5 Things I Learned From Arnold Schwarzenegger

Maybe it is my fascination with big, strong, muscular men but I have always liked Arnold Schwarzenegger. As a young woman fresh out of the military I used to read body building magazines and his articles on making muscles react to disciplined exercise were fascinating. And who did not love all of the great one liners from the movies?

On boxing day I noticed his $40 book was on sale at Chapters for only $10 so I scooped one up, and I have been intoxicated ever since, but not for the reasons you would think. Sure there are the great photos and the life story of a star but there is a much more complex human being that we would never have guessed. For instance: did you know that Arnold Schwarzenegger is an entrepreneur first before anything?

Arnold made his first million before he made his first Conan movie. It’s true. Here are 5 tips that I got from his book Total Recall that are good tips for any entrepreneur:

1. Focus On What You Want

When Arnold was fourteen he had photos made by taking pictures of the pages of magazines and then enlarging them so he could keep the image of his success in front of him. As a teenager he already knew he wanted to be the top body builder, an American entrepreneur, a leading man in the movies, and a politician. He stayed focused on that over the next forty years until all was accomplished and more.

2. Turn Away From Distractions

Arnold learned quickly that the wrong relationship would hurt his chances for success so he made hard choices in the early years. He would not take employment that would take him away from his goals, and he also refused movie parts that were not going to cast him as a leading man to protect his acting career. Turning away from good ideas is a hard thing to learn and it is something that many never perfect. Distraction from the end goal can come in many wonderful forms and they need to be avoided for the end result.

3. Invest In Yourself

Arnold invested in himself first because in the beginning he was his only asset and he knew it. So he trained for hours, he got tips from the experts, he traveled to meet his heroes  he spent money on equipment. Many business people never truly become entrepreneurs because they don't invest in themselves or their operations. They get busy on the day to day survival and focus on being "in" their business, instead of being "on" it. Arnold started "on" it and he stayed "on" it making his own personal growth to learn a language, understand finance and real estate, and even gourmet foods and wine a high priority because he knew it would matter later.

4. Multiply Your Earnings

He put the hours into building his own body, then he put the hours into training programs, booklets that he sold through mail order, videos about exercise and other things that he could control the multiplication on. He then invested some of his earnings into real estate and when more profit was made he reinvested again. That gave him the financial stability to weather the other storms of life that are inevitable.

5. Live Like You Already Have It

Arnold fit in with Maria Schriver and her Kennedy family because he already saw himself as a successful actor and a politician long before he was either of those things. He had the confidence to become because he practiced being those things in his mind long before the day came. He knew he would do well on the big screen because he envisioned himself there since he was a youth. His friends were well known personalities before he ever made a film because he was already comfortable in that role.

Early in life Arnold Schwarzenegger decided that he did not want to think like the average person around him nor accept the average life. This is a great lesson for all of us because there are no limits once we realize we are the masters of our own destiny by what we accept about ourselves.

ext month the Calgary Business Network will offer a course about this subject on the 25th. Attitude ForAltitude. Check it out and book your seat.

Ok, ok, ok
We can't talk about Arny without a video of his greatest movie lines...

Herding Cats

I am a bit of a multi-tasker. I don’t sit still that much unless it is to sit at the computer where I have multiple windows open and I am working on several things at once.

I have heard people say that one should focus on one thing at a time to accomplish much, but I dare them to try to keep up with me on an average day. I get a lot done. I love to write blogs, emails, newsletters and books and I stay up late into the night creating marketing material. I go to a lot of meetings. I speak at functions. I balance plates on straws while juggling balloons and I put 70,000 km on my car every year as I do it. Why? Because I love it!

I love being with people. Networking is my thing. I totally enjoy meeting different people from different backgrounds and now thanks to Donna Dahl I am actually remembering their names. How awesome is that?

When Craig Chandler first told me that he wanted to get out of running networking clubs he said it was because “it is like herding cats.” I think he meant that it was a lot to do with all of the meetings and all of the people but it made me smile because one of my favorite all time videos is about herding cats. And this is something that may be difficult to some but I am just like that cowboy in the video rounding them up, I am happiest when I am out on the range doing my thing.

There is a lot of work in making a business network run. We are developing material, getting contests in place, preparing the marketing, automating the follow-up systems, shaking hands, coordinating staff, meeting the people, making connections…

But... it’s actually a lot of fun and we are getting a lot done in a short time. I enjoy herding cats.

Always Loyal2U,

Kerry

My Passion For Networking

Networking is a passion of mine. I have always been someone who enjoys visiting with others and learning about them and their lives, so when I started my first business it was a natural fit. I enjoy the encounter with strong personalities and the sharing of ideas. I love being a connector and continually look for new ways to put people into the path of partners for their mutual profit. Pursuing new business and staying in the hunt for great relationships has become a passion of mine.

Jim Messner the founder of the Calgary Business Network became a dear friend and a trusted Mentor. I was so green and had little experience in business so having a coffee with Jim stimulated great discussions and helped to stretch my thinking toward success. Jim is an incredible networker and has been a great example for me. He introduced me to books and to concepts that helped refine my networking skills. As a result of our friendship I had gotten the account to do the email and social media marketing for the CBN and the groups had enjoyed some increases.

Christmas 2011 Jim decided it was time to spend more time travelling in the US and it was time to move on from the CBN. That was when we decided that I would take over the company. For me it was an exciting prospect. I absolutely love the interaction with business people and growing the numbers of members is a challenge that I enjoy. Systems and marketing needed to be created and creativity is also an ongoing passion for me so I went right to work developing a team and monetizing the CBN.

The work has paid off. We took a small list of about 500 participants and turned the email list into 3300. We grew the LinkedIn group from 300 to 1500. We monetized a completely money-less system and had a 300% growth rate. When annual memberships went on sale last fall we had members opting in immediately and the number one seller was the high value MasterMind Level at $2000, even though we had an entry level of $350 on the table as well. We had found a niche where business owners, entrepreneurs and corporate executives felt they were getting superb value and they were willing to join us in a higher vision that meant increased success for all involved.

When Craig Chandler first approached me about buying the PGIB business clubs it was an intriguing concept. He had 13 chapters in operation and most of them had strong leadership in place with a loyal following of committed members. As I visited the groups I found the business owners to be sharp men and women of high integrity who shared my passion for networking. They were open to new ideas and many had years of experience and offered valuable opinions on how to grow the organization. Really the decision to buy these groups was a no-brainer right from the start. They are a phenomenal group of people who add additional value to all that we were already envisioning for networking in the Calgary market. So we are absolutely delighted to announce that the papers have been signed and the process is moving forward.

2013 is going to be a year of exciting growth. I and my team will be visiting each of the chapters over the next few weeks getting to know the members and listening to their thoughts and gathering information. It is not our intention to change what works. Many of these groups have fantastic leaders and processes that have served them well. We will be looking for ideas however on how to hone things to make everything work even better. We want to see the weekly participation be over the 20 member mark in each chapter. We want to develop additional groups in new areas of the city as well as in Red Deer and Lethbridge. We want to see that value is added to every member’s experience and that each business owner is getting leads and referrals. These are our goals for 2013 and we are anticipating great success in this venture.

Thank you for stopping by to read about my passion for networking today. This is my personal blog where I talk about business and sometimes share other more private workings of my mind. Feel free to follow it to keep up with me. We also have a blog on our networking website that is all about business and we not only feature my articles but also the articles of our paid annual members as they submit them to us. I would also encourage you to visit our LinkedIn page. It is a great way to see what other members are doing in the community and have some lively discussions about networking and business. Facebook also has a group for those of you that prefer that.

On our website on the right side you will always be able to see the educational events that we put on for business owners, entrepreneurs, salespeople, and corporate executives. The calendar as well features these items as well as the events that some of our members provide and now many of the PGIB weekly meetings are posted as well.

We look forward to a long and rewarding relationship with you. See you at the next event!

Always Loyal2U,

Kerry George 

Recreate Yourself

Personal Change is difficult but it is not impossible. Just focus on the things that need to change and step by step execute a plan. When you fall off the wagon, get up again. Dust yourself off and get back on track. Be determined and you can do it. A butterfly does not start out a butterfly. They have to go through some pain first and it is not easy. Metamorphosis is a process.

Two years ago I was exiting a career of 12 years of ministry as a Pastor. I had a following of over 5000 crazy Christian fans and some social media skills but I had zero understanding of how to run a business. I undervalued my work. I did not know how to conduct myself. I NEVER uttered a swear word of any kind. I got hit on by men maybe 4 times in the entire 12 years because a Spiritual Leader was intimidating. I did not drink not even one drop of alcohol in over 9 years only because I wanted to be a good example to those who may struggle with addictions. I was broker than the church mouse. I had been in a Christian bubble. So imagine the fish out of water that I suddenly was when I went into business. Suddenly I was surrounded by people who swore all the time and it was no big deal to them. Men showed interest every week and some of them were lewd. Many business people meet over beer and wings and if I sniffed the bottle cap I was likely to fall off my chair. I did not understand the language and I definitely was not in Kansas anymore. My whole world was upside down and my ruby red shoes were not taking me home.

I quickly realized one thing. If I was going to succeed I would have to change. Compromises would have to be made. There were some things that involved ethics and morals that I was unwilling to yield on but other things I would need to negotiate or I simply would not fit into this new environment. I needed to recreate myself.

Recreating yourself is not that difficult when you make a decision to get it done and then you look for ways to do it. Like any goal setting process you need to determine what you want in the end and begin working towards it. As you move towards your goal you refine both the goal and the steps to get there but you must stay focused on the prize.

People are asking me all the time now how I took the Calgary Business Network to the level of success that it enjoys in less than one year of operation with my limited background. The bottom line was my goal become successful in business. I knew I had no previous training and nothing going for me, but I also had spiritual applications of new birth on my side. So these were a few of the first steps of recreation. I believe that others could follow these steps as well:

1. If you are not where you want to be, admit you know nothing and get the pride out of the way. You will be a lot more ready to listen and learn.
2. Find others who are closer to where you want to be and make new friends, and you will need to see negative thinkers and broke people a lot less while you are at it.
3. Read books about successful entrepreneurs and biographies, and also listen to CDs. Get yourself an education. Even join a multi-level company that has excellent success training (with a 20 year history) to get your thinking on track. Poverty mentality will take you out so wash it away with intentional brain cleansing applied by yourself. There is nothing wrong with immersing yourself into a successful system to recreate yourself faster. Everything you learn there will prepare you even more for traditional business and entrepreneurialism. You may need to fast-track yourself and this is one place where successful people will surround you and mentor you while that is sometimes difficult to find in other businesses.
4. Take chances and risks. The quicker you make some mistakes and recover the faster you will learn. Yes you can learn from the mistakes of others but there is nothing like losing some money or wasting some time to figure out not to do those things anymore. (Don’t bet the farm though. Be wise. Never take a risk with money that would take you out of the game if you lost it all, because you will likely lose it all a few times when you start.)
5. Challenge the way you think continually. Remember if you are broke there is a reason for it. Your thinking must be contrary to making and attracting wealth. So examine what thoughts are getting in the way. Identify them and make a continual effort to change them. Don’t allow them to continue to take root in you and even more importantly you must replace them with the thoughts that you want to focus on and be very intentional in thinking the right thoughts over and over every day.

Below I posted the complete life cycle of the Monarch Butterfly. Sometimes it feels like you are crawling around like a worm when you get started but eventually you can shout, "I am beautiful and I can fly! Yay!" It is very inspirational.

Always Loyal2U,

Kerry George

Be The Change

Be the change you wish to see in the world – Gandhi

Long ago I realized you can’t change the whole world at one time. In fact, it is even difficult to impact a small part of the world. However, there is one thing that we all have the power to change. That one thing is ourselves.

This is probably why people make New Year resolutions. They want to exercise their power to change. Yet they typically don’t put a lot of thought into a resolution and they usually don’t think about how hard it is to change. Yes we have the power to change. But change is difficult. It is a process and it takes a commitment. The reality is that even if we have the will power to change we will likely still fall and make mistakes. The key is to keep working on change and keep moving forward realizing that it will be difficult and that there will be those that are not cheering for us along the way.

Did you ever make a resolution to lose weight? Maybe you buy a membership to the gym and you start out the year going to yoga and walking on your in home treadmill. But the first couple of weeks go by and you miss a class, and then you get knocked off schedule by a trip out of town. Soon you are snacking at midnight and there is someone right there to point it out and call you a hypocrite. Now the choice of change is really upon you. This is where the rubber meets the road. Are you going to quit and let them be right? Or are you going to persevere?

All goals require planning. Set yourself up for success. Put the patterns into place and then follow through. If you are a salesperson and you have a goal to make more money this is not rocket science. You simply must either make more appointments or increase the amount that you are selling in the appointments that you have. So book the calendar and make a plan. When you fall off the wagon, get back up and start again. Real change takes real perseverance.

If you think the world needs to be a greener place then focus on being greener. Be the example you want others to follow. If you think people should be bigger givers, then you become a bigger giver. If you don’t have anything to give, there is a nice Scripture to learn. It says to sell something so you can give. That is a great lesson for those who think sales is a bad vocation. J  Make more money to give more away. That is better than pointing the finger at those who make more money than you do and demand that they give more. Be the example.

Whatever you think the world needs… become that…

I met a business coach recently who was bemoaning the fact that many people do not realize they need her services. Really she is a mentor looking for people who want to be mentored. So I asked her who was mentoring her? She did not have a mentor and did not see the need for one. 

Interesting… She does not believe in her own vocation. Sad, she does not realize that if one wants to be the best mentor they must have great mentors to learn from. That is not something you are going to get from a book.

Whatever you think that the world needs… become that…

Recreate yourself in 2013

I know that I will…

Kerry George

Is “Idle No More” About To Become The Canadian “Occupy Wall Street?”

The drums are beating today across the country. The Mayans may have got the end of the world thing wrong but something is certainly happening of epic proportions. Have you checked out the websites? The blogs? The videos? The Tweets? The Facebook pages? Synchronized effort is going into this and it is drawing the attention of the world who are bored looking for their next “Occupy Wall Street” movement. Here it is only four days before Christmas and much of our nation is fixated on a woman in a teepee on a hunger strike instead of Santa Claus. That is pretty remarkable.

It is being said that nothing this big has happened with our First Nations People since Oka 22 years ago, but I think this has an even larger potential. Back then there was no social media to give any group a voice. The internet did not have the power to give flight to an idea or carry a cause. Today is a different day. One Tweet can change the world. One blog can shout if enough people engage in it. The American elections and the NDP gaining seats in Quebec are both proof that social media has a huge impact on popular opinion. Who is most trained in viral communication? Youth. Young Adults. And guess who else? Women. Especially moms. Mommy bloggers are gaining ground perhaps larger than any other group. So here we have it.

A movement born out of a handful of women in Saskatchewan. Suddenly there is a website coordinating events not just across the country but from around the world. People protesting in multiple locations across the country. Dances. Flash mobs. Youth have been engaged. Twitter is abuzz. It is brilliant really. You have to admire the gusto. And you have to admire the spirit behind it.

Unity of tribes. Nice. Just when you thought this would never and could never happen. Something is happening. Women leading the way. They are after all, still the biggest social media users. I am blown away. The First Canadians taking a stand on things they believe in. Wow.

So far it is peaceful and it may even be productive. We will see. Hopefully it goes well. There are a lot of issues and it could take years to see any difference. Sticking to the thoughts of water and land may allow them to make an impact. The water could get muddied though if too much more gets into the mix. There is sooooo much that could get into that mix…

But good on them for doing it. I have two Meti children of my own. As a Pastor years ago I spent many hours on reserves at funerals when things were not productive at all. I held more than one broken and crying old woman trying to make a difference in the youth. Anything that unites people with a positive cause is good in my books.

It will be interesting to see how Prime Minister Harper responds. Unlike some of his critics I expect that he will give this real thought. I don’t think he is an unreasonable leader at all. History has shown him as someone who steps up to the plate. Did we ever have a national leader who has addressed more uncomfortable issues than he has?  Consider that he has stood up for Israel in a very hostile environment and he was the PM who made a public apology to the First Nations People in 2008. He also made apology with some restitution involved to Chinese Canadians in 2006. I think the coming days are going to be very interesting indeed.

The drums are definitely beating. Hearts are being ignited. Let’s see where this goes…

Loyal2U and definitely Loyal2Canada,

Kerry George

Mentors and Friends...

A few months ago I realized that I needed to have some mentorship in my life. I became suddenly aware that I was not surrounding myself with people who were further ahead of where I was and that I needed that. I wanted to have someone I could bounce ideas off of and get some insight. I wanted to be stimulated and be challenged. I decided that I may even benefit from someone asking some hard questions.

It is good for a business owner to be around other business owners who are moving forward. If you hang around people who are always struggling you start to feel that life should be a struggle. If you spend time with debaters and those who are looking for conflict you will waste time fighting and arguing. If you hang out with people who are in lack, you will always think there is not enough and have a scarcity mentality. But when you are around those that are always looking for solutions you start to become a solution finder, and when you intentionally spend time with creative people you will become more creative. So I set out to find some good role models.

It is an amazing thing that when you make room for something new in your life and start thinking about that it just seems to find you. When the student is ready the teacher appears.

So new mentors are finding their way into my life. A really great couple began investing time into me. Nice, sharp business people whom I respect and admire. And then I realized I had another opportunity in an old friend I had not considered. He is very successful and busy so I did not think to bother him. Yet he seems to really enjoy investing time in me. This man is a real entrepreneur. Hard core. He started with nothing. He worked real hard and took some risks. He made mistakes, he recovered and learned. He got good in his market. He built relationships along the way. He was buying and selling hotels long before it was popular to do so. He has seen people come and go. His wisdom is staggering.

This week I had a tremendous opportunity to just sit at his feet and listen. He shared a few thoughts on what it means to be an entrepreneur. He said, “Kerry there is probably only 5% of the population who are entrepreneurs or even less. Expect to be misunderstood. They are not going to get it. You have taken the hard road, but it is a worthwhile road. You are going to make it.” That conversation made my week, and I had a pretty good week… But that is the stuff that matters.

When you are out doing something different and wondering if you are going about it right, or if you are making the right choices. There is no road map out there for the entrepreneur. Pioneering something is not often profitable at first. Only when you perfect your offering and establish your self-worth do you begin to get paid. Each step seems hard, yet looking back it was so precious. Remembering where you came from to stay humble and yet looking forward to where you are going to stay focused. Good friends who encourage you along the way are really important.

Wherever you are in life, think about where you want to be. Now who do you know that is closer to that place? Go find a new friend and learn some new things. You will be glad that you did.

Always Loyal2U,

Kerry