I met author Chris Snider at a Exit Planning Institute meeting here in San Diego.  As I listened to him speak, everything he was saying resonated with me personally and professionally.  How many of you reading this blog entry have businesses and are making an effort to build the value in the business, but it seems to be a struggle?  Believe me this is not uncommon, it happens more that most business owners think.  Dealing with the challenge of building value in your business, not just working for an above average salary with nothing left in the end to sell.

In Chris’s new book “Walking to Destiny-11 Actions An Owner Must Take to Rapidly Grow Value & Unlock Wealth” he points out the reasons why business owners don’t not build value, and the solutions to building great value in your business.  Chris is the designer of a process called the “Value Acceleration Methodology” which is the formula that he developed and can help any business owner build value, and sell their business when they decide to transition for a value that they expect and are happy with.

If you are a baby boomer and own you own business chances are you are going to have to make the decision to create your succession plan very soon.  In the next 20 years over 20 trillion dollars in business value will be sold, transferred to the next generation or merged with other acquiring company.  This is a huge problem, and opportunity for you the business owner to take action and create value now so you get the most for your business when you choose to sell.

I would encourage you to listen to this podcast with Chris, for he is one of the leading experts in the field of exit planning.  His organization Exit Planning Institute help advisors get certified as CEPA’s (Certified Exit Planning Advisors).  Enjoy this great interview with Chris Snider the author of “Walking to Destiny” it’s worth your time to read his book and if you have a business and are attempting to create greater value this book is a must!!!!

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing a young new author and coach by the name of Zander Fryer.  Zander and several other authors co-authored a book with Jack Canfield entitled ” Mastering the Art of Success“.

In my interview with Zander, I get the opportunity to explore the journey and path that Zander took to become a top-notch coach as well as learn about his personal passion for helping his clients find and live their purpose.  Early in Zanders career, he made some mistakes and those mistakes lead him down a path to become one of the top systems architects at a major software company.  Then one day one of his mentors ask Zander a question that changed his life forever.  “What would you do if you could not fail?”  Zander had a passion for leading which came from his experience in being in the ROTC, and with that passion, he developed his own coaching organization.

Zander has studied under the best–Jack Canfield and advocates to his clients to find their joy in life and by knowing that you will live a life filled with more abundance, happiness, and fulfillment.  Zander has a great exercise to help someone find their life purpose.  He asks you to sit quietly and ask yourself “What is your life purpose?” then write what comes up.  Then he asks you to ask “What is your true-life purpose?” and repeat this about three times.   The purpose of doing this exercise three times that you will most likely get to the true inner purpose and it will help you refine your purpose.

If you want to learn more about Zander please go towww.zanderfryer.com/go.  You can also check him out on Facebook by clicking here.  I hope you enjoy this engaging and lively dialogue with coach and author Zander Fryer.

 

It is the time of year to get our acts together.  Many of us will be making New Year’s resolutions and setting goals for 2018, all with the good intention of following through in 2018.   We all have different software aids that can help us break old habits–like cloud-based software that will track our exercise and calories. Wearable devices such Fitbit, Garmin, and others.  There is a pleather of software, planners, and books to read to improve the quality of our life.

I personally have found that one of the best ways you can exercise your mental muscle is to reach out to new people and build relationships.  In my interview with Bart Lorang the founder of Full Contact a cloud-based customer relationship management software we discuss the benefits of having a fully integrated system that pulls data from social media together in one spot for our use in learning more about our relationships.

I have personally used the Full Contact Software and find the software to have great features that are highly valuable in helping build strong lasting relationships.  One of the features is the card reader.  You literally can take pictures through an application Full Contact has developed for both Android and IOS of the business cards you receive during your networking, then they will be converted to contacts with a high degree of accuracy into the Full Contact CRM.  In my estimation, this feature is worth the very reasonable annual subscription fee for Full Contact.

I hope you enjoy this podcast with Bart Lorang the founder of Full Contact CRM system.  Enjoy listening.

 

I know that personally throughout my career I have made changes and taken course corrections. If you are like many people you may want to make a career course correction but you are uncertain about what your new career path might look like.  There are obviously lots of decision one must make, but in my interview with author Tim Cole, he outlines a great set of guiding principles that I believe would be great to follow.

In Tim’s new book “The Compass Solution” you are 4 P’s which stand for 1) Personal Accountability 2) People 3) Process 4) Perspective.  These main principles are important guideposts for navigating the path to a better career. As Tim states “It is your performance, your goals, and your vision for your life that will dictate your future.  For the remainder of your career, it will be the one thing you can count on and that you can set your course around.  Nothing else and no one else.”

I ask this questions to the listeners of this podcast.  If not now then when?  When will you make that all important decision to make the career change you have been thinking about but afraid to take?   Don’t let your fears hold you back.   Use this podcast and Tim’s book as the tools that can provide you with the courage and strength to make the change.  Allow the important information in the book to be your guide to a better career and life.

If you want to learn more about Tim Cole and his new book “The Compass Solution” please visit his website by clicking here or you can reach out to him via Linkedin by clicking this link.  I hope you enjoy this interview with a Tim Cole the author of “The Compass Solution.

I don’t know of too many people that hate chocolate, so for all you chocolate lovers you are going to love this interview.

Steve Wallace is the author of a new book entitled  “Oberoni and the Chocolate Factory-An Unlikely Story of Globalization and Ghana’s First Gourmet Chocolate Bar.” This book is about a fascinating journey about a man who truly has made a difference in the production of chocolate.  When we think of chocolate we immediately think of Switzerland, France, Belgium–but why?  Cocoa beans are not from those places.

Steve used to live in Ghana (one of the largest regions producing cocoa) when he was 16 years old. This experience transformed him and he wanted to return to Ghana and give back.  While the people of Ghana’s vertically-integrated cocoa bureaucracy, overseen by Ghans’s Cocoa Board, aspired to move up the cocoa value chain, they were unwilling to invest in doing so.  They were content to stay at the bottom of the value chain.

Needless to say with tremendous hard work and lots of maneuvering the cocoa bean system, Steve Wallace build a very successful chocolate bar factory called Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company.  The chocolate bars are produced and manufactured in Ghana and shipped to Wisconsin for boxing, sales, and shipping.  Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company is truly a global company employing and housing over 200 natives.  Steve provides his employees with a fair wage,  and housing and has infused the local economy with a newfound wealth from what was once a place of poverty.

If you want to listen to a truly great story about a social-entrepreneur on a mission to change the lives of hundreds of people, then you won’t want to miss my interview with Steve.

To learn more about Steve and his new book ” Oberoni and the Chocolate Factory” please click here to be directed to the Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company website.   Enjoy this great interview with a social entrepreneur making a difference in the world!

 

I recently conducted an interview with author Chris Barez Brown about his book entitled ” Wake-Up“–Podcast # 645.  I had such a great experience and interview with Chris that I invited him back to speak about his new book entitled “Shine, How To Survive And Thrive At Work“.

We all spend a lot of time at our work, so having fun and enjoying our work is so important to remain engaged.  In my interview with Chris, we discuss the many great ideas about how to keep our work fun and stay engaged.

Just one of the ideas includes a concept he calls “Who’s Elvis Around Here?” This is really a great idea, and is the person who stands out in your business, the one that breaks the rules, and makes things happen within the organization.  Is that you our are you just standing by waiting, or afraid to speak up?  Don’t stand on the sidelines waiting, get engaged and speak up with your good ideas to propel the business forward.

Chris states that our minds are highly efficient killing machines.  They are trained from an early age to destroy anything that doesn’t fit our model of the world. This means that analytical, logical minds dominate our working lives–what are you doing to get off or autopilot and tap into your abundant thinking brain which breaks the cycle of helping us to consider futures that are not based on past experience?

Shine, How to Survive and Thrive at Work is a book loaded with great ideas to help you thrive in the workplace.  It is an easy read and should be the companion to anyone wanting to make a difference at work.

If you want more information about author Chris Barez-Brown please click here to be taken to his website.  Our your can click here to be directed to Chris’s Facebook page.  I hope you enjoy this great interview with someone who has transformed how organizations look at their employees.

 

 

This is my second interview with author and entrepreneur Michael Alden.   What I love about Michael is his passion for his work and life, he truly is a trailblazer.

His new book entitled ” Blueprint to Business-An Entrepreneur’s Guide To Taking Action, Committing To the Grind, And Doing The Things That Most People Won’t” is a must-read for any entrepreneur.  Michael has had his share of ups and downs like many entrepreneurs, but he has learned from his lessons and applies the learning to make the next venture he gets engaged with just that much more successful.

Michael’s book is the ultimate guide with practical advice from a master entrepreneur who can really teach new entrepreneurs invaluable lessons.  I can really appreciate his chapter on “Doing What You Say”.  “In business and in life, always do what you say you’re going to do. Keep your word. When you tell yourself that you are going to do something, and you don’t do it, you’re doing yourself a disservice, and you’re setting yourself back. Not following through on something you said you were going to do is an absolute travesty.”

This sound advice runs throughout “Blueprint to Business” In my interview with Michael we speak about his personal life and business ventures, as well as he imparts practical and sound advice about becoming an entrepreneur.  I know you will love this lively and engaging interview with the author, entrepreneur Michael Alden.

If you want to learn more about the book click here.   You can also click here to be directed to Michael’s Facebook page. Enjoy the podcast.