Category: Articles

The Secret Weapon of Billionaire CEOs and Wildly Successful People

Kelli Richards November 24, 2014

“My article was originally published on LinkedIn”

Picture this: You’ve launched your business, you’re turning a profit, and day-to-day operations are humming along. The company is solid, but you’ve hit a plateau. You know it’s time to take things to the next level, but you’re not sure how best to do it. You haven’t been here before.

If you’ve hit a wall, it might be time to hire a business coach. Sometimes no matter how passionate you are about your business, it takes an outsider’s perspective to see where the company is lacking and identify areas for growth. And that additional insight and shift in perspective can take moments but make a huge difference in your results and the outcome.

ID-100216514Business coaches can give you and your company a fresh perspective and the advantage of experience, but only if you know how to take advantage of what your coach can provide.

What Coaches Bring to the Table 

If you’re unsure about working with a coach, consider that many top CEOs, politicians, and other public figures rely on coaches and mentors for feedback and guidance.

Google’s Eric Schmidt says his best advice to new CEOs is to get a coach, and former Intuit CEO Steve Bennett believes coaches are vital to ongoing professional development. Oprah Winfrey, Bill Clinton, and even Barack Obama have all reported using coaches on a regular basis to advance in their careers.

I myself worked with several mentors at Apple, including the late Steve Jobs. Each taught me important lessons about team-building, collaboration, workplace politics, managing time and priorities, and how to remain confident in the face of challenges.

In addition to all the great professional development advice a coach can provide, she can also give you:

  1. Objective feedback. Being objective about your own company is nearly impossible. You’re so immersed in the day-to-day operations and accustomed to the way things are, you’re probably missing out on ways the business could be better. A coach can offer a fresh take on your strengths and weaknesses as a CEO and on the business as a whole.
  2. A broader network. A good coach can cost as much as a good lawyer, but she’ll instantly prove her worth by connecting you to other powerful people who can help grow your business and advise you on how to leverage and extend your existing network.
  3. Fresh ideas. Good business coaches are people who have a wealth of experience in your industry, which means they will likely have encountered the challenges you currently face — and they understand what’s most critical for you. When you aren’t sure where to take your business next, a coach will often see opportunities you missed.

How to Make the Most of the Relationship 

A coach can do wonderful things for you and your business, but only if you put a lot of effort into the relationship yourself.

Here’s how to empower your coach to help you take your business to the next level:

  1. Take responsibility. Your coach will offer guidance, but it’s up to you to implement her recommendations. Act on her suggestions, and keep her updated on how those strategies are working. Regular communication tells your coach you’re serious about the work you’re doing together. It’s an exchange and collaboration; you must do your part.
  2. Emphasize honesty. No matter how much you might need a pick-me-up, coaches aren’t cheerleaders. You should insist on honest, constructive assessments from your coach at all times. While everyone else might be afraid to tell you the truth about your ideas, your coach may be (and often is) the one person you should be able to count on for honest feedback at all times.
  3. Pick her brain. Your coach can offer a wealth of industry experience, so take advantage of that. Ask her what professional organizations are worth joining, what lessons she’s learned in her own career, and how she achieved her greatest successes. This information helps you understand how you might shape your own career trajectory.

A business coach can be a valuable asset to any executive and leader. A coach can act as a sounding board for new ideas, offer a fresh and honest perspective, and motivate you to take your business to the next level. But ultimately, the success of your business depends on you taking the initiative to work with your coach, being all-in, and making the most of the relationship.

This post was originally published on Inc.com.

A highly sought-after consultant, super-connector, trusted advisor, celebrity wrangler, and thought leader, Kelli Richards is the CEO of The All Access Group. She facilitates strategic business opportunities in digital distribution among innovative technology companies, talent and media companies, and brands to foster new revenue streams and deliver compelling consumer experiences. As a trusted advisor, she transforms the quality of people’s lives. Kelli is also the author of the bestselling e-book “The Magic and Moxie of Apple: An Insider’s View.”

Photo: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

9 Ways to Make a Lasting Impression at Your First Conference

Kelli Richards October 27, 2014

linked-In-150x150October 27, 2014,

LinkedIn Articles

Success in business is all about connections and relationships. And with more and more people working virtually and face-to-face meetings becoming fewer and farther between, the stakes have never been higher for making a good first impression.

Read the entire article here: https://www.inc.com/kelli-richards/9-ways-to-make-a-lasting-impression-at-your-first-conference.html

Music and Your Brand: Five Ways to Tune Your Demographic In With the Right Band

Kelli Richards September 15, 2014

linked-In-150x150September 15, 2014,

LinkedIn Articles

Attention is a scarce resource—and that means it’s a costly one. In a world of hundreds of competing voices, art and music have become a powerful way to bring a brand back into the spotlight.

Read the entire article here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140915152830-9638-music-and-your-brand-five-ways-to-tune-your-demographic-in-with-the-right-band/

Star-Struck: Tapping into the Power of a Celebrity Speaker

Kelli Richards September 8, 2014

linked-In-150x150September 8, 2014,

LinkedIn Articles

Creating a well-designed event is a balancing act. Tapping industry leaders and controversial renegades, orchestrating brilliant panels, and throwing awesome after-parties all help draw people in, but a well-informed celebrity speaker can elevate your event to “can’t-miss” status with real punch and energy.

Read the entire article here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140908165516-9638-star-struck-tapping-into-the-power-of-a-celebrity-speaker/

Personal Glimpses of a Comet: Comic Genius Robin Williams

Kelli Richards August 24, 2014

Screen Shot 2014-08-23 at 4.05.07 PMSometimes there are people who touch our lives in brief glimpses – and those encounters are so magical that we hold onto them and look forward to the next one over and over.  They’re friends of friends or colleagues we bump into at events or meetings or random connections where it seems serendipity is at work.

Robin Williams was one of those people for me. I was the talent producer of the BAMMIES (Awards) in San Francisco for nearly 20 years, and was fortunate to have the chance to work with Robin as a presenter a couple of times during my tenure.  Each time without fail, as tensions ran high in production (which they do at live events, no matter how well prepared you are), Robin would be there, working his magic backstage, making everyone laugh and lightening things up for us – as well as for the other presenters and performers.

And our paths would cross that way for many years through different circumstances.  When he was shooting, “What Dreams May Come,” I’d hear regular stories of his antics from my good friends Michael Van Himbergen and Jeff Diamond, who were part of the visual effects team. (The film won numerous awards for visual effects by the way, including an Oscar.)

And the connections continued.  As recently as last year, I was approached by Robin’s team to lend my “super-connector” expertise to help source potential buyers for his home in Napa from within my network.  Unfortunately we weren’t successful, but the home is a real stunner.

There have been other modest and even indirect glimpses of Robin too – someone recently showed me where Thomas Kincaid, the artist, had painted Robin into a corner of one of his San Francisco paintings; something few would notice or realize was him if no one pointed it out.  He was everywhere it seems.  But again, these are only flashes… the off-stage Robin was probably known only to a handful of very close friends, to his children… for the rest of us, it’s like how a comet flies past us through space.  Like Robin’s work, a fast-moving comet leaves trails everywhere in its wake, timeless.  Nothing really ever fades away completely, does it?

The point I’m making here,ultimately, is to pay attention.  To be sure that we stop and notice the people who whiz past us with comet-like brilliance.  To recognize how much they mean to us, even in brief glimpses.  And to BE that comet whenever we have that opportunity.  In the immortal words of Robin, “You’re only given one little spark of madness. You mustn’t lose it.”

Here’s to Robin … and the rest of his magical journey.

 

Kelli

PS:  Please read my LinkedIn article on Robin Williams here:  https://bit.ly/OnlyTheGoodDieYoung

 

 

Only the Good Die Young: Robin Williams & Other Creative Geniuses Taken Too Soon.

Kelli Richards August 18, 2014

My Tribute published on LinkedIn

Robin Williams

I’ll never forget the first time I met Robin Williams. I was a teenager attending a taping of “Mork & Mindy” on the Paramount Pictures lot. He was incredibly gracious and encouraging to my 16-year-old self with aspirations of working in the entertainment business and making my dent in the universe.

Many years later, I crossed paths with him again when I was driving entertainment initiatives at Apple. He accepted our invitation to participate in a few marketing campaigns, and he even performed for our employees. He was always a delight to work with — no exceptions.

In 2003, Williams supported a fundraiser I helped organize. Through the Chairs That Care initiative, we asked celebrities to design a dining room chair that would be raffled off to support the Habitot Children’s Museum. Appropriately, Williams and his kids designed a chair entitled “Peace.”……….

 

Read the full article published in LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/KRRWTribute

 

And if we’re lucky, we will inspire and change the lives of those we reach, or at least make their days a little brighter along the way. I’m so grateful that we got to experience Williams’ magic and gifts; they touched many of us deeply. Honestly, it feels like losing a dear friend.

 

Until next time,

 

Kelli Richards is the CEO of The All Access Group.  A highly sought-after consultant, mentor, speaker, producer, coach, and author, 

 

I facilitate strategic business opportunities in digital distribution between technology companies, established artists and celebrities, film studios, record labels, and consumer brand companies in order to foster new revenue streams and deliver compelling consumer experiences. I’m also the author of the bestselling e-book, “The Magic & Moxie of Apple – An Insider’s View.”

 

 

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