Accelerated Growth and Operational Freedom Through Strategic Accountability and Executive Coaching

Speaker 0: I think the biggest thing I've learned from Neil is that relationships really are everything. They've opened doors that I never thought that I would be able to open on my own. And I've built companies through trust. And I think trust is the biggest foundation that Neil will lay with you from day one because he really wants to know who you are as a person and then build your company from there or whatever you're trying to build. If it's personal growth or professional growth, he's just someone that you really want in your corner. My name is Erin Hodges. I live in Lakewood Ranch, Florida, and I am a CEO and founder of Emerald Air Advisory, which is a consulting firm. So I was I met Neil. Was referred to him back in 2014. I had started an app company, and I was about to launch at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas. And I thought I had everything planned out and knew all the answers in my early twenties and then was quickly reminded that I didn't. And I just started working with him and my life changed on a multitude of levels. Before finding Neil, I was burning the candle at each end. You know, I was doing every single position in my company, so I needed to have some type of guardrails put in place. I've been a big ideas person, but how do we execute it and execute it cleanly? So speaking to Neil, you know, within my first conversation, that's when everything started to change. I was second guessing myself and micromanaging like every aspect of my company. So he saw that immediately. He kinda just made me get centered to myself. And the beauty about working with Neil first was that he wanna know about me as a person, not about my business. So once we started that and he started breaking down pieces that you're really great at this, but you're really weak in this area, it really helped me grow into what needed to be done and then delegate what I couldn't handle on my own. So Neil's a no BS kinda guy. He does not entertain egos or excuses. So for me, I love that. I love being held accountable for things. With him, you know, it's a rare opportunity because he'll just pull out the strongest parts of you. He tells you what you don't wanna hear at first. And I think looking at it from that lens, it makes you kind of step back and really prioritize, like, what you're trying to do. I think him, you know, instilling in me that relationships are everything and just be true to who you are first. And then people wanna trust the person. They're not trusting, like, the brand itself first. So that's just really been something that stuck with me. Being in his in the Neil sphere has accelerated my growth in ways that I really cannot fully quantify professionally and personally. He's not just mentoring individuals. He's really building rooms. CEO dinners, curated roundtables, bringing together high level operators and founders and leaders who challenge each other to think bigger and execute better. And that's something that you're not gonna get from someone who hasn't really done the work before. He's not just reading a book and regurgitating what you should be doing. He's actually lived it. He's done it. And he's executed it really well. So he's really strategic but not trendy. And I think that him being a no BS attitude is his biggest attribute. It's just tough love in like all the best ways. He sees the problem and he can kinda see where you're heading and he kinda pulls you back to be like, hey, you got this. Like, you know what to do. And I think being able to reset and level set your own expectations and him wanting to know the person first is is really one of his biggest things that he does best and better than anyone that I've met. Since we're with Neil, you know, I've been a leader in all aspects of my career as CEO of a company. And that's really opened a lot of doors for me. And I think having to know that I do know what I'm doing, I know who I am as a person, from him giving me the tools to be able to do that, and really just checking in with myself. You know, he's been my mentor and coach for for years. I just sit there and tell him everything that's going on, and we break it apart piece by piece. And some things are personal life, and a lot of it's the professional life. But him being able to put those two things together to make it a big cohesive experience is really something that you're gonna get real results in because you're building a person and your brand, and that should all be a big synergy, and that's what he does for people. If you're already in a position where you're looking to get coaching or work with someone like Neil, you're already heading in the right direction. I know after my first conversation, I felt like a brand new person. I was right back on track. If you're invited to one of his meetings or dinners or events, having a seat at the table is a privilege. And to really think that your time is just as valuable as his time, I would get him involved as early as you can when you're launching a business and and even for your own career and character development, and then you're gonna be able to go places quickly. I'm just happy that I've had the the ability to work with him. And it's really made me into the person I am today and the executive I've been since my career started.