I was searching for someone that could match my level of thought and discernment. I needed someone to help me execute the lofty goals I had for my life and the company...
What do they come to you for?
they have a better idea or creative way and need someone to help express that idea.
My playground and my battlefield is the world of interior architecture and design.
What problems, challenges or aspirations caused you to invite Johan Taft to help you?
A feeling that there had to be a better way to do. I was searching for someone that could match my level of thought and discernment. I needed someone to help me execute the lofty goals I had for my life and the company.
What were you struggling with, what were you frustrated with?
I was struggling with my soul, exhausted with the daily battles within myself of what I thought I could vs. what I could actually do in any given day
What were you not achieving?
I was not achieving…to my standards. I was not satisfied with the success of the company or with my own success. Both of which by many measures had outperformed what was reasonable to expect. But I knew I had more to do and did not have anyone who I felt could really get me there.
What was the gap between where you were and where you wanted to be?
What was the gap? What was the fucking gap??!! It wasn’t a gap, it was a chasm, it was the grand fucking canyon. My mistake was in thinking it was a gap. Something that with a little duct tape and ingenuity I could bridge.
What initial reservations or concerns did you have about engaging Johan?
That he would be like so many others I have hired or consulted with professionally. Recent history showed me that it would take a rare mind to keep up with my thought process, take it in and generate NEW helpful content as a result. I have been looking for someone that could elevate my ideas and visions. Many people I encountered became numb and gun-shy once they heard what I had already done. They thought they could work at my level and perhaps thought they were. Unfortunately, they could not and I ended up wasting time, treasure and resources on people who could never understand me and much less how to work with me, not for me.
And I thought Johan was a bit brash. No one talked to me the way he did. He dared to have the intuition and vision to know what I needed and give it to me. Well, not give it to me, but not force feed me either.
What major breakthroughs in your performance and what key specific results in your business did you generate through your participation on Johan’s programme to date?
I had overcome addiction before I met him. However even the best addiction recovery programs do not prepare you for recovery. I understood how to live in recovery with Johan. Keep in mind I hired Johan for my business, not for my personal life.
I now recognize in a profound way they must be linked. I have said for years there is no work life balance, it’s all work and it’s all life. Johan helped me understand how to stand in my own self and live that successfully and with purpose.
My business had a real issue with collecting on invoices. Cash flow was a problem. Johan helped me clarify my process and provide direction for this effort. Outstanding receivables over 60 days has dropped more than 80%. The cash flow my business needed was restored for the first time in far too many years.
Johan spoke early on about this bullshit idea of work on the business, not in the business. I don’t have time in my life for gimmicky sayings like this. I mean, it’s like…No shit! Of course that’s what I want to be doing. I thought I was in fact doing that. Johan smiled and didn’t stop there.
He gave me the tools to understand how I could truly manifest that potentially harmful platitude into a meaningful way to work every day. The fucked up part is that Johan doesn’t actually do anything; he hasn’t made anything happen in my company. He hasn’t made me a better business leader. He has caused me to do it myself and now I own all these skills. He hasn’t imposed it on me. I have transformed into the person that can do it. Judo
What new future/opportunities have now opened up for you?
This is a tough question. I am typically so focused on the future I do not take time to reflect on the past. I am teaching more now than I ever have. You see I always thought people could learn from being around me and seeing how I do things (how I design, how I talk to people, how I win business, etc.). This is how I grew up. No one ever really taught me shit about how to BE a professional Architect and Designer. No one ever taught me how to talk to clients and win business.
I just had a lot of raw talent and a hunger for knowledge. When I quit hoping people would just BE like me and focused on training and teach them what I know and how I do my job and more importantly the expectations I have for them and how they can achieve those expectations things drastically improved.
What has surprised you most about working with Johan? What do you enjoy most about working with him?
b. Our friendship.
My friendship with Johan is perhaps the most important friendship of my recent adult life second only to my wife. He is authentic and caring, reflective, and introspective. He is spontaneous and calculating. He is the South Pole and the North Pole. He is raw and pure. He is quite remarkably himself and because of that he is who I need him to be. Johan’s remarkable ability to think and run-down new ideas with me is essential to our relationship. I have needed someone in my life that can bring ideas and brilliance to the table while simultaneously supporting and thinking through my own ideas and brilliance. We are mentally matched well for each other and our collaboration together has truly elevated my own levels of thinking and creativity.
Would you recommend Johan Taft to other business owners/professionals?
Yes, I already have and will continue to do so.