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on: 2018-01-31 14:09:02
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00:55:19
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Holder: Mike Stephens
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Account Holder: rmorris@rsquaredconsulting.com
File
Name: morris paul cummings.mp3
00:01:09;12
- 00:03:42;13
Rick Morris: Welcome
to another Friday edition of The Work/Life Balance, we're so excited to have
everybody along what another fantastic week that we had. R Squared Consulting
with everybody hanging out with us I got spend the whole week at home which was
amazing. It had some fantastic conversations throughout the week. Good to talk
to my brother Darrell Rivers who is part of the lead organization. So, a big
shout out to Darrell. We're going to have him on the show here shortly. In all
the planning that's going on for the big IMC event the International Maxwell Certification
that's going to be going on in Orlando in February. Everybody's excited and the
big commitment which I'm super excited about. In March there's going to be a
couple of hundred of us to fulfill John Maxwell's vision. But you know John
Maxwell has been on this big big mission to transform countries and it's been a
calling of mine to be following in that mission. So, we'll be going to Costa
Rica in March. And so that's been finally announced we're going under the
invitation of the president of Costa Rica and actually be training the Seven
Streams of Influence in leadership in Maxwell doing roundtables. We're going to
be training thousands of influential leaders in Costa Rica, looking to help
transform that nation. Couldn't be more excited to be a part of that that's
going to be happening in March so we'll keep you guys posted on those events.
And then a big shout out to of course my Junior Achievement class here in
Birmingham Alabama. And then today just started a new board position with Childcare
Resources. So for the listeners of the show you guys had an opportunity to
listen to Joan Wright. We brought her on and what a dynamic person she is and
so focused on really helping early education, early education providers in the
Birmingham Alabama area. But the mission that she really projects really can
help in a community. So, she's phenomenal and was asked to join the board of
directors for that nonprofit. And of course, I accepted and we kicked all that
off today. So, it's been a really busy day. And of course now we come to you
live as we always do on The Voice America business network. And I've got a
fantastic guest we are actually just chatting during the show here. And so, I'm
not going to do a whole lot of the bio because I want to make sure that you
guys get an opportunity to really listen to what he has to say. But as a short
bio he's very enthusiastic and driven an intense person. He's been educating
business professionals for over 35 years and he's developed a revolutionary
technique in sales customer service and leadership development.
00:03:42;13
- 00:04:09;14
Rick Morris: He's
filled with a desire to not only teach but also make a lasting difference, so
he's well known for teaching his students and clients with unrivaled zeal and
unmatched passion. As he enthusiastically lives out his business motto changing
lives through dynamic instruction. He's a13 time winner of the Telia award and
five time winner of the Communicator Award. So, let's bring them on right now.
Let's welcome Paul Cummings. Paul how are you sir.
00:04:09;19
- 00:04:17;11
Paul Cummings: Hey
Rick. Fantastic. Thanks for the opportunity to visit with you today. Sounds
like you have had a mammoth busy week.
00:04:17;12
- 00:04:53;11
Rick Morris: We
all have. But you know we talk about this all the time and we can dive right
into it with you two times the great equalizer for all of us. We all have the
same amount of time every day. It's just what we do with that and to maximize
that time. And that's something I've really been trying to live as a principled
life and a purpose life recently. It's something that has really been awakened
in me and I think it's an important strategy as we look into our daily
activities. You know John taught me and as I've read your book and I want to
make sure that I mention it you've got an incredible book called.
00:04:53;12
- 00:05:04;29
Rick Morris: It
All Matters right? It All Matters. And time is the great equalizer and you
talked quite a bit about that. So, will you introduce yourself to the audience
and in talk a little bit about your book.
00:05:06;07
- 00:06:26;05
Paul Cummings: Hey
Rick I appreciate it. It All Matters was that kind of results at 34 years of my
life. That actually is a story based book. I worked in the summertime as a high
school senior with the Southwestern Advantage Company and somehow got convinced
to knock on doors 18 hours a day for 14 hours a day for six weeks instead of
play in summer baseball. And that was kind of the catalyst or the catapult for
the career. But the book did just that for 34 years teaching over 5,000 events
all the work. There was so much that I wanted to share and the hard part was it
first for others like a 105,000 word of an encyclopedia then a book and trying
to call it down and really focus heavily on the value of time the importance of
goal setting activity management mindset all those things. That was the challenge
and the opportunity and the excitement as the books incredibly well and we did
a fifty-seven-day book tour that spanned three continents. And it was it was
amazing and signed a lot of books so we did believe the book is one of the most
comprehensive ever written on goal setting. I'm a huge fan of reading. I think
there the books are the greatest bargain on Earth. So, I think a book would be
beneficial to anybody that has goals and dreams and things are still striving
and stretching for. So, I think it would be a great book for that.
00:06:27;05
- 00:06:27;12
Rick Morris: Yeah.
00:06:27;13
- 00:06:36;12
Rick Morris: And
so for my audience and again so for you if you've not been a longtime fan of
mine. I have.
00:06:36;12
- 00:07:26;12
Rick Morris: I've
had a knock on goals but I want to be clear and I want to make sure that we're
setting the proper context so that we can get into your book because I have
read your book and you support a lot of the contacts where my knock on goals
have been is is when a lot of people set goals they set them too low and then
there's also that thing. OK well I've achieved it. Now what. Right. So I've not
always been a fan of goal setting in that regard because you're never done.
You're always there. And I think what happens in what I appreciated in your
book as well is you have a ton of stuff on self awareness. And I think in the
early setting of goals it's important to set goals that you can achieve in that
are achievable but that begins to pull the string of self awareness. And once
you start to pull that string you recognize how much work you actually have to
do right because you're never done.
00:07:26;22
- 00:07:43;07
Rick Morris: So
walk me through a little bit about that and I left part of the title of your
book off because I think it's important for us to cover those right because
part of this is that you offer a tremendous amount of life lessons to achieve
what you call the Four C’s. So, what I wanted to tell the audience what you
consider the four C’s.
00:07:44;09
- 00:08:15;28
Paul Cummings: Well
the first is confidence and then clarity certainty and creativity. I want to go
back to if I could which talked about school setting. You know I think you're
spot on about that I think goals. First of all if you ask a hundred thousand
what do you believe in goal setting. We all raised our hand at the same hundred
thousand. You have them written down the you have them with you though. You
know maybe a hundred are still standing inside one of the subjects where not
well we don't know what we do know and don't do.
00:08:15;28
- 00:08:24;09
Paul Cummings: Goal
setting is evolutionary it's never there is no endgame. You know one goal
easier than the next goal one activity leisure and the next activity.
00:08:24;09
- 00:10:34;16
Paul Cummings: Every
setback has a learning opportunity. All of that if you're or if your awareness
is heightened all of that leads you to the next set of structured goals that
you set to try to go to the next milestone. So, I agree with you the whole
thing about size with goals is another one of the things that people say if the
goal is not so big that it that it doesn't like set your hair on fire it's not
really a goal. Other people say if it's too small and you could do it without a
lot of effort it's not really a goal. Here's the real thing to me about it. If
the goal is inspiring to you regardless of the size of that goal if it inspires
you if it helps you see your reality for your future that those are your
important goal. So those are the ones that will keep you motivated and moving
forward and anxiety but until you decide what you really want which is the
whole opening of the book regarding confidence until you know what you really
want. What is it that you want from your dash to life from your journey not
with someone else. So, you bet you. It's really hard to define meaningful goals
and inspiring dreams until you know what you really want. I've seen people
achieve a lot of goals they/ve written down get to the end of the goal they've
achieved the goal and they look behind them and everything that mattered to
them they've left behind trying to get to the goal. So, it is a much bigger
subject than topic but I think it's very doable when it's broken down into
incrementals and into a confidence is what happens to a person when you find
what it is that makes you happy when you find what it is that inspires you. And
you develop mindset around around those actions and you know to operate with
confidence is so very very important you know you know that Rick from your
speeches you know it from all the work I mean just I was inspired when you were
talking about the work you’re doing in Costa Rica for goodness sake. I mean
what a what a wonderful brushstroke to put on your canvas of life. But having
the confidence to say you're going to go change a country and be a part of
changing a country and even have the audacity to set that goal is. Dr. Maxwell
did what a brilliant beautiful thing that is and competence is born.
00:10:34;29
- 00:10:43;17
Paul Cummings: And
in that journey between your left ear and your right ear
Rick Morris:
I totally agree and I think there's a fifth C, right.?
00:10:43;26
- 00:11:10;16
Rick Morris: And
I think the fifth C is that underlying foundation and it's not the greatest or
sexiest of words but it's consistency it's consistency along these four C's of
confidence clarity and certainty and creativity that if you're not consistently
following the system whatever it may be whatever speaking to you to make sure
that you're following a system in order to achieve those. Would you agree with
that?
00:11:11;14
- 00:12:05;04
Paul Cummings: Yeah
I do. In fact you probably saw that in the book but in all of our leadership
development programs and other interesting you pick two words today that have a
program called Great leaders leave no doubt. And I believe two of the career
accelerators or writers. First is awareness and the second is consistency. And
so I you pick two of the words that I love the most because you know I've seen
people that are able to do things for a day or two a week or two a month to
two. But you look at a guy like Dr. Maxwell or anybody that's achieved
greatness. They didn't sustain it for a month, a year. They sustained it for a
lifetime and they did it through consistent behavioral patterns that they could
repeat repeat repeat and it became part of their habit cycle and just what they
did. So yeah consistency is everything. So you're spot on for that 100 percent.
00:12:06;02
- 00:12:08;04
Rick Morris: Yeah
it's it's amazing.
00:12:08;26
- 00:12:15;12
Rick Morris: And
I love the wisdom that you've been part of in the book and again it's called.
It All Matters. You can grab it on Amazon.
00:12:15;18
- 00:12:40;27
Rick Morris: I'm
sure you can get it on paulcummings.com as well. You know the 125 strategies
but I'm sitting at 45 years old now. I wish I could go back and punch the 20
year old me and start working on those two words now. Awareness and
consistency, we all see right. But it took it took me honestly I was 42 before
I even became aware.
00:12:41;10
- 00:13:01;26
Rick To
be honest. It takes life events and everything else to really do that. So if
you're listening to the podcast now you know the awareness and consistency is
where it's at. But it's ok. If you're sitting at 40 45 or 50 still working on
it that's quite OK.
00:13:01;28
- 00:14:08;08
Paul Cummings: You
know Rick I think my favorite lesson in that has to do with what you're talking
about whether you're 45. I just turned 60. I believe I'll do more in the next
five years of my life. Not necessarily monetarily but just an impact than I've
done in the last 35. Wisdom is a great amplifier for future behavior. And you
know the experience is what brings you that. But I was I was talking to my
grandfather and I think the most hope filled statement he ever said to me and
he was my mentor was it's never too late to become the person you might have
been or would like to be at this juncture. There's so much hope in that. And
I've worked in so many inner-city schools talking to young people I've worked
with a lot of people in that area of education and just play and listen you
know the past doesn't equal the future. It is never too late. So you're right.
You know regardless of age number of days or seconds that have gone by we can
always make that pivotal decision today to do something uniquely different
special.
00:14:08;14
- 00:14:46;05
Rick Morris: I
think that's a fantastic point so we're going to take a break right here when
we come back we're actually going to dive into some of the life lessons that
Paul has shared in his book. So we hope that you'll hang around. We're going to
do some commercials while we're there though you can go to paulcummings.com or to Amazon and go ahead and order your copy
of the book, It All Matters. It's a 125 strategies to achieve maximum
competence clarity certainty and creativity. We'll be right back after the
break listening into The Work/Life Balance with Rick Morris.
00:17:36;05
- 00:17:50;20
Rick Morris: And
we are back to The Work/Life Balance. We're visiting with Paul Cummings. He's
the author of It All Matters. And Paul we were talking just before the break.
Right. And so you impart I mean literally 125 life lessons.
00:17:50;21
- 00:19:20;05
Rick Morris: And
you know what I love about the format and again I've read it not only you did
something very nice in the book. So when you guys buy this book not only are
the life lessons imparted throughout the chapters but then there's a great summary
at the end. Right. So here's the line again. Yeah I love it. Love it. That's
proof I actually read it. All right so that’s proo that I read all the way to
the end I already know what's at the end. But some beautiful things the route.
The other thing I really enjoyed about your book. It's an interesting
technique. What I don't like about some business books is I feel that sometimes
they preach or sometimes they're giving me content without context. And so
they're telling me they're telling me you know go do this or go do that or this
is something you're doing. And it's very academic. So it's very hard to connect
with the material. But your use of stories and storytelling throughout the book
to drive your point home or why you arrived at that life lesson that was very
beautifully done as well. So I'm a very very big fan now of Paul Cummings for
sure. So let me throw it to you though right because you know it's very
difficult sometimes as an author to throw you know something like this and I
can tell you as my book No Day but Today was it was very personal to you to
write this book that comes through your writing. So tell me some of your
favorite life lessons that you kind of imparted or some of the ones that stick
with you the most.
00:19:20;14
- 00:19:51;17
Paul Cummings: OK
well I think one thing about the storytelling I was really and this will lead
to the story of really fortunate my dad's dad was just this incredible man and
an amazing storyteller. I used to go to his farm and we'd sit out there and one
day we were talking and he said you know what I was saying wait a horse to water
but you can't make them drink said yes he said Well you know it's a lie, if you
salt the road to make them thirsty they'll drink all day here.
00:19:51;18
- 00:20:04;24
Paul Cummings: Right.
You know years later when I had a group of sales people that are plateaued I
called him and I was talking to said listen you know we've come so far but
these guys have just by their level said it.
00:20:05;20
- 00:21:25;29
Paul Cummings: He
said You remember that day on the farm when I told you about the horse?s I said
Yes sir. So you obviously hadn't been set up as your people are not their oats
aren't salted. They stopped drinking and I hung the phone up and he's right.
You know I gave them a reason to get to this place but I hadn't given them a
reason to climb to a new one. So lessons like that. I remember the lesson
enthusiasm is an inside game but it's an outside reflection. That is another
one of my favorite lessons in the book. As a teacher as a speaker as a sales
person I've always believed you know it comes from the Greek word entheus which
mean spirit with God like it was my only challenge with the win friends and
influence people book the whole fake it till you make it. I don't think
enthusiasm is best faked. I think enthusiasm’s that thing that internal
combustion engine inside and it's fun to be around. It's amazing to see when
it's real whether it's saw Prince's last concert in Sydney and this one piano
one microphone and him and it was amazing just his enthusiasm for the
artfulness of music and he just poured every everything in his body whether it
be it something like that or whether it be watching a great sport event.
00:21:26;09
- 00:21:51;03
Paul Cummings: So
that's one of my favorite lessons. Passion prevails when everything else fails
only because I think the reason I love that lesson so much and then I'll stop
and I want to be overly wordy was my grandfather said Well you know what
passion is. And I said no.He said well if you look at the word it's an
individual unique capacity take what's inside and pass it on to another.
00:21:51;03
- 00:22:11;04
Paul Cummings: If
you look at the word passion it's the phrase pass it on with the P pulled up. I
thought that was interesting. He was a very anatytical guy He kept everything
kept thousands and thousands of these notes in the journaled every day and he
could make it lesson out of anything.
00:22:11;04
- 00:22:31;12
Paul Cummings: I
mean literally anything and he was just filled with wisdom. So those are three
just off the top of my head along with it's never too late to become the person
you might have been. Life's a gift not a game. I truly believe that. I think I
could just name probably on a hundred forty five an order but those are four
that come to the front of my mind.
00:22:30;29
- 00:23:02;19
Rick Morris: I
like that so you know when you were telling me about it. Isn't the word that
that I immediately went to was passion. So I appreciate you bringing that to a
because you know the reason that I feel like you know I'm successful in running
a business that I run is that I have a passion for the product that I sell and
that that comes through. Right so when you're sitting there in a room full of
other sales people and you're leading that charge and you've got that passion
for the product that's what's convincing the person to buy.
00:23:02;19
- 00:24:01;23
Rick Morris: It's
not my retorts it's not it's not my sales technique it's the fact that they
want a piece of the vision that I painted because I'm so excited for painting
it and you know it's it's hard to argue with somebody who is passionate about
what they're doing and so that you know that's the big thing I think that gets
lost in the sales process these days. You know and I I mess with telemarketers
and people they call me like so. Why. You know what's the why. You know hello
Mr Morris where have this exciting offer. It's like it's not that exciting I'll
be excited. You know it's not that excited I don't feel that excitement coming
through the phone. Get excited. I might. But it's you know it's interesting
because you know it's uncovering the why you know why are we getting up in
doing what we're doing and there's so many opportunities and choices especially
with entrepreneurship.
00:24:01;23
- 00:24:06;17
Rick Morris: You
know I think it it's the greatest market in the world to be an entrepreneur.
00:24:06;27
- 00:24:11;28
Rick Morris: It's
the greatest greatest time ever. Yeah. Greatest time in our lives to be an
entrepreneur. You can.
00:24:11;29
- 00:24:26;02
Paul Cummings: I
mean we have the globe in our hand today Rick and kids can come up with an app
and be you know multimillionaires if they solve a problem you know you just
need to be a problem solver. Now before you needed all kinds of things to go to
market.
00:24:26;02
- 00:24:46;22
Rick Morris: Now
I mean there's you know there's families that are making millions of dollars on
YouTube just communicating. I mean it's an amazing time to find that passion.
I'll tell you one of my favorite lessons and I enjoyed the acronym that you put
together which was exhibit pride. Right. So you had a lesson in there that said
exhibit pride talk. Talk to the audience about that one.
00:24:46;25
- 00:25:56;18
Paul Cummings: Yeah
the acronym of personal responsibility for individual daily effort. And then
you add to that and dot dot dot. You know when I raised my five kids I said
Hey. Personal responsibility for individual daily effort. One of my kids was
Love debate forensic science. If you're going to if you're stop playing
basketball replace that with debate you need to take personal responsibility
for that. And he went on to win the national debate championship back several
and to go to college repeat that behavior there and today he runs an incredibly
successful start up business that just won the Spirit of Innovation Award as
the best startup company and that he took personal responsibility for that
individual daily effort and whether it's a meal you're preparing whether it's a
canvas you're painting whether it's a speech or about to give the responsibility
all the responsibility for the effort lays with you know within you. And so to
me that that's a better way of looking at that word pride. At the end of the
day you're you know what you do your behavior your conduct your performance is
his legacy. It's permanent thing that you're leaving on your campus.
00:25:57;10
- 00:26:10;07
Rick Morris: And
so so many other things that go ahead.
Paul Cummings: I was just going to say so many people think
that other people are responsible for how they react and other people are responsible
for what happened to them today.
00:26:10;09
- 00:26:24;27
Rick Morris: You
know he and I shared a story a few shows ago. You know I poke fun at my wife
all the time. I love her dad. But pure German and she was like you know some
lady bumped into her at the grocery store and she was like Can you believe what
would you have done.
00:26:25;15
- 00:26:44;06
Rick Morris: And
I was like nothing because I could care less that that occurred right. And not
only that but I wouldn't have given it any more credence any more it doesn't
matter to me. Right. That you take that personal responsibility to let that
bother you or not let that bother you..
00:26:44;06
- 00:26:57;02
Rick Morris: But
there's so many people these days I feel like that are searching to be offended
or searching to give that person responsibility for how they feel away.
00:26:57;17
- 00:27:08;29
Paul Cummings: Well
I think a lot of that to I you know I wrote a microblog because of conversation
I had with the person I was told about coming to Birmingham. And I it was
about.
00:27:08;29
- 00:28:15;17
Paul Cummings: You're
not a victim you're a victor. The only way you become a victim is to grant the
people who for some reason that offended you is to grant them power. And I
always, always ask the question Do you respect the behavior you respect the
person you respect the circumstances. The answer is no. Then why is that
affecting you. The only way you can become a victim is to operate with a victim
mentality. Other than that. You know you I believe I really do believe this. I
think we’re remarkable. I think you're remarkable. I think we're extraordinary.
I know we're unique. I have this whole premise I'd talk to people all the time
about is if you really want to just capsule life, just you be to understand or
be true to yourself stay unique. And then just do that with awareness and
consistency and that's it. If you get if you get those simple things because
you're right man there are so many people that looking to do that whole blame
culture woe is me poor is me everybody's out to get me. It's not my fault
someone else did it. You're 100 percent right. But there's a lot of that. But
it sure clears the pathway of a lot of clutter for those people they want to go
win for sure.
00:28:15;20
- 00:28:51;09
Rick Morris: Yeah.
So you know my personal life I lost both my parents when I was young. You know
I made a lot of mistakes when I was when I was younger and dumb male and I
certainly could of you know cocoon that in instead of you know doing what I
needed to do to become the man I needed to become so that I could raise the
family I needed to raise and take that personal responsibility. But it's it's
amazing right because I think in every decision there's the choice of overcomer
to cocoon. I think that everybody takes that personal responsibility.
00:32:09;24
- 00:32:12;28
Rick Morris: And
we're back to this Friday edition of The Work/Life Balance.
00:32:12;28
- 00:33:02;29
Rick Morris: We
did want to announce two new features two new ways to get The Work/Life Balance
for those of you that travel or if you have an Alexa or if you simply just say
Alexa ask any pod to play The Work/Life Balance. The latest episode of play you
can play any of the past episodes and ask for it by name and Alexa will oblige.
Also we're starting a new transcription service so everything that we say here
will be transcribed and turned into a blog post. That is a new feature that
we'll be bringing and posting that out on my blog, PM That works dot com.
That's something that will be starting next week. So two new ways that you can
get The Work/Life Balance for all of our fans and listeners out there we
appreciate everything that you've been doing and keeping the show alive for the
last two years and hopefully for many more years to come. So back to our guest
Paul Cummings so Paul you were talking in a break.
00:33:03;14
- 00:33:22;20
Rick Morris: You
know what I'm amazed about. You know I do project management for a living. I go
into organizations and one of the biggest things I see lacking right out of I
mena right out of the gate is leadership is one of the reasons why I've made
such a large investment into John Maxwell and understanding that so hopefully I
could bridge that gap for a lot of these leaders.
00:33:22;22
- 00:33:52;16
Rick Morris: And
then when you start to approach them about you know hey you know we've got
these programs for leadership and you really should be investing in your
personal development of leadership. That seems to fall on deaf ears right. It's
like that's the last thing. With all the dollars that they spend on training
and all the dollars they spend on all these programs it seems like leadership
or the recognition that they need to develop leadership skills seems to be one
of the last things that they want to spend money on. Do you see this and if so
how do you address that.
00:33:53;11
- 00:37:06;03
Paul Cummings: Well
I think yeah Rick I do unfortunately and I will stay for the first 15 years of
my career because there was a ton of money there for us. We fell right into the
read of people saying us hey man really appreciate you meant the leadership
thing can you train our troops. Can you teach our salespeople. Can you work
with our service. We got this leadership thing and what we would find is we
would go in and do that. We have a huge audience in the automotive automobile
space. We trained Toyota and General Motors and pretty much every major
manufacturer for a decade and a half and with great results. I mean we help
those companies make a ton of money. But here's what I would say every time we
go back to a city two years later we were training we were teaching we're
teaching new people because the leadership team didn't sustain the excellence
of what we had shared with the people we trained two years earlier and we made
a really interesting decision in this company. I called her whole team together
and said We 100 percent are pulling every single self-related training service
related training product we have off the market. They support what were known
for us that I get it. We will not be trying to cut me until we trained their
leaders first and then we launched a product called sustaining excellence a
leadership development program. We built a campus where we brought teams of six
people together for three-and-a-half-day leadership retreat that started as a 7:37
a.m. and ended at 1:17 A.M. and the night for three straight days with homework
at night. One of the most intense things you'll ever go through. And I just
thought our people and if they're not going try and the leaders were going to
work on their competencies we're not taking their training dollars because it's
not fair to the people because you go train other people they come back to the
leader the leader says we don't do that or the leader said well I didn't go so
I don't know. So I think for years people you talked about it in the break
people thought leaders are not made they're born or is a gut instinct or it's
an intuitive thing that only a handful of rare unique people have. But the
competencies of leadership can be taught. You know if you think about things
like intelligence you know we can learn to be more intelligent within our work
role if you think about things like relationship equity, emotional intelligence,
judgment, decision making, conceptual ability, creativity, strategic mindset
thinking, learning to be pragmatic, and learning to measure risk against reward
awareness those things can be taught. People can develop their competencies of
leadership. The problem if there is one for companies is the microwave
mentality of most companies. You know teach me something I want a result
tomorrow. That's the difference in going and getting something out of the
microwave section at the grocery store and having your mother cook you stew on
Sunday when you can eat real quick. It's not great. The other one you have to
wait all day for but boy is it fantastic. And so leadership provides you a
longer tomorrow, it's just slower and the return but it sticks around longer
and it pays you back over and over again.
00:37:07;10
- 00:38:53;16
Rick Morris: Yeah
I can tell you the moment I really started to invest in me, and really invest
in me. And again it's also it's not just investing in you and it's also you
know one of the principles that you are talking about too is just you know
never underestimate the value of personal relationships and friends writes one
of your life lesson that you put in the book. But really also understanding who
you're surrounding yourself with. And you know Maxwell had taught me says you
know if you want to know anything about somebody look at the people that they
surround themselves with. And so when I got involved with this team it was John
Maxwell team and I started to hang around you know the likes of Paul Martinelli
and the kinds of the people they were introducing me to the day they started
teaching me techniques that if you tell me about it you know five years ago and
even the people I talk about it now it sounds dumb and it sounds mindblowing
right. But the things that I've been able to tap into within my own brain and
teach my brain to do like I've taught myself how to sleep better. I've taught
myself how to meditate in the morning taught myself how to do a technique
called Photo reading which allows me to consume more information than I've ever
had in my entire life. Things like that which I'm completely open to because
I'm watching it work and now experiencing it to work which is done nothing but
expand my leadership and people need to be open to that. But they first have to
open their heart. And I think that that so many companies I watch are afraid
that if they do open their heart that's going to lead to that opening the door
in them leaving for some reason I don't get that.
00:38:54;03
- 00:39:26;13
Paul Cummings: I
think a lot of times when you and you said it without saying it but it's true
that when you find a manager who surrounds himself with weak people it's
because he doesn't want threat of talent underneath him or around him or
underneath her around her because if someone outperforms them they feel the
threat to their future or their job their opportunity. So a lot of times there
is a trickle down effect of leadership weakness because you know you can't draw
water from an empty well. And it's interesting that you talked about all the
things you've learned and the things you've changed your mind to.
00:39:26;14
- 00:40:35;15
Paul Cummings: I
mean you know if somebody would have told me 20 years ago that you know we walk
in a studio today we produce 2000 new eLearning videos a year in our little
engine. We serve millions and millions of millions of minutes of content today
when people come in our studio and watch what we do. They literally in shock.
How do you record so much content. How do you do so quickly. How do you do it
efficiently like you do at the quality you do. Well we learn to you know we
built a product that we created called spider web technology to allow us to
mind map our content they provide. So either 1 minute to minute three minute
four minute videos it works every time. And I don't I've never walked in the
studio with a note never used teleprompter. Learned how to do that acquired
talent skill didn't wake up one day and go oh I have the ability to learn
massive amounts of information. I trained myself to do that. I learned how to
do those type things. So very interesting that you said you've done those type
of things too because we can we can all build our knowledge our skills our
habits into something bigger and better and brighter and bolder if we want to
do the work. And we got to work on ourself and it's supremely rewarding right.
00:40:35;15
- 00:41:00;11
Rick Morris: It's
new every day. It's especially the learning aspect of it. I can't wait to do
some of the things that I've got planned for tomorrow only because I know what
is going to bring me in the coming days as well. So you know one of the other
things I thought was interesting.
00:41:01;03
- 00:41:24;21
Rick Morris: We've
got about three minutes to break but I want you to comment on it because it
breaks my heart. I'm going to shift gears here for a second. But it's my heart
when I when I go out to dinner with my families and I watch the social media
families is what I call them. Now you've got a family of four. All four of them
on their phones and none of them talking to each other. So you had you had a
life lesson there says many of the greatest moments of conversations in life
occur around the dinner table.
00:41:25;03
- 00:41:26;29
Rick Morris: And
I think that that's an art that we're losing.
00:41:27;23
- 00:41:52;29
Paul Cummings: Yeah.
You know I I grew up Shirley Cummings and George Cummings home. My mother is
first. Rick I wish you could meet her because you would probably not let her
go. You would sit there for our single greatest storyteller on Earth. South
Louisiana French Katie Anna Lemmon 85 years old today probably out dance all of
us just amazing and we had ice up dinner.
00:41:52;29
- 00:42:31;24
Paul Cummings: You
know we sat around our table and we talked and we conversed and this whole
thing about the social media families today a scary enough as not only to end
restaurants. It's true in cars as you watch people drive by you. Forty percent
of people 60 maybe even today are driving by you looking down texting instead
of paying attention to the road. But we've become so disconnected from a
communication standpoint we've lost that art of sitting around and really
seeing value in each other. I mean I've got a friend that told me the day
finally decided it had gotten too much as when his daughter was texting him
from upstairs in the house.
00:42:32;06
- 00:43:16;09
Paul Cummings: Right.
Instead of coming downstairs and having a conversation with dad. So I just
think you know people got to make her own decision about it but that's just
not. I was raised in a family where that just wasn't OK. We really talked to
each other and we had amazing stories at that table and still to this day when
I go home I just put my dad in hospice and my mother been fairly ill too and we
spent the whole month of December at home as a family. And those moments were
magic. Yes. I loved the love the set by Shirley Cummings and let her tell me
one more great story one more a great little things like you know when your
children are little they step on your toe. If you're not careful when they get
bigger they'll step on your heart and she'll give you stories around them.
00:43:16;27
- 00:43:22;22
Paul Cummings: Well
you can't do that when you're texting and checking your Facebook likes and
shares. You miss all that stuff.
00:43:23;25
- 00:44:05;15
Rick Morris: Yeah
I think one of the greatest moments of my life that I can remember is my great
aunt turning 100 in 1983 and sitting around and talking with her and you know
she was sharing stories from her childhood in her mind. She was blind and deaf
but her mind was as sharp as a tack and to tell you when she remembered seeing
the first light bulb go on in her house when she got electricity for the first
time and when she saw the first car you were talking about just the age of
techno you know technology advances and you know a kid in 1983 at that point
you know that just seemed incredible because you're talking about 1883.
00:44:05;16
- 00:44:17;10
Rick Morris: You
know she was 11 and in 1894. I mean it's incredible to hear about that but that
was I I cherish that time and never forgot it.
00:44:18;06
- 00:44:27;15
Rick Morris: And
I would feel that that happened at the level.
00:44:27;25
- 00:44:43;27
Rick Morris: I
just think again it's social interaction actually you know again at the high
school today and we're up against a break here so I'll make this quick but you
know I think again there's that awkwardness that we didn't have and we jumped
away from that they can hide behind.
00:44:43;29
- 00:45:38;29
Rick Morris: And
so because they have the phone because they can hide behind it that kind of
stuff. And so when you know I talk a lot about millennial generation and I
defended a lot because a lot of people will say that they're not prepared for
their for the workspace. What I'm defending when I say that is not necessarily
the skill sets the social skill set or anything. You know Simon Sinek talks
about like you know they don't have to go up and ask in person for that date
and get rejected and feel that awkwardness and deal with the emotion and that
that is they're going to deal with that in the business world they're going to
deal with the salesperson you know as the salesperson getting the know. And
there's that awkwardness in that rejection you develop those social skills you
know in the early ages except that they're doing all that over text now and
they just don't know how to talk. Right. They just don't know how to talk. But
we got to take a break right here we're going to be right back with our final
segment with Paul Cummings your listeners The Work/Life Balance.
00:48:41;02
- 00:48:47;27
Rick Morris: And
we're back for our final segment this Friday afternoon with Paul Cummings on
the voice America business network.
00:48:47;27
- 00:48:53;15
Rick Morris: So
Paul tell everybody what you've got upcoming as far as speaking arrangements
speaking engagements that kind of thing.
00:48:54;14
- 00:48:55;19
Paul Cummings: Absolutely.
I appreciate it.
00:48:55;20
- 00:50:10;02
Paul Cummings: We're
about to start a major tour over in Australia. We're going to be in Brisbane on
the Gold Coast in that area for a week. Now we're heading over to Sydney for a
week. Then we're going to do a stopover in Dubai for a couple of days. These
are all private engagements for companies and then we're doing a big rollout
over in Europe faze 2 with The Virtue Group there which is an amazing group the
Scratch Company 10 years ago today they're down about 4 billion a year in
revenue unbelievable to be a part of that. When I return from that the end of
February we're going to be doing some events that will be announced on our Web
site up in the New York area. We're doing the National Association of women's
infant children keynote up in White Plains. So we've got a lot of things coming
up the first quarter and then we're going to be in April doing our first It All
Matters convention around the book that we'll be announcing on our Web site as
well in the month of April and we're very excited about that can be a big deal.
We're trying to decide between New Orleans which is what I call home from the
way I grew up or Vegas and just haven't decided where we're going to host. Yeah
but that's the things of course we're available for keynotes and available to
do private events for corporations based on availability as well.
00:50:10;23
- 00:50:26;15
Rick Morris: And
they go to paulcummings.com to find out how to book you there?
Paul Cummings: absolutely it easy to do there and we have
people on our team available to answer any and all questions and our social
media as easy.
00:50:26;15
- 00:50:43;01
Paul Cummings: @iampaulcummings
and that's for Facebook LinkedIn Twitter Instagram all of those are the same handle,
just @iampaulcummings
Rick Morris:
outstanding
Paul Cummings:
Great newsletter I think or I think any of your listeners would really enjoy.
00:50:43;01
- 00:50:49;26
Paul Cummings: It's
not promotional really information packed goes out once a month anybody can go
to a website subscribe for them as well.
00:50:51;04
- 00:51:02;19
Rick Morris: And
so one of our most popular features we ask all of our guests it's old Maxwell-ism
right. The two things he taught me were you know who do you know that I should
know and what some of the best advice you've ever been given.
00:51:02;19
- 00:51:37;24
Paul Cummings: You
can't you can't get a positive charge off a dead battery. And I think that's
one of the greatest pieces of advice I think it goes back to what you talked
about earlier about who you surround yourself with. And I think if you if you
really want to have an impactful journey in need to surround yourself with
impactful people with people that are positive batteries with people that have
a positive charge you to go to events that are positive you need to read things
that are positive because dead batteries never going to spark you. It's never
it's never going to get you to that new place of ignition that you that you
might want to go.
00:51:37;26
- 00:51:42;12
Rick Morris: I
think that's fantastic. Any last words for the audience.
00:51:42;13
- 00:52:24;10
Paul Cummings: Rick
I think the main thing is just you know we all have that beginning date and
that end date make the most out of your days I think the beautiful thing about
business today is you know we're one great question away from the best idea
we've ever had and if you just if you ask a better question you'll get a better
answer. QUESTION Your Life. Operate with courage if you get that little
annoying thing in your head that man other people might think this is crazy. I
would jump on that idea really quick because it's probably your better what and
just go live a life of intention and purpose and joy and you know go be
remarkable because you are and you can be I think that's fantastic advice and I
certainly agree.
00:52:24;11
- 00:52:28;14
Rick Morris: I
completely enjoy the conversation we'd love to have you back.
00:52:29;02
- 00:52:35;21
Rick Morris: So
hopefully we'll come back and maybe we'll pick you back up after your European
tour there.
00:52:35;24
- 00:52:40;25
Paul Cummings: That
would be awesome and be fantastic would love to do it. And we really appreciate
the opportunity.
00:52:41;13
- 00:54:00;25
Rick Morris: Absolutely.
So Paul we appreciate you coming on. So next week I believe. No actually next
week we're going to have a great friend of mine is going to be Nicole Tobulio.
So Nicole was a co-author with me on the book Agile Almanac Vol. 2 which is an
Amazon number one best seller as well. And she wrote a couple of chapters and
contributed to that book with our friend John Stenbeck. So she's going to be on
the show with us and she's going to be discussing her chapters as we dive back
into the Agile world on this show. So you're not going to want to miss that she
is a powerhouse. She's a fire has a lot of fun to talk to. So we'll have her on
the show next week, the week after that. We're going to have it as we're
talking Agile we're going to have one of the what we consider kind of a
founding father of Agile who founded the disciplined agile delivery and was
responsible for the agile delivery at IBM. Scott Ambler is going to be on the
show so we're super super excited to have Scott booked for the show here that's
going to be a huge huge event for us as well. So please stay tuned right here
at the Voice America business network, hang out with us. You can always find me
on social media you can find @rickamorris Twitter on LinkedIn on Facebook. All
over the place.
00:54:00;28
- 00:54:05;19
Rick Morris: Also
our web series PM Minute you can search that by #pmminute.
00:54:06;10
- 00:54:40;08
Rick Morris: And
then again you can always find the show on Alexa by asking Alexa ask any pod to
play The Work/Life Balance and they'll find you there and then start looking
for the transcription on our blog site APMthatworks.com. So as always we love
you guys for hanging out with us. We appreciate everybody tuning in. Stay tuned
right here to the next program on The Voice America business network. And we'll
talk to you next Friday right here same time same place and we always like to
remind you everybody wants to succeed but does everybody have the will to
succeed. Stay right here. You've been listening into The Work/Life Balance with
Rick Morris.
