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The Jeff Yalden BOOM Podcast Episode 4: Jake Ballentine

June 14, 2017 by Roger Yale

“What’s wrong is always available, but so it what’s right – and if we focus on what’s right, we’re going to find more of it.” – Jake Ballentine

The BOOM Podcast is an opportunity for author Jeff Yalden to drill down on the principles in his book, BOOM! One Word to Instantly Inspire Action, Deliver Rewards, and Positively Affect Your Life Every Day, while featuring folks from all walks of life who have successfully brought the BOOM into their lives. In Episode 4, Jeff welcomes national award-winning motivational speaker, musician and author Jake Ballentine to the show.
Jake spoke to Jeff from Idaho, where he and his wife were spending time with her family after the devastating loss of her father, a man Ballentine treasured not only as father-in-law, but also as a strong mentor. From Los Angeles, Ballentine was a contributing author to Jack Canfield’s Living the Success Principles. He is the host of the Focus on the Good podcast and the author of Your Number One Goal. He has reached more than a quarter of a million people over the past five years with his unique motivational presentations, which include his spoken positive messages and music. Not bad for a guy who was considered learning disabled and didn’t read a book until he was 18. Ballentine says Your Number One Goal is a step-by-step guide to reach any goal of any size, but before getting into the meat-and-potatoes of the book, he started with a story. “There was one point in my life that I was a depressed motivational speaker,” he said, adding that most people would look at him or Yalden and automatically assume that they have got everything figured out. Ballentine’s business was going well, but he said his life was a mess because he simply wasn’t taking care of himself. He was 26 and tipped the scales at 280 pounds. “I was in terrible condition and was on what I call the window diet: Everything I ate came from my car window,” he said. “I was just in this horrible place, and my mindset was in negativity – and it really all stemmed from the way that I treated my body.” He knew he couldn’t sustain a lifestyle like that, but what really kicked him into gear was when he and his wife were told that they couldn’t have children. “There was a time where I just got so depressed about this because it was something that we always wanted,” he said. It wasn’t long before Ballentine had his Eureka! moment. “I realized I hadn’t done everything I could. Even though I kept thinking I had done everything – I had seen the doctors – done the things they told me to do – but I hadn’t changed my health. I hadn’t changed my whole life.” One of the principles Yalden lays out in BOOM is that life doesn’t happen to us. Life happens for us. “26 years old and being told that, because of your physical condition, you can’t have kids – is not a good place to be,” Ballentine said This event was the catalyst for change. Ballentine said he suddenly had a why that was so strong that he could push past any excuse. He transformed his life, his health and fitness – and dropped 60 pounds. Eight weeks ago, he and his wife had their first child, Jacob Oliver Ballentine, Jr. “I have learned some things that can help anyone reach any goal of any size – about how to find that motivation – how to be able to push past any excuse – and how to make a step-by-step plan and take action to make it happen. I put it all in the book.” In this episode of The BOOM Podcast, Ballentine and Yalden run the gamut – from how to get motivated and stay motivated – and starting with the end in mind. They discuss the value of breaking goals down into manageable chunks. They talk about the value of purpose – and the power of why. “You’ve got to figure out where you want to be a year from now – five years from now – and then narrow that down to where [you] want to be in five years to what [you] need to accomplish in a year – the next six months – the next eight weeks – and down to what [you] have to do today,” said Ballentine. To Ballentine – everything must point to a person’s North Star – their vision for the future – while paying attention not to neglect the smaller steps along the path. Yalden said this was another way of saying that people need to figure out how to drop the BOOM in their lives. Ballentine said that, to him, family is everything – and finding balance is key. “I think really the biggest challenge comes down to balance – and I think when any change comes in your life – you have got to figure out the new balance and what is the new normal – how you balance things – and it comes down to figuring out the priorities,” he said. Your Number One Goal walks you through three seemingly basic but ultimately very important questions: What do I want? Why do I want it? How am I going to get there? “Those are the three keys to success. You have to know those three things. You’ve got to know what you want, or else you are not going to get there.” Ballentine also explains what he calls “smart goals,” and warns against vague or half-formed goals. For him, a smart goal need to be MEASURABLE, ATTAINABLE, RELEVANT and TIME-BASED. This episode of The BOOM podcast is chock-full of actionable content. Yalden and Ballentine discuss the necessity of mentors, the magic of asking for help and the inestimable value of continuing education and personal development. Ballentine had this to say about constant learning: “There is not a day that goes by that I am not listening to iTunes/podcasts/Audible books. It’s constant. I consume information constantly. I’ve learned more through these earbuds than I did in the whole four years of college,” he said. The point is – there is so much knowledge out there – and it’s available to everybody – in any format you choose. Yalden said this is part of the BOOM for everybody. “You can make excuses that college is too much money or education takes too long – but education is every single day,” he said. For more about Jake Ballentine, go HERE Click HERE to grab a free copy of Your Number One Goal. To subscribe, listen to, or explore to The BOOM Podcast, visit HERE. Get your copy of BOOM! One Word to Instantly Inspire Action, Deliver Rewards, and Positively Affect Your Life Every Day. Find out everything about Jeff Yalden HERE. JOIN the BOOM Nation Facebook Community.

Filed Under: BOOM, Leadership, Motivation, Personal Development, Podcasts Tagged With: Amazon, Author, Bestseller, BOOM, BOOM Book, BOOM Podcast, Education, Focus on the Good, Goals, Jack Canfield, Jake Ballentine, Jeff Yalden, Leadership, Mentors, Motivation, Persistence, Personal Development, Your Number One Goal, Youth Motivational Speaker

Jeff Yalden’s BOOM Podcast Episode 3: Richie Contartesi

June 10, 2017 by Roger Yale

Many know Michael Oher from his football career – he now plays offensive tackle for the Carolina Panthers – and from the Oscar-winning film, The Blind Side. At 6’ 4” and 315 pounds, he’s hard to miss. For Oher, it all started at Ole Miss – The University of Mississippi – and its legendary NCAA Division I football program. When Richie Contartesi walked on to the practice field at Ole Miss, he was 5’7” and tipped the scales at 155 pounds. By an awesome twist of fate, he was given one chance – and one chance only – to prove himself. In classic “feel-the-fear-and-do-it-anyway” fashion, Contartesi made the team and became an Ole Miss Rebel – eventually garnering a full SEC scholarship to the University of Mississippi.
In the ensuing years, Contartesi became an in-demand public speaker, with a focus on kicking off and closing conferences. He is also the bestselling author of In Spite of the Odds: A True Inspirational Journey from Walk-on to Full Scholarship at Ole Miss. Reader Pat Canuso had this to say about the book in an Amazon review: “Reading In Spite of the Odds was like watching the movie Rudy, but with a machine gun.” Youth motivational speaker and Amazon bestselling author Jeff Yalden hosted Contartesi in the third episode of his BOOM Podcast. “Richie and I have a relationship that goes back a couple of years now, and I knew from the beginning that he was going to do some epically awesome stuff,” Yalden said, adding that he helped Contartesi get into the speaking market and mentored him from the very beginning. Contartesi grew up in Palm Beach, Fl., where there was a lot of competition for Division 1 and Division II scholarships. And he was already at a perceived disadvantage because of his size. But he said he was lucky enough to attend a new high school in his sophomore year. “There was not as much competition, [and that] gave me the opportunity to touch the field as a sophomore. I got to learn a lot early on,” Contartesi said. By the time he was a junior, he said he could play because he knew what was expected – and he was able to outsmart some of what he called the talent just from experience. But he hit a major snag in his senior year. A broken ankle sidelined him, and the colleges that were looking at him about potential scholarships fell by the wayside. Contartesi shared his story on the BOOM Podcast – how he had a chance to play at Jacksonville University, a non-scholarship school – but redshirted his first year. The next year didn’t go well either, after a change in coaching staff. “He took a look at my size without really getting a chance to see me play, and basically just cut me from the team,” he said. He had a decision to make: Hang up his cleats and quit, or continue to follow his dream of playing Division I football. He resolved to keep going, putting together a spreadsheet of 119 Division I schools, including phone numbers and the names of the head coaches.  Contartesi picked up the phone and started dialing. Most conversations didn’t last more than 30 seconds, especially when he got to the height and weight question. But he kept grinding. A silver lining appeared when he found out that a man by the name of Kyle Strongin was interning with the Ole Miss football program. Strongin, who eventually became director of football operations at the University of Mississippi, went on to work for the San Francisco 49ers and is now coordinator of football operations with the University of Tennessee. Contartesi said he built a relationship with Strongin when he was 12 years old, and Strongin also coached Contartesi’s football team in high school. “He saw my character, leadership and playing style. Because of the relationship I built with him, I called him and said, ‘Hey man – can I play football at Ole Miss and can you help me get in?’” Strongin told him that if there was one person that he would help get in, it would be Contartesi. This was three weeks before school started and way past the admissions deadline. “He was able to get me in academically, and was going to give me one shot – one try,” he said. In this episode of The BOOM Podcast, Yalden and Contartesi talk about the importance of overcoming fear and self-doubt, while holding fast to perseverance – pursuing an important goal with bulldog tenacity. Contartesi mentioned studies that show only three percent of Americans write down their goals, and uncovered an interesting correlation. “When I was playing [youth] football, my coach said to me that only three percent of high school football players play Division I football,” he said. “When I was studying about goals and the fact that only three percent write them down – the same three percent get whatever they want in life. They live a lifestyle by design, and do what they want to do every single day.” Powerful stuff. “I wasn’t the given size. I wasn’t the most talented. I wasn’t the fastest, but I pushed myself into the top three percent by always putting myself in the position to be successful – by getting there early and leaving late – working with coaches, being in the film room every day – being in the weight room as much as I could, and doing everything I could that was humanly possible every day. It wasn’t given to me, because I didn’t have all of those other gifts.” In this episode of The BOOM podcast, you will discover Contartesi’s empowering views on healthy competition and how to find the fire within yourself, and more. Yalden and Contartesi work together in the youth speaking market and speak often on leadership, character and resilience, but they have a great relationship and help each other out – the exact opposite of cutthroat tactics and self-preservation. For them, it’s all about service. “Healthy competition is when you are secure with who you are – and you want to see other people grow and succeed as well. I think that’s awesome,” Yalden said. Contartesi’s daily routine involves affirmations, personal development study and a few minutes of meditation and regular workouts. He utilizes a vision board and a goals spreadsheet, taking the main specific goals and writing them down on a Post-It note every day. He also uses a task management app called Todoist. Yalden mentioned that Contartesi’s routine was like a customized version of the principles laid out in Hal Elrod’s The Miracle Morning. Contartesi is currently implementing the principles laid out in the Dale Carnegie classic, How to Win Friends & Influence People. Both Yalden and Contartesi are huge proponents of self-discipline, and Contartesi  laid out his three-point plan to bring the BOOM and make a huge impact in a person’s life.
  • Build Relationships/Find a Mentor
  • Overcome Fear
  • Be Persistent
Yalden closed this episode with an admonition for folks to put down the cell phone and make that face-to-face interaction. “Come out of your shell,” he said. “Recognize fear. Overcome it. Feel it. Crush it and go through it. We all experience fear, but you have to learn to overcome it,” he said. And never forget the value of persistence. “Richie talks about the football analogy of giving it everything you have,” he said, adding a shout out to entrepreneurs: “Wake up and give it everything you have – every single day.” For more about Richie Contartesi, go HERE. Learn all about Jeff Yalden HERE. To listen to this episode of The BOOM Podcast, click HERE. For more of The BOOM Podcast, point and click HERE. Grab your copy of BOOM! One Word to Instantly Inspire Action, Deliver Rewards, and Positively Affect Your Life Every day, click HERE. Join the BOOM Nation community on Facebook.  

Filed Under: BOOM, Leadership, Motivation, Personal Development, Podcasts, Success, Uncategorized Tagged With: Amazon, Amazon Bestseller, Author, BOOM, Carolina Panthers, Division I Football, Goals, In Spite of the Odds, Jacksonville University, Jeff Yalden, Kyle Strongin, Michael Oher, Motivation, NCAA, Ole Miss, Persistence, Podcast, Richie Contartesi, San Francisco 49ers, SEC, The Blind Side, Uiversity of Tennessee, University of Mississippi, Youth Motivational Speaker

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