Weekly Live Show Recap - Ep. 1 - Why Exceptionally Irresistible? - Ft. Louis Fernandez

This week we launched the very first episode of our much anticipated The Exceptionally Irresistible Podcast show. We were so excited to share with you this unique experience and sought to take the audience on a special journey that would include a 20-minute audio podcast that can be downloaded anywhere you get your podcasts from, if you get your Podcast from Apple, you can download the first episode here, or if you get your podcasts from Spotify, you can download the first episode here.

We then went from there and invite members of the audience to a Live Show that airs the evening after the show is launched. We open up the discussion to a surprise guest that has something really unique to him or her and something that ties into the conversation that we are talking about.

We believe that everyone has a voice and that everyone should be heard, and that is why we also created a special club on Clubhouse that invites the audience members to join on stage and give us their opinions, their feedback, their inputs, and potentially a Q&A. A room is then scheduled for the next day after the show is released in order to give the audience members enough time to listen to the show and potentially watch the Live Show.

All this to say that being Exceptionally Irresistible means that it’s all about bringing the highest levels of value to the people that we serve.

Talking about service. That’s what brings us to the incredible guest that we had on our Live Show - Louis Fernandez- Here’s a little recap and the highlights of the show in case you missed it. 

Yermi met Louis on the same platform that he met Boruch - a platform for business professionals called Bizfluence. Through connecting and chatting, they came to realize that their mindsets aligned and Louis invited Yermi on to his podcast to discuss meaning and purpose in our professional lives. You can watch that episode here. Ever since then, Yermi and Louis have stayed in touch, and now that Exceptionally Irresistible has launched, who better to invite as our very first guest? 

Louis joined the military in order to honor the sacrifices of his ancestors by doing what they can not do. He joined the army in June 2004 as a second lieutenant and deployed in March of the following year. At some point in his military career, he was leading a team of 40 servicemembers. 

What is Exceptional?

• The harder something is, the more valuable it becomes 
• Louis brought an example of someone that he interviewed on his Podcast who is a car salesman and how he had an exceptional journey to reach his level of success. 
• Everything worthwhile requires hard work. You value that which required the most effort. 
• Being exceptional means being willing to do the hard work. 
• Even people with natural talent don’t always make it because they’re not willing to do the hard work. 
• Becoming “Exceptional” is a by-product of putting in the hard work and effort.

Watch Recap here: 

Here’s how Louis suggests you get through the hard work when it’s no fun:

1. Understand your reasoning and your “why”
2. Write down your reasoning 
3. Your moment of triumph comes when you’re about to throw in the towel
4. Progress is slow so keep your WHY alive, make sure the reason you’re doing what you’re doing is still there 
5. Prepare yourself properly for the future and commit to being the best (Louis brought examples from his days in Ranger School)

Watch Recap here:  

What is Irresistible?

• Think about the people who you WANT to spend time around
• There’s an opportunity cost for every second
• People who are irresistible are people who have a way of pushing the spotlight away from themselves and onto others - they also make great leaders. 
• Peer Evals are more important than faking it to your boss
• The way you get over your personal pain and suffering is by focusing your attention on helping someone
• The guy you want on your team is the guy that focuses on others. 
• Giving a lot when you only have a little is more valuable than giving a little when you have a lot

Watch Recap here:  

What is Exceptionally Irresistible?

Arrogance: (some “wrenches were thrown around between Yermi and Louis - worth the watch)

• A lot of confidence is good. But there’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance 
• As a leader, you need to ask “Where am I wrong”. Don’t say “what do you think? Are there any problems”. Don’t ask yes or no questions. 
• Teams aren’t there to tell you if you’re right or wrong. They’re there to tell you how it needs to be fixed. This is Confidence 
• Have confidence in the mission and deliver it 
• Louis shared a really cool story about how he led a group of 11 soldiers into a battle with 60 enemies in a mock training program. 

Watch Recap here:  

Goal Setting

• Set scary goals 
• Don’t set goals that you think you can achieve. 
• Set goals that are scary and crazy, you won’t necessarily hit them but you’ll get a lot further than you ever would’ve previously
• Set goals that keep you up at night 
• By setting easy goals we are selling everybody short. 
• You’re capable of more than you believe you just have to set higher goals
• Set goals for 5-10 years and figure out step by step how to get there
• Be obsessed about your dream
• If someone tells you it’s impossible that’s when you know you’ve got a good one
• You can learn through listening or you can learn through pain 

Watch Recap here: 

The Bottom Line: 

The 3 main takeaway points were: 

• There's a fine line between being assertive and being aggressive
• If you work on yourself to become ‘Exceptionally Irresistible’ people will respond better to your feedback 
• Your relationship has a big influence on the leadership and feedback you’re able to give

Contributors to this article include:

Louis Fernandez - Louis is a husband and father of three beautiful kids.  Surely blessed, he spent 7 years as an Army officer deploying twice and seeing fierce combat in Afghanistan.  After the military, he spent some years working in a fortune 100 before realizing that he had a knack and passion for business.  In the midst of the pandemic, Louis embarked on his entrepreneurial journey helping other businesses reduce costs to thrive in tough economic environments.  True to his “deliver results first” nature, his company only gets paid if they save you money.  He is also an author of a 5 star rated Leadership book called “Keep On Leading” and runs his own podcast called Built With Grit.

To reach Louis Fernandez you can follow him on LinkedIn, YouTube, or Bizfluence, and by emailing him at [email protected]

Boruch DuBrow - Boruch is an Exceptional Development Coach with over 13 years of experience as an educator. Boruch has helped hundreds of people feeling lost in life to discover their path and reach their potential. Today, Boruch educates and empowers individuals and organizations to discover their path, define their purpose, and create an “Exceptional” future for themselves, their families, and their organizations.

To learn more about Boruch DuBrow feel free to follow him on LinkedIn, or Instagram, You can also reach Boruch by emailing him at [email protected]

Yermi Kurkus - Yermi has spent most of his career helping people at their lowest find meaning and purpose through proven methods that are built from psychology, philosophy, and mystical teachings. Yermi's approach is pragmatic and down to earth, thus coining the term Practical Mindfulness. 

Today, Yermi partners up with business owners, professionals, and individuals that want to become more "irresistible" in their personal and professional lives, as well as helping founders build "irresistible" systems in their businesses.

To learn more about Yermi Kurkus feel free to follow him on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube. You can also reach Yermi by emailing him at [email protected]