Passion Is The Key To Success

Passion is defined as a strong affection or enthusiasm for an object, concept, etc: I have always held the belief that in order to succeed and win, you need to be passionate about what you do.

As I was walking around the radio station this past Friday and then attended our events this weekend, I felt the stations oozing with passion from every nook and cranny.

Chris and his team in programming have been eating, drinking, breathing and sleeping MEGA and THE BEAT. You can feel it, see it and hear it when you are upstairs in the studios.

Matt in promotions is getting his team on point. You can see the pride and passion they have at our events. It was evident at every promotion I went to this weekend, from Jeanette’s ownership of the “Worlds Greatest Yard Sale” to Tyler, Ramses and Ruben getting the crowd excited at Lunar Bingo to Alex, Juliann and the promo team at the MEGA’s Got Talent promotion.

The passion is not limited to programming and promotions. It is also evident with Craig and the sales team as well; new ideas translate into great results for new and longstanding clients. Our sales team’s passion is yielding great results.

The passion extends beyond our office's in Scottsdale. We work with a talented group of engineers who are passionate about what they do to keep us on the air and sounding GREAT. This is not always an easy task when you have remote mountain top transmitter sites that are susceptible to blizzards in the winter and monsoons in the summer.

The excitement, The enthusiasm, The passion is there and it is contagious. I could not be more proud of our team!

More Secrets to Selling.....

Harvey Mackay once again served up another list of powerful attributes that contribute to making us all extraordinary sellers. Here's another list to print up and display prominently. Look at it and practice them daily....they work!


The secrets of selling:
Believing something and convincing others
(reprinted with permission; harveymackay.com)

I've been a salesman my entire life, so I've learned a lot of sales secrets over the years. It's rare to be an entrepreneur or a CEO without being a salesperson. I'm often asked for my "sales secrets." I have plenty to share, but they're hardly secrets. Success follows lots of hard work.

Here is my list of secrets that every salesperson can benefit from.

• It's not how much it's worth; it's how much people think it's worth. Marketing is neither the art of selling nor the simple business of convincing someone to buy. It is the art of creating conditions by which the buyer convinces himself. And nothing is more convincing than hard evidence that others want the same thing.
• Knowing something about your customer is just as important as knowing everything about your product. If you're a regular reader of my books and columns, you know about the Mackay 66 Customer Profile. Knowing your customers means knowing what they really want. Maybe it's your product, but maybe it's something else too—recognition, respect, reliability, service or friendship.
• You are not important. Our challenge, whether we are salespeople or negotiators or managers or entrepreneurs, is to make others see the advantage to themselves in responding to our proposal. Understanding our subjects' personalities is vital. Let them shine. Our own personalities are subordinate.
• Your reputation is your greatest asset. While you, yourself, are not important, your reputation is. It's not product, price or service. Everything flows from your reputation—customer loyalty, referrals and more.
• Apply the law of large numbers. Position yourself as Number Two to every prospect on your list, and keep adding to that list. I can promise you that if your list is long enough, there are going to be Number Ones that fail to perform, retire or die or lose their territories for many reasons. What I can't tell you is which ones. If you're standing second in line, in enough lines, sooner or later you're going to move up to Number One.
• Short notes yield long results. I'm amazed by how many salespeople don't write thank you notes. It's all a matter of personal recognition and courtesy, just as important as remembering names and taking a personal interest in people. And it's not just for sales.
• Keep your eye on your time, not on your watch. A salesperson really has nothing to sell but her time. Her product exists independently of anything she adds to it. Her personality will win her or lose her accounts initially, but if she isn't around to provide service and be accessible to customers, she'll lose those accounts.
• Position yourself as a consultant. The mark of a good salesperson is that his customer doesn't regard him as a salesperson at all, but a trusted and indispensable adviser, an auxiliary employee who, fortunately, is on someone else's payroll.
• Believe in yourself, even when no one else does. Who says you're not tougher, smarter, better, harder working, more able than your competition? It doesn't matter if they say you can't do it. The only thing that matters is if you say it.
• If you don't have a destination, you'll never get there. Everybody and every business needs a set of basic goals and beliefs, but most of us are seat-of-the-pants, one-day-at-a-time operators. Our goals are fuzzy and our plans for achieving them non-existent. Goals don't have to be elaborate either, just realistic.
• Practice positive visualization. I have found this to be one of the most powerful means of achieving personal goals. It's what an athlete does when he comes on to the field to kick a winning field goal with three seconds on the clock and 60,000 screaming fans and millions more watching on TV. Great athletes and businesspeople have the ability to visualize themselves in successful situations.
• Ask for the order. It's amazing what you don't get when you don't ask. An insurance agent whom he had known for many years, once asked the famous automobile pioneer Henry Ford why he never got any of Ford's business. "You never asked me," Ford replied.

Mackay's Moral: Tell me, and I will forget; show me, and I may remember; but involve me, and I'll understand.

Sales Tip From Eleanor Roosevelt

From today's Justsell.com comes a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt that goes hand in hand with my post from Wednesday, June 25, "The Closer to Number One, The Closer We Are to The Money".

"Never let anyone tell you no who doesn't have the power to say yes."

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962)
U.N. diplomat, humanitarian, U.S. first lady

Go Teach!

Yesterday we attended our oldest daughters "moving up ceremony". She completed middle school and is moving up to high school in the fall. Needless to say, we were very proud of her for this accomplishment.

We heard from the principal, the principal of the high school they will be attending next year, the student body president and a few others. We also heard from their social studies teacher Mr. Mueller who gave the key note speech.

I don't know to much about him. I know that he teaches social studies to thirteen year olds. He's in his early 50's I suspect and he is very lawyerly looking. No surprise, because in a past life he was an attorney.

Most importantly, I know that my daughter adores him. This is huge coming from her. She also likes social studies and has studied hard this semester to get good grades, all because of Mr. Mueller. Mr. Mueller is larger than life to these kids. He kept them engaged and communicated to them on a level that they understood. In return, his students were like sponges and soaked it all in. I realized that there was something special about Mr. Mueller when he was introduced and he stepped up to the podium. The students went crazy, "rock star" crazy with applause.

Through the years, I have had the good fortune of seeing some great speakers and motivators. I have seen Zig Ziggler, Tony Robbins, Bill Clinton, Rudy Guiliani, Colan Powell, Dick Vitale, Mike Ditka. In sales and radio I've seen Brian Tracy, Les Brown, Tom Hopkins, Jim Tazarak, Paul Weyland and many others. I drop these names, not to impress you, but only as a point of reference.

With that said, Mr. James "Jim" Mueller gave one of the most inspirational and powerful speeches I have ever heard. This speech, "Go Teach" was directed to his students but the message resonated throughout the auditorium with the parents as well.

As I was listening to Mr. Mueller speak, I had two thoughts. First, I hope the kids get it and realize what a gift it was to hear such a heartfelt and extraordinary message from someone who is passionate about them and truly cares. Second, I wish all of our associates at the radio station could be there to hear this message!

When we got home last night, I felt compelled to send Mr. Mueller a note complimenting him on his speech and also asking him If I could share his speech with our team and post it here. He was most gracious and has allowed me to share it.

Year End Graduation Speech 2008

Go Teach

May 27th, 2008

By:

Mr. James Mueller
Social Studies Teacher
Cocopah Middle School
Scottsdale, Arizona

Good evening.

Thanks to all of you, but most particularly the class of 2008.

My theme for tonight - GO TEACH! Or is it GO Teach? Or GOOO Teach!

Well, I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that you haven’t escaped my lectures just yet – the good news is I am not going to try to RAP it for you! Well maybe I could try -

It’s time to be rappin’ so take off your cap an’
Relax in your seat and get off of yo’ feet!
Time to throw down some rhymes ‘bout all our good times.

You know, that’s just not working for me! Some things just don’t rap well.

So let’s talk about teaching. So you’re thinking you don’t want to be a teacher. I asked my classes this year if they would consider teaching as a career, and almost no one raised a hand. They looked at me like – “Yo, dude, you have got to be kidding.”

You know, it’s funny, when I was your age it was all I could imagine doing. I thought it would be so cool to be a teacher and basketball coach. -- By the way, it is.

It’s funny, every year students and parents ask me, “What made a lawyer with a perfectly good career walk away from it and decide to ‘go teach.’” Tonight, I thought I would try to give you a partial answer that question. Answer #1: I obviously, I will never make it as a rapper. Answer #2: As you know, the pay is uninspiring, so it must be something else. Well, the answer is right here in front of me. The answer is you. Terrific kids who are willing to learn (and teach) bring me back year after year. Homeroom! 4th Period! 7th period! And even the ever challenging 6th and 3rd periods. Wow. Terrific classes all. Yes, I’ll be back.

Ah – you are still thinking, “No way I’m going to become a teacher Mr. Mueller,” Well, let me have you rethink that. Tonight, my recommendation to you is still, to well, go teach!

Let me clarify that though. I am not asking you to take up teaching as a way to make a living, I’m asking instead that you to take it up as a way of living. Let me explain.

I want you to think of teaching differently. To view it something you do every day, not just for me, but also for you. Not as a profession, but as a way of life.
Most of you say you don’t want to be teachers. I understand that, but heck, I have some news for you; you already are.

We teach each other every day. You don’t have to teach for a living, but you do have to teach to have a life worth living. When you think about it, teaching really isn’t optional. Life simply gets better when we share knowledge.

So, now that you understand what I am talking about, I say, go teach.
Teach each other to believe in yourselves – it is one of the keys to success.
Teach each other the value of being good people. Remember Edmund Burke’s words, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Yes, girls, that applies to you too.

Teach each other by contributing your ideas and fostering a love for learning.
Teach one another that true friends allow you to be yourself. But don’t forget, teaching isn’t always telling friends or others what they want to hear; sometimes it’s telling them what they need to hear.

Oh, and by the way, teach each other that being over 50 is NOT old!

You know, I see exceptional talent among you so I say teach and encourage each other to use those talents wisely and well. I see brilliant students among you capable of leadership – so I say, teach each other to step forward and lead to solve the problems of the future. Teach each other to forgive. Teach each other decency. Teach each other the value of caring.

My dad was a wonderfully optimistic guy. It was his nature. One of the best lessons he taught me was, “put the best construction on everything.” I can still hear him say those words. By that, he meant assume a positive intent in the actions of those around you. He meant, be confident that people who criticize you mean well – especially parents and teachers. Yelling is a good thing! It means we still care. As I said last year, consider it a loud hug.

He meant – being negative drags you down. Being positive pulls you (and those around you), up. He meant – assume the best. So I say again; go teach. Teach each other as he taught me, to assume the best.

Teach each other to lift one another up.
Teach each other to build a positive culture in high school.
Teach each other to treat one another with respect – and tolerance – it makes you all better.

In the Locke vs. Hobbes debates in my classes this year most of you figured out that I most assuredly come down on the side of Locke. I believe in the goodness of people. Our country is founded on that principle. So, teach each other that being good is good for yourselves and one another.

As it happens, Ryker Eley taught me this year that the great basketball coach John Wooden believed that winners make the most mistakes. Mistakes come from doing, but so does success. So teach each other not to be afraid of making mistakes, and that making mistakes makes you better and stronger. And, remember of course that Ryker also taught us all about the value of courage and resiliency this year. Don’t forget his example.

Teaching may well be our door to immortality. When the people we teach carry the lessons forward that we taught them, we live on. My dad passed away seventeen years ago, but his philosophy of life lives in me and is here to be shared with you tonight. And, of course, don’t forget Vern Smith who taught many of us important lessons that live on through us tonight.

So I say, from all of us teachers, to all of you – go teach. And keep teaching, whether as a student, teacher, parent, or in any other setting or career. And keep teaching.

I want you to know that you sure taught me a lot this year. And that is absolutely one of the best things about being a teacher. I’ve learned from you. And maybe when you learn to love it as I do, you’ll consider teaching for life and for a living. And then, when you’re over 50, you can teach others that you are not old!!

You are an amazing and talented group of students.
I marvel at your promise. Congratulations.
Thank you, God bless you – teachers all.

Thank You Mr. Mueller!

No A**holes Allowed

Through the years I've worked with a lot of talented people. I've also come across my share of jerks as well.

Leadership development coach Paul Anovick reviewed a managment book by Stanford Professor Robert I. Sutton titled The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t (Warner Business Books, 2007).

This book is dead on. It details how debilitating a jerk in the workforce can be.

According to Sutton, everyday jerk behaviors include:

1. Personal insults and innuendo's
2. Invading one’s personal space or territory
3. Uninvited physical contact
4. Threats and intimidation, verbal and nonverbal
5. Sarcastic jokes, teasing and disguised insults
6. Email flames
7. Status slaps intended to humiliate
8. Rude interruptions
9. Two-faced attacks
10. Dirty looks, grimaces, eye-rolling
11. Treating people as though they’re invisible, keeping them out of the loop

To qualify as a true jerk, one must display a persistent pattern and a history of episodes that lead others to feel humiliated and disrespected. And a boss who’s a jerk often causes anger, frustration, high turnover, absenteeism and, in extreme cases, violence.

A jerk poisons more than one victim. The damage spreads to coworkers, family members and friends who watch or hear about attacks, creating a larger pool of secondhand sufferers. The result is devastating, zapping people’s energy and causing absenteeism, loss of productivity, high turnover, depression and disengagement.

Top 10 Rules for Enforcing a “No Jerks at Work” Rule

Having all of the right business philosophies and management practices in place to support the “no jerks at work” rule is meaningless unless you treat the person right in front of you, right now, in the right way. It’s the little things that make the big differences:

1. Say the rule, write it down, and act on it. If you have a policy, make sure you act on it.
2. Jerks will hire other jerks. Don’t include them in hiring decisions.
3. Get rid of jerks fast. Organizations generally wait too long to fire jerks.
4. Treat certified jerks as incompetent employees. Even if people perform extraordinarily well and achieve great results, persistent meanness should be equated with incompetence.
5. Power breeds nastiness. Giving people even a little bit of power can turn them into big jerks.
6. Embrace the power-performance paradox. Downplay and reduce unnecessary status differences.
7. Manage moments, not just practices, policies and systems. Change the little things, and big things will follow.
8. Model and teach constructive confrontation. Make sure people know when and how to argue respectfully.
9. Adopt a one-jerk rule. If you permit one jerk to stay, use a reverse role-model approach to remind people of what not to do.
10. The bottom line: Link big policies to small decencies. When people talk to one another and work together with respect, managing jerk behaviors is natural.

This book is a best seller and is getting rave reviews. Read Paul's review. Here.

Sutton has a great Blog too. Here.

Are you a certified asshole? Take the ARSE: The Asshole Rating Self Exam. Here.

Bad Father of the Year Award... Maybe....Maybe Not

I might win the Bad Father of the Year Award. My fourteen year old asked me to take her and her friend to see George Lopez in concert at the Dodge Theater. I was able to get tickets and we went to the show last Wednesday night.

Wow! This wasn't Disney on Ice or the circus. This certainly was not the same George Lopez that is on Nick at Night. Clearly, the show was inappropriate for a fourteen year old. Or was it?

Lopez was hysterical, foul and raunchy. At first I was embarrassed, then I said to myself that these kids see and hear this stuff every day at school, Television, the internet, Myspace and text messaging. While I don't condone the language or the the behavior, I actually felt good that I could share this show with my daughter. She was not embarrassed, so why should I be. We all were laughing the entire time. It really was a great show and a lot of fun. What concerned me was that she got all the jokes. I'm still a little troubled by that.

It was actually a bit inspirational at the end when Lopez thanked everyone for coming and that he appreciated the fans support. He went on to say that you should follow your dreams and that he had dreamed of being a comedian since he was eleven years old, living in the hood, being raised by his grandmother. He added that he had eleven sold out shows in Phoenix, one of the highest rated syndicated TV shows in the country and he was on Forbes list behind Jerry Seinfeld. What a great success story and an inspiration for kids today.

After the show, we went to dinner at FEZ to support Body Positive's Dining Out For Life. All the proceeds from dinner that night went to help fight and treat AID's. We talked about that, we talked about the show and a lot of other things.

My point is, we live in a diverse society. All kinds of people all kinds of situations. I think it is important for kids to be exposed to everything (even an inappropriate concert) and not shelter them from reality. I was happy that I could be at the show with her. We laughed, we talked, we ate at a hip restaurant, we supported a charity, and we hung out together and had fun. It was some good father daughter bonding Wednesday night. When your daughter is fourteen you take it when you can get it.

You be the judge...

Get Lectured

I believe things happen for a reason. Today, in my email I received two videos about life and inspiration. It was a sign that I needed to post them here today.

The first video was sent to me by Fran, my wife. It is about the “Last Lecture” given by Randy Pausch, Professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon. It was given on September 18, 2007. The lecture is entitled "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams”. In August of 2007 Pausch was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and was told that he had three to six months to live. This lecture highlights what is important to him. The video in the box is from Oprah and is an abridged version of the original lecture. To see the original lecture in it's entirety, click here ==>

Randy Pausch is still alive and fighting pancreatic cancer. Here is a link to his blog. click here ==>

This lecture has gotten rave reviews and world wide attention. In April a book based on the lecture will be released. It is titled "The Last Lecture”.




The second video came from my friend Billy. It is a lecture by Harvard trained, Indiana University School of Medicine, brain researcher Jill Bolte Taylor and how she studied her own stroke as it happened. This is an amazing video and very inspirational as well.

This video and lecture come from ted.com.

"TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from those three worlds. Since then its scope has become ever broader.

The annual conference now brings together the world's most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives (in 18 minutes).

This site makes the best talks and performances from TED available to the public, for free."

I encourage you to take the time and watch both of these videos. Also, go to ted.com and watch some of their lectures. You won't regret it.

"DA Coach" Mike Ditka

Being from Chicago and a life long Bears Fan, I did not miss the opportunity to attend a fundraiser this evening to hear Mike Ditka speak. The Coach’s thoughts, comments and stories were entertaining, they also provide the framework for creating a winning organization, be it a football team, radio station or retail business.

He spoke about his mentors; Tom Landry, George Halas and Vince Lombardi and how they were thinkers, strategists and motivators. His talk focused on three pillars that combined, brings success. They include attitude, character and enthusiasm.

According to the coach in order to succeed, you need to have a great set of values and integrity; you must be confident, have a commitment to excellence and a strong desire to be the best. You must be respectful of others, including your competition, be a team player, talk about good things, be solutions oriented and have fun.

Finally, he said “The harder you work, the better it gets!”

I thought I was just going to dinner to hang out with the guys and hear great sports stories from a football legend. Little did I know that I was going to walk away with a MBA “DAgree” from the University of Mike Ditka.

Speaking of Chicago, I discovered a great Chicago Pizza and Hot Dog joint on Granite Reef and McDonald in Scottsdale called Chizona. This place meets all my criteria, good food, big portions and it’s cheap!