• 34:17
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
coaching, luis, coach, resilience, uncover, life, feel, hire, realized, organization, high potentials, put, hr, identity, higher, company, person, pivotal moments, consulting, people
SPEAKERS
Luis Velasquez, Damon Pistulka
Damon Pistulka 00:03
All right, everyone, welcome once again, the faces of business. I am your host, Damon pistulka, and I am so excited for our guest today because we have none other than Luis Velasquez from velas coaching. We’re talking today about using leadership resilience to adapt and thrive, and we’ve got the king of resilience here today. Thanks for being here today, Louise, I
Luis Velasquez 00:33
am so grateful you had me and decided to have me in your show. Thank you so much, man.
Damon Pistulka 00:37
It’s gonna be fun. It’s gonna be fun. You know, we got to, got to talk a while ago, talked yesterday, again, getting prepared for the show. And I am very excited to uncover how you’re helping people with your coaching, especially, especially because we talked a little bit about your your niche, your specialty, is really coaching people that may not really want to be coached that much. So this is going to be interesting.
Luis Velasquez 01:08
I am looking forward to the conversation, so
Damon Pistulka 01:11
let’s get going. We always start out with a general question to kind of learn more about Luis. How you got here? How did you end up deciding that coaching was your calling? That’s what you wanted
Luis Velasquez 01:27
to do. Well, how much time we have? We’ve got a bit. So, so I, you know, I started as a scientist. I started as a person who wanted to become an academic, an academic, and, yeah, I actually got a PhD in the sciences, and I became a professor of fungal genetics at Michigan State University. I was, you know, I felt that I had it all. I really figured it out in the process. I got married in the process, I got a dog. In the process, I got a house, and everything was okay, and I was very proud of who I was and and the things that I have accomplished. And then my life, you know, sometimes throws curbside, and my my ball, my curveball, came in the in the form of a brain tumor. So, you know, after, you know, the brain tumor, you know, the surgeries and everything else, I realized that the doctor told me, actually, that it will be our, you know, difficult to come back, to go back to, you know, teaching full time and or to walk, you know, straight anymore. Let’s put it that way. So I had to, you know, prevent myself and, and I figured, you know, I was thinking, you know, what can I do? You know, should I become greeted at Walmart? I consider, actually, you know, and maybe I was going to real estate or, you know, use car salesman, or whatever, yeah. And at that time, you know, the when I was doing my PhD at Michigan State, you know, I was married to a wonderful woman. She was doing a Masters in HR, and we, you know, I help her, you know, she helped me. And then I realized, maybe I should just do HR. Maybe that’s what I’m gonna do. I’m gonna call myself a consultant. And that’s how I started. I decided, you know, I need to remit myself. And I started doing consulting and in HR, and it was a slow start, but that’s how I started. And then it turns out that I, I’m coaching has been my passion. I just didn’t know it, yeah, and then coaching found me. And then here we have today.
Damon Pistulka 03:52
So what was the point at when? I mean, you’re out there, you’re consulting HR, you’re consulting in HR. Kind of things? When did you just decide HR is cool and everything, but I really feel the pull into coaching individuals and and professionals.
Luis Velasquez 04:09
Well, I was doing a consulting gig in Saudi Arabia at one time, okay? And I was sitting in my consulting office, if you want to call it, you know. And then the HR VP of the company that I was consulting with, you know, came into the office and said, Luis, I’m having a I need to have a presentation tomorrow. Can you help me prepare? And I said, Sure, I help you, you know. And then two days later, he came back with a different question. And then later he said, Luis, I have these two VPS that they need your help. Can you help them. And and I said, Sure, I’ll do it, you know, I didn’t know what, you know, that I was I thought was just helping him. And the company that I was working for at the time realized what I was doing, and they started labeling me as a coach, or you’re a coach, you’re a coach. And that’s how I started, you know, when I came back to in 2007 The to the States, I I had to shift my my focus, because now I was here in these days, and I had to do some work for the organization. You’re doing some employee engagement surveys and analysis in 2002 1013 I had to have another brain surgery. Uh huh. When I came back from the brainstorm, I was so afraid that it was going to be like the first time around, you know, but I was, I recovered much faster. The thing that happened at that time is that the company that I was working for couldn’t afford to keep me on the payroll for a long time. So they let me go. Yeah. So I decided, you know, what am I going to do now? So I started looking for a job. And I was sitting on a interview with the manager, you know, the hiring manager, yeah, and the hiring manager told me, strange, Louis, we’re not going to hire you here, you know, you don’t, you don’t fit in this culture, and besides, you don’t have the experience, you know, he gave me a bunch of people, and I think he said, The reason why I’m telling you now is because I don’t fit here too. I am looking to leave. Will you consider helping me transition? And I was like, Oh, that was like, the, you know, the the bulb came into my, you know, Wow, gosh. This is that. This is something that I need to do now, instead of looking for a job, I’m going to start looking for clients. And that’s how I planted my, my, my flag as an executive coach. Several things happened since then, you know, I mean, that actually reinforced the idea that that’s what I am supposed to be doing. Yeah, I coach for Google for a while, and then I actually got a I do facilitation at the Stanford University, School of Business. Yes, and those two things have been really good. What is the word that I’m looking for validation all the work that I’m doing? And here we have today.
Damon Pistulka 07:16
Yeah, because you got those two Google and Stanford, two well respected companies, universities in the in the US and the world. And if you’re able to go there and perform, it’s, it’s, you know, it does validate that you are affected what you do. And a lot of lot of good there. That is quite a, quite a ride, though, because that had to be an interesting interview when they when the HR, person who was interviewing you, said, I would like you to help me.
Luis Velasquez 07:48
And we’re still friends, you know, we still talk once in a week, but I did, I, you know, recently, I told him that, you know, he was the person that generated and the catalyst for what I am today. And so I’m, you know, very grateful to that. And I think that that is one thing that I do want to lead with, is that, you know, we need others to know ourselves, yes, yeah. And if he, if he wouldn’t say if wouldn’t recognize that I could have helped him and asked for my help, I’d probably be still looking for a job. Now,
Damon Pistulka 08:28
yeah, yeah, but that’s great that you were able to. I mean, it’s just so it’s it, when you think of life, and you think of the different things that happen, and some good, some bad, in your case, some really challenging. But these, these little things, these catalysts that we don’t really understand, how they change our life until we look back. Some little things can be huge over time when we look back,
Luis Velasquez 08:53
yeah, yeah, you know, the funny thing, what I’ve seen is that everybody can recognize this in the past, you see, like myself, you know, oh, my god. That moment was incredible, because that made me who I am today, you know. And we can easily go back and try to find the pivotal moments that we have had. What I what I write about in the book, you know, is that we can create those moments now and use them as a pivotal moments in our careers, or in our, in our in, you know, in our journey. I just been coaching, you know, an individual that, yeah, he, he’s been perceived as a very difficult and aggressive, a bully, you know, and when I presented him with the 360 and all he was floor, and he said, I had no idea that this was what what people think about me. And I said, Well, yeah, it is. So we talk. And I say, you know, this is a pivotal moment for you. You know, right now you need to make a decision and say, I need to change this. So going back to, you know, the conversation that we’re having is that we recognize the moments that were incredible in our past lives, but we have the ability to create those moments now as well. Yes,
Damon Pistulka 10:19
that’s very interesting. You say that you can create those moments now. So what are some of the ways that you help people do that? Because that’s, that’s a very interesting thing. If we’re sitting here today wondering, and we go, okay, what’s, what are a couple things that we might might help us trigger that? Well,
Luis Velasquez 10:36
you know, I mean, I think that you know when people, when people are the people hire me, or the people that I coaches, because they are in some sort of need, you know, either they want to get a promotion, or they want to sell the company, or they whatever that is, yeah, and there is only a few people that have hired me because, oh, my God, you know, I need a coach, you know, and they are ready. They’re already working at their full potential, which happens as well. But, you know, I coach some people that are considered, you know, high potentials, and they just hire the organization, or them hire me to help them improve what is already at the high level. Yeah. See here, you know what? You know the, what I call my philosophy of coaching, touches, three points, you know, point number one is the aspirational goal. You know, what is it that I want to do in the future? What is it that I want to be known for? Number two is the the the organizational needs. What does the company need for me? And number three is the brand, or the perception that people have of these people, you know, some people are that have great aspirations, and some people are actually killing at the world, but they are known as the bullies, or they are known as the non collaborators, you know. So when I present that to them, and I said, you know, I mean, whatever we do has to fit in these three points. Yes,
Damon Pistulka 12:04
yeah, that’s very powerful, because two things, first of all, considering what the organ, because you’re you’re called in, typically in a situation where a high performing or someone they feel could have very high potential for an organization, but they’re just not fitting in for some reason or having some challenges, right? And that is where you’re looking at the organizational need, and you said brand, or how they’re perceived in the organization or around everything. And then what they want to do, it’s putting those three things together really gives a nice view of where they need to move towards. It is
Luis Velasquez 12:46
about finding the right motivation. It’s ready to find the motivation and and, you know, I want to be clear, you know, the majority of people that I coach are not necessarily considered, you know, difficult, yeah, but there are some that are are, or some that are are, and they don’t even know it. Yes, I you know, some are high potentials that are already, you know, like they’re, they’re there, you know, they’re being looked at, and for some reason, they’re not able to move to the next level, you know, and that’s where, that’s where I come in and try to figure out, you know, what is it that the aspirations are, and what are the organization metrics? Yes, and then put those together. So then, by putting those together, then we can create a an action plan that fits both what the organization needs and what the coachee wants to achieve. Yes,
Damon Pistulka 13:48
yeah, very cool. So what, what is now you’ve been coaching while now, so think back to when you started coaching, what was one thing that you just have to that you never thought that would be as big a challenge as it is about coaching?
Luis Velasquez 14:17
I think that. I think that and this happens with a lot of you know experts, and a lot of people that are highly expert, is the idea that the higher you go in any organization, or the the more skill you are in anything, the more the less you think you need to learn anything. And that happens to me as well. You see, I’m saying so okay, I’ve been coaching here because I know everything about coaching. And the reality is that there is no way I can know everything about it, and that is universal. You know, the more, the more, the higher you go in the organization, and the more you know, the more you realize that you need to learn more. Yes. And that’s what I think it is, you know, what I have found and, you know, I mean, the way I see it, you know, demon is a world human, you know, people, the people that I coach, you know, are any different from me. You know, the only difference is that sometimes they the stakes are higher, you know, they have a lot of responsibility, but we are, we’re humans. You know, we have the same problems. They had these images, yes,
Damon Pistulka 15:25
yes. And that’s, that’s, I’m glad you bring it up, because, you know, a lot of people from the outside would look at high performing people and think, Well, they’ve got it. They’ve got it. But when you’re talking with these people, do you do you see that? Because I think people put them on a pedestal, right the CEO of a company, or somebody like that, but when you’re coaching these, these high performers, do you feel that that pedestal, while they’ve achieved a lot as a person, they’ve got a lot of same problems that anybody does absolutely,
Luis Velasquez 16:01
you know. I mean, I have, I have a six year old and I have a 10 year old, and the same issues that I see with them are basically the same issues that we have as an as adults as well, you know. I mean, we have to, we have to be nice. We have to wait your turn, you know, you have to be nice to each other. You have to listen. You know, it’s the same thing. The only difference is, at the highest level, the stakes are much, much higher, yes. And there is another component that gets in the way, is the ego. So now, what you mentioned earlier, for a little bit, is the idea that, you know, yeah, the people put these people at the pedestal, you know, I mean, they are the CEOs, they are the founders. And I remember, you know, when I was, you know, going through my brain tomorrow, you know, I was so proud of what I was. I was a professor, I was a PhD. I, you know, I was, and the so I was putting my identity on the thing that I did, which is what for me, as I experienced it was very dangerous, because the minute I couldn’t do what I was supposed to do threatened my identity. So I think that the one thing that I do with a lot of you know people that I coach is to uncover what their identity is, as opposed to, you know, I’m the CEO. That is not your identity. That’s what you do. Yes, your identity is different. Like, if you ask me, Why am I identities? I am. I am a resilient, muffle, yeah, that’s why, how I describe myself. And I am committed, I am persistent, and I optimistic. And everybody, that I know has an identity, and all we need to do is to uncover it, because that is what allow us to do whatever we want to do, regardless of the title or regardless of you know what we do.
Damon Pistulka 17:59
That’s awesome. That’s awesome. I think I’ve got a ton of questions in my head right here, and I’m just trying to line them up, because we’ve got so many good ones. But as you’re as you’re doing this, when you run into these coaching clients that are misunderstood, at least in their mind, they don’t even they don’t even see Susan. Might not even know how Susan comes off to everyone around him, in the workplace or even at home, for that matter, to the extent that that they probably do after they talk with you. So what? What are some of the common things that they’re missing? I mean, because it happens, it happens in a lot of places, but are they missing cues, or are they so driven that they they don’t even consider what they’re seeing? What do you usually when someone’s misunderstood like that? Well,
Luis Velasquez 18:59
there is a lot of, you know, there is not one right answer, okay, all right. I mean, there is so many things here. But what I think that the one thing that I have seen is that we, and I said we, because I think that, you know, I put myself in the category too, yeah, we don’t ask enough questions from others. So how are we what is the impact that we’re having with people? You know, we assume that what we do is the right thing to do, and not paying attention to the feedback from, from, from, from people. And I think that a lot of you know, a lot of times you know people at the highest level, you know because they have achieve, or you have achieve, a position that almost gives them the right to not to dismiss, not to ignore, but not to pay attention to other points of view. And that is a very dangerous place to be, and sometimes. Means a lot of people do it without even consciously knowing that that’s what,
Damon Pistulka 20:06
yeah, yeah. And I think those kind of things is where, where they get in trouble, and where it just perpetuates or even grows absolutely,
Luis Velasquez 20:12
you know, I had a coaching client, and he was his late, almost his late 60s, and he said, Luis, I am 60 something years old, and I cannot believe I’m learning about this now. I have no idea.
Damon Pistulka 20:28
Oh, well, it’s great that they eventually did learn, because if you’d never learn, it would be a bad thing. Yeah, that’s that’s good that you were able to help them. So let’s talk a bit about resilience. We’re talking today about, you know, resilience and how you can use that in leadership to adapt and thrive. You You wrote a book ordinary resilience. It’s out there to help us learn more about that. But when we talk about resilience, using resilience in the way that you you practice and teach people how to use resilience. What are some of the things that people should be considering if they’re sitting there and they’re just like, I don’t know. This may be, I may be at my end, and you’re like, Well, I’m resilient mofo, as you said, What does resilient mofo do at that point to get themselves back up? Well,
Luis Velasquez 21:28
see, number one is, I think that you know the book, or the title of the book, is ordinary resilience, and yeah, you were ordinary is because resilience is not reserved for a few people. It’s not reserved for people that that had the brain tumor, like myself, but it’s not reserved for a person who climbed Mount Everest barefoot. It’s not that that is endurance and that is that is different. Resilience is the the way I see it is the process of adaptation. We need to adapt. And if you think about that, you know, we as humans are the most resilient species in the world. Now, how we got here? Because we have adapted over 1000s of years. It’s low adaptations that may use who we are today, you know, so. So I think that the key here is I when you know it’s not about changing, but it’s adapting. It’s, you know, and the idea here is that you and I already have everything that we need to take the first step. And what I mean by that is that we need to make a decision. I’m gonna get better at this. I’m gonna do this and actually go do it.
Damon Pistulka 22:41
Yes, because oftentimes it said it’s when you’re sitting there and you’re at your maybe at your wit’s end, or you don’t think you can keep going. It’s that first step to keep going is what really that’s just gets you there, gets you through
Luis Velasquez 22:56
and to your point earlier. You know, until your point earlier is like, yeah, so my I am I’m done. There is I cannot do anything else. And the reality is that, you know, that we always have choices. Sometimes we see things as black and white, and there are many other different ways of looking at things. And I think that the you know, if I could, if I could, put the book, and actually my coaching practice into one sentence, it will be this, to act differently, we need to think differently. To think differently, we need to see differently. And people that are the field that have at the end wits, you know, they don’t see things from a different perspective that will uncover different ways of thinking, therefore ways of acting. So that’s a lot of times. That’s what I do with my coaches, is to help them to uncover the things that they either subconsciously have ignored or not willing to look at Yes,
Damon Pistulka 24:04
yes. Because
Luis Velasquez 24:06
we all, you know, the biggest gift that God, life, Allah, bud, whatever you believe in, has given us, is the power of choice. Yes. So what I do in my coaching practice is to help them, you know, to to uncover options so they can make better choices.
Damon Pistulka 24:27
Yes, so when you’re, when you’re doing this, and you’re, you’re talking with people, what, what are some of the things they say when they find this, when they find a new perspective, when they find there was a whole world of choices they didn’t see what? What are, I guess. What are some of the realizations that they make, that you hear them tell you about or. Uh, even a phrase that comes out that’s like, oh my goodness, I never looked at that. Or what just I mean, because these have to be some pretty, you know, like glass breaking type moments for them.
Luis Velasquez 25:15
What is interesting is that the realization doesn’t come in the moment. Sometimes, okay, you know, they, they don’t see it, you know. And they don’t see it, literally. And then it was later, when I brought to them. Was it easier now than it was before? Yes, it is easy, you know. So I, you know, I’m a runner. I love to run, you know, I love to run, and, and, and, and I, you know, I A lot of times I go around with friends, and I cannot help by see how they run. And I said to them, you know, I’m gonna fix your running form in two minutes, you know. And I give them three points, you know, you have to do this, this and that, and then try it, you know. So they start crying, and then I tell them, Okay, so forget about what I told you. Just Just forget about it. Just run the way you run. Just run the way you run. And then they do and then I said to them, now, run the way I ask you to do. And then they do it and say, How does it feel? Oh my gosh, I cannot describe it. It’s different. It feels effortless. That’s the point. So I think that a lot of times we don’t have the words to say about we can feel it when we see it.
Damon Pistulka 26:23
Yes, yes. I bet you get a lot of lot of texts or calls somebody like, they woke up and they hit them and they realized or they so they felt it after they
Luis Velasquez 26:36
do and but again, you know, a lot of times this happens a year after we start working together. Okay, you know that? Oh, my God, I just realized that this is what I’ve been doing, and this is what I’m saying. So, so, you know I mean, so here is the key, you know, going back to resilience, I think that we have been conditioned to condition to look for the easy fix and the instant gratification. Thanks, Amazon. Two day thing. And resilient is a process of adaptation that happens over a long time. Yes, that’s true so So, and I think that a lot of times we want to fix things immediately. And some of these people, as you know, as I mentioned, you know, some that, including myself, you know, we have done things the way we do in this all our lives. And then here I come, you know, and telling them this, you know, something that they can do something different, it’s not going to register right away. Mm, hmm,
Damon Pistulka 27:47
it’s a great point. That’s a great point. And I’m, I’m thinking about you being an avid runner, and how resilience plays into that passion of yours, and how that translates into your coaching and how you can help. Because the the part of running, I’ve got to imagine that running long distances as you do is as much as perspective as it is your body, your body being in shape,
Luis Velasquez 28:15
it’s, it’s mental, you know. I mean, you know, I mean, 100 miles, you know, it’s a long time. You know, being 2020, plus hours on the run without sleep is mental, is mental. But somebody asked me a while ago, you know, how do you, how do you do it, you know, why? What’s the, what’s the secret, though, you know, how do you finish these things? And and I do, and I thought long and hard about that, and I say, you know, if you want to finish 100 miles, there are three things that you need to do. You need to eat. Well, you know, manage your nutrition. You know, this is actually somebody already trained, you know, I’m training behind, but somebody that is already at the starting line, you know, I said, you know, nutrition you’re gonna eat, right? Because it’s a long way. The other one is spacing. If you go too fast, you’re gonna bunk. If you’re too slow, you’re not gonna finish. And the last, the last one is take care of your feet, you know. And sometimes, you know, like a little pebble that is insignificant, you know, at over three, four hours, becomes a big blister and then becomes pain in your hip. And that translate to, you know, to many other things in life as well. You know? I mean, when I you know coach people, I tell them, you know, you gotta pace yourself. You know you’re not going to be number one seller in your field, overnight, things. Thing takes time. You know you need to. You need to. When I think about the feet, you know you need to conserve your resources. You need to, you know, get your friends. You need to hire different people, you know. And nutrition is like, what do you eat? You know. And what I mean, what do you eat is, how do you feed your mind, you know? What do you read? Who are you paying attention to? What feedback are you getting to make the right decisions?
Damon Pistulka 30:10
Yeah, great. And I can see you practicing coaching with resilience in mind and the training that it takes to be able to run these endurance races, they all kind of ties together, doesn’t it? It
Luis Velasquez 30:25
does. It does. Okay, let’s put it anyway. It does, because it gives me a bunch of stories and life lessons. Yes, but you don’t need to be an ultra runner, no, to be a coach, you know, you just need to have the lessons that you know, the knowledge and the lessons and the wisdom that in order to you know, to make comparisons and to create analogies, which is what people appreciate. You know, they don’t want to tell you you have to do this because X, Y and Z said that it is true, because the research has done it, that never works.
Damon Pistulka 31:06
Yeah. So one thing that, if you could, if you someone’s listening today, then they say, man, what Luis is saying today is, is really hitting home with me. What would you what would you talk with them about first what was the first thing that you would suggest for them to do, find somebody, realize they can change what? What would if someone’s sitting there today, what would you and they’re they’re wondering, I
Luis Velasquez 31:37
think that, I think that the first thing is to it’s not about me or what I do, but for what is it that that resonated with them the most? That’s number one. Number two is like, if they are listening to this, and it resonated to this is because they are probably in a situation that they want, they don’t want, they don’t want to be in. And I think that the first thing that we need to do is to say, you know this is, this is not what I want to be, you know. And make the commitment to move forward.
Damon Pistulka 32:10
Boom, right there that that is if you’re not in the situation, if you realize you’re not in the situation, wait situation you want to be in, make the commitment and take the steps to move forward absolutely
Luis Velasquez 32:23
and now use commitment for a particular reason. Commitment has an emotional attachment to it. I’m committed to my wife. I’m committed to my family, you know, I’m committed to my country, whatever that is, you know, it’s a it’s an emotional commitment. It’s an emotional attachment to it when you say you need to make a decision. Decisions are cerebral. You know, things are leaving your head, and in order to move forward, you need your head and you need your heart,
Damon Pistulka 32:53
yes, because that emotion will help you keep going absolutely. Yeah, yeah. Awesome, awesome. Well, Louise, it’s been awesome having you here today. And if people didn’t know you finished a book here recently, ordinary resilience. You can find it on Amazon and other places to to buy it is incredible. Go out and get that if you want to. What is the best way, if someone wants to reach out and talk to you about some coaching?
Luis Velasquez 33:24
I think that the best way to reach out to me is through my LinkedIn profile. You know, my LinkedIn. I hope that you can put it on the materials there, and then I respond to every single, you know, email that people send me. So very good. Yeah. So you can, you know, visit my website as well as velasco.com
Damon Pistulka 33:44
All right, V L, E, S, V E, L, A, S, coaching.com
Luis Velasquez 33:49
That’s right, yes.
Damon Pistulka 33:51
Thank you so much. Luis, I want to thank everyone that’s been out there listening today, thank you all for being with us today. We appreciate you and hope that you’ll be back again with us again. We will be back again with another great guest, Luis, hang out. We’ll finish up offline.
Luis Velasquez 34:09
Thank you so much, Damon, I really appreciate you having me. Yes. Thanks for being here. You.
