The Chris LoCurto Show

Today's podcast is my response to a great question that came in on the blog from Matt Hamm:Chris – how do you decide the next right steps when processing through growing a business? Is there a particular order that you recommend?Read the post and share your comments at http://ChrisLoCurto.com/steps-to-grow-your-business/

Every time I do a LifePlan, I spend several hours going over the major turns in each participants life. Major turns are key events from your past that help you gain perspective on where you're at and where you're going. It's literally a process of sharing the major changes from your life, like moving as a kid or marriage, loss, accepting Christ, etc. It doesn't have to be something big, heavy and deep but it very well could be.Typically, we get around 10 to 15 major turns or changes in each LifePlan. Of course this depends on age and experience too. Some people have 10, others have 18. There's no right or wrong number but a major turn isn't just a continuation of an event, it's something that actually changed the direction of your life.Here's what I want you to do:Think back as far as you possibly can and start writing down the major turns in your life...Read the full post at http://ChrisLoCurto.com/how-your-past-…ge-your-future/

In the spirit of the Olympics, today I'm sharing a story from childhood. I spent a good chunk of my youth training to be in the Olympics. I was downhill slalom skier and competed on a team in Northern California. We were good and we knew it and in full disclosure, I was pretty cocky.I had two incredible ski coaches, Mike Spalding and Chuck Frye. One day, at a competition, Chuck reminded me to take off my jacket before competing and I went against his better judgement. I had been on a big wining streak and I didn't think it would affect my performance. I was cold and I had beaten the guys I was about to race anyway.As I went down the course, I felt slow. When I hit the finish line, I'd lost by a couple of a hundredths of a second. In that moment, I knew I should've listened to my coach. For the first time, I realized the importance of great coaches in my life.In life and business, it's so important to have somebody that's been there to help you along. Every time I do a LifePlan, I talk about the importance of not only having a coach or mentor in your life but being a coach or mentor for someone that's not as far along as you are. That's why I do what I do!I've been leading and coaching people to grow in life and business for almost two decades. If you're interested, check out the Coaching page. I coach people in a wide variety of industries - from leaders to entrepreneurs to people that want to be leaders and entrepreneurs.Go to http://ChrisLoCurto.com/the-importance-of-coaching/ to answer the question - why is a coach important to you?

Grace. It's something we all need. Oddly enough, it's not something that we give very freely. Every single one of us has junk in our lives. Instead of judgement or ridicule, we need to give grace and receive grace.All too often we kill our wounded. At the very point a family member, friend or co-worker needs our love and grace, we turn our back. We roll our eyes at their failure. We walk away. Why? Maybe it's our own shame. All the failure and imperfection in our life-being is reflected in that moment. Maybe we're so overwhelmed with baggage from our past, or problems in the present, that we can't possibly think about extending help to someone else.Folks, don't kill your wounded. It's very possible that someone on your team or in your family or church desperately needs you to come behind them and offer support. Maybe they did something bad. Hate the sin, not the sinner.Add your comments at: http://ChrisLoCurto.com/dont-kill-your-wounded-podcast/

Last month, I taught about celebrating achievement on CLo.TV and today I'm digging deeper into celebrating your team and how each personality style wants to be recognized for their achievements. Read the full post here: http://ChrisLoCurto.com/celebrate-achievement-on-your-team-podcast/

I can't say enough great things about Crystal Paine, the Money Saving Mom. Not only is she an incredible entrepreneur, but she's also a phenomenal influence to so many folks who are tired of just surviving.Crystal joined me on the podcast a few weeks back to talk about her journey as an entrepreneur, as well as her new book, Say Goodbye to Survival Mode. Problem is, she's so deep with great information that we didn't even get to the book!In rockstar fashion, Crystal was gracious enough to do another interview so we could dive into her newest release on the 9 simple strategies to stress less, sleep more, and restore your passion for life.And trust me when I say, YOU NEED THAT! We ALL need more of that in our life!

Back in December, we released our VALUES Motivators Test. The VALUES profile tests what you value most in life. For leaders, having a team member in a position where their motivators aren’t utilized can be a huge waste of time, energy, and money. It is vital to have team members operating in their strengths with both their personality style and values!To read the full post and learn more about vales & motivators, go to: http://ChrisLoCurto.com/what-do-you-value/

Michael Hyatt joins me on the podcast today to talk about his incredible new goal setting course, 5 Days To Your Best Year Ever (http://www.bestyearever.me/chrisl).You can absolutely make 2014 your best year ever but it's not just going to happen. Making resolutions and having goals is a step in the right direction but to actually achieve meaningful goals, you need an action plan. In the Skype interview, Michael and I talk about:- How to write S.M.A.R.T. goals (specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, time-bound)- Why looking into your past can change your future- How to get motivated and stay motivated- What happens if you don't achieve your goal(s)- Why you should focus on 5 to 7 goals that are career and life oriented- How to get off your "BUT"- What to do about people that don't support your goalsI'm giving away the course to one lucky reader but if you're not that lucky person, you've got to sign up for Michaels course before Jan 16! After 11:59pm on Thursday, the store closes. Why? Michael found that there is a small window of time for people to set goals. The first time is over the Christmas and New Year's holidays. The second is at the halfway point of the year during the summer. So if you want to have your best year ever, register now.Don't procrastinate! Don't put it off any longer. Make 2014 your best year ever and start today!I'll announce the winner by 5pm CST. Also, you will save 25% by using this link to purchase the course: http://www.bestyearever.me/chrislWho's ready to win? After listening to the podcast, answer the question in the comment section and be sure to tweet or post on Facebook and LinkedIn! It might just get you extra credit... Go to http://ChrisLoCurto.com/five-days-to-your-best-year-ever/ to enter!

During LifePlan, the topic of being selfish comes up all the time and it's always an assumed no-no. Healthy selfishness is a vital piece of living a healthy life with boundaries. If you don't have healthy boundaries in your life, a boundary that says "stop here" or "this is my limit," you'll get walked all over. Join the discussion at http://ChrisLoCurto.com/its-okay-to-be-selfish-podcast/If you haven't read Boundaries by Dr. Henry Cloud and John Townsend, buy a copy today!When you begin to start setting healthy boundaries at home and at work, it changes your life. Be selfish and get rid of junk so you can be the best version of yourself. Take time to unpack your past and get healthy. If you don't get rid of the baggage in your life, you'll continue to carry it around and pick up more along the way.Take time to get healthy. Take time to get coached on how to do that. If you're interested in LifePlan, check out the Work With Me page above for additional information - http://chrislocurto.com

Crystal Paine is the creator of moneysavingmom.com and author of the soon-to-be-released book, Say Goodby to Survival Mode. On today's podcast, Crystal and I talk about not quitting and how she turned Money Saving Mom into one of the highest-trafficked personal finance blogs on the web.Join the discussion at http://ChrisLoCurto.com/interview-with-crystal-paine-podcast/Crystal is a true entrepreneur and built her thriving business on a shoe string budget by becoming a self-taught expert on search engine optimization, web development and social media. She shares her insight on Facebook and Pinterest as well as building a virtual team and serving people.

This is the gift-giving time of year and there's no greater blessing in life than to be a giver. Many of you are small business owners, entrepreneurs and team leaders but let me remind you - your business is what you do not who you are. When you make your business your life, you're missing out on life. You're sure not able to give of yourself either.Join the conversation at http://ChrisLoCurto.com/you-get-what-you-give-podcast/Colossians 3:12 - You must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.There's only one way to clothe yourself with mercy and kindness and patience and that's to take care of yourself. I'm not telling you to be selfish, but if you don't take care of you, you don't have anything else to give.As you take time this holiday to step away from work, make sure that you're scheduling time to replenish, exercise and create balance in your life. Going forward into the new year:How are you going to replenish you?What are the things you need to be doing to be the absolute best you?When you do these things, you can pour yourself out into other people. You get what you give. Take care of yourself and help those around you be the best they can be.Merry Christmas!

Culture is kind of a big deal around here. I spend a great deal of time teaching entrepreneurs and guiding teams on how to create high quality culture in their organizations. It's a major component of every business, and it has the power to destroy your company or make you successful.INC Magazine invited me to do a talk on culture and those lessons have been available in chapters to blog subscribers. Today, I'm featuring three of the lessons in the podcast. Join the conversation http://ChrisLoCurto.com/creating-high-quality-culture/

Meetings. Suck. At least most of the time. Why? I'll tell you!Get your copy of my new, free eBook Why Your Meetings Suck at http://chrislocurto.com and share it with your team, office and social circles.Today's podcast is dedicated to the topic of making your meetings more productive! Join the conversation at http://ChrisLoCurto.com/why-your-meetings-suck-podcast/

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! For some of you, it's a fantastic time of year. For others (and quite possibly people on your team), this whole holiday season is difficult.I'm sharing several stories on the podcast today as well as information that I teach in my LifePlan coaching events. Join the conversation at http://ChrisLoCurto.com/hurt-people-hurt-people-podcast/"When you can't fix yourself, you're frustrated with the broken people in your life." - Chris LoCurtoBe sure to pick up a copy of Boundaries: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life as well as the North Pole Patrol single, "Naughty List" featured at the end of the podcast!

It's the week of Thanksgiving and there's no better time than the present to show your team how thankful you are. Making your team productive starts with making your team feel appreciated.In today's podcast, we get into a bunch of fun Thanksgiving themed discussion around coffee and my top secret Deep-Fried Turkey recipe. Which isn't so top secret. Turns out Bon Appétit is on the exact same page. Join the conversation - http://ChrisLoCurto.com/make-your-team-productive-podcast/