High Performance Coach, Steven Griffith talks about how many Entrepreneurs and Executives feel like they are running out of time, which is something they can’t control.
Griffith explains that the reality is, their beliefs, ability to focus and stay balanced, which they can control, is what is really preventing them from performing at much higher levels.
For Griffith, the most important part of success lies in mindset. He believes in being focused on knowing what your purpose is, creating goals, and eliminating limiting beliefs and distractions. He also educates his clients on how to be more present so they can start responding to the things that are happening in the world, instead of unconsciously, emotionally reacting. “I use this word grit,” he explains, “grit is being able to have a sustained effort in the face of resistance.” Griffith believes that grit can be the difference between success and failure.
Jack:All right. Well, let’s keep rolling. Today, I have a special guest, Steven Griffith. Steven, this is actually, some people may find that he’s in an enviable position and probably helps people in enviable positions in that he helps successful businesses. And when I’m talking about successful, I’m talking about top CEOs, executives, celebrities, professional athletes, Olympic athletes.
That most would look at and see as having reached success, but any of you out there that know, that have reached that success or reached to a point where you have traction towards hitting those goals that you set out for yourself, you start seeing the problems that come along with it. You start realizing that you have blind spots and you have some weaknesses in the foundation.
And that’s exactly what Steven Griffith does is come in and help people work through those blind spots. And that, to me, is an influencer that is helping people that are influencers themselves, and entrepreneurs, and people that are running large companies and doing things that are inspiring others.
So, Steven, glad to have you here today. Welcome.
Steven:Jack, thanks for having me on the show. I really appreciate it.
Jack:Yeah. Well, let’s get right into it. You know, there’s a saying, the old saying that “be careful what you ask for because you just might get it.”
And in my mind’s eye, that’s your client. They’re people that have gone after their goals. They’ve been aggressive. They’ve done the things. They’ve worked hard. And they’ve reached that success. And I’ve met a lot of people like this. Very successful. And then they realize, man, it doesn’t matter how successful I am, I can’t make someone put more than 24 hours in the day.
I can’t scrub any harder. I’m working as hard as I can, as many hours as I can, yet I know there’s potential for so much more in my business. And they’re just trying to figure out, they’ve got a capacity problem and that they find it might be tough to get over that mountain. And you seem to be the guy that everybody points to that can help them get over that mountain. Tell me about that.
Steven:Well, Jack, here’s the thing. For most people that are high performers, and the people that I work with, when I really help educate and move them forward is, it’s a matter of focus and balance. And as we start getting more and more successful, we get families, we get more employees. We start having to manage more money and situations.
A lot of times, entrepreneurs and executives, they feel like they’re running out of time. And the reality is it’s just the ability and beliefs behind their performance, and their ability to focus and stay balanced. And what I have been blessed to be able to do is help those performers look at the beliefs they’re operating from and then get that balance back in their life to be more efficient in their time, so they can perform in shorter periods of time at higher levels.
Jack:You know, and that person, a lot of times, those people think is there really a solution for me? Have I actually hit my peak? Have I hit the plateau of where I’m going and sometimes, they can actually hit that plateau, only because they don’t know of the options available.
I think about the person that’s on the, what I call the entrepreneurial wheel. The wheel, the hamster wheel. Right? They get on and it’s tough to get off. They get on that wheel and think, okay, I’ve got to increase my marketing budget so I can do more business. And then I have to hire more people so they can handle the business. But then I’ve got to build my marketing budget so I can get more business, so I can afford to pay the people that are working.
And it’s a hamster wheel that they don’t seem to be able to find a way off and get to the point to where all they’re doing is figuring out how to keep that wheel rolling, instead of thinking about growing their business.
And so what is it about this type of person, the mindset of these successful people that you see is a common obstacle, or that common blind spot that they have that you first target or identify?
Steven:Well, one of the big things that’s across all, if it’s executives, entrepreneurs, entertainment, athletes, a lot of people have built their success on the belief they’ve got to do it themselves. And that is a great belief and it’s a great work ethic. And, at some point, you’ve got to start working smarter and not necessarily harder.
And so what I started to do is show them how they can actually start working smarter. How can they regulate their stress and anxiety? How can they get more sleep and then, physically, perform better?
You know, Jack, really the most important part is the mindset. It’s the beliefs and the values and the purpose – getting them connected to their purpose. And I have this saying, we are always working hard, but we do it by ourselves, but we never do it alone.
All top performers have a coach and someone that’s helped them. So I just show I’m an advocate for their success and show them, in their mindset, the beliefs that are holding them back. Where they think they’ve got to do it all themselves. Or they’ve got to put in another hour or two.
And when we really pull back the curtain, we look at a lot of the areas where we can get more time and we become more and more efficient. Because the biggest commodity today – it’s not time, actually. It’s focus. So you really have to be focused on knowing what your purpose is, your goals, and eliminating the beliefs and all the distractions and then you can see two and three and four times improvements very quickly.
Jack:You know, you said a word earlier that I don’t want people to overlook and it’s very important. You said it a couple of times, and that’s balance. And it seems to me that there are a finite number of hours. A finite number of things that you can focus on. And one of the first things that a lot of these entrepreneurs and celebrities and athletes do is take away from their personal time. Perhaps their family. Their relationships and things like that.
And you said that people do it all themselves. They think they have to do it all themselves. And that’s obviously what suffers, in that a person starts a business. An athlete, they become successful because they’re willing to do it all themselves. But then, at some point, that becomes to their detriment, that they keep doing it all themselves, where it takes away.
At what point do you see that that balance starts to shift to where the balance just isn’t there anymore?
Steven:Well, it’s like you can only run so far. You can only bench press so much. You can only see so many clients. So when you max out physical hours, that’s when kind of your CP or your brain power starts going down. And what usually happens is somebody will be not getting the sleep they need. They’ll start having relationships that are having troubles.
They’re missing opportunities that in the past they wouldn’t have missed. The symptoms start showing up. And that’s when physically, the amount of hours in the day, they’ve maxed out. So that’s when we get back into that mindset. What is the mindset they’re operating from?
And one of the big things that I do is actually help people be more effective in their communication, as well. So if we have less time, we’ve got to really maximize the time that we’re with our family, our friends, our colleagues and really be in this place of mindfulness, as I talk about, where we’re just present in the moment.
We’re not checking our phones. We’re not worrying about what’s happening over there or here, but we’re really present. So if we’ve only got an hour, but we’re fully present, that can be like five hours for somebody that’s totally distracted.
So what I do is help educate those entrepreneurs, executives going to the next level, to be more present. And so they can start responding to the things that are happening in the world, instead of unconsciously, emotionally reacting.
And when you start doing that, you become two, three, four times more efficient instantly.
Jack:Well, and so right there, I think you’ve gone a little, you’ve gone deeper than a lot of folks, when I hear the, you know, it’s a popular saying, I do less to get more. Right? Do less to get more.
And it sounds great. It sounds so attractive. And I’m an entrepreneur myself. And I want that lifestyle, but that is where sometimes it’s from bed to the computer and then computer to bed. I mean, that’s the day. And I understand the concept of doing less to get more.
But what I want you to do is tell me, how is that possible? What are some examples of how someone can actually back off and stop doing things they think are required to sustain or grow their business and allow it to still grow?
Steven:So there’s this kind of place where it’s a diminishing return, right? So, and if you’re in the gym working out, at some point when you start picking up the weights, an hour, hour-and-a-half into it, you can no longer perform. And it’s actually going against your body.
It’s the same thing in business. You’ve got to balance your mindset and the time and focus, to actually perform at your highest peak level. And when I’m working with entrepreneurs, one of the things I tell them is 75 minute segments. And this is just a little tip for everyone out there. Is that work in 75 minute segments and then take a 10 minute break. That’s the highest efficiency in the brain. And then you recharge in that 10 minutes.
There’s tons of research on that particular concept. But really what it comes down to is what your internal belief system is about how you earn what you do in the world and how you self-regulate yourself.
And the more you’re present in an hour, so what you just said is really true, Jack, is that you can’t keep maximizing. There are only so many hours in the day. But if my hour, and I train my clients to do this, is a hundred percent efficient, that’s like three hours for somebody else, because they’re totally present. They’re making decisions and acting in their business in a way that’s maximizing the results.
So if you’re the average guy out there, just trying to do the best you can and you haven’t trained your mind and you don’t have the skillset, you’re distracted. You’re multi-tasking and all of a sudden three hours go by and you haven’t really done anything.
So it’s really not about getting more time. It’s being present and efficient in those hours and actually having the right mindset. Knowing what your goals are. Knowing what your purpose is. And having some accountability and some help. We all need help.
Jack:Yeah. Well, I can agree with that and I actually see where, while you were saying that, I’m thinking back and I’m going through the little diary of what I did yesterday. What I did the day before. And I’m thinking, wow, you know? I was doing some pretty unprofitable tasks that probably I could have not done nor had someone else do that would have left me to do some far more profitable tasks.
Let me ask you this. And this is one, cause I know my wife is going to want to know this, sometimes we are watching like these reality shows. I don’t want to admit it. They’re like a cultural train wreck to me. I don’t want to watch them. Sometimes I have to, right?
And you think about these celebrities and you see them. Of course, it’s just moments of their day. Where do they have the time? How do they fit in all the stuff? You see some of the tasks that they have to do and I have to ask you, since you have seen this firsthand, you work with some reality TV folks.
I think the T & Tamara. Those folks, we see their reality show. And you say, how do they get all the stuff done in a day and not that you want to reveal any personal or private client information, but those type of folks, having insight into what they’re day is like, how do they fit it in and what is it that you do that helps them refrain or stop doing those unnecessary things and to focus more on those things that are more important, so that they can get the most out of their day while doing less activities than most folks would do?
Steven:Well, it’s a great question. It all comes down to really prioritizing what’s super important for you in that day and putting the most amount of your energy on the important tasks. See, the brain, it’s a very interesting thing with the brain. The brain actually wants to start with the lower level task.
But you, as you go through those lower level tasks, by the time you get to the super important things that are going to move your career or your business to the next level, you’re tired.
So you’ve got to train yourself to actually attack the tasks that are most difficult. And that takes some training in the brain. Then also being able to self-regulate yourself. How do you get yourself regulated when you’re stressed out and when things are coming at you?
And then really, I use this word “grit.” What I do is educate and coach people how to. Grit is being able to have a sustained effort in the face of resistance. And that’s a mindset. And that’s a training.
And so when the stresses of life come at you, my clients have the ability to move through that. And still perform at a high level. And so the people that have this grit and the research shows that grit is the single factor in high performing people for success. It’s not talent.
Now, if you have talent and grit, you’re a super star. But it’s really learning how to regulate your mind and your emotions. Getting your beliefs and your values aligned with what your true purpose is. Because you know what it’s like. When you’re fully engaged with what you love doing and you’re in it, time stops. And you’re powerful. And you’re making money. And you’re helping people. And your career is advancing.
But when you’re stressed out and distracted and you can’t get your focus, days and weeks and months just slip away.
Jack:You know, and I think what you just said is something that only entrepreneurs or people with that entrepreneurial bug or that entrepreneurial pursuit understand and have experienced.
And I think those who are listening to you right now that are in that, have just connected and resonated in a big way. And I have to say, what you just said over the last couple of minutes really addressed something that was really kind of bothering me.
And I’ll have to admit that when I was looking, I said, now how can this guy help people from such diverse areas, from CEOs to celebrities to athletes? Because I thought these folks have such, there’s such a variable and dynamics to those different careers or industries. How do you have the expertise to be able to help each one of them?
But I think what you just talked about is really the underlying core that seems to probably go across just about any industry, whether they’re an entrepreneur in raising show horses to the person that’s a professional athlete. That core, talking about that grit, talking about that focus that they have.
Do you find that that’s the biggest blind spot that you attack right there, regardless of what industry this entrepreneur’s in?
Steven:Yes. Jack. Here’s what the reality is. The problem’s on the surface. Different industries. All the problems are kind of in the same situations or same silo. The solutions are all the same. So there can be a little bit of difference in the actual problems, but the solutions are all the same.
And I’ve spent a lot of time really studying how the brain works, how to regulate emotions. And break through barriers. So each industry, people come to me when they’re stuck. They’re doing well, but they know there’s more. And they’ve gone to their limit.
And so what we’re doing is helping them push through with that grit. And to be really clear on what they’re going for. What their purpose is. I always say that we all, when we take our first breath of air, we get an assignment.
My assignment’s different than the person next to us. But it’s clear. The assignment is what your purpose is. And when you’re clear on your assignment, if you’re an athlete or a celebrity, an entrepreneur, an executive, and then you have laser focus, I’ve seen people radically change their life very quickly because they are committed in knowing where they’re going. You’ve got to know where you’re going. And then you have to have the skills that when you get stuck, you can break through.
And that’s what really I help people do. And I’m shoulder to shoulder with them. So I can be a resource so that when they get stuck and they might not have a skill, I can help create that for them so they can do it on their own.
Jack:Well, I have to say, as an entrepreneur myself, and knowing a lot of entrepreneurs, and seeing folks that struggle from going from six figures to seven figures, and the people going from seven figures to eight figures in their business, I can say, and I recognize now after listening to you, that what got them to move was they got unstuck.
You know, a lot of times, their problems are the same. It’s just the commas and the zeroes are different. But I do recognize that they reached a point where they were stuck and what almost catapulted them to the next level was they got unstuck.
And I think if that’s what you do for folks is to get them unstuck, then I will say firsthand and experiencing this and witnessing this, that’s a bargain at any price, when you see the results of what getting unstuck can do.
Now, you obviously have influenced a lot of successful and even well-known entrepreneurs and athletes and celebrities. I have to ask, what influences you? What influences the influencer?
You mentioned that you studied a lot of stuff in this field, but what influences you in general, just to make you keep going and helping folks the way that you do?
Steven:Well, there are a couple of books that I love that really have guided me. One is the Science to Getting Rich. Another one is called Outwitting the Devil by Napoleon Hill. It’s some of his hidden work that just came out.
And then I’ve looked at and I encourage, there’s a book out there called the Brain That Changed Itself. And this is the research that we can actually rewire our brain, that we can actually rewire our beliefs.
Because you said something a second ago that I wanted to comment on, that no matter what industry or what area somebody comes to me from, it comes down to this. They usually have a belief that they can’t go any further. So we’ve got to shift that belief. So I help them believe they can do it. And then usually, there are some skills they’re missing and I help educate and give them the skill.
And there was something that just popped into my head when you said that and I thought about all the books that I’ve read and the people that I’ve studied and it gave me the belief that when I read those facts or I read those stories, that I actually could do it or saw what was my blind spot. And none of those same trainings and books actually gave me the skills.
So it was a combination of the belief that you could get past it and then the skills that go with it. And so that Science of Getting Rich is a great mindset book. And Outwitting the Devil from Napoleon Hill, it just came out a year or two ago. It just was hidden for seventy years, Jack. Seventy years! And it just talks about kind of what the mind does to trick ourselves.
And great, great works to sit down and to study.
Jack:Yeah, well, I can tell you. Napoleon Hill has been one, it seems like just about any mindset or great book that I see come out today is almost, has some type of derivative flavor of Napoleon Hill teachings. Which is a testament to how powerful that stuff is, for sure.
You know, I’ve got to say, folks this is, if you recognize, and a lot of people aren’t there, but those that are there, that you may have been thinking, man, what am I complaining about? I have a really successful life, but, you know, I need more. And I’m doing as much as I can.
Well, folks, I think we’ve seen scrubbing harder is not always the answer. It’s actually scrubbing less and focusing on the other things that can make a much bigger difference. And Steven, I want to thank you for opening us up and I think it’s really put a spotlight on this for a lot of folks that maybe felt they were in a unique spot in that their success if almost reversing, what’s that old song? Success has made a failure out of me.
They think that they’ve hit that plateau.
If someone feels that they’re in that situation and they want to learn more about Steven Griffith and what you do, how can they find out?
Steven:Jack, the best way to get a hold of me is online at StevenGriffith.com. www.StevenGriffith.com. That’s the best place to get a hold of me.
Jack:Okay. Yeah, I saw that and I would encourage anyone that is listening, you actually have some really good resources on there that a lot of folks may not recognize what’s holding them back. Or what’s keeping them from getting that business that they originally had blueprinted and knew that it could grow to.
So I encourage you to take advantage of those resources that Steven has at StevenGriffith.com. We’ll put that link on the website, on the show website.
Steven, I’ve got to say, thank you very much for taking the time to do this. And I’m definitely going to be keeping up with what you’re doing and the folks that you are working with. Very exciting stuff.
Steven:Thanks for having me, Jack.
Jack:All right, folks. That is it for Influencers Radio today. Go out. Share the influence. Inspire others. And you’ll find that it all comes back to you in a big, big way. We’ll see you next time.
