Colin Scotland Joins Us On The Steve Jobs Inspired Join Up Dots Podcast
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Introducing Colin Scotland
Colin Scotland is todays guest joining us on the Steve jobs inspired Join Up Dots business podcast.
He is a self employed business coach and strategist who expertise is helping others to define their message, their direction, and the income that they wish to earn
His journey like most who have joined us on the show, is one of building, building, hustle and collapse.
We have seen either a physical collapse due to overwork, a mental collapse when confusion drives you to your knees, or a financial one over the years.
Right from the beginning watching sales come through on his own website was thrilling.
He couldn’t believe he could do business virtually like this.
He knew then somehow, building businesses online is what I am called to do. He was good at it.
Roll on a few months, he found himself sitting in front of a bank manager who for financial reasons was pulling the plug on his business, his dream.
How The Dots Joined Up For Colin
He escaped bankruptcy by the skin of his teeth and in the aftermath held down three jobs to keep food on the table. It was painful and rocked him to his core.
All the time my heart was calling me to create an online business that would allow me to spend more time with my family and loved ones.
As he says “Having built and lost an annual revenue of £4 million e-commerce businesses I realised I wasn’t happy ‘playing the game’.
I had a realisation that I wanted to do things my way. I wanted to create a business around conversations.
Conversations where I help people avoid the pitfalls I had fallen foul of.
Conversations where I help people to connect with the infinite possibilities the universe holds for them.
And from that genesis, my coaching practice was born.
He coaches mission-driven people, helping them to focus on their zone of genius and change lives doing what they love to do.
So did he need to the rise and fall to truly find the happiness in his life and throughout his business?
Was the magic of success actually in the obstacle in his way and not the clear path that people hope for?
Well let’s find out as we bring onto the show to start joining up dots with the one and only Mr Colin Scotland
Show Highlights
During the show we discussed such weighty subjects with Colin Scotland such as:
Colin openly shares his journey towards clarity and focus in his business, and why its the first thing that he teaches his clients to work on.
We discuss the problems that we all have when trying to see our own truth in our lives
and lastly……
Colin talks through the issues of building a business and why often our family are the losers in our dream building (even though they dont share the dream)
How To Connect With Join Up Dots
Return To The Top Of Colin Scotland
If you enjoyed this episode of Colin Scotland why not listen to some of our favourite podcast episodes such as Bruce Van Horn, Ted Yoder, Sean Swarner or the amazing Viral Videos
Or if you prefer just pop over to our podcast archive for thousands of amazing episodes to choose from.
Full Transcription Of Colin Scotland Interview
Intro [0:01]
Life shouldn’t be hard life should be a fun filled adventure every day. So now start joining up dots tap into your talents, your skills, your God given gifts and tell your boss, you don’t deserve me. I’m out of here. It’s time for you to smash that alarm clock. And start getting the dream business and life you will, of course, are dreaming of. Let’s join your host, David Ralph from the back of his garden in the UK, or wherever he might be today with another JAM PACKED episode of the number one hit podcast. Join Up Dots.
David Ralph [0:40]
Yes, good morning to you. Good morning to our world. Yes, sexy individuals. Good morning, and welcome to Join Up Dots. Thank you for being with us. Well, over the last few weeks, we’ve had quite a lot of just me chatting, giving you words of wisdom advice, business strategy, and just basically say, look, you’re only here once you know enjoy yourself. Well, today’s guest he does, you can see it. And one of the reasons I wanted to have him on the show was when he was suggested to me his face was all smiley and happy and I thought he looks like a good guy to be with. He’s a self employed business coach and strategist whose expertise is helping others to define their message their direction, and I suppose the income that they wish to earn now he’s journey like most who have joined us on the show is one of building, building, hustle and collapse. Now we’ve seen over a physical collapse due to overwork and burnout and mental collapse when confusion drives you to your knees, you got no idea what you should be doing next, or a financial one over the years. Now, right from the beginning, watching sounds come through on his own website was thrilling. He couldn’t believe he could do business virtually like this. He knew event somehow building businesses online is what he was called to do. And he was good at it. Now hold on a few months, and he found himself sitting in front of a bank manager who for financial reasons, was pulling the plug on his business, and therefore his dream. Now he escaped bankruptcy bought a skin of his teeth and in the aftermath held down three jobs to keep food on the table. It was painful, and rocked him to his core. All the time, his heart was calling him to create an online business that would allow him to spend more time with his family and loved ones not keep him away from them. And as he says having built and lost an annual revenue of 4 million e commerce, I realised I wasn’t happy playing the game. I had a realisation that I wanted to do things my way. I want you to create a business around conversations, conversations where I help people avoid the pitfalls I’d fallen foul of conversations, where I help people to connect with the infinite possibilities. The Universe holds for them. And from that Genesis, my coaching practice was born. He now coaches, mission driven people helping them to focus on their zone of genius, and change lives doing what they love to do. So did he need to have the rise and fall to truly find the happiness in his life and throughout his business? And what’s the magic of success actually, kind of in the obstacle that was in his way and not the clear path that people hope for? Well, let’s find out as we bring onto the show to start joining up dots with the one and only Mr. Collins, Scotland.
Colin Scotland [3:27]
Whoa, what a beautiful, beautiful introduction, David. I am wonderful. Thank you for asking. Yes. It’s a pleasure to be here.
David Ralph [3:34]
It is lovely to have you and yeah, right from the very beginning when you got sent photo me. I get a load of pictures. I’m a headshots. Most people are really miserable and intense. And you just look like happy you had rosy cheeks you look like you were sort of loving life. So is it? Is it live every day? Are you rosy cheeks and loving life? Or do you wake up some days? And God really? I’m as lost as the next person?
Colin Scotland [4:04]
Do you know what more days than let than fewer are waking up with a big smile on my face right now? It wasn’t always the case of course. Right? I know. And there are bad days like everyone but for the most part man Yeah. and Canada living the dream, right? Living the dream.
David Ralph [4:19]
And is it is the dream. This is an interesting thing because my dream has kind of got less and less as in when I started Join Up Dots. It was about global domination. It was about you know, financial telephone numbers coming through to me. And I got that and it didn’t really make me happy. It just felt flat somehow. But now the ability to like go for a walk in the country in the middle of the day when I know everybody else’s work is that kind of stuff that’s almost free, which I can do because I’m financially supported now. That is my real dream. I’ve I kind of found the dream later and the dream was all around me anyway.
Colin Scotland [5:02]
Oh yeah, do you not think that the first part of life we spend striving for that financial security and for we put our store in building the biggest, most successful, biggest thing that we possibly can, and it’s only either when we get it or we don’t get it, or we have it and we lose it like I did, that we realise we’re doing that that’s not the end, that’s the means to a different end. And the true end is the valuable time that we get to spend on this earth in this body, walking in nature, experiencing the joy of relationships with those around us. That’s the real richness of this life. And I think we have to go through the striving phase, to be able to realise that for ourselves.
David Ralph [5:48]
It’s funny, because I was greedy, I wanted everything. And I hadn’t defined what I actually wanted that that was the thing, and I look back on it. And one of the things that interest me with you and I was looking over your business is through a theme. It’s about focus. It’s about clarity. And once you define your direction, you’re kind of you’re on the way, it’s when you’re looking at bass and looking at that and jumping here and jumping bear in this new thing comes along. And certainly in my early days, I was leaping like Tigger on Crystal maps all over the place. I didn’t know what the next right thing was to do. Is it about focus? Is it about clarity? Is that the first step that you advise people to sort of focus in on really knowing where they’re heading?
Colin Scotland [6:41]
100%? Because, look, let’s face it, we’re all like cats chasing the light, the light, aren’t we, you know, we’re all like jumping after it. What’s that? What’s that over there? Right? We’re, we’re bouncing about all over the room, around the next shiny object syndrome, they call it don’t know, right? And that’s how we all find ourselves. Because we’re drawn in, we’re drawn into these things, right? Whether it’s a technology or a piece of, you know, software, or a technique or a tactic or something or other, everything’s like feels so appealing. And it’s really easy just to be tossed and blown in the wind effect effectively. And then kind of falling out of that and looking around and going, Well, where am I? Why am I not realising the thing that I want? Why am I not? Why am I not? Where I want to be financially or from a time perspective? Why is my business not where it needs to be. And when we honestly and truthfully assess what we’ve done, we’ve actually made little, we’ve made a lot of work, we’ve done a lot of work, but we’ve made little progress towards that thing that we want, because we don’t really know what it is. We’re just kind of bumbling along, blowing in the wind. Going with it. You know, this week, we’re doing a webinar next week, we’re doing this this week, we’re on social media, and next week, we’re doing this, and there’s no real like, anchor, there’s no real grounding as to why we’re doing it. Why are we doing it in the first place? Right? You mentioned about that choice to go for a walk in the middle of the day when the rest of the world is working? That these are the things that that when we actually realise and achieve them. We kind of go, Yeah, I’m doing it. I’m doing it.
David Ralph [8:21]
What interests me about you, Collin, is that you were eyes wide open. You were out there in Liverpool, you were going networking, you would go to conferences, you you were looking everywhere. And then a message came through to you. And the message was from a podcast I believe you were listening to or an interview where the guy basically changed your life. And from then on, you didn’t focus in on networking events, you didn’t focus in on anything other than this, this phrase this this bit of mantra really that you had to repeat every day. Do you remember this? And can you share it with us?
Colin Scotland [9:06]
Yeah, absolutely. So you know, you mentioned the shiny object syndrome, I was the world’s worst for that. And I always felt like the answer was out there. And if I can just find I was a marketer, right? I used to lecture in marketing for the CI m in the UK, the Chartered Institute of marketing, before I built my online business, and I knew, I thought I knew marketing inside out. And I tried the stuff that I thought I knew, and it didn’t really work in the realm of coaching after my business failed. And so I would, I would just literally look everywhere thinking, Oh, it’s because I’m not doing a webinar. It’s because I’m not doing I’ve not got this funnel in place. And I’ve not got an ad and I would I was the cat chasing the light, right? I was literally chasing around thinking, Oh, when I get this email sequence when I get this website when I get this landing page Yeah, we’ve all been Okay, so there’s the answer. Yeah, yeah, this is what I need. This is what I need. And I literally wasted I probably wasted maybe five years, five years, really three to five years, just literally chasing objects and getting the next software I was I am, oh, let me just say this, I’m holding my hand up in the air right now. I am calling Scotland and I’m a recovering AppSumo addict. Because I just was would literally be buying lifetime deals of this, that and the other and, you know, spending every penny that I earned on on software and tools and thinking that the next shiny object would solve my problems. And I was listening, I remember it, I was driving, I was driving to a meeting in Liverpool and I was on the motorway, I literally, sweat, literally swerve the car as I listened to this guy, because it was like a bright shining light. Inside of me realising that the this guy was describing how he made a big difference in his coaching practice. And it was when he actually became sure and certain from the inside, about why he’s doing what he’s doing, and the difference that that would make in other people’s lives. And I kind of realised that wow, saying, isn’t it right when when we change the world around us changes, but I kind of felt it on the I’ve heard that saying and didn’t know what it meant until I felt it. And it was like, wow, so So actually, maybe the answer isn’t out there. And maybe it’s inside of me. And it was that, that sparked a whole chain reaction of events that literally changed everything. And so that that was why I then, you know, focused everything that I did around that. Because it was that that made all of the difference, not the funnel, not the webinar, not the shiny object. But me How weird is that weird and wonderful, right?
David Ralph [11:49]
It’s It’s funny, though, because it’s so easy. It’s so obvious, you know, because we should know ourselves better than anyone we beat ourselves from the moment we were born. But you just don’t do you. You don’t know your own self. And it takes other people to be able to shine a light on you. That there must be a reason why there must be a reason why we can’t see our own truth somehow.
Colin Scotland [12:20]
It’s interesting, that’s a really interesting question. Because what I kind of what I believe what I feel what I’ve experienced is, we all have a divine spark, right and an infinite spark of divinity within us. People call it our soul, our chi, our Shakti. And there are lots and lots of different words for this essence, this, this infinite being that dwells within us. But it’s, it’s almost smothered. And it’s, it’s unable to, to to breed like a fire, right? If we have to imagine a fire that’s burning, and we put a wet blanket over the fire. The fire underneath is like, smothered and covered and we can’t see it. We don’t we only see glimpses of it. And so our mind is busy going, Oh, you need to do this. And you’re not good enough for that. And why haven’t you done enough of that? And why haven’t you done more of this. And it it, it acts as that wet blanket on the fire. And it obscures the reality of who we are as human beings and how we’re actually made up. And I think, really, our job in this life is to remove the blanket, piece by piece, layer by layer, and just uncover that, that divinity within. And that’s really the meaning of all of these different signs that you hear, you know, when you change the world around you changes. And when we uncover we see little, we see little glimpses and we see sparks, you see it in other people, and you see people that are truly radiant, you feel their energy, you feel that power from them. And it’s not that they’re any different to you, far from it, that just as as bruised and as broken as you, but they’ve just peeled away a few layers, you know, and a bit of that light is shining through. And we feel that it’s not a physical thing. It’s a it’s an invisible thing, but we can truly feel it. And if we can just peel back some of those layers inside of us. And sometimes it can be painful, like ripping a plaster off, you know, sometimes it’s uncomfortable, or the times it’s joyous, but that’s the work. And if we can do that, that’s when everything around us changes Truly, it really, really is, you know,
David Ralph [14:41]
it’s a real balance, isn’t it? We’re going to discuss this a little bit more after these words. Here’s Jim Carrey.
Jim Carrey [14:46]
My father could have been a great comedian, but he didn’t believe that that was possible for him. And so he made a conservative choice. Instead, he got a safe job as an accountant. And when I was 12 years old, he was let go from that safe job and are family had to do whatever we could to survive. I learned many great lessons from my father, not the least of which was that you can fail at what you don’t want. So you might as well take a chance on doing what you love.
David Ralph [15:12]
Now, of course, the problem with that is people don’t know what they love, because they need to find the money to pay bills. So from the moment you go through the education system, it’s just get a job and get out there. And then that job becomes your career and then you’re so attract for ages. Now, if we go back to you talking about people that are radiant, and people that are sort of you see them shining, I have something that I call my motivation rocket, that I can just fire into someone, and I can see them see the possibilities in life, I can see them change in front of me. And I, I’ve always been able to do this, Colleen, and it’s just something that I could do. But I realised probably about 1015 years ago, that there was a tipping point, when it was too powerful for the person to receive. And I’m not talking like a sort of Spider Man super talent, but I could, I could go on too much of a full flow. And the person would shrivel in front of me because they weren’t ready to, to shine their own light on them. They weren’t ready to take some of my shine and, and take it into their own life. Do you see that with your own clients, but but some that really want it, but then when you really give it to them? They go, No, hang on, hang on this, this is too much for me at this moment.
Colin Scotland [16:35]
Yeah, of course, I mean, the reality of this is we’re all on a journey, right? And we’re all at different stages and different phases and different places in our journey. And look, I know better than a lot of people how it feels to not be able to put food on the table or to, you know, not not have a place to live or not have a the ability to buy clothes and, and feed your children. You know, this is these are real things that what we’re talking about when we say about changing within and the world around you changes that’s, that’s a spiritual invisible realm kind of concept that, you know, that’s, that’s a luxury to some people. Because you have to fulfil your physical duties, you have to have air to breathe, and water to drink and food to eat, right? And once you’ve got those things, then you can then you can realise the self actualization stuff that Maslow talks about, right? This real development as a human being. But I think where no matter where you are in the journey, what’s really important is just to take a step back and realise that the air, the water, the food, those things. They’re not what sustains you, they’re what sustain you physically? Yes, of course they are. But they’re not the ends. Like we talked about chasing money, I chased money. In my ecommerce business, it was multi million pounds in revenue, everything was wonderful, from the outside looking in, right. But on the inside, I was empty. Yes, I’d gotten past that place of scarcity and not being able to pay my bills, because I had more money than I knew what to do with. But that didn’t give me happiness, because I just chased the things that I need that I felt like I needed, I need more money. I’ve been as a young boy, in Liverpool, mom and dad didn’t have a lot of money when I was young, and you know, is like more more, more, more more, I need more money, I need to build this business Bigger, bigger, bigger, I need to be more successful, I need to be the best I need to be number one, I need to take everything where it needs to be and add a degree of that inside of that business, but I wasn’t happy. I was drinking too much. I wasn’t the best father. I wasn’t around as much as I’d like to have been. Because I was busy on business trips and building this thing that I thought was the most important thing in the world. And so I think the lesson in that is, yes, we’ve got to put food on the table. Yes, we’ve got to eat yes, we’ve got to breathe. But it’s the base foundation of our existence. It’s not our existence, our existence is bigger than that. And it’s greater than that. So yes, you’ve got to balance the two. As soon as you find that balance, don’t allow it to consume you. And then realise that that is just the foundation. That’s the starting point. from that starting point, you can leap and go into great things.
David Ralph [19:35]
There’s a there’s a guy and the Americans may not know him or whatever, but it’s called Steven Gerrard and he’s a he’s a Liverpool legend. Colin comes from Liverpool. So he might just have heard of Steven Gerrard. And he was a football manager up in Scotland for a few years and he’s just moved down to England to manage a team called Aston Villa. And I heard him talking the other day and they said, you know, why have you moved? Why have you moved down. And literally everything came down to the fact that his kids hadn’t seen him for three and a half years. It wasn’t about money. It wasn’t about success. It wasn’t about that. It was just the fact that he separated himself from his family because of his career. And somewhere inside, he said, No, hang on, this isn’t right, I need to change direction and move down. And it really struck me as powerful that he could have said, Yeah, my football goals, my visa, my bat, but he didn’t, he just came down to the fact that he’s got a three year old kid who’s never really seen him. Simple as that.
Colin Scotland [20:37]
This is where I mean, what a powerful lesson for all of us, because this is where when we, when we realise and we look inward, and we realise the things that are truly important for us, then that gives us the courage to make a decision like that. When I had my E commerce business, David, there’s no way in the world I would give that up, it had to be ripped away from me, it had to go bust it had to explode, you know, or implode. Otherwise, I would, I would just, I still stayed in that I would have probably ended up and alcohol or divorced alcohol, alcoholic liver, you know, a big a big full bank account and nothing else. But that had to be taken away from me. And often, it’s a jolt that we need to make us realise that we’re just kind of, you know, we’re going through the motions, we’re in this, this entrenched way of being and doing things. And what great courage for Steven there to take that decision. What great courage it takes for any of us to go, gee, you know what, I’m not going to do this, I’m not going to stay doing this thing that I’m doing that just feels like I’m wasting every day of my life, every moment every day, truly is a gift. And if we allow that, that just to pass by then What a shame. That is, what a shame that is right?
David Ralph [21:52]
When you lost your business. And this is kind of leading question because I’ve experienced this many times myself. And whether it’s a financial loss I’m going to get or whether it’s a status and ego lost, but I’m going to gain I have clung on with all my my my mind to try to do everything I possibly can to turn this situation around. When it actually gets lost. I felt like a liberation. It’s it was like, I didn’t really want this anyway, you know, and now it’s been taken away from me. Thank God, it’s gone. Did you feel anything similar? Or was it just doom and gloom and despair? How did you get through it?
Colin Scotland [22:36]
It’s really interesting, isn’t it that because when it first happened, I was I was devastated. It was like somebody had died, really was I went through a grieving process. Because like you mentioned there, I was attached to that I was attached to the financial rewards that that brought, I was attached to the lifestyle, all of the things. And so yeah, it was hard. It was tough. It felt like felt like somebody had died, I’ll be honest. And it was, it took me about two, two years, perhaps to to recover really mentally. And from an emotional point of view from that. And it was, I remember the day I was in a conversation with one of my mentors. And at the time I was I was trying to build my marketing kind of consultancy. And coaching was in its infancy. For me at that point, this was this was before I heard that, that podcast that we spoke about earlier. And I was in a conversation with a mentor, and I don’t I would I would always go into conversations and say, Yeah, built a business, it was 4 million in revenue and online business, I can help you to do X, Y and Z. omitting the fact that it went bust, right, because the fact that it went bust made me feel like a total and utter failure. Like you know Who you calling to be advising these people on their marketing when you’re a failure. You’re nobody wants to hear and learn from a failure. That’s like that little voice in my head. Who do you think you are? Who do you think you are? And so in this conversation with this mentor, she actually asked me about my story. And for the first time I shared it, and I cry, I literally cried, I don’t mind saying that I cried I and she was like, well, in open, she was like, wow, you need to share that. You need to own that, that lost that that failure in inverted commas. Right? And, and make that part of who you are. Because that’s, that’s, that is part of who you are. And I didn’t realise at the time, right? But we’re all we’re all just trying to be the truest expression of ourselves. Not the truest expression of somebody else, but the truest expression of ourselves. And so when we, when we appreciate that the things that happen to us, good, bad, indifferent. They’re all things that happen to us in our experience, and it is those things that make us who we are and So really, we, we should embrace the things that we would call as failures. You mentioned in the intro there, the obstacle is the way, the things that are hurting us are the things that allow us to grow. And so it took me a couple of years to realise that and I don’t, you know, if I’d have had a conversation with me, on day one, I would be going even on about right, go, you know, I just need to pay my bills right now. I’ve got, I was doing three jobs. And I was literally like, working all hours just to pay pay the bills. But, but that’s, that’s the truth of this is that all the things that happen are an expression of you. And so if you if you own those things, and don’t attach yourself to them, you know, oh, I wish, I wish I still had that business. I wish this I wish the other, that business failing, was the thing that allowed me to literally spring up a bed on a Monday morning. And I pinch myself that I get to do the things that I do to have wonderful and rich conversations with people like you, David, this is this is my life, and I’m so blessed to be able to live this but I live this when I said I’m living the dream this you know, this, the reality is, I’ve been through hell to get to the dream, but that you have to go through that in order to appreciate and realise the the joy and the wonderful things that that come up in your life. Right?
David Ralph [26:25]
We’re talking to Colin, Scotland, we’ll be back in part two. Would you love free coaching expert business lessons and the ability to be surrounded by like minded go getters or building six figure incomes online for free? What Join Up Dots six, bigger Online Business School is now open and showing you how to create a 10k income online per month. So if you’re serious and changing your life forever, head over to join up dots.com forward slash Bisco and register today. And did we say it’s free? Yeah, I’m sure we did. That is join up dots.com forward slash Bisco. Now, let’s go back to what you were saying in part one, calling about the obstacle is the way now, I want to delve into that because I totally understand it. And I talk openly and often too much probably. But I think it’s very, very important about the acute burnout that I had, and how my health just fell to pieces. And now because of that I’m so focused in on looking after myself and meditating and getting fresh air. And I’m feeling better than I post possibly should do at my age now, only because of that because of that obstacle was in the way. So people will try to get rounded obstacle, water will try to get round an obstacle in the easiest way possible. So is it the case of blasting through it? Or just accepting that it’s fair and trying to find the lessons in it
Colin Scotland [28:02]
was an interesting, what an interesting question. And I think I think the reality is that these things that come up these things that appear as obstacles in the way right, these are, these are resulting from one of two things. And Buddha talks about our source of suffering, being one of either desire or attachment. We either desire for things to be different than what they are right now. Oh, I wish this I wish that I wish the other I wish I had that. Or attachment to things that we thought we had, I wish I had that business again, oh, I wish I’d hadn’t had that conversation with that person. And now they won’t like me and all of this. And we live in one or the other. And so when we’re not happy with things, we kind of see an issue. Something arises that disturbs us, then we tend to kind of have a wish for them to be different than what they are right? So I wish this business was doing six figures right now. And it’s only doing this or I wish it was doing that. And it’s only doing that. And that’s driven by as a wish first for things to be different than what they are right. So if we rather than look at that, and think, Okay, how do we go around it? How do we go over it? How do we go through it, but on packet on pack that desire or that attachment and realise for what it is? That it’s our, our wanting for things to be different? And if we appreciate that, you know, I could have what I did, I would literally walk around the streets of my town with my dog thinking and my wife thinking, wow, you know, why is this happening to me? Why is this happening to me like literally waving my fist in the air? lamenting the fact that I just lost everything in the world physically, materially. And and I guess it was it was, it was more a realisation of, actually these things are happening for my growth, not at the time. Again, just stressing that it didn’t happen at the time, it happened in retrospect, that you appreciate the things that show up in your life are our lessons that you can be better you mentioned about being in the best health possible because of meditation and all of these things that you do in there, David. And I think that’s so true, these things come up, to help us overcome and be better. And often, there’s a difference between the answer of going around or going through, if we have an issue, that’s an immovable, immovable object, right? Something that we have to go around, we can’t go through, then sometimes we have to, we have to navigate around the roads, close the head, we have to go on a diversion. That’s, that’s one way of looking at this. But then other times, and often more often than not, the problems and the obstacles that come up are not actually real. They are things like fear, like, I’m not good enough to do this. I don’t have, you know, I’m scared, I don’t feel like it will work and I can’t see people pay me money for doing that I can’t, I can’t see a way through. And so the obstacle then becomes a a illusion, if you like something that isn’t real, because it’s based in fear. And those kinds of obstacles are ones that we literally take a step forward and walk into, and they vanish. You know, if we have a room that’s dark, this is interesting. There is no such thing as darkness, only the absence of light. So if we go into a room that’s dark, and we flip the light switch on, where does the darkness go disappears, there is no darkness, the light shines, the darkness goes. So fear is the same. There is no such thing as fear. Helen Schumann in A Course in Miracles calls it fear as being the absence of love. So if we breathe love into that situation that we’re afraid of, then the fear just like the darkness, when we flick the light disappears, it goes. So that’s it. That’s an example of where that obstacle can be gone through. Not around right. Of that.
David Ralph [32:24]
It’s interesting to hear you talk that there is a is almost a sort of Eastern philosophy centre to you that comes out I read a lot of stuff on Taoism and Buddhism, and I’m generally I realise I’m not a religious person. But I like the message of goodness that religion brings until it goes too far. When it becomes war and stuff. There, there’s a there’s a good message in many of these things. Now, this is coming out big time in you, I use somebody that has done a lot of self development, looking at Eastern philosophies and stuff coming.
Colin Scotland [33:05]
Yeah, so that real dawning realisation that I am, I am, I am the person that’s in, in control in charge are able to make all of the difference in not just my life, but in the lives of all of those that we you know, we’re all connected to all of those in the world. And so that set me on a pathway to self perpetual self development. I am now a and an addict for all of these things, right? So yeah, absolutely. The doubter Ching, the Michael singers Untethered Soul? Well, what a book that changed my life. And yeah, just like all of us on a continual pathway of, of trying to be better, right, trying to find an express that truest version of me in the world. That’s, that’s what I’m doing. That’s what I’m trying to help other people to do the same right? through the vehicle of marketing for me,
David Ralph [33:59]
because I have read the down teaching many times, and I have read many different books. And everything comes down to and this is where I am at the moment. Everything comes down to whoa, slow down and focus, everything. And I am in a business strategy at the moment where I’m trying to get my business quieter and quieter. So I’m not just doing stuff for the sake of it. I’m doing stuff because it needs to be done. And I find that comes to me by walking away from him and not delta sit bear. Now, one of the things that sort of Eastern philosophy talks about is effortless action. Not not doing anything, not just sitting there, but doing the right thing when it’s easier because the the stars have lined up somewhat. That is something that certainly new business owners don’t ever stop to think about. They think it’s all about go 100 miles an hour to get where they want to go, but slow wins the race, doesn’t it?
Colin Scotland [35:06]
I think the reality is we’re, we’re all programmed out, we were all programmed and conditioned by society, the world around us, our parents, our, the people that we’re connected to. And there’s this sense of, you know, we live in a society that that operates on a tax system, we all go to work. Post in the post war area era, there’s there was this sense of, you know, we have to be more productive to get the economy back on track, and everybody has to get a job and work and, and that’s the kind of, that’s the backdrop, that’s the background noise that’s going on in the world that we grow up, you get up, you grow up, you get an education, you work, work, work, then you retire. And maybe you’ll have some free time at the end of all of that, if you’re lucky, right. And I think that mentality that conditioning, it just doesn’t fit with society, as we know it today. So we, we have those things programmed into our operating system. But then we look around and we kind of, you know, we call it into question, and we, we have a feeling in our stomach of incongruency, it just doesn’t fit, is it? Is this my life? Right? Do I just literally pour all my time and energy into work for 40 years, and then die is that there has to be more to it than that. And I think when we appreciate that the truth that we hold within us isn’t necessarily a truth. It’s a conditioned belief. It’s something that’s programmed into us, and we are able to question and step outside of it, that’s when we appreciate that, actually, we can, we can do so much more. In so little. So less, with so less in such such a smaller amount of time. And and that’s the paradox of the world that we live in. We feel like we have to, we have to hustle, hustle, you know, work 18 hours work 20 hours, if you only work 16 hours, somebody’s working 20 And they’re gonna outdo you and and you’re going to be you know, you’re going to be outdone, and you won’t succeed, and you won’t have the things that you want, and your family will suffer and you’ll suffer. And that’s the message that we hear. And actually, the opposite of that is true. Yes, look, yes, you’ve got to do the action, I’m not getting away from that. If I want to build a business, I’ve got to put the work in, I’ve got to put the hours in to actually take the action, but the the action has to be in the right direction. So we don’t want to be blowing in the wind, like we spoke about at the start doing all the wrong things. We can take small micro steps towards the right thing and get there amazingly fast. I was listening to some writers talking about productivity. And the these guys were happy if they could spend an hour and a half a day in flow, writing, actually creating something an hour and a half in a day, right? Most of us in the western world were conditioned to work at least eight hours a day, right? That’s the way that the society’s constructed around us. You must work eight hours a day. And imagine if we could do more in a fraction of that. Why do you think Tim Ferriss book The Four Hour Workweek was so popular, right? Because that’s, that’s the way that we know we should and could live our lives. It’s achievable. And interestingly, when we take a pause when we stop, that’s when things change. Because when that when that business went bust for me, that forced me to take a pause. And it forced things to change. For me, I was allowed the freedom to change because I had no choice. I wouldn’t have chosen that for myself. I was speaking with a client just last week, who was really struggling to come up with the programme that she’s she’s coaching on. And she tried and try spent hours and hours and hours and hours and hours and hours, sat at a desk and was really tearing her hair out. She went out for a walk with the dog. And in 20 minutes, had the whole programme. She came back she messaged me so excited, because in that 20 minutes, she literally designed her entire business 20 minutes, she’d spent hour upon hour upon hour. And so I don’t think it’s the amount of time that you put in, it’s the quality. And you mentioned focus. So if we’re focused and we know that the thing we’re doing is going to get us a step along the pathway to where we want to go. Wow, that’s worth so much more infinitely more than the hours and hours and hours that are just literally wasted. Right.
David Ralph [39:49]
I’ve been building up to this question and it’s something that I’ve been reflecting on a lot. And basically being an entrepreneur is very selfish. It is selfish. I A lot of the times our family are quite happy for us to just go down to, you know, the local bank and do eight hours of income home. They don’t actually understand why we’re driven to do this. And a lot of times, they have to make sacrifices, they have to realise that they’re not going to see us. Where’s your wife? Now? Based on your dream building? Is she happier? Now? Have you ever asked her about? Was she happy at the time? Was it? You know? Where was she on the journey with you?
Colin Scotland [40:32]
So, my wife has said to me numerous times over the last five or six years that I’ve been creating this coaching practice this current iteration of who I am, you’ve changed, you’ve changed. And at first, it was difficult. At first, it caused friction, because I was doing all of this self development work all of this exploration. And I can’t he kind of called my ego into question, I was like, oh, man, what’s going on, right? And then, and now we reflect and we look back together at, at the person I am now versus the person I was when I was, you know, running, chasing money chasing the business thing. And it’s, it’s a change in a positive way. So we look at the freedom that that affords us, the time that we have as a family, the ability to, you know, go out for walks, to go kayaking to have the things that we want in our lives. And the the reality of realising where you’re at, in the journey, you know, and so there’s a, there’s a kind of a peace and a satisfaction that now now that it’s kind of realised, it’s like, wow, this is so much better, because we’re not just working all the hours, we have, you know, time freedom to do the things that we want to do. And it’s, she’s in a good place with it. We both are, right, it’s it, obviously, it’s all relative, it’s all relative, because you always want to get to the next thing or do the next thing or realise the next product or service or whatever it is that you’re playing with. But for the most part, when I contract when we when we we do this in conversation, right? Our thing is walking the dog we walk the dog and we just tok tok, Tok Tok Tok. Where are we right now compared to where we were 5677 years ago when the business went bust? And it’s like, wow, you know, she says to me, you are such a better person now. Because, you know, I was, like I said, I was drinking more than I would like to admit to I was not, you know, angry and stressed and all of that. And those things are no longer here in my life, or they, they are here in my life. That’s a lie, but not to the degree that they were. And so yeah, things are, things are better. There is a, there is a green pasture, on the other side of that turmoil,
David Ralph [43:03]
where you’ve been on a journey, and this man certainly went on a journey, and he’s left these words for us is Steve Jobs.
Steve Jobs [43:09]
Of course, it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards, 10 years later. Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something, your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Because believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart, even when it leads you off the well worn path. And that will make all the difference.
David Ralph [43:45]
Now set in another way, you got to start walking, you know, you’re not going to find the path if you just stand there and wait for things to happen. So when you listen to those words, obviously they do reflect strongly on most of the journeys on Join Up Dots, if not all of them. But is there a moment when you would go? Yeah, yeah, as I am now, I’m ready for the next part that he’s talking about. I can see where the dots have led. And it’s almost given me stepping stones forward.
Colin Scotland [44:18]
I think it’s it’s an interesting one, it’s a bit like it’s a bit like physically walking out in the country, right, you can see a short path in front of you. You can’t see the entire journey. Because there are trees, there are things in front of you that things that you just you just can’t see the entire journey. And so what happens is it happens in phases. So you walk through a turnstile and all of a sudden you can see a field with sheep and and all of that and but you can’t see what’s beyond that. And I think that happens in stages and phases through the journey. So you, you take steps forward, and then the countryside unfolds in front of you. And so the the more steps you take for Word, the more countryside that you see, the more that you appreciate the steps and the journey. And it’s the steps in the journey where the enjoyment truly lies. So it doesn’t change, the perspective doesn’t change, you don’t see more. You don’t, you’re not able to see the end of the journey, nobody is. But you’re able to appreciate that it’s the steps that you take along the way.
David Ralph [45:21]
I think where I am now I can see the end of the journey. I can see when I’ve had enough and it’s ready to, or maybe it’s the same journey. Yeah, maybe it’s the same journey. It’s just I’ve, I’ve gotten to a point and I’ve decided to go off in a different direction, because certainly we’ve Join Up Dots on where we are now. Will it will never end, I think it will end when they pull the internet office and say, go back to cycling to your local library and look things up like we used to in the 70s. I think that’s the only way that’s going to stop. But there are certainly with me a clarity of where I’m heading, but I certainly didn’t have before. And when I’ve had enough, it’s time to move on to something else.
Colin Scotland [46:04]
It’s all relative as well, isn’t it because the things that are important to you right now today, in this moment, will change in three months time that your priorities may change, circumstances may change. It’s a constantly evolving thing, you know, just like the world spinning around flying through space, it’s always changing. It’s always changing, everything is always in flux. And so I think this is where we have to be truly honest with ourselves and reflective. So yes, we we operate in the world, we strive to do this and achieve that, and be this and, and realise that, but there’s a sense of that shifting perspective. So you know, we walk through one field into another, we walk through one pathway, and another one opens up. And that’s the nature of being. And so if we, if we’re just accepting of that, then we can truly experience it for what it is and know that this is the same right to everything, there is a season and it’s diamond to heaven. And if we appreciate that we can just truly enjoy the richness that is around us in this moment, because the next one will be different.
David Ralph [47:12]
Well, this is the bit of the show that we’ve been leading up to is the journey that all guests go on on Join Up Dots to the Sermon on the mic when we send you back in time to have a one on one with your younger self. And if you could go back in time and speak to the young Collin. Ben, what age would you speak to? And what advice would you give him? Well, we’re going to find out because I’m going to play the music. And when it fades, it’s your time to talk. This is the Sermon on the mic
Unknown Speaker [47:43]
here we go with the best bit of the show the Sermon on the mind the sermon on
Colin Scotland [48:04]
I want to talk to you about a pathway to success and give you the things that I feel would compress condense, shorten that pathway for you. I truly believe if you are able to take the words of Jordan Peterson and stop comparing yourself to others. But instead compare yourself today to who you were yesterday, then it will change everything for you. It will really really stop you from going here chasing there. Finding yourself in all manner of things that aren’t fulfilling your purpose that aren’t leading you to the place where you know, you know inside that you are truly called to be and yet you are drawn by the things that you don’t have, by the things that you wished you had, that you did have that you no longer have. And you are torn inside by that turmoil. And you look out there into the world in the aftermath of that business loss and you go, Ah, look, I know marketing. I know this. I’m good at that. I’m good at this. And then you look out into the world and you see wonderful human beings out there that are at the pinnacle of their journey. And it makes you feel so small. It makes you feel so insignificant. and you look and you go, you deflated like a balloon when the airs let out of it. I could never do that. I wish I could do that. But I could never do that. That’s not for the likes of me. And what that does is it takes the wind out of your sails, and you feel a sense of unworthiness? Well, I want to tell you, that you are worthy. I see you, I believe in you, and you can achieve whatever it is that you want to achieve. The way that you do that is to stop comparing yourself to others. And look inward, look at you. It sounds strange, because it is strange, it’s paradoxical. It’s not what you expect. You think that you have to just keep going and keep going and keep going and keep going. And you don’t, you truly don’t. So I’m inviting you to stop to look at you where you are right now. And look at where you would like to be. And then wake up tomorrow, and commit to taking a step towards that place that you’d like to be. Rather than just being pushed and pulled and torn by all of that stuff out there. Because it won’t get you where you want to be, I promise you, it won’t get you to where you want to be. If you can connect to that reason, that thing that’s driving you forward, and then take a step towards it. That and that alone, is what’s going to get you to where you desire to be in your life. So stop comparing yourself to others. measure your success today, against where you were yesterday. And don’t just consider the game of business. Because life is so much more than the game of business. The game of business that you’re wrapped up in? Yes, it puts food on the table. Yes, it’s a source of fulfilment, but it’s a tiny fragment of who you are. So consider all of the realms of life of being not just financial, not just business. Think about your health, your sleep, your diet, your exercise, your relationships, your faith, and all of the things that make you who you are, your mind, your body, and your spirit. Pay attention to all of these things, and measure your success in these things. And not the success of others.
David Ralph [52:49]
Powerful stuff, powerful stuff. So Colleen, what’s the number one best way that our audience can connect with you, sir?
Colin Scotland [52:58]
Quite simply, you can visit my website, Colin scotland.com.
David Ralph [53:02]
Easy as that. Yeah, I asked for one, you give me one that’s clarity. And that’s bogus. That’s perfect. So Colleen, thank you so much for spending time with us today, joining up those dots. And please come back again, when you’ve got more dots to join up. Because I do believe that by joining up those dots and connecting our past is always the best way to actually build our futures. Carlene thank you so much.
Colin Scotland [53:25]
Thank you, David. It’s been an absolute an honour and a privilege. Thank you, man.
David Ralph [53:31]
Mr. Colleen, Scotland. So there’s a journey that you’ve got to go on. There is and Colleen, you know, he had a multi million pound business. But did it make him happy? He certainly seems happy now. And I was chatting to him afterwards. And I said, you know, you seem that you are where you want to be. And that is when it all comes together when you actually look at it. And you think yeah, this feels right. This feels this internal mechanism is directing the outside. And a lot of times, looking back on the journey that I’ve been in on I was doing things for money, I was doing things for status, I was doing things for every reason other than how it made me feel. And when you can do that it certainly comes together for you. Okay, so you sexy beast. Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Join Up Dots. Thank you for everybody who’s jumping over onto the Bisco and asking questions which we’re responding to directly into your email. So that helps you get going and it can be on anything. So don’t be a stranger. Join Up Dots. Forward slash comma is score I think it is and and join the community and we will help you get going until next time you look after yourselves. And I will see you again. Cheers. See ya. Bye.
Outro [54:48]
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