Today we’d like to introduce you to Benjamin John
Hi Benjamin, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Bullet Points. . .
Father left when I was 3yrs old. Between the ages of 10-15 I was in and out of the juvenile justice system, group homes, & foster homes. At 19, I was introduced to hard drugs which led to a two year addiction and hardship.
From the age of 26-35 I was a lead carpenter who specialized in building glass glazed Victorian sunrooms before quitting to start my entrepreneurial journey. My first business was with a business partner, who I considered to be a mentor, in a dangerous industry that almost cost me my life, freedom, & time with my daughter.
I faced life threatening situations, including being shot at and robbed multiple times. I even had a near-death experience when I crashed my truck due to overworking myself. All of this while being a single father with only the support of my daughters grandparents.
At age 35, I took the leap to leave the dangerous industry and start my own business from the ground up. At 37, I found myself in fear, doubt, and uncertainty. Although I was doing great in business, the entire world was going through a pandemic. Businesses were in retreat. Through this, I managed to thrive in a contracting economy and built a successful business with ten employees. During this time I stumbled upon a book called the 10X Rule and discovered it’s author, Grant Cardone, who soon became my mentor for the next few years. Grant’s message in his book opened my eyes to new possibilities. He gave me a fresh perspective on business and personal growth. . . so I thought.
I didn’t realize it then, but as I began to listen to his messages, I heard him say things such as ” you are operating at low levels”, “proximity is power”, ” your net worth is your network”, “money follows attention”, “commit first and figure the rest out later”, and “those who pay, pay attention”. These statements brain washed me very deeply. I saw that Grant was successful with his content and was a self-proclaimed billionaire. I followed through with his advice to get in proximity and network with high-profile people. I quickly attended all of his events, big and small. I even became a 10X certified business coach with his organization and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars with him. During my time with his organization I gained confidence and learned effective business strategies to make more money.
What I didn’t realize was that I was becoming an unethical business person, being taught how to deceive, manipulate, interrogate, harass, shame, and bully others into doing business with me. I didn’t realize that Grant was teaching me to focus on money to scale my company over creating meaningful relationships to build business. Before I knew it, I became someone that I didn’t recognize and lost myself. I realized that I had adopted Grant’s mindset. In some aspects, I allowed him to think for me and take over my thoughts. Unlearning this manipulative way of selling was a challenge after having done it that way for several years. It also helped me recognize who the right type of mentor was for me. When I look back on how I got pulled into that environment, I can clearly see why it happened to me and why it’s happening to others. Now I understand the difference between good mentorship and bad mentorship. I’ve realized there is no such thing as a lack of mentorship but rather what I refer to as “misguided mentoring”. It made me realize that unethical mentorship can have a detrimental effect on someone’s life. I learned that not knowing yourself will invite uncertainty and open the door for you to be brain washed.
A good mentor will encourage you to think for yourself rather than glorify them and seek them for the answers.
A good mentor will show you whether they are a giver or taker. A good mentor will show you if they truly care about people or if they just want an outcome or money. After investing a lot of time, money, and energy into learning from Grant and learning how to do business the unethical way, I had to deconstruct myself from the self-serving entrepreneur that I allowed him to create in me. It took a long time to rebrand my company and get my identity back after voluntarily leaving Grant’s cult like community.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I spend days bringing awareness to mentors who prey on people’s vulnerability to obtain business. I shed light on red flags that people ignore in a mentorship/mentee setting. I focus on public speaking at business conferences to make a positive impact on this topic and encourage others to truly get in touch with their morals and ethic in business. I write books that focus on paying attention to today’s misguided mentors and how to navigate the self development matrix as a salesperson and a consumer. I published two books. The Misguided Mentor and Dear Younger Me. I teach others that everything you need is inside of you and you don’t need to seek it in others. Once people realize that, the right people, communities, and opportunities will be presented to you at the exact right moment when it feels right. When your intuition and conscience is hyper aware and on a higher frequency, it will be an undeniable feeling to do what is right.
My mission is to change what is being taught in the sales and business industry. I currently own Massive Impact where I help sales reps and/or companies identify potential areas where unethical business practices may be present in the organization. I isolate and deconstruct those unethical practices to reframe the approach on truly caring for the customer and relationship. Rather than building a false relationship conceived on deception. I also help individual sales reps know themselves inside and out so that they can align their actions with their morals and ethics in business. I help people recognize the type of mentorship they are receiving as well as how they are showing up as a mentor to others.
My focus:
Care For Others & Know Yourself
My tagline:
Show Up Your Best Self
Make A Massive Impact
Serve Others
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benjaminjohnmic/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/massiveimpactcoaching
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheMisguidedMentor/videos
- Other: https://www.amazon.com/MISGUIDED-MENTOR-UNDERSTAND-ASPECT-MENTORSHIP/dp/B0BQHKX8M7/
