Your ability to communicate with IMPACT
is no longer just an option.
It's a necessity!

In today's fast moving and competitive environment, effective communication skills are necessary in almost every field of endeavor.

Studies have found that highly effective communicators earn 73% more than average communicators, and they advance 3.6 times faster in their organization!

You CAN be an even more effective communicator! Your ideas CAN be organized and impacting! Your listeners CAN be responsive! You CAN speak with calmness and confidence! How do I know that? Because speaking before a group is a learned skill, and my career of over three decades as an award-winning professional speaker is proof of that!

Join me in Scottsdale AZ at my upcoming ...

"Speak With Impact"

FULL DAY Boot Camp

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

7:30am - 5:00pm

I'm going to share with you the secrets of my proven approach to successful speaking... all the insights and techniques I've gleaned from over 38 years on the platform!

• Brilliant ways to organize your ideas for maximum impact.
• The key to establishing rapport with your audience.
• Confidence-building ways to prepare for your presentation.
• How to create a powerful introduction that sets up your message.
• Inside secrets for controlling your time as you speak.
• Amazing ways to develop checklists so you forget nothing.
• The keys to getting audience participation.
• Creative ways to bring facts and statistics to life.
• A little known way to use notes, and not memorize your speech.
• How to incorporate humor, even if you're not a funny person.
• Exciting ways to use visual aids effectively.
• Unique ways to close with impact, so your audience won't forget you! 

You're going to leave my FULL-DAY Session with a 3-ring binder FILLED with over 120 pages of priceless material!

Here's what other students have said ...

"With over 50 branches in eight states, I attend over 100 of our company meetings a year and I personally speak at about 30 of them. Not a meeting goes by that I don't think of and use some technique Joel Weldon has taught me!

Larry Cox, Director of Sales
SUNSTATE EQUIPMENT CO.

"I just recently spoke to 500 people for one hour and I have never been more comfortable! Not only did I hit a home run, I hit it out of the ball park! I had humor, was right on time and followed Joel's model of the Ten Building Blocks to the letter. I was so well prepared, it was all planned and then I executed it perfectly. I was thrilled!"

Gary Bushkin, CEO
National Curriculum & Training Institute, Inc.

"Joel has built a system for organizing your ideas, and then delivering them, that's fool proof! It's guaranteed to work. I was a pretty good speaker to begin with - and I'm using every one of his ideas to get even better!"

Brandon Ames, President/CEO
Able Info Technologies

"I always thought I was good in front of a group. Now I know the difference and now I'm so much more prepared, focused on the audience and connected to my listeners, thanks to Joel's "Speak With Impact" course. If you want to get even better as a company leader, Joel Weldon is the one who can help you build your skills!"

Noel Jordan, President & CEO

SkipperLiner Industries

 

EARLY BIRD Special (before MARCH 30th) =
$1100 per person

(After MARCH 30th = $1500 per person)

Space is limited to 10 participants

CALL NOW TO REGISTER

1-800-852-8572

Change Comes Bearing You Gifts!

Birthdays, anniversaries and holiday times all bring you gifts... an I-pad, a watch, a ring, or a bracelet. Whatever gift you receive, it will pale in comparison to the gift you can give yourself... when you seek personal improvement! Your ability to speak with even more impact and effectiveness will be a priceless gift to yourself. How do you get this gift?? Decide to step out of your comfort zone in order to improve some of the things you're now doing. Think of this... "To get what you've never had, you must do what you've never done!" So what do you want to happen when you speak? To be even more relaxed and confident? To be even more prepared? To be even more humorous? To be even more memorable? Improvement begins by first identifying exactly what it is you want to do better. Let's just say you want to be even more humorous when you speak. Where do you begin? Watch funny T.V. shows and study their humor. Watch funny movies... there are thousands. Go to comedy clubs. Buy comedy CDs and books. Write down everything that makes you laugh. Start practicing on your family, friends, associates and even strangers. Tell something funny you've heard or read at least 7 to 21 times before you make it part of your presentation! Hey, is this sounding like a lot of work? Yes, of course it is! The prize is in direct proportion to the price! Your rewards (being more humorous) will be in direct proportion to your effort. Think funny! Practice funny! And you'll BE funny! You CAN step out of your comfort zone and receive the gifts that await you!! MAKE it a great day! JOEL P.S. Being an AMAZING communicator is not a natural gift you're born with! I know, from my decades of experience coaching hundreds of executives, managers and super salespeople, that it's a LEARNED SKILL! And no matter how good you are now, with my one-on-one speech coaching (whether in person or by phone), you'll have an eye-opening experience that will almost instantly take your speaking skills and presentation effectiveness to a whole new, more powerful level! You're going to reap tremendous benefits! I'm going to share with you dozens of little known strategies, all the wisdom I've gleaned from over 37 years as an award winning professional speaker. Let me help you craft an impacting message specifically for your audience, and to deliver it with calmness and confidence! You'll be amazed and delighted to discover how much immediate improvement there will be in your very next presentation! Sound good? Call today... 1-800-852-8572 for more information.

Gratitude Isn't Just for Thanksgiving Day

      Hurricane Sandy totally destroyed her Breezy Point, New York home and she lost everything she owned. A roadside bomb in Iraq blew off both his legs and he lost his mobility. The lingering recession took the middle aged couple’s jobs, their home, their savings, and forced them to go bankrupt.

No doubt you’ve seen similar stories on TV, read about them in newspapers and magazines, and most likely you know people who in the past year have experienced devastating loss. You too may have lost something this past year. It might have been a major loss, or something as minor as your car keys, a few golf balls or a tooth or two. But whatever it is you’d classify as a loss, you can still be grateful.

Gratitude is the ability to focus on what you have, not on what you’ve lost!

The woman on national TV, standing in front of her devastated Breezy Point home, was so filled with gratitude! She stood strong and smiled while expressing to the interviewer how grateful she was. Her family members were all alive, she said. Her neighbors had rescued them from the rising flood waters and got them to safety. Others were taking care of her now. “Oh,” she said over and over again, “I have so much to be grateful for!”

Yes, gratitude is your ability to focus on what you have, not on what you’ve lost!

The soldier with no legs was shown in his wheelchair throwing a football to his young sons. He too looked into the TV camera, smiled broadly and expressed sincere gratitude to his fellow Marines who pulled him out of his blown up hum-vee, to the medics who stopped the bleeding, and to the doctor who saved his life. He said he was so grateful to be able to see his wife and kids again and to be there as his boys were growing up. “I lost my legs, but I still have my throwing arm. I can still be a Dad!”

Yes, gratitude is your ability to focus on what you have,
not on what you’ve lost!

And finally, that middle aged couple talking to a CNN reporter, spoke of their gratitude for the tiny apartment they now called home, for the used car a friend loaned them and for the part-time jobs they were able to find. Although it wasn’t even close to what they used to have, they both were so grateful.

So how about you?
What do you now have that fills you with gratitude?

Cicero, the wise Roman philosopher, said in 40 B.C., “Gratitude is not only the greatest of all virtues, but the parent of all others!”  How wise he was, and his words are still so applicable today.

Here’s what you can do.

1.   Just for the next 30 days, as you’re brushing your teeth (or tooth) in the morning, begin the day by looking in the mirror and thinking of what you can be grateful for.

2.   Then say out loud … so only you can hear it, “Today I’m grateful for …”

3.   At the end of 30 days see how this simple little exercise has made you feel. If it has helped you in a positive way, keep doing it! If not, then stop the gratitude expressions and start focusing instead on all the things you’ve lost … and see how that makes you feel!

Someone I know writes something in her journal every day that she’s grateful for. Her life is filled with wonderful things, amazing people and extraordinary experiences. She’s proved to herself that gratitude isn’t just for Thanksgiving Day. It’s for every day! 

You CAN Make it a GRATEFUL day!

 

 

It's Never Too Late & You're Never Too Old

“It’s never too late, and you’re never too old,” claimed world-famous physical fitness legend Jack LaLanne, and before anyone could say “Prove it, Jack!” he did. He was still doing strenuous daily workouts well into his nineties.

On his 65th birthday—the age at which many people retire and begin taking life even easier than before—Jack performed a feat that you might have thought only a young Olympian would attempt: he swam across Lake Ashhinoko in Japan while towing 65 boats containing a total of 6,500 pounds of wood pulp!

Sound pretty amazing? Well, what do you think of this? To celebrate his 70th birthday, Jack dove into 60º water off Long Beach, California and swam one mile while towing 70 boats containing a total of 70 people. It took him 2½ hours to complete the task, and—believe it or not—his hands and feet were bound together!

At the age of 81 as he released a new fitness video, Forever Young, he said, “I feel no different now than when I was 21. I’m in as good shape now as I was back then!”

Amazing? Yes, especially when you consider how feeble many people are by then. But perhaps it really isn’t amazing if you believe, as Jack LaLanne does, that this is what all people are capable of. You included!

Here’s what you can do:

  1.  Set goals for yourself, so you don’t get old! Goals keep you looking ahead, rather than back.

  2.  Tighten your stomach muscles at red lights.

  3.  Run in place as you talk on the phone.

  4.  Eat less and less, not more and more. Choose healthier foods and snacks.

  5.  Buy clothes one size too small.

  6.  Collect pictures of super-fit people.

  7.  Do some physical activity every day. Walk up five flights of stairs. Bike ride to work or shopping. Jog home from work. Swim for twenty minutes. Take up a new sport.

  8.  Don’t grow old! Age is a state of mind, and you’re only as old as you think you are.
Ask yourself, “How old would I be if I didn’t know how old I was?”

  9.  Make a commitment today, right now, to attain, and then maintain, a high level of physical fitness. It’s never too late, and you’re never too old!

The Secret of "Pandora's Hope"

You've probably heard the term "Pandora's Box" used as an expression. "Oh, it was as if he had opened Pandora's Box!" meaning to unwittingly unleash chaos or misery upon yourself or others.

Maybe you've actually done that very thing. You think something could be good, and then discover it's the exact opposite. Like the family that gets their young kids their first pet -- a six-month-old mutt from the pound that looks so cute and lovable -- only to find three months later, they've opened "Pandora's Box" and now have a nine-month-old 90-pound monster destroying their furniture, shoes and even chewing on the walls.

Chaos is a word often used to describe many people's lives today. Here's where Pandora's Box can help you. Yes, help you through the toughest of times, the biggest of challenges and the mind-numbing effects of change! How?

First you need to go back to the Greek mythology that created the story of Pandora's Box.  Here's the short version: The Greeks considered Pandora to be the first woman on earth. Zeus had her created and he told Pandora not to open a special "jar" she was given. Overcome by curiosity, she opened it. Upon doing so, she released all the evils it contained into the world. This myth is supposed to explain why evil exists in the world, and probably to blame woman for it!

When Pandora opened that jar and released all the evils into the world, she managed to save one thing inside -- HOPE. Oh, those wise Greeks knew that what the world needed to cope with and overcome evil was hope! HOPE is defined as "a belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one's life."

You need hope in your life right now, today, this very minute! Whoever you are, whatever your age, your career or your circumstances, there is always HOPE.  

When the world says to you, "Give up, you can't win," HOPE whispers in your ear, "You can do it! Give it one more try, and if that's not enough, give it one more again."

My next door neighbor for many years was an F-105 pilot in the Viet Nam war. Tom Browning's plane was shot down, he was captured by the Viet Cong and held as a prisoner of war for over six years. He was held at the same time as Sen. John McCain and James Stockdale (who ran for Vice President in 1992).  All three of these men, along with so many others, endured unimaginable torture, deprivation and hardship.

Tom, who is now a Retired Brigadier General, explained that one of the main reasons they were able to survive their ordeal was that they never gave up the HOPE that they would be freed. The survivors had proved that hope is what will keep you going in the times of your life when you feel lost,   helpless and discouraged.

Shakespeare wrote, "The miserable have no other medicine, but only hope." Hopefully you're not miserable! But you may at times become discouraged and pessimistic, and feel, "What's the use?"  This is the time to think of Pandora's Box. In spite of all the evils she released into the world, HOPE remained safe inside the box, so it could help you in these challenging times.

I hope this gives YOU hope!

MAKE it a great day!

Being Responsible "To" Not "For"

Once You’ve Done Your Part, You’ll Rest Easy

You care about others! You want to help and serve others! You know that if you help others achieve what they want to achieve then you in turn will be rewarded—both in tangible and intangible ways. If that’s you, then your desire to help others might sometimes cause you to feel stressed out, worried and frustrated because those you’re attempting to help don’t always follow your advice. They often resist doing the things you know they should be doing for their own good.

The solution is to adopt the attitude and mindset of being “responsible to” not “for.” There’s a huge difference between those two responsibilities!  

Here’s an example: If you’re the parent of a young child, you’re responsible both “to” and “for.” That’s right. You’re responsible “to” provide your little one with food, clothing, shelter, love and a safe environment. You’re also responsible “for” their actions and behaviors until they grow up. But once they’ve grown up, the “for” goes away and only the “to” remains.

My wife Judy and I are the parents of two wonderful daughters. They’re married women with children of their own. We’re not responsible “for” them anymore! However, the responsible “to” them is still there and will always be there! We are responsible “to” give them love and encouragement, and our advice and honest input when asked for it. But what they do with that input is their responsibility, not ours. That way we feel comfortable, knowing we did our part—the responsible “to” part.

You can too, both in your personal and professional life. For example, in your business career, here are some things you’d be responsible to be doing:

• Being prepared
• Telling the truth
• Putting your customer first
• Following through
• Being on time
• Being a team player
• Bringing passion & enthusiasm
• Expressing gratitude

OK, you get the point. There are lots more we can name:

In Selling, as the sales professional, you’re responsible “to” your customer—to sell what your prospect/customer needs or wants at a fair price and “to” provide follow-up service after the sale. Yes, you show value, you close and you ask for the decision…but you’re not responsible “for” that decision—they are!

In Leadership, as the leader, you’re responsible “to” your team—to provide the tools, equipment and training they need to get their job done safely and efficiently. You’re responsible “to” reward them, praise them and encourage them. But you’re not responsible “for” their happiness, their sense of accomplishment or their job satisfaction—they are!

In Speaking, as the presenter, you’re responsible “to” your audience—responsible “to” be prepared, energized, focused on their needs, with a message that can help them. But you’re not responsible “for” how your audience members put those ideas into action!

Decide now to put more of your effort and energy into the responsible “to” portion and less into the “for.”  You’ll sleep better at night and enjoy life so much more.

I was responsible “to” share this timeless truth with you, and now that I’ve done my part, you’re responsible “for” its implementation in your life and your career!

MAKE it a great day!

A True Story of "Hippies" to "Helping Heroes"

Selling is helping!  It really is for some people. They have a sincere desire to use their products and services to help their customers improve something in their life, whatever that something may be. Here's a true story that shows how you can be as successful as you decide to be... especially if you embrace the "Selling is helping"philosophy.  

A chance look at a Facebook page recently triggered a memory in my mind going back to 1976.

Imagine it's 1976 and you're my invisible partner. We drive to a tiny store in what's called "the river bottom" a dumpy area between south Scottsdale and north Tempe, AZ. Two hippie looking young men in sandals greet us at the door under their sign "The Byte Shop."  One of their products is a computer hobby kit. Yes, computers were being built by hobbyists in those days. They were not yet going out to the general public...it was mostly just the "geeks."  The owners of "The Byte Shop", Alan Hald and Jeff McKeever, were both visionaries. Oh, back then they weren't called that-they were most likely called "Hippie Geeks" or "Nerds." 

As you observe this first meeting of Alan, Jeff and myself, you too notice what was catching my attention-their passion and their commitment to succeed. What they wanted was to learn to sell even better. They wanted me to come in and do sales meetings for them and their handful of employees. They told me that if they could sell better they could help more people see the benefits of computers.

Since my approach has always been "selling is helping" we clicked. We agreed on a fee and a plan, and I immediately began to help them help their customers. We did lots of little meetings in that tiny river bottom store-and Alan and Jeff's little business began to experience amazing growth. Four years later they opened their first real store in Paradise Valley Mall. 

They renamed "The Byte Shop" to "MicroAge", took the company public in 1995, and had 6,000 employees doing over $6 billion in annual sales as a Fortune 500 company! Because of their passion for helping their customers understand the computer and its potential impact on their customers' lives, they were driven to succeed.

Now how about you? How much "helping" do you have built in to your business? Are you a believer that when you sell your products and services you're helping the customer? 

It's true, because when your prospects have a need or want that your products and services fill, you're helping them when you help them buy it.

How big do you want to grow? How much money do you want to earn? And more importantly... How many people do you want to help?

Here's what you can do... See selling as helping, even if it's a hassle sometimes. Be passionate about your commitment to help your customers solve their needs and wants with your products and services, and you'll be a helping hero in your customer's eyes!