Day 204: Mark Hrisko
“I found at an early age when I get comfortable then I get stagnant, so I continuously do things to challenge … whether it’s my business growth, whether it’s my executive coaching, whether it’s, you know, family time. When I just find myself getting stagnant, I challenge myself. I get uncomfortable again.”
.
.
.
Toni Reece: Thank you so much, Marc, for agreeing to be part of the Project today, and before we begin, can you please introduce yourself?
Marc Hrisko: Yes. My name is Marc Hrisko of www.markhrisko.com. I’m the author of The Kangaroo Millionaire: 7 Counterintuitive Secrets to Springing Ahead in Life and Wealth. Yes, I’m excited to do this with you, thank you.
Toni: Great! So Marc, when you think about that word inspiration, who do you think you inspire, and how does that happen?
Marc: I inspire many business entrepreneurs, owners, people in real estate, small business. In regards to inspiring them, I take my 7 Counterintuitive Secrets, and I teach them how to implement it in their life, in their business, to take their business or their life to a whole other level, whichever the case may be. It’s been a lifelong dream of mine to help others, all the way back from when I was hired at age 19 as a firefighter. I spent 10 years in the fire department, and there was nothing more humbling than helping others in their worst time of need.
At age 26, I happened to start my own business, which is real estate investing, and then I found another way how to help people in regards to, you know, people going into foreclosure, things such as that, being able to help them. Then, at that time as I saw how I was able to help people and they started thanking me, I said “You know what? This is something that I can take to a whole other level and teach other people how to do.”
By age 30, I was able to make my first million dollars. So as far as inspiration, I have a core belief of anybody that has, you know, average intelligence can do whatever they want out of life. Lord knows, if I was able to, a high school … I think I made it out of high school … I never went to college, and I definitely was able to do it. Now I just take my teachings to others to show them.
Toni: What do think is at the heartbeat of that inspiration? I know that you have a program and you do the teaching, but where is the sweet spot in that inspiration?
Marc: It’s actually my kangaroo; hence, the whole brand called Kangaroo Millionaire. As far as the sweet spot, the person that inspires me to inspire others is my kangaroo, who happens to be my wife, who came to this country with nothing and made it in her own way without anything more than a backpack on her back. She saw something in me that I never saw in myself, and once I was able to capture that in myself and learn how to show other people that one desire that they have or that one potential that they might not know that they have, and able to bring it out of other people and show them what they can do with it – oh my gosh, it’s just been a great life.
Toni: Fantastic. Now, how do you think you help people to explore their potential?
Marc: Well, first off we have to take a look … what’s not working? What have you done in the past that hasn’t worked? And then, that what can we do in the future that will work, but they must find their “why.” And to help them find their why is, what is their passion? What is their one dream? What is it that they really, really want out of life? Is it to help others? Is it to go back and have a business that they’re passionate about but they’ve just been scared to do, maybe because of today’s economic times.
So once we can find their “why” – what is it that their passions are about — we can help them explore and develop a whole business or a whole life around that passion, and forget about all the old stuff that they were taught in the past.
Toni: What happens if you run into resistance? Someone may know what they’re passionate about. I know what my potential might be, but you know what, I am frightened – what happens with that?
Marc: And when it comes to resistance, I was going to say it typically comes back to one thing, and it’s fear. So what is it that we have to do to overcome that fear? The analogy that I use a lot for fear is just “false evidence appearing real.” So what is that resistance? What are you afraid of, and how can we overcome that fear?
I’ve learned through my education and my teachings that typically the one thing that conquers fear is knowledge. The more knowledge we have about what we’re afraid of, and then while playing full out — meaning let’s confront it head on and play through it — I typically can conquer that fear and then we can move on in the progression.
Toni: Okay. Now, let’s talk about you. What inspires you? What do you need to be inspired?
Marc: When it comes to what inspires me, it goes back to my core values, which is my family. I have a beautiful wife, two beautiful sons, a daughter on the way. And to be able to have them have chances in life that I never had keeps me thriving.
On the flip side, when I see my students or my colleagues or clients of mine .. when I can see the results that they’re able to form for themselves, their business, their family, it keeps me going no matter how tough it gets. So basically it comes back to A) my family, B) seeing the results that I’m able to help others achieve just through, you know, a little bit of realization of what they want out of life is my desire. It’s my inspiration to keep on going.
Toni: It must have taken a lot of courage on your part to take the leap of faith to walk into this sense of purpose that you have, because not everybody does that. Not everybody knows how to do that, and what you’re saying is that you also want to help them to do that. So was there a moment? Was it a process? What happened with you that inspired you to walk down this path?
Marc: I knew … I knew there was a moment. It goes back to my firefighting days. I’ll never forget this. It’s probably going to be about five years now, Christmas Eve – terrible house fire. I don’t want to go into the details, but there was a moment in my life that Christmas Eve night/Christmas morning that … it was just that “ah-ha” moment.
I had been hearing my wife tell me, you know, “You’re not living up to your fullest potential, you have a lot more to offer the world than you just being on that truck and on that ambulance.” And as I was going to the hospital with this family member and just being able to sit back and talk to them on this devastating day, something just clicked during that conversation. They said thank you and some other kind words as that day went on that I knew that I had to do this.
Toni: So it was the fact that you were able to make an impact not only in a survival setting – a physical survival setting – but it transferred into almost a mental survival.
Marc: Most definitely. Most definitely; and then begin to be able to capture that one instance and branch off. And I know it sounds kind of weird, but to be able to branch off continuing what happened mentally that day, and seeing how that works time and time again, that was my “ah-ha” or my defining moment. I remember it quite well.
Toni: Fantastic. Now do you ever reach a point in a day when you go “Gosh, you know, I could really use a little inspiration here?” And if you do, what do you find yourself consistently reaching for?
Marc: Yes. There’s many a times I do that, and I reach for programs, notes that I have taken in the past, or I’ll take up my cell phone and call one of my mentors that I’ve learned from in the past, and even myself, even today … you’ve got to continue your education or continue going back to what has worked and refresh in the past.
I have several mentors, several people I lean on that have taught me that you’ve got to stay humble and sometimes go back to where you came from in regards to where you learn things. And I have about four or five mentors that when I need that inspiration I go back to and read their writings or give them a phone call or watch videos and DVDs of what they’ve taught me in the past.
Toni: And when it comes to your own potential, what do you need to do for yourself that you continuously explore your own potential to do the work that you do or to live the life that you lead?
Marc: Continuously testing myself. I found at an early age when I get comfortable then I get stagnant, so I continuously do things to challenge … whether it’s my business growth, whether it’s my executive coaching, whether it’s, you know, family time. When I just find myself getting stagnant, I challenge myself. I get uncomfortable again. Maybe it’s buying another million-dollar building, or a multimillion-dollar commercial complex on the real estate side. Maybe it’s taking on two more clients. Maybe it’s actually getting in a plane with my family and taking a month off in Australia. But whatever it be in that point of life, it comes back to challenging myself to stretch and get uncomfortable.
Toni: Now how does that correlate to what you do for others?
Marc: As far as it correlates to others, I look at it this way – how can I expect somebody to do something that I’m not willing to do myself? Meaning when I hear, I like to call them excuses — sometimes maybe reasons, but more so excuses — why they say they can’t do this or their fear of this, or they don’t want to outlay the capital for that, well how in the world would I expect them to do it if I’ve never done it myself, or I don’t continuously do it myself? So it goes back to my own teachings and my practicing what I teach.
Toni: It’s interesting, you’re very confident and very passionate, and I’m wondering as you explore your own potential and stay in this sense of inspiration to do what you do, do you ever speak of your own … I don’t want to use the word failures because it’s so strong … but missteps.
Marc: No, I don’t mind failures. Hey … fail forward fast – it’s a model of mine. Another mentor of mine, Robert Kiyosaki, he’s taught me. He said “Listen, if you’re not making mistakes, if you’re not failing and learning from them” – we’ll call them learning opportunities as well – “then you’re not progressing in life and business.” So all the time I talk about my mistakes.
I mean, the one way I think all of us learn is from other people’s mistakes, and if other people aren’t willing to throw out what their mistakes were, well shame on them. Because even as we revisit our mistakes in the past or our failures in the past, we remind ourselves what not to do again to make sure we find ourselves in that same situation.
Toni: Well I appreciate you being frank about that, because it’s important. Those people that are listening to this interview all over the world are going to take their own perspective on what you’ve had to say, and sometimes it is very refreshing for people to say “You know what, yes, I’m there, I’m doing it; but you know what, I did have some missteps along the way, and I’m not afraid to say it.” So thank you for being so frank about that.
Marc: Oh no … you’re welcome, but I totally believe in it. I mean, that’s how we learn. Even in today’s times, still continuously making mistakes as I grow my business. I mean, we’re in unprecedented times with today’s economy, so it’s all a big learning process, absolutely.
Toni: Well thank you very much, Marc, for giving up your time to be part of the Get Inspired! Project, and we wish you the greatest success, and we will have a post at the bottom of your interview on how people can learn a little bit more about what you do and, again, thank you for showing up today.
Marc: Thank you for having me. It’s been an absolute pleasure and an honor to spend this time with you and your audience.
___________________________________________________________
For more information about Mark Hrisko: www.MarcHrisko.com
.
Post Comment