Mentors Magazine: Issue 2

1. Magazine Magazine By Harrison Monarth

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3. MENTORS Magazine Publisher Neil Ball Edition 2 Editor Sally Jones Graphic Designer Tim Swan Ad Designer Joseph Dawson Cover Photograph: Courtesy of Tom Hopkins You may NOT copy or use any of the articles in this magazine without permission from MENTORS Magazine. The articles in this magazine are teaching and instructing other people about how to develop personally, in business and other things the writers feel is beneficial to developing personally and in different areas of business. Other articles in our magazine are written by companies, authors, and businesses that have something of value to share and they promote their work to our readers. We also share other stories which we feel are valuable resources for people to learn from. MENTORS Magazine is not responsible for the content or claims of any advertising or editorial in this publication. All information is believed to be accurate but is not warranted. The reader should do their own due diligence on any information provided in editorial content and for any advertising claims before taking any further action. The reader is responsible for their own actions. Some of the links in the magazine may be affiliate links and we may receive a payment if you make a purchase using them. Copyright Disclaimer: Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favour of fair use. If you would like the magazine to share a blogpost or website please contact editor@MentorsMagazine.com Writers and Contributors Tom Hopkins Josh Levine Naresh Vissa Bruce Oliver J. Kelly Hoey Stacey Brown Randall Amit Dutta Harrison Monarth Merilee Kern Sunny Bonnell And Ashleigh Hansberger Art Barter Neil Ball Dr. Ivan Misner All Rights Reserved © 2019 MENTORS Magazine Contact Information E-Mail: editor@MentorsMagazine.com Website: www.mentorsmagazine.com English Spelling Facebook: @MentorsMagazine The spelling of English words will be that of the writer’s country of origin. i.e. spelling in UK English for UK writ- ers, US English for US writers, etc Twitter: @MentorsMagazine MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 3

4. IN THIS ISSUE By Sunny Bonnell and Ashleigh Hansberger By Art Barter By Josh Levine By Merilee Kern By Tom Hopkins By J. Kelly Hoey By Neil Ball By Amit Dutta By Harrison Monarth By Bruce Oliver By Neil Ball By Naresh Vissa By Stacey Brown Randall 4 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

5. Contributing Writers MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 5

6. With Sunny Bonnell And Ashleigh Hansberger We met as teens in the mid-1990s, strangers who had each spent our childhood marching to the beat of our own drum, and it was life- changing to find someone who moved through life in the same way. and grandfathers had grown humble busi- nesses from nothing into huge successes. From an early age, we witnessed the ex- treme highs and lows of running a company. We had ringside seats to the individual ac- complishments, failures, and sacrifices they made. One thing we had in common: entrepreneur- ship. It ran in our blood. Both our fathers 6 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

7. Still, it made no sense for us to drop out of college in our early twenties, just shy of our degrees, to launch a branding agency with $250 and zero experience, right? a motto stolen from Charles Bukowski— “What matters most is how well you walk through the fire”—we set out to change the conversation. So that’s exactly what we did. Business-as-usual pushed back, hard. If you’ve ever lived in a small town, you’ll un- derstand. Small towns are notoriously locked down by established players. We had no clue we were a threat. From the beginning, we were swimming against a rip current of doubt. People said we were too young, too female, too inexperienced, and too broke to succeed in a world where sixtyish admen made the rules. The only ones in our corner were our parents, and even they had worried eyes. We called our agency Motto. A motto is a short statement that encapsulates the be- liefs of a person or or- ganization—it’s a war cry. The name had symbolic significance and communicated the kind of company we wanted to build. After a while, we start- ed to keep score: Times we were sabotaged? Sixteen. Times we got fired for the exact reason we were hired? Twenty. From the beginning, we were swimming against a rip current of doubt. People said we were too young, too female, too inexpe- rienced, and too broke to succeed in a world where sixtyish admen made the rules. The only ones in our corner were our parents, and even they had worried eyes. Times we were told our ideas were ab- surd? Hundreds. Times we were written off? Thousands. We were learning the hard way that vision, dangerous thinking, and defiance of the sta- tus quo come with a price. It made the first several years of building Motto a roller coaster. We started looking for role models in our in- dustry, but the blueprint in our small, South Carolina town was old-school advertising agencies run by the old guard. We studied their work, but the more we learned, the less inspired we were. It was tired, static, ho- mogenized, and templated. These guys were established, but slow and self- congratulatory. They were big, impressive balloons, and we were sharp knives. So, with To broaden our appeal, mentors and family members suggested we dial back our crazy ideas. Take whatever work we could get our hands on. Don’t ruffle feathers or have such strong opinions. Be like everybody else. You have no idea how close we came. MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 7

8. After admitting life had kicked out every ounce of heart left for the business, Sunny’s dad, one of our greatest mentors, warned us: “You two are a rare breed. Not everyone will love you. Some may hate you. But the ones who get you will never for- get you. Now, dust yourselves off and get back in that saddle.” In fifteen years at Motto, we’ve helped hun- dreds of leaders unlock their potential by tapping in to what makes them unique. In doing so, we found many of them to be obstinate, tempera- mental, melodramatic, and ruthless. For these swashbuck- ling visionaries, believing “six impossible things before break- fast” wasn’t just a line from Through the Looking-Glass, it was a business plan—hell, a life plan. Being defiant, dangerous, and different is a gift. That message changed every- thing. Of course, people didn’t get us. We were doing things differently—breaking rules and vandalizing traditions. This was our identity, and we needed to own it. Instantly, we became more confident in tearing up the rule book, running our business on our own terms, and being who we were—not who we were supposed to be. After a while, we realized that not only were the difficult ones more interesting to work with, but they also tended to be fearless en- trepreneurs who inspired us with the audaci- ty of their ideas and the intensity of their passions. Instead of doing everything people told us we should be doing, we did the opposite. In- stead of burying vices like our obsessive per- fectionism, rebelliousness, and weirdness, we made them our selling points. It hit us like a lightning bolt: Being defiant, dangerous, and different is a gift. Eventually, we turned our attention not just to branding, but to leadership and identified a connection between the spirit of the per- son at the helm of a company and the brand experience that company created for its cus- tomers. This fascination with leadership quickly became the linchpin of our branding business. We became experts at helping leaders harness their superpowers, turning their businesses and brands into the “rare breed,” or standout, in their category. That epiphany was another game changer. Success is no longer the purview of the Har- vard MBA graduate. You don’t need degrees or titles or venture capital. You just decide and act, and you can change the world be- cause of it. Whether you’re building eye- popping innovations with Kickstarter cash, filming award-winning documentaries with your iPhone, or launching social movements on Instagram, you don’t need permission to lead or succeed. You can change the conver- 8 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

9. sation not by suppressing your vices, but by owning them. 5. WEIRD. Rare Breeds are strange. Know who else is strange? Astronauts. Poets. Nobel laureates. Artists. Inventors. Every- one who dares to do what makes us laugh, cry, swoon, or gasp in awe. Being a leader no longer means getting someone’s seal of approval or following an accepted glide path. It means going all-in on who you are, grabbing the mantle of your career, and saying, “I got this.” 6. HYPNOTIC. Rare Breeds are spell-binding orators and seducers, conductors capable of leading the orchestra of people around them and inspiring others to fulfill their potential. People like that . . . are what we call the Rare Breed. 7. EMOTIONAL. Rare Breeds feel things deeply and trust their guts. They channel their emotions and show up with empa- thy, kindness, and intuition. At the heart of this definition are seven “vices”—traits that conventional wisdom re- gards as dangerous and counterintuitive to your success—that we’ve called Virtues. They are the keys to being a Rare Breed: Of course, nothing good comes with- out risk, and each of the Virtues also has a dangerous duality. For Rare Breeds, the im- pulses that uplift can also un- do. Set loose without morali- ty or control, hot-blooded passion can lead to rage and reckless acts. Charisma can spiral into a force that ma- nipulates and defrauds. Ob- sessive perfectionism can lead to compulsive behav- iors, endless work, burnout, and alienation. Obsessive perfectionism can lead to compulsive behaviors, endless work, burnout, and alienation. 1. REBELLIOUS. Rare Breeds hurl themselves against the walls of business-as- usual to see what breaks. 2. AUDACIOUS. Rare Breeds see realities other people can’t see and have the nerve to try to bring them into being, even when everyone else says they are impossible. 3. OBSESSED. Perfectionism isn’t a bug for Rare Breeds; it’s their operating system. They’re all-in, always on, 24/7. Sketching at breakfast, practicing pitch lines in the shower, waking up with insane ideas at 4 a.m. What separates Rare Breeds from eve- ryone else is one simple truth: while others may suppress their quirky, oddball, qualities, Rare Breeds celebrate theirs. They let them off the leash, break the windows of conven- tional wisdom, and run like hooligans through the corridors of entrenched power. 4. HOT-BLOODED. Rare Breeds come to the table with fireand fury that put others to shame. MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 9

10. If you’re reading this, you may be young and eager, ready to shake things up and put the world on notice. Or you may be enjoying some success and wondering what’s next. Maybe you’re smarting from a failure and trying to figure out how to stage your comeback. Or you may be an experi- enced leader or executive feeling like you’ve hit a wall and asking, “What more can I do?” ble, “vices” (Virtues!) and all. Don’t just march to the beat of your own drum; build your own drums out of wire, garbage, and spare parts. There are as many ways to be a Rare Breed as there are people who know they have more to give to the world. Excerpted fromRARE BREED: A Guide to Success for the Defiant, Dangerous, and Differentby Sunny Bonnell and Ashleigh Hansberger, copyright 2019. Reprinted with permission from Harper One, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers. Know this: you are not average. You already have what it takes to succeed and stand out. Own it. Learn to accept and love yourself for who you are: worthy and valua- SUNNY BONNELL and ASHLEIGH HANSBERGER are the award-winning founders of Motto, one of the top branding and digital agencies for rule-breakers and game-changers. They’ve been featured in CBS News, Fox Business, CheddarTV, Entrepreneur, American Express, Chicago Tribune, Forbes, Inc., Huffington Post, the Wall Street Journal, and else- where. Between the two of them, they are members of the Young Entrepreneur Council, and have graced lists such as GDUSA’s Top 25 People to Watch and Inc. 30 Under 30, America’s Coolest Young Entrepreneurs. www.wearemotto.com Facebook: @thisisrarebreed Twitter: @thisisrarebreed Instagram: @thisisrarebreed 10 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

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12. Tom Hopkins 12 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

13. With Tom Hopkins You would not dream of building anything of importance without some idea of what you wanted, would you? The drawing or sketch you would create is called a blueprint. No matter how rough it is, it lets your mind en- vision what you want. Your mind can then go to work developing the final plan while you get the project started. This is the only way the picture can become a reality. Remember, a house is built one brick or board at a time. Your life is built the same way. If you don’t have a blueprint for build- ing and you add a brick or board at random, your building will never become anything more than a disarray of brick and wood. This would be disastrous for you, don’t you agree? How many people do you know whose lives look like that? the greatest country in the world wind up their working days and retire financially able to take care of themselves. 95% of the peo- ple in the United States do not plan their lives. They merely accept what is given to them. It is a fact that only 5% of the people in better than the first drawing because the The end result of any plan is often MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 13

14. vast creative power of the mind pulls in all the facts and improves upon them. The part of the mind that does this is called the sub- conscious. It is, without a doubt, the great- est creation on the face of the earth. Not only is it the thing that separates man from ani- mal, it is also the very founda- tion of creation itself. Its power is without limit. There are many fantastic and informative books about the power of this great tool that we all possess. Since you have this great tool at your disposal, you may as well learn to use it. Have you ever gotten anything that you really wanted? Of course you have! As a child you wanted things. You dreamed of your first toy truck or doll, and lo and be- hold, you got it! Then, you wanted a bike— and got it! As you grew older it became a de- sire for a new dress or a certain model of car. Up to a point, you dreamed and wanted and received a lot of things. Think about that. (and that I ever gave to someone else): You are totally responsible for yourself. In fact, you are the only person who has ever de- nied you anything. It will get you nowhere to blame anyone else. Success and failure walk hand in hand, just inches apart. are within your reach if you will only write them down and make your plan. Throw off the shackles you have placed on yourself; tear down the bars of self-doubt you have thrown around yourself; protect your ego; and lose your fear of fail- ure. Once you can cross the moat without fear of what lies in the murky waters below, you can start a new life. You no longer fear failure. In order to reach for success, you must not fear failure. Success and failure walk hand in hand, just inches apart. When you chart your own course, you start to lose your fear. You can then take that first step across the moat unconcerned about what lies below because you have your eyes on a star! Fantastic achievements matured and realized or were told that you could not have all the things you wanted. Someone may have told you this because they didn’t get what they wanted and thought they couldn’t get anything. That’s why they figured you couldn’t either. They also may have told you it was because you were the wrong color or age or sex or lacked the right education or a thousand other ex- cuses. Then, a strange thing happened. You You must understand, though, that many people would like to see you fail be- cause they are afraid to step out and seek new ventures for themselves. They say, “What if you fail?” We say, “What if you don’t fail?” It takes a big person to be happy over someone else’s success. Big people are usually those who have charted a course in their lives and can relate to your excitement. your success is to think about where you The first step to creating a blueprint for Here’s the best advice I ever received 14 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

15. want to go in various lengths of time...30 days, 90 days, 6 months, 1 year, 2, 3, 4, or 5 years. What do you want and where do you want to go? What dreams do you have for yourself? What turns you on? What is worth committing yourself to as a goal? We, at Tom Hopkins International, have seen many people turn from turtles into rockets almost overnight! These are often people who thought the world was for everyone else to enjoy. blown around by chance winds and storms. Who knows where your destination will be? Some are bad, many are average and a very few are excellent. The odds of drifting into an excellent port are extremely unlikely. Please don’t end your life having been a part of someone else’s goals. 95% of the world does that. You can arrive at many ports in life. want. The difference is nothing more than having a plan to accomplish those dreams. We know that sounds too simple, but it is true. We want to help you reach your dreams. We want you to expect more from life. We have no greater reward than the letters we receive from happy people who say, “Thank you, it works!” “My life now has direction.” “I sleep like a rock and work without tiring because I know where I’m going!” We relish the fact that we had a part in the day that turned your life around. We are all alike. We can all dream and want to be in five years. Take a day, or longer if you like, to let your mind wander. Deter- mine exactly what you want out of life. If you don’t know exactly, make an approximate plan so you will at least have a direction. Take some time to dream of where you begin with goals that are too high. Make them just high enough that you have to make an extra effort to achieve them. No goal is too small to write down. The smaller goals will help you to build a picture of your larger goals. The size of a goal is not as important as the habit and self-image you develop as a good goal setter and achiever. We caution you not to ture success, we strongly recommend that you do it now! How do you picture yourself now? How do you picture yourself in six months or six years? What will you have? What will you be? Without a picture of what you want to be, your subconscious mind cannot lead you anywhere. You are like a ship without a rudder. You float and are If you haven’t thought about your fu- achieving goals all your life with certain limi- tations you have imposed on yourself. By taking the system one more step, you can You have been using this system of MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 15

16. remove those limitations. Take your wants and wishes and make plans of how you can achieve them. The formula that pulls the sys- tem together is: WANT...PICTURE...PLAN...GET! With this for- mula, you can begin setting goals for your- self today. Tom Hopkins carries the standard as a master sales trainer and is recog- nized as the world’s leading authority on selling techniques and sales- manship. tinents have attended Tom’s high-energy live seminars. Tom personally conducts 30+ seminars each year traveling throughout the North Amer- ica, Europe, Asia, Australia, and South Africa. Over five million sales professionals & entrepreneurs on five con- Master the Art of Selling™,” which has sold over 1.7 million copies worldwide. This mega-selling book is considered a must-have reference guide for top selling producers in every field of sales. He has also au- Tom Hopkins is the author of eighteen books, including “How to thored three selling-skills books in the popular “…for Dummies®” series. And, his latest, “When Buyers Say No” (2014) is receiving rave reviews. as well as constant demand for appearances at regional and national conventions each year. His corporate clients have included AFLAC, Best Buy, State Farm, MaryKay Cosmetics, Forever Living Products, Hilliard Ener- gy, Paramount Pools & Spas, ADT Security Systems and 24Hour Fitness. Tom’s talent of teaching in a creative and entertaining style has brought him a tremendous following, He quit college after only 90 days. At 19 years of age, married and with a baby on the way, he took a job in construction. It wasn’t long before Tom decided that doing physical labor was not the way he wanted to spend the rest of his life. So he quit the construction job and took a job he thought would be easier –selling real estate. One of America’s most successful and dynamic businessmen, Tom Hopkins did not find success easily. a living, but had fallen in love with the real estate business. After discovering that all the top producers had extensive sales training, Tom set out to learn everything he could about how to sell professionally. Six months into his real estate career, Tom’s income was averaging just $42 a month. He wasn’t earning lion within five years including the sale of 365 homes in a single year. Word of Tom’s record-breaking sales success soon brought repeated requests to conduct sales training seminars across the country. Armed with drive, determination and knowledge, Tom Hopkins built his sales volume to over $14 mil- ing and inspiring others through his seminars, books, audio, video and online training programs. Today, over 35,000 corporations and millions of professional salespeople through the world utilize his professional sales training materials daily. In 1976, he founded Tom Hopkins International, Inc., and dedicated his life and his company to teach- Tom Hopkins International, Inc. www.tomhopkins.com Twitter:: TomHopkinsSalesFacebook: TomHopkinsSalesLinkedIN: tomhopkinssalestrainer 16 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

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18. Experience can be a very harsh teacher. That’s why many of the most successful people have a strong ability to learn from the mistakes of others. But there is only so much that entrepreneurs can glean by reading advice columns or biog- raphies of great figures in their industry. One of the best ways to bridge the often-perilous gap between book learn- ing and lived experience is through a business mentor. 18 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

19. the mill is an invaluable asset to a new en- trepreneur, who will often be operating in a trap-strewn landscape that is littered with the carcasses of defunct startups. And often in business, the biggest mistakes are those ofomission. The expert eyes of someone who has been there and done that can help new entrepreneurs spot and seize every op- portunity that comes their way. Most super-successful busi- ness people had a strong mentor Warren Buffett, Steve Jobs, Larry Page, Ser- gei Brin and Mark Zuckerberg all have tower- ing success in common. But they also have something else in common: Each one bene- fited immensely from having great business mentors to help them through their early years as entrepreneurs. By someestimates, up to 80 percent of the country’s most successful entrepreneurs credit their success to having enjoyed access to great business mentors early on in their careers. Another survey found that 93 per- cent of executives with startup companies viewed mentorship as an absolute necessity. There is convincing research that mentorship also has a huge effect on whether a compa- ny will make it to the five-year mark.Small Business Association researchhas indicated that companies that are run by executives who had early access in their startup careers to a quality mentor are 40 percent more like- ly to still be around five years after their founding. Clearly, being able to tap into the deep expe- rience of someone who has been through The best things in entrepre- neurial life are free The great thing is that business mentors, un- like coaches and consultants, don’t cost a thing. They don’t have any ulterior motives and are not trying to sell you an expensive course or garner more publicity for their up- coming book. They are real people with a genuine interest in helping new entrepre- neurs succeed. But this raises the question? Who are these selfless teachers, and where can one be found? While there are groups that provide person- al business mentoring, such asSCORE, many entrepreneurs who have benefitted from mentoring will tell you that they never went far out of their way to find the people who would help them go on to greatness. Most of the time, these wise and experienced in- MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 19

20. dividuals were already right in front of their nose, hiding in plain sight. Key benefits that accrue from being mentored Examples of strong mentor- ing benefits from the real world One way we can tell that mentoring truly is a major component of entrepreneurial success is that we don’t have to look very hard to find examples where it had a definitive effect on a major entrepreneurial figure’s career. Take, for example, Warren Buffett. Buffett always knew that he wanted to go into busi- ness for himself, investing in his first stocks, while still a teenager, with the earnings he had saved from a paper route. But it wasn’t until he attended college under the legend- ary investor Benjamin Graham that he really started to develop the sophisticated in- vesting philosophy that would propel him to historic accomplishments in the markets. In fact, like many burgeoning entrepreneurs, Buffet deliberately sought out Graham, choosing to attend Colombia Business School specifically so that he could study un- der his hero. And this turned out to be what may be the most valuable mentorship in the history of U.S. business. For the first two decades of his career, he applied, nearly without variation, the lessons that he learned in Benjamin Graham’s business clas- ses. This served Buffet well. By the time of his 40th birthday, he was worth the equivalent of about $200 million today. But he got far more than just fantastic wealth from paying such meticulous attention to the lessons of his teacher; he was able to put together an entire philosophy of investing that would While mentoring can help you avoid critical business mistakes, including missing big op- portunities, it can also help in a broad range of other important areas, including: Expanding your network of high-level business contacts. Having an expert directly give you ad- vice that is tailored specifically to your business’ circumstances rather than ge- neric advice from a book. Increasing your company’s chance of long-term success by manoeuvring around pitfalls before they have the chance to trip you up. Boosting your confidence. High levels of self-assuredness have been shown to be critically linked to entrepreneurial success. Helping to encourage you when things are tough. Giving you key management insights and the wherewithal to deal effectively with stressful management situations. • • • • • 20 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

21. drive all of his future results. The critical ideas of value investing, which include the concept of viewing stocks as nothing more than claim checks on an un- derlying business, for which the investor should always have a significant margin of error, were almost all cribbed directly out of Graham’s classes. In fact, it can be argued that the only thing that Buffett really added to the mix was the idea that it is better to pay a reasonable price for a great business than a great price for a mediocre one. It is not an exaggeration to say that the man who we most know as the greatest investor alive owes nearly all of his massive success to the mentoring that he received early in his career. Bloomberg has said that without his time under Salomon, it is unlikely that he ever would have had developed the necessary skills and confidence to form his own com- pany. The power of mentorship is real So far, we’ve seen two cases where two of the most successful businesspeople in the world each unambiguously owe a great deal of their success to the critical business men- torship that they received early in their ca- reers. But these are not cherry-picked examples. The simple fact is that a glance down the Forbes 400 list will yield case after case of the world’s most successful business people having succeeded, in part or in whole, based on the mentoring that they received. The question is not whether mentoring works or even whether it has been a crucial component in the success of most of the country’s top businesspeople. The answer to both those questions is resoundingly affirm- ative. The real question is how each entrepreneur can find who their ideal teacher is and then take the fullest possible advantage of the knowledge that they impart. Ultimately, the answer lies in each individual. Other famous examples of mentorship Another one of the richest people in Ameri- ca is Michael Bloomberg. Bloomberg started his career at Salomon Brothers, a bank that would later be bought by none other than Warren Buffett. Bloomberg credits his time under the bank’s president, William Salo- mon, as the most formative years of his life. Bloomberg has stated without a hint of exag- geration that he learned more about busi- ness from Bill Salomon than he had during his entire time at Harvard Business School. Bloomberg was eventually able to take the lessons he learned from that mentoring and branch off to form his own company. Today, he is worth $55 billion, making him one of the richest people in the world. MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 21

22. Neil Ball has been a serial entrepreneur for over 25 years with businesses in sectors such as Printing, Consumer Electronics, Distribution, Removals, Storage, Mail Order, Property In- vesting, Publishing and more. He has had his share of failures and successes on his entrepre- neurial journey. The most successful of his businesses sold approximately £300 million or $500 million of products via retail, mail order and ecommerce and was one of the largest in- dependent consumer electronics companies in the UK. In recent years Neil’s passion for entrepreneurship and helping other entrepreneurs has led him to becoming a podcaster on his daily podcast The Entrepreneur Way where he interviews entrepreneurs and business owners on their entrepreneurial journey and their secrets of suc- cess. He is also a business coach and helps a small number of one on one clients in his coach- ing business.. When he isn’t working on his business or helping others your will find him spending time with beautiful wife Lorna and his 4 adult kids. To connect or learn more go to: www.neilball.com Twitter: @NeilDBall Linkedin: @NeilDBall 22 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

23. Traveling is Good for Your Health! With Bruce Oliver My personal experience passed and it’s too late. Another said, “When we were young, we thought that we’d be healthy forever. But now I must go for dialysis and it’s too late! (Not really, many cruise lines can accommodate people on dialysis.) As a youth, I listened to what my elders say, over and over, that the one thing they wish they had done more often was take longer vacations when they had their young fami- lies. Seldom did someone say I wish I had worked more. Couples who wait until retire- ment to travel may have lost their oppor- tunity to travel while they were together or in good health. Now, one woman said, he’s My father relayed the same information to me as his health was failing just before his death. The prior year, for the first time in his life, he and mom went with my brother, sis- MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 23

24. ter, her son, my aunt and uncle and I on a two-week vacation to Edinburg, Scotland and London, England. He said that he wished he had more time to go again but it was too late for him, “not for you” he said, “Now I understand why you always travel.” People nearing the end of life always say they wish that they took more time to “smell the ros- es”. thor of the book “Breaking the Mold: Rede- signing Work for Productive and Satisfying Lives. (Bailyn, 2006)” “Unhealthy overwork costs company’s money for healthcare and creates stressful and unrewarding lives, both of which detract from the good work they are supposed to be furthering.” The more and longer vacations that you take, the more productive you will be when you get back to work. Everything that I’ve read says the same thing. The more and longer vacations that you take, the more productive you will be when you get back to work. I feel best com- I love everything about travel. Early in life I al- ways made time to go somewhere new. May- be it was because I be- longed to a Scout Troop that always took us on vacations to Washington, D.C., World’s Fairs in Montreal and New York City or desti- nations that the average boy would never visit. As an Eagle Scout, I was awarded a 30- day bus trip across the United States to hike for twelve days at Philmont National Boy Scout Reservation in Cimarron, NM. Today, I plan and use my vacations because I tend to be a workaholic. I plan a two-week vacation at least once per year and each quarter I have weekend trips to look forward to. This is especially important when things get diffi- cult. Life is a sine wave with ups and downs. When the down periods come, I always say, but I’m going on a cruise in a few weeks. Knowing this helps me cope with the downs and I am more productive. ing back from a two-week vacation (I don’t mean visiting relatives to paint their house either.) It usually takes me 3-4 days to begin to relax and the balance of the vacation is full of rest and relaxation. I’ve gotten to the point that the only time I say I’m on vacation is when I leave the country and get away from the phone which I answer 24/7 in my normal regiment. According to Ellen Galinsky, President of Families and Work Institute, the longer your vacation, the less stress you’ll feel. People’s stress levels dropped significantly when they took over 6-days and more as they ap- proached 13 or more consecutive days away from work and their regular routine life. Families participating in these vacations tend to be less depressed and form tighter bonds with other family members (Ellen Galinski, 2014). It’s true, my siblings and I often talk about the time we spent camping each sum- mer at Lake Ossipee in New Hampshire or at Clinton Beach in Connecticut. As a matter of fact, productivity experts have discovered that the longer it is between va- cations: “Fatigue sets in, rigidity applies, and all creativity and innovation are lost —both of which need time away for other activities to increase the probability of new ideas,” said Lotte Bailyn, an MIT researcher and au- Galinski says: “Knowing that skipping vaca- 24 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

25. tion stifles creativity, creates health prob- lems, leads to stress, depression, and less- than-ideal home lives, it seems as if compa- nies would make vacation enforcement a pri- ority. But with a few exceptions, the experts say that is not happening. Vacation skipping is a topic that’s often swept under the key- board.” turned into one of those lessons that life seems to hand you from time to time. Let me tell you about it. I turned the volume up the on my radio to listen to a Saturday morning talk show. I heard an older sounding chap with the gold- en voice. You know the kind, he sounded like he should be in the broadcasting business himself. Both women and men alike benefit by taking vacations. After their study, Gump, PhD, MPH, and; Matthews, PhD at the American Psychosomatic Society, concluded: “The fre- quency of annual vacations by middle-aged men at high risk for coronary heart disease (CHD) is associated with a reduced risk of all- cause mortality and, more specifically, mor- tality attributed to CHD. Vacationing may be good for your health.” (Gump & Matthews, 2000) He was talking about "a thousand marbles" to someone named "Tom". I was intrigued and sat down to listen to what he had to say. "Well, Tom, it sure sounds like you're busy with your job. I'm sure they pay you well but it's a shame you must be away from your home and family so much. Hard to believe a young fellow should have to work 60 or 70 hours a week to make ends meet. Too bad you missed your daughter's dance recital." This reminds me of an email I received many long years ago. It was titled: He continued, "Let me tell you something Tom, something it has helped me keep a good perspective on my own priorities." 1000 Marbles “The older I get, the more I enjoy Saturday mornings. Perhaps it's the quiet solitude that comes with being the first to rise, or maybe it's the unbound joy of not having to be at work. Either way, the first few hours of the Saturday morning are the most enjoya- ble. And that's when he began to explain his the- ory of "a thousand marbles." "You see, I sat down one day and did a little arithmetic. The average person lives about 75 years. I know, some live more and some live less, but on average, folks live about 75 years." "Now then, I multiplied 75 times 52 and came up with 3,900 which is the number of Saturdays that the average person has in their entire lifetime. Now stick with me Tom, I'm getting to the important part." A few weeks ago, I was shuffling towards the kitchen with a steaming cup of coffee in one hand and the morning paper in the other. What began as a typical Saturday morning MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 25

26. "It took me until I was 55 years old to think about all of this in any detail," he went on, "and by that time I had lived through over twenty-eight hundred Saturdays. I got to thinking that if I lived to be 75, I only had about 1,000 of them left to enjoy." breakfast." "What brought this on?" she asked with a smile. "Oh, nothing special," I said. "It has just been a long time since we'd spent Satur- day together with the kids. Hey, can we stop at the toy store while we're out? I need to buy some marbles." "So, I went into a toy store and bought every single marble they had. I end up having to visit three toy stores to round up 1000 mar- bles. I took them home and put them inside a large clear plastic container right here on my workshop table next to the radio. Every Saturday since then, I've taken one marble out and threw it away." Have a great weekend and may all Saturdays be special and may your happy years contin- ue long after you lose all your mar- bles.” (Oliver, 2019) Works Cited Bailyn, L. (2006). Breaking the Mold: Rede- signing Work for Productive and Satisfying Lives. Ithaca: ILr Press - Cornell University Press. "I found that watching the marbles diminish caused me to focus more on the really im- portant things in life. There's nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out, to help get your priorities straight." Ellen Galinski, P. (2014, February 1). Over- work in America: When the Way We Work Becomes Too Much. Retrieved from Families and Work Institute: www.familiesandwork.org/overwork-in- america-when-the-way-we-work-becomes- too-much/ "Now let me tell you one last thing before I sign-off with you and take my lovely wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last marble out of the container. I figure if I can make until next Saturday then God has blessed me with a little extra time to be with my loved ones..." http:// Gump, B. B., & Matthews, K. A. (2000). In B. B. Gump, & K. A. Matthews, Are Vacations Good for Your Health? The 9-Year Mortality Experience After the Multiple Risk Factor In- tervention Trial (pp. September/October 2000 - Volume 62 - Issue 5 - pp 608-612). American Psychosomatic Society. "It was nice to talk to you Tom, I hope you spend more time with your loved ones, and I hope to meet you again someday. Have a good morning!" You could have heard a pin drop when he hung up the phone. Even the shows modera- tor didn't have a thing to say for a few mo- ments. I guess he gave us all a lot to think about. Oliver, B. (2019). Traveling Is Good For Your Health! In B. Oliver, Secrets of Cooking (Scratch and Sniff Edition) Using Spices, Herbs & Salts (pp. 10-14). Las Vegas, NV: Ve- gas New Wave Media. I had planned to do some work that morn- ing, then go to the gym. Instead, I went up- stairs and woke up my wife with a kiss. "C'mon Honey, I'm taking you and the kids to 26 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

27. Bruce Oliver has traveled to over 49 states, 56 countries and 6 continents. For nine years he has worked in the travel industry as a luxury travel advisor, travel author, as host of the OTT Smart TV Channel http://BruceOliverTV.com (available over the internet and via devices like Roku, computers and smart phones) and the podcast http:// LuxuryTravelAdviserPodcast.com. Bruce has a passion for global travel and photography. He's the recipient of the Travel Weekly Silver Magellan Award for individuals in the travel industry and was awarded the 2014 Best of Enfield Cruise Agents. He’s a member of OASIS Agent and the Signature Travel Network. Bruce has certification with the Cruise Line Industry Association (CLIA) and has credentials from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). He is a Luxury Travel Specialist and has “destination specialist” certifications from all over the world as well as a close working rela- tionship with most the cruise lines and travel operators. He is a Level 2 Member of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (AKA - UNESCO): World Heritage Convention. He also has travel photographer press credentials from the National Press Association and the ITWPA. He is a Professional Photographer registered with the International VR Photography Association (IVRPA) specializing in 360º Virtual Tours. He’s listed as a Charter Member of the Library of Congress and the Microsoft Alumni Association. He’s the recipient of many honors and awards in his community and higher education. In 1989, he graduated with a MBA from the University of Hartford. Bruce is listed in MARQUIS: Who's Who in America, Who’s Who in the World and Who's Who in American Education. In 2019, Bruce was recognized by Albert Nelson Marquis with the Lifetime Achievement Award after being listed as a biographical ref- erence in 68 diverse publications. Bruce has been a member of the National Eagle Scouts As- sociation since 1967 and is a Vigil Honor Member in BSA’s: Order of the Arrow. While attend- ing high school, he was awarded the DeKalb Agricultural Accomplishment Award and the Con- necticut State Farmer Degree from the Future Farmers of America. www.BruceLOliver.comTwitter: @BruceOliverCT LinkedIn: @bruceloliver Facebook Page: @cruisewithbrucePinterest: @cruisewithbruceYouTube: @cruisewithbruce Instagram: @cruisewithbruce Facebook Page: @VirtualluxuryNetwork MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 27

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29. With Stacey Brown Randall It is every sales professional’s dream to wake up in the morning and there in their inbox is a new prospective client just waiting on them. But not the kind that is just a lead from the “contact” page of the company website. Nor the kind of prospect that they then have to start chasing. The dream is for a prospect who is serious about purchasing and already trust the sales professional to help them make the right choice. That type of prospect only shows up in one of two ways. Either the prospect has spent months or longer researching the options, watching the demo videos, checking out the case studies and testimonials and has ruled out that their needs will be better served by one of your competitors. Or the prospect has been referred to you by someone they trust. The second option is faster. And a referred prospect is typically less price sensitive be- MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 29

30. cause the trust they place in you –put there by the person who referred them –adds val- ue to you. But most sales teams are not receiving as many –or any –referrals. Here are four com- mon reasons why your sales team may be struggling to bring in referrals. 1. You are telling them to ask I get it, it is the majority of the advice out there. There are articles, books, training pro- grams and more teaching people how to ask for refer- rals… who to ask, when to ask, what different scripts to use when ask- ing and more. It is what we have heard for so long we have started to believe “asking for referrals” is the only way. But when you understand the human dy- namic and psychology of a referral, you rec- ognize that asking for a referral dilutes the power of a referral. A referral happens be- cause your referral source (the person who sends you referrals) knows someone who has a problem or issue and they know you can solve the problem. They refer to help someone out –the person who has the problem –not to send you a new client. If I am willing to help someone with a prob- lem, the help I want to provide is that of a trusted resource. Which means the relation- ships you or your sales team has with your referral sources matter most. What your team needs is to be able to stop asking for referral and start cultivating relationship with referral sources or potential referral sources. 2. The only tool you provide is an incentivized referral pro- gram It seems when asking doesn’t work, many companies will turn to incentiv- ized referral programs for their sales team to promote to referral sources. The program typically involves paying a referral source for a referral. But what is missed with this attempt at a solution, is that only a small mi- nority of people are willing to “refer” for a commission. Most people refer because it is how they help someone with their problem. They would feel uncomfortable if that friend, col- league or peer found out that they received a commission for referring them. It doesn’t matter if the company is B2B or B2C. Providing commission for “referrals” (which are really just leads you are willing to pay for) not disclosed up front If we are fixated on a short-term, then we miss out on doing what we need to do now to have a different future when it comes to referrals. 30 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

31. will most likely backfire by damaging the re- lationship for all involved. What your team needs are better tools in their referral toolbox. 3. You focus on the short-term fix Many businesses are so fixated on the now – this month’s or quarter’s numbers –that they devel- op tunnel vision on growth. It is true that receiving re- ferrals takes longer than some prospecting tactics. But the better quality of prospects more than makes up for the additional time or delay. But to have a fully functioning referral strate- gy in your business, you have to be willing to invest some time and resources. Most im- portantly you have to be willing to balance the activity needed right now to generate a new lead with the activity needed over time to sow future referrals. Most referral explo- sions start off as a trickle but then snowball when the relationship with the referral sources are handled correctly. In my experience with the financial services industry –the now always mattered more than the future. It is true in many industries. If we are fixated on a short-term, then we miss out on doing what we need to do now to have a different future when it comes to referrals. What your team needs is to know how to balance short-term and long-term activity. 4. You haven’t trained them to have different closing conversations with referred prospects The worst thing that can happen to a sales profes- sional or anyone involved in bringing in new clients is to receive a referral and then not close them. A referred prospect is always yours to lose. The sale process is different when your pro- spect has been referred to you. The ques- tions you ask, and the conversation flow fol- lows a different path. It is not about trying to find the pain or agitate the pain in your pro- spect. It is not about the sale pitch of your service from A to Z or how you stack up against competitors. It is about knowing how to connect the pro- spect to the trust they have in you and work- ing together to see if you are a fit. What your team needs is to understand how The sale process is different when your prospect has been referred to you. The questions you ask, and the conversation flow follows a different path. MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 31

32. to “sell” to a referred prospect, so they don’t miss out on an ‘easy-to-close’ prospect. *** Ultimately what your sales professionals need is help thinking about referrals differ- ently than they think about other types of leads. They need permission to take the time to de- velop relationships with their current or ‘soon-to-be’ referral sources. They need to understand the difference between just keeping-in-touch and what is means to be top-of-mind in a memorable and meaningful way. And they need to know how to use the right referral seed language, how it works and when to plant it, so they never have to ask for a referral or pay for a referral again. Stacey Brown Randall is a three-time entrepre- neur, award-winning author of Generating Busi- ness Referrals Without Asking, host of the Roadmap to Grow Your Business podcast and national speaker. Her programs help small business owners and solopreneurs take control of their referrals, their client experience and their business. She has had the privilege of helping well-known corporations and franchises such as Bank of America, Mass Mutual, and International Minute Press but her focus is on small business owners and solopreneurs from companies including HM Properties, Financial Symmetry, O’Connor Insurance Associates, Tyra Law Firm, Farris Cooke CPA, Slater Interiors, Rae Images, CAJA Bookkeeping, and hundreds more. Stacey has been featured in national publications like Entrepreneur magazine, Investor Busi- ness Daily, Forbes, CEO World, Fox News, Cheddar TV Network. She received her Master’s in Organizational Communication and is married with three kids. You can connect with her online at www.StaceyBrownRandall.com. Facebook Page: @staceybrownrandallFacebook Group: @referralswithoutasking LinkedIn Profile: @staceybrandallInstagram Profile: @staceybrownrandall Twitter Profile ID: @staceybrandall 32 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

33. It’s likely you've already noticed the pace of change accelerating. We all have. But if we look ahead, maybe it won’t feel so unex- pected. Here are 10 workplace trends that are sure to affect every worker over the next decade. Work may be unrelenting, but at least now you won’t have to ask,“is it just me or does it seem like something is always changing around here”. Once upon a time, major changes to corpo- rate structures were infrequent events. A re- org would be inspired by a board mandate to cut costs, or a management shake-up oc- curred when leadership wanted to enter a new market. Other than these infrequent realignments, it was steady on. Not any- more.In a world where start-ups steal mar- ket share in the middle of the night, or a well -timed acquisition can unseat a perennial leader, it feels like nothing short of an all- hands-on-deck reaction can keep the com- 1. CHANGE BECOMES A CONSTANT MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 33

34. pany from crumbling. All this volatility and speed means companies must be able to quickly make major shifts—like culture changes—frequently. 4. WORKERS RE-ESTABLISH WORK-LIFE BOUNDARIES Emails, texts, and slack messages don't care if it's 10:00am or 10:00pm. Those little red dots almost seem designed to keep your mind at work. To stop the ever-expanding workday from seeping into every nook of life, it is only a matter of time before em- ployees erect self-imposed dividers, so when and where can become choices again.Forward-looking managers will not only accept this as the new reality but do whatever they can to enable this new evolu- tion of boundary setting. 2. HIRE FOR DIVERSITY (OF PERSPECTIVES) Now that diversity, equity, and inclusion, DEI for short, has begun to take its rightful place at the top of corporate priority lists, let’s re- member why. Yes, it’s illegal to discriminate, but study after study has shown that it is the range of approaches, insights, and views that benefit the business. In practice, that means finding people who have vastly different life experiences, not morebrogrammerswho happen to have different colored skin. It’s time to recruit more different kinds of differ- ent: genders, sexuality, ages, abilities, be- liefs, histories, geographies, and political leanings to name a few. 5. MICRO MULTI-NATIONALS Despite trends toward political isolationism, businesses continue to untether from geo- graphic confines. Its only time before even small companies go international. Inexpen- sive but fabulous talent will be too big of a draw to ignore for companies comfortable with remote workers. This shift could have a massive impact on working hours as full- time becomes fluid-time. Whether this new world-wide web of employees becomes a business advantage or a challenge too large to surmount depends on the company and how they manage the shift from 9-to-5 to anytime. 3. COMPANY VALUES BECOME COMPA- NYDIFFERENTIATORS Many leaders understand that company val- ues are a critical culture tool. The problem is that most values are uninspired platitudes. To be useful in the design and management of culture, values need to radically different. Why?Values guide employee decision mak- ing. That’s their job. The more unique the more meaningful, helping employees be- come better stewards of the culture.Run of the mill values are everywhere, butit is pos- sible to go beyond “innovative” and “trustworthy” to something that will make your company stand out to candidates and customers alike. 6. F2F ON THE RISE Speaking of remote, by the year 2020 work- ing from somewhere that is not a company office will shift from exception to acceptance to predominance. But, as remote work be- comes more prevalent, so will the im- portance of in-person connections.Just look at the investment hyper-remote companies 34 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

35. like Buffer put into bringing together nearly 100 employees from around the world. Their annual Buffer Team Retreats, which happen every 5 to 7 months, last about a week and all travel, food, and lodging is paid for by the company. It’s not hard to imagine more com- panies realizing the power of in-person meetings and investing in them promptly. In this brave new world of shortening tenure (just 18 months around Silicon Valley), work- ers can no longer rely on one or two organi- zations to define their career.It will be the responsibility of the individual to create theirown infrastructure ofmentors, coach- es, skills training, and networking to support themselves across the years. In today’s work world, curating a career is critical. Anyone who wants to climb higher will need to build their own corporate ladder. 7. FROM DEPARTMENTS TO TEAMS Soon, departments will be an outdated way to talk about how people work together. In the next year or so most companies will at least have some groups talking about work- ing “in teams” and “on projects”. They might still technically be in one department or an- other, but that isn’t very useful given how quickly people are moving from project to project, and more agile companies are pull- ing people onto projects even if it isn’t in their department. 10.COMMUNITIES, NOT CUSTOMERS Businesses don’t have employees and cus- tomers any longer; they have communities where value can be created in new ways and come from unexpected places. A single influ- encer can create interest in a product, ser- vice, or brand way beyond what a single cus- tomer ever could.Roles are changing on the inside as well. It’s not difficult to imagine a corporation expanding the responsibilities of employees and investing in training to help individuals become more effective brand ad- vocates in person and online. 8.GOODBYE CULTURE FIT; HELLO VALUES FIT Busy recruiters and managers use the term“culture fit"as a shortcut to describe the kind of person they are looking to hire. The problem is that while it’s easy to refer to the term, it’s never well-defined, but most often it’s code for hiring people just like the rest of the employees. Too many like-minded individuals can lead to groupthink, and nar- row conclusions, not to mention un- diversity. Instead, look for values-fit—people who have complimentary working styles, motivations, and beliefs. As new players emerge, and old positions fade, it’s hard to say how these extreme hy- brid roles (if you can even call them that) evolve. What is evident is that business lead- ers must change how they see the world; they need to zoom out, so they can see more of who is connected to what. In the future, we won’t be talking about companies trying to attract employees and sell to cus- tomers. The conversation will be about one community, inside and out, working togeth- er to achieve a single purpose. And when a business’s control over these sometimes- paid roles is tentative at best, culture will be the best tool we have to run our companies. 9.SELF-DRIVING ISN’T JUST FOR CARS MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 35

36. JOSH LEVINE is a best-selling author, brand strategist, and highly sought-after speaker on a mission to help or- ganizations design a culture advantage. For more than 15 years, Levine has helped build culture-driven brands for a wide range of organizations—including Silicon Valley heavy hitters, prominent nonprofits, and well-respected blue-chip corporations. He is best known as the co-founder of the nonprofit CULTURE LABx, and as Executive Director helped it flourish into an international community. His new book, Great Mondays, which was recently listed on BookAuthority’s list of the best culture books of all time, teaches organizations how to design a company culture employees love. www.akajoshlevine.com Twitter: @akajoshlevine LinkedIn: @akajoshlevine www.greatmondays.com LinkedIn Page: @greatmondays Twitter: @greatmondays_ Instagram: @greatmondays_culturedesign 36 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

37. Having a mentor tops the list of wants for many entrepre- neurs (as well as employees and intrapreneurs who are ac- tively seeking new ways to contribute to their work environ- ment and advance their careers). But when the “ideal” can- didate with the experience and know-how to provide guid- ance as a mentor is too busy or too remote, what’s a mentee with a question to be answered to do? MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 37

38. 1:1 mentoring relationships are ideal - ideal- ized and likely an outdated notion in an al- ways on 24/7 world. But mentoring, that is, the need for guidance and feedback from someone with more ex- perience, is still essen- tial for our ca- reers. So how do we balance the need for mentor- ship and the abil- ity to access men- toring guidance? Entrepreneur Misti Cain challenged me on this very question, asking me to rethink what 1:1 mentoring can be. 1:1 mentoring in the digital / mobile age can mean subscribing to a blog or YouTube chan- nel or newsletter or podcast or online course. It can be as easy as following some- one on Twitter. It’s more engagement than the random “like” and less commitment than a lifetime of scheduling coffee dates. Misti’s “rethink” 1:1 mentoring is the right approach. In the digital age of personal brands, mentoring doesn’t have to be the pursuit of a lifetime commitment to meet IRL. Rather, it’s the quest for answers —  wherever you may find them. And Misti’s approach to mentoring got me thinking about my own “mentors”. Investor Joanne Wilson (aka The Gotham Gal) became my mentor around the summer of 2011. We both had been invited to partic- ipate as advisors at a roundtable pitch event for female founders. Three women were pitching that night (a tech founder, handbag designer and custom carpet designer). It was the first time I had actively participat- ed in such an event, so I was observing my 1:1 mentoring in the digital / mobile age can mean subscribing to a blog or YouTube channel or newsletter or podcast or online course. peers around the table as much as I was lis- tening to the pitches. As each founder pre- sented, Joanne was direct in her question- ing, forthright with her opinions and honest (some would say rather blunt) with her reac- tions to the product or business model (or both). In Joanne, I immediately found my guide and role model on how to be helpful to entrepre- neurs. Since that evening, I’ve avidly read Joanne’s blog, followed her on Twitter, attended WE Festival, become a member of the WE Festi- val community and been fortunate to inter- view her on more than one occasion (36/86, Apple Store, BroadMic). No, I’ve never asked Joanne for a coffee date or to be my mentor, nonetheless, she’s played that significant 38 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

39. role in my growth as an investor in early- stage companies and participant in the New York City tech ecosystem. As my own ability to provide 1:1 mentoring has decreased in direct proportion to the fo- cus I’ve needed to put towards the publica- tion of my first book, I regret I can no longer take mentoring coffee dates or participate regularly as a startup accelerator mentor, however, I see that I continue to mentor in the way envisioned by Misti — and in the way I’ve been mentored by Joanne: - I’m active on Twitter as well as Instagram, Tumblr, LinkedIn and Facebook. - I post daily to LinkedIn. - I have a Facebook page. - I blog frequently on my website. - I have contributed to Forbes.com and Inc.com. - I send out a news- letter every week. - I host the Build Your Dream Network podcast. - I guest host the Business Builders Show podcast. - I moderated the Meet The Innovators se- ries at Apple. - I keynote, interview and speak on panels. I recognize I still need the sage, experienced advice of others as my career moves into its next phase. Beyond Joanne, where else am I regularly seeking mentorship? As my focus turns to community, the future of work and networking in the digital age, I frequently turn to: - Creative Mornings monthly breakfasts (IRL when I can or more often than not, down- loading the podcast of missed breakfasts). - Tom Peters’ tweets, videos, and posts. - TED talks. Plus I keep a keen eye on my friends who are authors (Aidan Donnelly-Rowley, Gretchen Rubin, Danielle Laporte, Jonathan Fields, Tiffany Dufu and more) as they have navi- gated the unchartered path I am just writing. And then there are select, close mem- bers of my own net- work, the mentors who I tap into regu- larly when I’m puz- zling on a “how do you In Joanne, I immediately found my guide and role model on how to be helpful to entrepreneurs. deal with” or “have you ever experienced” or “what do you think about” question. You know who you are… you just didn’t know I considered you mentors. How are the ways you can rethink gathering the mentors and mentorship you need? MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 39

40. J. Kelly Hoey is a networking expert, who has been lauded from Forbes (“1 of 5 Women Changing the World of VC/ Entrepreneurship”) to Fast Company (“1 of the 25 Smartest Women On Twitter”) to Busi- ness Insider (“1 of the 100 Most Influential Tech Women On Twitter”) and Inc. (“1 of the 10 Most Well-Connected People in New York City's Startup Scene”). A frequent speaker at leadership conferences, Hoey helps business- es and professionals leverage their formal and informal social networks. Her book "Build Your Dream Network: Forging Powerful Relationships In A Hyper-Connected World" was published by Tarcher Perigee / Penguin Random House. www.jkellyhoey.coTwitter: @jkhoey LinkedIn: @kellyhoey Instagram: jkellyhoey Facebook Page: @BuildYourDreamNetworkPinterest: @buildyourdreamnetwork Twitter Profile ID: @BYDNetworkLinkedIn Page: @build-your-dream-network YouTube Channel: @womeninnovatemobile 40 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

41. Three Types of Stories Every Three Types of Stories Every Leader Should Master Leader Should Master With Harrison Monarth With Harrison Monarth The fact that people are wired to react so strongly to stories should motivate business leaders to develop their storytelling skills. But what business situations call for a story? You might have guessed the answer—it de- pends. It depends on both the situation and what you’d like to accomplish in the situa- tion. The situation might be a staff meeting where you’re introduced to the people on your new team, for example. As their new boss, your objective might be to get them to like and spect you and to start dismantling the barri- ers of mistrust and uncertainty. Another situ- ation might be that members of your team have lost enthusiasm for their work, and your objective is to restore their engage- ment and give them purpose, so they under- stand the “why” of what they’re spending most of their waking hours doing. Or maybe valuable members of your team feel unap- preciated or don’t get the credit they de- serve. In that situation, your objective may re- MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 41

42. be to reinforce or highlight certain norms and behaviors with your stories and to draw positive attention to them. Below are three types of stories that every leader should master. My hope is that they inspire read- ers to dig deeper into this topic and to identify and cultivate potential stories that can help you accomplish important objectives. 1. Stories We Tell Ourselves force this self-assessment, prominently fea- turing my mistakes, my failures, and others’ expressions of disappointment in me. And so, a vicious loop is creat- ed where negative per- ceptions—including of the self—determine the stories we tell ourselves, which in turn play out in full color to reinforce these perceptions. Clearly these aren’t pro- ductive narratives, nor do they serve the people and organizations we lead. And while I’m aware that years of cog- nitive behavioral therapy may sometimes be the most effective solution to modify such beliefs-and-values–powered narratives, I’d like to suggest that we have the option to intervene any time we recognize (self- awareness!) the unproductive nature of the stories we tell ourselves. It’s clear that the stories we tell ourselves have an impact not just on our own behav- ior, but also on our engagement with others and in turn on their perceptions of us as leaders, colleagues, and partners. By careful- ly examining our dominant narratives and making sure they contribute positive value to our and others’ lives, we’re one step clos- er to wielding real influence with the power of storytelling. “It’s clear that the stories we tell ourselves have an impact not just on our own behavior, but also on our engagement with others and in turn on their percep- tions of us as leaders, col- leagues, and partners.” We constantly assemble bits and pieces of information of what we observe around us and automatically turn them into stories that tend to reinforce our long-developed beliefs. If those stories are positive ones—you ad- mire a colleague and tend particularly to no- tice the admirable things she does, you pride yourself on your own punctuality and pat yourself on the back whenever you find yourself (again!) to be the first person to show up at a meeting—these perspectives are often uplifting and empowering. The problem comes when we tell ourselves negative stories. For instance, if I feel that the people around me are lazy and incompe- tent, the stories I create will be based on morsels of data that “conform” that belief. Or if I feel that I don’t measure up to others’ expectations, the stories I create will rein- 42 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

43. sure to highlight any mistakes from which you’ve grown. Share examples of how you’ve navigated new cultures in the past— organizational or regional—and what you’re hoping to learn in this next stage with their help. This shows humility, humanizes you, and reduces the power distance that can hamper the open and honest dialogue that builds trust. If your audience—whether a group or an in- dividual—is looking to engage you for your expertise, share stories that illustrate how you’ve delivered results or solved similar problems for others. Mention the challenges you encountered along the way and how you met them successfully—even if it took a few attempts to get it right. This is also an elegant way to share your strengths without bragging about your accomplish- ments. When others want to get to know us, they aren’t just looking for the content on our LinkedIn profile. They want to know the real us to determine whether we’re trustworthy and whether associating with us will be of positive or negative val- ue to them. That’s why re- cruiters and hiring managers no longer have qualms about digging into our social media pro les and online musings to evaluate our reputation and our judgment. 2. Stories We Tell Others About Ourselves Whether you are a leader joining a new team, or a job candidate in the first round of interviews, or someone meeting a potential new client for the first time, the stories you tell about yourself often set the tone for how the relationship will unfold, if it does, that is. Which are the right stories in such scenarios? It’s hard to go wrong with stories that illustrate your humility, good judgment, integrity, and expertise and experience. As for what to emphasize, putting yourself firm- ly into the shoes of your audience should provide clues. The needs and ex- pectations of the people in your audience will, of course, vary, depending on the context of the meeting and their future goals as they involve you. For instance, if you are the new boss meeting the members of your team for the first time, you know they’ll wonder about your leadership style and how you’ll treat them. Acknowledge this and share a personal story or two that show you empathize—maybe from when you met your boss for the first time. Mention the lessons you’ve learned in managing others and make “And judgment is key whenever we share personal information. Faulty judgment can result in some awk- ward moments if not lasting reputational harm.” MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 43

44. And judgment is key whenever we share personal information. Faulty judgment can result in some awkward moments if not lasting reputational harm. Faulty judgment in personal stories isn’t al- ways this glaring. But if you are unsure of how your stories might land, run them first by people you trust. In the end, with person- al stories less is more and humility is better. glamorous but nonetheless essential work. To accomplish this, he would take every op- portunity—in one-on-ones, in meetings, and in group e-mails—to share stories of im- portant fixes that these day-to-day engineers made and to publicly praise them. Similarly, if you want people to speak up more in meetings and challenge each other, share a story of how a lone dissenting voice was able to change your mind about a deci- sion you’d made, and how this wouldn’t have happened if the person hadn’t felt comfortable in challenging you. Or if you want to increase collaboration among teams, share a story about two teams who decided to join forces and whose combined creativity and brainpower led to important breakthroughs for the organization. And if it’s courage and risk taking you want to pro- mote, highlight stories of risk-taking col- leagues—and include their failures, to make the point that learning from mistakes is just another way forward. As you can see in the three types of stories above, the formula for telling a story is sim- ple. Decide which values you want to pro- mote and which behaviors you want to en- courage, and then make those traits the themes of your stories, and include charac- ters who demonstrate the desired traits. Do these stories have to be true? It helps if they are, and it’s even better if your audience knows the protagonists. However, hypo- thetical scenarios can pack just as big a punch, as we’ve learned from neuroscience research and our own experiences from the myriad of stories that surround us. 3. Stories We Tell Our Teams or Or- ganizations The type of storytelling that is intrinsic to successful leadership is the ability to tell compelling stories of the future, to articulate a vision, to both internal and external audi- ences. Leaders need to master another kind of story too—this kind is about organization- al values. Whatever the management goal, there are storytelling strategies that can help further it. A former Facebook director of engineer- ing, Bobby Johnson, once saw the need for a cultural shift in the company’s infrastructure team. Although many of his engineers were drawn to exciting new projects and innova- tions, Johnson knew that other Facebook en- gineers, the ones who worked behind the scenes to ensure that the existing systems ran faster and better than before, also did critical work. He wanted to highlight these “unsung heroes,” both to honor them and to get more engineers interested in their less 44 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

45. HARRISON MONARTH is the CEO and Founder of Gurumaker and author of Executive Pres- ence: The Art of Commanding Respect Like a CEO. An Executive Coach and New York Times bestselling author, he coaches C-suite leaders, senior executives, high potential managers and other top professionals on effective leadership and positive behavior change for professional and organizational success. He helps leaders at all levels develop a powerful personal brand and authentic executive presence. With Harrison’s coaching, leaders from various sectors develop increased self-awareness, overcome “derailer” behaviors, enhance personal effectiveness, develop new leadership skills and competencies, and communicate with confi- dence and competence. His approach incorporates the latest re- search in effective leadership, interpersonal communication, and behavioral sciences. Harrison’s client list covers organizations such as General Motors, Hewlett-Packard, MetLife, AT&T, Northrop Grumman, Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank, Deloitte Consulting, Cisco Systems, GE and Standard & Poor’s among others, as well as start- up entrepreneurs, political candidates and Members of Congress. He has contributed to Har- vard Business Review, Fortune and is a regular columnist for Entrepreneur.com. www.gurumaker.com Twitter: @harrisonmonarthLinkedIn: @harrisonmonarth MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 45

46. tal workflows are slashing in-person contact. I know of countless people who give up This is all for the better... and here's how you can benefit... their lives to start anew... not because they want to, but because they think they have to. Here’s what I mean… If you want to become a comedian or singer or dancer or any other type of performer, then create a YouTube channel so the world can tune in. That's what Justin Bieber did when he was a sane little boy. After his first hit release, “Baby,” he became the most viewed male artist on YouTube, which then propelled him to the mainstream. A friend of mine moved to LA so he could network with entertainment agents. Another friend moved to the Valley to find a job at a start-up. And someone else moved out of the United States to live alone for a year to write a book. If you want to make movies, then use your iPhone to shoot video. The iPhone 6s has a better camera than 90% of the cameras priced below $3,000. My old iPhone 4s had a The greatness of the new, digital age is re- moteness. Physical presence and labor is a dying breed. Cheaper, more productive digi- 46 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

47. better camera than the cameras Syracuse University provided me in journalism school. You can then upload your masterpiece that was taken on your phone to YouTube and submit it to Amazon Studios so the world can view it. My friend Aneesh Chaganty shot a short on Google Glass. His two-minute film ("Seeds") is on YouTube. It has more than three million views. out on my own. I've started at least five busi- nesses since then. If you're looking for a job, then create your digital resume on LinkedIn. That's how I got my first full-time job after school. Someone found me on LinkedIn and then hired me a few hours later. It was that quick. improving day-by-day. Pro- cesses are becoming more efficient, and the cream is finding quicker, newer ways to rise to the top of the crop.” “The world as we know it is Network online with com- panies in the closest big city to you. Many compa- nies –large and small – have presences in under- the-radar cities like Tampa, If you want to become a screenwriter, then up- load your screenplays to Amazon Studios, Scribd, and Black List. Hol- lywood producers are always checking these sites for ideas. Memphis, Wilmington (Delaware), Jackson- ville, and Salt Lake City. Hiring managers in these cities are tired of recruiting from the local state school and are screaming for more talent. Location isn't an issue anymore. If you want to become an author, then self- publish your books on Amazon. That's what Fifty Shades of Grey author E.L. James did. She's sold more than 150 million copies of her books, which are also being adapted into movies. Gone are the days of moving to LA to make it in Hollywood... Or moving to the Valley to start a business... If you want to become a broadcaster or commentator, then start a podcast and dis- tribute it through iTunes, TuneIn, Stitcher, and SoundCloud. That's what John Lee Du- mas did. He has tens of millions of listeners worldwide and makes millions of dollars eve- ry year through his podcasting products. Or to New York City to find a job... The only day is now. There are no more ex- cuses. The world as we know it is improving day-by- day. Processes are becoming more efficient, and the cream is finding quicker, newer ways to rise to the top of the crop. If you want to start a business, then set up a "home office" with your cell phone, laptop, and Skype. You have everything you need to get started. That's what I did when I went Don't be left behind. MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 47

48. Naresh Vissa is the Founder & CEO of Krish Media & Marketing –a full service e- commerce, technology, development, online, and digital media and marketing agency and solutions provider.. He has worked with CNN Radio, Clear Channel Communications, J.P. Morgan Chase, EverB- ank, The Institute for Energy Research, Houston Rockets, Houston Astros, the American Junior Golf Association, Agora Financial, Agora Publishing, Stansberry Re- search, and TradeStops. He is the #1 bestselling author of FIFTY SHADES OF MARKETING: Whip Your Busi- ness into Shape & Dominate Your Competi- tion, PODCASTNOMICS: The Book of Podcasting... To Make You Millions, THE NEW PR: 21st Century Public Relations Strategies & Resources... To Reach Millions, TRUMPBOOK: How Digi- tal Liberals Silenced a Nation into Making America Hate Again, and the new book FROM NO- BODY TO BESTSELLING AUTHOR! How To Write, Publish & Market Your Book. He has a Master's Degree from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business and has been fea- tured on USA Today, Yahoo!, Bloomberg, MSNBC, Huffington Post, Businessweek, MSN Mon- ey, Business Insider, India Today, Hindustan Times, and other domestic and international me- dia outlets. www.KrishMediaMarketing.com www.NareshVissa.comTwitter: @xnareshxInstagram: @rnaresh15 48 | MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2

49. In business, accountability is often viewed as meeting quarterly goals, and other activities designed to maximize returns for stakehold- ers and shareholders. But there is another, deeper view of business accountability. It’s when you look at yourself in the mirror in the morning and, as uncomfortable as it may be, you’re accountable for your behavior and how your actions impact others. As servant leaders, we are held accountable for our behavior. When I am among CEOs who are showing interest in servant leader- ship, I am amazed that most feel their be- havior reflects that of a leader who thinks of MENTORS MAGAZINE | EDITION 2 | 49

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