The Power of Persistence: How Jiri Siklar Transformed Obstacles into Stepping Stones for Growth
Monika Oblonczek
Journeying through personal growth | From self-doubt to ever growing person | Partner Sales Manager @ Amazon Web Services
Three lessons you can learn from Jiri’s story of personal growth:
Think about Tom and Jerry: when Tom tries to catch Jerry from a tree using a ladder, he gives up after the first failed attempt. This is something Jiri Siklar could never understand. Why not reposition the ladder and try again? Why not take a different path? From the moment Jiri was born, his life has been about overcoming obstacles.
The Early Struggles
Declared dead by the doctor at birth, Jiri overcame his first hurdle just by surviving. Also, do you remember those kids who were always picked last in sports? Jiri was one of them. At 105kg, he wasn’t the popular kid everyone wanted on the team but the first one to get kicked out at dodgeball. He hated it. He knew his problem—obesity—but he failed to lose weight. Jiri struggled with obesity throughout his entire childhood.
The problem? He was just not consistent enough.
"It wasn't just one single moment that changed my life—although I had a friend who once told me, 'You >better lose 10 kgs by the time I get back.' It was a series of tries," Jiri recalls.
It took a lot of time before Jiri started seeing results. But the first time he saw the number on the scale drop, something inside him sparked. He held onto that grit, ate less, cleaner, and worked out more. Jiri fought a battle to become a better version of himself, better than anyone could have expected.
It wasn’t just 10kg that Jiri lost. He became “the fit guy” and lost 25kg in four months.
Seeing success in his weight loss journey fueled his desire to constantly find new ways to surmount challenges. This drive carried over into his professional life, where sales became both his passion and his daily practice in overcoming obstacles. For Jiri, every "no" was just a step closer to a "yes."
?The Shift to Enterprise Sales
In his early sales career, Jiri was the best performer for more than five consecutive years, thriving in Small/Midmarket sales. When he was ready for a new role to grow, he moved into Enterprise sales, confident in his abilities to be as successful.
Reality had other plans. The techniques that once worked were no longer effective.?
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We often become self-assured as we achieve greater levels of success, neglecting to reflect on our abilities. "I am successful, and this is how I've always done it." No room for feedback, criticism, and therefore, no improvement. No growth.
Fortunately, Jiri had already adopted a challenger mindset. He knew to be successful, he might need to reposition his ladder or even find a new one altogether. So, he learned new techniques, read books, and sought advice from those already where he wanted to be. Through trial and error, Jiri not only became successful in his new role but also established himself as a Sales expert.
His over 10 years of expertise led him to a plateau in his career. Being successful in his day-to-day job became a new hurdle for Jiri.
Becoming a Podcaster
Driven by a desire to help others become the best versions of themselves, Jiri decided to share his insights and those of other experts. Five years ago, he started his Sales Podcast.
Starting with zero listeners, he initially struggled to grow his audience despite marketing efforts across various platforms. For months, the growth was stagnant.
That’s when Jiri decided to rethink his approach. He began sharing more personal stories, joined more popular podcasts as a guest, created short clips from his content, and invited well-known personalities to his show.
Within six months, he grew his audience from a few hundred to thousands. With over 200 episodes and a growing audience of 60,000 listeners, consistency might as well be Jiri's middle name. And yet, this is likely just the beginning. Today, his podcast is one of the most recognized in the DACH region, featuring renowned guests from around the world.?
The Current Challenge
Jiri’s journey is a testament to the power of persistence and the willingness to adapt and try new approaches. Unlike Tom from Tom and Jerry, Jiri understands the importance of trying different paths.
His current challenge?
Scaling his impact by teaching and empowering even more people to excel in sales, transforming lives and industries alike. He's set on becoming an entrepreneur, where making a living out of his passion is just a byproduct of his greater mission—to inspire and elevate others on a much larger scale. Certainly, there will be obstacles to overcome. Rest assured, Jiri has a plan to reposition himself for continued growth.
?? Connect with Jiri Siklar and watch him grow ??
?? Tune into this podcast: https://dealpodcast.podcastpage.io/
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Radical Curiosity | Connecting Ideas, People, and Technology | ex-Sun Microsystems, ex-Oracle, ex-DellEMC
3 个月Powerful insights on overcoming obstacles! Two thoughts: 1. Reposition your ladder and view. A new perspective can change everything. 2. Challenges are guideposts. They show how far you've come and where you're heading. These ideas among others have transformed how I face challenging situations. Curious if they resonate with anyone else?
DEAL Podcast Host | Lerne die Software Sales Strategien der Top Seller um 150%+ deiner Ziele zu erreichen
3 个月Monika! I really think that with your insightful questions and listening skills, you got the best out of me. Through the conversation with you I found out new things about me. Thank you very much for having me on your series ??