5 Lessons Black Jack Taught Me About Life, Leadership, & Excuses

Warning: Super EMO Post - Not Your Average Publish!

This is going to be the most emotional and important publish that I will ever write in my personal and professional life. 2 days ago the most important man in my life passed away of pancreatic cancer after a long fought battle. It has been an eye opening experience in a variety of ways, and I believe there is no better way to honor him than to share his story.

As you read this piece I don't want any sympathy about his loss. My 32 years with him was the most amazing thing that could ever happen to a human being. I will start out giving you a little background about his personal and professional life and then get into the 5 things he taught me about Leadership & Excuses.

The Beginning Of Black Jack

My grandfather was born in Des Moines, Iowa in 1936. He grew up in a small cement block house with his grandma Bess where he started paying rent at the age of 14. His grandpa Joe taught him how to work on cars at age twelve in order to get by. He was on his own at the age of 16. He married Arlene, my grandma, and when he was 18 years old they got married and have been together ever since. My grandfather never had the chance to get a formal education since he had to work full time at such a young age. As my grandfather would say, he graduated from the school of "hard knocks."

My lovely grandma and grandpa at my wedding in April.

The Nickname "Black Jack"

My grandfather's real name is Jack Mohler, but as he grew in his professional career he slowly received the nickname "Black Jack." He always had a knack for gambling and some say he was the "luckiest" man that ever lived. As a matter of fact, for my 21st birthday he and I went to a casino in Las Vegas and were immediately greeted by casino security. They called him by his name and politely let him know he was not allowed to play table games. Little did I know... He had so much luck that some casinos in Las Vegas wouldn't even let him play (3 to be exact).

My Grandpa & Grandma Showing Off Vegas Winnings!

(Note: Horseshoe Ring).

His Professional Sales Career - From Zero To Hero

*Saladmaster*

My grandfather really started to hit his stride at the age of 32 with a company called Saladmaster. Saladmaster was considered to be the Rolls Royce of pots and pans back in the day. He would pound the phones and book appointments to have cooking parties at prospects houses, and have them invite their friends. My grandma and him would go over to these peoples houses and cook them a massive dinner. After dinner, he would sell them a couple thousand dollars worth of cookware. He worked 80-100 hours per week and excelled rather quickly into the #1 salesman in the company. Keep in mind that #1 was the only spot that Grandpa Black Jack ever knew.

A picture of my grandfather at a Saladmaster event with Roger Staubach.

*Masterguard*

After taking the top spot at Saladmaster, he took a great opportunity to leave and work with owner Ray Jones in a new adventure selling the Rolls Royce of fire safety equipment. The new company that he called home was Masterguard. This was another direct sales job where he would book appointments through county fairs, cold calls, and dinner events. He worked endless hours and quickly worked his way up to the #1 spot. My grandfather built the top region and broke all the company records year after year. He soon built a team called the "Rhino Tough" club. After 30 years with Masterguard he had to force himself into retirement so he could give some of the other guys a chance in the company.

The Legacy Will Carry On

As most of you probably know I was named after my grandfather. I've been in sales now for about 10 years and I can honestly say that I am yet to come in contact with anyone in the sales profession that has accomplished half as much as my grandfather did. He left me some big shoes to fill but I am determined to fill them.

My grandfather was the king of selling, recruiting, and training. He took many sales professionals from the bottom to the top. Hopefully, some of these life lessons he taught me will resonate with you and help you get to the next level.

*It would mean a lot to me if you could share this with others in your network!*

Lesson #1 - "The Power Of Your Mind"

The biggest influence in my grandpa's life was Judge and Zig Ziglar. He went to multiple Ziglar training's throughout his sales career and was constantly feeding his mind positive and educational information. He preached the word of training your thoughts in order to achieve milestones to all of the sales professionals that he trained. He always had a motivational tape in his car and a motivational book on his desk.

As I grow in my professional career it is very rare that I see struggling sales professionals that are taking the time outside of work hours to feed their thoughts back to health. Motivational tapes have taken me from zero to hero many times and that I learned from Black Jack!

Here is a picture of Zig Ziglar and my grandfather

Lesson #2 - "Excuses are like a$$holes, we all have them and they all stink"

This was my grandpa's absolute favorite quote. He would also say that there was no such thing as excuses. Throughout the entire 32 years I was around my grandfather I never heard him make an excuse for anything (besides the current president). In his personal and professional life he never had excuses... Only solutions!

As I analyze the way that he had to sell being in direct sales, it really takes the excuses that we have out of selling today. They were walking around knocking on doors, and selling to people inside their homes. Everything was considered a cold call. Today we sit on a WebEx as we are fed leads, and then push a button on an automated dialer. We have the internet which allows us to get information about anyone at any time. It really does make you think how easy we have it today and we have more excuses than ever!

Lesson #3 - "Nothing In This World Is Free"

This was something that my grandfather would preach all the time! As he started to build his little mini fortune from all his hard work he periodically spoil his kids and grand kids. He always made it clear though that nothing in this world was free. He came from nothing and nobody handed him anything.

As sales evolves and companies start to thrive it seems that more and more people feel they are owed something. What happened to the days of proving yourself before you got the "big" salary? What happened to the days of earning your keep? This lesson has kept me hungry and motivated to prove myself and earn my keep.

This was a picture that was always on the wall in my grandpa's office.

This was his reminder that nothing was free except for poverty!

Lesson #4- "If You Work Hard Enough You Can Have Anything You Want"

My grandfather had to claw his way from the bottom to the top in order to provide for his family, and give them the life he never had. He always made sure that anyone he hired understood that they were going to have to sacrifice certain things in order to get what they wanted. Those sacrifices often times included extended time away from their families, giving up watching Sunday football, or not being able to enjoy free time like they were used to. You had to put in the hours in order to get what you wanted.

In sales today it seems like 7-8 hours is a full work day. As a newly married man that wants to make sure my wife can stay home with our first child that we plan on having in the next year, I know that I have to work long hours in order to get that. In order to get the house that I want it's going to take extra sacrifice. The only sales professionals that I ever see that are making any money are the ones that work the hours to get there.

My grandfather's goal was to have a Rolls Royce and pay cash for it.

He achieved that dream in 1987 and here it is!

Lesson #5 - "If You Set Yourself On Fire Everybody Will Come To Watch You Burn"

My grandmother reminded me of this quote as I was talking to her about this publish. This was one of the things he always talked about with up and coming sales professionals that were beginning to make their way to the top. As he spent most of his professional career at the top he was able to talk about this from experience. He would say that it takes rhino skin to get to the top and stay there.

This is an amazing quote and I think that many of the top sales professionals can attest. It's rare to encounter colleagues anymore that genuinely want to see other's success or at least recognize it. You have to fight through the noise and stay on track to sustain greatness!

Lesson #6- "Without God You Are Nothing"

All of the lessons above are great for your professional career but to me this is the only one that matters. I apologize to anyone that is not religious and this is by no means trying to persuade you into religion. This is strictly a personal piece that I had to write about. My grandfather was always a loving man but never a religious man. As he was diagnosed with cancer it was a fear of mine that his future was uncertain. 4 weeks before my grandfather passed away he accepted god into his heart and was able to enjoy a peace that he hadn't experienced in 78 years. The most powerful words that came out of his mouth were my last visit with him. He said "everything you work for is material and it doesn't mean anything because you can't take it with you when it's your time to go. God is forever and he will take you everywhere."

To Sum It All Up!

Hopefully, you learned something from my grandfather in this post that you can apply to your professional or personal life. My grandfather was rhino tough all the way until he took his last breath. He touched many lives and his passion for life, family, and helping others was infectious.

I am going to start this new legacy by challenging everyone to work hard, quit making excuses, set goals, and kick ass just like my rhino tough grandpa did!

Rest In Peace Grandpa Black Jack... Little Jack Is Taking It Right Where You Left Off!