Get Better

Posted on May 22, 2013 by lesa

Back in March I delivered my annual sermon on building an Internet Business at www.FitnessBusinessSummit.com.

My theme this year was “Concentrate on What Counts” and many audience members – including over ten ETR Virtual Mastermind Members – said this was my best sermon ever.”You get better every time,” they said.

cb Get Better

Telling my laser eye surgery story on stage

I am grateful for their comments. I follow the rules of deliberate practice. I spend time learning about good presentations, even drawing from stand-up comedy. I practice my speech, and spend a lot of time organizing the info so that it is delivered in the right way.

Many years back I was a struggling personal trainer/small business owner, just like much of the audience and many of our ETR readers. (According to our recent ETR survey, over 39% of readers are self-employed. We were shocked – and excited – at how many entrepreneurs are among our readership.)

But as a young trainer, I took steps that were different from 99% of my colleagues. I knew that I wanted to have an online business, and so each morning I’d wake up at 4:30am (hard then, but easy now) to write fitness articles for my website. That was before I’d catch a bus downtown to train clients all day.

I struggled. But my writing improved with deliberate practice. A couple of years later I started doing more speaking. I wasn’t terrible, but my energy levels were unacceptable. I’ve worked extremely hard at bringing the energy to my presentations, and polishing my delivery. According to one audience member that counted, he heard only two “Um’s” in my hour-long sermon.

That matters. That’s the type of feedback I’m looking for. I want it to be ZERO next time. And I can practice to consciously be aware of my speech rate so that I avoid those in the future.

Heck, even my jokes worked this time! And this is due to the stand-up comedy acts I studied, plus reading Dan Kennedy’s book about humor in presentations.

During my sermon I also shared my weaknesses and how I was able to overcome them. Despite being introverted, I’ve managed to become a good networker at events (even though I’m no Gary Young, ETR’s copywriter and chief connector).

Gary will strike up a conversation with anyone, anywhere, at anytime, and he’ll add value to their life. That’s essential to success. We call it, “Making the Pie Bigger”. You want to go out and add value, turn competitors into co-operators, and make other people better. When you do that, the only thing that can happen is that your life and business will get better.

Get better every time.

Your 10-minute task is to identify the ONE major skill you want to improve in the next four weeks.

From there, schedule a plan of deliberate practice. Spend 30 minutes per day, five days per week, working on challenging yourself to improve in this task. Connect with a mentor (that is also an expert in this skill) that can give you feedback on your deliberate practice.

If you commit to this strategy of Getting Better Every Time, you will truly change your life – no matter what skill it is, you CAN get better.

Keep on pushing,

Craig Ballantyne
You cannot brighten another person’s path without lighting your own. – Frank McKinney

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Take The Day Off And Still Make Money

Posted on May 21, 2013 by lesa

This is one of my favorite pieces of advice from Dan Kennedy and gives you an opportunity to have fun in your marketing.

You kind of get to take the day off and still make money.

And it’s just another reason that people will connect with you and stick around longer.

What you’re going to do is run some marketing messages from a “character” that you make up.

It could be your dog, an “evil” or “funny” side of you, or even from one of your staff members. (In the case of the latter, it could be a message from your assistant saying that since “you are gone for the day”, they are having a sale.)

The possibilities are endless. Have fun with it!

In my TT business, I often will send out a workout tip or promo from ol’ Bally the Dog. I did this again last Wednesday with great results. The open rate and CTR were slightly higher than normal, even though I had already mailed for this opt-in.

(Good dog, Bally, good dog!)

Here’s the email that went out.

Subject: free workout from Bally the Dog

Woof woof, young Bally the Dog here to give you something really cool.

I hate it when my “old man” calls me ol’ Bally – I’m still a young pup! And getting into plenty of trouble, too.

Last weekend I stole a ham and a banana off the kitchen table because I wanted some snax. Can you blame me? You sure as heck can’t stay mad at me because I am so cutez!

But what really matters is this cool free workout that I want to give you.

It’s another 4-minute miracle follow along workout for your abs and you can get it for free here:

www.HomeWorkoutRevolution.com/ultimatefatloss/

Plus, you’ll get 3 more free workouts from ol’ Craig the Human.

Get all of your free gifts here

Your poochy friendingz,

Bally the 6-pack Abs Dog
Certified Dog

Bally 300x188 Take The Day Off And Still Make Money

P.S. – Why workout longer than 4 minutes?

If you do, then you don’t get to lie around as much all day…and I love to just lay there on my mat and sleep.

So even I, young Bally the Dog, love these 4 minute workouts.

Get your free workout here

And then spend the rest of the day letting your elevated metabolism do its job.

Bark to you soon!

Woof!

*****

Ah yes, good times, having fun with “characterz”.

Make sure you are doing the same.

Even Mikey “Funny as pancakes” Whitfield could write an email as “Sargent Whitfield” and change his tone of voice…or “Evil Mikey”.

It switches things up and gives your audience another reason to open up and be info-tained by your emails.

That’s what it’s all about when it comes to creating the connection with them, and keeping them as long-time, happy readers.

Have fun and make money,

Craig Ballantyne

“Lead with passion and purpose.” – Bedros Keuilian

 

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Prosperity Thinking

Posted on May 20, 2013 by lesa

Last month I spent a night in New York City I was surrounded by 250 superstars, from TV show hosts to NY Times Best Selling authors (Tim Ferriss and Roman), and dozens and dozens of the world’s top fitness experts (like Jason Ferruggia and Isabel De Los Rios).

It was such as amazing crowd I’m surprised that the United Nations allowed us all to gather in one place at the same time. You know, in case an asteroid hit the restaurant, how would the world survive without us?

Life is good.

Earlier that week I stayed at the Four Seasons in Denver and we had over 35 new Virtual Mastermind members join our fantastic program. As you know, I truly believe the VM to be the best product I have ever created. That claim extends to all of my fitness products and videos, even the new Home Workout Revolution System.

Life is good because we work hard.

We earn prosperity.

And we must be attracting it at the same time.

Recently one of my fitness Publishing Partners finished up the biggest product launch we’ve ever had. And each one gets better and better.

This required a huge amount of personal growth for our partner. In the past, this person, we’ll call them “Ashley,” has had a lot confidence issues. Ashley didn’t think they were good enough, or didn’t know enough, and was easily put off by potential affiliates not returning emails.

Hopefully Ashley is over this. But with each week as we crept toward the launch I had a sense that the “dark side”was coming on strong.

Listen, if the Dark Side of Low Confidence is within you, it MUST be resisted.

Because the dark side of low confidence, whining, begging, and being needy simply REPELS wealth. You will not make money, get affiliates, attract traffic, or build a real business if you exhibit those traits.

Yes, you must be prepared. You must be an expert in your field. You must have a great product. But you can have all of those and still repel wealth if you maintain an inferior mental state.

You must have confidence.

You must be powerful.

You must feel MORE than worthy.

In fact, you must feel DESERVING.

As Dan Kennedy said at this bonus Wealth Creation Day the other week in the fittingly named city of Independence, Ohio…

“Money is attracted to the individual operating free of guilt or shame. People with inferiority feelings about their information, expertise, or business activities are at a profound disadvantage. They subliminally communicate their guilt to others and unconsciously sabotage themselves.”

1000 dollar bill 2 300x126 Prosperity Thinking

This is yours. Go out and get it.

It’s time for a check-up from the neck-up, as old Zig Ziglar used to say.

Today, your 10-minute task is to work on your money mindset.

Give yourself a reality check.

- Are you repelling wealth with an inferiority complex?

- Do you act like the proverbial “Eeyore the Donkey” from Winnie the Pooh?

- Do you attribute all your success to random luck?

- Do you believe that you are resigned to struggle for the rest of your life?

- Do you let these struggles inhibit your action?

- Do you always break your momentum by attracting trouble into your world just when things are going well?

- Identify what brings you down.

- List all of the things that get you in the zone?

- What’s working for you?

- What’s not?

- What allows you to get into a state of prosperity?

Look at other areas of your life.

Do you have an abundance of close family relationships? What are you doing right in that area of your life that you can transfer into your business building? Is it because you are making time and effort to keep those family relationships going? While on the other hand you fear business contacts, and so you ignore them instead of picking up the phone?

What is it, my friend, that holds you back in one area of life?

And more important, what is it that allows you to have prosperity in other areas of your life?

Go through this prosperity introspection.

Create a prosperity checklist for yourself.

Don’t let your inner demons, your little limitations, your negative (and untrue) self-beliefs stop you from achieving what you desire and deserve.

Once you have your checklist, move on to creating a vision for how your life will look once you start instituting those action steps and achieving real success.

Build the checklist. Create the vision. And let wealth flow into your life.

You’ve earned it.

Please tell me how this has helped you.

I look forward to your success stories,

Craig Ballantyne

“The human mind needs the destination to navigate and move toward, and the clearer the destination, the better the progress.” – Dan Kennedy

 

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How To Have A Rich Life

Posted on May 17, 2013 by lesa

The subject line of this email might sound too good to be true, but my buddy Bedros Keuilian assures you that it’s not.

He has a special article for you today…because after spending 9 days in America and getting home early yesterday morning, I have to turn around and head back to Denver today…big weekend coming up and I’ll tell you all about it soon.

Until then, enjoy this powerful message from Bedros:

How to have a rich life, get more clients, and be liked by everyone
By Bedros Keuilian

So that might sound too good to be true…

I guess it’s not 100% true, since you really can’t be liked by EVERYONE… after all we all have haters, specially if you’re out there making things happen.

But who really wants to be liked by haters anyway?

So really the subject line should have read…

“How to have a rich life, get more clients, and be liked by everyone – who matters”

With that said, let me tell you how you can have it all.

See, there’s a direct correlation between how much you give and how much you get.

That may sound like common sense, but the truth of the matter is that it’s not so “common”.

I see a bunch of people give it lip service on blog posts and on Facebook, but they don’t practice it… they don’t live it.

And the only time you’re going to get IT, is when you LIVE IT – I can tell you this from first hand experience.

You’ve gotta give to get.

Long ago I leaned that your income is in direct proportion with the amount of value that you add to the world.

Your level of happiness in life is in direct proportion to the amount of value that you add to the world.

The PROBLEM is that most people are focused on: “What can others do for them”

…when they should be focused on “What can I do for others”.

Bob Burg and David Mann talk about this very concept in their book “The Go-Giver”.

It’s a great read… short and to the point.

Bill Wilson, the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous discovered the same thing when he tried kicking alcohol multiple times only to fail time and time again.

it wasn’t until Bill started focusing on OTHERS and helping other alcoholics stay sober that he himself was able to stay sober once and for all.

Eric Greitens, author of The Heart And The Fist and a great  humanitarian and Navy SEAL wrote in his book…

“My most difficult moment in Hell Week had come in the tent when I let myself focus on MY pain and fears. Then I become weaker”.

Eric goes on to write that he survived training, and especially Hell Week, and was strongest both physically and mentally when his focus was on his squad and seeing them through their fears and pains rather than worrying about himself.

It’s just the way of the universe

When you trade thoughts of scarcity, fear, and greed for feelings of abundance, hope, and a true desire to add value to the lives of others, YOUR life becomes near perfect.

Yesterday, on my Facebook Fan Page I posted this:

If you own a personal training, group training or boot camp business – you’re invited to attend my 7 Figure Formula Mastermind on May 24-25 in Las Vegas.

There’s only one spot left, and it’s $997 to sit in for the weekend and let us help you fix your training business.

One guy replied to my post with…

“$997? Sounds like you are the mastermind.”

I take no offense to that.

I deliver the goods and charge what I’m worth.

I’m living my dream and purpose everyday by helping other coaches grow their business to massive success levels.

I’m the best at what I do.

I’m proud of the fact that I’ve helped six coaches build their businesses to up seven figures.

I don’t know of anyone else who can say that and PROVE it.

I’m proud that I’ve helped thousands more create six figure businesses.

I love helping others find their entrepreneurial stride and helping them achieve financial and lifestyle freedom.

BUT most of all I LOVE that I get to impact more of the world…

I feel like I’m the ultimate coach…

…because the more I help coaches grow their business, get more clients, and become better entrepreneurs the more I get to help others

Through YOU I get to help more people. When you get more clients, it’s like they’re my clients, too

That’s how I look at it icon smile How To Have A Rich Life

That’s my TRUE passion in life. And the more I focus on helping people worldwide achieve their  goals, the happier, richer, and more abundant my life gets.

Value adders live the best lives.

Here’s how you can do the same…

Think of the businesses that you want to work with and get referrals from.

What value can you add to their lives?

How can you help them grow their business, get more clients and customers?

Think about your clients…

What else can do for them to enrich their lives and give them greater value than just training.

Who can help pro bono?

You have an amazing skill set, access to great information, who can you mentor?

It doesn’t always have to be something that takes time or massive amounts of money either.

It can be as simple as sending someone a book that they might like.

In fact, Craig Ballantyne and I first met becuase he sent me a book in the mail years ago.

One book led to a friendship and partnership in a business that now generates seven figures for us.

That one book led to Craig and I coaching hundreds of people in how to create information products and sell them online.

Our info marketing coaching clients alone have generated millions dollars in the last three years.

BUT more than that they’ve won their freedom and are LIVING their passion.

And even more than that… they’re helping hundreds of thousands of people worldwide live better.

It’s the ripple effect…

That one book led to a partnership that’s now become the 100K Info Group. The members in that group have generated millions of dollars in sales…

…and through that they’ve helped hundreds of thousands of people worldwide live healthier lives.

What they have in common is one simple things, they’re all value adders.

And value adders like YOURSELF live the best lives.

Committed to your success,

Bedros Keuilian

PS – Craig and I are hosting a one day info mastermind meeting on June 23rd in San Diego.

These things always sell out quick. If you want to know how to create, market, and sell your info product (DVDs, membership site, ebook, or coaching videos) then shoot an email to Frankie at Frankie@Keuilian.com and ask for the June 23rd mastermind details.

PPS – From Craig…

…see you there. It will change your life.

Here’s what Paul Howard, Tactical Success Coach said about our last 1-day MM

“The information I learned was worth 10 times the investment and it really set my business in the right direction.” - Paul Howard

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Make A Promise

Posted on May 15, 2013 by lesa

It was one of the best pieces of business-building wisdom that I had ever heard. Short and sweet, this advice should be followed by every business owner, both online and offline.

We were sitting in one of the first Mastermind meetings that Bedros Keuilian and I had ever done together, and Bedros had brought in our friend Paul R. to share what was working in his business.

Paul is a successful marketer in the baseball training niche and used the above wisdom in his simple formula for lead generation. After Paul showed us his detailed email strategies for converting prospects into buyers and buyers into repeat buyers, he then showed us his landing pages for generating new leads.

“We make a promise on this page and keep the promise on the next page,” Paul said. “That’s a formula you must follow in all areas of your business,” he added.

MAKE a Promise. KEEP a Promise.

It’s great advice.

And it should go without saying.

But sometimes marketers try to get too sophisticated and end up making promises that they can’t keep, whether it is in their sales copy, emails, videos, or products. Don’t make that mistake.

Instead, follow that simple formula.

When you don’t follow this advice, you only end up with angry, disappointed, and unhappy customers that won’t be afraid to spread the word about your empty promises.

On the other hand, no matter how hard it is to fulfill on your promises – even when things seem like they are out of your control – you have to go the extra mile.

For example, last Christmas at our Toys for Tots event, I promised Matt Smith that Team Turbulence would buy a certain $$$ amount of toys.

Unfortunately, despite spending 30 minutes on the phone with my credit card company prior to the shopping trip, all of my cards eventually got cut off. But I had made a promise and so after a few urgent calls, everything finally worked out and I hit my numbers.

But more importantly, I told Matt that our shopping group would hit $25K. After tallying up our purchases, my group(which included my best buds Jason Ferruggia and Bedros Keuilian and family, as well as ETR Mastermnd members Shaun Hadsall, Ryan Colby, Christine Lewington, Dr. Jack, Dr. Sohal, and a few others) had only reached $24,200.

But then something amazing happened.

Knowing that we had made a promise to Matt, we all turned and marched right back into the store, and everyone chipped in again with another cart. (Random Note: You can get $400-$600 worth of toys into a Wal-Mart shopping cart, and that’s a LOT of toys.)

image Make A Promise
Good times.

By the time we were done keeping our promise to Matt, we had jumped up above $26,000.

We delivered.

And it was worth it, not only for the all of the kids that had a better Christmas, but to see the Marines that run the Toys for Tots drive so appreciative of our efforts.

And while Matt’s group still beat us – we had to make it a competition, of course – our collective ETR toy drive CRUSHED our original goal of $50,000.

It was a great day. Everyone was happy and satisfied. All thanks to the formula:

Make a promise, keep a promise.

It’s so simple.

Let it guide you to success,

Craig Ballantyne

PS – Need a complete “Guide to Out-Giving the Universe” for success?

Just listen to or read this FREE success secrets report

Get the #1 Go-Giver Secret now

It will change your life.

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