Dennis Yu

Dog for Comfort: The Hammer’s “Honey”

The Hammer’s Pet Dog “Honey” If you want a friend at any place, get a dog for comfort! These friendly canines make for great lifetime buddies. The bond that you create with them is as lasting as this earth will ever be.  Even Darryl “The Hammer” Isaacs agrees! The Joys of Having “Honey” The Hammer’s pet dog was Honey. While all of the Isaacs’s dogs have been a special part of the family, one dog truly captured Darryl’s heart like no other —Honey Isaacs, a dog for comfort, was a Labrador mix adopted from the Humane Society. Honey had been a great addition to the Isaacs family. Long walks in the park and a trip to the Doggy Daycare, she had been an integral part of the tight-knit group. With her adventurous spirit, always lounging in the sunbeams and bringing joy to the neighborhood, she brought plenty of love and hope that shone brightly in the Isaacs.  Honey’s story was a representation of so many dogs in the Humane Society, abandoned, with no shelter and little food. Even so, she had plenty of vibrant energy. She loved being around people, especially children. But more than anything, she loved spending time at home with the Isaacs.  She was a close friend, a loving companion, and a family dog who left lasting paw prints in their hearts. Leaving Lasting Paw Prints Honey has given Darryl and the family her absolute all. In return, they too, have given their most genuine love and adoration for their four-legged kin. Sadly, her paw prints are now in heaven, getting much-deserved snuggles and belly rubs from angels. Still, the Isaacs continue to celebrate Honey for her love of attention and her ability to befriend every dog and human at the park. They paid tribute to their beloved jet-black Lab for “Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day.” Encourage Others and Adopt Our furry buddies are there for the good and the bad times. They’re immensely loyal and endearingly affectionate. And with their boundless judgment-free cuddles, we can be our most authentic selves.   A short time ago, adoption was nothing but a rarity. But thanks to continued animal welfare support, neglected pets are finding homes and gaining access to veterinary care.  Setting the stage for others to follow, Darryl Isaacs and his family bask in the warmth and comforting memories brought by Honey, their dog for comfort, inspiring and encouraging everyone to adopt a companion animal.

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How To Show Your Team That You Care

When a team member asks for something, you deliver! From his daily status report this morning:  It’s cold and gloomy here today in Greenville, South Carolina (view from my hotel):   I saw this and went to Amazon Prime, finding same-day delivery for free on this item:   And I get a free gift note, so why not?   I also choose the gift bag option if the recipient is a female or if the gift is over $100.  Are you honoring and showing gratitude to your employees by sending them little gifts?  Believe me, when I say this, it’s not the $12, but the thought that counts.  And it’s a thought that they will remember.  I don’t know if you send your team small gifts or not, but it’s an action that shows that you care about them.  From doing so, you might just find a boost in their productivity and morale.  When was the last time someone sent you a physical gift in the mail (Not including holidays or birthdays)?  When was the last time you have done this?  Regardless, check out our Thank You Machine Training to learn how to be a pro gift giver– to delight your team members, improve their productivity, and grow your business.

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I’m so grateful I was able to go to college.

I have taken for granted the ability to read and write, learn how to organize my time, and behave professionally in a group setting. Young adults these days find it fashionable to hate the education system. Yet the irony of their incoherent tirades are rife with grammatical mistakes, like the 99/1% protesters marching in the streets, boycotting the “big corporations”, shouting misgivings on Facebook from their iPhones, before they head to Starbucks to watch Netflix. The youth feel disenfranchised, so they blame educational institutions, the wasteful government, and greedy corporations. Too many hero movies lead them to believe they can make 6 figures by next month by merely self-declaring they are an Influencer, so they can sell courses on how to create courses to sell influencer marketing to course sellers. One of them I loaned money to buy a BMW, which he drove off in the middle of the night across the country, with no repayment. Meanwhile, he’s stripped our logo from our courses and is actively selling it as his. His website has the logos of our clients and he refuses to remove them. I’ve learned respect from mentors that have run hedge funds, airlines, newspapers, and the United States Post Office. I had dinner with George HW Bush and learned how he greets people he’s never met before– by asking their name, repeating it, and remembering it later to mention it again. One successful friend owns a chain of furniture stores, but his car is worth 1/3rd the BMW of this other kid. One has millions in the bank, and the other has flash but is broken. College taught me the discipline to see my way through to complete a multi-year program. How many of your initiatives have made it past a year? People who are excited about constantly starting new things are really admitting that they can’t finish anything. I don’t make New Year’s Resolutions not because statistically they fail, but because I care about getting the result, not about the announcement or declaring victory before I’ve even put on my armor and headed out to battle. College is for learning how to learn– gaining principles and habits that operate in conjunction with the work experience you get at the same time or after you graduate. The first thing I do when I enter someone’s living room is look at how many books they have relative to the size of their TV. That tells you their priority. Read more to be an interesting person. I want to hire and partner with people who want to get rich slowly. I want to partner with people who want to change the post-secondary education system from within, by teaching and providing vocational training, even down at the community college and high school level. I’d love there to be a digital marketing degree that carries the same authority and practical application as being a medical or legal professional. Can you imagine a “doctor” that says they don’t need to go to medical school? They have YouTube and went to a Doctor Mastermind! Those are voodoo doctors and witch doctors. The college system is adapting because of programs like DigitalMarketer and Social Media Examiner, to bring together practitioners that each, businesses that need help, and students that need jobs. Meanwhile, kids– get off my lawn!

I’m so grateful I was able to go to college. Read More »

I have been THIS close to quitting a hundred times over the last 20 years.

I’m not going to succeed, I’m not smart enough, I don’t have enough money, the system is set up against me, my idea won’t work, a certain person doesn’t like me, etc… And I keep going, not because I’m a tough guy because I want to “prove” to everyone that I can be successful, or because I need the money or things. The reason? I look at the people that have entrusted their careers to our company. I don’t want to let them down. I feel the success when they succeed and the failure when they fail. I believe soldiers join the military initially because they want to serve their country. But they stay because of their loyalty to their brothers. If you’re thinking of quitting, decide if it’s actually fear and excuses holding you back. And decide if you have a mission big enough and worthy enough for your attention right now. Think of the people counting on you and you’ll get renewed strength and support you didn’t realize you had when all alone.

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I want to share with you the most powerful thing I know about business

It will take you only a couple of minutes a day to do. No, it’s not the Dollar-a-Day technique. But first, let me give you some perspective… The older I get, the less need I feel to take credit. As a young hustler, I fought at every opportunity to demonstrate I was the best at everything, to win at even the dumbest of things. I realized that I couldn’t possibly keep up my knowledge in so many areas, despite my hard work and naïveté. Then I discovered that I only had to surround myself with the best people- that an hour of developing relationships had a higher ROI than studying. Folks like Logan Young and Sam Collier run our business competently, performing better Facebook ad optimization than I could by myself. I don’t even attend client meetings anymore, except as a figurehead or to be with friends. As a young adult, I was told the old adage about how it’s not who you know, but who knows you. I thought that was for professional salespeople who did deals all day and had natural, extroverted charisma. Not me at all. I thought that public speaking was only for people who wanted to be the next Tony Robbins or sell questionable health supplements. Then I realized that if you want to educate on a large scale, you must learn these skills, which anyone can do. And I found the most powerful tool in business, which you can do in one minute a day… To say THANK YOU to the good people that take care of you, do great work for you, and give you money. You build your brand when you elevate their brand. You cannot feel fear or weakness when you are in gratitude. Your customers and team members cannot help but reciprocate when you do this, taking care of their own, as part of a giant THANK YOU machine. Are you spending one minute each day saying thank you to the people you love and respect?

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New Zealand a while back

As amazing as it was, I learned that: However, people look, wherever they’re from, no matter how successful they appear, everyone wants the same thing… To be loved and appreciated… and even if they think or pretend to be logical and rational, underneath… They are highly illogical, emotional creatures that are beautiful and worthwhile… If you take the time to peer beneath the tough exterior and successful image… Past their anger and mean behavior to discover the vulnerability and warmth they need your permission to express… To find the loyalty and joy that was there all along from those around you, if you only realized it was there all along… In whatever situation you’re in, to be able to tap into an infinite reservoir with only a tiny shift in your attitude.

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Ever heard of a compliment sandwich?

If you have critical feedback, you need to sandwich it between two compliments. The average person needs 5 compliments for every piece of negative feedback– some people, like me, need a lot more. I’ve made it a point to say thank you more often to the good people in my life. And by merely being open to the idea of gratitude, I’ve seen many amazing things I would have completely missed. Do you believe that you see what you want to see? I do– and I’ve experienced the power of a self-fulfilling prophecy. Some people call it the Law of Attraction or Manifesting. Others get to a state of gratitude through prayer and meditation. Expect to see me saying THANK YOU a lot more often– instead of making it up just to say it, to show true appreciation, less entitlement, and complacency. I want your help in this quest– to keep me accountable in increasing my thank you to criticism ratio to above 10 to 1, maybe 20 to 1.

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Only when you look back do you realize what was important

On October 22nd, 2015, I was in San Francisco speaking at a conference, having just flown in from another conference and client meeting. I’ll bet you didn’t know that I was literally homeless- I didn’t have a place. I just bounced from one hotel to the next. I was EXHAUSTED with no relief or end in sight. The next 7 days were client meetings and speaking engagements in Seattle, Denver, and Salt Lake City. 310,000 miles a year– and the average pilot flies 400,000! These were all things I willingly signed up for, since how could you not refuse the very opportunities that hungry entrepreneurs would die to have? Yet at 7:24 pm that evening, Logan Young came into my life and began gently working through my blind spots– teaching me that less is more, and how balance and perspective matter. Two years later, we have a great team and stable operations. I’ve lost 15 pounds, actually live in one place for extended time periods, and have time to breathe. I’ve gone from literally working myself to death (look up “karoshi” in Japan) to starting to have a life. And it wouldn’t have been possible without a co-founder to balance me out. Do you have a co-founder or co-pilot to help you navigate your business? I’m a lousy manager since I have little patience and I have trouble explaining things in plain English– though it makes sense to me. Logan is an incredible teacher. He is the rare person who doesn’t just begin a journey but finishes what he started– despite the cost. I don’t think there’s a problem he’s encountered that he’s not able to eventually solve. He has no fear, through the challenges we have faced together in running this enterprise, plus private struggles that each of us faces, which would make the strongest men cry. A business partner is much like a wife– you probably spend more time at work than with your wife. You have “kids” to take care of. The strength of this relationship is what makes or breaks the company– since your odds of succeeding as the lone hero entrepreneur are fairy tales. Perhaps “brother” is a better analogy.A friend loves at all times, but a brother is born for adversity. And greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. I was too proud until recently to ever ask for help– perhaps this resonates with you. Or maybe you’re one of the ones who has tried to help me, but I didn’t listen. So learn from my mistakes on the importance of having a wife, business partner, mentor, eternal companion, coach, and cheerleader in your life. Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counselors, they are established. Who is advising you and looking out for your best interests? Are you fortunate enough to have Logan as your business partner and friend?

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You cannot get there alone.

Yet fail as many times as I have, relapsing, wallowing in self-pity, anger at myself, and jealousy of others… I’ve struggled for more years than I’d like to admit. But behind this facade of success is loneliness, low self-esteem, depression, and self-inflicted pain. One day at a time, step by step– the first one being honest about the situation. And to my surprise, I’ve found cheerleaders, sponsors, and supporters. You know who you are. So many times I’ve wanted to give up, since I’ve kept failing at business, failing at personal goals, and failing at random silly stuff. There is great power in finishing what you started– and you do it with a team, with your Savior, and with people who support you. So don’t give up– since if you don’t quit, you win!

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