Episode #29 – Nicky Billou – Mastery in Thought Leadership

“If you’re playing to win you’ve got to journal. That’s mandatory. You’ve got to exercise, you’ve got to eat well. Your body is the vehicle that fuels your success so without it, you’re done. So that’s mandatory. Journaling, that’s mandatory. That’s what going to get all the bad stuff out of you, it’s going to get the creativity out of you too so if you come up with great ideas you can write them out and that’s what going to allow you to go forward and win in life. – Nicky Billou

Nicky Billou is passionate, outspoken and impactful. He is committed to be of service to his clients to help them move past their obstacles and achieve their great life’s success.

Nicky is the Head Thinking Coach at Finish Line Thinking, the author of the book Finish Line Thinking™: How to Think & Win Like a Champion and co-host of The Thought Leader Revolution podcast. An ex-corporate executive, he has become THE trusted adviser to CEOs and top performers in real estate for optimizing high performance and personal health. Nicky has worked with Olympic Gold medalists on optimizing energy, fitness, and performance and he brings this expertise to business leaders and top performers in business and industry. He is co-founder of ECircle Academy and is a much sought-after speaker in the world of entrepreneurship; speaking to entrepreneurs about how to think and win like a champion.

Nicky is a health enthusiast, a father of 2 young boys, an avid reader, and he has written a children’s book for his boys, called Cathy Capitalist and Johnny Jobmaker: The Video Game Company.

He is committed to successful marriages, and empowering men to connect with their innate sense of honour and being the best husbands and fathers, they can be.

Selected Links and People Mentioned from this episode:

Show Notes

  • [02:10] Patrick sets the stage for his next guest, Nicky Billou
  • [04:10] Patrick and Nicky kick it off with gusto!
  • [04:35] Nicky shares his elevator pitch and his client profile in thought leadership.
  • [06:34] Horse whisperers and communication – Patrick shares his common interest with one of Nicky’s clients.
  • [07:29] Nicky delves into the personal challenges which provoked him to seek self-development and find more accountability in his life.
  • [09:50] Working with powerful coaches and partners “ups” Nicky’s game, influence, and as a result, his income.
  • [11:42] Nicky discovers his super powers and explains how he’s using them to for good.
  • [13:30] Thought leadership: what does it mean to Nicky?
  • [15:01] Nicky is working in support of men, their personal power and growth. Hear about a few of the programs he is fired up and passionate about!
  • [16:12] A passion project stemming from Nicky’s personal experience.
  • [18:25] Taking men on a powerful, personal trek in the Alberta Rockies to help them reconnect with themselves and rock their lives.
  • [21:34] Nicky reflects on his positive male influences as a young man and the effect it had on who he is today.
  • [24:18] It takes a village: Nicky attributes his success in buckling down in University (after a couple of years) and gaining his master’s degree to all the influential men and women in his life.
  • [25:03] What did Nicky learn about relationships from his Mom and Dad?
  • [27:24] Where and from whom did Nicky learn about how to treat women? Nicky talks about the distinction of amateurs and pros in relationships.
  • [30:00] Patrick and Nicky spend some time talking about the real influences on boys when it comes to how they treat women. Nicky shares what he sees with his boys.
  • [34:03] Nicky talks about his father and his entrepreneurial journey.
  • [34:36] The evolving lenses of how Nicky views the challenges he faced early on
  • [34:50] Although it was the hardest thing he’s gone through, what Nicky views as his biggest failure, truly turned into a blessing in disguise.
  • [35:36] What sort of self-development is Nicky doing right now, towards how he is showing up in leadership? Coaches, journaling, group work – he’s taking it on!
  • [38:44] Nicky shares some of the books he’s reading right now – both non-fiction and fiction.
  • [39:53] The power of a great mindset coach.
  • [43:20] How does Nicky define success? How does Patrick define success?
  • [45:46] Nicky dives a little deeper into his priorities and how they contribute to his success. It’s not all about money, but money is certainly an important component.
  • [47:30] Patrick recounts his “King of Spain” story and the interesting spin on financial comparison.
  • [50:27 Nicky picks up that ball and explains how comparison has shown up for him and spins it a little differently.
  • [51:20] The two primary obstacles Nicky commonly sees among his coaching clients, which holds them back.
  • [53:00] Nicky takes one of those obstacles and illuminates a shift in thinking about it. Approach sales from love and being of service to someone.
  • [57:12] Overcoming the worthiness obstacle. “If you don’t charge appropriately for the value that you bring, your client will not get the value they ought to be getting from your service”
  • [61:00] The mindset shift of owning who you are and passionately believing in what you do.
  • [62:22] What advice would Nicky give his 20-year old self?
  • [63:22] What would he tell his 65-year old self?
  • [63:45] Nicky shares one of his early and pivotal forks in the road for which he holds much gratitude.
  • [65:32] When sh*t is hitting the fan, what does Nicky do, and who does he go to?
  • [65:55] Nicky talks about the powerful journaling processes he’s committed to and gives us some examples of what he writes about.
  • [71:55] Nicky shares a sports analogy to illustrate the three ways he sees to play the game of life and the game of business. Play to win, play to not lose, play to lose.
  • [73:30] Rapid Fire! Favorite swear word, favorite quote (aligns well with Nicky’s intensity!), Nicky’s alternate profession, messages from the pearly gates, weirdness scale is tipped right to the end, what he’s not very good at, most impactful book.
  • [75:40] Patrick and Nicky delve a little more into favorite reads, stoicism, and leaving the legacy of thought leadership for the next generation.
  • [79:08] Back on the rapid-fire train: room, desk or car? Favorite tune, favorite movie of all time.
  • [80:30] Nicky’s great gratitude.

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