0225: Schmooze: What They Should Teach at Harvard Business School with Author & Speaker Cody Lowry

Cody. I'm Cody Lowrey and you're listening to EA interviews.

EA interviews, episode 225, inspiration, transformation, success stories and the imperfect action round. Seven days a week, join Mario Ficcini for today's expert Authority Effect interview. Would you like to be more influential? Would you like to be more persuasive? How would you like to schmooze people at business events and networking events or just in real life? I've thought about this and I used to think everything was business. I only really saw the world through this lens. But the reality is if you don't know persuasion and influence, you're gonna have a hard time with your family, your kids, friends, family, whatever the, whatever the case is. Persuasion and influence is probably the two biggest things and I kind of see them as one in the same. But if you can schmooze people, what can't you have happen? That's why I'm excited to have Cody Lawry today author of Schmooze. And he's going to be telling us how he got a Super bowl ring without ever playing or coaching in the NFL, getting a baseball signed by the Pope and booking an appointment with, booking a meeting with the president in under a week and loads of other stuff. So I'm going to thank our sponsor and we're going to bring up Cody Lawre. Every business needs a book, including yours. Visit freebusinessbookpublishingcourse.com today to learn the seven steps to publish and promote your nonfiction, lead and profit generating business book in eight weeks. Once again, that's free Businessbook publishing course dot com. Here he is, ladies and gentlemen, Cody Lawre. Cody, how are you feeling today?

I am feeling great. Better since I got to be on your podcast. I'm looking forward to this.

Well, I am too. Ever since I saw what you were doing and what you've done, I was just like, I need to bring them for expert Authority World. And you've done and accomplished so much. But the way you're doing it and with the heart you're doing it is really what stands out to me. Why don't we just jump in and why would you say persuasion, influence, schmoozing, why would you say it's so vitally important for business?

Well, you know, today we live in the most connected society in the history of the world and yet we are more disconnected because of it. And I have learned through my whole life, including starting out selling newspapers, how to communicate and how to communicate with schmooze. When you look at today's situation as it relates to the digital world. I mean, the Googles and the Twitters and the Facebooks, I mean, they are all getting control of our lives. They want us 247 at their beck and call. We have our little blankie at night. It's right by our bedside. And our cell phone doesn't leave us. Right.

What I'm trying to do is get people to really schmooze a little bit. Put that phone away. I head up an advertising agency loaded with millennials. And millennials have taken a bad rap, Mario. I mean, it isn't just millennials that are caught up in this digital age, but they're all around me. And I encourage them to leave their phones outside when we have a meeting and really try to look each other in the eye and communicate. And today, that's. It might be a lost art.

If you will let me talk about the digital meeting. I mean, right now we're using digital mediums to web conference and do a live stream and all these different things. And I think it's more powerful than ever because you can connect with anyone in the world. I truly believe that. And it's so easy to just jump on camera and have this conversation. But what do you feel we're losing from having that in person?

I don't want to say situation, but having the in person meeting, I realize logistically this is faster and more efficient. But there is a lost art of just people skills and just people skills. What do you think is the benefit of being able to do this? And what are the cons?

Yeah, so I'm not sure there's some cons. Although schmooze comes from the Yiddish word schmoozen, which means to chat idolater. Chat in a friendly, persuasive manner so as to gain favor in business or connections. In fact, schmooze actually in many circles has a negative connotation. And I have redefined the word schmooze. And in the book, what they should teach at Harvard Business School. You'll see how throughout my life and today, the way I live it, how I use relationships, and it's about mentoring and about really looking out for the little guy. And I redefined the word schmooze. And throughout my life and right now, it's been something nice to have as part of my arsenal. And if you look at. I think the point I was making is that schmooze in some circles has a negative connotation.

It's the Eddie Haskell. Hello, Mrs. Cleaver. Hello, Mr. Cleaver. And it's a little disingenuous. And really my definition of the word schmooze. First and foremost, you have to be genuine. And in the book, people say, what is the one common thread in the book? And I think it's. It's more than just one thing, but it's building relationships. It's getting those relationships to trust you, and then it's never letting them down. And it's really the secret sauce in my life, and it's enabled me to keep clients on the books for over 30 years, which is unheard of in my niche, which is automotive. If you last five years, that's pretty good. You last 30 years, what are you doing differently? And it's. It is about trust and never letting the client down. And so when you look throughout the whole book and in the front of the book, they talk about all these things that I've accomplished. And really, schmoozing is more than setting up a meeting with the President of the United States in one week. And it's more than carrying the torch in the Olympics. It's really about, you know, the way you go about life, the way you treat people, especially the less fortunate. And I'm so happy that I thought about writing this about two years ago, and it's doing pretty well.

Well, I'm glad that you're talking about that, because the word schmooze, you know, some people take it as positive. I think I say more people take it negative, in my experience, but I knew it was positive. And I'm glad you brought that up, because it was actually something I wanted to ask you. Why do you think it got a bad. Because inherently it's not bad. Do you think it was the people that gave it. The people who were doing it just were unscrupulous, and that became the norm.

Well, whether they were unscrupulous, I won't. I won't say that, but I will. They were disingenuous. They. Okay, you know, they were always looking out for themselves. And, you know, what's in it for me? And I've just absolutely turned that. That whole definition around.

So if someone does come from that mindset, what would you say is the bigger intention behind what you do? You know, you're not trying to persuade them or influence for a negative result. You know, what's on your heart when you. Like, how do you even set up a meeting with the president or something like that?

Well, that was, you know, in one of the chapters I talk about, be a contrarian. You Know when people are going right, go left. And I was in a meeting and the President was coming to town and our dealer had put in some pretty positive full page ads in the Tampa Tribune, the Miami Herald and the St. Petersburg Times. And actually it was an article that was written by Walter Annenberg and it was called A Summer of Discontent. And it was, I don't know if anybody, I'm sure a lot of people know who Walter Annenberg was, but if you don't know who he was, he was a publisher and a philanthropist and in a hardcore Republican. But during these times, Jimmy Carter was having a pretty tough time. It was pretty tough summer for him. Interest rates were at, you know, 12, 13% and you know, everybody was down on him. So the article was a summer of discontent. And the takeaway from the full page ad was that regardless of whether you agree or disagree with the President, he's the only one we have. So you know, let's support him, let's get behind him. And so when I heard that the President was coming to town and like in a week, I thought it was a be a really good idea if we met with the President. And when I brought it up to the dealer and the dealer's son and the general manager, I was the, I was the general sales manager at the time, they kind of laughed at me. And, you know, how are you going to pull that off? Well, I pulled it off and.

It was a week later the dealer and myself were in front of Jimmy Carter. You know, I auditioned for Saturday Night Live, so I know how to do Jimmy Carter.

Oh, seriously?

Yeah, I auditioned for Saturday Night. That's a great story. I did that in only about two days. That was pretty interesting. But just getting back to Jimmy Car, Jimmy Carter, I mean, it's a long story. Would take up, you know, 10 or 15 minutes. But the bottom line is, you know, I got on the horn to Washington, I called Jody Powell's office, which is the first office, which was, he was Carter's right hand man at the time. And then they transferred this off. Finally they, they transferred me to a lady in Tampa, Keesh Legrand, who was the head of the scheduling committee. And you know, I went over to visit her. I told her what we wanted to do and when I left, I had two big cheesecakes set up, sent up to the hotel room where her and her staff were. And she called the next morning and she said, we've arranged for a meeting with the President and Mr. Abraham. And I said, well, Keesh, would I be able to go. And she says, no, that's not going to be possible. And so she went on talking about security and the things that Mr. Abraham, you know, needed to do. And at the end of the call, I gave it one more try, said, keesh, isn't there any way I could go with Mr. Abraham? And there was a pause and she said, cody, I'll handle it. Thanks for the cheesecake. So there's a little, you know, schmoozing and how cheesecake really worked. But you mentioned Saturday Night Live.

My goal was to be in a different arena. I'm glad I stayed where I was. I've got 11 grandchildren and they're bigger than any, you know, big marquee sign in Las Vegas. But I was off to Las Vegas. Nevada was going to be a stand up comedy do. It's a stand up comedy. And I thought that might lead to other acting roles and what have you. But before I did take off to Las Vegas, I wanted to go to New York and just kind of kick the tires and, and what an experience that was. I didn't have a lot of money at the time. And, you know, back then, Mario, you know, today a young person, male or female, can make a living on the circuits, you know, at some of these comedy clubs they have all around the world. Back then you got an honorarium here, an honorary. You just got up and you did free for free, hoping that somebody would notice you. So when I got to New York, first thing I did, I went to the improv and kind of intimidated me a little bit. And then I went over to Catch a Ride star and I told him who I was and, you know, any way I could get up tonight. And it was a Saturday night, and so the guy said, yeah, you know, we'll put you on. And I was just about ready to go on. And a well known comedian at the time just wrote a book, by the way, Tom Dreeson. They come and they came and they grabbed me and they said, hey, listen, you know, I'd waited almost two hours to get on. He says, we have somebody else that's got to get on. He's going to be on the Carson show tomorrow night and he wants to try out some new material. Tom Dreeson. I know exactly who he was. And so he went on and it was, it was unfortunate. And we've all had those nights at the, at the mic. It just wasn't going for him. And he put the microphone down about halfway into his. His act and he said, he apologized, he said that he Was going home that night and gonna work on some new material for the tonight show, the, you know, the following evening. And then, ladies and gentlemen, let's give it up now for Cody Lowry. You know, next thing I'm charging, you know, and I, I have a very kind of an aggressive style and, and you know, and I'll be very honest with you, I mean, I hadn't paid my dues, I'd been doing this for, you know, maybe eight months. And here I am at the hottest comedy club in the country, you know, and I mean, I've got raw talent and I'm not scared of anything. And, and you know, there weren't people in the wings waiting to give me a contract. But I did pretty well and I held my own that night. But the next day it was just like, it was, you know, so casual. I think I'll audition for Saturday Night Live while I'm here. Well, I only had like three more days in the city and.

You know, it was as casual as, oh, I think I'll get my nails done, you know, something like that. And so I, I called Saturday Night Live, NBC Studios, Rockefeller center. And I asked who was in charge of talent. And they said a gentleman by the name of John Head was an English chap. And I got on the phone with him, I told him about who I was. I said, I think I'm the only guy in the country right now. I don't think Rich Little does Jimmy Carter. And I said, I'd like to audition. And he said, well, you know, give me a call tomorrow, one of those deals. And I didn't realize it was a put off. But the next day I called and I called and I called and I called and I finally thought, I said, you know what, I'll bet he's got a telephone number. And back then, before cell phones, we all had a listed number, right? So I called information and sure enough, I got John Head's number and I called him And I said, Mr. Head, this is Cody Lowry. He goes, you're amazing like that. He probably knew how many times I called him, you know, that day. And he invited me in the next afternoon. And there I was going up the elevator to audition for Saturday Night Live. And it was really quite an experience. I got off the elevator and for some reason a comm came over me. And I go into this room, there's a platform, you know, up front. And I get up and I start doing my act. And he's smiling from ear to ear so he's not rolling in the aisles. But I can tell he likes it. When I'm done, he said, hold on, I want to get two other people and let's do the Jimmy Carter again. So in come these two other gentlemen, and they sit down and I do my Carter. My name is Jimmy Carter. I always tell the truth. If ever tell a lie, I go to another truth. Now a lot of people think I'm prejudiced, come from the South. I want the American people to understand one thing right now, about four children, two of them are black. And it goes on and on and on and on, you know, and. But they loved it. They clapped, they left. And he said, listen, he said, stay around town. He said, we'll see if Jimmy Carter becomes president. Well, he probably didn't hear me. Well, you know, I didn't have enough money to stay another, you know, two days. And so I was off to back home in Florida. And that's where my life really took a turn. I was. Next thing you know, I'm in the car business and general sales manager of a very large Chevrolet store. And.

You know, wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for that move. And so I didn't make it to Las Vegas, but who knows? There's still plenty of time, right?

There definitely is. And now with the world so super connected, you know, one of the things I wanted to ask you about the comedy and congratulations, that's not only inspiring, but what a great story. And I don't think there's maybe a handful of people I've told this to. And it was all really close friends. And I sure as heck have never said it live or on the show. But one of my goals is to. I actually have notes and notes I've been working on. Like, it's literally says the notes, say, stand up routine one, stand up routine two. And just building stuff. I don't know if you have to go for 5, 10, 15 minutes. But, you know, just like when I'm public Speaking, I decided, 30 minute set. If I can do that, the rest will be easy. So that's what I was aiming for. But that is. It's just incredible what I'm hearing. A lot of just go for it because you're a lot like me, where you'd let me ask you. I don't want to assume anything. And that's why we're having this conversation. Would you rather go into a presentation or a meeting completely unarmed, completely unprepared, and just go on the spot, or would you like a week to prepare?

Now, I Would like a week to prepare. And in my, one of the chapters is schmoozing from the podium. And the one main point that I want people to understand is never, ever, ever wing it. I can tell you a story. I was at a grand opening of a new store and it's one of these great big mausoleum type stores, you know, probably 25, $30 million. And, and it's, I've been to a hundred of these things. They have the mayor there, they have the dealer, they have, they have some important community people and they usually have whatever, whatever brand it is, they have a big, you know, heavyweight from, from corporate come in. And so this was.

This guy was like head of the country for this brand. And I'm sitting back there watching him. The dealer got up and he thanked everybody and then the mayor got up and then this person. And then they invite.

This gentleman over to the podium. And I was watching him and he didn't have any notes. He was kind of looking around. And I figure he's going to give the stump speech that he's given over and over and over again. And he's.

He gets up there and he starts going through it. He says, you know, number one, we believe in boom. And he gives his, you know what that is? And number two, boom. And he says, and number three.

And I'm going, come on. Hello. He actually couldn't remember three. And that happens to, you know, you're a speaker, you know, sometimes you're sitting there, you're on automatic pilot and you go, wait, well, where am I? You know, And I think he forgot where he was. But you know, you can never, never wing it. Now, with that said, may I tell you a story that really changed my life?

Please do.

Yeah. So I was in the advertising business.

Our niche was automotive. We did other retail, but it was primarily automotive. And I get a call from a guy from North Carolina, he's a Toyota dealer, and he says, hey, the Toyota dealers are all meeting at the Grove Park Inn, which is in Asheville. And he said, we're gonna have dinner. Why don't you come up and meet him? Have a little chat, little chat on the next plane, you know, or whenever it was. And, and so the, the, the cocktail party started around 6 and I got there at 6:30. So I.

I get into the cocktail party and one of the things I always tell people about building relationships, you don't take two weeks, three weeks a year to build relationships. You start in the first 30 seconds that you meet somebody because it's very important and the way I approach clients when I meet them, there's a good chance I know what college they went to, I know the fraternity, I know how many kids they have, I know somebody who knows him and blah, blah, blah. And so anyway, I get to the cocktail party and, you know, I'm the guy with the lampshade on my. On my head, you know. So I'm telling jokes and having a good old time, and one of the. One of the dealers looks at me, he said, who did you bring with you? And I thought that was a strange question. And I said, well, I didn't bring anyone, you know. And he said, really? Well, there was a major presentation the next morning for the account, which was worth multi seven figures. The agency that had the account at the time was Saatchi and Saatchi, a multibillion dollar agency.

And they were having a pitch for that business in the morning. And I just couldn't even believe it. And I started thinking, oh, no, what do I do now? I got up to my room and I actually was kind of outlined, putting an outline together of my little conversation I'd have with the president of the Toyota Group. And then, then I got hold of myself. I said, wait a minute. I said, no, you don't. You don't have any storyboards with you, but you know, your creative strategy. No, you don't know anything about the Charlotte market, but you know, your media strategy. And Cody, this is your magic moment. You know, you've been. You've been doing this forever, and this is a big, big deal. So the next morning, I go down and I meet the other three agencies and they. They each have four or five people with them, right? They've got, you know, they've got the media people, they got the creative people. They have, you know, somebody holding parting gifts. There's always gifts, you know, that you give out. And in comparison, I had a. I had a VHS tape with me. You remember vhs and.

Absolutely.

Maybe, maybe a business card. Well, I went on last. And in advertising, you want to go on first, you want to go on last. My preference is always last. So I wait around a couple hours and the other agencies get done, and, you know, I'm asked to come into the room and all of a sudden it's like old home week. Cody, hey, how you doing? We had fun last night and hey, let's get together, you know, boom. And now it's like, you know, it's not even a pitch. I feel so comfortable. They feel comfortable with me. And I get up and I do my presentation and I will say this. The reel I had with me, I just finished it and it was a real. It was a great sizzle reel. So they gave me a little applause and I left. And I went out of the lobby with, you know, the other agencies. And when you're in this niche automotive, these guys make decisions very, very quickly. And about 30 minutes later, gentleman came out and asked me to come into the room. And I walked in and they closed the door and they said, cody, you got the account. Now, I got to tell you what that meant to me. First of all, to pull off and be the only agency to get a piece of business out of. Out of southeast United States other than Saatchi. And Saatchi was. Was quite remarkable. Was really remarkable. In about three months, their market share kept, started going up and up, and we had a much stronger message and our media buys were more aggressive. And the next thing you know, I get a call from the, the marketing manager from Southeast Toyota and Cody, could you go to Columbia? Could you go here? Could you go there? And next thing you know, about a year later, you know, we've got eight Toyota associations and, you know, I'm doing pretty good. So that, that kind of changed my life. But the.

The whole meaning behind me telling the story is, is relationships and building relationships and when you, when, when. And most entrepreneurs do this, but when you're going to meet a new client, know everything you possibly can about that person. And as I said earlier, never, ever, ever wing it.

That is a huge expert authority insight. And I'm glad I asked the question. And I appreciate that story of transformation because that's what it's about. No matter where you're at right now, you can always get to that other side. And so many people think, oh, I'll just wing it. Or some people prepare. I don't want to say they're over prepared, but they just get so caught up with every last detail. They never just take that faith and go. At some point you have, you know, especially with launching a book, I tell all my author clients this. It's like, well, we got to refine it, we got to edit it. It's like you want to be prepared for sure, but you still had to step out in faith and go, well, I'm in New York for three days. You couldn't have waited five to go on, you know, to submit for Saturday Night Live? You can't wait two weeks to, you know, when the president's not in town. I mean, there is the timetable, but I love these stories that you're sharing because they're inspiring, first off. But what I'm hearing is there is no magic bullet. You just. Basically, the magic bullet is you went for it and you went in prepared, knowing, hey, you know, I might not have the credentials or I might not have paid my dues or whatever, but you went in prepared enough to go, well, I can go from step one to two. I can go from two to three. You didn't spend 10 years hyper refining it and then missing all those opportunities.

I think to just sum up what you just said, and it was right on target, is people do business with people they like, and if people don't know you, there's a good chance they're.

Not gonna like you.

Business with you. But, yeah, I think one of the things that.

Is throughout the whole book is, is being persistent and sticking with it. And, you know, because somebody says no, it doesn't necessarily mean, you know, that they mean no. Right. And I learned that at an early.

No means not now.

Yeah, there you go. There you go.

There you go in the persistence part of it, you know, let's go back to the Saturday Night Live, you know, oh, give us a call, you know, you know, call me tomorrow. Most people won't, let alone. I don't know if it was 3, 5, 10, 15, doesn't matter. But when he said you're amazing, you know, that was the real first key. Now, you still need to be equipped to do the impersonation, which was very good, by the way. But if you don't have that persistence, you're not even going to get your foot in the door. However, if all you have is the persistence, you still need to know the craft and know what you're doing and be prepared to your point, because there's plenty of people who are persistent, but like I said in some of my episodes, they're pricks and no one wants to talk to them. You can be persistent. So that's what's so fascinating is I think everyone knows these words and they've heard it, but how many people are implementing it? And just even how you're talking, it's so smooth and seamless and just, you know, I'm glad you're sharing it. So I thank you again.

Would you like to hear the genesis of my persistence?

Absolutely.

So I always tell people that instead of a rags to riches story, mine was a riches to rags because my mother was a debutante in the city of Detroit. Her father was superintendent of schools for 30 years. He was the first president, Wayne State University. And there's a, there's a high school named after my grandfather called Frank Cody High School, which still stands today. And I was there for the dedication. But when my mom and dad got married.

It was almost downhill. Immediately they moved to Florida and my dad was a heavy drinker. And next thing you know, I mean, there's just total chaos. And in the, in the tape that you showed at the front of this segment. Yeah. Within a seven year period, seven mile radius, we moved 32 times. And, you know, we, we lived off government food, Spam and peanut butter. And then my father leaves, you know, and so my mom, who's never worked a day in her life, she's, she gets a job as a hostess at a place called Creighton's Restaurant. And it was, their tagline was home of the world's best apple piece. And she was also a classified ad girl at the Fort Lauderdale News. And we lived the dream in about a 600 foot square foot house with two bedrooms and four of us, or actually five. And it was tough, but one of the things that my mother instilled in all of us was that, you know what, maybe we're down now, but you guys, you kids can be anything you want to be. And she really.

She gave us hope. And we all started working at a young age. And I work as a paper boy, age 11, at the sunrise Shopping Center. And after school I'd get 15 papers and I go off and I do my very best to sell them before it got dark on Saturdays, I would get 35 papers, the same thing. I'd try to sell all my papers. And I had this little tactic that I used when I asked somebody if they wanted a paper. Miami News, sir, Miami News, ma'. Am. And if they walked past me without just ignoring me, I'd say, sir, would you buy a paper if I told you where you got your shoes, what state you were born in, and how many birthdays you've had? You know what, for a nickel you'll bite, right? You got your shoes on your feet. You were born in the state of infancy and you've only had one birthday, the day you were born, right? So I learned to be persistent. And I didn't know what schmooze was at that time, but I knew if I was going to make any money, I think I got two cents of paper. I had a charm everyone that I came in touch with. So one Saturday, my district manager comes and he says, you know, you always do a good job selling 35 papers. I think you can sell 50. I said, no, I cannot sell 50, sir. Blah, blah, blah. It's just too much. I barely can sell 35. And, you know, he encouraged me to at least give it the old college try, as they say. And so off I went that day. Miami News, Miami. I talked to everybody in this mall, Sunrise Shopping Center. That's where I sold the papers. I talked to almost everybody twice. And it was getting about six o', clock, it was starting to get dark. And I had two places I could. I had 12 papers left. There's two places I could have gone. One was to Nick's bar. It was an upscaled bar adjacent to the, to the shopping center. And Nick had his own PhD in schmooze. When I went in there, you know, hey, kid, come over here. Who wants to buy a Herald? Well, the Herald was the Miami Herald. I didn't sell the Herald, I sold the Miami News. But, you know, he didn't care. Most of the time I'd sell all of my papers, right? But there were. The other option was to go across the street to a Jewish delicatessen called Wolfies. And that's where I decided to go. And I just gotten across Sunrise Boulevard and I looked and much to my disbelief, there was a man, an old older gentleman, selling the early edition of the Sunday Miami Herald. And he had the papers, they were stacked up to the awnings, you know, and three stacks. And think about this. He was selling the early edition of the Miami Herald, which was bigger than the New York Times, right? It was just huge. And I was going to try to sell the Saturday morning Miami News, which probably had, you know, a twentieth of the circulation. And it was a little thin, you know, fish wrapper. It wasn't. There wasn't anything substantial about it except it did have the blue stripe on it. You know, I had that going for me. So I said, well, I'll give it, I'll give it a try. And so I got about 10ft from him, Mario, and people would come out and he didn't have to say a word. People were just buying the paper, right? And I was going, miami News, Blue street edition, Miami News. And it must have been laughable to, you know, people watching this thing. And, you know, after a while, I was really getting tired. You know, I was. I had ink all over me. My change purse was pulled to one side. I tell people that I look like the artful Dodger who really needed a haircut. And so I just about ready to give up. And I'm gathering my stuff, and this man, this older gentleman, comes blowing out of the restaurant. And I said, paper, sir? Miami News, Blue street edition. And he ignores me, and he just keeps going. And I go after him. Now, sir, would you buy a paper if I told you where you got your shoes, what state you were born in, and how many birthdays you've had? He turned around. I thought he was going to hit me. And then he stood there for a minute, and he looked down at me. He said, son, how many papers do you have left? And I said, I have 12, sir. He said, that's exactly how many I want. And I want you to go home. And, you know, that night, when I think about that story, I mean, it can bring a tear to my eye. But I learned a lot. Number one. Yeah, be persistent. No doesn't mean no. But then always look out for the little guy. And if people do pick up the book, schmooze, what they should teach at Harvard Business School, there's probably about four good stories where, you know, one time I had to catch myself. I was. I was getting really irritated with this guy that, you know, wanted some money, and I realized I was really wrong and handled it wrong. And then just real quickly, Monsignor Caulfield, who was my best friend, we were in. We were in Rome with my wife. She was sick, and we were out just taking in the sights. We went by the Pantheon. There, on a roller skate, on a skateboard with roller skate wheels, was a man who didn't have any arms or legs. And that's not what gave me pause. And I try to encourage people to think about the less fortunate as I looked at him. Even people that did put money in his can, Mario, they did so without any human interaction at all and dropped the money in there and just, you know, on their way. So Monsignor and I, we walked up and I said, ciao. You know, the only Italian I knew, you know, and he said ciao back. And you could see a delight in his eyes. Somebody was now paying attention to this very, very lonely man. And we, you know, try to communicate as best we could. We got ready to leave, and I put some money in his can, and Monsignor blessed him. And I got maybe 10ft away, Mario, and I turned around and I looked at him, and he was zeroed in on me like a laser. And I said, ciao back. And, you know, we were communicating. And.

I think it is a lesson that I learned early enough in life where, you know, I can. I can reach out now.

And really help the less fortunate. And I tell people in the book, look, you don't have to be a philanthropist. Wouldn't that be nice if we were all philanthropists and we could give to this charity and this college and endow this and that. But you know what? Just by doing, having a little human interaction with a lonely person or, you know, people, they say I'm an easy mark, right, for these people on the street. But, you know, 85% of these people are just hungry. Some of them are mentally. You know, they have some issues. So, you know, I don't try to figure out the ones who are going to buy booze or the ones who are trying to con me. You know, I try to. I try to reach out to as many as I can. And I always feel guilty if I'm in my car and I went, oh, no, I don't have any money on me, Then I really feel terrible. But, so those are the kinds of things I think people will really like in the book. Schmooze. Just great stories.

Well, I appreciate you for sharing those with us because.

I think the world needs more humanity. No matter if you're the janitor, the CEO or something in between, it takes exactly zero sense to give someone a smile or actually care. I mean, what did it take to actually say hi or ciao to him and, you know, you made his day, probably even his week and everything. And that's why I love showcasing such great people as yourself, because now you have the. It costs nothing truly to be a good person, but when you do have more influence and you do have more of a following, an audience, whatever you want to call it now, it's just amplified. And I think people trust it. It's not to say anyone can't do it, but if you look at the authorities, celebrities, experts, whatever the case is, it's like people just gravitate towards them. And when they say a message, it's. I mean, you got sometimes 100, 500, 1000 time amplification on it. And I'm thoroughly enjoying this. I got a question before we thank our sponsor for you, but I really want to say thank you for sharing those stories because you were bringing back some memories for me when I was starting out and some things dad told me and also what he embodied. And we all have similarities with all of it. So thank you for being who you are and sharing those.

We have one fun thing before we thank the sponsor. Well, this whole thing's fun, but I incorporated this. It's called the Wheel of Whatever.

And it always ends where it needs to. And my question for you is, who is someone you would love to schmooze that you haven't yet? And what would it be around.

Someone that I haven't schmoozed with?

It probably wouldn't be political because I'd have to duck regardless of who it was. Right.

You know, a guy that I've always admired is Alan Dershowitz. I mean this is a guy that, you know, I think in 21 he went to Yale Law School as head of the law review and went to Harvard, one of the youngest.

Are the youngest college professor of law at Harvard University. And he's, you know, if you look at the cases that he's, that he's been on, and I mean from O.J. simpson to, well, as recently as, as this whole impeachment deal, I mean he's, he's led a very, very.

Interesting life. And I could see sitting down and having a beer with Alan Dershowitz.

Okay, excellent. Thank you for sharing that with us. We are going to thank the sponsor and come back for the imperfect action round. You've heard me say every business needs a book, including yours. And it's true. And that's why you should visit freebusinessbook publishingcourse.com today to learn the seven steps to publish and promote your nonfiction lead and profit generating business book in eight weeks. But you know what, don't take my word for it. Take it from a few of my authors like Lori, I went from having an idea and a possibility to actually.

Getting my book published. Or Catherine, thank you for making my mom number one best selling author.

Or Mary Alice, what he got done for me in three days regarding my book launch.

Unmanageable John Cody. I've worked with Mario over the phone and online and he's been very helpful in getting me where I needed to go with promoting my books.

Rocio, there's no way in the world I would have been able to do this with somebody else again. I've attempted it in the past. It didn't serve me. As a matter of fact, I ended up more frustrated than anything. So this has been a very seamless process. Adele, if you're looking for an amazing business coach, I highly recommend Mario Ficini or Bill Benner. I can't make a higher recommendation for than to work with Mario Ficini. He has been great for me and right now I won't work with anybody else except for Mario.

Hey, their words, not mine. Visit freebusinessbookpublishingcourse.com to get started now. And I look forward to hearing your transformation as the next video success story. Once again, that's free businessbook publishingcourse.com and we are back with the imperfect action round. Cody, are you ready to take imperfect action?

Yes sir, I am.

I have three questions for you all, 60 second or less responses. The first one is what is the fastest path to the profits?

The fastest path to the profit is no.

Little white lies. I've been in business a long time, advertising and you know, we screw up on occasion, whether it's media or it's creative or.

Whatever it is. And they'll come in and they'll say, oh my gosh, we did this. Should we tell them? But I said no, you don't tell them anything except the truth. And I think it's honesty. And I've never lived by the little white lie.

Philosophy that you tell the truth. It is what it is. And I think you live to see another day when you do that.

Wow, I so appreciate that. I agree. And I don't think anyone's ever said that right here yet. Thank you for that. Number two, what is the biggest problem your prospects keep making and the fastest way for them to fix it?

I think the is inconsistency. You know, they're always looking for that special whatever it is that's going to take them to the next level quickly. And you know there is. That doesn't exist. So we'll go into a market and you know, we'll be with an account and you know, we've been on a campaign for six months which seems like a long time. It's not. And all of a sudden they went to a 20 group meeting which in our business, 20 dealers get together and they might come back with an idea and just be adamant about taking off in a different direction. So it's a matter about harnessing them, getting to remember why we were on this campaign before. It's usually branding and serious positioning.

So keeping them in line and keeping them consistent and you know, at times babysitting.

Excellent. Number three, what is the best way to maximize customer lifetime value?

I think the best way is to be there for them, be there at their beck and call. You know, in my arena, Mario, we have to, you know, it's not a Monday through Friday, five to nine, it's, it's seven days a week and we get some pretty high powered individuals that will call us on a Saturday or a Sunday and I'm their blankie, right. And I look down and oh my God, it's Mario, I don't want to pick this phone up. But you know what? Mario called me for a reason. He wants to ask me a question. He wants me to hold his hand. He wants something or he wouldn't be calling me on a Sunday. Right. And I will pick up the phone. And, and you know, when you look at, when you look at our book of business to have accounts in Automotive, you know, 30 years, 20 years, 15 years, 10, it's almost unheard of. And I think it's for, you know, those reasons we're there for our clients when they need us. And you know, it's, you know, it's, it's not glad handing. It's not what you think the original definition of schmooze was. Right. Yeah.

And when you mentioned that, I was thinking of some of my clients I've had for 10, 11 plus years and I'm like, thank you. And I'm like, wow, I can imagine 15, 20, 30 plus years. But what an impressive accomplishment because again, like you said, most businesses don't even last five years, let alone it's a difference of being a vendor to an actual partner and like you said, being there for them. So appreciate those expert authority insights. I have one. Well, two more. But what are some books you could recommend to expert authority World that have made a difference in your life?

Well, think and Grow Rich is one of the first ones that, you know, I ever read how to Win Friends and Influence People. Even though those books were written, you know, 30, 40 years ago, they are as relevant today as they were then. And, and.

They'Re very kind. And my book, they compare it to a modern day version of how to Win Friends and Influence People. And while I'm flattered by that, I look back on that book and.

It helped me ways and become who I am. And I've probably read it several times.

Yeah, Dale Carnegie's great and how to Win Friends and Influence People is one of the, I think is the first book dad gave me.

Oh really?

He had it and I still have the original copy. I still have it. So think great recommendations. Thank you for those. Where would you like people to learn more?

Well, they can go to Mr. Mr. Schmooze.com.

That'S my website.

And they can, you know, they can catch me on Facebook or LinkedIn or you know, Instagram. I'm there for him and I want to thank you. And if you people listening don't know Mario's story, he's got, he's got a great story. He's a great guy and he's a genuine guy. So really that's what schmoozing is all about, being genuine. And so thank you very much for having me, Mario.

The pleasure is mine. And I didn't expect that, but I do appreciate it.

I'm real glad we got connected.

Thank you.

All right, Expert Authority World. We have another great episode here today. I'll see you tomorrow. Have a great day. God bless.

You're already the expert, but have you transformed your expertise into a tangible asset that will generate and qualify leads while increasing profit for you 24? 7? And if so, how well are you promoting it? With the Expert Authority Effect publishing method, it's easier and faster than ever. Visit freebusinessbookpublishingcourse.com today to learn the seven steps to publish and promote your nonfiction, lead and profit generating business book in eight weeks. Visit freebusinessbookpublishingcourse.com to get started. Now once again, that's free. Businessbook publishingcourse.com hey, thanks for listening to today's episode. I hope you got a lot out of it. I know I sure did. If you haven't done so already, I invite you to subscribe to the show if you and also be sure to check out eainterviews.com for complete show notes, the full interview, video experience, links to the resources we mentioned, and more. Have a blessed day and I'll see you tomorrow.