Above The Business

This week on the Leadership Podcast, Patrick Cootes joined Bradley to discuss how informal learning can transform your team.  Patrick is a learning expert with nearly 20 years of experience in the public sector. He’s a Co-Founder & Head of Product at Mindstone Learning, a company empowering people and companies globally to learn faster and remember more.They discussed how to create a “doing” culture, rather than a culture that stops at learning.  He has found that, while it has become standard to assume that a person can only learn one way (auditory, visual, kinesthetic), people are actually multisensory and multidimensional in their learning.Patrick also shared his number one strategy for helping new hires get up to speed 2x faster than normal.  Trainers should give new hires a high stakes but low risk opportunity to get them to take action. To learn more about Patrick’s company, visit https://www.mindstone.com/

Wondering how to set inspiring and attainable goals for your business?  In this episode, Bradley is sharing how to set goals for Quarter 3 to increase revenue while engaging your team.  He discusses methods of gaining new customers, increasing the dollars spent by a customer, and retaining your customers for longer.  More importantly, he shows you how to have team buy in on both the goals and methods for reaching those goals.Ready to start Q3 strong (or kick off new goals any time of the year)?  Listen to this quick, 15 minute episode to learn how!

This week on the Leadership Podcast,  Thomas Ntuk returns to join Bradley as they discuss key strategies for growing your insurance agency and any other business.  Thomas has numerous career highlights and accomplishments, and is sharing some of his tips with you today!They discussed the importance of investing in yourself.  Thomas shared that owners need to prioritize their own development first.  He also shared his new definition of “HIPA” aka High Income Producing Activities.  Finally, he emphasized the importance of never compromising in your career.Thomas joined Bradley on the podcast for two other episodes in March 2021 (Episodes 47 & 48: How To Improve Sales by Simplifying Parts 1 & 2).Thomas attended Thought Leaders’ Summit in Hollywood, California.  During the summit, he was interviewed on the TV show Hollywood Live by the host, legendary Jack Canfield (Author of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series-which sold over 500 million copies). The show aired on both A&E and Bravo Networks.He also joined Brian Tracy, to co-author the Amazon Best Seller book, The Success Blueprint.  His agency accolades include Crystal Excellence, Ambassador Travel (29 years), Exotic Travel (6 years), Chairman’s Circle (7 years), President’s Club (7 years), Mutual Funds Leaders (all 7 years), Small Business Leaders (all five years).Learn more about Thomas Ntuk when you visit https://www.ntukspeaking.com/

If you feel like you're piloting your business based on anything BUT your numbers, you could be headed straight for a storm! In this solo episode with Bradley, he shares a quick, actionable strategy for identifying and tracking the most important numbers in your business.

This week on the leadership podcast, Tom Hegna joined Bradley to discuss optimal retirement solutions.  They covered topics in investing, insurance sales, and retirement portfolios.Tom shared the differences between optimal and best, defined fake fiduciaries, why he recommends annuities in your portfolio, and shared his changed opinions around cryptocurrency.They also talked about why advisors should reach out to their clients even with a declining market.  Tom also noted that salespeople should become more prospect focused and less product focused.You can learn more about Tom and all he offers at www.tomhegna.com/webinars or text 855-TOM-HEGNA.

Today on the leadership podcast, Colleen Francis joins Bradley to discuss sales in and out of the insurance industry.  Colleen is driven by a passion for sales – and results. A successful sales leader for over 20 years, she understands the challenges of selling in today’s market. Clients note her frank, no-nonsense approach to solving problems and addressing opportunities – an approach that delivers sales results.In this episode, they discussed the importance of salespeople receiving coaching, the changing sales landscape, creating urgency around the sale, and finding good salespeople for your team.Whether maximizing revenue from sales teams or seizing new market opportunities, Colleen works with businesses to develop the right sales strategies for success and delivers practical approaches to ensure it sticks. Colleen’s results have attracted clients such as Chevron, John Deere, NCR, Trend Micro, Merck, Abbott, Experian, Royal Bank, Mosaic, Dow, and hundreds of other industry-leading companies.Time and time again, clients who work with Colleen note her frank, no-nonsense approach to accelerate sales while reducing effort and increasing profits. Colleen’s practical strategies deliver immediate and lasting results.Colleen is an award-winning writer, consultant and bestselling author of popular sales books including the recent Right on the Money. A recognized thought leader in sales leadership, she is an inductee in the Professional Speaker Hall of Fame and has been named the #1 sales influencer to follow by LinkedIn.Learn more about Colleen, get your copy of her book, and find more sales resources at https://www.engageselling.com

Wondering what the #1 reason is for salespeople to fail?  You’ll find out in this episode!  This week on the leadership podcast, Jeffrey Gitomer, co-host of the Sell or Die podcast, joins Bradley to discuss sales.  Jeffrey is known as “the King of Sales,” having authored many #1 best-selling books on sales, providing over 40 corporate presentations each YEAR, leading “The Insiders Club” for highly motivated and successful salespeople, and offering powerful free resources to empower salespeople.In today’s episode, Jeffrey and Bradley discussed the belief system needed for sales.  Bottom line?  You need to believe in what you’re selling.  If you don’t think that your product or service will actually improve the lives of others, you’re not going to be as motivated in sales.They also discussed the importance of referrals.  You’ve probably heard this discussed before, but when one of the top sales leaders in the world says it, it’s worth hearing!  Referrals are the best leads you can have, because that person’s friend or family member believes in what you’re selling just as much as you do.Jeffrey Gitomer is a creative, on-the-edge writer whose expertise in sales, customer loyalty, and and personal development is world-renowned.  His insightful, humorous, and in-your-face approach has made him popular in corporate environments across the world.  His audiences learn from a real world approach to sales and walk away with advice they can take to the streets the very next moment.  You can find all of Jeffrey’s resources at www.gitomer.com

Today on the leadership podcast, Jonathan Milligan joins Bradley to talk about sharing your message and selling your offer.  Jonathan is the author of Your Message Matters: How to Rise Above the Noise and Get Paid for What You Know.Jonathan shared his 3 P’s for Thought Leaders and Industry Experts who want to share their message.  They are Purpose, Passion, and People.  You should believe in the purpose of your message, be passionate about the results you offer, and know who you’re marketing to.He and Bradley also discussed their parallel concepts of “Next Right Thing” and “Do This Next.”  They agreed on the importance of knowing how to put your priorities into order so that your actions are the most effective.Jonathan is also a blogger, speaker, and online business coach. He has spent the last decade guiding and directing creative professionals on how to pursue meaningful work. Since 2009, Jonathan has run his own portable lifestyle business online.Today he teaches others how to build a business with their passion, story, or message.  You can learn more about Jonathan and get your free copy of his book, Your Message Matters, when you visit https://www.yourmessagemattersbook.com/ 

This week on the leadership podcast, Bradley sits down with return guest Craig Wiggins.  They discussed changes in business operations, marketing, and hiring in a post pandemic landscape.  Craig shared his thoughts around what changed in business since the last time he was on the podcast.Craig Wiggins started his insurance agency in 1996 with 0 customers and 0 clients… Today he has built one of the largest agencies in the country with 4 locations in 2 states and over $40,000,000 in annual premium. Craig and his Agency consistently win top awards and recognitions year after year. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2020. In this episode, he spoke directly to insurance agencies.  He encouraged owners to remember that coverage is more important than price.  After all, anyone can undercut a price, but not everyone can provide coverage that will serve their customers.  In fact, he noted that if an insurance agent doesn’t do a good job, they may set their customer up for major problems down the road.Craig also encouraged owners to remind their team members of this fact.  An insurance agent is the #2 most important person in someone’s life.  You need to remind your team that what they do matters!He has found that when marketing your business, traditional methods have become more effective.  This means that centers of influence, referrals aka introductions, and even direct mail have been offering some great returns.  This is in direct contrast to standard practices over the past few years that have emphasized online reach.Craig talked about how to find truly great team members. A lot of people will lull into thinking that it’s easy to just post a job opening and get a bunch of applicants.  However, the kind of people you’re looking for may not be on Indeed or Monster. Have a high number of applicants doesn’t always mean they are qualified.He and Bradley discussed the value of having a second in command. This person would be responsible for operations and implementation of the vision.  Craig used the term Implementor to describe this person.  Their conversation included the importance of knowing when it was time to hire for this role, and what compensation should look like.Ready to learn how to succeed in a post-pandemic business world?Learn more about Craig and his coaching at www.craigwigginscoaching.com

Today on the Leadership Podcast, Bradley sits down with Cole Cubelic. Cole is a former Auburn University offensive lineman and captain, joined ESPN in 2011 as an analyst covering the SEC and Sun Belt Conference football games. He works at AL.com as a sports analyst, providing analysis and film room explanations of key battles on the offensive and defensive lines. He co-hosts Mcelroy and Cubelic In The Morning on WJOX 94.5 FM. He has worked as an analyst on SEC Network and ESPN3 telecasts, and has also been a weekly guest on The Paul Finebaum Show. In fall 2017, he joined SEC Saturday Night, the franchise that features SEC Network’s marquee college football game each Saturday – as a field analyst, alongside analyst Jordan Rodgers and commentator Tom Hart. He also covered select games as a field analyst for XFL on ABC.Cubelic previously hosted “The Cube Show” on 730 AM-WUMP, worked for the Sun Belt Network from 2009-13 and was a radio personality at WZZN from 2010-13, where he was the co-host of “Cubelic & the Kid” and “Monday Night Blast Off” on 97.7 FM in the Huntsville, Ala. area.