116: Jordan Belfort - The Real Wolf of Wall Street

# Episode 116 **Summary:** In Episode #116 Ari speaks with [Jordan Belfort](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan_Belfort), the _real _Wolf of Wall Street. During this insightful and in-depth interview, Jordan talks about his mastery of salesmanship, the secret to his post-prison success and the development of the [Straight Line](http://jordanbelfort.com/products-list/) sales method. Ari also takes this opportunity to ask _The Wolf _about the accuracy of the film portraying his infamous life on Wall Street. **Time Stamped Show Notes:** - 18:18 – Introduction of Jordan Belfort, the _real _Wolf of Wall Street - 18:42 – Jordan spends most of his time on the road touring - 19:12 – The motivation for spending most of the time on the road is derived from an ability to make large sums of money _and _impact people’s lives positively - 20:12 – Ari asks Jordan directly about Straight Line, efficiency and salesmanship - 21:50 – Sales is _everything _in life and business; it’s not about closing deals it’s about sharing your ideals, concepts and vision - 22:35 – The biggest mistake people make is exclusively thinking of sales as closing deals - 23:30 – The Straight Line system is about optimizing a process and repeating it in a “straight line” - 24:17 – Becoming the _Wolf_ - 25:01 – Necessity was the mother of invention for Jordan - 25:55 – Closing a single deal versus getting a long-term client - 27:01 – Cultivating a base of “brand evangelists” is one of the best things anyone can do for their business - 28:15 – Too many internet marketers believe that if they can “master” the art of digital marketing they can forever avoid speaking with a person offline - 29:05 – How to overcome the classic objection of “I need to ask my XXXX…” - 30:18 – Objections are smokescreens for uncertainty - 33:21 – Being able to answer the objection, while a benefit, is _not_ what closes the deal…it only provides you with the right to continue speaking - 35:11 – Selling is about cultivating certainty - 35:30 – Jordan shares a _positive_ consequence of prison - 35:47 – Success is about being able to turn lemons into lemonade - 36:35 – Prison and learning how to write - 37:10 – Over the course of a lifetime, _everyone_ makes bad decisions that result in hardship; no person is exempt from this fate - 37:23 – What a person does in the wake of said bad decision is what matters; how can you harness the negative and convert it into a positive? - 39:31 – Jordan talks about Bill Gates - 40:37 – Ari asks Jordan to identify the biggest falsehood from the movie _[The Wolf of Wall Street](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wolf_of_Wall_Street_%282013_film%29)_ - 43:10 – Jordan’ _Top 3 Tips for Being More Effective_ - 43:15 – Master the art of persuasion - 43:45 – To learn how to delegate authority effectively - 44:32 – Transcend goal setting and focus on your vision - 45:40 – [JordanBelfort.com](http://jordanbelfort.com/) **7 Key Points:** 1. Find a way to make good money _and _impact people’s lives positively. 2. “Sales is _everything_;” it’s not about closing deals it’s about conveying your ideas and vision. 3. Necessity is the mother of invention. 4. Create brand evangelists and watch your business grow. 5. When it comes to sales, objections are smokescreens for uncertainty; Selling is about cultivating certainty. 6. Everyone is destined to make bad decisions that result in varying degrees of hardship. 7. To find success as an entrepreneur, surround yourself with the best talent available and learn how to delegate authority. **Resources Mentioned:** - [How to Read People](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/12/how-to-read-people/?utm_content=bufferef086&utm_medium=socia