Self-Sabotage and Your Business Mindset
Noah Koff [Recorded 6_20_22]
[00:00:00] Miriam: Okay. I am so excited to have with us Noah cough. He is a business and leadership coach for product creators who wanna better their business and life ahead of schedule, which is what we all want is to do things ahead of schedule. So welcome Noah. Thank you, Miriam. It’s lovely to be here and to have the opportunity to tell my story.
[00:00:22] I’m excited. All right. As you know, leave better is about bringing wisdom and practical steps to help people shed the behaviors and the attitudes that sabotage their next level of growth or success in business or life. So I’m super happy to hear where our conversation goes. I know it’s gonna be rich and full of wisdom and practical tips for our listeners.
Let’s Start
[00:00:45] why don’t you just start and give us a brief description of who you are currently. And then who you have been previous roles and kind of how you got from a to B.
[00:00:56] Noah: Great. Yeah. So today I’m a solo [00:01:00] entrepreneur and I’m five years into building my own business that started out in, as an agency business.
[00:01:09] And, and today it’s focused on, business and leadership development for product creators and startup entrepreneurs. And before doing this, I was. An operator of. Consumer fitness business, which I had built to 5 million. And, and I was accountable for a, you know, a multidiscipline team. So I was able to learn, quite a bit about how to double business and how to make profits as well as, run a purpose.
[00:01:50] Business. The business was all about fitness and wellness and, and helping busy women, high performing women, get a workout. [00:02:00] And, and that’s, , that was the business that I did before. What I’m doing now, in addition to, to those roles. I was also a startup executive and, and it had built, , as an entrepreneur, I had also built two of my own businesses in London before, moving to Portland almost 10 years ago in Oregon, where, where I lived today.
My Journey as an Entrepreneur
[00:02:24] So my. Adventure. My, my journey as a, as a entrepreneur has had multiple chapters, lots of, lots of ups and downs, lots of learning, lots of fun. I’ve been able to build a great network, with all the different experiences. I’ve. It sounds like it. I love that you have something across the pond. So explain to me, because I have never talked with someone who has done business, both in London or, you know, England, and then also here, I’m certain, there are some things that are similar and I’m certain [00:03:00] that there’s some things that are pretty different.
[00:03:01] Miriam: Do you mind just like throwing out a couple. Similarities and a couple differences.
Working in England
[00:03:06] Noah: Absolutely. Well, so the funny thing about working in England is that although we do share the same language, the culture is quite different. Words mean different things. You know, if you were to say boot. You know, to, to an American, they would, they would think you’re talking about a shoe and in England, it’s, you know, the, you know, the, the back of your car, it’s your trunk.
[00:03:30] You know, so yeah, words are different and their meaning is different, but also the way that, and the culture in which people do business is quite different. Americans tend to be right to the point and much more. Get right into the business and there’s no, entree, or appetizer, and Brits love to have chit chat in advance.
[00:03:52] They love to talk about, you know, sports. They love to complain about the weather. Cuz it’s [00:04:00] always raining. They love to talk about traffic and you know, stuff like that. And so. That’s a real part of, part of it and, and Brits love drinking tea and having biscuits. And so that’s, that’s all part of doing business.
[00:04:14] You know, you’re either having tea or you’re at the pub and that’s, that’s where Brits like to do business and to make deals happen. And so, yeah, if you wanna have success doing business over there, you, you definitely want to, Yeah, warm people up and have the right setting in which people will,
[00:04:33] feel comfortable. And, and, and that’s quite important if you go right into business with a Brit you’re probably not gonna have a great connection or, get very far.
The First Practical Tip
[00:04:45] Miriam: Interesting. You know that right there feels like the first practical tip for our listeners and for myself after every podcast, I always write down a list of the things I’ve learned from my guests.
[00:04:56] And mm-hmm, one of the things I hear you saying is take into account the culture [00:05:00] of the person you’re working with. I feel like many of us. Want to and have global, businesses. And, just because they speak English doesn’t necessarily mean they think the same way. It is a little bit, confusing because I understand what you’re saying.
[00:05:15] Noah: Americans kind of wanna get right to it.
[00:05:17] Miriam: Mm-hmm and, I think sometimes, and maybe this is conjecture on my part, but Americans get, get, can get kind of anxious either in a, come on, chop, chop, let’s get this going. Or, oh my gosh, they’re gonna think I’m wasting their time. If I schmooze with them.
[00:05:35] Mm-hmm and depending on the culture and probably just about any other culture would like us to use more words.
Demonstrate You Care—With Time
[00:05:41] More time demonstrate that you actually care about me as a human being before, you know, just jumping into the bottom line and Americans are like, oh my gosh, don’t waste my time. I’ve only got 30 minutes. Can we stop talking about this? What is it you need or want. [00:06:00] Yes. Yes. And humor. Right? This is a huge thing that the, the Brits do so well.
[00:06:07] Noah: Not only cracking jokes, but making fun of themselves and being self depreciating is a great sign of intelligence. And, and. And bonding and connection and kind of, and affection. So that, that is, can be very disarming or, or even painful for Americans to get have jokes kind of thrown at you you know, from strangers, but in England, that is a sign of affection.
[00:06:35] If someone is making fun of you. So tho those are some pitfalls. Those can definitely. Those can definitely trip you up. And I, I think that humor is so underrated in business and I love bringing that in playfulness and color and fun. And that’s that’s really what makes, what can make business and, and communication and interaction more enjoyable.
[00:06:59] Self-Sabotage Mindsets
[00:06:59] Miriam: I [00:07:00] love it. That’s so good. Let’s transition into this topic of self sabotage and we’re, we’re gonna bounce around a little bit, but one of the things that I have just become so aware of is that all of us want a good life. All of us want a better life than maybe our parents had, or then we previously had.
[00:07:24] And we get in our own way. And I’ve seen this with the entrepreneurs I’ve worked with. I do a lot of coaching with business owners. I’ve seen this with the, you know, the non entrepreneurs because I also am a therapist. So I spend a lot of times in the office working with just regular people. We get in our own way.
[00:07:42] So what are some of the self sabotaging mindset? I’m if, if you’re willing to go there for you mm-hmm I would like to know kind of what you saw in your past mindsets, thoughts, behaviors that you felt sabotaged your forward movement. And then [00:08:00] how did you overcome them? Absolutely. No, I’d love to talk about this area.
[00:08:04] Self-Sabotage with Perfectionism
[00:08:04] Noah: This has been huge for me, for me personally perfectionism and overthinking things has been a big. Obstacle. And because I have overcome a lot of this, you know, and, and definitely still work at it. I, I catch myself triple thinking and it’s something that I’m able to help or, you know, my clients with I’m able to see it because I’ve been through it myself and this can be such a obstacle for people.
[00:08:38] You know, wanting to go over things endlessly and, and get you know, over analysis or, or analysis paralysis. It, it really does completely stop you from making progress with, with whatever that is and the way that I’ve overcome this is I’ve. [00:09:00] Coach I have, I work with coaches today and and I have accountability partners that, that help me take messy action.
[00:09:08] And that is that that’s really, really powerful when you’re able to move from. You know, wanting to get things perfect to just getting it out there. Get, you know, 80, you know, to 20% effort is often good enough to get 80% results. And so this is a whole era that I, that I love to help people recognize, investigate, and then move through.
[00:09:33] Miriam: Yeah. What do they say done is better than perfect.
[00:09:36] Noah: Yes. So that’s a big one is you know, overthinking and perfectionism.
[00:09:42] Self-Sabotage with Self-Doubt
[00:09:42] Noah: Another one for me is self doubt. Am I good enough to be doing this, selling this thing offering this, this area of expertise you know, we are all comparing ourselves constantly to, to other [00:10:00] people.
[00:10:00] That we see because social media is our dominant way of consuming content today. So, so, you know, social comparison and competition really leads to self-doubt. And I see this a lot with, with clients as a obstacle and, and something that can be very yeah, it can very much stop people and self sabotage.
[00:10:26] So, yeah, those are, those are the top ones that I see that are very common with all different personality types.
[00:10:35] Miriam: I would agree with you. So when you’re talking about the self doubt and the comparison space, how would you coach someone through that?
[00:10:46] Self-Sabotage with Comparison–Unleash Your Genius
[00:10:46] Noah: Mm-hmm mm-hmm well with.
[00:10:48] Comparison. You know, when you’re comparing yourself to what someone else has achieved or an award that they’ve got, or a promotion or a raise, or a, you [00:11:00] know, a, any of those things, what what I like to bring people back to is. Is is you and, and being yourself because you are the only person like you in terms of where you’ve grown up, you know, your area of genius and, your skills and experience.
[00:11:23] So there’s no one like you, no one that has had that unique ex life experience and area of genius. And so rather than. Comparing and feeling unsatisfied that you are not, that that person really lean into your area of genius and your uniqueness and double down on that because. That is your gift to the world is, is really those things and, and learn.
[00:11:57] So learning to, to [00:12:00] recognize those, those things lean into them and really go for it. Can move people move people out of that and, and into a, a better place.
Hire for Your Weakness
[00:12:10] Miriam: That is a fantastic idea. I I’m forgetting this specific entrepreneur coach who was talking about. Instead of trying to beef up your weaknesses, hire for your weaknesses and beef up on your strengths or your genius.
[00:12:28] And I love this notion that we each have something that is so uniquely us, that nobody else can bring in quite that way.
[00:12:39] And one of the things I chat with my adult children about is why don’t you compare you to you? Is this version of you better? Then last year’s version of you or yesterday’s version of you, what’s your, your hopes and desires for next year’s version of you?
[00:12:58] Noah: Yes, [00:13:00] exactly, exactly. And what I like to help my clients with is unleashing that yeah. Best version. Yeah, that genius. I, I run a mastermind called unleashing your genius and, and that so good. That is about removing the obstacles, the self sabotage, the behaviors that get people exactly, as you said it to, to their best version of themselves and to the, you know, the life and future that they imagine.
[00:13:30] When it’s Time for a Change
[00:13:30] Miriam: It’s so good. This is gonna jump back into your history just a little bit, but I find that after people have lived a certain amount of time and done a certain amount of things, they start to see this common thread that runs through, even though the jobs might be different. Mm-hmm the skill set might be similar.
[00:13:49] How do you see that flow and what made you wanna create this company?
[00:13:53] Because I think that they’re all. interrelated at some level mm-hmm mm-hmm
Why I Built My Company
[00:13:58] Noah: I’ll start with your, the [00:14:00] last part, which is, you know, what made me and, and, or inspired me to create the company. I had worked for other people and I became. Really unsatisfied, building other people’s dreams.
[00:14:14] I reached this point where I was in my, in my mid forties and I thought to myself now, or never, you know, it’s time for me to build my own dreams and, and, and live the life that I’ve imagined.
[00:14:30] I had already built a couple successful businesses, so I had the, the confidence that I could do it again.
[00:14:37] And. And I had seen a, an opening in the market to help people, you know, double their business specifically in e-commerce.
The Market Need
So there was, there was a market need that aligned with my my own genius area and, and and success. And, and then I had this self-belief and confidence that I could do it. So those were the [00:15:00] right ingredients and, and this trajectory for my career.
[00:15:05] Has really come, come from being great at, at working with people to you know, to, to improve performance, to and to have. To, to help people you know, move through this learning process of making something, learning a skill set and, and realizing a dream you know, a dream or a vision. And that that’s very much what a product entrepreneur has.
[00:15:32] They, they have a vision. And they have this great product, but they might not know how to get the right eyeballs to learn about this. And, and they may not have the right skillsets to have their product flying off the shelves. So instead it’s collecting dust and, and no one wants that. That’s really crushing for a, for a product entrepreneur to, to have this vision and, and to not have any traction in the [00:16:00] market.
I Love Building Teams
[00:16:00] I, I also love building teams and helping Helping figure out, you know, and prioritize the right the right people to hire and, and how to go about you know, financing the the expansion of a team or, or a company. So I I’ve learned these different areas of building blocks to, to building a startup.
[00:16:20] And so that’s, that’s all in demand knowledge. Yeah, that that’s been my own path. I, I think the common thread for me is, is really helping people reach their potential PE individuals and teams and, and helping visionary people make things happen. Making the, the dream a reality. Yeah, this is an aside, but the conversation is making me think about this.
Independence
[00:16:50] Miriam: When you look at an entrepreneur who has an idea and who is fairly independent, as most entrepreneurial types are, and mm-hmm many of them [00:17:00] have I can do it myself. I can figure it out myself. I mean, I think that’s part of that spirit mm-hmm and that basic mindset mm-hmm How, how long do they have to maybe the, maybe this is unanswerable, but how long do they have to try something out before, try and fail and try and fail and try and struggle and try and succeed a little bit and try and try without inviting other people in before they get discouraged enough that they abandon the idea or, you know, just stop and go back and get a regular job.
[00:17:34] I. My coaching can be expensive. And you and I both believe in it. We’ve both been on the receiving ends of it. And we both offer that as a product. How do we help our prospective clients understand,” yeah, it’s expensive, but it’s worth it because it expedites the process and gives you hope.”
Hiring a Coach
[00:17:55] Noah: So in my business, I’m all about helping my clients with results. Right? [00:18:00] Right. Hiring a coach and working with me is all about getting to your intended goal and result and, and high value outcome as, as fast as possible. And so the benefit of working with me or with another coach is always gonna be better than staying stuck in your pain and problems.
[00:18:20] That you’re in today. So either you can delay getting out of that pain and problem getting unstuck, or you can, you know, continue to be in that place. And, and, you know, the, the, the, the pains and problems get worse, you get more isolated, you damage your relationships, you know, you know, there’s all kinds of Things that can crush you about life when you’re, when you’re stuck.
The Benefits
[00:18:46] And so I, I think that the benefits are always gonna be better than the investment and, and ultimately, I, I work to give my clients tons of value so that there’s [00:19:00] like a clear return on their investment that we can measure and quantify. And, and that’s, that’s important. Not, not all coaching programs can do that.
[00:19:11] With business coaching. I can, because I can anchor things to you know, revenue and profit and things like that.
[00:19:19] Miriam: Yeah. Makes sense to me. It’s easy to get discouraged when you’re out on your own and it makes all the difference in the world to have someone walk alongside you to create some accountability, some encouragement.
[00:19:31] Noah: Yeah.
[00:19:31] Miriam: Some Sometimes a little bit of like chop, chop, we’re having a meeting, you said, you’d have this done. And you haven’t had, you know, sometimes a little bit of that. Right. All of it. And yeah, I find with my clients that I just become very fond of them as human beings. They’re good. Good people. So, absolutely.
[00:19:49] Overcoming Self-Sabotage Raising Funding
[00:19:49] Noah: All right. Let me ask this question. I always think it’s interesting. As entrepreneurs, we have our businesses and we are working on these [00:20:00] various things, but always in the background of our mind, there’s some concept you’re thinking about and chewing on and rumbling around, and maybe it’s a product or maybe it’s not, or maybe it’s about life, or I don’t know, but what concept are you currently chewing on?
Current Concepts
[00:20:16] mm-hmm right now, we’re in this unique bubble in the world with what’s going on in with, you know, in the markets and a lot of my clients and, and a lot of people that I talk to, I talk to, you know, five, 10 people every week. And a lot of people are struggling raising money for their business and they’re, you know, running out of runway.
[00:20:44] So. I’m working on solving that problem and helping entrepreneurs with a really quick training that helps them to solve the three big problems that, that they face [00:21:00] raising money.
Problems Raising Money
You know, one is not having the, the language to speak to the entrepreneur in their own language. So not having, not being able to speak to an investor in their own language.
[00:21:13] Mm-hmm, a second one is not having way too much detail and just overwhelming your in, you know, Audience and, and investors with way too much detail. And the third is the energy you bring to to the pitch. And these are the, the deadly curses for raising money. And so right now I’m working on a mastermind that will be next week, that will help.
[00:21:38] I hope I’m only, only only have space for, to work with 10 people, but I want to help Help as many people as I can solve this problem so that they can keep their runway open to the finish line. And I know that that’s, that’s a problem. That’s impacting a lot of, lot of entrepreneurs out there.
[00:21:59] [00:22:00] Yeah, I would agree with you. And I think it’s gonna get infinitely worse before it gets better. Mm-hmm unfortunately, I mean, at the time of this recording, we are in June, 2022, and I think we haven’t seen the worst of the economic stuff yet.
A Commercial
Hey, this is Miriam jumping back in. Are you looking to go to the next level in your life or business right now?
[00:22:23] That’s what Leavebetter is about my friend. We give you the coaching to level up, have those breakthroughs so you can stop the self sabotage that keeps you where you are currently. Let’s make self-improvement a way of life. Go to leavebetter.com and download the free resource that’s there today. We change them regularly.
[00:22:41] Go and see what’s new at leavebetter.com. Now back to our interview,
[00:22:46] Take Action, Celebrate Small Wins, Work Out
[00:22:46] Miriam: let’s transition into what beliefs or actions have made the biggest impact on you as a, as a leader, as an entrepreneur.
[00:22:56] Noah: Mm-hmm mm-hmm well, [00:23:00] Actions wise, the big thing for me is taking consistent massive action. That, that mindset of not waiting, not sitting on action, but, but taking action every day and.
Celebrating Small Wins
[00:23:17] And also with that celebrating small wins every day, as opposed to expecting some monumental wins. I think big monumental wins are overrated. And I think the small everyday wins are really underrated. And that’s why. For me personally, taking massive action every day is what I practice and what I also teach my clients.
[00:23:45] That’s what moves you forward in life and in business. So that’s one. And another is, is really having a daily workout of some sort having some way to refuel the tank with [00:24:00] energy and optimism and feeling good. Energy wise, don’t wait for this vacation or this, or, you know, holiday period don’t delay that it, it, wellness and fitness is, is really.
A Daily Practice
[00:24:16] A daily practice and a daily ritual. And I really embrace that myself and, and I encourage my clients to do that as well. And relating to that is also mindset and meditation and you know, breath work and that’s, that is really transformational for, for myself and, and for my clients that I work with it, it helps us remove.
[00:24:42] The roadblocks that get in the way all the time is a lot of it is in our head. You know, most of it, most of the problems, most of it, most of the problems are in our head. And so, so we have to have. Healthy habits and rituals that become part of our, our whole [00:25:00] lifestyle. And and, and you don’t need a home gym.
[00:25:03] You don’t even need to have a gym membership. You, you can do these things with no equipment at home and, and they make all the difference.
Brendan Burchard
[00:25:12] Miriam: Yeah, I would agree. I don’t know if you’re familiar with Brendan Burchard, but he he talks about high performance habits and mm-hmm, one of the things he says is that nobody ever says to a power plant.
[00:25:26] Boy, I hope they find some more energy. Mm-hmm he? You say to a power plant. Best power plant generates energy for us. And he said, our bodies are the same. We don’t need to wait around till we find energy. We need to make energy by movement. Yes. And all the things you just described. I’m very intrigued with B breath work.
The Literature on Breath Work
[00:25:48] I know from the literature I know from listening to zillions of podcasts, it makes a huge difference. Mm-hmm do you have Trouble getting your clients [00:26:00] to. Except or like be willing to try it. It’s, it’s a little bit out, further on the edge of what’s known among people. And I, I do think entrepreneurs happen to be more on the cutting edge of mm-hmm body optimization and that sort of thing.
[00:26:16] Mm-hmm high performers as well, but I’m curious what your experience has been with breath work with your people.
[00:26:21] Breath Work
[00:26:21] Noah: I’ve had no resistance from any of my clients doing this. And, and we often not all the time, but we often start a session with breathwork mm-hmm and this doesn’t need to be long thing, but it can really shift the energy and just kind of bring back to the here and now from.
[00:26:43] What has been and where things are going. So, yeah, I, I love that. It, it it’s the thing that happens before a good session. It is really some breath. Nice. So you’ve basically trained your people. This is how we start, you know, how, what [00:27:00] is it that you have them do at the beginning of a session that you guys do together?
[00:27:04] Yeah, we do this together. It’s, you know, we close our eyes. We settle down our breath to you know, just natural breathing and with our eyes closed, then we do. You know, between five and 10 deep inhales and exhales with, you know, let inhale, let exhale go. Inhale. Let exhale go. Simple. I am a, a practitioner of yoga and have been for decades.
Yoga
[00:27:34] So I’ve learned some of these things with yoga and I, and I’ve incorporated them into my coaching because it works for me. So I, I wanna help my clients with the same tools that I practice and, and, you know, yes. 17 seconds of breath work, you can completely change your outlook and energy. So it doesn’t need to be 10 minutes.
[00:27:59] [00:28:00] You know, it can be one minute.
[00:28:03] Miriam: yeah, I love this. I’m writing it down in my, what I learned from this podcast, just to remind myself. Just because I know that this is a thing doesn’t mean that everybody knows this is a thing and I can model it for people.
[00:28:18] Do you have a. Morning, routine or an afternoon routine. Do you wanna share that? Do you wanna walk through some of that for our
[00:28:25] Morning Routine
[00:28:25] Noah: yes, I would love to. So my morning ritual is this. I wake up and I do a headstand for five minutes. Whoa. Yes, that’s awesome. And I’ve been doing this for close to 15 years. 15 years probably six days a week, some, some weeks, seven days a week, five minutes.
The Science Behind the Headstand
[00:28:47] Can you tell the science behind it? Or why? Why are you doing a, a headstand? Yeah. So the science behind it it’s really to change your blood flow. You are the inversion. It changes the [00:29:00] flow of blood and it’s, it’s very detoxifying. So it’s, it’s not only good for your body, for your physiology, your You’re cleaning out your system and making that system more efficient.
[00:29:14] But it also is great for your head you’re you, you’re getting all that blood flow to your head, which is great for fighting fear and anxiety. And so just amazing benefits. I’ll be honest. It took me probably two years of practicing to get into a headstand. I worked with a couple different yoga teachers in London, and it was a big deal for me personally, when I, when I got up there for the first time I had a fear of falling.
[00:29:47] That was my, that was my fear is falling over, which was completely irrational. Right. Cuz it wasn’t gonna hurt myself, but, but that was a fear. And. So I was able to overcome that [00:30:00] and learn this ritual. And so I do that. I, I do that every day. That’s part of my ritual and then I do some stretching. And some breath work.
Meditation
[00:30:11] And I do a seated meditation. And as part of that, I do a, like a gratefulness practice and those are the things that’s my sandwich in the morning just before going running. And then I, I go running with my dog and that really sets me up. That gets me up to a plane. And so, yeah, so this is, this is my morning ritual and.
[00:30:36] You know, six days a week, something like that. That’s how I start my day. Wow. I love this.
The Headstand
Okay. So I gotta ask you a couple more questions about the handstand or headstand, cuz I’m genuinely interested. Did it take you a while to work up to five minutes as far as just your you’re not used to that kind of pressure in your head, right.
[00:30:56] And whatever, I mean. Were you like 15 [00:31:00] seconds and then 30 and then a minute. And then yeah. Yeah, it does take time to build up to it for certain, with the core strength mm-hmm . And, and this was so long ago now that I’ve been doing you know, 50 breaths or, or 40 or 50 breaths. So it does take some time to build up, but once you get there, It’s like riding a bike.
[00:31:22] You, you know, if you continue to practice it, you don’t forget it. And you have the muscle memory and yeah.
Feet Up
And there’s also a, a great product called feet up, which is it’s a, a. Thing that you can buy that just makes it easier to get up into your headstand, which takes a lot of the pressure off of your neck and your shoulders.
[00:31:46] So that’s good for us. Middle-aged people who, you know, don’t wanna have all that pressure on your neck, ultimately over time that leads to back problems and pain. And so I started [00:32:00] using that. Over time and it it’s, my back is a lot happier. Very very cool. I love it. How about an evening routine or end of work routine either one mm-hmm
[00:32:12] Yeah. So evening routine for me is also yoga and breath work. And I do this thing called an inverted child’s pose, which is. Just a way to stretch my stretch myself out and prepare myself for sleep. And so it’s again, it’s maybe five minutes of breathing, not a big deal. You know, you can roll out a towel or a yoga mat if you have one.
Preparing for Sleep
[00:32:40] And that really prepares me for sleep and getting better quality, deep sleep. I’ve noticed that since I started that in integrating that into my routine, I’ve just gotten better sleep and, you know, we really can’t get Enough good sleep. You know, particularly as a dad, an entrepreneur, [00:33:00] that sleep is the best workout that you need because it’s, you know, storing away all the information from, from the day and, and it’s healing.
[00:33:09] You know, your body and your mind. So, so I, I take these things really seriously and and it’s, I believe that tomorrow starts today. So you really need to invest in the day that you want to have by, by doing these things and, and embracing these types of rituals. Yeah, what I love about this is you don’t just know it up here, but you’re taking action on it.
[00:33:32] Miriam: I have had many of my clients say, “yeah, yeah, yeah. I know sleep, sleep. I know!” Yeah. But are you doing the things that help you get good sleep? It’s one thing to know it, it’s another thing to do the actions necessary to get there. So this is tremendous. Okay. Two more quick questions.
[00:33:53] The Four Agreements
[00:33:53] Miriam: What is a book that has helped you or that you highly recommend or that you buy a lot [00:34:00] for people
[00:34:01] Noah: One of. Books that I really love is The Four Agreements. Yes. And that is, it’s just ancient wisdom and it’s so relevant. And timeless and I think it’s a great foundation for, you know, how to be a good person, a B good human being simple things like, honoring your word and following through with your word and things like that.
[00:34:29] So, yeah, I love that one and it’s, it’s also a pretty quick read as well. So it’s You know, easy for people to, you know, sit down over a weekend and, and get it.
[00:34:39] Miriam: Yeah, I would agree. That is a really good book. Okay. If you could turn back time and talk to yourself when you were younger or just starting your business,
[00:34:50] what advice would you give yourself?
Find a Mentor
[00:34:52] Noah: Hmm. For me, it’s work with a mentor regularly. That for [00:35:00] me is huge at, you know, as advice for young people because. You know today, a lot of people, they get their wisdom from YouTube. They get free advice from different influencers and, and it’s cobbled together stuff.
[00:35:17] That’s not relevant even to them. It’s yeah. For such a general audience. So my advice is. Find someone who has a path in life that you really looked up to that aligns with your own sense of purpose and values and try to seek out regular check-ins with them to get wisdom and guidance on how, how you can, how you can develop into the, your best self and, and how to unleash your genius.
[00:35:51] And seek out that, that consistent advice that’s going to be a life changer, maybe even a life saver for [00:36:00] you.
People for Different Seasons
[00:36:00] Miriam: Those are wise words. I know in my own life, I have almost through every season of my life had someone. Like that obviously different people for different seasons. And they did make all the difference in terms of catapulting my life forward.
[00:36:16] From where it would’ve been to something, you know, further and better. Mm-hmm, definitely in my own life. I look for people to invest in as well. I always think you should have someone. you know, 10 steps ahead of you and someone, 10 steps behind you that you’re helping. Yes. Then someone who’s walking alongside you at the same level where you’re encouraging each other.
[00:36:38] This has been just such a fun interview
Best Friend’s Animal Sanctuary
[00:36:41] before I ask how people can find you. At the end of each interview, we like to gift our, Guests with a donation in their name.
[00:36:50] Noah: And so I was talking with Noah and asking him what, what would he appreciate and he chose best friend’s animal sanctuary because he’s got dogs, [00:37:00] a, a dog or dogs. Just biscuit. Just one, just biscuit. What kind of dog is it? She’s a golden doodle. Oh, so good. Best Friend’s Animal Sanctuary is really working to reduce, the amount of animals that are killed in shelters. Instead, they’re getting them in foster homes and they’re getting them adopted. And they’re goal by 2025 is to, End this. So we’ll send a donation in your name and, thank you so so much for being with us.
How to Find Noah
[00:37:27] Tell us, tell our listeners how people can find you. You can find me at noahcoff.com, which is N O a H K O F f.com. Perfect. Well, I hope that they look you up and ask you for some input. This has been a joy to have you on the podcast and just look forward to more interactions over time. Thank you. You Miriam.
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Music by Tom Sherlock
