“My #1 tip is to have a plan, which sounds complex for people, but quite literally just asking a couple of questions, like when do I want to retire, what would that look like, how can I possibly get there. If you simplify your questions, it doesn’t have to be so overwhelming. And the more that you can simplify what you’re looking for, the more your financial professional can actually help you.” - JM Ryerson
In this episode of GET READY!, I spoke with JM Ryerson who is the co-founder and CEO of Let’s Go Win. JM and I discussed best practices for increasing leadership, enhancing team culture and helping teams achieve peak performance. We also covered the importance of courage in standing for your values, building a foundation on fun and how to transcend boundaries & beliefs.
Bio: JM is an entrepreneur and Mental Performance Coach who has been building companies and leading sales teams for over 20 years. JM is the co-founder and CEO of Let's Go Win whose mission is to increase leadership, enhance culture and help teams achieve peak performance.
“My #1 tip is to have a plan, which sounds complex for people, but quite literally just asking a couple of questions, like when do I want to retire, what would that look like, how can I possibly get there. If you simplify your questions, it doesn’t have to be so overwhelming. And the more that you can simplify what you’re looking for, the more your financial professional can actually help you.” - JM Ryerson
In this episode of GET READY!, I spoke with JM Ryerson who is the co-founder and CEO of Let’s Go Win. JM and I discussed best practices for increasing leadership, enhancing team culture and helping teams achieve peak performance. We also covered the importance of courage in standing for your values, building a foundation on fun and how to transcend boundaries & beliefs.
Bio: JM is an entrepreneur and Mental Performance Coach who has been building companies and leading sales teams for over 20 years. JM is the co-founder and CEO of Let's Go Win whose mission is to increase leadership, enhance culture and help teams achieve peak performance.
Welcome to the get ready podcast in partnership
Speaker 2:With insurance nerds today, I'm pleased to be joined by Jim Ryerson. Good morning, Jim.
Speaker 3:Good morning, Tony. Thanks for having me brother. How are you?
Speaker 2:I'm doing well. Thank you so much for joining me. Um, so today we'll be discussing best practices in leadership and teamwork. We'll also discuss the importance of courage and standing for your values. Building a foundation on fun and how to transcend boundaries and beliefs a little bit about Jim. Jim is an entrepreneur and mental performance coach who has been building companies and leading sales teams for over 20 years. Jim is a co-founder and CEO of let's go win. Whose mission is to increase leadership, enhance culture and help teams achieve peak performance. Jim is also the author of let's go win in managing vice president for appreciation financial. So jam let's get started. Um, do you want to tell us a little bit about what you do?
Speaker 3:Sure. You know, I, for years I've been in the financial industry, uh, three companies now that I've been a part of or, you know, uh, building in some regard. So, uh, most recently, and over the last six years has been appreciation financial and it's awesome, man. I mean work with, uh, we call it our AAF family and, and it's really unique that one of our values is love. And truly we have, uh, an environment where we'd love to be around one. Another going to work every day is truly a blessing and we have a great time. So that's been, maybe one of the biggest challenges in this time is not being able to be around our culture and be a part of our family that we, we get to on a daily basis. So anyway, yeah, man, it's, uh, financial services has been amazing for my family and for many other families that I been fortunate to support along the way. So, uh, I, anything I can do to, to help anyone else that's that's I like to give back because it's given so much to me.
Speaker 2:Fantastic. It's um, that's such a great concept to build it around a value rather than a product, you know, which is pretty rare for the financial services industry. Unfortunately. So I love that. You're values-based uh, so, uh, do you want to tell us a little bit about what let's go when is
Speaker 3:Yeah, let's go win, uh, is a new company that I started and it's, it's all about helping people live their best lives. So, uh, transcend in life is the tagline that that word transcend is really important to me. And it's one that not everybody even knows what that means and it's really to rise above and, and to what I believe is to overcome self limiting beliefs. So our mission is, is to increase leadership, enhance culture, and, uh, to help people overcome self-limiting beliefs. And it's fun. I love it. It's a lot of the coaching I've done for the last, you know, 20 some odd years, but 16 years in financial services. And, and I, it's what we talk about. And so let's go, when was, uh, the book was actually put together for my kids. It was how I initially started. I have two boys and I always said, if I died tomorrow in a plane crash or whatever, I wanted my kids to know the philosophies of my parents, my grandparents, the authors and mentors I've had. And so, and as I did that process, I had a gal say you're awfully selfish. And I said, wow, I don't think of myself that way. She goes, if you only share this with your boys, that's selfish. And so that's where we decided to publish the book. And so far had a lot of people that seem to get some nuggets out of it, which is my hope if it helps anybody. Yeah. That's, that's our hope because it's supposed to be a fun, easy to read, uh, thing, you know, book that you could do on a plane ride in three hours, you should be able to accomplish.
Speaker 2:Fantastic. That's exciting. And I think that people are sometimes, you know, they're their own worst enemies when they have their beliefs about what they can achieve. Uh, so that's great that you're helping people see that they can overcome that. Um, so what are the core values of let's go win?
Speaker 3:Yeah. Our core values actually always have it on my wrist. It's courage, fun and transcend. Those are the three core values. And one of the things that I've, I always teach people when they're doing so, anybody that has their own company for years, we had six core values and I could remember five if you asked me, and then we were so smart, we decided to throw a seventh in there and I could remember five, maybe six. And finally, uh, we decided to shorten those. So every company here forward, or even my family, uh, it's three values, but specific for let's go when it's courage, fun, transcend. And that's really what, you know, we hope to embody every single day to have courage, to show up as our best selves, have a great time doing it and ultimately to overcome whatever self-limiting beliefs we may have. Um, cause some of these are hard wires that were kind of put into us before we ever had a choice. And uh, so that's some of the stuff we'd like to help.
Speaker 2:Oh, fantastic. And I love the fun is a big part of it is because you have to enjoy life, uh, you know, no matter what it throws at you, and this is definitely a interesting time as they say, uh, there we're going through. Um, so you know, how can, um, other people apply the Wesco wind concepts into their professional lives?
Speaker 3:So a big part of the book really talks about work-life balance about how to every chapter has applicable lessons, where it's like, you know, you should be able to take away two or three things that you can go apply right now. It's not just some, you know, philosophy sitting back from an armchair quarterback. Now these are real life things that you can actually apply, um, whether it be in your home or in work. Because one of the things, uh, that I think is so important, if your home life is all messed up, or let's say your health is, is not well, how could I ask you to perform in your day-to-day job? It's, it's really challenging. So in my opinion, the, everything is a big circle that is tied to one another. And so whether that's your energy or your hobby, your personal life, your intimate relationships, all of that will show up in your work. And so instead of labeling somebody as being lazy or incompetent or whatever, it's like, no, maybe they have a sick child at home or they just can't pay their bills. And so that's a big part of what I like to look at is it's the, the totality of the person so that they can show up their very best in work as a parent, um, you know, whatever the case may be. But so we look at that and there's a, uh, exercise, very simple to do that. I ask all my guys to do monthly, like check in on these things, where are you at in these 10 areas? Because if one's out of alignment, it's really hard to be your best.
Speaker 2:Definitely. Well, and that's great. I think that is something that's missed is one thing it does impact you. Can't separate out, you know, something has happened at home. Uh, that is negative. It's going to impact how you perform at least in the morning until the next thing happens that, you know, we do reflect those things. Um, so, you know, one thing that came to mind for me is that in looking at doing a financial product or service, I think that something that people miss is looking at the bigger picture, uh, do you see that people can apply those principles to taking look at a person's overall financial life and what their balance should be. And maybe that's something that's been missed?
Speaker 3:Uh, 100%, I think specific with financial services a long time ago, or people forgot. This is a connection thing. It is not a numbers. It's not a product. Look, people are buying you and what you for. And if you genuinely do care about this other person that you're helping across the table, the more you end chapter one is all about being vulnerable and being 100% yourself. So as I'm showing up today, you know, I w I'm giving everything to this podcast to Tony and, and I want to give everything I can. That's how I hope everyone shows up in every single appointment with their clients to give them everything that they have and not look at them as a number or a commission. No, this is somebody's life. You want to take it seriously? You want to ask the right question. So what I've always asked my guys to do is look guys and gals. When you talk to somebody in your first appointment, or I always treat them like my mother, it's like, I want everyone to be treating their clients as their mother. And what I mean by that is asking the hard questions. If she says no, digging a little deeper and really asking, what is the purpose of what we're doing today? Why do you want to accomplish these things? I think a lot of times, instead of driving your agenda, it's asked more questions about what their goals are and then Jen genuinely care about the result and what you're going to provide for them.
Speaker 2:Fantastic. Well, you know, I think that plays into the word courage is that so often I think, uh, people in the financial services industry oftentimes fall into that, you know, the comfort of whatever their product is rather than having the courage to break out and ask those questions. I mean, do you feel that that's accurate, that it takes more coverage to encouraged to have that type of approach?
Speaker 3:No question. You know, I, I would say early in my career when I was first started, I struggled with that to a degree because I wanted to look a certain way. I had to wear the three-piece button up. And again, no offense, anybody that does that, but it just wasn't authentic to me. And it wasn't genuine. And that comes across with clients. And so 100% Tony, what you're talking about, having the courage to just show up and be you. And then if somebody tells you no or whatever, ask the question, Hey, I want to know why you didn't move forward. And, and I, so I can help other people. And if it's me, that helps me know, so I can show up better the next time, if you have the courage to ask some of those questions. And by the way, when you offer and give somebody permission to say, I don't like you, you got to have the courage to hear that and say, okay, no problem. I, and obviously anybody in art field knows you're going to get told no way more than yes. And so it, people that succeed in our field have a lot of courage to begin with. There's no question, but specific to, uh, or really early in my career, showing up authentically looking a certain way, look, be yourself. That's what people are buying. That's what they're believing in. It has nothing to do with some indices or, you know, some financial portfolio they're buying you. And the more you remember that have the courage to be yourself, the better your results are going
Speaker 2:Fantastic. And to flip this around, um, how can consumers, uh, have the carriage with financial advisors? Because I think, uh, you know, consumers are often intimidated. Uh, they may feel like they don't have the knowledge. They may feel. Um, you know, sometimes, uh, the financial services industry, people can be a little bit aggressive. How can that consumer, uh, have carriage in the process?
Speaker 3:Yeah, again, that would come back to being real clear on, Hey, I don't know what you're talking about, but I want you to simplify it. If they had the courage to ask us to always simplify the message I heard, uh, yesterday, somebody say, look there, uh, with, in regards to a trust, an irrevocable trust, that just means you, you don't get to change your mind trust or a revocable where you get to change. And the point was, they made it so simple for the consumer, because again, they don't know this. I mean, shoot, I've been in this long and I'm still learning every single day. So for a consumer, give them the courage to say, look, if you don't understand something, please ask and I will make it as simple as humanly possible because it can be a scary world. And then going back to my mother, for example, she doesn't know those questions to ask. So you have to make it simple and say, this is what this means. Forget all the acronyms that we use all the time, make sure you're making it as simple as possible, and it'll just make it so much more comfortable for them and for you.
Speaker 2:That's great advice. And I think that's so important, especially when you bring it back to the example of your mother is one thing I always felt is that somebody should be able to walk away and explain it to somebody else. What we were talking about, that they should have that level of comprehension, that they could actually repeat it instead of 20 minutes later going, w what did we talk about it again? And then you're in the same place. I'm sure you've experienced that, uh, with clients.
Speaker 3:Well, and with that, Tony, when you do that, I like the way you say that if they can walk away, what's what happens is, guess what? Then they're going to want to tell their friends and people that they care about because you did make it such a pleasurable experience. You didn't make it like a magic show where you're looking over here and, you know, no, make it so simple that they say you have to meet my mom, my dad, my sister, my brother, and my, you know, their, their whole list of clients. And by the way, that's always been the best way to build your business and the highest return on your investment. So if you can do that, you can make it so simple. They're going to want to say, you know what? You have to meet Tony. He's awesome. He made it so easy and so comfortable. And I imagine that's how you built your business, Tony. It's just, that's, that's how we've always built ours. And, and it's so much easier than, you know, trying to, again, sound really smart or know you're connecting with the human being. Remember that it's not about the product.
Speaker 2:Ah, I love that. And I think you hit on such a key point is it's a much easier way to do business. Uh, just being on that same level as people. And, you know, would you put the word fun in there that you can even have fun with that process by connecting with people on that level?
Speaker 3:Well, I don't like to do anything. That's not fun. So, um, yes, 100%. And, and if you let them know, because look insurance investments at no point, does that sound fun? Right? It's just like you say, the word insurance and people literally will grown. And, um, so yeah, you have to bring that to the table and say, look, we're going to have a good time today. We're going to make sure you're taken care of that's. Those are all positives. Yes. Death is inevitable. It's going to happen. So why do we pretend that it's such a tragic thing? Yes, it's awful if you'd pass away, but I'm going to make sure that if in that event, your family is taken care of. It may not be a fun experience talking about it, but I'll tell you what, if you're not prepared, it's really not a fun experience. So, you know, everything you bring to the table, if you bring fun, they're going to have a good time too.
Speaker 2:Definitely. And I think you hit on that, uh, with your earlier point as well, is that you're more likely to have a satisfied customer who will be a longtime customer, and you're more likely to have a customer who's going to make the introduction to other potential clients if they walk away with a positive feeling. Uh, so one of the things you mentioned is live your best life. Uh, w what does that mean to you?
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's a great question. Lifting your best life to me is truly adhering to whatever is important to, to your values. So I talk about masks in the book and early in life, we all start putting a mask on. So we fit in those masks get heavy, and you don't, it's not fun. It's so freeing. And I talk about the naked old guy in the gym in the last chapter. I think it is, but it's like how freeing that is to be able to be yourself and, and just completely be free from any expectations or, um, I don't know, again, trying to look a certain way to me living your best life is living authentically and, and fun. Fun is literally all the companies I've ever been a part of fun is always a part of that. So my family values at home fund is one appreciation fund is one, and let's go win fun is in all three. And so to me, we're not on this earth that long, why drag through it, let's have a great time. So being authentic, having fun every single day, that's living your best life in, in my opinion.
Speaker 2:Fantastic. I love that answer. Um, so, uh, to start to wrap up, uh, what's your number one tip, uh, for consumers on being financially prepared, if you could tell them one thing to
Speaker 3:Consumers specifically is, is to have a plan, which I know sounds, uh, complex for people, but quite literally just asking a couple of questions, like when do I want to retire? What would that look like? How can I possibly get there? If you simplify your questions, it doesn't have to be so overwhelming. And the more that you can simplify what you're looking for, the more that your financial advisor, your financial professional can actually help you, but if you're playing shadow games or hiding what you may have, which all of us that have dealt with clients know, that's a thing. Um, it's really hard to help people. So if I were to talk to consumers, I would just tell them, be extremely open with what your goals are, what your dreams are, what are your aspirations, so that they can truly put you in, in the best place to, uh, succeed.
Speaker 2:I think that's wonderful advice is because it's hard for an advisor to match up, uh, the right product or service. If they don't really know what you're looking for, because then they're gonna fall back in that track of just offering whatever product they're thinking of, rather than the product that fits. I love that. So, um, jam, uh, where can people learn more about you?
Speaker 3:You can go to, let's go www dot let's go win.com uh, uh, appreciation financial as well. Yeah. If you wanted to know, uh, the book is available on Amazon. I think again, it's 169 pages. I should know that off the top of my head. I know, but it's a shorter book, but it's condensed version of all of my philosophy. So if you wanted to know about what I was thinking, uh, you could certainly grab the book and then yeah, let's go win.com. You can reach out to me. Um, I'm available on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. Well, great.
Speaker 2:And I'll post all that, uh, the links in the show notes. So people will easily be able to reach out and, uh, follow what you're up to. Uh, so Jim, uh, thanks for coming on today. It's been a real pleasure.
Speaker 3:Oh brother. Thank you so much for having me. I really appreciate it, Tony. And, uh, thanks for what you're doing with your community. It's awesome.
Speaker 2:You as well. Uh, thank you until next time. Uh, please remember to subscribe to the, get ready with Tony Stewart, uh, podcast and, uh, see you next time.