How to Be More Confident! Noah St John Ft. Mr Biz (Ken Wentworth)

A couple of exciting things we're going to— I gotta sort of announce as well as we're gonna talk about this week. So first of all, we're gonna talk about power habits to create self-confidence, to create more self-confidence, which is holding a lot of people back. And our guest just wrote a book literally called The Power Habits of Unstoppable Self-Confidence. So what better person to talk about this? In addition, The announcement per se is that our guest this week, Dr. Noah St. John, who— let me read a little quick little bio here, even though you'll see why I almost didn't when I'm done with this. So Dr. Noah St. John is known as the father of Afformations and the mental health coach to the stars. He's the author of 24 books. Every time he's on, it makes me feel worse and worse about my measly 3. Including his new book, The Power of Habits of Unstoppable Self-Confidence. You can find that at getconfidencebook.com. We'll put that in the show notes as well. Working with Hollywood celebrities, 8-figure company CEOs, and professional athletes, Noah is famous for helping people make more in just 12 weeks than they made in the past 12 months while living, winning their lives back. So, Dr. Noah St. John, welcome back to the show. And the, the announcement that I wanted to make Was that after the other day we did a show and producer Alan and I were talking off air and we went back and looked through the archives, right? So we've been doing the show for seven years now, and you are officially the most frequent guest that we've had on the show. You've nudged into first place now. I think this is your as we look back, I think this is your fifth appearance. So so we'll probably listeners, viewers, we're probably going to reference you know all we past things or whatever. Go back. It's been over the last couple of years that Dr. St. John's been on the show, the leather four times. But typically, as most people who watch or listen to the show know, we start with you know tell me about your entrepreneurial journey, things like that. I feel like we've been through that the first couple times. I think we kind of went through the whole thing. Next few times, maybe not as much. We're not gonna go through any of that stuff. We got a lot of stuff to cover today. If you want to hear more about that, first of all, you can go out to his website. Second of all, go back and find some of those older shows. You can search on his name, Dr. Noah St. John. and find the other 4 shows he's on. And after you watch or listen to this one, you're probably going to want to go back and check out some of those because I feel like a lot of these books build on— I haven't read all 24 of his books, but I think I've read the last 4. So, and even just the last 4 sort of build on one upon the other. So without further ado, welcome, Dr. St John, after that long, long intro. But I wanted to talk really, you know, congrats on the 24th book. First of all, absolutely amazing. Thank you. How many people have written 24 books? Right. And second of all, what inspired you to not only write a 24th book, but specifically to write this 24th book about the power habits of unstoppable self-confidence?

Well, I started many, many years ago. And again, we won't go into that. You make sure you listen to those earlier episodes for the folks listening and watching. So many years ago, I discovered something called success anorexia. And that is something that no one had ever talked about before. I am the person that discovered that in 1997. So 26 years ago now. And I realized that there were millions of people who were unknowingly and unconsciously starving themselves of success. In other words, they were holding themselves back from the success they're perfectly capable of. Now, prior to my work, and because I knew this because I'd read every book on self-help out there because I was stopping myself from success. And as I believe I've mentioned, you know, on earlier episodes, like, for example, I, you know, grew up poor in a rich neighborhood. I decided to commit suicide at age 25. And, you know, at the very last moment, my life was spared, but I didn't know why. I didn't know what I was doing here on this planet. And I said, I've gotta find what is my purpose on the earth. Then in 1997, you know, I had these epiphanies that really changed my life and led me to realize, well, this is what I'm here for. This is my purpose. And, you know, that's what I've been privileged to do for the last, you know, more than a quarter century now and helping our clients literally add over $3 billion in new revenues, adding 6 and 7 and 8 figures using my methods. So many years ago, I discovered this when I discovered success anorexia, meaning the condition that actually causes these other behaviors. Now, people have been talking about these behaviors for a long time. Behaviors like self-sabotage and holding yourself back and you're getting in your own way and things like that. Everybody was talking about that. I mean, lots of people were talking about it. But do you know what the treatment was prior to my work? If you are sabotaging yourself, do you know what the treatment was? If you're sabotaging yourself, don't do that. Oh, thanks a lot. Wow. I feel so much better. Why didn't you tell me? You know, It's, it was that one. Idiotic. It was literally that stupid. And so I said, dude, I'm holding myself back and your, your, your advice is don't do that. You know, it's like, it's like saying to a person who wants to lose weight, well, listen, if you wanna lose weight, go ahead and do it. Thanks. You know?

Yeah.

That's, that's how dumb it was. So anyways, when I discovered success anorexia, that which is the condition that underlies these behaviors, then I said, well, gosh, I've gotta, now I know what the Problem is, well, I've got to find a solution, right? Because it's one thing to know what your problem is. It's like going to the dentist and you say, "Hey, Doc, my teeth hurts," or my my tooth hurts. You know, I got a sore tooth, and he looks at you and goes, "Oh yeah, you got a cavity. Okay, next." Wait a minute! I want you to fix it. I didn't come here. I know I know I was in pain. Come on, you know, fix it. Anyway, so that's why many years ago I created something called the Power Habit System. This is one of my you know earlier books called Power Habits. So this new book, which is called The Power Habits of Unstoppable Self-Confidence, you could see these are like part of a series. I like to write books in series, you know, like, like a franchise. Anyway, so that's why these 2 books really go together, and that's why the new book, The Power Habits of Unstoppable Self-Confidence.

Interesting. So, and guys, you gotta understand, again, we didn't belabor a lot of the past or whatever. But so Dr. St. John, not only some of the things he had mentioned, but At one point in his life, he was working hard to become a professional dancer. And then he was in LA trying to become an actor. And then, you know, that's leading up to all this. So talk about someone who's been there, done that. I mean, I can't imagine how competitive both of those professions are.

Yeah.

You know, and it's funny. So I have to admit, so I crammed this most recent book Listening to the audio, I had some window time driving, and I crammed it, and I laughed my head off like three or four times in the first couple chapters of some of the examples you gave, specifically about becoming a professional dancer and about oh my gosh, my landlord actually expected me to pay the rent.

Like, I know what a what a bum, you know, and and he was he was so sweet because you know, of course that was a joke because duh, I didn't have any money, and he let me be late on the rent a lot. So he was a sweetheart. I loved him. But yeah, that was again giving examples of coming. from someone with no self-esteem and no self-confidence. And as I share in the book, you know, in, in high school, I had a face full of acne, Coke bottle glasses, and I didn't have shoulder-length hair. I had shoulder-width hair. You know, I had a big afro out to here, you know. So I had zero self-confidence. And so that's why, you know, the book about the Power Habits of Unstoppable Self-Confidence, it really came from someone who came from zero and has been able to build up self-confidence and, you know, has been doing it now for a long time.

Yeah. So you can find out more. Again, we'll put this in the show notes as well, but you can go to getconfidencebook.com. Getconfidencebook.com. Go check that out. We're running out of time here in the segment, so I got a whole bunch of things I want to ask you, but none of them I don't think are really too short.

Okay.

Yeah. Let's, let's hold off until the next segment because I don't want, I don't want to cut you short. I want to make sure we can get through some of these because I want to talk in the next segment specifically about a lot of things. One of the things that some of the listeners and viewers might be thinking like, oh geez, another self-confidence book. Oh geez. Oh, you know, and I can tell you from reading, you know, 4 of his books so far, his books are not like the others, first of all. Second of all, we're going to ask him specifically at the beginning of the next segment, how is this one different than other books? Right? You guys are probably— I know I've read a bunch of them. So we're going to ask him. That's how we're going to kick off the next segment is How was this one different than other self-confidence books? So, come back after the break on MrBizRadio. If you would like to reach hundreds of thousands of business owners every week, MrBizRadio can help. Our show airs globally 7 days a week for more than 25 hours across several internet radio stations plus 20+ podcast platforms. Also, video exposure on the new exclusive MrBiz Network streaming channel, which gets blasted to 100+ Streaming platforms and the Mr. Biz YouTube channel and our 350,000 social media followers multiple times every week. Join Mr. Biz Nation as an advertiser by emailing us at info@mrbizsolutions.com. Attention, Mr. Biz Nation! We have an exclusive offer just for you. Get lifetime access to Scarcity Countdown Timers and Logic Links for only $69. Yes, you heard it right, only $69. These tools will add urgency to your email campaigns and website pages, helping you increase conversions, sales, and capture more leads. Don't miss this incredible opportunity. Visit getpulsetools.com now and take your business to new heights. Got a question for Mr. Biz you want answered on air? Email it to info@mrbizsolutions.com. Now once again, here's Mr. Biz. All right, welcome back to the show. And I lied, we're not going to start the segment with that. I forgot we always have to do the Mr. Biz Tip of the Week. This, this week's tip, Mr. Biz Tip, is, you know, it's an obvious one, but— and I talk about it all the time. People hear me talking about it that watch the show or listen to the show. You got to— if you're a business owner, you got to focus on getting your cash flow right. I know it sounds really obvious, just like we were talking about in the first segment. Hey, you got a cavity. Well, you know, okay, that's why your mouth hurts. But literally, and I've quoted this a million times, but I think it's really important. That's why I say it all the time. 82%, you hear about all these business failures and the percentage of businesses, startups that fail within X number of years and a bunch of stats on that. But literally, 82% of business failures are due to cash flow challenges. And so the way I like to look at it is if you get that part right, and I kind of jokingly say it, but it's really true. If you get that part right, you don't have to worry about the 18%. So you're, you know, 4/5 of the way there if you get the cash flow right. So get your cash flow right. And if you need help with that, I might know a guy who can help you with that. So that is Mr. Biz Tip of the Week. So, Dr. St. John, so yeah, let's talk about this. So how is this book different? Again, someone's thinking out there like, oh geez, I've read 10 of these books before. I got a couple tidbits here and there. Like, how is this one different? How is this one going to be different for folks that maybe have read others in the past?

And I've read all those books too, Ken. And so it's, it is true. And, you know, I did, I, I came from that background that I told you about, you know, having zero self-confidence, zero self-esteem. And one of the things that I noticed about a lot of those books, other books on self-confidence, is one of the things that they say all the time is fake it till you make it. We've all heard that a million times. Fake it till you make it. If you don't have confidence, just fake it till you make it. And, you know, my question is, how would you feel about, you know, if you were going into brain surgery and, you know, the doctor was just faking it until he hopefully felt better about himself? Or, you know, if you're, hiring a business coach? And he said, well, we'll just figure it out. You know, I'm sure it'll be great. You know, just give me lots of money and yeah, it'll be great. You know, so I, I hate fake it till you make it. I've always hated it. I always thought it was the stupidest, dumbest advice ever. And, and why is that? Because confidence, one of the things that I realized in studying for this book and preparing for it, you know, doing lots of research, but I mean, which I've been doing really my whole life. I mean, my whole life is really preparing to write this book. So some of my readers have said that in many ways, this is my most personal book. And, you know, you mentioned that you've read several of my other books, and I think it is one of my most personal books because I did share more stories about, you know, myself growing up and so forth. And also a lot of examples of celebrities. I mean, like world-famous people that we all know, like Tom Hanks and Elvis Presley and Donny Osmond and people like that who, and Harrison Ford, who, you know, grew up really shy and quiet and reserved and introverted like me and who, you know, of course, now are world famous. So I really strove in this book to make it very practical, You know, very actionable, very action-oriented, and to really give the reader specific steps that, that anybody can do no matter if you already have high self-confidence or, you know, like me, maybe you were struggling with self-confidence in the past.

Well, that's, I'll tell you honestly, that's one of the things, and I'm not just saying this because you're on the show or whatever, but I did find, again, I didn't, haven't read all, all 24, Mr. 24-time book writer, author. But of the ones I've read recently, this one I did feel like was at least more personal than the, the prior 3 that I had read. And the one of the things that I liked a lot about it, and you already touched on it, but was I always like to hear, I feel like a lot of times when you read books that are, you know, whether it's a self-confidence or whatever book, it almost feels like you're being lectured to.

Right.

And I don't get that sense. And again, I listened to your book, so I didn't actually read the pages, but I felt like I didn't feel that way. Number one. Number two, the other thing I really like about it is the the anecdotes, the stories that go along with it that make it entertaining and also applicable. And then the other thing I felt I found myself was hearing some of these stories of these world-famous people now, and I'm like, holy crap, I didn't know Harrison Ford went through that.

Right.

You know, who would have known, right? No one knows that. Everyone just knows Harrison Ford, like, you know, Indiana Jones and all the other amazing characters he's played. So I think it was relatable as well to say, holy crap, even Harrison Ford's gone through this, even, you know, all these different famous people. So I love that part. Of, of weaving that in. Now you talk about power habits.

Yeah.

What are power habits?

So what I realized many years ago when I discovered success anorexia, and again, for the folks listening and watching the program, if you've never heard of that, it means you've never studied my books or taken my courses or my coaching. So yeah, that you, if, if you've never studied me, you've never heard of that before. Basically, success anorexia is the, is the condition I discovered that causes these other behaviors. And the problem is that everybody else is trying to change behavior on the level of behavior. And what I realized many years ago is you can't change behavior at the level of behavior. You have to go underneath the behavior to what's causing the behavior. To give you an example, you know, as a keynote speaker, you know, I'm a keynote speaker. I get to do keynote presentations for, you know, companies, teams, organizations all around the world, you know, live, virtually, and so forth. You know, one of the things I like to do as an example to, to, you know, show how silly it is to try to change behavior at the level of behavior. I'll say to my audience members. So let's say, you know, there's 1,000 people in the audience, you know, whether live or virtually. And I'll say, okay, now everybody, I want you to stand up and everybody stands up. You know, and if it's virtual, I just say, okay, everybody, you know, let's just, we're gonna, we're gonna play a game here. I say, okay, now everybody stand up and I want everybody to like each other. You know, and then they sort of pause for a moment and then everybody starts laughing because it's like, well, what? You know, I don't, I don't even know these people. Right? How am I supposed to like them? And see, that's what happens. That's an example, a silly example of trying to change behavior at the level of behavior. Now, once you get to know someone, you know, like you and me, you know, I'm your number one guest on the show and, you know, we, we love each other. We kid around, we have fun. But imagine, you know, the first time we talked, hey, Ken, you know, and you're like, who the heck is this guy? I don't even know.

Right. Right.

You know what I mean? So the point is that that's one of the things that makes my Power Habit System different. What I realized is that highly successful people are doing these unconscious habits that they're not even aware of. And that, that is, in fact, what's causing them to be so successful. So the Power Habit system that I developed many years ago is the primary reason that I've helped my clients, you know, whether one-on-one or group coaching or, you know, whether it's consulting or whatever it might be, is helping them add that $3 billion collectively that I talked about a moment ago, you know, literally adding Multiple 6 figures, 7 figures, even 8 figures. And the primary reason is because I teach them these unconscious power habits that really what's so funny is these highly successful people don't even know they're doing it. And therefore, number 2, they can't teach it to you. So that's why it took the nerdiest nerd in the industry, that would be me, to actually systematize and then be able to teach and coach on these power habits.

Well, and that's the other thing that I love about the approach that you take is You know, taking it sort of to the, the medical route that you had mentioned is I get so frustrated. You know, you go, you, let's say you pull a hamstring and you go to the doctor and the doctor says, oh, well here's some anti-inflammatories and, you know, let it heal up. You're treating the symptom, right? You know, in your terms, you're treating the behavior, trying to change the behavior instead of saying, hey, instead of why is this the 3rd time you've pulled your hamstring in the last year?

Exactly.

Let's strengthen whatever we need. Let's go back down like you're talking about, right? In different terms, obviously.

Of course.

Getting back to the, the basics and treating the symptoms and treat, you know, to create the behavior we want to create the result and not have, you know, pull-down signs.

That's right.

In this case, building, you know, those, those habits to create the self-confidence. You can't just, again, like you said, hey, hey, be more confident. Okay, well, what changed from yesterday to today to make me more confident?

Right.

I mean, it's so difficult to sort of pin it on a one. So we're, we're running outta time here again, but Real quick. So all the studying you've done, all these books you've written and everything, what is one resource? I'm only gonna let you have one.

Mm-hmm.

One resource that was just one of those things that either was like an epiphany for you or just something that you even refer back to now?

Well, my inspiration for getting this business was The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. Okay. You know, and I actually got the chance to interview him many years ago, and he was just perfect. He was exactly what you would want Stephen Covey to be. You know, he was, he was himself. And, you know, that's what I so admired about him. And, you know, what some people say, which is a very, a real big honor for me, is my work starts where Stephen Covey's left off. And because he was talking about conscious habits and I teach about the unconscious habits that really cause success.

Yep. Yep. Love it. Alright, guys. We're gonna hit a break. getconfidencebook.com. Come back after the break. We'll continue talking with Dr. Noah St. John. Back to the show. And we gotta change that when we have Dr. St. John on the show. Wanna talk, oh, all 3 of Mr. Biz's bestselling books of, of 3.

Yawn.

This guy's got 24. Anyway, I would say it inspires me to write more books. But as we've discussed before, it won't because I absolutely do not enjoy writing. So I might have one more book in, maybe one more, although I said that after this, you know, couple back. So who knows? They keep building, I guess. Nothing like you, of course. So, so let's take that a step further. We, you know, we talked about how it's different. Who would benefit? Who would benefit from, from, from reading this book?

There are 3 types of people that would benefit from reading the book, my new book. It's called The Power Habits of Unstoppable Self-Confidence. So first of all, if you're feeling like you really need more confidence, right? And you're tired of the old fake it till you make it, advice, which is totally non-advice and doesn't work at all. The second is for the person who, you might wanna buy this as a gift for someone.

Right.

Because I've, I've noticed that there are certain gifts that are, when it comes to books, I mean, that are well received and some that are not so well received. Kind of like, boy, you're really screwing up. You should read this book. What? You know, that doesn't go over so well sometimes. So this would be a, a great gift book for, you know, a, you know, a parent or a kid or a grandkid or a niece or a nephew or, you know, somebody who's, you know, maybe graduating high school, graduating college, going off into, you know, going off into the world and, and seeing what's next. And then the third type of person, it's for someone who's in transition, right? And, you know, the pandemic, of course, over these last several years now has caused a lot of people to have to pivot, whether you're, you know, in business or if you were in a job and to maybe you were downsized or right-sized or whatever it might be. So when you're going into, let's say, a job interview, right? You wanna have that confidence and you don't wanna fake it. And let's say you're starting a new business. You don't wanna fake it. You wanna have that real confidence. And, you know, like we were talking about earlier, this really, my book and all of my teachings really address the causal level. It's not about the symptoms or the behaviors. When you look at the causal level, this is in fact why so many people really have low self-esteem. And I just wanna touch on this for a second.

Mhmm.

Because one of the stories that I talked about in the book was Elvis Presley. And it turns out that, and again, a lot of people don't know this, and I was actually fascinated to learn this in my research, that Elvis was actually, he was very, very quiet, very shy, you know, and he was teased in school because, you know, the boys, they called him too girly, too effeminate, you know. And he just really was very quiet and very shy. And in fact, they, he tried out for this band when he was like a teenager. And they said, you know, forget it, son. You have no talent for singing. You know, so just, and this, this is all true stories. I mean, this all happened.

Yeah.

And of course, he went on to become Elvis Presley, you know, the biggest star on the planet during his time. And so the point is, you know, if somebody like Elvis can have that kind of low self-esteem or be very shy and quiet, I mean, quiet and shy is what I meant to say, then, you know, what about the rest of us? And that's what I was getting at is that a lot of times the most talented people are actually the ones who have the least confidence. Meanwhile, the ones who have no talent at all are the ones who have tons of confidence. And it's like, good God, you know. So I'm just trying to kind of level the playing field here for the, the folks out there who, who are talented, who are smart, who are creative, and, you know, have so much to give, but maybe are lacking that self-confidence. This book is definitely for you.

Yeah. And I, I would actually add on to that. Another thing that's really common, especially in the entrepreneurial world, is people have imposter syndrome.

Right.

Think they're, they think they're not good enough. Think they're not, I can't charge, no one will pay that for me, for my advice or whatever. And I run across a lot of people like that, even people who start businesses and it goes real well. And then the normal cyclicality of a business that things start to taper off and fall and then they lose confidence, the confidence that they had when they started the business. And now, you know, 3, 4 years in, if they hit some challenges and bumps in the road, they start to lose that confidence. And then I, I feel like it's, you know, starts to spiral, you know, it builds on itself. in a negative way instead of the way you're talking about building in a positive way. I think that's another, you know, section of the population that would really benefit from things. And here's the thing I was going to mention. It's funny you said it, you touched on it, is the people oftentimes that I find, not all the time, but at least a small percentage of the time that have the most confidence are the biggest lunkheads in the world. And you're like, you're like, how does this guy or girl get off? Right. Being so confident.

I know.

You know, because you dig into a little bit and you're like, they don't know what the hell they're talking about.

Right. They're, you know, they're just, they're, they're good with the blah, blah, blah. Exactly. And it's like, good God, you know? And meanwhile, the quiet, shy person there in the corner is the smartest person in the room many times. So you really gotta be careful. And by the way, you know, that, that story or, you know, that example makes me think of, of one of my coaching clients named Katherine. Now I have a program called the 12 Week Breakthrough. which, as you mentioned earlier, you know, I'm known for helping people make more money in just 12 weeks than they did in the previous 12 months while actually winning their lives back. And a big, big part of it is these power habits, you know, that I teach. And so Catherine is an entrepreneur from Pennsylvania, and she signed up with, for my 12-week breakthrough coaching program. And she told me that she, you know, similar to what you're talking about, you know, she'd been going through some tough times in her business. And, you know, she tried lots of other things, spent all this money, You know, again, it was, it was not going so well, and she was, she kept hitting that income ceiling. Well, she sent me an email in week 5 of, of the 12-week program. It's a 12-week group coaching program. Sent me an email on week 5, and she said, Noah, I just wanted you to know that I just raised $185,000 in one day in private money because of what you taught me. And she said, because you believed in me, now I believe in me for the first time in years. And wow, $185K in one day. Not a bad day.

Yeah. Yeah. Well, especially, I mean, I imagine the, the slingshot impact that would have in a positive way of someone who has a waning self-confidence and all of a sudden hits a grand slam home run like that. And all of a sudden you're, you're like, man, Stella's got her groove back. Let's go. You know?

Bingo. Exactly. That, it's exa— and, and you're right, it is a momentum changer and, and you're absolutely right. And see, the problem is A lot of times that momentum is going in the downward spiral, and we've gotta make sure that we get it up again. So you get, you get your groove back. Yeah.

Yeah. For sure. So what's, what's one of the, we only got a couple minutes left here, but one of the other things I wanna touch on, what's one of the most surprising things that someone, a reader of the book is, is gonna learn and they're gonna be like, what? Like, that's a real head scratcher.

Well, yeah. There's, I, I hope there's a lot of surprises in there. You know, like we were talking about all the different stories of the celebrities and people like that, you know, that we all are familiar with and you go, wow, I didn't realize that they were quiet, they were shy, they were introverted, and so on. So I think that could be a big surprise for a lot of people. Another thing that is a surprise is one of the things I touch on and actually spend quite a bit of time on is the fear of public speaking. Because as I'm sure we all know, the fear of public speaking is the number 1 fear of adults in, you know, certainly in the United States, but pretty much all around the world. And in fact, most surveys say that the fear of death is number 6. Right? So in other words, people would rather die 5 times than speak in public. Right. Anyway, so I talk about that and, you know, I talk about where the fear of public speaking comes from and what it really is because again, that's a behavior, right? You know, I always like to go underneath the behavior to the cause. And then I, I give you my APPLAUSE method. That's why I love to come up with these cool acronyms. So it's the APPLAUSE method to actually get over the fear of public speaking and, you know, lots of stories like that. So, you know, if you're one of the millions of Americans or people around the world who have the fear of public speaking, That, that could definitely really turn it around for you.

Yeah. And I think that's another one of those things like overcoming something like that, whether it's the fear of public speaking or whatever it might be, that's something that you have to face regularly in your, in your day-to-day life or in your career. If you, you get over that hill or you, you take the hill, I guess I should say, I think that just does nothing but build on one. Because I know myself, when I face challenging things in life, I look back on some of the things that I've overcome in the past. And think, man, if I could do that, right, this thing that's in front of me right now, come on, this is a piece of cake. Like, I did this. I know I have this in me. So, this is a piece of cake. So, building that sort of mental resume of overcoming some of those, excuse me, challenges, I think is big. Well, we're out of time here. Again, check out his book, The Power Habits of Unstoppable Self-Confidence. You can find it at getconfidencebook.com. That's getconfidencebook.com. Again, we'll put it in the show notes as well. Dr. Noah St. John, thank you so much for coming on the show. Pleasure as always.

Always a pleasure. Anytime.