“I’m committed to one company. This is the industry I’ve decided to work in.”
— Bill Gates
When I got out of the Army in 1999, I had no clue what I was going to do. I started working at Bally’s Total Fitness health club. I learned very quickly that the industry of sales has no limit to how well you can do. Still, I wanted to find an industry that I could go all in with. I met a mentor of mine in Newport Beach, California, who showed me the value of the financial services industry and I have never looked back. I may do other things (like write a book on how to do the impossible), but financial services is my industry; we got married eleven years ago and our organization is committed to becoming the Yankees, Apple, Google, or Walmart of the financial industry.
“The wise man puts all his eggs in one basket and watches the basket.”
— Andrew Carnegie
Being great at anything takes time, commitment, and consistency. We all know those people that join everything—the person who tells you how excited he is about an opportunity in the travel industry, and six months later he is selling you on the newest, greatest weight-loss product.
The great ones first choose an industry, then they commit to it 100%. They want to develop something that is around long after they are gone. Alexander the Great only lived thirty-three years, but here we are still talking about him 2,300 years later. If you want to build a legacy that will outlive you by centuries, commit to your path, for better or worse, in sickness and in health, ‘til death do you part.
Action Item:
What industry do you want to go all in with? And Why?
Law 13
Push the Envelope
The expression “pushing the envelope” comes from the transition from propeller-driven airplanes to jets. Aircraft designers were reaching into the unknown in terms of new engines, creating very different performance limits compared with the designs of the pre-1948 era. Test pilots who flew beyond what designers and engineers calculated was possible and/or safe were said to be “pushing the outside of the flight envelope”.
Those who want to achieve the impossible understand that to become great, you have to push the envelope. Just like those test pilots, you have to go beyond the limits of what you know you can do and find out what you are capable of.
Accomplishing the impossible in life is a journey with many smaller destinations on the way. The great ones don’t get to one goal and then stop. They see each goal met as a stepping stone on the journey to something truly extraordinary.
If you look at anything in life, growth comes from resistance. When you lift weights, your muscles are torn down and rebuilt bigger and stronger. In the same way, our mind, our emotions, and our thinking all grow and are rebuilt through resistance. If you are not experiencing any resistance in your life, you are probably not growing personally or professionally. If you find yourself at a place where everything is routine at work and you are just going through the motions at home, you need to set yourself up to be challenged. Wherever you are professionally, in your marriage, as a parent, spiritually, or as a member of your community, we can all get better in every area of our lives. Are you challenging yourself to get to the next level? Are you working out those muscles with resistance and growing your capabilities?
On October 5, 2011, the world lost one of the great business visionaries of our time: Steve Jobs. What would our world be like if Jobs was satisfied after Apple created the first personal computer? Imagine if Steve Jobs didn’t push the envelope. What if he was hesitant when it came down to the big decisions?
What made Jobs extraordinary is that he never rested on his accomplishments. He helped create the first PC, quite an accomplishment in and of itself. But Jobs wasn’t done yet. He then revolutionized the music industry with iTunes and the iPod. Still not satisfied, he transformed the smart phone market with the iPhone. And even after he knew he was fighting a losing battle with cancer, Jobs continued to push the envelope, reinventing portable computing with the iPad.
Many companies have faded into irrelevance after one or two breakthroughs; not Apple, though. Steve Jobs boldly led Apple to push the envelope and think outside the realm of current reality. Because of his vision and tenacity, Steve Jobs and Apple created tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in revenue. He did this by coming up with an innovative product that enhances the lives of millions. Then he did it again. And again. And again.
We admire Steve Jobs for his relentless pursuit of the next evolution in technology.
So why should we be any different in our own lives?
Pushing the envelope means not being content with the status quo. It means finding out just how fast your plane can fly and how high it can go.
Action Item:
1. What areas of your life are you content with?
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Action Item:
2. What are some things you can do to push the envelope in order to take it to the next level?
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Law 14
Turn Your Cause into a Crusade
Sometimes on the way to a dream you get lost and find a bigger one.
The dictionary defines a crusade as “a vigorous, aggressive movement for the defense or advancement of an idea, cause, etc.”
If you look at the great ones throughout history, they all had something that they were fighting for that went beyond their own personal reward. Those who do the impossible rarely, if ever, do it for the money. Those who are motivated by money are the ones who slow down when they get to their target income level, while those who keep going are motivated by something more than wealth. To them, their business is a cause, a movement, a crusade.
Every time I visit a cemetery I am reminded that we are all mortal. What we do in the eighty or so years that we have on this planet will determine what we leave behind and how we are remembered. Those who are driven by money alone will be forgotten, but those who use the gifts that God gave them to change the world are remembered indefinitely.
I remember clearly the day we finally escaped Iran to come to America. It was November 28, 1990. It was one of the greatest days of my life. But America wasn’t something I thought of as being handed to me outright. I wanted to earn the right to be able to live in a nation as special as America.
“You lose nothing when fighting for a cause. In my mind the quitters are those who don’t have a cause they care about.”
— Muhammad Ali
In March of 2009, I was at a dinner party at the Miramar Hotel and I heard George Will give a speech about America. Mr. Will explained that this generation needs to get its act together in order for us as a nation to keep our freedom. He shared a quote from Ronald Reagan that moved me in a way that very few quotes have:
“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”
I took what George Will and Ronald Reagan said personally. The way I see it, it’s very simple: I believe that I have a responsibility to stand up for a cause.
I didn’t come to America just to live “the American Dream.” The leadership of PHP didn’t just want to build a successful financial services company. We want to lead a crusade to empower individuals to take control of their financial future. We want to inspire a new generation of leaders to reignite America’s entrepreneurial spirit. That is our mission. This is why when you sit down with the key leaders of PHP, they inspire you to do things you never thought were possible.
Greatness comes from finding work that isn’t merely a job to you; rather, greatness comes from finding work that is a cause within you. When your work becomes a crusade, you will go to sleep Sunday night excited to work on Monday. There’s no
feeling like it. Whether it’s fighting for a different future for this country or a different future for your family, when a cause catches your heart, there is no limit to what you can accomplish. Fighting for a cause bigger than yourself alone not only motivates you: It also inspires those around you. Every great achiever in history has inspired others. That is why we are still talking about Winston Churchill, Martin Luther King, and Abraham Lincoln today. Their achievements were incredible in and of themselves, but how many leaders since then have been inspired and motivated by what those men did?
People are drawn to leaders who believe in changing the world around them. If you fight for a crusade, others will join you. Legacies are never built by just one person. All great leaders have great teams supporting them. Inspire your team, your family, your associates, and your friends with your crusade. Your inspiration will have a positive impact on others’ belief in themselves as well.
Action Item:
3. Is there a crusade or a cause behind what you do? ___
Action Item:
4. What is your crusade in life?
Law 15
Channel Your Obsession
Every one of us has a bit of an obsessive personality. Don’t believe me? Ask yourself if you’ve ever done any of the following or something similar:
If you have children, do you notice that you are constantly thinking about them throughout the day, no matter what you are doing?
Do you ever catch yourself watching ESPN Sports Center over and over again knowing it’s the same highlights coming up?
Do you check for new email on your phone every five minutes, even when you are on vacation?
Do you have thirty pairs of shoes but you’re still excited about shopping for the next pair?
Do you constantly think about what you can do to make your car faster?
Are you a person who checks your Facebook or Twitter ten times a day for updates?
Do you stay up until 1:00 am to beat the last level of your favorite video game?
We all have obsessions in life. The difference is that those who do the impossible get obsessed with something productive that can make an impact. It’s not necessarily that they are more obsessive than everyone else; they just channel that focus into a project or goal to change their lives and the world around them.
“If experts say you have ADHD use that God-given gift to ignore naysayers. Learn to use your crutches in life as secret weapons.”
— Patrick Bet-David
As a young adult, I made a decision to channel my obsession into reading. If my high school buddies could see me now, they’d be shocked that the guy who wouldn’t even read the CliffsNotes to a book in high school now reads dozens of books a year.
I’ve never been a big fan of teachers telling parents that their children have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and automatically getting doctors to put them on medication. If you study the people who have invented breakthroughs and changed the world, many of them would be diagnosed with ADHD or OCD. Children get obsessed with building model airplanes or accessorizing their Barbie doll. That focus and tenacity can be a positive thing later in life. The Wright Brothers were obsessed with flight; Mozart was obsessed with creating music. What we call a disorder today was likely the same trait that made possible many great achievements.
Psychology Today (4) reported that people with ADHD are 300% more likely to become entrepreneurs. Here is a list of famous people you may recognize who have been diagnosed with ADD/ADHD or OCD. Did their obsessive or hyperactive personalities actually contribute to their success? Many say it did.
ADD / ADHD
Justin Timberlake
Will Smith
Glenn Beck
Michael Phelps
Jim Carrey
Sir Richard Branson (Founder of Virgin Airlines)
Terry Bradshaw
Paul Orfalea (Founder of Kinko’s)
Pete Rose
David Neeleman (Founder of JetBlue)
Bruce Jenner
OCD
Howard Hughes
Donald Trump
Cameron Diaz
Leonardo DiCaprio
Michael Jackson
Harrison Ford
Howard Stern
Ludwig Van Beethoven
Albert Einstein
Michelangelo
David Beckham
Sir Winston Churchill
Martin Scorsese
Many of the people on the list did not have their disorders diagnosed until much later in life. Several of them decided to forgo medication and to view their disorder as a positive factor rather than a negative one.
“I know quite certainly that I myself have no special talent; curiosity, obsession and dogged endurance, combined with self-criticism, have brought me to my ideas.”
— Albert Einstein
Sometimes a little obsession or hyperactivity, pointed in the right direction, is a vital part of achieving the impossible.
Action Item:
1. What three things are you obsessed with in life? Are they positive or negative obsessions?
Obsession Positive/Negative
Action Item:
2. What’s one positive thing you can get obsessed with?
(4) http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/entrepreneurs-adhd/200909/7-habits-highly-successful-entrepreneurs-adhd
Law 16
Evangelize Your Message
A lot of people probably assume that being a great communicator is important, but the importance of sales skills might not be as obvious. I’m not talking about the person who goes door to door selling products, although there are many success stories there as well. The skill of salesmanship is used by a politician seeking votes and by a parent convincing a seven year old to eat his broccoli. Success requires the ability to sell yourself, your product or service, or your ideas. Many of the great ones who do the impossible master the art of being evangelical in communicating their message to the world. Their zeal comes out of the belief that their message will have a strong, positive impact on others.
If you look at a great coach, pastor, public figure, or business leader, you will see a great salesperson. One of the things that makes them special is the fact that they’re able to communicate a message to you, to challenge you, or to persuade you to do something that you wouldn’t have done without their influence. This is a skill that’s a “must-learn” if you have plans of doing something big. I’ve heard people say things like “I’m not really a salesman” or “I just don’t like salespeople.” Well, I hate to break it to you, but we are all salespeople. When you were sixteen, did you try to sell your parents on the idea of loaning you their car? Anyone who has dated knows that courtship is all about sales. A job interview is a process of selling yourself to a potential employer. If you’re a parent, you learn how to persuade your kids to do their chores or brush their teeth. We sell all the time in life, on little things and on big things.
The great ones take salesmanship to the next level. They become great communicators of their vision and persuade those around them to see that same vision. This isn’t a book on salesmanship, but there are some very good books out there on the art of sales. If you want to accomplish something tremendous, you will need to become a prolific communicator.
Law 17
Aim for the Moon
In 1961, President John F. Kennedy stood before the nation and said, “I believe this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before the decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth.” To put that in perspective, in 1961 America had just successfully launched the first American into space. Up until that point we had failed over and over again. Rocket after rocket had blown up in our faces. The Soviet Union was cleaning our clocks in the space race.
Then after a single success the President says we are going to the moon. What an outrageous statement! Did NASA know how to accomplish this goal? Probably not. W
as it possible? Many scientists probably weren’t sure. But on Sunday July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong put his foot on the moon and declared, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” : Armstrong’s moon walk was the conclusion of a 238,855 mile journey to the moon that started in 1961 with JFK’s vision and the commitment to make it a reality.
“If I had some idea of a finish line, don’t you think I would have crossed it years ago?”
— Rich DeVos
While wearing glasses may help us see the visible, having vision enables us to see the invisible, that which does not yet exist. Vision creates a path in our mind to a future of our own design. Having vision not only keeps us on track, but also shows us where the track is.
Doing The Impossible Page 5