What I learned from Justin Timberlake...

Sorry to disappoint you, but no, I haven’t had the privilege to hang out with Justin Timberlake personally. But recently I had some failing health and indulged myself in an Oprah Winfrey episode. To be frank, it’s hard to notice any substance in an individual when you only “get to know them” through the rag mags, entertainment shows, movies, performance videos, or 3 minute interviews on TV. Fortunately, Oprah has a tendency to cut through to important matters more often than most hosts. And she managed to perform true to form on this episode as well.

When she asked Justin what the best advice was that he learned from his years of fame he responded “What you do is not who you are.” I’m sure that somewhere, someone else famous has uttered these same words in my presence; however for some reason this time it hit me. The reason is that I firmly believe that there is opposition in all things. And I do mean all things.

While Justin was attempting to help us see that he doesn’t take the raving fans, the adulation, and fame as a defining mechanism into who he truly is, I looked at it from the opposite view. Surely Justin gets his share of criticisms, dissemination of half truths, and plenty of “haters.” Heck, even Oprah has her share of “haters”. (Remember the beef farmers?? And I’m sure she’s ticked off a few Republicans with her visible support of Obama.) Perhaps the lauds of wonderment or the yelling of hatred is not as magnified to the level that Justin and Oprah experience it. However, it still has influence on all of us. And I agree with Justin that we cannot take the applause NOR the sneers with any degree of seriousness. They do not define who we are. They merely define the position and paradigm of the person who’s launching the praise or destruction. The definition of who we are will never come from this world. It was not intended to be that way. While we are blessed with the occasional friends and confidants who will aid us in tuning in better to the direction we are created to walk and who we are created to be, these resources are not eternal. Only one voice, one still small voice, is assured for us to be true, to be forever, and to have no other agenda other than our happiness. I’m going to try and remember this reminder lesson I’ve learned from Justin. Good or bad. Ecstatic or depressed. I’m the only one who can define me through my actions. And hopefully these actions will always be led by the one true voice.

Success Is Only a Few Degrees Away

Here’s a secret, even the most successful business owners get help with their business. Who mentors you on your business? Me? I go to the very best. Sometimes I do it live and in person, sometimes I only have the time to access to their books. Sometimes I have the luxury of speaking to them directly. But I believe this blog today will help you see the just how close success really is, even to your world and your heap of challenges.

Lee Milteer is the world renowned Millionaire Smarts® Coach. She’s also a personal friend. She’s literally helped shape my business. (photo on this site) While Lee may appear to be smart, drop-dead gorgeous, and that success come simply to her, she has suffered numerous bona fide tragedies in her life that some would cower to even think about. You’ll still hear her Southern “Caint” come out of her mouth frequently, and if she elects to share with you any of her personal life, you’ll hear that she is targeted perhaps that much more because of her fame. And yet she has had her books published worldwide in multiple languages, coached some of the biggest corporations in the world, and continues on…and still continues having struggles just like everyone else. (http://www.leemilteer.com/ )

Dan Kennedy has assisted in creating more millionaires than any research has revealed. He is THE marketing guru, but in such high demand, he’s completely booked at over $12,000 for a few hours of consulting at a great deal of inconvenience to his prospective clients until he retires. Dan was earning 6 figures through his marketing expertise in the seventies. The 70’s folks! That is a lot of money now and it sure was a lot of money then. He was charging $35,000 a year for his coaching services way back then and yet many folks balk at that now. In spite of his grand successes he’s had some extremely tough times as well, including financial set-backs. He’s still managed to conquer alcoholism, diabetes, and in my opinion, the ultimate victory, he’s re-married his second wife, Carla. (http://www.dankennedy.com/) He’s also a vital mentor to my business. (photo on this site as well) While I would go so far as to consider him a friend, Dan has a strict “no friend” policy amongst his clients. *grin* -It’s a positioning thing and it makes for better business in his world. I will say that he is a key advisor in my business success on a regular basis.

George Ross of The Apprentice fame is obviously a keen business man. He’s had some ugly negotiations which is inevitable in the world he plays in. He’s no stranger to struggle. Did you know that more fortunes have been lost in real estate than have ever been made? He says that his biggest mistakes was trusting friends. (Ouch. That has to be a painful one to learn from on so many levels.) And he’s clearly no stranger to success. In my opinion his biggest one is that he’s been married for over 50 years to the same woman. Clearly, he’s also one of my valued mentors. (photo also on this site.) You may be surprised to hear that out of all of the favorite sayings this chief negotiator could have, it’s this, “Failure + Perseverance = Success.” Trivia note: The most common question George is asked is, “Is Omarosa as bad as she appears on T.V.?” His response, “No. She’s much worse.”

The legendary Gene Simmons is anything but a rock star to me. He’s a business man and an ultimate marketer who I watch and learn from intently. The KISS brand is worth more money than ANY other music name in history- yup, even Elvis. Did you know that Gene came to the U.S. at the age of 8. He was born in Israel. He was a straight A student. He speaks Japanese, German, Hebrew, Hungarian and believes fervently in embracing the culture he’s in, in order to ingratiate himself better to them. He doesn’t drink or smoke and he never did drugs?? He used to deliver newspapers when he started his band and was going to school. He practically worships his mother who was in a Nazi concentration camp in Germany. He’s had the same “girlfriend” for over two decades- significantly longer than many Hollywood types “marry.” His father left he and his mother while he was still very young. While I still may not agree with some of his personal choices, I do wholeheartedly agree with his business sense and learn from it zealously. (yup- got a photo of that one too.) (Of course, I have to sensor some of it to get to the business aspect, but that’s my life in the business world in general unfortunately.)

And to balance out the Gene Simmons influence, my world would not be complete without the wonderful Nido Qubein. If you don’t know, Nido is the Chairman of the Board of The Great Harvest Bread Co. AND he is also the Dean of High Point University. HPU has gone from financial ruin and horrible student statistics to being one of the most expensive, illustrious, and most competitive universities to get into nowadays. The majority of their students graduate, which means that the majority of their students continue re-enrolling as well! This man came to this country with very little English, virtually no money in his pocket and nothing but a dream. He’s a genuine story of the American Dream. He made his first million by age 30. He has a vocabulary of 3,120 words and yet most people have use of a vocabulary of 5,000 and yet he’s more successful using 70% less vocabulary than most Americans are. Look at what he’s accomplished??! And yet he even spends an average of $30,000 a year to improve his mind. What an amazing influence he has had on tens of thousands individuals both in and out of business. I just finished being mentored by him personally over the last 4 months, and I also get the benefit of countless of his CDs and several of his books. (of course I have a pic of him on this site too.)

My point is if you want to be the best, you need to learn from others who have paved the way before you. You’re not going to learn business success from animals or by watching T.V. You’ll learn from getting our hands dirty, activating your mind and genuine interaction with humans. And even though some humans that you would love to learn from seem to be untouchable because of where you think you are now, you are mistaken.

There’s a difference of only a few degrees in an airplane’s coordinates between a safe landing and a horrific crash landing, right? The opposite is true as well. There’s a difference of only a few degrees between floundering and flourishing. The difference is what we do with the trials, what knowledge we seek out and implement. Contrary to your belief, even famous people are not untouchable, perfect people. They are real people with real life stories you can relate to and learn from. They will not have done exactly what you will do, because you are unique and you have your very own path to walk. But you do not have to walk our path alone. In fact, you get to walk it with other great and courageous individuals like some that I have mentioned.

For a complimentary 3 month subscription of Kellene’s High-Rise Entrepreneurs E-zine, subscribe at www.HighRiseEntrepreneurs.com.

If you would like to know how you can dramatically improve the state of your entrepreneurial efforts through Kellene’s coaching, check out www.moneymindmarketing.com.

If your organization would like to host Kellene as a speaker in exchange for a donation to The Children’s Miracle Network, e-mail Kirsten@3MMastermind.com

Moving at the Speed of Sound

I get asked frequently how I could be a residential wholesale account executive only 5 or 6 years ago, and now be known (among other things) as an expert in the world of ultra-high commercial transactions. I have two answers for that.

1) Marketing: Marketing can launch anyone from point A to point Z if it’s done properly. Marketing can put any career into hyper speed. If I wanted to become a world renowned expert in ice sculpting, I could do so with the right marketing in a fraction of the time that most individuals do. Think about it. The effects of marketing are exactly how individuals can have 15 minutes of fame and then turn it into a lifetime career change. If I am a true expert at anything it’s marketing. Everything you do, you’ve got to make it about the marketing. It doesn’t matter how well you perform brain surgery, or have the best singing voice known to man, or be the best dog trainer if you don’t know how to market yourself. You can have an average product, an average staff, an average personality, and so-so prices. But if you market yourself properly, you can still be successful- and even increase your prices! Go ahead, get your business license, your professional training, and whatever else you need to legally pursue your business dreams. But if you want to be profitable, you’ve got to learn to market.

2) Self-Promotion: Self-promotion isn’t about vanity or selfishness. It’s about being comfortable in your own skin and being willing to own and claim that comfort. Think about it. There’s no one that didn’t raise you that feels compelled to compliment you and praise you, and cheer you on consistently. And at some point life takes those individuals on to their next phase. So then what do you do? Who’s waiting in the wings to dub you as a fine human being, or a successful expert, or the best of the best? Sorry. There’s no such thing as a Tooth Fairy and there’s no such thing as a “Great Maharaja” who’s waiting to crown you as an expert! Life was not intended that way. (See my future blog titled “What I learned from Justin Timberlake.” Coming soon!) You are NOT the sum of your fans or your enemies. You are the only one who can stop you from being all that you were designed to be. And I assure you that there is no one who is not designed for indescribable greatness. Walt Disney was once heard to say, “The more you like yourself, the less you are like anyone else, which makes you unique.” Did you know that Muhammad Ali became known as "The Greatest" because Ali himself said it? Yep -- he just kept saying it, and then eventually so did the media!

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

ENTITLEMENT

ENTITLMENT. It’s an awful disease. Recently I read of a police officer in Daytona Beach who was reportedly fired for tormenting the folks at a local Starbucks by demanding free coffee and tea and making less-than-veiled threats against the coffee house team that if his demands weren’t met, their urgent or emergency calls would not be responded to in an appropriate fashion. Geesh. Does anyone but me remember the days when moms would use a police officer or a fireman as an example of a hero for their children? Where in the world did those days go?? This sounds like something right out of The Godfather, if you ask me. (Again, this is only reportedly—and has not been verified as factual. Unfortunately, even if this person has been persecuted unjustly, I’m willing to bet good money that such a false sense of entitlement and abuse of power does exist in our tired nation, which is the whole reason for this blog—not to press additional and unfounded blame on this police officer.)

In the world of my business, I regularly see a great deal of individuals who truly believe that they are entitled to all that the world has, simply because. But this is where the “half truth” comes into play. (Our lives are consistently pummeled by those crafty little buggers—“half truths”). Because, in actuality, we ARE all entitled to all the good that the world has to offer. However, we are entitled only to that which we truly earn and work for on this earth. It’s called the Law of the Harvest. (Dr. Steven Covey talks about this at length in a couple of his books, actually.) The good news is when we work hard, we usually end up with much more than we deserve now, and definitely later.

Some people foolishly believe that because they write out a check for $95 and sit down in a throng of thousands of individuals and listen to some superstar on how to get rich in the real estate world that they are then instantly entitled to the same level of wealth that the expert speaker now enjoys. Some people believe that simply because the cashier made the mistake of giving them back $10 too much in change that they are somehow entitled to that by a twist of fate or karma. And then there are some who believe that because they passed the physical, written, and shooting testing criteria, and now receive a paycheck of $35,000 a year as a police officer, they are entitled to break any rules of common courtesy, common law, and decency. Well, the truth is, they are entitled to behave this way. This entitlement comes to them through a gift called AGENCY. And that’s one thing that will never be taken from any individual. But more importantly is that with that same agency, we are truly empowered, beyond our present comprehension usually, to make a heck of a lot more of our lives than we thought possible—much more than even a year’s worth of free cups of coffee would ever be worth.
Hmmm… I wonder if I ever squander my Agency in the name of a misplaced or worthless sense of entitlement?

For a complimentary 3 month subscription of Kellene’s High-Rise Entrepreneurs E-zine, subscribe at http://www.highriseentrepreneurs.com/.

If you would like to know how you can dramatically improve the state of your entrepreneurial efforts through Kellene’s coaching, check out http://www.moneymindmarketing.com/.

If your organization would like to host Kellene as a speaker in exchange for a donation to The Children’s Miracle Network, e-mail Kirsten@monetaryintel.com.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.