This is key number nine out of ten keys to grow your business,
your entrepreneurial practice, by ten times. In this particular key and episode,
I'm going to talk about how powerful thinking tools
reveal the smallest changes that will have the greatest impact. This is a game changer.
So, I'm Doug Andrew, I've been an entrepreneur and a business owner. In fact, I've started
several businesses for now 48 years. I've helped many financial advisors
take their business to 10 times or more in less than 60 months while simplifying their life.
I've also done this for orthodontists, chiropractors, CPAs, tax attorneys, and so forth.
I want to do this for you. So, in this series of ten keys and this particular one is key
number nine. I would beg you to watch the other keys because they all go together
and this is really a sum total of what I've invested over three million bucks in my life
sharpening my saw Steve Covey would say. Now, as I proceed be sure and click like or post
a comment or share if you can think of other business owners that would benefit from this.
Because in this particular one, I'm going to show you some tools because thinking tools are
one of the key components that has helped me take my business from a half a million dollars
net to me in the 1990s to over 5 million dollars in less than 60 months. So, here we go, this
particular key number 9 is part of the book the 10 keys transformation and if you stay with me, I'm
going to show you how you can claim a free copy of this book. So, as we focus up here
on the screen key number nine in the book is stated this way. Use the best tools.
Identify the smallest chains with the biggest impact. Which is a phrase that
I got from Dr. Robert Cooper on one of my coaches and mentors
that I mentioned in key number 8. So, one of the tools that I like to use is a scorecard.
So, in the 10 keys book, you will actually see a foldout of
the 10 key scorecards and at the end of every one of
these keys in this episode the series I go across these and there is a score between
poor, fair, good, better, best, on a scale of one to ten and you put your score down and on
10 keys you add it up to a score between 1 and 100. My goal is to help you raise your score
but you have to get clear on where you're at. So, in my financial book called the laser fund
I have a scorecard that looks like this and so it talks about the components that people want
on their money liquidity, safety, rate of return, tax advantages, the cash generator
and so forth. You cannot read this here on this episode. But here, I have statements from poor,
fair, good, better, to best, and when people come to a live event or they go online on a webinar or
they read a book they score themselves and then they have a score between 1 and 100 on where
they are at financially. My goal is to help them raise that score to over 90 in less than a year if
I can but for sure in four years. So, this is in the book and I have this type of a template. I've
helped many entrepreneurs do this and many times I will in a live event put it in full color and
it looks just like the same color coding as the 10 keys but this one is different.
This is liquidity, safety rate of return, but I'll pass this out in an event, whether it's 90
minutes long or six hours long and at the end, the attendee has a score and at the end I say,
"How many of you would like to have a higher score in the future?", that's what I do.
I help you raise this score. So, it doesn't matter if you use this format and I can help you do that.
There's ways to engage with me in the 10 keys transformation when you claim your free copy of
the book. But I can do this for orthodontists, chiropractors, fitness trainers, nutritionists,
I've done it for all of them. Now, the tools that we also have there's 22 other tools that I
introduce in this particular key and so there are like six or seven that we use on a regular basis.
I mean, they're sitting all over the place in the office in these little pockets on the wall.
These are tools that I would say are on your tool belt.
In fact, most of the people that I teach this to in my own company they don't even need the
physical sheet of paper because they have it memorized and so the project clarifier,
the solution formulator, the better life circle, the opportunity breakthrough, the goal activator,
the daily focus, these are used all the time. These are on our tool belt. There are other
tools six or seven that are in a toolbox, you use it once a month or once a quarter
and so that's the engagement filter, the key message communicator, the gratitude amplifier,
unacceptable detours, and dead ends, appreciation accelerator, the quick thinker, and I introduced a
glimpse of that in key number 8. And then there's another seven or eight tools that are in a tool
shed. This is where you pull it out once every six months, it's seasonal. Maybe once a year.
These are your new year's goals or what have you for your business
and so the 10 relationship breakthrough, the negative experience transformer.
I remember wins, what matters most, the conscious communicator,
the game plan, and also yearly planner exercise that you can do to plan your entire year.
So, these are examples of tools, some on a tool belt, some in a toolbox, some out in the tool
shed, you use seasonally. Does that make sense? So, as we go through this my favorite tools are
on my tool belt are the project clarifier, the solution formulator, the better life circle, the
opportunity breakthrough, and the goal activator. I probably use these on a weekly basis at least
once a month or more. So, let me just give you a glimpse of these to give you a taste and then
I would strongly recommend you subscribe to this channel. I actually have episodes that
talk about every one of these where I devote the whole episode just a particular tool.
But click like and share with other entrepreneurs but stay with me to the end,
because when you get this full master class you can download these tools and use them
and they will make a huge difference. Because many times, I pay twenty-five thousand dollars
as an investment to go to strategic coach and all Dan Sullivan does is help us think. It's
just getting away from the business and thinking and he has forms all the time for us to fill out.
So, this is the project clarifier, it's an eight half by eleven sheet of paper. When you watch the
full episode about this you have some project that you're tackling and you briefly describe it and
you simply write down what's your vision of the best outcome in this box. What existing barriers
need to be overcome in this box. Why will this project transforms your business your practice?
You get super clear and then you come over here and you fill out the success s-u-c-c-e-s-s. that's
an acronym, simple and short, understand the audience or what you're accomplishing.
You want to have clarity. you want to make sure it's concrete not abstract. You want to make sure
that it involves emotion right brain and left brain. You want to have substance it can't just
be esoteric fluff out there. They've got to be able to get their brain around it that I can
do this and then you want to have synergism among your team, okay. Once you get super
clear in the success formula then you write down the three specific things that must be
true when the project is done. One eight and a half by eleven sheet
of paper you can't believe how much time this saves and I've just given
you a taste. So, that's called the project clarifier.
One of my favorite is the solution formulator and I teach this to my employees, our producers,
my kids, my grandkids. We do this every year on a family vacation called grandpa's camp with
our grandchildren. This is where whenever they have a decision to make, which college to go to?
Whether to work here or there or which girl or guy to date, any decision. You fill out
the solution formulator. In a nutshell, you go through several steps in a strategic fashion.
You're describing the decision, the problem you're trying to decide upon or overcome and then
you think about the big picture. Why will this make a difference if I make the right decision?
Then you come down here and you write down the date that you have to make that decision by
or that it comes to fruition. Then you come back and you basically brainstorm. What are the three
greatest benefits that will come about because of you achieving this goal or this project? Now, you
brainstorm and you circle the top three. You come over and then you list a bunch of the barriers or
roadblocks that stand in the way and then you circle the three biggest barriers or roadblocks
or hindrances that you need to eliminate. Over here you write down, so what are the strategies?
The resources that you can use to eliminate those and again, three three three. The human brain can
get around a list of three that's why you just circle the top three. The rest will sort of fall
into place. Then finally over here, what are the greatest opportunities now that will come
and you wouldn't believe how many opportunities come that you didn't even think about when you
started this and then you make your decision down here and you flip it over and you write
down all the action steps. This form whether it takes you 10 minutes or 30 minutes.
In our company, we don't have problems. We have situations,
we have issues, but before any employee can come to me they have to fill out one of these
and most of the time they cancel the appointment with me because they've already figured out the
solution. They don't need me to solve it. I have them think through it before they even
present it and most the time if they do come they're just wanting my stamp of approval.
Am I thinking the right way to solve this? You want to empower those that you care about. See,
so that's the solution formulator. The better life circle you're just learning from your experiences
you're transforming. Anytime we do anything a radio show,
a series of webinars, or seminars, or we write a book, or we do a radio show,
we fill out a better life circle. Every time I do grandpa's camp for my grandkids I fill out a
better life circle. What is the experience that I want to transform and learn from.
What went right? What went wrong? Okay and then what can we do better? What is it that we're
learning and then next time we do this what are we going to do in the proper order to make sure the
next one is better learning from the past? I've actually used this better life circle
for people who went through an ugly divorce. Sometimes they come and they say,
"How come I'm always making bad decisions. This is my third husband. How come I always marry jerks?",
and I go, "Maybe you ought to fill out a better life circle", they do and they go,
"I could have avoided the second and third jerk if I would have filled this out", yeah,
because you're identifying what you're going to do next time you meet a guy or a gal and start dating
before you say yes or let's get married. Whatever situation it is it's to have a better life, okay.
Now, the other one is called the opportunity breakthrough there are several forms of this
one. Anytime you have an opportunity you want to determine are you going to seize that opportunity,
delegate it to somebody, or walk away. But the first thinking process is to
write down the opportunity that is presented itself and you identify the break b-r-e-a-k.
The b are the barriers that stand in the way. You circle the top three and write them over here.
What are the three greatest resources that you need to use or draw from in order to seize the
opportunity? You circle the top three and write them over here you rewrite it because that sinks
it in. What are the experiences you need to have or draw from other people's experiences? One,
two, three. What are the actions you need to take? What is the number one, number two, number three,
most important action and then the knowledge you need to obtain or draw from other people?
And bam bam bam the three greatest places where you're going to glean the greatest knowledge.
You do that in about seven eight ten minutes and you will be thinking clearer about how to
turn an opportunity from a 55% chance of success to over 90-95 percent with one sheet of paper.
These are just samples of these particular tools. Another one is the goal activator. You set goals
but most people they don't even keep their new year's resolutions by February, they're going
to lose weight. They join a gym and by February it's a ghost town. Hello... where'd everybody go?
Because they didn't go through a sheet of paper and write down how they are going to stick with
their goal. This is the goal activator you're getting the point. These are just 5 of 22 tools
that we have in our toolbox or two belts, the tool shed when you study the 10 keys transformation.
So, this is my invitation to you. In the book, you'll see the scorecard and I've been talking
about just one of the 10 keys key number 9. So, let me just ask you these questions,
if you are entrenched in the method you've always used to reach your right-fit clients. Golly,
that's a one or a two on a scale of one to ten. If you occasionally assess the smallest changes
that will have the biggest impact to your bottom line that might be a two or a three
or four. You're like most business owners. You just occasionally think about stuff like that,
you're not thinking. If you constantly assess who are we missing. What is the
rate of a return of the return on investment on marketing and innovation. Then you're beginning
to score yourself five or six out of ten. What's better than that? You arm those who recommend you.
You arm those who recommend you to easily defend with pride. Why they engaged with you?
So, many people I say, "How do you get referrals oh when somebody
sends them over?", what? How many times
have you been out having lunch or meeting with somebody and you go, "Wow, you need to read one
of Doug Andrews books", you need to talk and then you go, "Well, I don't have his information or
whatever", hello and then they forget or even if you hand them a card they lose the card.
So, I are my recommenders they just go here. You got a smartphone over there, okay. There's
his information, there's the business card, and by the way, just click on those five videos and
all of a sudden bam they have my business card in their phone or here this is how you can get
a free copy of his book compliments of me. So, go here and do this let's order it right now and bam.
I armed my recommender to easily defend with pride and they say, "Well, I can't explain this but he
does in his Youtube, in his audiobook. He does it in his book and I want to gift you a free copy.
He's allowed me to do that". See? I get referrals like crazy. You're beginning to connect the dots.
Now, what's better than that is you have a whole toolbox, you have tool belts, and tool sheds, of
thinking tools that tweak your system constantly okay to where you're getting predictable results
and that's one of the other keys in this series is how to create predictable results.
So, having the right thinking tools is a game changer.
I want you to seize the opportunity to be able to learn this. This is what I've invested over
3 million bucks in my life and so I've put it in this book. When you go to the website
free10book.com or click on the link below you can for a nominal processing fee download a
digital version and print it off. You can get the audio version and listen and learn. I do both,
I listen while I read. But there's an 18-hour master class that when I taught it live I had over
3,000 business owners pay 6,000 bucks in tuition. They called it an investment. some came back two,
three, four, five, times and paid six thousand. You can go through this master class online for
just a few hundred bucks. So, seize the opportunity and I wanna see you
on the other side of your brighter future while simplifying your life.