I guess it's only fitting to begin my blog with a personal tribute to a guy whose affect on me and my own life can not truly be described in words. I've never met the man and unfortunately for me, now I never will. On Saturday night, I received an e-mail - as did hundreds of thousands of others - telling me that the man I considered my mentor and foremost business philosopher Jim Rohn had died. Of course he did not know he was my mentor but to say this man affected and influenced my life and the way the Pub and Bar Network is managed is a gross understatement. His teachings form the very foundations on which sit our small company which began as Citypublife in a one bedroom flat in Earlsfield, London 8 years ago. His words continue to determine the direction and how Linda and I conduct our business on a daily basis.
When I hear testimonials from Licensees who are thankful of the business the Network has put their way, I know it's not just because of Linda and I. It's because of a man who has been in the background and the philosophies he's shared with me for 16 years and which inspires all that we do.
I am not too proud to say that if it was not for this guy I could still be peddling insurance and cold calling in the rain with cardboard in my shoes to keep my socks dry. Being on commission only and not very confident at selling is never a good combination.
Whether knowingly or not, we are all influenced in some way by others, most of us are blissfully unaware that tiny bit of the people we come across in our lives make up a certain amount of who we are, how we think and how we ultimately act. I guess the trick is to conciously become aware of it so you can choose who you let influence you.
Almost like living in a foreign country and without Realizing it you pick up a slight accent - you do not do it on purpose but the subtle changes can be heard by friends and family who have known you for years.
So as my own personal tribute to someone I have regard as a mentor for 16 years. I want to begin my blog by sharing a snippet of my story and Jim's legacy with you.
I do not remember how or exactly what date in 1993 it was - I know it was sometime after my daughter was born in the May - that I picked up a glossy A4 advertisement from a company called Nightingale Conant who were Promoting a set of 6 double sided tapes called the "Power of Ambition"By some American guy called Jim Rohn. Hey! I was at rock bottom, I obviously did not know what I was doing wrong maybe this guy did. I was as ambitious as hell to do something but did not have a clue how to get started or what to get started on. The choices I had made earlier in my life meant that I had no real skills for a "proper job.
It was and still is the best £ 60 I have ever spent - it's a steal at about 25 pounds now - and Although I now have them in CD format I treasure even today those tapes. 6 Those tapes are directly responsible for where I find myself today Which is a million times better than the place I was in 1993.
It was Jim Rohn's words and philosophy that I allowed to influence and inspire me to do better and rise above the mess and surrounding negativity I found myself. He said simple things like, "if you want things to change for you, you have to change." "If you want things to get better, you have to get better."
"search and you will find. I quickly learned that my predicament was my own fault (who would have thought?) And I could find some of the answers in books written by people who had already been there, I could not afford to buy the books so I joined the library and borrowed them.
He showed me that if I was to move forward I had to forgive past "errors in Judgment" and that I would need to "spend more time working on myself than I did working on the job".
He said "Do not wish it was easier, wish you were better. Do not wish for less problems, wish for more skills. Do not wish for less challenges, wish for more wisdom." Because of Him So I enrolled in College and studied Business and Finance. A great decision as it turned out because it's there that I discovered the power of computers and the Internet.
He also told me that to be successful I would need to do it "at the service of others and not at the expense of others and that if I could find a way to give enough people what they want, only then would I get what I wanted." At that time I still did not know what I wanted I only knew what I did not want - some of you might know the feeling.
These are the philosophies I continue to try to put into practice today. I still have errors in Judgment but not as many and not as severe and I know that I must continue to work on other weaknesses such as discipline.
He taught that "you can not see the results of changes in philosophy overnight, it takes time, patience, faith and discipline Consistently pursued" and to "use the past as a teacher not a stick to beat yourself up with". I learned how to "get from the day and not just get through the day". I mean c'mon. Just put a little of this stuff into practice and things will begin to happen for you.
Over the years my newsletters have been peppered with a number of Jim's unique quotes, the above are just a few I have repeated on many occasions to try to pass on his inspiration to License. The feedback I've had when I've included them has always been quite positive.
Jim said to think about things differently, for example, one of my favorites is:
Pay a bill as soon as you get it. Why? Because when you pay a bill you're Reducing your liabilities and increasing your assets ". (not to mention the goodwill it buys you for free).
Compare this to what one high street bank say in their book for helping business: "Negotiate longer payment terms for yourself so you have longer to pay. In other words keep the liability as long as you can if you go bust Because you will not have to pay it. You can then come to us for a loan, we can charge you lot's of interest and get ourselves a big bonus at the end of the year. "Remember, these guys are just one of a number of banks that put us and the worlds financial markets at risk.
Compare Jim's philosophy with corporates who Voluntarily go into "pre-pack administration" so that they can cream off the profitable pubs and carry on going about their business without paying their debts Whilst leaving in their wake a mass of unemployed and suppliers to pick up the pieces Because the Board of Directors cocked it all up. Leaving a legacy of misery with no accountability and justifing it all because it's "Legal". Admittedly there are some that are legitimate and can be morally justified but many are for pure greed.
Despite all of this "bad stuff" you have no control over, Jim say's "do not blame the company, the economy, the government, taxes, circumstance or other people. These are the same for everybody, it's your philosophy that needs to change".
Jim encourager us to accept and be grateful for paying our taxes Because without a strong and sustainable infrastucture for travel, schooling, energy, commerce, agriculture, law and order and so on. we would probably not have a business to run anyway. (I know some of the infrastructure is corrupt but it's mostly sound).
Another quote that has stuck with me over the years and I practice is "never" nickel and dime "someone out of their profit, they will not want to deal with you again". Jim adds "always pay fair price for good value".
The guy brags in the pub at what a good deal I got at the expense of somebody else. There's nothing wrong with a good deal but always leave the seller to profit. 1. So that you keep getting good deals 2. Because of what it makes of you.
"To receive you first need to give". Jim also put it another way. "You need to plant your seeds before reaping your rewards.I wonder what society would be like if we all looked at what value we were giving and not just what we are getting. Jim said, "It's not what you are getting that's important, it's what you are becoming that's important".
Jim believe we should write our ideas in journals, not on a scrap piece of paper. he said "The reason why I spend so much money for my journals is to press me to find something valuable to put in them". He expands on that further in saying that his CD Although I might spend $ 50 on an empty book the value of that book by the time I had finished writing in it was far greater than what he had paid.
There are hundreds if not thousands of these little gems of Jim Rohn's wisdom that have influenced me and the way Linda and I run our Network for pubs and bars and, over the coming weeks I intend to find the time go over his books, tapes and CD's again and revisit the teachings of this great mentor. Do not be surprised to see one or two of them in future newsletters.
Jim always wanted to leave a legacy and Hoped that people across the world would be touched and influenced by his words. Well, I did not just touch my life, I've grabbed me by the throat, shook me around, slapped me about a bit and set me down pointed in a completely different direction than the one I was heading.
Through me, I've also touched Linda's life and that of a few close friends. One phone me late last night and began by saying "I've got some really bad news ...."I thought he was going to mention a family member or close friend but I went on to tell me that Jim had died - this emotion was for a guy neither of us had ever met. I thank me for introducing him and told me that Jim had touched his life too.
I began this blog by saying that I wanted to pay my own personal tribute to a guy Whose Affect on me and my own life can not truly be described in words. I guess the best tribute I can give is to carry on in the direction he pointed me, put into practice all that I have taught and spread a little of the "good stuff" I have shared.
My life is certainly richer, my mind busy, my conciounce is clear, my journey is easier and my destination is no longer an empty dream Because of knowing him.
I leave you with this final quote from his website:
"I wish for you a life of health wealth and happiness, a life In which you give to yourself the gift of patience, the virtue of reason, the value of knowledge and the influence of faith in your own ability to dream about and Achieve worthy rewards'.
Thanks for everything Jim.
Gratefully Yours
Perry Mayer
More Jim Rohn Tributes
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