Growth Instigators Hotline
970.306.6432
I learned a long time ago not to do this at the airport.

Thank you for calling GIH where we instigate growth one call at a time where we utilize antiquated technology to deliver 3-minute leadership lessons every week day! This is message #137 and I am Aaron Havens.

I’ve taken quiet a few trips from Denver International Airport. I know if I park on the west side and enter a certain “hidden” entrance that I can get really close to the elevator that is near the checkin I need. I’ve got a pretty good system. Parking for me at DIA is pretty easy… now. It wasn’t always this way. In fact, a time or two I landed and had to spend a good amount of time looking for my car! Have you ever done that? Parked your car and then returned to the airport a few days later and had no idea where it was parked. At 5am in the morning, the day you’re departing, you think… ‘oh, I’ll remember where I parked’. ‘That’s easy’. The problem is, after departure numbers and times and gates and airbnb codes and check in procedures and check out procedure and reservations and work and play and wifi passwords and whatever else you can possible pack in… the memory of what level, what color, what animal, what spot… quickly fades.

In fact. Now, still, no matter what… as soon as I park my car, I take a picture of the East Side Red Bear C2 sign in front of my car. Last trip I took with my family I asked them all to remember the sign, and then two days into the trip I asked them what color it was. Haha. Half got it right. I couldn’t even remember. Yep, I’ve learned to ALWAYS take a picture of that sign. What seems so easy and FOR SURE, something I will remember… can easily be forgotten.

Where do you need to drop little bread crumbs in your life to help you remember? It’s ok to snap a picture. It’s ok to set reminders. Use your brain power for something more important and pressing. The biggest lie I tell myself is that I don’t need to write that down. I’ll remember that. How about you?

Do you have patterns set up to support your success? Do you put your keys and wallet in the same place every time? OR are you constantly spending precious calories “looking” and “searching”? Would a picture help you remember? When will your disorganization get the best of you? Is winging it and being scattered working well for you? Sounds harsh… I know. That’s why I’m the Growth Instigator! Haha

Thanks for calling in today. Tune in tomorrow for a fresh new topic. At the sound of the beep… what systems do you have in place to help you remember and save precious time/calories for more important things in life?

Growth Instigators Hotline
970.306.6432
What do you think is going to happen tomorrow?

Thank you for calling GIH where we instigate growth one call at a time where we utilize antiquated technology to deliver 3-minute leadership lessons every week day! This is message #136 and I am Aaron Havens.

If you’re following these Growth Instigator calls as they come out… today is a Monday. Today is also Labor Day. A lot of people have today off and will spend their day sleeping in, or cleaning or drinking or doing some fun hobby. What about you? And if the indulgence of a day off is too much… Tuesday will be a bit rough. If someone goes too hard today… tomorrow it might feel like they need a day off!

What do you do in your down time? In the time where life throws a little extra time to do what ever you want… what would that be? Will today set you up for a better tomorrow, or will you show up tomorrow feeling tired and unprepared because of today? Will tomorrow be a catapult into progress or a drag and catch up? Will you spend time today planning your growth for tomorrow?

When I’m at my best I spend time to think and reflect daily. Consider how I’ve lived, how I am living and how I want to live. This is deep work. No-one in your life can do the deep work that only you can do to show up as a better version of yourself. My friends are we planning the same rinse and repeat or are we planning our growth?

Franklin D Roosevelt once said “The only limit to our realization of tomorrow is our doubts of today”

If today finds you wobbly… will you put in the deep work to chase those thoughts or habits down so that tomorrow is a full realization of our one and only life? What are some things you know are toxic, or bad, or not the best, or even just neutral that you can put down and stop doing… stop spending time doing… or simply stop thinking that can produce better results”

My cell phone is within arms reach all day long. I use it for music, maps, emails, searches and on and on. Have you ever forgotten to plug your phone in at night? Yeah, that makes for a low battery and frustrating next day!

What are some things you can overcome and plan today that results in growth and a fully charged version of you tomorrow?

Thanks for calling in today. Tune in tomorrow for a fresh new topic. At the sound of the beep… What will you do today to show up on fire tomorrow?

Growth Instigators Hotline
970.306.6432
Train don’t blame!

Thank you for calling GIH where we instigate growth one call at a time where we utilize antiquated technology to deliver 3-minute leadership lessons every week day! This is message #135 and I am Aaron Havens.

I was scrolling online and came across a dog training company in PA named something like Train them don’t blame them. What a cool name. As YES!

When it comes to animals… isn’t that the case. I think we have all come across “good” dogs and “bad” dogs. It often is a direct reflection of the training the dog has received. Train them don’t blame them!

This is true for animals.
This is true for employees. (Ouch. That stings if you lead teams huh!)
This is true for teams.
This is true for kids.
AND
This is true for our minds.

Where do you create excuses for yourself? Where do you blame “forgetting” when the truth is you didn’t set up reminders or “I ran out of time” meaning you didn’t prioritize it enough or… really we could come up with dozens of examples where we BLAME when we haven’t TRAINED. When a dog knows how to sit, it will sit on command. When we each follow our Success Plan, then the outcomes are simple responses to what we have already determined as important aims in our life. Our muscle memory kicks in on the things we have already determined as important in our life and our minds and bodies and actions are on purpose because we have TRAINED for these optimal outcomes.

So personally, where are some areas that you are blaming and not training. If you’re constantly waking up late… put an analog alarm clock on the other side of the room and make sure it is set the night before to AM. Or just set 1000 alarms to make sure you’re not late. Get it? Where are we blaming and not training.

My friends. Where in our life have we let the lowest common denominator win. We’ve let our minds and bodies take the path of least resistance. We let a bad habit set in as being ok. We’ve not operated optimally? Are you ok with that? What is one thing you can do today to notice “blaming” and turn it into a challenge for “training”. And just maybe, where has our past training kinda gotten a little stale and we may need to go in and make some tweaks for a better outcome. Thanks for calling in today. Tune in tomorrow for the weekend edition where I ask you to teach me! For today, I’d love to hear your thought on this topic after the beep.

Growth Instigators Hotline
970.306.6432
Do you know the secret to writing the best speech of all time?

Thank you for calling GIH where we instigate growth one call at a time where we utilize antiquated technology to deliver 3-minute leadership lessons every week day! This is message #134 and I am Aaron Havens.

I’ve had the honor of helping high level leaders craft some pretty important speeches and presentations. Coaching some on how to give a good speech is a lot of fun. Most of us get nervous about public speaking. A lot of people fear speaking in front of a group of people.

As I’ve helped individuals hone in their speaking skills I’ve witness the single most important aspect of giving a speech. If you nail all other parts of the talk yet leave out this one thing… you’ve lost it. No matter if your giving a toast at a wedding, delivering key notes, presenting a presentation or a myriad of other public speaking possibilities. If you lose your heart, you’ve lost the whole point of the speech. Yep, it’s that simple. Sure facts and numbers and story are technical points that can weave in and out of presentations. However, if as the communicator you have lost the heart… you’ve lost the crowd. In public speaking three factors must be present. Logo. Ethos. Pathos.

Logos: Actual word. Knowledge. Content
Ethos: The right to speak. Experience. A crowd willing to listen.
Pathos: The right topic that comes from your heart. Compelling!

I’ve witnessed too many individuals make their speech too important. Most people, most presentation, most microphones beg for the same thing… passion! Do you believe in what you are saying? Don’t fall into the trap of trying to impress the crowd. As long as what you wrote and the topic is something you’re passionate about… you’ve won most of the battle. Just because someone says “do it this way” or “do it that way” doesn’t mean it will be a good fit for you.

So next time you’re speaking publicly. It could be an audience of one, maybe to a team or group of people… don’t lose your heart. Speak about what you’re passionate about and people will be drawn to your content.

Thanks for calling in today. Tune in tomorrow for a fresh new topic! After the beep, have you ever found yourself speaking about something that you had no interest in?

Growth Instigators Hotline
970.306.6432
Maybe you have an extra one that you can lend out or give away?

Thank you for calling GIH where we instigate growth one call at a time where we utilize antiquated technology to deliver 3-minute leadership lessons every week day! This is message #133 and I am Aaron Havens.

Has life been good to you? I mean, just the fact that I can spend calories recording these leadership lessons, and just the fact that you have the time and energy to call in means… well, you and I are pretty privileged. We have an excess of time and calories to pay attention to more than just basic survival. What a cool perspective! What do you have in excess? Are you willing to share with those around you? Let’s break it down to a simple challenge.

Have you heard this quote from the famous Dolly Parton…"If you see someone without a smile, give them one of yours.”

Wow! Are you living in such a way that you have a smile, and maybe even one to share? What would it look like if you showed up Centered. Level. Happy. I’ve said this before. Whoa to you if you encounter me on a day that I haven’t done deep work on myself. I might show up grouchy, grumpy, frustrated, irritated, negative and over all bah hum buggy. Yikes. Nah. Not you. Not me. Let’s be a people that can have an excess of smiles to share with a world that might really need to borrow yours. Maybe someone doesn’t even know how to smile until they try yours on.

So today. Do you have a smile? Do you have one to share?… Good! Please share it. If not, I’d encourage you in a little exercise. On a scale of one being BLAH and ten being HORRAH… what number do you give today. Are you ok with that? If not, what is one thing you can do to raise that number just one digit. So from a 5 to a 6, or 2 to a 3, or a 8 to a 9. Get it. You don’t have to jump multiple numbers. Just one more number is all this challenge is about. You up for that?

Thanks for calling in today. Tune in tomorrow for a fresh new topic! After the beep let me know… do you have a smile? Maybe one to share? And I’d like to know, what number did you rate today? What is one thing you can do to impove that number by one? After the beep… I’d like to know!

Growth Instigators Hotline
970.306.6432
The conversation got right to the point when he said “I’m just calling it as I see it.”

Thank you for calling GIH where we instigate growth one call at a time where we utilize antiquated technology to deliver 3-minute leadership lessons every week day! This is message #132 and I am Aaron Havens.

John Maxwell is known in leadership circles around the world. If you are serious about developing as a leader you will probably end up reading a book written by John Maxwell. He is a prolific author and speaking on the topic of leadership. I came across a quote of his that hits home.

"It is not the mistake that defines you, but how you take responsibility for it." – John C. Maxwell

If you listened to the Hotline yesterday I talked about breaking a ground light. Yep, I knew that was going to be expensive to replace. I also knew that I needed to contact the property manager before they contacted me. I asked him to give me a call. As I explained the mistake I made and told him the job was only 1/4 of the way finished he said “I’m just calling it as I see it. Maybe we should have picked another contractor”. To which I replied something like, “yep, I don’t blame you. We made a mistake and we will make it right. I just hate you have to spend your time dealing with this mess. I wouldn’t blame you if you moved on!”

Let’s get to the point. As the day progress we fixed the mess and owned it each step of the way. He is happy and we are already talking about the next contract.

I’ve learned a valuable lesson in my life. OWN YOUR MISTAKES. Don’t try to hide them. Don’t just hope no-one notices. Raise your hand and admit when you break that thing, make the wrong call, lose something, scratch something… on and on. And if your results are anything like mine. The people around you will be very gracious and your actions will actual draw people closer to you. They now know they can trust you do admit when you’re wrong and that you’ll do the right thing.

Thanks for calling in today. Tune in tomorrow for a fresh new topic! After the beep tell me about a time you royally messed up, owned it, and made it right. What did you learn from it. OR Let me know of a time you hid a mistake and still feel bad for it.

Growth Instigators Hotline
970.306.6432
Have you ever looked down and noticed a trail of shrapnel where you’ve been?

Thank you for calling GIH where we instigate growth one call at a time where we utilize antiquated technology to deliver 3-minute leadership lessons every week day! This is message #131 and I am Aaron Havens.

One of the companies I lead does commercial window washing. As we’ve grown, so has our height. We started out doing storefront single level windows. It’s not uncommon to find us 45’ 60’ even 80’ in the air these days. Our commercial buildings have gone from a few windows on the street level, to hundreds of windows multiple levels in the air. We’ve become pretty good at operating lifts and cleaning some pretty hard to get windows. Yesterday was one of those bigger jobs. It started out normal and easy. We move slow and methodical. We want to do a fantastic job and do it safely. Some jobs though. Man… some jobs just don’t go as planned.

It started with a couple trees that I had to maneuver our lift up and around a threw to get to the 4th story window. In the process, a 3 foot branch snapped off and fell to the ground. Nothing too big.

Then, as I was maneuvering a bit further a ground light snapped and shattered under the weight of the lift. Shoot… Looks like we will be replacing that at our cost.

Then a bit further. I did something I have done in a long time. I dropped my squeegee.

Then it started raining.

Then the lift kept making beeping alarm sounds and was flashing “STOPS”… whatever that means.

For a moment I paused, saw the limb, the broken light, and my squeegee all on the ground as the rain was starting and the lift was beeping. You know what I did? Lowered the lift to the ground and walked across the parking lot to get a hamburger and take a brake.

What do you do, when you look down and shrapnel is littering the ground? When it seems like the harder you work or the longer you stick with it… You know… grit… yet it keeps getting worse? When is it time to pause, STOP, and consider your next moves

"Don't dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward toward finding the answer." — Denis Waitley

Today… if you notice a train of “wrong” or “broken” or “mistakes”, may we be a people that doesn’t get lost or give up there. Instead, cheer me on spend energies on moving forward…. And I’ll be cheering you on as well!

Thanks for calling in today. Tune in tomorrow for a fresh new topic! After the beep tell me about a time it seemed the harder you worked the worse it got. And, what do you do when you find that to be your reality?

Growth Instigators Hotline
970.306.6432
Shoot. Where were you 5 min ago bro?

Thank you for calling GIH where we instigate growth one call at a time where we utilize antiquated technology to deliver 3-minute leadership lessons every week day! This is message #130 and I am Aaron Havens. Especially jarred from Colorado!

I was talking to a buddy the other day, I don’t want reference him because he will threaten to have his lawyers file a claim against me because I don’t give him credit. So I’m changing the situation and minor details so he doesn’t think this is about him or his idea. Hahaha

Have you ever been alone, doing something pretty cool, thinking… wow I wish someone could see me doing this… and then you take a break and someone comes along just seconds after you stop and you’re like… “bro, where were you 5 minutes ago. You missed it!”

And I guess the reverse could be true. “Bro, I’m glad you didn’t see me doing that. I biffed it!”

This is a great question to reflect on. Why do you do what you do?
Do you do it for us… or do you do it for you?
Extrinsic or intrinsic.
Is what drives you, what you do, something that makes you smile, makes you feel alive… or are you doing what you do to put up an appearance or show for the people who may or may not notice.

At the end of the day here is what I would say. You do you boo. Haha. If you’re trying to impress me, her, him, them… nope… that wont last. I’d rather coach you to do what puts a smile on your face while no one is watching. That way, you’ll be in it for the long haul. You’ll be happier, treat others better and make the world brighter today.

Thanks for calling in today. Tune in tomorrow for the weekend edition. After the beep I’d like to hear. What drive you? Why do you do what you do. What give you a smile… regardless of who is watching!