Leadership and Business Growth

Yesterday here in the States, we observed Memorial Day.

It’s a day that we observe in honor of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.

After all, freedom isn’t free.

Since the dawn of time, humans have tried to oppress others in the name of survival and power.

This is the nature of the world.

And to be a strong leader of humans. 

You need to be a student of human nature.

As humans, we default to the path of least resistance when given the opportunity.

We procrastinate which is a recipe for oppression.

This is part of our nature.

Instead, realize that discipline creates freedom.

Innately I knew this to be true at a young age.

But a mentor from afar by the name of Jocko Willink reinforced this in teaching.

This teaching is what I want to pass on to you today.

Well, in reality, you already know this to be true.

What I’ve learned about human nature, is most times we need to be reminded more than we need to be taught.

So in honor of Memorial Day and those fallen to protect our freedom.

I wanted to provide you with this leadership reminder.

Discipline = Freedom.

Leadership is about owning it.

Yes, the good, bad, and ugly.

Case in point, Tatiana and I received an apology letter from a former coach of ours this week.

He coached for us a few years ago as our Head Coach.

Good-hearted dude but made some poor choices, became negative, dropped some balls, and then had an adverse reaction to accountability.

It wasn’t a fun situation or ending to his employment. It created friction for the team and clients.

Sadly, sometimes it’s how these things go in working with young teammates.

To clear the air though.

Heaven knows I pulled a couple of not-so-smart moves in my mid-20s working on teams. So not here to cast stones.

In fact, here to do the opposite. 

It was refreshing for Tatiana to review the apology email.

It was simple but effective.

He owned his actions and apologized for them with sincerity.

While it was nice to receive for us, the big value was for him so hats off.

He just gained perspective, growth and credibility with himself which will serve him well in the future.

This is my leadership message today.

As a leader, you will make mistakes.

This is part of the journey.

But when you do and come to that realization, promptly admit, own it, and apologize.

When you do, you free yourself and others.

This is leadership.

Onward.

Well, my friend, this is where things get interesting.

Leading an empire takes a lot more skill set than the first 2.

However, without the foundation of self and family leadership, there’s not a possibility for the third.

Now before you can lead an empire.

You must always ask yourself this.

How far down the rabbit hole of leadership do you want to go?

Building a house vs. a skyscraper are 2 different things.

Leading an empire (skyscraper) is not for the faint of heart.

It takes thick skin, a burning passion, and a relentless pursuit of greatness. 

It takes an understanding that if you do it right.

You won’t be liked.

However..

You will be respected.

But this choice is only for you to make.

As for me, I have the will. 

For some of you.

You do too!

But even if you don’t. 

There’s gold on this path.

My goal is to take you down a continued journey.

In the last 4 decades, I’ve been able to acquire the skillset to lead a $65M/year empire known as Fit Body Boot Camp.

For some people, that’s large.

For other people, it’s tiny.

Regardless of where you stand.

Over the coming weeks and months ahead, I will teach you everything I know about how to lead this.

My recommendation?

Observe.

Learn.

Implement. 

And In the words of a leadership mentor from a far..

“A leader knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.”

Let’s go!

In the last 2 weeks, we uncovered a simple way to lead yourself. 

Through your fitness.

Taking care of your health and fitness is your ultimate form of self-leadership.

Now it’s time to expand on the leadership framework.

When you can lead yourself, you are capable of leading your family.

The best way to do this?

Take a step back and think to yourself who is someone you admire.

What qualities does this person possess?

Make a list.

Write them down.

Now here’s where it gets good.

Begin to model these qualities in your own life.

Quality by quality.

Through this, you will build a person others admire.

No, this is not easy.

It’s hard, real hard.

So is leadership.

Why?

You have flaws, lots of them.

I do too.

Last week we covered this: 

Leading yourself is the first principle to become a better leader.

By dialing in your fitness and maintaining a healthy weight, you now are qualified to lead 80% of people in our country.

Ok, great.

But let’s take it to another level, shall we?

What if you wanted a tool to help you lead more than 99% of people.

Here is the secret:

Take your fitness to a higher level more than just maintaining a healthy weight.

The target is: you should look like your workout.

In other words.

No one should need to ask if you lift weights.

They should know by your appearance alone.

This means a consistent focus on lifting weights and clean nutrition.

This will separate your leadership.

Full stop.

Now does this mean, that just because you are noticeably in shape, you are an amazing leader?

No.

But it does send a message to yourself and others that can lead you.

When you can lead you, others will follow.

So please take action as this discipline is a tool to better your life and separate you and your leadership.

It’s been an inspiring 10 weeks going through Jon Gordon’s 10 leadership principles from his bestseller The Energy Bus.

I trust you received value that you apply to better your leadership.

Looking ahead, I want to share with you the 3 pillars of leadership which are at the foundation of the way I look at leadership. 

Simply put:

• Lead Yourself
• Lead your Family
• Lead your Empire

The order is paramount and here’s why.

You cannot lead your family, a team, a department, a coaching group, a company, or a franchise system.

If you cannot lead yourself first.

Bottom line.

In the next 3 weeks, I will share with you 3 principles on how to lead yourself better.

Stay tuned.

Leadership is tough.

It takes guts and is not for the faint of heart.

It requires sacrifice.

It will test you.

Most times it’s riddled with pressure and is uncomfortable.

While true.

Still, it’s a journey.

One to be enjoyed.

How?

Now and again, take a step back.

Smell the roses and have some fun.

After all, leadership is about the ride toward the destination.

So take time to enjoy it.

Then back to work.

You must know why and cast your vision around it as a leader.

Let me reframe this and ask you a question.

What’s at the foundation of your desire?

What do you truly value?

Whatever this is for you, this is at the foundation of your mission or purpose. 

Your purpose should be based on what you value to the core.

It should have an emotional charge to it.

After all, emotion creates motion.

For me, my core value is FREEDOM. 

FREEDOM is what I value.

 As such, I’ve developed a purpose: to teach leadership, promote capitalism, and defend free speech.

At the core, I believe these 3 pillars create both FREEDOM which creates human prosperity.

I’m emotional about my purpose. 

I will fight for it.

It shapes my thoughts, actions, and decisions including my career focus and the companies that I lead. 

Rule 9 states you must develop, define, and drive with purpose.

This will create inspiration for others to ride your leadership bus!

The people of your organization, are the organization!

This includes your team, clients, vendors, and partners.

Sometimes leaders lose sight of this which is a grave mistake.

To provide some perspective..

In the Fit Body world, we have state-of-the-art studios, stacked with high-quality functional fitness equipment and provide strong fitness and nutrition coaching.

But If you strip it all away.

Guess what?

What remains is the PEOPLE which is the most important part!

In fact, without the PEOPLE, nothing else matters!

As a result, great leadership LOVES and LOVES on your people.

This is what creates relationships, culture, and long-term success.

As a sign-off, I will leave you with a tangible set of action steps to help you show the love.

The Five-Part Action Plan for Showing Love to Your Team Members

1. Make time for them.
2. Listen to them.
3. Recognize them.
4. Serve them.
5. Bring out the best in them.