I’ve got two words for people who want to have more success in their life:
MAN UP.
Which is also the name of my book coming out July 2018.
Now, I didn’t write this book because I know everything about everything.
I wrote it because I want to help other entrepreneurs avoid falling into the same traps I did in my health, relationships, mindset, and productivity.
I suffered massive anxiety attacks between 2012 to 2014 because I was an ineffective leader. I had the potential to create a massive business with Fit Body Boot Camp, yet it was struggling and on its death bed because I wasn’t a high performer.
Finally by the end of 2014, I decided enough was enough and I told myself “it’s time to man up.”
I repeated this phrase over and over to myself, and one “it’s time to man up” at a time allowed me to fix my life, business, partnership, team, everything.
And I always like to make it clear that it wasn’t a light switch. It was more of a dimmer switch where you slowly do this.
You can’t go from a crop duster of a leader to a fighter jet of a leader in a snap.
So now, I’m going to share the 5 pillars you need in order to man up and take control of your life and business.
Be Decisive
Indecision as cost entrepreneurs more time and money than not making a decision.
I knew Fit Body Boot Camp had massive potential to become an 8, 9 figure empire, but I wasn’t anywhere near that potential.
I knew the decisions I need to make to get there, but I was constantly looking for more clarity to make these decisions.
Not making a decision is making a decision.
It is letting circumstances take control of the outcome, and 99.9% of the time, the outcome isn’t in your favor.
Let’s say you’re trying to pick between two hosting sites for your fitness website. Instead of spending hours researching both of them, just pick one and execute.
If you come to find this platform isn’t helping you get more leads or drawing enough traffic, then you can course correct and pick a new hosting site.
Every decision you make doesn’t have to be the right decision, you just have to make a decision quickly.
In my book, I teach you to start making small decisions fast so that you can make the bigger decisions quickly as well.
Decide where you and your spouse are going to have dinner. Decide what movie you and your friends are going to see. Decide if you’re going to wear the blue shirt or the red shirt. And do it fast!
Great leaders don’t make the right decision every time, they just make a decision and course correct if it ends up being the wrong one.
Clarity of Vision
With Fit Body Boot Camp, I didn’t know if I wanted 100, 1,000, or 5,000 locations.
For me, this was a big struggle. This showed my team that they had a leader who was a drifter, which created insecurity.
No one wants to follow a flighty leader. People want to feel confident and secure in their jobs and know what the end goal is.
So I got clear on my vision: I want 2,500 locations and less than 1,000 owners by the year 2020.
Which leads me to the next pillar…
Clarity of Path
Now that I had a clear vision, I needed a path to get there.
I was the guy doing all the sales, which meant I was also the bottleneck. So I outsourced the marketing for lead generation and replicated myself through more salespeople.
All of a sudden, our number of new locations per month went from 3-5 to 30.
You’re human. It’s okay if you find yourself veering off your path as long as you steer yourself back between those white lines.
If you have a clear vision, and you stray a little off, then you can course correct and get back on the path.
Don’t Emotionally React
An effective leader doesn’t emotionally react under stress, they respond.
If you are a living, breathing human being with a pulse, you have problems.
When you emotionally react to problems, the people around you look at you as a chaotic, ineffective leader and start looking for an out.
You don’t want to be the boss who walks into a room and puts everyone on edge because they don’t know what’s going to set you off that day.
Make your gym or bootcamp a place of sanctuary for your team members to become the highest performers possible.
One compliment I receive from my team members is my consistency. And that creates a sense of security so they always know what they’ll get when they meet with me.
Build a High Performance Team
Get rid of employees, and build a high performance team.
If you don’t have a high performance team, you can’t build your business into an empire.
A fighter jet team shows up early, leaves late, gets the job done, and crosses the finish line no matter what.
I define employees as people who clock in a little late, clock out a little early, and do the bare minimum to keep their job.
I happen to be the team captain, but we all work together to reach our end goals.
If you can meet these 5 pillars, then you have manned up. And ironically, it bleeds into your health, your finances, your relationships.
Constantly set the bar higher for yourself, and set those same expectations for your team members.
Manning up is a work in progress. It’s an ongoing feat, and the moment you stop manning up is the moment you drive off your path.
To listen to Craig Ballantyne and I cover all of this and more, watch our Empire Podcast here
To sign up for my MAN UP early bird list and get notified when the book launches, click here