Visit the Sage

I Find No Joy In A Balanced Life

About three minutes ago the voice inside my head started arguing about this "balanced life" concept everyone is discussing these days -- especially so since the new year is coming. I remember my train of thought starting with Chinese turtles, but am not entirely sure of the progression from there to balanced lives. However, when the argument subsided, I found myself sitting at my computer, typing this opening paragraph into my "Compose New Post" screen.

I truly have no earthly idea what to say from here, so I'll just turn the keys over to the inner voice and see what happens. (I'll use the speed-writing exercise I explain in my book -- you simply type as fast as you can for five to 10 minutes and then clean up what you've written a bit when you're done.)

The hair on the back of my neck stands up whenever someone says "you must have a balanced life" but I've never stopped to ask myself why. Now I think I know -- balancing is damned hard work. (Ever tried to walk a tightrope?)

Why in the world would anyone wanting a balanced life add the task of creating that balanced life to his to-do list? Seems counter productive to me. Unless, of course, you're one of those folks who thrive on documenting things and making lists.

I'm just not one of those folks.

Yet at the same time, I always seem to be pretty happy -- never stressed beyond that healthy dose of stress that entrepreneurs like me love, great relationship with Cindy, good friends, a cat that will actually sit on my lap and purr. So under the assumption that a balanced life is about being happy, and figuring that I'm usually a pretty happy guy whose life is anything but balanced, then what am I doing right?

In my vernacular, I don't live a balanced life -- I live a blended life. I simply refuse to let time of day, day of week, week of month or month of year determine when I should be doing what.

Want to go for a bike ride at 1 p.m. Tuesday? No problem. Just reschedule the 2 p.m. client meeting and get on the bike.

Need to mow the lawn Friday morning because it's going to rain all weekend? Fine. Just get on the mower and worry about work sometime Saturday, Sunday, Monday -- or whenever you get inspired.

Got a speech tomorrow and still drawing a blank at 8 p.m. today? No big deal. Just put on some coffee and stay up late.

Late getting out those December holiday cards? Just send "Happy January" cards instead.

To me, creating a balanced life is a process of compartmentalizing and scheduling so you force in the right doses of spiritual, family, work, exercise, and so on each week. But to me, forced balance is no balance, because there are few things I hate more than rigid schedules.

So I blend my life instead. Do I occasionally drop a ball? Sure. Have I gained and lost 20 pounds a dozen times? Yep. Has a bike ride ever cost me a sale? Probably.

I simply refuse to care about these little things. And it's the peace of not caring that makes me happy and puts me in the frame of mind to get the big things done.

So I say the hell with the tightrope. Give me the blender instead. (Besides, I've never seen a tightrope make a margarita.)

Happy New Year, Everyone!

Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association

Passing The Pack

By now most of you know I'm the founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association -- a nonprofit trade association for people who sell.

What many of you don't know is that I'm also launching a non-traditional speakers bureau where I'll represent the attorneys, accountants, consultants, coaches, mentors, trainers, entrepreneurs, and so forth who don't speak as their primary career, but do speak professionally. It's non-traditional in that it will be local to my hometown and I won't be representing the career speakers most bureaus like to represent. (If I can't be different, I don't want to play.)

One of the marketing strategies for this bureau is to have each speaker create a four-hour workshop that can accommodate 30, 50 or 70 people, and that incorporates a unique experience like climbing a wall, racking a high-performance cart, jumping out of a plane, or whatever. Because most of the speakers in the bureau are not familiar with this type of training, I contacted Mary Kausch, an experiential learning savant, to ask her exactly what it takes to craft a power-house experiential workshop.

Mary's response was something along the lines of, "Gill, it would take three to four hours to teach someone enough so he or she could understand it and actually get it right."

After asking her what she'd charge for this learning experience, I decided to leverage the power of the group to get the training I wanted, without having to foot the entire bill. Here's how:

For all you trainers (me included) who would rather watch your competition through your rear-view mirror, I have an opportunity to announce:

• What?: A custom experiential workshop crafted and presented by Mary Kausch, president of HR etc!!
• Why?: Learn how to effectively incorporate exciting and difficult experiences into the workshops you give, so you can charge a whole lot more, be requested more frequently and blow the doors off your competition.
• Date-Time: January 9, 2008, 1 to 4 p.m.
• Place: Grand Prix Speedways conference center and indoor race track in Earth City, Mo. (five minutes west of Lambert Airport in St. Louis).
• Cost: We each (me included) write Mary a check for $100. You'll also cover the cost of any racing you choose to do at Grand Prix Speedways -- it's about $20 a race. (Budget for one race, because Mary may incorporate that experience into her workshop -- that is entirely up to her.)
• Personal Note: I introduce people all the time and I frequently refer people I know and trust. But it's the select few upon whom I'll stake my own reputation. Mary is in this group.

If you conduct training workshops and want to double, triple, perhaps quadruple your fees while becoming a more-sought-after speaker, then incorporate fantastic group experiences into your workshops using Mary's high-powered techniques.

I'll be there as will at least 10 people I already invited. If you want to attend too, do the following:

• Make a check for $100 out to HR etc!!
• Mail the check to me at 4866 Theiss Rd., St. Louis, MO 63128 (I'm coordinating this for Mary).
• Send an e-mail to me at gwagner@honestselling.com telling me "I'll be there and the check is on its way."
• Show up on January 9 for a great learning experience that will give you the skills you need to pass the pack.

Note To Travelers: If you must travel to St. Louis to attend this event, I'll be glad to host a free, Sales Wisdom Swap session in St. Louis that morning and invite you to attend. We'll find someplace nearby Grand Prix to meet at about 10 a.m. and talk sales for about 2.5 hours. (When it's time for lunch we'll order in or buy our own food.) At about 12:30 p.m. we'll head to Grand Prix for Mary's workshop.

Zoom, Zoom,

Gill E. Wagner, Sage of Selling
President of Honest Selling
Founder of the Yellow-Tie International Business Development Association