Adam Outland:
00:00:00
Today we are pleased to welcome to the show a leading sales practitioner certified
Adam Outland:
00:00:05
sales leadership coach and a partner at Southwestern Consulting, Andrus Albi joining us
Adam Outland:
00:00:10
from Estonia. Andrus, you manage a truly global team spread between Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania.
Adam Outland:
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And I think Finland and Switzerland as well, have I missed any?
Andrus Albi:
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We have clients we are selling in most European countries, we have at least a client
Andrus Albi:
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or two and obviously, in some couple of 100. In Europe, I can I can take the morning flight and
Andrus Albi:
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still sleep in my own bed in the evening. So I have a couple of post potential prospects in
Andrus Albi:
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Australia. But I'm like, No, I don't like in some point, if you have an error, you have to go there.
Andrus Albi:
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And I'm like, that's a long flight. So I might pass that lead on to somebody, somebody there.
Adam Outland:
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So I want to start today's conversation off on the topic of focus, how do you
Adam Outland:
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create, maintain focus for yourself individually, and then also when leading these international
Adam Outland:
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teams?
Andrus Albi:
00:01:00
Sure, let me start with a story. I was never diagnosed with ADHD, but I'm pretty sure
Andrus Albi:
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in nowadays I would have been, like I was the kid, my mom used to say, like Andreas, if you wouldn't
Andrus Albi:
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be attached to yourself, you would lose yourself. Like literally, you would come home without your
Andrus Albi:
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own body, because you would lose yourself somewhere. And I never like I was the kid who I
Andrus Albi:
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had a brain, I was pretty bright. And I was able to talk my way out of everything. So which means
Andrus Albi:
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in middle school, high school, I never really paid attention that much. And then I went to Starbucks.
Andrus Albi:
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And if I'm really honest, I didn't pay attention and selling books as well. My first year, I
Andrus Albi:
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actually the only year that I wasn't the top producer in the top 100 was my first year I was as
Andrus Albi:
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average as it gets on my first year. And I still remember like, this is kind of the defining moment
Andrus Albi:
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where this came into play when I was in. This was my first so my second summer I went back there,
Andrus Albi:
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right I did my first summer I was average, I wanted to be better, I realized that I need to be
Andrus Albi:
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better with people. And I need to learn the sales thing, because I realized that I'm although I was
Andrus Albi:
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bright, I wasn't bright enough to do science or anything because I didn't pay attention. And I was
Andrus Albi:
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never a guy who will make stuff with our hands. And I hated myself behind the computer. So I
Andrus Albi:
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always when I was in high school, I always thought that if I will be good at anything, it will be
Andrus Albi:
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with people, and it will be good with business. Then I went to sell books. And it turned out that
Andrus Albi:
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I was pretty average at selling books as well. So my second year, I went out to really change that I
Andrus Albi:
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was like if I suck at this as well, there's a big statistical chance that I actually might, you
Andrus Albi:
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know, the average. And I still remember it was a middle of the summer day in Estonia is actually a
Andrus Albi:
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national holiday. And everybody has a barbecue that day. It's like, like an Independence Day in
Andrus Albi:
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in us. And I remember daydreaming sitting in my car between the houses in Orlando, Florida. 100
Andrus Albi:
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degree heat. And I remember daydreaming about being in Estonia having a barbecue. And looking at
Andrus Albi:
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the mirror. I literally slept myself like, like, Italy. And I was like Andreas, if you wanted to
Andrus Albi:
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have a barbecue with your girlfriend in Estonia, like you could have, you put all this effort into
Andrus Albi:
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get here. And now you're dreaming about not being here. So maybe that was the first where I slept
Andrus Albi:
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myself during that summer. I did you know, probably a couple laundry times. And I think that
Andrus Albi:
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was kind of the turning point where I maybe I can say the first time I felt actually paid attention
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of it. And so I have the same thing still now. So when you go to the second part of the question now
Andrus Albi:
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about leader and personal production, leadership recruiting, so I kind of look at it the same way
Andrus Albi:
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like I make a plan, like you will make a schedule. And I think one of my biggest strengths is that I
Andrus Albi:
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would try to be at work when I my schedule says to be at work, everything that is going on with
Andrus Albi:
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personal life, put it that on side and just focus on serving clients that because that's needs to be
Andrus Albi:
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done as well. So a couple of things that really helped me is the schedule like I talked about, I
Andrus Albi:
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actually plan out I even plan out my evenings, like when is gates more evening when his wife's
Andrus Albi:
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morning, evening. And then I have a to do list. Whenever I have an idea in my brain that doesn't
Andrus Albi:
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fit the plan. But I remember that I needed to do something, then I have a to do list open in most
Andrus Albi:
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of my in every device that I have. And I can add it there and come back to it. So long story. But
Andrus Albi:
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basically, that's what it is. It's just sticking to the task at hand. One of the first things we
Andrus Albi:
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teach to people is that everything that happens to you falls into three categories, right things you
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can control things you can influence. And then there is a heck a lot of things you have to
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accept, you only focus on the things you can control. You don't really worry about even the
Andrus Albi:
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influence part, but you definitely shouldn't spend a single second, worrying about what you can
Andrus Albi:
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control. I feel that you can control really what you can control is your actions and your mindset
Andrus Albi:
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around it. Like I guess my best analogy with this is that is on dirt bike track when I go on a dirt
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bike track and I want to start focusing on I need to be the fastest or I need to have my test time
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or whatever. Usually I'm not the best by far like Yeah, but you should actually write worse than I
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usually do. Because I start I get too tight. I start focusing on the end result instead of the
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the track and me and the bike. I start pushing the bike to do things that is not supposed to do. If
Andrus Albi:
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I'm trying too much, I'm usually not the fastest. Now, if I'm going to the other extreme, if I, if
Andrus Albi:
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I'm not trying at all, if I'm not paying attention at all, then you definitely shouldn't be on a
Andrus Albi:
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motocross track because you will hurt yourself. So the best place what I've noticed to be is the
Andrus Albi:
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place where I am focusing on doing the best I can in that situation, and not really even worrying
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about what will everybody else do, we'll do like, you will be your best and let the bike do whatever
Andrus Albi:
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the bike needs to do, I can bring that same analogy to the marriage, right? If I desperately
Andrus Albi:
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tried to make sure that my my wife is happy, I actually might make it worse. Now, if I also turn
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around and go, I don't give a crap. That definitely means trouble, right? So the perfect
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way I can look at it this, I can try to be the best husband, I can. And she has to do her part.
Andrus Albi:
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And hopefully this will work out right. Same thing with sales. If I drastically try to sell on a
Andrus Albi:
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client, you will lose your buying atmosphere, you start pushing the client to buy something, and
Andrus Albi:
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usually not good things will happen. Even if they buy they end up canceling. But if I did go in
Andrus Albi:
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there and go, I don't care if they buy, then that's even worse. So the perfect sweet spot in
Andrus Albi:
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the center is you focusing of you doing not just doing the activity but doing good activity, doing
Andrus Albi:
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focused activity, the best activity you can on that problem. Practice doesn't make perfect,
Andrus Albi:
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perfect practice makes perfect. So I think that it is pretty relieving. When you kind of really look
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at it closely and decide what is under your control and what is not. And when you decide that
Andrus Albi:
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everything you can all like I've literally done this with coaching clients, we will put into
Andrus Albi:
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columns, like which like this thing annoys me just my, my, my mom is sick right now. Right? What can
Andrus Albi:
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you do anything besides like? will only thing I can do is go and visit next? Like I can see I can
Andrus Albi:
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go and visit, right? You put that in? And then I put it either in a column of which column it is,
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can I control it or not? And if I can do anything about it, then I'll put it in the schedule. Where
Andrus Albi:
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will I do it? Right? I put it in the plan, but a heck of a lot of stuff when you just look at it.
Andrus Albi:
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Like that's the things that we constantly worry about. There's nothing to really do about it the
Andrus Albi:
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best you can, you know, the global warming really worries me but at the best, what I can do is that
Andrus Albi:
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I'll buy a bit less plastic bags, right? I will do my 0.0000001% of the problem. And you can of
Andrus Albi:
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course you could, but I mean, it's like but you also realize that you probably won't solve it on
Andrus Albi:
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your own and definitely not today. So you might as well put it in the non controllable category and
Andrus Albi:
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focus what you can do today. So first thing is just kind of looking at what can you do the other
Andrus Albi:
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things you can control what is the what's the plan when you focus. And then the last step is putting
Andrus Albi:
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it into the schedule. Like I literally had, I had a coaching client, who's a really high end lawyer
Andrus Albi:
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in here in Estonia, and she came to a coaching Colin's last Congress, there's so much like this,
Andrus Albi:
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I need to do this, I need to do that there's these problems, these problems. And we literally spent
Andrus Albi:
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the whole 45 minutes of a coaching call, making a to do list deciding what's important and what is
Andrus Albi:
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not. And the things that were important when we scheduled our next two, three weeks when she will
Andrus Albi:
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do them. And she literally ended the coaching call going. We have couple of other lawyers from that
Andrus Albi:
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company in her team. And she's like, Could you teach that to them as well. So sometimes it's just
Andrus Albi:
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I think a lot of things that you get from coaching, this is just he's focused on somebody
Andrus Albi:
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helping you to see the perspective and just helping you to build a plan that okay, this is how
Andrus Albi:
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I will tackle it. One of my first mentors in time management was Estonian man called Christian
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ottoman, he didn't call it a planning list, he call it it's like this translate straight
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translation would be clear in your mind list. And basically, he said, Write down everything you need
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to do like everything, even the ideas that you have, like even the random stuff that you're
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thinking 20 years from now, like, literally in the training, he had us make a full list. And then he
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was like, now prioritize what needs to happen this year. So and I still do that, like I literally,
Andrus Albi:
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this gives me the confidence and the communists, and the focus is because this allows me to calm
Andrus Albi:
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down and go, I'm not forgetting anything. Like I just literally write down in my to do list
Andrus Albi:
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everything. Then I prioritize, then I bought that. And then I when I see the to do list, and I go
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when and then I look at my schedule, and I'm boarded in well, I can do this part here, this
Andrus Albi:
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part can wait, this part can happen there. So it's clear in your mind list even not even more than
Andrus Albi:
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just a planning question. Now there is a caveat to that one. The only way it will that work is if on
Andrus Albi:
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the next day, you're in the habit of looking at your to do list, right? If you just write a list
Andrus Albi:
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there and you never pay attention to it, then that list becomes a monster that list becomes a problem
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on its own. Because you're like, holy crap, I don't know what's in there. And what am I
Andrus Albi:
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forgetting that is in there. So you have to work through that list. But you don't have to always do
Andrus Albi:
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everything from there. You can reschedule them, you can re plan them, but you need to have the
Andrus Albi:
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control of that list.
Adam Outland:
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Yeah, it really is that simple. So what would you say to people listening right now
Adam Outland:
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who are trying to reach You go and they are controlling their controllables. But they're using
Adam Outland:
00:10:04
the uncontrollables to justify why they can't get something done, or why something is impossible for
Adam Outland:
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them or their team. How do you break that mentality?
Andrus Albi:
00:10:12
Well, I would like to say usually that in every single workshop that we do for
Andrus Albi:
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salespeople or managers, we say that the top guys find a way, not an excuse, right? Finding a way
Andrus Albi:
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Anyway, like this is I think the biggest thing is learning new ways all the time, being willing to
Andrus Albi:
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try new things, I think is the biggest thing, and there's so much good, this is a good time to test
Andrus Albi:
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things. And even if you don't hit your goal, make sure that you build a foundation that you can hit
Andrus Albi:
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goals next 12 or 13 years of economic growth that will be ahead of us so so it's I guess, I mean,
Andrus Albi:
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the mental side of it, you know, again, back to the controllables, what the heck can I do in here?
Andrus Albi:
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Like, if you have the attitude that this is the situation what I'm in, and then you go, What's the
Andrus Albi:
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best thing that I can do about it? Like, if you have the attitude, first that I'm done, this
Andrus Albi:
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doesn't work, I can't hit my goals, then you will, right? After you think you can, or you can die
Andrus Albi:
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right away. Right. So that's, I think the first if you have that part, then the second part is seeing
Andrus Albi:
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what can be done, and learning from others, like in your own company. But I think one of the main
Andrus Albi:
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reasons I love my job right now is because I can coach and work with people from different
Andrus Albi:
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industries and different countries and different cultures, which allows me to see that well,
Andrus Albi:
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manufacturing does it this way. And then I'm thinking often in my brain, I'm going so could you
Andrus Albi:
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do that in when you're selling law services, for example? Or the lawyers do it this way? Why or or
Andrus Albi:
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even like in us, right? Like us real estate does it this way Estonians though, why the heck not?
Andrus Albi:
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Like is it a cultural thing? Is it a law thing? And like you're in just kind of figuring out like,
Andrus Albi:
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that's what I feel is so exciting. So I guess if you have that attitude that there has to be a way
Andrus Albi:
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if there's, if there's a will, there's a way, right, then you go well, so what are the options?
Andrus Albi:
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How many options there can be there has to be something right? And not everything I have that
Andrus Albi:
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when my clients, sometimes they go under this is to American and I go I know. And I don't think you
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need to take it one on one, like go and be an American in Estonian sales situation. But I also
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think that if you go this is American, I don't need it, you will miss out. Because there are some
Andrus Albi:
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things that you can definitely transfer over to we need to adjust it for sure. But same thing with
Andrus Albi:
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industry wise, like I have, you know, managers going no, no wonder if you don't understand this
Andrus Albi:
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doesn't work in my industry. And I oftentimes go I know, but have you wondered, why not? Like, good,
Andrus Albi:
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we play with this ID I know nobody's doing it. But I mean, the lawyers are doing it successfully. Why
Andrus Albi:
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Can't We? Or this country is doing it successfully? Why can't we like I love the like,
Andrus Albi:
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that's what's exciting about it. That's actually fun. And it's a lot more fun than just making
Andrus Albi:
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money or, you know, it's actually like grading something. So I don't know, that fires me up in
Andrus Albi:
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that sense, figuring out the way, how and what the learning from everybody else.
Adam Outland:
00:12:58
Absolutely. So many people get frustrated, so many people get angry. But what
Adam Outland:
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they really need to do is get curious and look for the lesson. Do you have a tip or question that
Adam Outland:
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listeners can start asking themselves in order to start those curiosity wheels turning?
Andrus Albi:
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When you're getting stressed and burned out, find a way to recharge, like I used to
Andrus Albi:
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start doing business because I really wanted to have money to buy a motorcycle. Now I ride
Andrus Albi:
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motorcycles because it helps me do the business, like finding a thing that calms you down and even
Andrus Albi:
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a bit. Having, you know, go running, they don't go running desperately because I need to be in shape
Andrus Albi:
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I go running because it calms me down. So that's one of the things. But if you have that part, what
Andrus Albi:
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are the others doing? Like? Maybe that's where would I go? What are the other industries doing?
Andrus Albi:
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What are the other countries doing? Which industries are doing? Well, that's always how I've
Andrus Albi:
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been able to, I have no definitely not the most innovative guy in the world. But I am really good
Andrus Albi:
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at this. I see the guys will do it. And I go, Well, why can they and I can't. Because like I
Andrus Albi:
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this is how I sold books. I've my manager was really good at selling books. And I was like,
Andrus Albi:
00:14:04
well, he's not desperately better looking good. Okay, well, he was probably a bit better looking
Andrus Albi:
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than I was. And His English is a bit better, but not not that much better. But he also told me like
Andrus Albi:
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30 times, that's our right so I was like, Well, I can be 30 times worse looking or better or worse
Andrus Albi:
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in English, like something has to something has to give basically there has to be something else.
Adam Outland:
00:14:25
Excellent advice to close on. Andreas, thanks for taking the time.