Last night, a good friend told me an interesting story about how to differentiate yourself in the interview world. Since I’ve trained hundreds of people on this I couldn’t help but be intrigued.

My friend was invited out to lunch with some co-workers. The interview prospect for the company was going to accompany them and the lunch was going to serve as an extension of the formal interview. 

On the way to the restaurant, the team leader asked the prospect to explain what he did in his first interview with this company. The prospect described how at the end of the interview, he took out one of his business cards and lit a corner of it on fire. Once the flame was well established, with one hard snap of his wrist he extinguished the fire. He then calmly looked up at the interviewer and told him in simple terms, “I’m your Dragon Slayer…if you have problems, I will be the guy to fix it.”

As odd as this may sound (he acknowledged that it was a risky move but he knew he could back it up with performance), it absolutely differentiated him from all the other prospects. In fact, it was so effective that this demonstration remained the main focus of their lunch conversation.

I asked my buddy if he got the job, and he told me they made the offer and were really hoping the prospect would accept it. In a world where people struggle to find work, here is a guy doing things so differently that he is in the driver’s seat deciding which job he should take!

That’s the lesson! Quit being the same as everyone else and start coming at jobs and the world from a different angle!  It won’t always work, but when it does the result is amazing!!

Being a professional speaker I always chuckle when someone comes up to me after a speech and says, “You make it look so easy!”  Little do they know the effort that goes on behind the scenes. I have worked as much as 40 hours on a twenty minute speech. 

Everyone has tricks they use to get through stressful situations but one of the most important is preparation and visualization. However, all my hours spent preparing only get me so far in my success. We all have had situations that called for massive preparations in order to have a successful outcome. Unfortunately, what doesn’t happen many times is successfully “seeing” the event before it happens.

One trick I do before a big speech is get to the event early (even the night before at times) and literally stand on the stage and “see” myself giving my speech to all the people who will soon be in the audience. Sometimes I visualize my speech while I’m taking a shower or walking down the sidewalk…but I always “see” the event before it happens.

Another tip, I always make sure I see it with a hugely successful outcome.  Like the saying goes…you’ve got to see it to believe it! 

Think about this the next time you have a stressful situation ahead of you. Find somewhere quiet and “see” it all happen. You might feel silly but trust me, it will make it much easier and more fun when the real event happens!

I attended an interesting talk a few weeks ago where two speakers wanted to visually show how everyone is connected to someone. They asked an audience member to stand up (this happened to be about 300 college students) and say what they wanted to do when they graduated. While the audience member was saying their career desire they were handed the end to a ball of yarn. The audience was then asked if they knew anyone working in that area. Without hesitation someone in the audience would raise their hand and say that their brother, mom, dad, uncle, etc. worked in that field. The ball of string was then run over to that person who then continued the process by stating what they wanted to do after graduation. 

A dozen or so people later, with lines of yarn strung all over the auditorium, the point was very clear…everyone is connected to someone. All you have to do is ask.

Let me say that again….all you have to do is ask! Yet, most people don’t! I consistently tell audiences (and readers of my book) that everyone LOVES talking about their favorite subject…themselves! Why don’t you let them by asking questions and just listening! I have learned a ton of incredible information just by asking questions. 

Start now…the next time you’re at a party, on a bus, sitting next to someone at a meeting just start asking questions! Sometimes an “amazing” discovery is only one question away!

A friend of mine sent me a really neat email last week. The message was labeled 100-0. Not having a clue what that meant and knowing my friend wouldn’t send me garbage, I started reading.

The point of the story was that most couples, when asked, say that a solid relationship requires each person putting forth equal amounts of effort. The story went on to disagree with that assessment. 

It made an excellent point that for anything to work at its highest potential each party must be willing and able to give 100% effort and expect 0% effort in return. What a great point! You can apply that principle to just about anything in your life…your marriage, your kids, your job…I could go on and on!

Take a minute to assess whether you’re putting 100% into what you do or the people you’re with. Remember that “amazing” doesn’t happen when you give expecting something in return. It happens when you give 100% and expect NOTHING back from your effort. Many times the “amazing” happens to you instead of the person you gave so much to.

“To solve any problem, here are three questions to ask yourself:  First, what could I do? Second, what could I read? And third, who could I ask?”  –Jim Rohn–

“Who can I ask?” As I travel the country I interact with thousands of people with one thing in common. They have questions burning in their heart and are in search of answers…real answers.  The problem is they don’t have anyone they can ask in their network of friends that will tell them the honest — and accurate answers! This is the very problem that motivated me to create this website. AskSteveEdwards.com is designed to give people like you an opportunity to “unload” if you will. A chance to finally ask someone with the experience to give you solid, accurate answers that you’ve been searching for! 

After twenty five years of being a successful entrepreneur, pilot, speaker and author I have always been the one people turn to when they need honest, hard hitting answers to the questions that are really causing them grief. It is a remarkable experience to see the weight of the world thrown off a person’s shoulders when they realize my answer is not only one they so desperately needed…but also achievable! That’s when true success and happiness starts happening!

This is a site I hope you find to be your home away from home. A place that you go to when life is pressing you down and you need someone who won’t judge you…just give you the answers to help you out of the rut you’re in.

Give it a go! After all, are you really getting the answers you need to your life’s most important questions? I doubt it! So start with this simple first step. Sign up and receive our free videos of the top ten most asked questions people have for me around the country. I’m willing to bet you’ve asked yourself some of these questions as well.  I’m also willing to bet you haven’t heard some of these answers either!

Sign up and take a look…I promise you won’t be disappointed!