IAM1659 – Consultant, Speaker and Trainer Helps Leaders Feel Superhuman

Why it was selected for “CBNation Architects”: Who doesn't want to be a superhero? I love this episode because Hari explains how to be that. I love that he talked about the breadth of knowledge and reminded me of the book I listened to called Range and how you need to have a range of knowledge and experience to solve the problems of tomorrow because so many things are interdependent. His nugget to make sure that you keep your cup full to help others is also “gold.”

Check out premium content in the CBNation Library at http://cbnation.co/library and pick up our eBook to hear some of the best lessons at http://cbnation.co/shop.

Previous Episode: https://iamceo.co/2018/09/10/059-consultant-speaker-trainer-helps-leaders-feel-superhuman/

Transcription:

Hari Kari Teaser 00:00

The way I have researched and analyzed it, there are countless different areas which all fall into one of the four areas that I teach, but there are countless different approaches. And, by being able to see effectively step back, and have experience in all of these areas, I'm able to offer a more holistic, complete solution to people.

Intro 00:20

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales, and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I am CEO podcast.

Gresham Harkless 00:45

Hello, hello, hello. This is Gresh from the I am CEO podcast, and we're doing something a little bit different this year. With some of our episodes, we're repurposing some of our favorite episodes around specific topics related to entrepreneurship. This month, we're focusing on entrepreneurship and community. Us, we, our, together and we're gonna look at entrepreneurship and industries in different types of entrepreneurship and ultimately what that really means. But we're also gonna delve deeper into the importance of community, networking niche, communities and how that supports being a CEO entrepreneur and business owner. So sit back and enjoy these special episodes around entrepreneurship and community.

Hello, hello, hello. This is Gresh from the I am CEO podcast and I have a very special guest on the show today I have Hari Kalymnios from The Thought Gym. Hari, it's awesome to have you on the show.

Hari Kari 01:31

It's awesome to be here. Thank you for having me. Absolute pleasure.

Gresham Harkless 01:35

No problem. It's our pleasure. And what I wanted to do was just read a little bit more about Hari so you can hear about all the awesome things that he's doing and has been able to accomplish. Hari is a consultant, speaker, and trainer on mindset, resilience, well-being, and how to feel Superhuman. He helps leaders become better self-leaders by improving their energy and vitality levels so that they can attain high performance. He's the founder of the Thought Gym and the author of the book, the Thought Gym, and Working Well. He shared his philosophies on the TEDx stage and with clients ranging from large multinationals to billionaires. Hari, are you ready to speak to the I am CEO community?

Hari Kari 02:12

I am indeed.

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Gresham Harkless 02:14

Awesome, awesome, awesome. Well, what I want to do is just to give you the mic, so to speak, to hear a little bit more about your CEO's story and what led you to start your business.

Hari Kari 02:21

Yeah, so quite simply what led me to start the business was that I used to work at the London Stock Exchange and got redundancy from there and started on my own doing contracting work for a retailer here called Sainsbury, is a bit like a Walmart out there, and I recognized pretty early on that if you don't intend to work cause you're ill, you don't get paid. If you're not great at your job, you're not gonna keep the contract. And so it became really important to me to be optimized physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually so I could give my best to that job. But also at the same time, recognizing that what I really wanted to do was coaching and speaking on topics that I was beginning to learn at the time, this was seven, eight years. On health, well-being and, what it took to live a fully charged and high-performance life. And, as I started learning these things, I felt that I was the last person on earth to learn all these concepts.

And I was thinking, oh, surely everyone should know all this stuff. And actually, in reality, what happened is that not everyone knows the things that I knew. And I felt like it was my obligation to share it with people. And so I started writing books and so you mentioned two of the books I've got there, the Thought Gym and Working Well, and speaking and sharing these concepts and these philosophies around health and wellbeing, which I formulated into a small, simple, easy to access framework and really, that's why, you know, because I just feel like that the world needs more leaders. It needs more energized leaders. It needs more leaders who are on point, mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, and who are in charge of their own cognitive abilities, and physical abilities. So they can offer the best to their employees, the best to their customers, and the best to the world in essence. So that's why I started it just to share what I was learning because I thought it would be a shame to die with me.

Gresham Harkless 04:08

Good for you. And, I think that's awesome, especially you speaking on the idea where sometimes you think that what you know, everybody else already knows. Yeah. But then you start to transition and realize that, hey, this person doesn't know that, or I can actually help them out. And so I wanted to drill a little bit down into The Thought Gym and get a better idea of how you serve your clients and the products and services you have.

Hari Kari 04:27

Yeah. So it's through a number of different ways really. Principally, it may be live training, so going into an organization and training their staff. But I also reach audiences and reach clients through an online method. So through online courses. So thethoughtgym.com itself as a URL takes people on a journey, if you like, through developing their mindset with the opportunity to learn more at the end of that. And also through books as well, like the Thought Gym and Working Well to supplement the learning, and then speaking on stage as well. They're primarily the main ways as well as one-on-one coaching. So coaching or going into companies, consulting and seeing how they can improve their health and wellbeing offering, but also really their leadership offering because I don't see a demarcation between health and wellbeing and leadership. I know many companies do, and they have Wellbeing weeks and they have wellness Wednesdays and whatever have you. But I see it as an integral part of high-performance companies is to be, you know, at the end of the day, the company is run by people, right? So if the people aren't high performing because of stress or because of lack of sleep, because of poor nutrition, because of any number of things, the company bottom line is gonna suffer. And it's all about leadership in my view. So yeah, in answer to your question, training one to many online courses, books, coaching, consulting, and speaking.

Gresham Harkless 05:57

Awesome, awesome. So now I wanted to ask you for what I call your secret sauce. And I know you said you help people to feel superhuman, so I wanted to ask you, what do you feel is like your differentiator or your secret sauce for the Thought Gym.

Hari Kari 06:08

Yeah, I think there are a couple of things I would say. One is the breath of knowledge. So when people often bring in people, especially when it comes to leadership or health wellbeing, their view is, I wouldn't say myopic, but it's more focused if you like, and it's, and you know, so maybe they bring in their past monk to talk about mindfulness or meditation, or they bring in the nutritionist to talk about food. And whilst all these things are valuable and useful, most people don't need to go into so much depth in one area. What they need is an overview of many different areas in order to succeed, because the way I have researched and analyzed it, there are countless different areas. Which all fall into one of the four areas that I teach, but there are countless different approaches. And by being able to see effectively, step back and have experience in all of these areas, I'm able to offer a more holistic, complete solution to people rather than having piecemeal by piecemeal things coming in.

And the philosophies that I teach are very simple, but very comprehensive. And I think that's what makes it unique in that people get it, they understand it, and I'm able to take seemingly complex ideas and murky waters of, you know, nutrition or movement or exercise or mindset and meditation, and clarify those into simple, usable philosophies that people can use. Integrating many different components so you don't have to go to lots of different places to find out a little bit from here, too much over here, I give just about the right amount so that people can make real improvements in their life because it doesn't come from just one area, it comes from multiple different areas. And those people who are always looking for that silver bullet are always looking for that next thing that is gonna be the thing are usually disappointed. And unfortunately, it's the fundamentals, it's consistency, and it's being able to understand how they all integrate together, that really makes the change.

Gresham Harkless 08:03

Yeah. And it's huge. Especially because you forget how intertwined everything is. So for you to be able to take that holistic approach to understand that, these are the things that you need to do to help be successful. So it's not that silver bullet like you mentioned or that one thing, but it's a multitude of things and you're able to see the forest for the trees, so to speak, so that you understand exactly like how best to help this organization or these people within the organization reach their goals.

Hari Kari 08:26

Yeah, absolutely. Yeah.

Gresham Harkless 08:28

Awesome. Well, I wanted to switch gears a little bit and ask you for what I call a CEO hack. And this might be an app or a book or a habit that you have that makes people more effective and efficient as entrepreneurs and business owners.

Hari Kari 08:40

Yeah. I may be a bit cheeky and I might just give you two, but one is not a tool. It's such, but what I think that helps me become like superhuman each day and I know because when I don't do it, I don't have it. And there are many things I've got in my morning routine, but one thing that I've been using for about six years or so is my Vitamix blender, my super blender, and I blend a super smoothie. And you know, it sounds like a bit of a joke, but actually, that has been a saving grace for me to keep me fueled, energized, and ready for action with just the right amount of components in there. About 30 different ingredients that go into my smoothie, but that definitely is something that helps me.

And from a technology point of view, I would say what I really love is a simple kind of website slash app that you use for your emails called followupthen.com. I don't know if you're familiar with it, but effectively what you do is you'll put, say you're emailing someone in the bcc area you will put something like sixdays@followupthen.com and it'll send you an email back after six days to remind you to follow up with them. So you can start clearing your inbox and you can not lose track of the people that you're connecting with. I think maybe Gmail, you might be able to do something like that anyway, but certainly, I couldn't, I don't use Gmail or mine, but it's a keep on top of who you need to chase. So you can put one year later, or you can put a specific date, or you can put two months later, and that way you can be consistent with following up with people and chasing up people. So followupthen.com is a great resource for emails and then my superhuman smoothie, which people can find out what's in that the thethoughtgym.com/smoothie. They can see a video of me making that and then make, their own version of it.

Gresham Harkless 10:20

Nice. Yeah, I'm really big on drinking a smoothie before I start out the day. I don't know if mine's a superhuman, but I'll go to the link to make sure that, and see if it is, thereby follow up then as well too. That is an incredible kind of free freemium exciting tool that you can use to make sure that you're on top of everything, and you're following up with people at the right time. So I think those are two great CEO hacks. And now I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. And this might be a word of wisdom or a piece of advice you might have for CEOs.

Hari Kari 10:47

Yeah, I think what I would say is that, In order to be able to pour from your cup, it needs to first be full. And what that really means is, you know, in order to be able to give to other people, to give value to your employees, to give value to your customers, you need to be looking after yourself first. And it's all too easy, especially if you're starting a business or you're running a big business for you to neglect your own personal health and well-being. And it's a bit like those, leaflets that you get in the airplanes, which say, put your own mask on before you put on those of your loved ones, or your child even. And you think, you know, you wanna save your child, but actually, how can you save your child if you lose your oxygen? Ok. How can you save your company? How can you bring the best out of your employees if your own cup isn't full? You can't pour from something if there's nothing in it.

And so my advice to would-be CEOs, current CEOs, managers, leaders, everyone really is that if you want to give your best to other people, including your family and your loved one and your children, you must first make sure that you are okay, your cup is full, so that you can look after yourself first, and then you can give more to other people. And it's not a selfish thing to say that. It's selfish I think to neglect yourself and then. Either shortchange your customers, shortchange your family, or shortchange your clients. And, that's, I think, more selfish. So look after yourself, and I know it can be really guilty to sometimes think that, but actually that's what gives, the most to other people.

Gresham Harkless 12:13

Yeah, I would definitely agree with that. And you're absolutely right, It can be definitely selfish if you know you're trying to help somebody and you're not really able, to help yourself, and then you're both at a disadvantage. But to be able to stand on your ones and twos, so to speak, and be able to help somebody, build them up and pull them up, is a great CEO nugget that you provided. So I appreciate that. And now I wanted to ask you for my favorite question, which is like the definition of being a CEO and we're hoping to have different CEOs on this podcast to clean back and get a new definition of what exactly being a CEO means. So what does being a CEO mean to you?

Hari Kari 2:45

I think being the CEO and I think actually whether you've got the title of CEO or whether you are temp office temp, you're all potentially CEO, and CEO to me doesn't mean chief executive officer, it means Chief Energy Officer. The energy that a leader brings to the organization is the energy that will be in that corporation. Okay? If you, bring in a culture of distrust and backstabbing and looking over your shoulder and, you know, working people to the ground, that's what everyone's gonna be like, and it's gonna show, okay, if you come with lots of energy and openness and willingness to help, mentor and bring other people up, yeah, that's gonna benefit the organization. So whether you are at the top though, or whether even if you're an office temp, if you bring energy to your team, to your office, to your work, to your role, other people will be attracted to that. You'll start to grow people. You'll start to have an energized vital workforce, not just an engaged workforce, but a healthy, happy workforce as well that is able to perform better for themselves and for their clients and customers. So for me, what being a CEO is all about is bringing energy. Okay. And, being this Chief Energy Officer.

Gresham Harkless 13:56

I love that Hari. That's incredible, just reminding yourself to, you know, be energetic and bring the same thing because it's gonna basically trickle down from everybody that's on your team. So, Hari I truly appreciate you for taking some time out of your schedule. I wanted to pass the mic to you, so to speak, to see if there's anything additional you wanted to let our readers and our listeners know, and how best people can get ahold of you.

Hari Kari 14:16

Yeah. Like I say I'm all over social media as the Thought Gym, so you can find me on Instagram and YouTube. I post regular videos that have bumped over the last five years. Now there are maybe a couple of hundred videos on YouTube at the Thought Gym, but also if they're interested in learning more about my specific leadership model around health and wellbeing, then there's a free video series that will bring them into that world. At the thought gym.com. So the thought is in thinking thethoughtgym.com that's the best way to connect with me. They can, Google my name. There's another website on that, but I won't give that the best website, probably is thethoughtgym.com or tracking me down on one of my social media channels as the Thought Gym. Plenty of free content. I'd love to connect with people. I'd love to serve people in whichever way I can to help inspire future and current leaders to become super leaders. And yeah remember, it's not about perfection. It's about progress. So progress, not perfection. Start where you are, with what you've got and move forward day by day at a small step at a time.

Gresham Harkless 15:17

I love it. I love that concept to keep moving forward. So Hari I truly appreciate everything that you're doing and all the awesome things you're doing to help people become superhuman. We'll make sure to have the links in the show notes just in case anybody wants to follow up, but I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

Hari Kari 15:31

Likewise. Thank you once again for having me. It's been an absolute pleasure.

Outro 15:36

Thank you for listening to the I am CEO podcast, powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co. I am CEO is not just a phrase it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes, Google Play, and everywhere you listen to podcasts, subscribe and leave us a five-star rating. Grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I am CEO podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

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