Let’s level up.

Time to shine today podcast varsity squad. This is scott ferguson. I’ve been waiting for this. This podcast for In this interview for a couple months now really good friend of mine from back in the mitten michigan that I grew up with legitly grew up with danny martin. We went to high school together.

We probably had a few too many brain grenades together We just had a really good time, but he grew up in Canton, Michigan where i’m from Plymouth Canton He’s the youngest of six boys starting his career in newspaper route at age 13. So Him and I were probably both delivering the free press just in different neighborhoods at the same time And during this time he was unknowingly honing his sales skills His diverse journey spans industries like retail landscaping and sales eventually leading to 15 years as a business owner Danny’s philosophy of Of lifelong learnings inspired by legends like dale carnegie and tony robbins Both of them are the goats and makes him a dynamic force in entrepreneurship and personal growth and danny Thank you so much for coming on.

[00:02:00] Please introduce yourself to the time to shine today podcast varsity squad. But first What’s your favorite color and why

Danny Martin: awesome? I appreciate that. Scotty. My favorite color is green. Okay, and it’s, and it’s, it symbolizes growth for me. And also, yeah. And it also, , it’s, it’s like the, when you plant a seed, the first thing that comes up is that little seedling and the little leaves that are, that turn green right when they open up, man, that’s growth and that’s birth, , and I

L. Scott Ferguson: love it.

It’s great. That’s every time I hear green, it’s like, Rebirth springtime kind of like rocking and rolling, but I know your roots Okay, like I know that we kind of go back right but I would like to know hear the roots from you again in squad Me and danny are kind of blue collar guys grew up in detroit area where both of our fathers We’re blue collar guys and we appreciate them so much.

And Dan, biggest thing about the impressed me about Dan is Danny is that he’s pays it forward every chance he gets. I remember, I don’t know if he remembers this, but I think it was power motor sports that he was working at back in [00:03:00] the day. And he really hooked me up with something at that time, nothing illegal, but it was just like, he always has the right advice and I’ve always immensely respect Dan.

So let’s hear the roots, man. Let’s, let’s hear it from the greats mouth here.

Danny Martin: Awesome. I appreciate that, Scotty. So yeah, my name is Danny Martin. I grew up in Michigan and Scotty, like you said, you and I both go way back. I first want to point out, I certainly appreciate your service in the military and all the work that you do to help support that man.

Cause I gotta tell you, I’m a, I come from a military family myself. My dad was military grandpa, my two brothers. Anyways, big shout out to you for that. Very grateful. So I’m one of six boys. I’m the youngest and I’m a twin. So you can only imagine and at that, , twins were a surprise. They didn’t even know.

My mom didn’t know that she was having another baby until I’m like, okay, knocking on the door. I’m ready. , And then and then to be the sixth, Boy, in a family like that. I mean the household was filled with testosterone, bro So you can imagine the The excitement and the energy that was going around in the house at that time [00:04:00] and my poor mom She was the only estrogen in the house, right?

She’s trying to control us all I do She got her wings on

L. Scott Ferguson: earth, bro. And I always get the,

Danny Martin: I always get the comment, , your poor mother or your poor mom. I’m like, what about me? I’m the youngest of six boys. What, what about poor me?

L. Scott Ferguson: That’s awesome, man. You went through a lot of like, you started the entrepreneurship journey kind of early with.

, delivering, which, which paper you delivered news, free press, observer.

Danny Martin: It was a free press, , and I, we, I grew up in Holiday Park subdivision in Canada and I, and I I don’t even know how I ran into this guy that offered me this job. I’m 13 years old and he wanted to know if I wanted to deliver papers, , in the subdivision.

So I took that on and I’m riding my little pedal bike and I got my over the shoulder paper bag and it’s all filled with papers and just laying me down and Throwing the newspapers, , on the porch and, and, and all of that.

L. Scott Ferguson: Yeah.

Danny Martin: And it would’ve, would’ve boils down to, I didn’t even realize that I was, I was involved in any part, any kind of sales.

I thought I was just, fulfilling a responsibility, ? Right. Not [00:05:00] even thinking about that. So then I was promoted to, the, the apartment complex next door, which was huge. Right. A whole lot more papers, , so, right. But that’s, that’s kind of where, well, not kind of, that’s where I started my working career.

And it wasn’t uncommon for people like you and I that. That had it in us to work and we started working at 13 years old, right? And then I’ve had so many jobs since then. So I went from that and, and there’s, there’s a funny story regarding how that paper route thing ended when, if we wanted to revisit that.

Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Perfect. I appreciate that. So I’m doing the apartment complexes next door and it was this cold blistery wintry morning and I’m on my bike and you can imagine snows all over and it’s difficult to even try to pedal. But I would I would do daily as I would take my little pedal bike and I would take it to the nearest fence that got me into the apartment complex.

So I would jimmy up this fence and to me it looked like at that time it looked like it was like a 15 foot tall fence. It was probably more like, , six to eight feet tall, but I’m, I’m climbing this fence and I put the front wheel of the bike over the top of the fence, let it hang there. I go over to the other [00:06:00] side and pull the bike over.

And then I drive my bike to where the paper, the papers were were to be picked up. So. At that time, on this one wintry morning, I decided, what, screw it, I am not delivering the paper, what I mean? It’s just I didn’t have it in me that day, and I made the conscious decision to take the papers and throw them in the closest dumpster that I could find.

Well then, , well this is, this is, this is where, okay, so some of these sales concepts come into play right now. Right. My boss, he’s like he’s getting all these, he’s fielding all these phone calls. I didn’t get my paper. I didn’t get my paper. So I made up this story that, , that, that I, that the papers were never delivered, that they never got there.

Well, the guy that I’m talking to my boss is the one who delivers the paper to that point.

L. Scott Ferguson: It was Bernie. Bernie get, Bernie left the papers, wasn’t it? Bernie left

Danny Martin: the papers.

L. Scott Ferguson: It was Bernie, I remember that.

Danny Martin: Yeah,

L. Scott Ferguson: because I was a free press guy too. So, all right, cool.

Danny Martin: Yeah. So, so he caught me in a lie and then, needless to say, I didn’t have a job after that.

Right. And it was the first job that I had and the first job that I got fired from. But the [00:07:00] lessons that that taught me was from that point on is I decided that I was going to be the absolute best employee to whomever I decided to work from work for from then on. And that was a very important lesson for me because it taught me, , it’s it’s it’s never okay to lie.

Always. Speak your truth and own up, , if I didn’t want to deliver the papers that day, maybe he could have had somebody fill the spot and get the papers out. It didn’t real, I didn’t realize in my young mind, it didn’t trigger to me that the paper was so important to these people. And when they missed it, they relied on it for their information every day.

, we didn’t have social media and the media sources that we. So they were looking to their newspaper to start their day and I took it for granted that all right Well, man, they did there they can miss out for a day, , so Our

L. Scott Ferguson: phone from us That’s what it was like back then with the Detroit Free Press and remember the afternoon with the news Detroit News was delivered Like back then.

Yeah. Yeah, and it’s funny. I got into it with Like, there was a guy two doors down from me cause I grew up in an old orchard behind [00:08:00] Denny’s on Edinburgh Road, right? And, cause you were a Lowell guy, you went to Lowell Middle School, so you were Holiday Park and like over there up Joy Road. Okay, gotcha, so.

Like the guy two doors down was like wanting to give up his paper out. Everyone wanted it I mean it was paying like 25 bucks a month, dude. It was like big money, right? So I was like I will give you five dollars a month for the next year if you give it to me That was I didn’t even know I was entrepreneurial saying that but I did it and then I hustled and I end up getting another Route that was next to it more on the other side of Eccles With in the Livonia side and just grew it out.

So that’s both of us kind of started at that 12, 13, 14 year old age, which is. That and the lessons that you pulled forward about, , taking responsibility and that you’ll always lean into your best potential going forward. What kind of happened after the the newspaper then?

Danny Martin: Yeah, so being, , now I’m, , 15, 16, I moved.

Which

L. Scott Ferguson: I got to cut you off. You were a hell of an athlete, bro. I mean, we [00:09:00] both, we both were decent at what we did, but I remember watching you on the soccer field. You, Jimmy Yak, and All those Kilp, Kilp, Kilpalina, like all you guys like getting after it, but I have to give you the props on that, dude, because you’re a hell of a, hell of a soccer player, dude.

Anyways, next.

Danny Martin: I went into the restaurant business. So I worked as a host and I did all the different positions in the, in the restaurant industry where I was a host. I was a dishwasher. I moved into the kitchen. And then when I did that then I, I learned like a lot of cooking skills, right? So not only did I learn the basic foundation from my mom, but then all the other things that.

I really do appreciate cooking today, so working in that field did that for me. And then years later, I moved into retail working for Meijer Corporation, which is a grocery chain in the Midwest. So, and then at that point, I wanted to be, I had it in my head that I was going to climb the corporate ladder, man.

This was it for me. I was, I was where I wanted to be. I was quickly promoted to a produce manager and then I was traveling around all the Midwest opening their stores for them in the produce departments and doing all of that. [00:10:00] So I was really gravitating to the attention of the higher ups and they really liked the fact that I was really attention to detail, my personality, and I was, I was able to communicate well with people and they could.

I was a facilitator for growth and others, right, allowing people to make decisions for themselves and then learning the lessons. So with that then I became a produce manager. I did that for a few years and then it came to an end when I was a salaried employee as a produce manager. Now I’m salary. And I’m working 80 hours a week and not getting paid anymore for it.

And it was a very abusive role in my opinion. So I didn’t, I wasn’t comfortable anymore. I told my mentors, I said, I’ve lost my vision here. And it was a dilapidated produce department that really needed a lot of, a lot of work, a lot of fixing up, a lot of employees, a lot of management, and a lot of, a lot of.

skill training and that kind of thing. And it was a union based type thing. So you can literally count on three or four of these union guys that we’re going to call in sick once a month on a Wednesday, whether it was the second, third or fourth week of the month, [00:11:00] in order to be able to get their numbers in so that they could take them an amount of time off that they wanted.

So I even tried to tell them, let me know when you, I know you’re going to take the time off. Let me know about it so that I can schedule around it will never happened like that. So it created a lot of creative burnout, right? But the, the, the point that I want to make here is that I, I didn’t just leave and walk out the door.

I told my, my mentor, Kevin is his name. And I told him, I said, I’m going to sit at the front door and I’m going to staff this place because I’m not leaving it in the condition that it’s in currently. I want to make sure that the person that’s going to replace me as can put their best foot forward. So even when I knew that my time was up and I was walking out the door, I chose to stay in it.

So that the next guy can win it.

L. Scott Ferguson: That’s strong, brother.

Danny Martin: Yeah.

L. Scott Ferguson: What do you, where do you think that that compassion, empathy

Danny Martin: kind of came from? Yeah, I think it goes back to being the paper boy, man. And, and, and committing to not, not falling short of my personal expectation for me and what I expect for myself,

L. Scott Ferguson: right.

Danny Martin: If I [00:12:00] could put that on me, I know that that’s a minimum of what somebody else is going to expect of me.

L. Scott Ferguson: Love it. Love it. So we will fast forward a little bit because we might be even do a 2. 0 one time or cover it on your podcast or something, but that you’ll have in the squad. Stay tuned to the end because I do have book giveaways and also Danny’s launching a show which we’re going to dig into a little bit later, but coaching.

Where is the passion because , we’re both in the coaching world. Okay, where that passion for Wanting to coach and if there’s something from your past you want to pull forward to lead into the coaching Please do but like where is the passion for for coaching come from?

Danny Martin: Yeah, I appreciate that So in all of my work in terms of sales that way So this is beyond the corporate life and now moving into sales.

I started at Pilgrim Motorsports. I knew at some point I would correct you. But anyway, so Pilgrim Motorsports and then I, I walked into that place and I’m the only guy in a suit and tie and I got my leather bound, [00:13:00] paper wrap. , when you’re with your, your, your, your, your pad of paper, what I mean?

So, and it’s got this leather bound case and I got a suit and tie on, just not the type of person that’s going to walk into a motorcycle dealership and looking for a job, right? Right. Usually it’s a guy in casual attire and just walks in and, and interviews like that. So I asked for the the hiring manager and everybody’s, I’ve got eyes on me.

, I’m the only guy in a suit, right? Right, right. I met Steve Prane who interviewed me and actually hired me on the spot.

L. Scott Ferguson: Okay. So

Danny Martin: then I started, I started at, I started literally a week later and I was soon as I walked in the door for me, the energy was incredible. Motorcycles, ATVs, jet skis, , all of it, dirt bikes.

It was all, it was all there and it was just, it was just singing to me, man. Right. So. And I learned very, very quickly that sales is nothing more than a transfer of enthusiasm, man. If I’m already this enthusiastic about my product that I’m trying to sell, it’s easy, right? It was like, it was like, , shooting fish in a barrel.

It was, it was easy and it felt that comfortable for me. So I quickly. [00:14:00] Evolved in sales pseudo manager role, right? I wasn’t the designated sales manager of Pilgrim Motorsports, but I created my business within the business and I, I, I hired my own personal assistant. I’m a salesman, mind you, and I’m doing some high volume.

I wanted to focus on belly to belly, face to face interactions, right? And I needed to take these menial tasks off my plate that was just, they were time suckers. So I hired a personal assistant to help me. Her name is Danielle, and she did a fantastic job. And I coached her and trained her how to do her function.

And then we hired a salesperson. She actually evolved into a salesperson. Now we hired an assistant for her and I. And then another salesperson and I’ve got this, I’ve got this

L. Scott Ferguson: team within a business.

Danny Martin: That’s exactly what I’m talking.

L. Scott Ferguson: Entrepreneur that.

Danny Martin: Yes, absolutely. Yeah. All right. Yeah, that was incredible.

And then actually, and then, and then I became the number one salesperson very, very quickly. I was selling over [00:15:00] a hundred units a month, which was unheard of, and then, so just doing, doing very, very well. And I just absolutely loved it. So I was coaching the, I coached my assistant coach, the sales team coached, , other assistants to come on and build this team.

So that’s really where my, my love of coaching started. And it’s continued ever since because now it’s about looking at what I can do for them and how they receive so, so that they can build a better quality of life for themselves. And that was, there was a turning point where I want to say I was 40 years old and it did a 180 for me where I flipped it about what’s in it for them instead of what’s in it for me.

When I made that transition to what’s in it for them, it really opened my eyes to it’s, it’s not about what I’m going to, I’m going to be self served by all of the giving that I’m going to put out there. Right. And that recognition was key for me.

L. Scott Ferguson: Love it. You just said that you’re selfish. You know what I’m saying?

And this is something I [00:16:00] speak about on stage, Danny. It’s that. Which I can’t wait to you speak and girls if you’re watching this I was his wingman all through high school This dude was just like he pulled them all anyways, but I’m just kidding But no being selfish in Webster’s Dictionary does not say anything about selfish being a bad connotation Right you took care of you so you could help the masses and bring in as many people Do you feel that you really leaned into?

At 40, so that’s what we were talking off camera, really leaned into your health, leaned into all that stuff, so you could really be there for your, , three kids, because , having children, you have only so much bandwidth, and your, I call it daddery, your daddery is kind of like, , runs out, right, but like, is that where it really sparked from, Danny, that, , just getting your, yourself on point.

Right to lean into others.

Danny Martin: Yeah, you’re exactly right. So you can’t truly commit to helping other people unless you’re whole with yourself first. [00:17:00]

L. Scott Ferguson: Yeah,

Danny Martin: so and that was a big that was a big point of recognition for me. And that was that that point of influence that really I gravitated towards and at that same point.

I chose and I think everything that we do is about choice, right? I chose to live a life of gratitude. So I wanted to make sure that if I can start every single day with a positive mentality and graciousness, that I could have, I could put that onto others. And people would see that right. When I walk in the door, I’m like you, man, you got a great smile, dude.

And a beautiful face, bro. I gotta tell you, the more I’m telling you, the more that you can share that, the more that people are going to receive it. Sure. And that’s how I view it. So I always walk into a room, man. It doesn’t matter what’s going on in my life externally. , I, I’ve been able to compartmentalize and that’s something else that I teach is about how to compartmentalize these things and leave them outside the door.

Cause any challenges that you have going on are going to be there waiting for you when you leave, so put your [00:18:00] best self forward so that you can. positive influence to others. I wake up every morning, bro. I put my feet on the floor. I sit on the edge of the bed and I recite four things that I’m grateful for.

And it’s always my kids, my mom, God, and the gifts that we take for granted every single day in my health. So I starting off like, and I say it, I say it kind of softly because , my girlfriend’s in bed, what I mean? So I’m not going to shout it at the rooftop. But , I say it out loud, right?

So I can hear myself say it and it really, it has stuck with me and it’s a practice that I’ve done ever since. And it’s, it’s really been something that, that if I can, if I can give one message that was really a point of focus for me, that was it. I love it. And.

L. Scott Ferguson: Squad. If you’re my clients out there, which I know you listen, I’m blessed that I talked to you about why you must text me by 9 a.

m. Three things that you’re grateful for. And to me, I get a lot of people will be like, Oh, grateful foo, foo, this and that. But. Scientifically, it stimulates the reticular activating system, the RAS. [00:19:00] It’s like, in Squat, if you’re not familiar with the RAS, like, if Danny’s like, Hey, Fergie man, I got this Tesla, and I’m like, what’s a Tesla?

And he’s like, come over, check it out. So I go over to Danny’s house, see the Tesla, and go, oh my gosh, that Tesla is amazing. I see Danny’s emotion to it, I’m emotional to it. , so how many teslas do you think that i’ll see on my way home i’ll see a lot We’ve stimulated the reticular activating system.

So if you’re waking up in gratitude What do you think you’re going to go out looking for during that day squad? That’s what it is Why danny does it because you ease? Speaks in definitives. You never hear him say hope tries like I can I will I must and he does that and what that does You speak in Definitives and you’re grateful You’re you start looking solutions found show up for you.

I mean you wrote a book man , you’re building out this awesome coaching business, right? So as we move into coaching, what do you feel danny makes a great [00:20:00] coach?

Danny Martin: I think it’s somebody who can empathize somebody who’s in there and understands what is on the other, what’s on the other or who is on the other side of the table.

Right. And I think the, a big part of the conversation starts off with, , your core foundation, what are your core values? Because if you’re in line with the core value system, then you’re going to have instant rapport and you’re going to be able to build on that. But , more importantly, what’s your personality type?

What type of personality do you have, , and, and are you positive in your, in your mental state? Right? Are you, and it goes beyond positive thinking. Everybody can say, okay, yeah, I think positively or positive thinking is great. Practicing it is much, much different. because we have all these influences that come in to play.

And when we’re focused on either the negative influences or, or we, we need to reshift that focus from the negative to the positive and, and, and have clarity there and from a coaching perspective, , when you, when you have that, that foundation, [00:21:00] it creates growth. And then you, that you, you allow them to research it within themselves where they need help and you let them do that for themselves.

All I am is a facilitator. But then we get to the end result with have a goal setting session. We have goals that we want to put in place, so it creates your focus throughout your caters to your week and what you’re going to be doing throughout the week. And then put it in, take action, action, action, action, putting it in a play and take action.

L. Scott Ferguson: I love it. And one thing I squad that you didn’t hear him say is that he consults them. He, like me, believes that everyone knows what they want. They just don’t know how to talk themselves into it. Yet every single one of our challenges that resides in us, the answer is there too. And a great coach is super curious, which I know Danny is and gets the light bulb because I’ll tell you what, Dan, I’ve tried to consult people before and they went out and did it like for you’re an idiot.

Didn’t work. But when I get them to come up with something through the questions that I asked through my curiosity and then like you [00:22:00] said, hold them accountable to take that massive action is TR would say, right? That you see the results, correct? Absolutely love it. And so If you’re kind of talking to somebody and you’re about wanting to coach them or they want they’re looking for a coach and you’re making sure that you’re the right horse for the course with them to coach them is there any question that you want would want them to ask you before you coach them

Danny Martin: That’s that that’s that’s a great question let me let’s revisit that let me think about that myself it’s like it’s an important answer right

L. Scott Ferguson: oh hell yeah like if you were going to coach me i’d like who coaches you That’s what I ask.

So it’s something that I want to know who’s coached them period. And if they’re still working with one, cause a coach has to have a coach. I knew you, I know you have one, I have four and it’s like, it’s what it’s about because we can’t go out there and say that we’re doing something without having it.

Right. [00:23:00] Yeah. So Danny. You saw the movie back to the future, right? I did. Okay, let’s go back in that DeLorean with Marty McFly All right. Let’s go back to say the double deuce the 22 year old Danny not to change anything because your journey It’s been pretty fricking awesome. But to maybe shorten a learning curve or blast through what kind of knowledge nuggets might you drop on him?

Okay. Back when you were 22 years old to maybe shorten the learning curve up to 52, 53, where we’re at now.

Danny Martin: Yeah. I would say, find somebody that’s doing what you want to do and connect with them immediately. Yes,

L. Scott Ferguson: yes, exactly. And listen to what they say. Yeah, they paved it. I mean, they’re like you said, I love that you brought up core values.

Their core values might not be aligned, but you see that they’re successful and you can make their that kind of success align with your core values by serving people, right? That’s, that’s, that’s fantastic. So How do you want, how does [00:24:00] Danny want his dash remembered? That little line in between your incarnation date and your expiration date, your life date and your death date.

Hopefully it’s way down the road, right? But how does Danny want that dash remembered?

Danny Martin: Inspirational.

L. Scott Ferguson: Okay,

Danny Martin: go deeper. I think, yeah, absolutely. , because if I can inspire people to become their, their, their best self, , if I, if I can, if I can motivate one person to improve the quality of their life just a little bit, then I’ve, I’ve already succeeded.

I’m hoping to gravitate towards millions. , I’ve got, I’ve got a, I’ve got big thoughts, big minds, what I mean? And, and if I can, if I can encourage people to, to be more, learn more about who their inner self is, and then be able to, , to be able to act on that. I, cause I, life is.

Growth and learning is a lifelong commitment. We don’t, we, you never stop. It doesn’t exist in my world any way that I’m not going to stop learning. I’m going to learn something new every single day and, and hopefully find [00:25:00] something that I can teach to others because, , being in a stat, a constant state of growth and learning.

It allows you to be open minded and allows you to think outside the box. It allows you to find out where you’re, where your discomfort zone exists, and then how to, how to learn from that. Cause when you take that discomfort, we talked about that a little earlier. Those are where the golden nuggets lie.

That’s those are the diamonds in the rough. , those are the learning experiences where we can, where we can learn from those things that make us feel uncomfortable, stay in it. You know what I mean? And get through it and learn the lesson. Maybe you could have improved. Maybe you could have said something one way and it, and it didn’t work out the exactly the way that you’d wanted it to, but you’ll know for the next time.

L. Scott Ferguson: I’m a big believer in inch by inch. It’s a cinch right by the yard. It’s hard, ? So when you just said. The golden nuggets are by stretching the comfort zone. A lot of people, they’re like, I’m just going to get out. Like, I don’t know about getting out of your comfort zone. Let’s stretch it and make it bigger an inch by inch by [00:26:00] inch.

Then all of a sudden you’re engulfing everything that you want in there. And then you can invite people in like you’re doing to help them, , without a doubt, because every client, the new client I get, I’m out of my comfort zone because Before I used to, again, I got Chet Harlow out there, , three common guy, billionaire that I coach in the Carolinas.

And I’m thinking dude, I had to reach out to my coach like three times a week when I first started with him because he Met me speaking on the stage. He’s like, I want you to coach me and I was like, dude I feel like the biggest imposter blue collar Detroit kid. What the hell am I doing? He’s like my coach says, , because I was basically matching up my in my capabilities With my experience and he’s like just dude just lean into your intentions what I’m saying?

What’s your intention to help the world, right? Go into every session like that and remember your intentions. So, I got from right now that your intentions is to be inspirational and have people lean into their best, ultimate [00:27:00] human self. What other intentions do you have out there, Danny, that really, you really want to, lean into in your life?

Danny Martin: I really think that it starts from within, and I think we always have places to grow. , you, you’re, I’m never perfect in any one area, , I’m always learning. Even just this conversation that we had two seconds ago about stretching instead of, , outside the comfort zone, stretch your muscles, right?

And that’s what, that’s what takes growth. It’s a, it’s the minimal growth that equals, , the big strong guy, , and, and it doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a, it’s a marathon, man. It’s not a sprint. , once you realize, yeah, once you recognize that, then you can, you can chunk it down into, into smaller pieces and grow from there.

L. Scott Ferguson: Like

Danny Martin: for example, when I, when I opened my first business, it was a route 66 power sports. I bought into route 66 power sports. It was West a little bit. Like, yeah, that was in Ionia, Michigan. No, no, no, no. Yeah. So Ionia, Michigan. I I bought into that business, right? And, [00:28:00] and so I had my function. I was, I was, I was responsible for the, the sales personnel and inventory, right?

Right. And then the other two partners had their responsibilities. So that grew for quite a long time. Very, very successful. It was awesome. And then Bam, the 2008 financial crisis hit and it was like a light switch that went off. So

L. Scott Ferguson: it was,

Danny Martin: and, and, and so I, I didn’t give up at that point. , I, I kind of went through a couple of different things where I owned a bar.

I owned a, the rock bar and grill, excuse me, the rock bar and grill in Plymouth. It’s now the post bar and grill.

L. Scott Ferguson: Okay.

Danny Martin: And so I did that as a hedge against the power sports industry. Okay. And it turns out that now I lost the power sports industry. So now I’m a full time bar owner where I never wanted to be a full time bar owner, man, because that’s a brutal business in and of itself.

Hats off to any, kudos to anybody who’s owned a bar. But anyway, so then I did a couple other things and I opened a mattress and furniture store in Whitmore Lake. I did that for the eight years. But what was different was is I had to [00:29:00] learn the whole building a business from the ground up processes.

And if you think about that as a whole, you’ll never open a business ever, what I mean? Every, every single dynamic that comes into play. But if you chunk it down and you break it down into, into the systems, right. And then you start building momentum off of those little choices and completing those simple tasks, like getting your, your, your business license from the government and then getting your state licensing.

And then , building the manufacturers and then you’re and you’re getting all these yeses and filling out applications and they want to be a part of it and they want to, , help your small business. All of that creates momentum until you get all the way up to opening the doors and now you’re, it’s come to fruition and now everything else starts.

Now I have to build customers, I have to advertise, I have to, I have to work it, what I mean? Right. And then so, so if you, like I said, if you break it down and chunk it down, it becomes a whole lot easier than it does as a whole.

L. Scott Ferguson: Absolutely. Yeah, exactly. Again, it was, I didn’t make up inch by inch.

It’s a cinch, right? It was [00:30:00] Rod Harrison. One of my coaches was like, dude, he’s like inch by inch. Cause I would do that. I’d be like, Oh my gosh, I have to. He’s like, no dude. This is where we’re going. We got a path. You’re directing the path because every single coaching client Danny that I get ,I put them in their car for if i’m blessed to coach them locally , I put them in the driver’s seat and I sit in the passenger seat and I say Okay, this rearview mirror.

It’s small for a reason. That’s your pass. It’s a great place to learn from it’s a great place To visit for good memories, right? But this dashboard, it’s huge. It’s scary. Holy shit. Where are we going? Right. Since 2011 ish or so they’ve been putting this thing on, not on the actual dashboard, it’s called the GPS.

That’s what I am. Okay, I cannot buckle the seatbelt for you, put it in drive, start the car, start the car, put it in drive, and go. Okay, but, , if you’re trying to get somewhere, and that barrier comes up, punch it in, , and I’m there for you, for there. And once they get that, they know I’m not going to tell them what to do, [00:31:00] right?

They’re going to have to take the action, which you spoke about earlier, and they’ve got to get after it. But, hey, what, if they’re, if you’re going to drive down to see me in Florida, And there’s a big storm going on in the Carolinas or something. You’d be like, all right, dude, GPS, let’s go through Georgia.

You know what I’m saying? It’s just like, that’s what it is. And that’s what a great coach to me. And it sounds like to you is, is let’s just put them back on course. Correct. When needed. Absolutely. Love it. I love it. And what is Danny’s definition of a life well lived?

Danny Martin: Wow. I’ve experienced a lot. I think I’ve been well traveled.

I think my kids really are, if you, when you, if you’re not a parent already, when you become one and you realize the emotion that’s attached, where you’re willing to give your life for another person, it’s like, yeah, it changed you. It changes you instantly. As soon as that baby is in your arms for the very first time, man, it’s so emotional.

I’m getting emotional just talking about it [00:32:00] right now, because I remember each of the events of each of my kids, like it was yesterday and just looking at them in the, in their faces and just appreciating their soul. And not even, not even allowing them to have any sort of interaction yet. Cause they’re so, their infants are so young, but appreciating their whole soul, their whole soul, , that aura of holding them is incredible.

And you made it. Like what

L. Scott Ferguson: the hell? Time to shine today. Podcast varsity squad. We are back in Danny. Like I can’t wait to get down here and start rocking some stages together.

 Getting there getting this good word out And i’m sure we’ll talk about some of these questions, Probably 15 20 minutes, but today you have five seconds with no explanations that I promise you Okay, they can all be answered that way. So this is just kicking plymouth. Salem’s ass All right in the final minute.

You got the ball. You got this you ready? I’m ready. All right, here we go Danny danny, what is the best leveling up advice you’ve ever received?

Danny Martin: Yeah, you’ve got God gave you two ears and one [00:33:00] mouth listen more and talk less love it Sure, one of your personal habits that

L. Scott Ferguson: contributes your success learning and growth every single day.

Love it So you see me, kind of maybe walking around you like Fergie looks like he’s in his doldrums What book might you hand me that’s really flip that switch to level you up? I gotta say

Danny Martin: I’ve waken the giant with from within Yeah

L. Scott Ferguson: Your most commonly used emoji if any when you text Oh, smile.

Love it. Nicknames growing up? Danny, D, Big D. Danny, Big D, I love it. If you could be one age for the rest of your life, keep the knowledge you have now, and continue to garner more physically, physically what age would you be? Me too, dude. At least you put a two on the front. Thank you very much. So do you have any hidden talents and or superpowers that nobody knows about until now?

I can juggle. Nice. Love it.

Danny Martin: When I pulled out of the party, nobody expects it. [00:34:00]

L. Scott Ferguson: Just checkers and monopoly. Checkers. Love it. Headline for your life.

Danny Martin: Oh, headline for my life. Live with passion. Love it. So,

L. Scott Ferguson: any superstitions you buy into?

Danny Martin: Not really, man, no. I think everything is , everything has, can come to clarity if you just choose to be open minded.

Love it.

L. Scott Ferguson: Go to ice cream flavor.

Danny Martin: Ooh, butter pecan.

L. Scott Ferguson: Alright. There’s a sandwich called the Big Danny D. Build that sandwich. What’s on it?

Danny Martin: Oh, it’s got some salami, some capicola. It’s got some provolone cheese, Italian dressing. It’s got jalapeno peppers. It’s got some lettuce, some cucumbers, some Put some man candy on there, a little bacon

L. Scott Ferguson: too.

Yeah, there you go. Yeah. Favorite charity and or organization you like to give your time and or money to.

Danny Martin: Yeah, Salvation Army. They did wonders for my family and I feel just in giving back to them.

L. Scott Ferguson: Gotcha. Now you better answer this next question. It’s our last question. You can elaborate on this. [00:35:00] One as much as you want, but you better I better know this answer here But what is the best decade of music 60s 70s 80s or 90s 80s?

That’s right, baby. Big hair don’t care. You know what I’m saying? Loud and proud that’s right. So Danny, how can we find your brother?

Danny Martin: You can find me on instagram at Danny Martin success Facebook, Danny Martin success. Okay. Yep. And then our website is Danny Martin success. And that that’ll be coming up soon.

Yeah. By now

L. Scott Ferguson: it’ll be launched. So you can squat all of those in the show notes. And also you have authored a book. It begins with me, a sales blueprint. So tell us a little bit about that book.

Danny Martin: Yeah, thank you so much. So it’s about my journey and experience through through a lot of everything that we’ve talked about here and a whole lot more.

Everything that that we’ve been talking about is expanded exponentially in the book, and it’s actually going to be a two part book, a two part series, volume one and volume two, and it’s going to accompany a workbook that comes with it, too. So [00:36:00] you have you have the basis to be able to take advantage of exercises and implement strategies and put them into action, which is super cool.

It begins with me is the title of the book, but it’s not about me, Danny Martin. It’s about you, the reader, so that you understand that everything comes from within yourself and making quality choices and, and focusing on what went right and what didn’t go as you expected and how to grow from there.

Because I, I, I term, , we all think of strengths and weaknesses. I refuse to use weaknesses. We need to replace weaknesses with opportunities for growth. And those are, those are just a few of the nuggets that you’ll find in the book. Love it and

L. Scott Ferguson: squad. I’m going to do a five book giveaway So the first five people that puts big danny d In any of our social whether it be I don’t care if it’s pinterest I don’t care if you text it to five six one four four zero three eight three zero wherever it is on time to shine today’s time I will get that book out to you as soon as it drops which should drop when dan

Danny Martin: [00:37:00] First quarter target is February, but it may with some things that we’ve got going on and may move to March.

L. Scott Ferguson: Gotcha. It’s a must read it. I’m telling you right now. So again, I’m going to do a five book giveaway and then is it going to be on Kindle?

Danny Martin: Yes.

L. Scott Ferguson: Okay. And then a five Kindle giveaway as well, depending on what platform that you’d like, again, on time to shine today’s time. And then you also have a podcast that’s dropping.

What’s the name of that podcast? Danny Martin success. All of it. And what’s that going to cover?

Danny Martin: Yeah. So everything that are a whole wide range of growth and personal development and it’s also going to include strategies in the, in the book in terms of sales processes and that kind of thing. So it does cover a wide range of topics.

Yeah. But it’s all about self development and motivation.

L. Scott Ferguson: Got it. And just leaning into the ultimate human that, so yeah, I cannot wait till that drops. And is that kind of first, second quarter of 25 also? Okay, beautiful, beautiful. And Danny, do me one last solid and leave us with one last knowledge nugget.

We can take with us [00:38:00] internalize and take action on.

Danny Martin: Wow. So one last knowledge nugget would be focused on yourself. Dream big and then, and then, and don’t ever think that anything is too big. It never is everybody. There’s, there’s nothing that’s happened on this planet that didn’t start with an individual,

L. Scott Ferguson: right?

It’s true. Hunter. Yeah. And squad, it was such good. There’s a little bit of throwback for me today. Fantastic conversation. And I absolutely immensely respect Danny who literally learned his lessons from a loss of a job. , which was his paper out that he would lean into his best self from that point forward.

He took responsibility, which responsibility squad is nothing more than the ability to respond. He didn’t react. He responded. It’s rooted right in the word. He responded to a situation and he said, Hey, let’s climb the corporate ladder at, , started going to going through it at Meyer 50 acres. I haven’t said that in a while, but his passion is facilitate growth in others.

Which that resonates huge [00:39:00] with all my listeners out there and also with me, And he’ll say stay in it so the next guy can win it So no matter what you’re turning over if you’re climbing that corporate ladder leave that next person The ability to win it. And that’s what somebody like Danny does.

He’s planting trees. He’s never going to sit in the shade of, and that’s the kind of people I like to surround myself with. , he does things for the intention, not the attention. I know Danny does well, but he’s not out there going, Oh, look at my Lambo. Look at this, look at this. He does it for the intention, not the attention.

And that, which is again, the kind of people that are, we like to surround ourselves with, he believes a great coaches and empathizer and how he can make someone’s life easier. Right. He really leaned into leadership by growing as an intrapreneur at, , selling motorsports, right, at Pilgrim Motorsports.

And, , and he said, he reminded us that sales is nothing more than a transfer of enthusiasm. And while he was building this team within [00:40:00] there, he got rid of the energy vampire so he could focus on what he was good at. And while he was doing that at the time he didn’t really know he was stretching his own comfort zone It was growing he believes that core values are paramount Okay, he believes also that weakness is an opportunity for growth, challenges I search out challenges every day my coaching clients find something hard To do my thing is I wake up and go straight in the cold plunge before my gratitude Because I know that’s going to wake me up and get it going and if I can get that out of the way the hardest Thing out of the way I do that and lastly he reminds us to focus on your dream dream big Nothing is too big if you need help get your asking gear There’s people out there like danny that I can introduce and make a warm introduction to that help you guide you on that path He levels up his health.

He levels up his wealth , he’s got another varsity letter here from time to shine today, Thank you so much stanley for coming on man again. I absolutely respect you. I absolutely love your guts brother Awesome.

Danny Martin: Thank you for having me scotty, man. It’s great to see you brother as [00:41:00] always chat soon.

See ya.