often they are reactionary.

And, sometimes you give your WHY or purpose away to another person by letting them determine your WHY for you.  This is very dangerous!  I recently found myself in this situation, and I had convinced myself that I was in control.  The reality was that many of my decisions were based on the emotions, whims and decisions of another person.  I found myself unfulfilled, unhappy and stressed to the MAX.  For months, I found myself going through the motions, feeling sorry for myself, and wondering what else life could throw at me.  (This is for another discussion, but the Law of Attraction was strongly at work here.)

Luckily, I had a great friend, Christina, that reminded me that I had choice.  She reminded me that I had the power to choose what I thought about, what I focused on, how long I dwelt on something, how I reacted to something and who was a part of my life.  At first, she simply challenged me with questions like:

• Why do you choose to think that;
• Why did you let yourself feel that way;
• That's interesting, why did you react that way;

For weeks, we had been talking about Attraction, Choice, Respond versus Reaction, and Happiness.  One day, she asked me to discuss and coach her on a specific business idea.  The funny thing is that when we met, we decided to walk and talk, and the focus of our discussion became the Power to Choose.  And, this is when she asked me my most revealing question -

And, the most enlightening question was, so you have been frustrated about this all day, why?  And, what do you have to do to change the way you feel?  Christina asked me this question almost off the cuff, but it penetrated to my very core.

(Ouch...And, I was frustrated for most of one day because a client wanted her website to be EXCEPTIONAL, and she kept making adjustments to  the photos on her site!)  Now, go figure that, a client has listened to me about being exceptional, and I choose to get frustrated!  Oops!

I doubt she even realized the impact of the conversation.

I rushed home, and started to pull out old books and notes from seminars that I had attended over the past two decades.  I was like WOW!!  I really have given away my power to choose.  As soon as I decided to eliminate the toxic thoughts, influences and people in my life - a peace overcame me.  I was able to focus on my WHY, something I had forgotten as I was rushing to put out fires and please others.

This sent me on a massive EVALUATION of my business and my life.  If you can relate to this, you will definitely want to bookmark this blog and read next week's post as I share with you the specific steps I took to make a major breakthrough in my life, how I did it, and within a few short months changed the entire outlook of my business and life.

To your success,
Jesus Balderas
The Coach

P.S. I recently had a client who was working with a high profile business person who was causing chaos in my client's life.  He treated my client as if she owed him something, and he kept dangling carats of big business.  This was causing her great stress, and I shared my story and some strategies with her that I am going to share with you next week.  Once she dealt with this person and situation, she was instantly relieved and her business grew almost instantly.

Matthew Balderas versus Michael Phelps

I know with all the Olympic buzz, and the success the USA is having at these Games that you may think I have lost my proud parent mind.  Yes, I am extremely proud of Matthew and his swimming.  He has become a little fish this year that requires at least 3 daily trips to the pool, and every trip requires some racing with me or his older brothers.  And, let me tell you, Matthew can swim, but there is a difference between being good at something and becoming great at it.

Will Matthew break all of Michael Phelps records in 14 years - I don't know, but probably not?  Could he break all his records, possibly?

The point is this, every day I see talented people with great business ideas that do not cultivate their skills to become a champion.  A champion puts hours of training, studying, and work into honing their skills.  Yes, they have a natural talent, but often times they often work much harder than anyone else to get the most out of that talent.  

To me, this is the difference - they identify their talent, and then they work hard to get everything out of it!

Right now, Matthew just loves swimming, and whether he comes first or second in a race he has won the race in his mind!  Will he become a champion swimmer, only if he puts in the work.  But for now, Matthew is my swimming champion!!

Here are keys to becoming a Champion:

1. A Champion realizes there is a price to pay.

2. A Champion is ready and willing to make the sacrifice that is necessary.

3. A Champion has the skill to focus in the moment. 

4. A Champion accepts nothing less than excellence. 

5. A Champion realizes it’s not what happens but how you react to it that counts.

6. A Champion is intent on self-improvement and creates inner pressure to achieve the desired result. 

7. A Champion always has a game plan and thinks and works on their plan. 

What I learned from Richard Branson...

ARTICLE REPRINTED FROM ROBIN SHARMA'S ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER.


I hope you're great! Just finished an event with Richard Branson in Bucharest (a city known as the "Paris of The East") and wanted to share my takeaways with you to help you take your career and life to its next level of wow.

Richard was polite and larger than life. A pleasure to share time with. And a man who clearly adores all he does. I encourage you to read his autobiography "Losing My Virginity" as well as his book "Business Stripped Bare" if you haven't gone through them yet. Uber-inspiring. For people who want to become Remarkable Entrepreneurs - and express their absolute best.

Anyway, I'll get right into some of my observations as well as the ideas we discussed. Please don't underestimate the power of these simple ideas - superbly executed, they yield brilliant results.

1. Politeness Matters. As mentioned, Richard Branson was unfailingly polite. He mentioned to me that when he was a kid, if he criticized someone, his mother would make him stand in front of the mirror at home and say, "what you're seeing in others is really what you're seeing in yourself. So look in the mirror." This educated him on the key leadership habit of looking for - and then encouraging - the gifts and talents within other people.

2. Be Massively Independent. When Richard was just four years old, his mother stopped her car and instructed him to find his own way home, over many miles. When he was about 12, she told him to cycle 100 miles to Bournemouth alone, to visit a relative. He expressed to me that these childhood experiences were his mother's way of growing his self-reliance. And building the invincible inner core that has served him so well as an entrepreneur.

3. Screw It - Just Do It. What makes a great company (and great life) isn't so much the inspiring idea as the flawless execution around the big idea. As Edison once said: "Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration." Richard shared that much of his success came from his philosophy to disregard the naysayers and those telling him his dream was impossible and just get the dream done. (Please remember: the impossible is generally just the untried). This is a man with a giant bias towards action.

4. Lavish Praise on People. I know you know this: the bigger the dream, the more important the team. Having worked with many of the best entrepreneurs in the world, I've learned that every single one of them gets that you can't do it alone. Beautiful to have a brave vision. But the real key is finding the genius-level talent to get that vision delivered into reality. And if all you know how to surround yourself with is mediocre people, you're destined to experience mediocre results. Richard is brilliant at finding the right people that bring his targets of opportunity to life. And he confirmed that once they are on his team, "I lavish them with praise." Our takeaway: relentlessly celebrate+develop+inspire your people.

5. Be a Radical Innovator. When he was a young entrepreneur with nothing more than the little college newspaper THE STUDENT, he still showed a lust for disregarding all the rules. He challenged the status quo. And disrupted what was considered normal. An example: he somehow was able to get John Lennon to do an original piece of music for him. He then put the song on a special disc and packaged it into the newspaper, right next to the interview he'd done on the rock 'n roll legend. At Virgin Records, he recruited the Sex Pistols and reinvented a whole category of music. At Virgin Atlantic, he gave passengers massages on airplanes and dropped them home in limos. And with Virgin Galactic, he's taking people into space. Very cool. Fantastically bold.

At the Bucharest meeting, he told the 2500+ people in the concert hall that "sometime in your lifetime, every one of you will have visited other parts of the universe." And I believe it.

6. Build Your Brand. Richard Branson gets branding. He knows what he - and the Virgin name - stands for. Fun. Good Value. Strong customer service. And so at every possible opportunity, he evangelizes all it stands for. Oh, and he's also clearly a master of getting attention. From hot air balloon adventures that made global news to showing up at a press conference nearly naked to promote Virgin mobile, this Remarkable Entrepreneur gets the value of owning a share of our brain cells.

7. Find Your Necker Island. Get this: Branson paid roughly $300,000 for his beloved Necker Island. He and his then girlfriend Joan were visiting the Caribbean on a getaway. They fell in love with Necker - but it was about $4,000,000. But he wouldn't give up (let's never discount the power of a ridiculous amount of persistence around your most closely loved goals). A few months later, the owner needed cash. Branson made his deeply discounted offer. It has served as his retreat away from the world for many years. Here's the real point: in the world of so much noise and complexity, find your personal retreat (even if it's an aged wooded bench in a public garden) where you can withdraw to think+create+renew+rest.

8. Lucky Wins. We make luck. Enough said.

9. Don't Do It If It's Not Fun. Branson wears a smile pretty much all the time. He laughs naturally. And radiates happiness. Zero doubt: he loves his life - and all that's in it (George Clooney said he'd swap his life for Richard Branson's - much to the delight of Richard's wife). The lesson for us: life's just too short to be doing work that destroys your soul. This is the best time in the history of the world to become an entrepreneur. Find work you adore. And get busy changing with world with it.

10. With Gifts Come Responsibilities. OK, so Richard Branson's one of the richest people on the planet. But he gets that being good trumps shiny toys. He mentioned to me that, "with great wealth comes great responsibility." And so he's spending a lot of his days evangelizing Virgin Unite, his foundation that helps kids in need. Reminds me of what my amazing father taught me - using the words of the great poet Tagore - growing up: "Robin, when you were born, you cried while the world rejoiced. Son, live your life in such a way that when you die, the world cries while you rejoice."

So there you go. What the iconic Richard Branson shared with me on a sunny Wednesday in Bucharest. I hope the lessons also serve you well.

Robin

Quid Pro Quo

You are probably wondering what the heck is Jesus on about with this "Quid Pro Quo."  Also, the concept of Quid Pro Quo was given to me by Jane Balderas after she read my last blog.  Thanks, Jane.  Well, I want to continue to discuss the power of giving.  I was reading the Go-Giver by Bob Burg and John  David Mann.  And, the principles that they share in this book are very powerful.

So today's blog post is about Quid Pro Quo.  What does this mean?  According to the dictionary, Quid pro quo (this for that in Latin) most often means a more-or-less equal exchange or substitution of goods or services.  Another term I often hear in business, is win-win scenario.  What does this really mean, and I never thought of it this way until reading the Go-Giver.  It really is another way of keeping score in many instances.  I have a friend that we usually have lunch once a week together, and we alternate who pays for lunch.  Would I or he keep coming to lunch if only one of us paid every time.  Maybe, but probably not.  In business, I see people set up a referral arrangement between each other.  What they are really doing is testing the relationship.  They will give a referral to see if they get one in return.  And, after several referrals if they have not received a reciprocal referral, then they usually stop giving referrals, and they will look for a new relationship with someone in the same profession to test. How do I know this?  Because I've done it, and been on the other side of the equation of it.

I want to propose a new strategy.  Instead of thinking about whether you will receive referrals from a potential relationship, put your client first.  In other words seek out the best professionals and providers of service for your clients without thinking of your business.  Your focus is on who can provide the best products and services to your clients.  Then approach the business owner, and explain to them that you would like to provide referrals to them because your research says that they provide the best at what they do.  Then freely refer your clients to them.  I know some of you may think this sounds crazy, but think about it for a minute.  How would your clients feel about you if you always referred them the very best of everything?  Would they be happy?  Would they trust you?  How would the other business owners feel about you?  This strategy can explode your business in so many ways because you are doing business for the right reasons - to serve your clients!

This is just one example of how you can apply this powerful principle.  So what is this principle - give to others without the expectation of return.  On a personal front, focus on giving for the sake of giving, not giving to receive.  Give to your spouse to give her/him joy, a break, love, a laugh, etc.  Don't cook dinner to receive a massage.  If the massage comes then great, but if it doesn't you still gave your spouse a break and hopefully a smile from a wonderful meal (unless you can't cook).  I can't tell you how many times I have heard and maybe even said, if I do this for you, you will owe me.  No, they don't owe you.

One last example, find a way this week to give to someone that can't possibly pay you back.  Give to a stranger, a child, a single parent, or the elderly.  Recently a friend of mine met a single mom that was struggling to make ends even come close to meeting.  He quietly talked to several of his friends that were successful in their own businesses. After talking, they decided to go shopping for her, and they bought her about $500 worth of groceries and household needs.  When they gave it to her and her 3 teenage daughters, they just broke down crying (all of them).  The first thing out of the mom's mouth was "but I can't repay you."  The husband and wife said "we know, and we don't want you to."  The families that contributed to her family were so moved by it, they decided to give this to her every month because $150 a month wasn't a challenge for them to commit to.  This is giving freely, and you know what no one even knows that they are helping.

Let's abolish the principle of "Quid pro quo."

Give more value than you ever expect in payment

The title of this blog  is a statement that we hear from time to time, but is rarely seen in business.  What does this even mean?  What kind of value can I offer?  How do I measure the value?  All kinds of questions can run through one's head.

The essence of this message first starts with freely giving to your clients and those that you come in contact with, without expectation of return.  I've witnessed this first hand in relationships.  So often the approach is I'll meet you halfway.  Let's make sure this is win/win.  In theory this sounds good, but it doesn't always work out that way.  It's a nice way of saying, I'll give and then you are expected to give back; and if you don't give back then I'll stop giving.  The fundamental principle here is that you give freely to those that need you.  Here are things that you can give to add value:

• Kindness
• a helping hand
• an idea
• encouragement
• a smile
• great customer service
• a compliment
• a speedy response
• actively listen.

I think you get the idea.  These are all great things that everyone of us possess that we can give to our prospects, clients and random people that we cross paths with.

Now, when it comes to your service or product, make sure you package the above things into the offering of your already great service/product.  There are many people who can deliver the same quality that you can, but rarely do they add the extra touch.  This is what creates a great company.

I'm going to spend time over the next several blogs, but I want to challenge you to think about how you can increase the value of what you give to your clients.  Ask yourself if the culture of company is centered around giving and adding value at every opportunity.  And, if you aren't how can we get there.

Until next time,

Jesus Balderas

"The Coach"

Give Me Your Very Best...

I wanted to share a story with you about the power of the words, "Give me your very best."  My 6 year old son, Alex, and I were watching Facing the Giants one night about 3 months ago.  Alex loved it so much that he watched it several times over the next couple of days.  We talked about giving your very best a little bit, and then I got this idea that I would challenge him to give me his very best.  I created it as an affirmation for him.

I would ask him each morning when I dropped him off at school, "Alex, will you give me your very best today." He replied, "Yes."  And, then I would respond, "You promise me, you will give me your very best today."  He always says, "Yes."

I did this before his Tae Kwon Do class, soccer practice, soccer game, homework, reading, etc.  I think you get the picture.  At first, I didn't notice a difference, but I kept doing it with him.  But, after repeating it to him daily for a couple of months, he began to take it very serious.  Even if he was exhausted from a long week, he made sure he gave his very best.

As a proud dad and coach, in soccer he became known as "The Wall" by other coaches.  When he wasn't in goal, he was scoring goals.  I noticed he began to take his practices more serious.  He was practicing at home without being asked.  He was reading extra books to get the practice in.  It was amazing to see the results.  I also noticed the results in myself by simply asking him this question.  I also raised my game in areas that I wasn't as focused on.  I started a 90 Day Fitness/Weight loss challenge.

So, what does all this mean to you and your business?  Very simply, are you giving your best to your staff, clients, vendors and YOURSELF?  Are you prepared to put in the hard work to become a master.  Very few people ever become a master at anything because it requires such hard work.  Nothing can replace the hours and practice that are put in behind the scenes.  You know the ones, the ones that no one sees.  If you live in the US and follow the NBA, you have seen this first hand.  Many players that we are used to seeing perform at a high level, didn't do so this year because of the shortened training camps due to the lock out.  They didn't condition their bodies and take the massive number of shots that they usually take in training camp.  Excellence is not something you can just turn on.

I challenge you to ask yourself to give your very best daily for the next 90 days.  I'd love to hear your success stories because if you do this, you will take your game to a whole 'nother level.

To your success,
Jesus

Two Keys To Having The Life You Deserve

There are many keys to success in life, but I have found two which embody all keys. The first is that each of us must learn to love oneself. We have all heard the following - "Don't blow your own trumpet...Don't pat yourself on the back...and so on."

Humility is very important, but what is humility? to me humility is to confidently acknowledge one's being. We also must recognize that we are very special and blessed with unique talents. We have the power to think and create. This is an amazing gift. We are God's greatest creation so if we cannot love oneself then what can we love. Also, if one doesn't love oneself, then why should someone else. And, when you love yourself, you will then know how to love someone else completely and without conditions. So. pat yourself on the back. Remind yourself that you are very special.

The second key is to know your purpose. Without this, then one would live their entire life on accident. Because if you do not know which path you want to follow, then how is one ever going to get on it.

One's life purpose needs four things:

1. Passion - Our purpose in life should be one which drives us from bed in the morning with joy and happiness. One which will give us joy to face each and every day. You will know you are in your Passion when you are juiced going to be and you hop out of bed.

2. What you want to give - In life we must always give before we can receive. It is said if you want great wealth, then you must help enough others gain wealth (this applies to everything).

3. What you want to receive - You need to know what you want. If you are only giving then you are a martyr. So, what do you want: happiness, wealth, freedom, good health, love, strong family, etc.

4. Massive action - It won't happen by itself, we need to do it. It all starts with a thought, but it doesn't happen by a thought alone. We need to act and do whatever is necessary to achieve and live our purpose.

This area of achievement and success is something I have studied for twenty years, and it is amazing how the little things can make such a difference. Also the one thing I have learned is that the science of success is something that one will study for a life time. It is essential to always read or listen to books on this subject because you will learn something every time you do.

BBI has a great course on Goal Achievement and Time Management called Life Management Systems, and I encourage you to get it. For more details go here.

Until next time,

Jesus Balderas

Entitlement vs Discipline

This subject is something that I find keeps coming up in different forums constantly. Yesterday, I heard a great sermon from my pastor on what God thinks about hard work and discipline. As a business coach, I work with businesses of all kinds and have done so for almost 17 years now. Over the years, I have noticed that so many employees have an attitude of entitlement. I have seen people believe it is their right to have a smoke break, check personal emails, read the paper, take extra time at lunch, etc. You know the drill especially if you own a business. I see it in children as well, and this is scary.

It is almost an attitude of - what are you going to do for me, and then I will let you know what I will do for you.

This is the complete opposite attitude of success. In life and business, we are given the charge to give it our all. Be disciplined, work hard, and make your own LUCK (Labor Under Correct Knowledge). We can find it in the principle of Give and You will Receive.

I find a key in life is to give it your all in every situation. Don't hold back until you see what the other party is going to do. Often times, I find when you do give it your all, the other party joins in and gives it their all. How cool is that? The alternative is that both parties hold back a little just to see.

So, my final thoughts to success is this.

1. Lose the attitude of entitlement if you have it. And, if you don't, keep it that way.

2. Research every opportunity that comes your way, but once you know it is a good deal jump in with both feet and keep giving it your all.

3. Be disciplined every day.

4. Re-focus on your goals as often as you need to so that your actions keep pace and on target for your goals.

5. Embrace and love hard work because it is good for you.

6. Truly enjoy the success that comes to you.

Each and every job that comes your way deserves your all that includes your work, your hobbies, your marriage, your children and so on. I think you get the point.

I know this post is a little raw, but it hit a nerve so I just typed and posted.

If you would like to receive more information on goal setting and time management, I would encourage you to check out our Life Management Systems.

Until next time.

Not getting the results you desire, this is going to help.

I'm going to take a stab in the dark and ask you what your greatest frustration is when it comes to creating wealth.

For me, it was feeling as though I was doing lots of activity to create wealth such as seminars, books, etc, etc, etc. But no results showing up in my life.

...And then someone shared with me a story. Imagine a tree, let's suppose that this tree represents a tree of life. On this tree there are fruits, in life the fruits are called our results.

So we look at our fruits (our results) and we don't like them.

There ain’t enough of them, they're too small or they don't taste good.

So what do we tend to do?

Most of us will put even more attention on the fruits (our results), but what is it that actually creates those particular fruits.

It's the seeds and the roots that create those fruits. It's what's under the ground that creates what's above the ground.

It's what is invisible that creates what is invisible.

So what does that mean?

It means that if you want to change the fruits, you'll first have to change the roots. If you want to change the visible, you must first change the invisible.

And, this is true with your business. In today’s economy, business owners want different results, but they are focusing on their results not their roots. Many keep doing the same thing that didn’t work before hoping it will change.

Why do we do that? Often times, it is because we simply don’t know another way to do it, maybe it’s out of desperation, and sometimes it is simply our routine.

Well, I want to give you a different path. I want to give you specific strategies that you can implement now to dramatically transform your business so that you can thrive in today’s economy and prosper during the recovery.

How am I going to do this? Tomorrow I am going to reveal all the details of my 6 week coaching program – Get Results and Profits Now! You definitely want to check this out because not only will it dramatically affect your bottomline, but I have made it very affordable for the select few that get to participate. There will only be 20 spots available because I am only running two groups of 10.

Check it out tomorrow. In the meantime, please accept this e-book as my gift to you – The Fundamentals of Marketing.

To your continued profits,

Jesus Balderas

The Coach

Understanding The Lifetime Value of a Client

There’s an old story of two grocers. They were sitting on a park bench. One says to the other: “You know, I’ve just gone over the figures and I divided the week’s revenues by the number of transactions and I’ve worked out the average customer is worth $72.90 to me. Have you ever worked out what a customer is worth to you Bob?”

Bob says “Sure Bill, about $75,000.”

What’s the difference? Bill was thinking in terms of one sale. Bob, on the other hand, knows about the lifetime value of a customer.

He figures it like this:

$72.90 x 52 weeks x 20 years = $75,816

What’s the lifetime value of your clients? If you don’t know, you could be missing out on thousands of dollars of opportunity.

The point is, it’s not enough to get a client in the door, sell to them and then say “Thanks for dropping by. Do come again sometime.” You have to develop a system to keep them coming back to you instead of going to your competitors. And you’re about to learn how. You’ll learn how to get them to spend more when they do, and how to encourage them to come back more often.

Did you know that there is but one formula for practice income growth? There are only three ways to grow any business:

• Increase the number of clients.
• Increase how much they spend or the profit per transaction.
• Increase how often they come back.

Here’s the equation: C x Act x F = I

Where: C = Number of clients
Act = Average client transaction
F = Frequency of transaction
I = Income

If you increase each one by a mere 10% you’ve added 33% to your income.

Add 25% to each and you’ve doubled your income. Double each of the 3 areas and you’ve increased your income by 800%! Notice the multiplying effect?

Think about how you can use this in your business.

12 Secrets To Success

I am often asked what is the difference between successful people and those that do not experience success. There are many quotes and books on this subject. Some of my favorite thoughts are:

• Successful people are prepared to do the things that others aren't willing to do.
• Successful people set goals.
• Successful people focus on daily improvement (CANI - constant and never-ending improvement.)
• Successful people have faith, and so on.

This is a huge subject, but I thought I would share with you my thoughts in the form of a list of 12 keys. Enjoy, and may you find greater success in your life.

12 Secrets To Success

1. MWPs (Millionaires with Purpose) take risks and understand that high risk and massive education = low risk!
2. MWPs focus on ONE thing and do it well.
3. MWPs do not over estimate the short term or under-estimate the long term.
4. MWPs NEVER give up, they just change tact.
5. MWPs do the numbers then back themselves to the hilt.
6. MWPs surround themselves with like-minded people.
7. MWPs make decisions quickly and confidently once they have all the facts.
8. MWPs make everything urgent.
9. MWPs take time out to formulate their own thinking about critical issues relating to their life.
10. MWPs say "How can I?" instead of "I can't."
11. MWPs do whatever it takes to change their lives.
12. MWPs always take personal responsibility and never place blame. If one person can do it then they can do it.

Live with Passion,
Jesus Balderas "The Coach"