Ron Alford, Executive Coach, Certified Trainer, Keynote Speaker, and Senior Partner with Southwestern Consulting, covers the principles and parables in his newly revised edition of "Redefining Possible", and talks about finding the joy in having his soul crushed, collecting “Ron's Rambles”, the importance of putting on blinders, truths vs. lies, diving into the data, but going with the gut, and why his pals call him “Switzerland”.
Mentioned in this episode:
Learn more at SouthwesternConsulting.com/Coaching/Students
Order today at RedefiningPossible.com
Welcome back to The Action Catalyst. Today we
Adam Outland:are joined by Ron Alford, a senior partner and VP of
Adam Outland:recruiting executive coach and speaker at Southwestern
Adam Outland:Consulting. It's awesome to have you back on the podcast you've
Adam Outland:been others before. I am excited to formally interview you
Adam Outland:because you're trapped. I could ask you all the embarrassing
Adam Outland:things publicly that I've always wanted to.
Ron Alford:Thank you for having me on.
Adam Outland:But in all honesty, you know, one of the
Adam Outland:things that I've always respected about you and how
Adam Outland:you've lived your life outside of business is, I guess, first
Adam Outland:and foremost and how you run my first experience learning about
Adam Outland:you. I remember who's when you talked about how you just run 35
Adam Outland:miles one year for every year you've been alive, because it
Adam Outland:was the 35th birthday. I was both amazed and thought you were
Adam Outland:a masochist at the same time. But then when you unpacked you
Adam Outland:know why you did it what it meant to you. I thought that was
Adam Outland:really cool. But talk about when did running start for you?
Ron Alford:Yeah, it's such an interesting thing, how gut
Ron Alford:feelings happened. I remember walking into a running store,
Ron Alford:you just get some shoes, not thinking much of it. My whole
Ron Alford:life was basketball, football, just more team sports. And I saw
Ron Alford:this fundraiser for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society where you can
Ron Alford:do a triathlon, you can go to Kona, Hawaii with a group of
Ron Alford:people you don't know and raise, I think I believe a six and a
Ron Alford:half 1000 to go to Hawaii and do this this triathlon, this
Ron Alford:Olympic distance triathlon. And I didn't have a bike I didn't
Ron Alford:y'all really run other than to score a basket or a touchdown.
Ron Alford:Or if and I just thought, man, it'd be neat. I was, you know,
Ron Alford:getting a little older and team sports were the thing anymore.
Ron Alford:And I remember fundraising for that and falling in love with
Ron Alford:the whole philanthropic side of what we were doing there. But
Ron Alford:then also the actual race itself and the endurance side of it,
Ron Alford:and just really what it took to prepare there. And so after
Ron Alford:doing the race, I thought, Oh, the bikie was cool. The swimming
Ron Alford:was cool. But man, the running art was awesome. And so that
Ron Alford:that started a series of like, okay, let's see what these half
Ron Alford:marathons and marathons and these things are like, and
Ron Alford:finally got into some some trail stuff where you're not as
Ron Alford:consumed with the watch. You can't really you know, when
Ron Alford:you're going up a mountain or doing technical single track,
Ron Alford:you can have an 18 minute downhill mile that changes
Ron Alford:everything. So that's that's kind of where the running part
Ron Alford:started, and how I've more fallen in love with the distance
Ron Alford:endurance side of it.
Adam Outland:And today, like roughly how many ultras?
Ron Alford:So in actual events, roughly 20 things. I've done
Ron Alford:more on my own. Yeah, I'd say 35, 40.
Adam Outland:How does running fit into your book Redefining
Adam Outland:Possible? Where do you feel like how the psychology of how you do
Adam Outland:what you do? Because for listeners that don't know, how
Adam Outland:long is it typical ultra?
Ron Alford:Anything typically 50k or above, so anything lot,
Ron Alford:technically longer than a marathon louder than 26.2. So 50
Ron Alford:ks 31 miles, but the thing about Ultra is, is they are usually in
Ron Alford:mountains or deep trails, or they're not your typical road
Ron Alford:kind of terrain. You know, obviously the book I'm sure
Ron Alford:we'll talk more about it. But it alludes to belief barriers that
Ron Alford:alludes to, to unconditional confidence, and running humbles
Ron Alford:any person. Like there it is, it crushes your soul. And so it's
Ron Alford:so good for me to get out there and just get beaten. And I don't
Ron Alford:know any other pretty way to say it. And you remember those
Ron Alford:moments where you were so depleted, your legs were shot,
Ron Alford:you could hardly move the cramps were in can you take some
Ron Alford:breaths, you take a minute, you recollect your thoughts, your
Ron Alford:mind receptors, and suddenly your body follows your mind. 10
Ron Alford:miles later, you're eating snacks, you're reinvigorated.
Ron Alford:You're, you keep rallying. I would say the other part of it
Ron Alford:is just in a world where it's, if you're in business, if you
Ron Alford:have, you know, multiple kids like I do, I'm in a blended
Ron Alford:family. You know, we're all have stress environments. And I
Ron Alford:welcome that I want to be in areas where I feel pressure, I
Ron Alford:want to be in areas where I feel stress, I think that's a healthy
Ron Alford:thing. If I don't let it get to me too much. And that's where
Ron Alford:the running really helps me. Calm, I come home from Iran. I'm
Ron Alford:a better listener to my kids. I'm more calm with my wife, more
Ron Alford:loving my wife and more patient with prospects or clients, you
Ron Alford:name it.
Adam Outland:I've noticed, I think that's a common trait. A
Adam Outland:lot of people found this this success is that a number of them
Adam Outland:not all but a number of found their ability to manage
Adam Outland:controllable actions on a physical level, so, Arnold
Adam Outland:Schwarzenegger going to the gym and knowing all the reps and see
Adam Outland:the results from the reps he put in, you control your body, and
Adam Outland:the results are an extension of that.
Ron Alford:Absolutely. And yeah, Schwarzenegger's story. So
Ron Alford:you know, he talks about how that fitness aspect helped him
Ron Alford:in the world of acting and becoming, you know, arguably the
Ron Alford:top actor of his time then in the world of politics, and so I
Ron Alford:can't agree more it just it blends in to every part of life
Ron Alford:and it doesn't matter if it's extreme weightlifting, like
Ron Alford:Arnold or running or whatever the person's thing is, but it's
Ron Alford:finding that.
Adam Outland:You know, in prior interviews, we focused on some
Adam Outland:of your kind of your earlier life and how you built into
Adam Outland:Southwestern consulting and the impact that you've had there,
Adam Outland:I'm wondering, I guess, more recently through COVID. And in
Adam Outland:these last few years, what are some lessons that you've taken
Adam Outland:back and thought about the work that you wrote and Redefining
Adam Outland:Possible and new applications, new inspirations that you've
Adam Outland:had? Just over the last three or four years?
Ron Alford:Man, I love the question. I think for every
Ron Alford:listener, for each of us, like I really am more and more
Ron Alford:convicted on the seasons of life. You know, it's crazy how I
Ron Alford:could have spoken with you six months ago on some of these
Ron Alford:concepts. And today be in a totally different frame of mind.
Ron Alford:For listeners that are familiar with the book, the the
Ron Alford:overriding theme is impact, and you cannot grow older, you can't
Ron Alford:go through things and not think about what is my legacy? What is
Ron Alford:significance really mean? We all know that dollars don't equal
Ron Alford:the joy. And yet, it's still so easy to fall into that trap of
Ron Alford:whether it's more money, a new title at work, a better race
Ron Alford:time and my running or whatever the carrot is, is going to bring
Ron Alford:that joy. Yeah, you and I both know, man, it just the thing
Ron Alford:that's really going to fill that cup is the difference I believe
Ron Alford:I'm making in the lives of others. I think I could have
Ron Alford:known that maybe a few years ago, and but I feel like I'm in
Ron Alford:a season now where it's like that that is it. That is the
Ron Alford:metal, that is the thing that we're going after. And so if I
Ron Alford:believe that, then what am I doing in my life? What are my
Ron Alford:morning routines? What are my habits? What am I who's holding
Ron Alford:me accountable to where I can get the best out of what I've
Ron Alford:been given?
Adam Outland:I've always seen you as a long term thinker. But
Adam Outland:when you said recently, there's been a reflection on legacy.
Adam Outland:We'll go into that a little bit more like what how have you kind
Adam Outland:of reset legacy for yourself? Like how have you started to
Adam Outland:reassess or refresh legacy and what's important to you?
Ron Alford:Really, it's just more top of mind. And I wasn't
Ron Alford:planning to go here, but they have a recurring event, every
Ron Alford:other Monday afternoon, Ron's call with Mark Stacy. And Mark
Ron Alford:is a mentor for 1000s of people and impact her as as joyful of a
Ron Alford:person I've ever worked with Cindy on life with, and I got to
Ron Alford:work closely with him. And for years, he and I had our
Ron Alford:recurring calls, and I got to go to Austin, Texas, to travel with
Ron Alford:them and be with them. And Mark passed away, gosh, little over a
Ron Alford:year ago to now incredibly unexpectedly, it just you can't
Ron Alford:go through things like that every every listener that's had
Ron Alford:a loved one go through a terminal condition or lost a
Ron Alford:loved one unexpectedly. And so for me, I actually keep that
Ron Alford:recurring event, it's still on my calendar. And I don't want to
Ron Alford:remove that because it's as much as it can kind of make me sad
Ron Alford:for a moment. Emotional. It also reminds me of like, if
Ron Alford:perspective is brought back instantly, I might be thinking,
Ron Alford:Oh man, I'm behind on my goals, right? I'm this or that? Or what
Ron Alford:was me or Gosh, our profit margin is a little off. Or it's
Ron Alford:like, come on, stop. And perspective comes back
Ron Alford:instantly. And so trying to have those kind of reminders in my
Ron Alford:life daily, where it's more top of mind.
Adam Outland:Yeah, and I think you have this ability to hold
Adam Outland:things loosely. Like maybe you even said this analogy years
Adam Outland:ago, and I probably heard it from you, but you grip sand too
Adam Outland:tightly in your hand it slips through your fingers. If you if
Adam Outland:you cradle it, it's the only way to hold that. I think that might
Adam Outland:have been you bid but I hear that I almost in that story
Adam Outland:where it almost like that early reminds you to hold sort of
Adam Outland:things that maybe we think are important can hold it loosely
Adam Outland:instead because it's not as important as that perspective.
Ron Alford:Yea, and just even as a parent, you hold your kids
Ron Alford:lives, ya know, it's hard to not squeeze, my kids are gonna get
Ron Alford:good grades, they're gonna be respectful, they're gonna look
Ron Alford:people in the eyes, and they're gonna greet people, well,
Ron Alford:they're gonna be little athletes and et cetera, et cetera, you
Ron Alford:know, good music and art. And so you use like, you know what, I'm
Ron Alford:going to do the best I can. I'm gonna have a ton of faith. I'm
Ron Alford:going to lead by example, and I'm going to hold those things
Ron Alford:loosely. Otherwise, I put so much pressure on my dang kids,
Ron Alford:they they turn into a little monster.
Adam Outland:Exactly. Yeah, control you can and don't try
Adam Outland:and control things that you can't I love that. Another
Adam Outland:question would be of some of the principles that you bring up
Adam Outland:redefining possible What's another one, I guess, that
Adam Outland:you're really been focused on here over the last year or two?
Ron Alford:I'm really into focus because I think when
Ron Alford:you're juggling things, think of the wheel the spokes of the
Ron Alford:wheel right you know, and I've got my my spiritual goals like
Ron Alford:for me, my faith is this the beginning and the end, right?
Ron Alford:It's the center obviously, my role as a husband, my role as a
Ron Alford:dad, my role, my business role, you know, with internal clients,
Ron Alford:all of our coaches and company external clients. So you have
Ron Alford:all these things on your plate that I've chosen. So that's the
Ron Alford:ownership piece. This isn't a oh my gosh, look at this is like
Ron Alford:thank goodness, I made these choices. So I'm fully owning it,
Ron Alford:but the focus piece is big. And just even as I talk to you,
Ron Alford:looking down making sure my phone is upside down, there's no
Ron Alford:lighting there's no notifications of y'all my
Ron Alford:computer screen man, no way would it would there be a
Ron Alford:notification pop up that would somehow Take a little bit of my
Ron Alford:momentum or my inertia or my focus away from our
Ron Alford:conversation, just the blinders are more and more and more
Ron Alford:fascinated with that concept. And I love studying it with
Ron Alford:people, learning from people that just no matter how much
Ron Alford:they have on their plate, whenever I'm with them, they
Ron Alford:really seem present and engaged. I would say one last part of
Ron Alford:that is because, again, to my three kids, my twin boys are
Ron Alford:literally just about to start getting their driver's licenses.
Ron Alford:And so it's like, Man, I don't have a ton of time with my kids
Ron Alford:at home. I want to have focused time with these kids. You know,
Ron Alford:I want to make sure the time I have with my wife counts, I want
Ron Alford:to make sure the time I have in my co workers get Yeah, you get
Adam Outland:Yeah, absolutely. Speaking of focus, writing a
Adam Outland:it.
Adam Outland:book takes a lot of focus. I mean, to get your ideas on
Adam Outland:paper, and not even second guess yourself. It's really difficult.
Adam Outland:It's me, there's a couple questions around just writing
Adam Outland:and putting these ideas on paper. What was the best way for
Adam Outland:you to focus on writing that book?
Ron Alford:Yeah, I look back now. So I would say three,
Ron Alford:there's kind of three phases. The first was just a loose over
Ron Alford:a couple years loosely, having a having notes of Ron's rambles I
Ron Alford:call them and it was just little little rambles, little thoughts,
Ron Alford:little things I wanted to study, I had no idea what I wanted to
Ron Alford:do with them. Maybe it'd be a blog, or a video or part of some
Ron Alford:different keynote speaking things or a book. But that was
Ron Alford:just a number of years of just kind of collecting thoughts and
Ron Alford:pondering and just almost journaling and writing and
Ron Alford:processing it. That was absolutely the first part. The
Ron Alford:second was getting myself in a room and kind of organizing the
Ron Alford:thoughts into something that made sense. Like, if I'm
Ron Alford:beginning with the end in mind, what is the finished product
Ron Alford:look like? What do you want readers to take away? If no one
Ron Alford:read it, except my three kids? And maybe their spouses someday?
Ron Alford:Would they be proud of their dad, if this is like my journal,
Ron Alford:and are some sort of a way to process part of my life and part
Ron Alford:of the things I believe deeply in, essentially, what I'm
Ron Alford:devoting my professional life, but even a lot of my personal
Ron Alford:life, too, if I can get this organized on paper, will my kids
Ron Alford:be proud of it? That was the second part that was there was
Ron Alford:more of an intense focus of getting it all arranged. The
Ron Alford:third part was evenings, where I had help and had a bit of a team
Ron Alford:that would you know, from six to 8pm, and thankfully, my wife was
Ron Alford:awesome. She said, Hey, you have total permission to take that
Ron Alford:time at night, and just you know, so it was two to three
Ron Alford:hour segments at night, where I would grab a bite of dinner with
Ron Alford:my family, and then by six or 615 be back in my office. And it
Ron Alford:was just book work time from like, maybe six to eight 830.
Ron Alford:And then they'll kind of relax a little bit with my my wife and
Ron Alford:family before bedtime. So just more spurts two to three hours a
Ron Alford:couple of nights a week.
Adam Outland:I always get in a place where I question whether
Adam Outland:I'll still think what I'm putting down as important. Five
Adam Outland:or 10 years later. You now have this perspective. I guess coming
Adam Outland:back and adding some highlights to the book when you wrote it, I
Adam Outland:guess how did you know that this was gonna be something that you
Adam Outland:read again five years later and go yes, I still believe these
Adam Outland:things are still important to me.
Ron Alford:I think just anything that is principles like
Ron Alford:to me trends come and go right fads come and go 30 Day diets
Ron Alford:and clothing styles, I have a lot of old pictures of clothes
Ron Alford:that shirt or not in style, right? But But principles are
Ron Alford:just there. They've been there the rock, I really believe the
Ron Alford:character traits that I want to be known for the character
Ron Alford:traits that I wanted this book to be about, and the principles
Ron Alford:I want it to be centered on. And really the principles that
Ron Alford:represent Southwestern, this isn't my book, I worked hard to
Ron Alford:put a lot into it. But this is stuff that thankfully,
Ron Alford:southwestern has given me over 30 years. And so that was really
Ron Alford:important as well as that making sure anything we really dove
Ron Alford:into was things that were going to last things like vision right
Ron Alford:having a purpose for one's life is not a come and go topic. It
Ron Alford:has been since the beginning of time and will always be right
Ron Alford:things like belief systems, and really rewiring thoughts and
Ron Alford:being hyper aware of the thoughts running through my head
Ron Alford:and how do I reframe beliefs and not let my story go into a
Ron Alford:negative way? Those are principles that are going to be
Ron Alford:truths, right I call them truth versus lies. I unfortunately,
Ron Alford:like any human pick up on a lie frequently in my mind starts
Ron Alford:doubting and fill in blame and fill and worry and anxiety and
Ron Alford:but these are truths that bring my mind back to center. I love
Ron Alford:that. Yeah. And then we just wanted a fun mix of some
Ron Alford:personal stories, of course and examples and but then a lot of
Ron Alford:his history, right, we learned from history. So a lot of
Ron Alford:historical whether it's data and studies and actual case studies,
Ron Alford:but But history that kind of backs up a lot of these
Ron Alford:principles of how important they are to our lives.
Adam Outland:100% Yeah, I love that. You know, there are a lot
Adam Outland:of listeners that probably haven't had a chance to pick up
Adam Outland:the book yet. I know you said you wrote it with even your own
Adam Outland:kids in mind like would they be proud of you, but in the world
Adam Outland:of business and the people that are listening in here, who did
Adam Outland:you write This book for like, who are the people that are
Adam Outland:going to pick this up, read it and go, gosh, that's exactly
Adam Outland:what I need it?
Ron Alford:Well, clients were top of mind through a lot of
Ron Alford:this. And a lot of them are in sales, a lot of them are in
Ron Alford:leadership. They lead small teams, some of lead small teams,
Ron Alford:some of the lead companies, but at the end of the day, they're
Ron Alford:people that that struggle with time, how do I how do I plan my
Ron Alford:time more effectively? How do I manage my time more effectively?
Ron Alford:How do I have boundaries and there are people that struggle
Ron Alford:with the emotional side of being people pleasers or being control
Ron Alford:freaks. So definitely the the clients internally and
Ron Alford:externally. So I mentioned that earlier is you know, for us, we
Ron Alford:hire coaches, they have this tremendous background, just as
Ron Alford:you've got a brilliant resume and all these accolades and all
Ron Alford:these certifications doesn't mean you don't get humbled
Ron Alford:daily, put it that way. So I wanted this to be something that
Ron Alford:are tools for our coaches that we can help coach on, but
Ron Alford:obviously for our clients and, and again, stuff that people can
Ron Alford:use not just in the boardroom, but things they could use when
Ron Alford:they go home with their own children, or when they have
Ron Alford:their own routines or their own quiet time where they're
Ron Alford:wrestling with their thoughts. So that that was who it was
Ron Alford:written for.
Adam Outland:You know, I think you you really do exemplify what
Adam Outland:you write about there not many people who are able to show up
Adam Outland:at home and at work and live out things as much as you do. And
Adam Outland:you've done a really good job being a living example. Just for
Adam Outland:our back end of time. I wanted to do a little lightning round
Adam Outland:of questions for you. It's kind of a fun question. I asked a lot
Adam Outland:of folks we interview who is a person you always wanted to
Adam Outland:meet, but never have?
Ron Alford:It's funny I go to Troy Polamalu first, if
Ron Alford:listeners know who that is that Google him whatever you know, as
Ron Alford:a long, long, long time 45 year Pittsburgh Steeler fan, that's
Ron Alford:one part of it. But way aside from that, he was the kite he is
Ron Alford:for everything I've read, but the kindest, gentlest, calmest,
Ron Alford:he would literally pray before every play, and yet he was
Ron Alford:ferocious. Like if you go to go on YouTube and watch him, he was
Ron Alford:just wreck. I mean, he was Raizy on the field and pro bowl after
Ron Alford:Pro Bowl, all the all defense MVP, etc. So just crazy in the
Ron Alford:field, but yet he had a way of calming himself down and the way
Ron Alford:he treated people with so unconditional, I was read about
Ron Alford:things he and his wife have done to impact people. And it just it
Ron Alford:a ton of admiration for for Troy.
Adam Outland:That's a really good one. Good balance of
Adam Outland:humility and in prayer with aggression, that's appropriate.
Ron Alford:Exactly.
Adam Outland:What's something that significant, I guess, that
Adam Outland:you've actually changed your mind about recently that you've
Adam Outland:had a change of mind about?
Ron Alford:I think, I think just right and wrong, it's hard
Ron Alford:to be around politics or just divisive things. And I'm more
Ron Alford:and more and I don't know if I like this about myself, but I'm
Ron Alford:more and more becoming one of my co workers. He calls me
Ron Alford:Switzerland sometimes, because we'll take aside at times. Now,
Ron Alford:obviously, there's certain things that convictions are
Ron Alford:like, come on, I have absolute principles and convictions I'll
Ron Alford:die for, I'm gonna I'm gonna dig in on certain things. And a lot
Ron Alford:of it I'm not, I'm not going to stick my flag on that I'm not
Ron Alford:going to act like that's, I just think ego does these crazy
Ron Alford:things to us humans where we think we have to be right, which
Ron Alford:means they have to be wrong. Someone just as wise across the
Ron Alford:aisle is saying the same thing about you. And so just more and
Ron Alford:more and more, whatever the topic might be disbelieving
Ron Alford:there can be some truth in both sides. How can we listen? And so
Ron Alford:it's just more and more not being quick to judge quick to
Ron Alford:speak but slower to ask questions and try to seek to
Ron Alford:understand I don't know if it's a new principle, but it's
Ron Alford:something I'm I have a higher conviction of lately than I did
Ron Alford:years ago.
Adam Outland:So you embrace the moniker Switzerland?
Ron Alford:I do exactly. While other countries are going to
Ron Alford:war. We're just like, hey, life's good. Like more wine more
Ron Alford:cheese, more calm. Switzerland is happy.
Adam Outland:What's the best piece of advice that you
Adam Outland:ignored? Intentionally? Like when you're glad you did the one
Adam Outland:piece of advice that maybe you've received that you didn't
Adam Outland:take?
Ron Alford:I think having to have data pros and cons always
Ron Alford:have to be aligned, like logic is gonna win, always. And just
Ron Alford:sometimes there is a gut, there's an art to as a big
Ron Alford:baseball fan. You know, you can see that the analytical data
Ron Alford:studies, where there's a lot of GMs that have baseball teams
Ron Alford:that eyeball stuff. Yep, exactly. And so that's one thing
Ron Alford:where I believe it out love data. I love trends. I love
Ron Alford:studying analytics. And I believe there's absolutely a
Ron Alford:world of logic. And there's times where it's like, you know
Ron Alford:what, I'm going to trust my heart. Like there's something
Ron Alford:there that is true and pure. And I don't want to always be a
Ron Alford:slave to what the data says.
Adam Outland:Really true. The pendulum swing sometimes like in
Adam Outland:the tech sector at swing that swings all the way over to data
Adam Outland:driven decision making, but you could dig your grave with the
Adam Outland:amount of data there is to sift through and analyze and in data
Adam Outland:at the same time ends up as being numbers we know that tells
Adam Outland:a good portion of the story, but you can wrongly interpret data
Adam Outland:and unpack it incorrectly.
Ron Alford:There is an art. I think it's the art and the
Ron Alford:science. Both are great things. And again, maybe that's the
Ron Alford:Switzerland in me. But art or science, it's both.
Adam Outland:What's your current morning routine?
Ron Alford:So you know, bathroom routine, come out, 30
Ron Alford:seconds with my dog, I literally get on the steps and just
Ron Alford:literally hug my dog and like lay with them and just kind of,
Ron Alford:and then come down, feed the animals. And I come into my
Ron Alford:office as then I lay on my office floor at about a 15
Ron Alford:minute stretchy routine that just helps you know, some back
Ron Alford:situations and some stuff with my dog. So it's quiet time with
Ron Alford:my coach where I'm stretching and relaxing. And he does his
Ron Alford:downward dog and his stretching. And then depending on the day,
Ron Alford:he either gets a quick walk and I go to the gym, or I take a we
Ron Alford:grab the leash, which of course he goes crazy for meaning we get
Ron Alford:to go for a run and the trails that's absolutely morning
Ron Alford:routine that it's back. By that time, my daughter's up and my
Ron Alford:wife's up and the kids are up and whatnot and get to see the
Ron Alford:family and then kind of get ready and ready for the day.
Ron Alford:Nothing crazy.
Adam Outland:Nope, that's perfect. And stretching, I think
Adam Outland:is a big thing that I'm missing.
Ron Alford:Yes. And I'll just quickly add to it the physical
Ron Alford:side of course, but it's it's way deeper, I believe that
Ron Alford:spiritual, the emotional, the physical, the mental, all four
Ron Alford:components, that helps me with my my shoulders drop. And even
Ron Alford:in the middle of the day, when when anxiety or stress starts to
Ron Alford:add up having a quick routine, you know, maybe just after
Ron Alford:lunch, or the two o'clock, 10 minute break, or something where
Ron Alford:I can go out and kind of re stretch in a way maybe not the
Ron Alford:same as I did in the morning, my breathing changes the tone of
Ron Alford:voice, the calmness, like I said, the posture that, you
Ron Alford:know, I can have neck issues or whatever. And so I think it
Ron Alford:really does get your art, right. So it's because I've stretched
Ron Alford:where my mind is in 18 different places, and I'm scrolling apps
Ron Alford:and I'm my mental side is not there. And it's not nearly as
Ron Alford:effective. But when I stretch with breathing, and with
Ron Alford:calmness and with no distractions and just being
Ron Alford:there with my dog, there's something more there's a deeper
Ron Alford:level of health that comes from it.
Adam Outland:Have you ever hired like a trainer or a coach
Adam Outland:of some kind, like business or physical related to like prepare
Adam Outland:for something?
Ron Alford:Yes, not as much as I'd like to say I have. So I've
Ron Alford:hired some trainers to help with, like, even physical
Ron Alford:therapists, for example, definitely, I've hired physical
Ron Alford:therapists not reactionary because I've got an injury but
Ron Alford:more proactively to help me with preventative things from my back
Ron Alford:or my hips or my knees or, you know, as I get older, and
Ron Alford:you're, if I'm training for 100 mile race this August, and I'm
Ron Alford:gonna spend a lot of time how do i proactively prevent injury
Ron Alford:versus reactively? Do it. So I've done a lot of that kind of
Ron Alford:thing for sure.
Adam Outland:That's awesome. Probably a good analogy for
Adam Outland:business coaching, too, is that so many people gravitate towards
Adam Outland:coaching or help when it's already, not necessarily too
Adam Outland:late. But the problems already become so painful, that they're
Adam Outland:scrambling for a need, there's probably a lot of value to
Adam Outland:preventative maintenance in every area of your life. Right?
Adam Outland:Do you really want you know, marital counseling, when it's
Adam Outland:really, really needed? Or do you want to get ahead of that,
Adam Outland:right? I mean, there's lots of examples.
Ron Alford:And in all seriousness, like I cannot agree
Ron Alford:more, and it's painful to think of all the times I've made the
Ron Alford:mistake of the opposite. Let me not act in any way. Like I've
Ron Alford:been some proactive person my whole life. No way, messed it up
Ron Alford:so much. But now it's like, I won't be able to do that
Ron Alford:training. But I also still want to play basketball with my boys
Ron Alford:every weekend. I want to be able to run with my daughter and do
Ron Alford:things and keep up with them. And it's getting tougher, y'all
Ron Alford:but it's like, I still can rock one on one with my twins. And
Ron Alford:it's like, I wanna be able to do that and not you know, when they
Ron Alford:have their kids, I want to go play with my grandkids some day.
Ron Alford:So there's some deep emotional Of course, that's back to the
Ron Alford:vision board type stuff. deep emotional purpose behind this,
Ron Alford:that has sparked the action in hiring the PT on the on the
Ron Alford:front end.
Adam Outland:Yeah, it's really cool. This has been a really
Adam Outland:insightful and energizing interview just spent a lot of
Adam Outland:really great anecdotes and stories, things that I hadn't
Adam Outland:heard before. And I think our listeners are gonna love hearing
Adam Outland:this reading your book and and so on that last point. Where can
Adam Outland:people find Redefining Possible?
Ron Alford:So of course Amazon any any book selling places
Ron Alford:there are southwest your websites so
Ron Alford:SouthwesternConsulting.com or my own, RonAlfordSWC.com. Any of
Ron Alford:those are good. Yeah. Even on my Instagram or LinkedIn or those
Ron Alford:places that it has links for it.
Adam Outland:Coaching, training, speaking, Ron does it
Adam Outland:all here you can find more info on all those same places for
Adam Outland:that as well. Right?
Ron Alford:Correct. It's fun to learn with and that's why I
Ron Alford:love being a part of this as we get to talk through stuff.
Ron Alford:That's okay. I've got more focus and energy for my days. So
Ron Alford:thanks for having me on talking about all this.
Adam Outland:Yeah, you got it Ron, appreciate the time.