The Foureva Podcast
Welcome to The Foureva Podcast, where we break barriers and redefine success!
Join host Jamar Jones, a dynamic entrepreneur, national speaker, and author of "Change Your Circle, Change Your Life," as he takes you on an extraordinary journey of inspiration and motivation.
In each episode, we bring you an impressive lineup of star-studded guests, each with a unique voice and a wealth of insights to share. From industry leaders to renowned experts, we uncover their secrets to success in personal, business, and marketing domains. Prepare to be captivated by their stories, strategies, and experiences that will empower you to reach new heights.
Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, a marketing professional, or simply seeking fresh perspectives on life and business, The Foureva Podcast is your ultimate destination. Discover the transformative power of changing your circle and unlocking your full potential. With each episode, we delve into the minds of the most influential voices in the industry, providing you with the tools and inspiration you need to overcome obstacles and achieve greatness.
Don't miss out on this dynamic podcast that will fuel your ambition, challenge your limits, and propel you toward success. Tune in to The Foureva Podcast and join a community of driven individuals who are ready to make an impact. Get ready to be inspired, motivated, and 'foureva' transformed!
The Foureva Podcast
S2 E49 How to Transform Your Life into a Hero's Journey (in 2024)
Ever wondered how Batman's story could help you build a personal brand? Join us for an extraordinary episode of the Foureva Podcast as we explore the art of personal branding through the captivating lens of the hero's journey. We delve into how entrepreneurs, executives, and business owners can craft relatable and compelling narratives. From your origin story to overcoming your deepest challenges, discover how these experiences can foster deeper connections and trust with your audience. Kelly's valuable insights further enrich our discussion, drawing intriguing parallels between storytelling in comics and real-life experiences.
In this episode, we encourage you to reflect on your biggest life challenges and begin crafting your own hero journey. We explore the importance of articulating your story through adversity to showcase resilience and strength. Using Batman as a prime example, we delve into the elements that make personal stories impactful and engaging. Additionally, we highlight the significance of engaging with our community by liking, commenting, and subscribing. Surround yourself with a supportive network of entrepreneurs, and create positive changes in your life by building a powerful personal brand. Tune in and transform your narrative into an inspiring hero's journey!
Yo yo, yo yo yo. Welcome back to another episode of the Forever Podcast. We are going to be talking about some amazing, amazing things on this episode all around personal branding and through a video that actually I I was on a podcast, uh, my boy uh kelly kennedy's podcast, and it was. It was amazing podcast. He really works with a lot of entrepreneurs, executives and people doing business development and I was featured on his podcast to talk about personal branding, change your circle, change your life, and we got to talk about just the journey of developing your own story, so like crafting your own message, really figuring out how you stand out and there was a clip from that that he grabbed, which the episode will be out later. But I wanted to expand on what I was talking about with the hero journey, and so people know me, uh, as a comic book lover.
Speaker 1:I, I love comics, I love heroes, villains, um, just that whole world of, like people's stories being told, them, fighting through something and getting to the other side. I particularly also like I think what makes a good villain in a story is one that actually is relatable and not just doing it because they're evil, like they got to have a deeper story and I think that there's a parallel to that with human beings, with crafting your hero or your villain story, your villain arc, and I think what makes a bad villain is one that is just evil and they're just trying to destroy the world and you don't really know why. I just those villains are not like, because they're not relatable in any way, you don't connect to them, and you also like I think the best villains are the ones that you feel like the line is blurred. You're like I kind of understand why this villain is doing this. I kind of get it In a weird way. I'm kind of rooting for him. I'm rooting for that person to win. In a weird way, it kind of affects your morals and your values, whichever, which way you may lean. But that's what makes a good villain is when, when they're sitting in the middle and you don't, and you can kind of get it, and then when the battle happens between a hero and a villain, and you know what the hero's fighting for but you also know what the villain's fighting for, it just makes for a really good story and also something really good to read, something really good to watch, and that, I think, is the formula Also for a good hero Like no one.
Speaker 1:I despise what Marvel has done for Captain Marvel. I just I. She has a more intriguing story in the comics, has a more intriguing story in the comics. Um, but the way on how is depicted on on in movies in the marvel cinematic universe is crazy. Um, that she just it's, it's, it's not, it's like we can't, we don't have a connection to her because she hasn't fought for anything. Another example is is it Rey? I think it's Rey in Star Wars. How they introduced her, she kind of had like a moment, I think in the first movie she was introduced just to kind of understand who she was, and then it kind of went like it's like these other Jedis have trained their entire lives and then she just like instantly gets everything. Um, there's not really a big pain point that you're like rooting for her to win um, and then she's taking out other villains or accomplishing things without any real challenge and just kind of overcoming everything.
Speaker 1:And I'm going deep into this because the hero journey is so important to make sure that you, you know, like, just to make sure that you articulate it in a way that other people can actually like connect, they can connect to your story and they get the reason why and it builds. It builds a further connection for people to know, like and trust you. And so I wanted to go through this today on this podcast episode and really focus on the hero journey. And because the question was asked like okay, so if you're trying to develop your personal brand, if you're an entrepreneur, if you're a business owner, you're a founder, you're an executive, c-suite executive that wants to grow their personal brand, maybe you just started a business and you want to grow your brand. Like how do you craft the story? Like what are some of the first steps that you take?
Speaker 1:And I went down this, this uh route of crafting your, your hero story and like getting really clear on it, like who are, who are you, what things have you overcome? And a lot of people will focus on their careers and their business, but talk about some of the other things that you've had to overcome. You know, if it's family relationships, hardships, if it was education, if it was things that you had to learn, kind of growing up, or things that you face, maybe you moved. You moved to a whole new country and you had to kind of reinvent yourself or learn you know how to speak a different language, or just whatever your story is, it's important to share it in a way of a hero arc, of a hero journey, and that's what we're going to go through today on this episode, and I'm super excited.
Speaker 1:Um, thank you so much uh to kelly to having me on his podcast. I probably gotta have him on on on this one at some point, uh, because I think I think he's got a lot, a lot, uh, a lot to share. You know, uh for who he is. So, just just real quick, I do want to do a quick little little shout out for uh, for Kelly Kennedy. Uh, he had me on the business development podcast. Um, he's the founder and CEO of Capital Business Development and dude, the dude knows a lot about podcasting as well. So we also got talking and I'm like, dude, you should totally also I think it's a business development avenue to consult on podcasting. He knows a lot and he's grown his podcast to hundreds of thousands of downloads, and so if you can reach that point, you know what you're talking about. If you can do that for yourself, you know you now can give certain expertise and insight into that world that that other people just don't have. They haven't reached that yet. A lot of podcasts don't reach those numbers.
Speaker 1:So huge shout out to Kelly for having me on the podcast and we're going to dive into this hero journey. So we're going to talk about, first of all, why it's important and how you can start to craft yours, and so this is what we do with our clients that we work with. We first got to start inward before we go outward, and every single time it's what we need to do. So the hero journey is one of the exercises that we go through because we want to uncover some challenges and tribulations that the person has gone through that is relatable to others, to build a connection, and this is great also for sales, business development, marketing. This is the way on how you articulate a story. I think, honestly, any story, any story that you're sharing, unless it's all success. But this is what you wanna, this is the flow. You know you have your origin story, you have a pitfall, so something that happened in your story, and then you know you begin to overcome, or you kind of begin to overcome that situation and then the outcomes of the story and you want to lead people kind of in this route. You know, so that way people can understand the story.
Speaker 1:So, first of all, I want you to think for yourself. Think about a time that you, that you had to like overcome a really big challenge. And this is something that like, don't just think business, think about something that you've had to overcome. That was, maybe, family, the way you grew up. Think about other jobs that you had that you had overcome, maybe stigmas that you had to move. Maybe you had to move. Maybe you struggled with some kind of addiction or something that you just couldn't let go. You hopped multiple jobs. Maybe you moved in different states. You had an interesting family dynamic. You maybe started with nothing and got to something. Maybe you were you know there's a horrific accident or like. Just think about the challenges. Like, first of all, start with the biggest challenge in your life what has been the biggest challenges you've ever had to overcome in your lifetime so far? What has that been? And then write that down. Write that down and then start to think backwards.
Speaker 1:So what was the origin story? You know what, like you got to set the scene. So what happened before? Like you got to set the scene, so what happened before you got? You know, in the very beginning. You know, set that, set the scene and be as visual as you can. So this is. There's a skill to this with with copywriting, and there's a skill to learning how to craft the story. But first just start by just writing out how do you set the stage? Who were you, what were the circumstances? Uh, what position were you in? Uh, what was the foundation? Think about all those things. And then and the hero story you're gonna, so you're gonna develop that origin story.
Speaker 1:First, you know, figure out that origin story. First, you know figure out who are you set the stage. Then you're going to talk about the pitfall, so you're kind of letting somebody into it, and then you're going to talk about where it dropped. So what was the challenge that you had to overcome, what was the challenge you faced, what were the lowest moments? And then walk people through that, walk people through the lowest moments that you've had. The pitfall is going to be the moment where you really talk somebody through it, like you. And this is kind of where the healing also comes through, like by doing this you're healing yourself, because now you're able to articulate this in a way you've overcome it. And also, the amazing thing about a hero journey is like you have. You have lived experiences and no one can take that away from you. And so the things that you've learned, the things that you've already done, that is what you should be talking about.
Speaker 1:Obviously, you could talk about where you want to go and what you can do for people, but to get a connection where people are like wow, I did not know that about that person. And when you start to learn more about what you know about a person, you start to know like and trust them even more and you build kind of a even if you don't know them directly one-on-one. You build a connection, you build a rapport with somebody because they feel like admirable, that you've gone through that. And they're like wow, I didn't know that about that person. I feel a little bit deeper connected. I know their story, I know their journey and also, if they've gotten through some kind of adversity or challenge, they know that you know that person can actually take care of them. As you know, if they were to become a client, if they were to become a customer, it's like, wow, that person has, has gone through some things. I, I know that that person will get through whatever we got to get through together to get to the other side. So it's so important.
Speaker 1:So, describe that pitfall and then look at how you began to overcome that that challenge. Like what were, what were the things that turned everything around? You know what. What were the things that turned everything around? You know what. What were the triggers? You know? What did you ultimately learn from that situation? So you want to look at the low point and then what got you out of the low point?
Speaker 1:So let's, let's kind of walk through this step three right now. So the first is the origin story, then it's the pitfall number two. Number three is you know how did you begin to overcome the situation? So think about Batman. Right, I think Batman's a perfect, a perfect, uh, example of this hero journey that we're talking about, of this hero journey that we're talking about. So Batman he kind of grew up where his family was. You know it was humble beginnings, it was. Everything was cool, parents are rich, he's living the good life, right, there's not really a lot of connection and he's just a little kid.
Speaker 1:Then what happens? That's the origin story, and what happened is the pitfall that he had to overcome, or the pitfall that happened is his parents were murdered. So they are in an alleyway and somebody basically comes through and tries to steal their jewelry and shoots them both right in front of Bruce's eyes, like he sees this and leaves, and then they left the kid. So it's such a huge low point where you're like that would be crazy for anyone to see now. He didn't know who it was and they were never caught. The killer was never caught in the origin story and in in that pitfall. Like the killer was never caught, so he's always so.
Speaker 1:He's growing up like thinking he's who was it? Who, why and why, why did this happen? And so as he grows up he becomes more curious and then he feels like he's had everything stripped from him, like his parents were everything to him. And then he starts to think and he knows, like the money's there, like he inherits the company, you know the money's there. But then it's like he doesn't get his passion and his motivation from the money. He wants to know what happened to his parents and why. Why did this happen? And so how he begins to overcome this, it's actually takes it takes a while for him to overcome it, but what he does is he takes things into his own hands and he learns how to break through that fear. He was like I'm going to figure this out, I'm going to start to learn about what happened to my parents and so and there were some trigger points that led up to that point.
Speaker 1:But he's now learning how to break through fear. He's learning how to overcome the darkness. He's learning how to set himself aside from his parents, but it's ultimately to find his parents, or his parents' death, set aside from the parents' death. But then I mean, deep down, he still struggles with it. But he's setting himself aside because he wants to start to do good for the city of Gotham. But ultimately, in the back of his mind, he also was like I don't want this to happen to anybody else, but also I do want to find out what happened.
Speaker 1:And so let's move on to number four, so the outcomes of the story. So now he's switched from Bruce Wayne to Batman. The dude is rich, but he's not doing it for the money. He's going out crime fighting every night because now he serves a bigger purpose and he's learned, he's gone through those lived experiences and now he's trying to learn about. He's trying to learn about. He's ultimately trying to learn about why did this happen to his parents?
Speaker 1:But he's, he's learning in the outcome. He also learned that, like he, he needs to push through and become something bigger than himself to be able to reach the end goal. He doesn't want that to happen to anybody else. He understands there's a lot of scum and just degenerates running around the city of Gotham and he fights them head on, just as a man Just fights these people and it's crazy, as just as a man just fights these people and it is crazy. So he takes on the mantle of the dark knight and so his outcomes.
Speaker 1:He can share some tangible things of like now he's been able to lock up how many, um, you know villains and and and people that were just destroying the city he could look at. He was able to overcome fear and get past the darkness. He was able to learn about loss early, to know what that feels like. So that way he doesn't have to. He knows how to internalize loss and he probably could share that with others to understand how to how to internalize that. And then you have to look at like, what are you able to achieve now? So I think that's a good example of like who he was.
Speaker 1:The low point, what was the turning point? And then where the outcomes? Obviously the story continues, right, everybody's story continues. But he has that hero story and now, if you knew that before you talked to him, well, obviously mean you would have to know that he's Batman. You don't have to know he's Batman, but if you knew that before you talked to him, you would have a deeper connection, because maybe you value your parents and you're like man. He went through some tough loss and then that shows strength, it shows determination, it shows patience, it shows that he can heal so many other things and it sets the stage up differently story and you can just do. You can do multiple stories, but this is just one of his stories. He has many of them.
Speaker 1:But once you craft this hero story, then what happens is you need to then post this on social media. You want to take this story and try to distill it down into one post, and you already can do multiple posts, but just do it in one post first and take, you know, a good hook, a good beginning, the, the, the foundation of the story, so like the origin and then the main body of the story. What were the takeaways from the story? And then you can ask a question and say, hey, how many people have gone through this themselves. Like, uh, just just leave it open-ended for people to give their own insight to your story and you'd be shocked. You'd be shocked at how many people actually respond. Comments, messages be like thank you for sharing your story. I was going through the same thing.
Speaker 1:And then people will gravitate towards you and ultimately this helps you build your personal brand, because personal brand means you got to share some stuff that's personal. You know you got to share you as a person. It's not you as the brand, it's they're. They're molding you as a person with branding together and ultimately, people have been doing personal branding for years, years and years, decades and decades. People have been personal branding themselves. It just now has this fancy term of personal branding and people think of it immediately that it's influencers and it's celebrities. It's not true. Everybody has a personal brand.
Speaker 1:You just have to see on what your story is and start to share that so you can craft your own narrative, so you can craft really your own destiny of opportunities and ultimately that helps you grow your business, helps you grow your career, because the more that people know at least the things that you're able to let people in on, the more they're able to make a decision in their own head. Can I know, like and trust this person? The more you can break down the barriers and find the right people that want to interact with you, the faster you're going to be able to achieve your goals. So I hope, through this episode, that you learned the hero journey you know. You learn about how to build your own story and then also how to share it. Share this on linkedin, share this on instagram, tick tock, however you want to.
Speaker 1:You know, write this out, do a video, however. You want to write this out. Do a video, whatever you want to do, but you got to get this story out. Your story deserves to be shared. You have importance to add to the world and people need to hear it. People need to hear your story and I hope you take this and you do it. You put it into action. One more time. I'll put it up on the screen For people that are listening to the podcast. I got this also up on YouTube, but you can see the graph that we use to ultimately help really design this story. And take this and take these four points of origin story pitfall. How did you begin to overcome that situation and what were the outcomes of the story? And then you're going to be able to really share that story and start to build real, valuable connections with you and your personal brand. Valuable connections with you and your personal brand.
Speaker 1:Please like, comment and subscribe to this podcast. We're moving and shaking. Thank you, visit Milwaukee for sponsoring this podcast and leave comments, ask questions, join our community. We got a free community of entrepreneurs building their personal brand. Please join our community and I'll catch you guys on the next one peace. Don't forget to Like, comment and subscribe. And don't forget to hit that notification bell for more amazing content that we're gonna be putting out. And don't forget you can change your circle to change your life. You.
