Meet Reggie Batts
Thank you, Reggie, for the opportunity to interview you. I appreciate your time.
Thank you for the chance to be with you today. It’s a pleasure.
What inspired you to become a motivational speaker?
I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to meet Tony Robbins at the age of 21. I was eventually given a chance to join his organization.
Although I had no desire to become a speaker, that wasn’t even a consideration at the time, I spent much time on the road traveling and witnessing the amount of power Tony Robbins had to empower others.
I am a very ambitious person and did whatever it took to work my way up the ladder and was eventually named GM of Product Sales & Distribution. That was a considerable task; I was the youngest person on the senior management team.
After over a decade with Tony Robbins, I decided to transition out of the organization to pause and reevaluate what my next challenge was going to be. I never realized how powerful being aligned with Tony Robbins for over a decade was to my career, and it opened many doors. Those opportunities led to speaking roles, but I had no content and couldn’t even deliver a speech. But again, the options were piling up, and that’s when I decided I would do whatever I could to build and brand myself as a speaker. It worked pretty well!
What was it like working for Anthony Robbins?
It was terrific working with Tony Robbins. What I learned in that organization are tools that I currently use every day.
I’ve never really had an employee mindset. I’ve always had an entrepreneurial mindset. Employees think 9 am to 5 pm and the day is over. Entrepreneurs cannot think that way. We have the mindset of 5 am until the task is done and doing whatever it takes to make it happen. So, Tony Robbins taught me from day one to have a whatever it takes mentality along with a specific strategy to get you from where you are to where you want to be. So, it was a powerful experience.
Anthony Robbins also mentored you. Is there a moment that stands out?
Many moments stand out.
But, the most memorable was when I walked on fire.
People think of it as a cult or something, but that’s not the reality. The purpose of the fire walk is to use it as a metaphor that you can overcome anything with the right mindset.
The belief is that if you walk on fire, you’ll burn yourself. Well, I walked 10 feet across a bed of hot coals with the right state of mind (mindset), and it felt as if I was walking on ice. It was amazing! So, whenever someone tells me I can’t do something, I think of the fire walk experience and make it happen.
In the context of the coronavirus, in your Turning Fear into Power podcast, you said, “What we focus on is usually what shows up in our life.” What do you mean by that, and how can that be applied to other areas of a person’s life?
Where our focus goes is where our energy flows.
What we focus on, good or bad, will ultimately manifest itself in our life one way or another.
During the pandemic, many people were living in fear. Fear of the unknown and not knowing what would happen to their lives, businesses, health, and finances. I was focused on the opportunities.
Yes, many businesses shut down during the pandemic. But, people didn’t focus on all the new businesses that opened due to the pandemic. Far more businesses were created than those lost. More entrepreneurs launched businesses during the pandemic than at any other time. Those who succeeded focused on the opportunities. Those who failed focused on fear.
“With every fear, remember your why,” you’ve commented. So how does one’s “why” help a person?
Your “why” is the fuel to achieve greatness.
Most people don’t focus on their “why”; they focus on their “how.” They focus on how to do something, and if they have no idea how to do it, they give up. Focusing on your “why” gives you the motivation and the will to figure out how to do it.
Let me give you an example:
Suppose you’re overweight and want to lose weight. Well, if you focus on the “how,” nothing will ever happen. If you focus on the “why,” (I’ll be an excellent example to those I love. I’ll live a longer life and spend more time with my children. I’ll have more energy to spend with my grandchildren. I’ll have more opportunities because I won’t be judged by my weight. I’ll feel good about myself because I accomplished a milestone I’m proud of).
Now, you have the fuel and the motivation to take action to reach the goal because you’ve redirected your focus to an emotion that feels good. So that’s where the motivation and encouragement come from.
As a positive person who looks for the “lessons in everything,” have you always been
this way, or is it something you learned?
It’s something I learned.
Someone told me that the playbook of becoming successful is knowing you must first fail.
Most people give up on goals in life because of the fear of failing. So, I welcome failure, and the key is to make sure you learn from it and not repeat the same actions that produced the failure. The more you fail, the more you learn. Don’t repeat the failure; eventually, you’ll fail significantly less. That’s something that all of my mentors in life and business taught me.
Now, it’s just a game to me. Whenever I fail, it tells me I’m just that much closer to the goal.
How can one stay positive in bad news and negativity?
Well, you must always control your life's narrative as much as possible.
I never allow anything to rent space in my brain. I never focus on anything I cannot control. If I cannot control it, why would I focus on it? I can’t control the global economy, but I can control my own economy. I can’t control what goes on in my neighbor’s home, but I can control what goes on in mine. When you have that mindset, you begin to excel even when things around you may not be great. That’s why you’ll see some fail and others succeed when circumstances happen.
The common denominator in those who succeed is their excellent positive mindset. So, one can’t be happy 365 days a year because life happens. But you can react differently when you have a positive mindset.
A successful person once said his greatest regret was not having more fun in life. What would you say to him as someone who likes to have fun?
You must celebrate your wins, big and small.
I don’t believe in working hard. I believe in working smart. I like to work smart and play hard. That’s always been my belief. I look at life and business as a game. I also accept that I don’t have to win every game. Almost every team in the NFL that has won the Super Bowl had losses in their season.
The key is doing whatever it takes to achieve your goals in life.
The other thing is having fun. You’ll do enough to get by if you're not having fun. You have to find that balance and take care of yourself first. When you take care of yourself first, you can take care of other people. So, please don’t get so caught up in your business or career that you’re missing those magic moments and experiences we cherish.
Coaching and interviewing successful people “on actions and disciplines needed to succeed in life and business” is your job. What have you discovered in the process?
I’ve discovered that the common thread with successful people is that they have a great mindset, do whatever it takes to succeed, never make excuses or blame others, and have mentors and coaches to show them the way.
The law of attraction, in my opinion, isn’t good enough.
It’s the law of action that gets results, and that’s one of the biggest things I’ve discovered when interviewing or aligning myself with very successful people.
Why might coaching be necessary for someone?
That’s an easy question to answer. First, imagine your favorite sports team. Now imagine if they removed the coaching staff from your favorite sports team. What do you think would happen? It would be complete chaos. There would be no direction, no accountability, no new skills taught, and no leadership.
The coach’s job is to ensure the team is on track and winning.
It’s no different in life and business. It would be best if you had direction, accountability, new skills, and leadership to guide you. We understand coaching in sports but fail to understand it in other areas.
If we want to succeed, we must lean on those who succeed. That’s how we grow, and that’s how we become stronger.
I have a business coach, a health/fitness coach, and a life coach to make sure all areas of my life are being challenged and growing. I highly recommend it. Now, some might say that they can’t afford a coach. But I think not having a coach will cost you far more. So, it would be best if you did whatever you could to invest in yourself. Start with having a mentor or someone you admire and do what they do.
You held a “How To Live Your Best Life Ever” event. What is your definition of the best life, and how can others discover their best life?
Your best life is whatever you define it as being. It’s different for everyone. But you discover your best life when you are constantly growing.
I always say that if you’re not growing, you’re dying. If you water a plant, it will grow. If you do not water the plant, it will die.
So, you’re either growing or dying.
We only grow by doing new things and learning new things. We grow by constantly challenging ourselves and doing whatever it takes to succeed in those challenges. That’s how we become fulfilled in life, and that’s how we discover our best life.
It’s not a destination but rather a journey.
How would you describe happiness as it relates to success?
My definition of happiness as it relates to success is simple.
It’s doing what you want, when, how, and with whom you want.
Happiness, as it relates to success, is freedom. And freedom gives you the ability to help other people. I always tell people that I love success and freedom because it allows me to help more people to do the same. So, that’s very fulfilling to me.
I challenged our readers to build confidence in the New Year. Can you share one or two tips that will help them?
Yes, absolutely! In life, you must be comfortable with being uncomfortable. So live outside of your comfort zone and stop always trying to play it safe.
The opportunities are outside our comfort zone, and the higher the risks we take, the higher the rewards will be. So we’re either running away from something or towards something, and I highly recommend the latter.
Also, surround yourselves with great people.
Find people who have the skills that you lack. Fire the negative people in your life. Goals are tough to accomplish, and negative people will slow you down. Wake up early and have your day planned. A successful person has the same hours in the day as an unsuccessful person.
So allocate your time strategically and focus on the things that yield the most significant return.
Confidence is built by having more competence. The more you open yourself up to learning and doing new things, the greater your confidence level will be.
What advice would you give those who may feel stuck in life and unable to take action?
Taking action is a decision.
You must decide whether you’re going to succeed or not. Not taking action gives you a zero percent chance of succeeding. One of my mentors always says, “If you’re born broke, it’s not your fault; if you die broke, it is your fault.”
So, every decision in our life has an impact on our future.
We can sit and do nothing and get zero results, or we can do whatever it takes to make it happen.
We will always miss 100% of the shots we do not take, and it’s up to us to make it happen. Life doesn’t give us what we want. But life almost always gives us what we deserve. So, we must do our part to shape our future, and we do that by taking the right action and doing whatever it takes.
You’ve traveled to many countries. What’s your favorite place?
Yes, I’ve traveled to over 45 countries, and I can’t say that I have a favorite because they’re all so different. Of course, I love all parts of Europe, where I’ve spent most of my time over the last decade. But I appreciate people and cultures all over the world.
What’s the difference between a growth and a fixed mindset?
A fixed mindset is someone who says I’m either good at something or not. A growth mindset thinks I can improve my skills with effort and practice. A fixed mindset usually makes excuses, has limiting beliefs, and takes feedback as a personal attack. A person with a growth mindset does whatever it takes, learns new skills, and takes feedback as an invitation to learn.
Is there anything you would like to add to our conversation?
I want to emphasize how important it is for everyone to understand that no matter where you are, you can succeed. Another common thread I’ve learned about successful people is that most have come from humble beginnings.
I named my book Mindset For Success because once we develop the right mindset to succeed, we have the fuel to do what it takes to succeed. So, our brief time here will give your subscribers a few nuggets to do just that.
Reggie, once again, thank you for your time. How can people get in touch with you?
Thank you so much! You can reach me on Instagram at reggiebatts and contact me by email at reggiebatts@rbstalent.com.
Again, thank you so much, and always be great in all that you do!
Elvira