June 17, 2020 • 42 mins
JD teaches us there are four strategic steps to take when asking for a raise:
- Consider why you want it
- Get emotionally charged about the benefit of having it
- “Take inventory” of your value
- And then, when the time is right, shoot your shot
JD Phillips is a Certified Financial Educator and has spent the last 25 years in the financial services industry helping clients successfully earn retirement income. In addition to that, he's also a master sales trainer and team builder who once built a sales distribution team of over 50,000 representatives. He's a professional speaker and an author, most recently contributing to a national bestselling book called “How Money Works”.
He says, “When faced with a decision, asking yourself “For what?” brings your subconscious out of oblivion. You laser focus on exactly what your next step should be. Once you get your mind right, you can prepare for the next step. When you start thinking about a raise, start with that two-word question “for what?”
“For what?” gets things to an emotional level, gives you direction, and puts you in motion. And if you're asking for more money, you better have a plan in place. You have to justify it to yourself before you can justify it to anyone else... “
This is an incredible episode that you will not want to miss.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
JD (00:00):
You better have a plan in place, if you want to proceed to
ask for more money, that'sintentional.
It'd be, hey, do you think Ican, or maybe you will.
No, you want to have a plan anda tactic that you put into place
that puts the deck stacking inyour favor to get that, yes.
And there's a way to do that.
It doesn't necessarily mean itworks every time, but you want
(00:23):
to ask in a way that you'regoing to get a yes, more times
than you get a no.
Amanda (00:37):
Welcome to the Raise Up Podcast.
We are back again and I'm yourhost, Amanda LeFever.
And we have an incredible guestfor today's show.
JD Phillips is an entrepreneurwho has spent 25 years in the
financial services industry,helping clients successfully
create and implement savings andretirement income plans.
In addition to that, he's also amaster sales trainer and team
(00:59):
builder who once built a salesdistribution team of over 50,000
representatives.
He's a professional speaker whohas delivered messages of
strategy, success, principles,and inspiration to corporate and
national audiences throughoutthe US.
Most recently, JD served as aconsultant and contributor to a
(01:19):
national bestselling bookentitled, How Money Works.
JD thank you so much for beingon the show.
JD (01:27):
Well, Amanda, thank you.
It's my pleasure.
And I'm excited to be part ofyour program.
What I've heard about it isnothing but amazing things.
So hopefully we can add a tidbitor two.
Amanda (01:36):
Yeah, I'm really excited.
And first I have to ask beforewe get started, how are you guys
doing?
COVID-19 has been rough on a lotof companies.
How has your team and yourfamily kind of coping with the
shutdowns?
JD (01:48):
Well, interestingly enough, our team and our business is
actually spiked during this timebecause we are a virtual
business now.
So being home had it advantagesfor sure.
And as far as the family, wehave twins, boy, girl twins.
Now we're lucky Amanda, theyboth look like their mama, so
(02:09):
that's a good thing.
Number two, they are juniors incollege, so they were forced
home with the virus and we'vebeen quarantining, and they've
been doing their school onlinehere, and now throughout the
summer to make up for lost time.
But everybody's safe and healthyand we're glad to be all
together for a little while.
(02:30):
And listen, when they're at homeand they're six years old, it's
one thing.
When you're home, when they're22 is a whole different thing,
we don't carry quite the weightwe used to.
Amanda (02:41):
It's probably like a whole different dynamic.
JD (02:45):
Turn the page they say, turn the page.
Amanda (02:49):
And interesting too, to be home with mom and dad.
Now, do they go to the sameschool?
JD (02:54):
They don't, they're diametrically opposite when it
comes to school and study.
Our son is an accounting majordown at Ole Miss down in the
deep south, and is loving thatentire culture and all that goes
with it.
Our daughter's i n pastoralministry, she studying at L ee
university outside of Cleveland,Tennessee, n ear Chattanooga.
And, t hey both do their thing,man.
(03:16):
And, s he's actually g oing t ograduate this year.
She's g oing t o do four yearsof college i n three she's
anxious to get after it.
So we're, we're real happy forher and proud of both of them.
Amanda (03:28):
That's amazing.
I'm so glad you guys are safeand healthy, and exploring new
bonding ways to be a family.
Well, as you know, our show isall about someone improving
their financial situation, likegetting a raise at their job.
So, given all that's going on,if a personal friend came to you
(03:49):
and said, this is a tough time,but I've earned a raise, I think
I've earned a raise at work.
How do you recommend I go aboutmaking that happen?
How else, would you help them?
JD (04:02):
Well, I would tell you, first of all, you know, things
in life that we do, importantthings in life, I always start
with a why.
Because if we can get tosomebodies why, whether it be a
new job, a raise, anotherposition or another step in
their relationship, evenpersonally, that gets you to an
emotional level.
So, the first thing that I wouldshare with somebody, if they
said that is okay, well, why doyou want it?
(04:24):
What are some of the significantreasons to get a raise?
And first of all, it really kindof boils down to a little bit of
math.
If they're working for acorporation, more money and in
the form of a raise would mean alarger contribution to their
401k.
If they're participating forthat at work, because it's
always a percentage of yoursalary.
The second thing is that that'sreally amazing is it could
(04:48):
contribute to their income insuch a way they'd have more
money to save.
And more money to save isimportant.
Not only for raise, from aperspective of more cashflow
through what your increase wouldbe, but it also gives you a
better way to plan for yourfuture.
But when you begin to thinkabout getting a raise, why do
you want it and get emotionallycharged about the benefits of
(05:09):
having it, because that'll putyou in the right mindset to
begin to formulate yourstrategy.
So, I would tell you alwaysstart with your why, and why do
you want it, and why is thatimportant?
And then develop the strategyfrom there?
Amanda (05:21):
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense because when you're
looking at it as just, I wantmore money, it's really hard to
kind of strategize around that.
If you have the, I want moremoney because of this, or I want
to be able to do this, I don'tknow, it lends a different
weight to it somehow.
JD (05:39):
So, you know, Amanda, that brings up a great point that you
just reminded me of.
I had a mentor long ago, verywise business owner,
entrepreneur type.
And he sat me down one day, Iwas struggling with a decision
on which way I should go, whichstep I should take next.
And he said, you know, JDthere's one thing you should
always remember from this dayforward, whenever you're faced
(06:00):
with a business decision, achoice, or direction you want to
take, take the time to sityourself down and ask yourself
the two word question.
The two word question is, forwhat.
I'm getting ready to make thisdecision, for what?
I'm going to take this nextstep, for what?
I'm doing this job, for what?
And if you'll take the time todo that, what it'll do is it'll
(06:22):
bring your subconscious out ofoblivion and it'll help you
laser focus on exactly what yournext step and focus should be.
And once you get your mindthere, it allows you to make the
right preparations for whateverthe next step in fact will be.
So, I would offer that to allyour listeners as, use that tool
for yourself.
When you get to a situation, inthis case, if you're asking for
(06:45):
more money, or raise, bump inpay, however you want to refer
to it, start with that two wordquestion, for what?
And see if it doesn't help youfocus.
Amanda (06:53):
I like that.
And so it's more of a way touncover and figure out what
exactly you're doing this forand why, and then get some
clarity?
Is that kind of what you'resaying?
JD (07:05):
It will, you'll be amazed.
You know, we first talked just afew minutes ago about when you
ask yourself why?
That gets you to an emotionallevel, then you ask the question
for what?
That begins to put you indirection and into motion.
And you're exactly right.
It's about clarity andintention.
If you're asking for more moneyat whatever level you are, if
(07:26):
you're brand new at your job,you've been there a year, or
you've been there 10 years, orwhatever your number is, you
better have a plan in place.
If you want to proceed to askfor more money, that's
intentional.
It'd be, hey, do you think Ican, or maybe you will no, you
want to have a plan and a tacticthat you put into place that
(07:46):
puts the deck stacking in yourfavor to get that yes.
And there's a way to do that.
It doesn't necessarily mean itworks every time, but you want
to ask in a way that they'regoing to get a yes, more times
than they get a no.
Amanda (07:59):
And so, it sounds kind of like one of our guests before
was talking about layinggroundwork.
And it sounds a little bit likeactually doing that.
Have you learned any specificways to kind of gain some
groundwork before you have thatconversation?
JD (08:17):
Well, I would have to agree with that.
And, and I'm a little bit oldschool.
So, I would tell you that welive in this digital technology
age.
I mean, look at your podcasthere, all the most modern tools
and technology to get thesemessages out.
But believe it or not, and wehave email, and we all know
email, which has now becomealmost a dinosaur to some
(08:40):
extreme by some measure.
But yet we're very effective ingetting information from point A
to point B.
But believe it or not, the oldfashion, Amanda, written word
seems to still carry a whole lotof weight.
And I'll often will tell peopleif you're getting ready to ask
(09:01):
your manager, your boss, whoeveryour supervisor or superior is
for your raise.
First of all, you want to askfor permission to ask, that's
number one.
And if I have a review comingup, let's say I have a six month
review coming up, or I have aperformance review coming up for
the year.
Prior to that review, I'm mightask you if your my supervisor.
(09:23):
Amanda, during this time, can wespend a few minutes talking
about my compensation?
Because I want to put the ideain your head that that's coming.
So, when we're having ourreview, I'm going to have to sit
around wondering, well, gosh, Iwonder if this is a good time to
bring this up.
Once I plant that seed, and yousay, well, sure or we can talk
(09:44):
about it or whatever theresponse is.
Don't worry about if it's notthe response you want, because
you haven't given the reasonyet.
You just telling them, hey, Iwant to open the door so we can
both step in and have thatconversation.
Well, then what I often willshare with people, believe it or
not, you can do this in person,but if you'll take the time and
you put your thoughts down onpaper and quote, unquote, write
(10:06):
a letter to your supervisor,explaining to them why you want
what you want, and why it'sjustified.
And you can list certainreasons.
You can list certain facts.
You can list certain performanceresults before you ever walk in
the door and drop that to themprior to your meeting.
Well, guess what happens now?
(10:26):
You now know that they knowwhat's on the front of your
brain.
And when you get up ondiscussion, it won't be awkward
and they may prepare a responsethat might surprise you.
And if not, at least you haveset the table so you can have
the discussion.
Amanda (10:41):
That's true.
And so, you go in and you kindof ask permission to ask before.
So, you're laying thatgroundwork there and then
actually prepare a letterbeforehand to give them, and
then they're prepared and notblindsided.
Is that kind of, I don't knowwhat the strategy is around
that.
JD (10:59):
Exactly.
That's the perfect word.
It's a strategy.
And the tactic of that strategyis this.
First of all, you'll separateyourself.
Nobody else is doing it or veryfew because they won't take the
time because you have tothoughtfully prepare the letter
and think through.
And I made a note here about theletter as you know, what, what
would you list?
Well, if you write the letter,you're writing it.
(11:23):
That means you're in control ofwhat you say, how you want to
say it.
And you can paint the picturewith the exact colors that you
want to paint it with.
So you're not in there all of asudden getting a question back
from your supervisor.
And you're trying to answer onthe fly.
So you can pick inventory inthis letter and you can explain,
well, this has happened since mylast pay raise.
(11:45):
I picked up these skills, I'vetaken on this leadership role.
We had success in this project.
I performed X percent overquota, whatever the case may be,
you can strategically place itin writing in front of them.
Then the supervisor, boss, orwhoever might be when they
receive that.
Well, it gives them a chance toevaluate that.
(12:05):
And they may not even rememberbe aware, understand, but it
lets them know exactly whereyou're coming from.
And you're not asking just toask, you're not asking them
because we all know don't everask for a raise goes, Hey,
Amanda, I need a raise because Ineed more money.
That never works becauseeverybody needs more money.
So your reason is remember now,for what?
(12:27):
And we're back to the question.
Well, the letter helps youidentify that very specific
answer that's presented to yourmanager or supervisor before you
had that meeting.
And when you walk in, everybodyknows besides whatever's on
their mind.
They know exactly what's on yourmind.
Amanda (12:43):
That's true.
So, is the, for what and yourwhy, is that something that you
actually share with your manageras well?
Or is that not something that'slike your own personal
awareness?
JD (12:56):
Well, that's a great question.
And I would share it dependingon the relationship I have with
my boss, supervisor, or if it'sappropriate, some of it might be
personal and not appropriate inthe workplace to even share.
Some of it.
they may not care about youmight have a manager or
supervisor that's onlyinterested in black and white
facts and figures.
(13:17):
And if you hit this number, youget it.
If you don't, you don't.
Well, trust me, they have nolost love over what your, for
what or why is.
It doesn't matter to them, butit matters to you.
But that's the point.
That's why you had thatdiscussion with yourself as you
prepare is because you want yourmindset to be such that you are
(13:37):
justified in asking for what youwant.
And you're justified becausehere's one of the mental
dilemmas and hurdles that peoplestruggle with when asking for a
raise.
Sometimes they think, well,maybe I'm not really worth it,
this self worth equation intheir brain, as well, I'm not as
(13:58):
good as so-and-so, or I didn'tdo as much as you know who.
Are all of a sudden, they beginto doubt their worth and their
value.
That's why you have thediscussions with yourself.
That's why you take theinventory.
And that's why you list thethings that are important to
prove that you bring more value,which equates to more pay.
Amanda (14:17):
And it sounds like it would almost be a confidence
booster too.
JD (14:21):
Oh, there's no question.
It's a confidence booster andalmost like a television program
or a movie, you know, a moviethat has a script and the script
has been rehearsed and thendelivered.
Well, you get to focus ondelivery because you know the
words without rehearsal, youdon't know the words.
(14:43):
And so you might present a greatmessage in the wrong way.
Cause you didn't practice thewords.
You didn't know exactly what tosay or how to it, and you're
more focused on what am I goingto say next, instead of how am I
going to say it?
How to presenting will be justas important as the, what to
that you present.
Amanda (15:01):
Yeah, because I can see too, those conversations,
there's a lot of energy.
And usually from what I'veheard, it's a lot of anxious
energy, and people are nervous,and they're reciting it over and
over, and they're worrying aboutwhat's going to happen.
And so, it sounds like all ofthis really helps not alleviate,
(15:22):
or get rid of the worry, but ithelps it so, that you feel more
confident going in.
JD (15:29):
Well, you do number one because, the supervisor or boss
is not going to be shocked.
They already know what you wantas part of your review, or part
of the conversation where theyask, because you presented it to
them ahead of time.
And the trick is once youpresent your value, be very
(15:50):
specific.
Remember now we're intentionalin our tactic, but now we're
going to be specific in our ask.
You don't want some money.
You don't want some more money.
You want a number, you want$5,000 more per year.
You want 5% more based on yourannual pay.
Present your ask in the form ofa specific number, either by pay
(16:12):
period or by year or as afunction of percentage, a 10%
increase based on all the thingsthat I have validated through my
preparation.
And if you're specific, then nowyou've given them why you want
it, why you deserve it, whatyour value is.
(16:33):
And oh, by the way, take thetime when you do this.
If you're at let's say you're$40,000 a year, and you're
trying to get to$45,000.
Are the people around you thatdo what you do, whether it's in
your company or across thestreet of the competitor, does
their job pay$45,000 for thosesame skill sets or experience
(16:56):
levels.
And use the market around you tomake sure that you're getting
paid, what the market pays.
Now, if you can get more forthat, well, that would come down
to how great of a negotiator youmight be.
But for sure if I know that thefellow across the street in that
cubicle makes 45 and I do whathe does plus some well, I'm
(17:18):
going to use that information tosay, Hey, over at Acme
corporation, they pay 45 forwhat I'm doing, and I'm doing it
better, based on these stats andfacts.
So, using the marketplace tohelp you evaluate, and then
measure your own worth can be avery effective tool.
Amanda (17:34):
I love that.
So, a little bit of marketresearch to try and figure out
exactly what everybody else isgetting paid in that position.
So, one question that I did wantto ask is what if somebody is
ready like right now?
They feel like they earned itand they're worth it.
Do you say, wait until you'velaid the groundwork or you
(17:56):
charge in there and ask for whatyou want?
JD (17:59):
Well, that's going to be what we call a feel thing.
If you really feel it, then, youknow, certainly I wouldn't ever
tell somebody not to go for it.
If they really feel they'reprepared and ready.
I would say this, just becauseyou're ready and you're itching
to go, and you want to scratchthat itch, doesn't mean they're
ready.
(18:21):
Think about it.
What if you charged into the dayafter they just got their
quarterly returns, and they'redown 15% from last year,
quarter.
And that's the day you picked torun in and drop the bomb on
them.
That you're the next superstarneeded to get paid that way.
Well, you might have thegreatest pitch in the world, but
if it comes at the wrong time,it's not gonna matter what you
(18:44):
say.
Cause it's gonna fall on deafears or one, that somebody might
be in a bad mood.
So, I wouldn't tell you not todo that.
I would just say double checkyour timing that you don't, you
know, go shoot off your bestfirecracker, and then have
nobody there to listen to itpop.
Amanda (18:59):
That's true.
Oh, I like that.
I like that analogy too.
That's really good.
So, have you had people approachyou, and tell you that they were
going to ask about theircompensation or wanted to talk
about it?
Have you seen this wholestrategy play out before?
JD (19:16):
Yep.
Well, so yeah, I'll answer intwo parts.
I've never had somebody come tome and been prepped me for that.
Now lots of times is causing thetype of, or work in industry
I've been in.
It's never been a salary typeposition where you're going to
give somebody a merit raise.
I'll get the calls from a salesside, lots of times there's
(19:39):
bonuses, extra commissions.
Now lots of times we would getthe conversations of, Hey, I'm
only so far away from that nextlevel.
You know, if I don't quite getit, can I still get the bonus or
something like that?
I'll get at the compromiseconversation, but not from the
perspective of the prep.
(20:01):
Now I have used it before myselfbecause prior to financial, I
spent a few years in thecorporate sales world, with IBM
and they trained you on how towork in the corporate
environment.
And they trained you onapproaching to ask for raises as
you move through the corporatestructure.
And which quite frankly, that'swhere I learned the technique of
(20:24):
writing the letter.
Amanda (20:25):
That's amazing that they would do that training too.
I feel like more of them needto.
JD (20:31):
Well, back in that time, way back then, that was the early
on, that was back in theeighties.
The corporate America looked alot different than it does
today.
You know, not so many people hadtheir corporate jobs and were
looking for a side view becausethey're trying to supplement
their income back then.
It was you.
It was the 20 years get the goldwatch and the banner and the
(20:53):
stock options.
And that's, that was the career.
Well, those jobs in this day intime is almost nonexistent that
world doesn't exist anymore.
But they were really groomingcorporate executives at the
time, and that was part of thetraining, not only knowing how
to sell and present, but how tofunction in the marketplace as a
sales rep.
From how do you travel?
(21:14):
How do you run a territory, andalso how do you advance into
management?
So that was probably thetraining.
Amanda (21:20):
Well, you've trained a lot of sales individuals, right?
50,000 sales individuals?
And so, a lot of this, do youfeel like plays with sales as
well?
Like you're almost sellingyourself when you're going into
these conversations?
JD (21:36):
Well, there's no question that the training that I
received coming through bothcorporately and independently
from just some terrific mentorsand people that were willing to
share with me has been valuable,and in being able to turn and
then share that.
The trick is when you begin,whether it's training and sales
or leadership, the trick is youwant to give people information
(21:58):
in a way that is relative tothem.
So, many people will train onwhat they think is important.
And that might be true, but Iwant to train on what you think
is important because that'sinformation you're going to hear
and you're going to learn.
So, when we do training, we'realways finding out from the
sales group we're working withor the individual, you know,
(22:20):
what is it that you need to knowto be better?
And that's what we train on.
It's not an agenda of, hey,these are the five things you
need to know.
Then once you know these things,everything's perfect.
And here's your training.
Ours is okay, that's the basicthat sets you on course.
Now, what are the things thatyou need to help with?
So, you can get more comfortablebecause sales training, when it
(22:42):
boils down to it at the rootlevel is all about two things,
confidence and belief.
We can train people to bestronger in those two areas.
Then they can go do anything.
They can sell anything, they canpresent anything, and they can
share anything.
Amanda (22:56):
Do you think that translates to people that are
working in corporate Americatoo?
JD (23:01):
I think to some degree it'll help because you don't get to
control your future in corporateAmerica, because it's controlled
by the next person ahead of you.
You've got to transfer, orsomebody has to get fired or
pass away or get promoted.
And then you get a shot at thatslot it's, some of that's kind
of scheduled that way.
So, no matter how ambitious youmight be, no matter how
(23:24):
aggressive you might be,sometimes you just gotta wait
your turn.
However, this whole notion aboutbelief in confidence that has
everything to do with, when youdo get the opportunity, if you
are very confident in whatyou're doing, and you have a
high believability, and what youstand for, or how you perform,
then that will put you in abetter position to compete for
(23:44):
that slot.
Amanda (23:46):
This is the first time that I think we've ever really
talked about mindset as like adriving force in these
conversations.
I do remember one guest thattouched on it briefly, but do
you think that mindset is like ahuge factor that someone should
be focusing on as well as likepreparing and laying all the
groundwork?
JD (24:07):
I think mindset's where it starts.
If you began to think like theperson that is in the position
that you want to be, it's almostlike the old"Dress for Success"
routine, right?
You know, you dress for the jobyou want, not for the one you
got.
Well, let's think like a CEO,let's think like a vice
president, let's think like anarea manager.
(24:29):
And when I get ready to vie forthat position or that raise,
then I'll approach it as theywould critically think through
that.
If I'm trying to get a CEO job,and I'm still thinking like a
junior vice president, I'mprobably not going to present in
the same way that someone that'sthinking like that person would
present.
So, mindsets to me is more thanhalf the battle.
(24:51):
And that includes, of course,your attitude, and your
ambition.
But I believe it has more to dowith intentionally making moves
that puts you in a position toask for the job, the raise or
the next thing that you might beseeking.
Amanda (25:07):
That's amazing.
Okay.
So I have a question, and Iusually ask most of our guests
this question.
And it's where I'll ask if youhave any stories that you might
share about getting a raise,someone that you know, or that
you actually went through.
So, do you have anything, andcan you tell us what happened?
JD (25:29):
Well, there's a lot of things I can tell you.
Some you'll laugh at some youwon't, but I'll tell you them.
I can, we spoke of, and so manytimes on podcasts, or
recordings, or shows you alwayswant to hear, well, let's hear
about the success story, how youwent from rags to riches or
whatever the case might be.
Well, I think there's as muchlessons than sometimes, and the
(25:52):
ones that we don't get.
So, if it's okay, I'll tell youabout a raise I didn't get it.
It has to do with some we spokeof earlier, and that was timing.
So, I'm gonna take you back, wayback in time.
And it was my first paid jobever.
And I was only 17 years old atthe time.
(26:13):
I was still in high school, butI got a job on a radio station
as a disc jockey.
And it was, I had one show aweek.
It was for six hours on Sundaymorning.
It was from six in the morning till 12 noon.
It was in Raleigh, NorthCarolina.
And I'll never forget it wasWRNC, the rock of Raleigh and, y
ou k now, the whole shebang.
(26:36):
Well, what was interesting now,I w as getting paid back that
time, a whopping$2 and 5 centsan hour, which was the minimum
wage back in the seventies,which that really dates me.
But it's still a funny story.
I'm racking up the massive dough, you know, a nd c oming DJ.
But what happens is, and thatshow the first five hours from
(26:58):
6:00 AM to 11, it was just aregular radio show.
I t was the John Dalton show,every Sunday morning, I think I
had like 12 listeners.
Mom, and t here's a couple offriends around the neighborhood
would get up and listen, but we,we had this show and it was just
commercial.
And you read the news every houro n the weather on the half
hour, and you played top 40music, but the last hour,
(27:21):
Amanda, of the show from 11 to12 was the live Presbyterian
church service from thedowntown, First Presbyterian
church in Raleigh, which was abig church.
And that's the old school, allthe old Raleigh money and all
the old families and the b lue bloods t hat it was, it was the
deal.
And so, they broadcast theirservice through the radio
(27:43):
station.
And you had, at that time, thislittle intro tape, very much
like the intro on your podcast,where it was 15 seconds of
recording, and y ou'd push thebutton, the recording say,
welcome to the church service.
We're going to take you therenow where the services are just
beginning.
And at that moment you weretrained, if you were running the
board at the radio station, youpush this little button, it w
(28:06):
ould open up this two way,almost like a two way radio at
that time, but it would open upthe line and you could hear the
sound coming from the churchthrough the channel, which i s
pumped out over the radio.
So, it was called open the line.
And we, there was always anaudio person at the other end,
and they were managing the soundon the church end.
(28:28):
And I was, of course, in thestation.
Well, they always told you toplay that tape, that intro tape
somewhere between, you know, 3minutes to 11:00, to the top of
the hour.
And because the organist, ofcourse, as you know, in a
church, traditional church service, t hey're playing the o
rgan a s people come in and sitdown, so the music w ill be
playing, but they also told youat any time, if you're on air on
(28:51):
a radio station, back then i twas still wax records, believe
it or not, 45's a nd the big ones.
So, this i s really taking usback in time, a nd they told you
to have a record, what they callq ueued up.
Now q ueued up record was on theturntable and you had to spin
it.
So, just so you could hear thebeginning of the sound.
So, as soon as it startedplaying, the sound would pop.
Because on radio, and if you'regoing to go off the air for any
(29:15):
reason, have any quiet time, ithas to be either documented, or
you have to warn people.
Look, this is going to be deadair.
Like when they say we're g oingt o have a test of the emergency
broadcast system and you playyour test, dead air on the radio
could signal there's somethingseverely wrong, like some kind
of a n atural emergency orsomething.
(29:36):
The FCC that monitors that,that's serious, they'll shut a
station down.
They'll fine the owners andgeneral managers and everybody
else to boot.
If there's dead air, well Ididn't either.
So here we are at the churchservice, the time is 3 minutes
to 11:00.
I got my record q ueued up.
Now you'll have to pull us up onYouTube sometime and l isten to
(29:58):
it.
But in 1974, which is when thiswas going on, t he number one
song on the top 40 charts was asong called, Midnight at the
Oasis.
And the a rtist was MariaMuldaur.
I have no reason to know thatsong or that artist, except for
the fact of what happened here.
So, I play my little tape we'regoing there, w here the services
(30:19):
are just beginning and t hat open up the church l ine.
At that moment, there wasnothing, there was no music,
there was no o rgan playing,there was nothing, there was
dead air.
I knew that was bad with myquick s tart training there.
I said, oh yeah, play yourrecord that's q ueued up.
So, I just reached over thereand hit the record and starts
(30:40):
playing the song.
Then I'd have to put your camelto bed.
It's probably not the mostappropriate song t hey're p
laying in place with churchservice, but it was music and it
wasn't dead air.
S o, I'm l ike taking a breathgoing, okay, o ne what's going
on at the church.
A nd I was getting ready to pickthe phone up and call and say
what's going on.
But then I realized at that sametime, I had not turned off the
(31:03):
church key.
So, the open line, which hadnothing coming my way via sound,
I was pumping the sound not onlyover the radio wave into the
church a nd was blaring out inthe sanctuary of this church.
Well, I didn't have to call thechurch because the phone lit up
and it was the guy at the churchgoing JD, what's that there rock
(31:25):
and roll music, you're pumping in t his church, cut that off.
And so, I panicked and I like when I reached over, I lifted the
needle up off the record.
And so, I'm like, okay, problemsolved.
No, because once I pick theneedle up off, now, there's no
sound coming out over the radio,dead air.
Not five seconds later, the redphone rings, think of watching
(31:49):
the old TV show, Batman, havingt he red phone, the red phone
went off.
And I knew what that was, andthat wasn't the guy from the
church, that was the owner.
And I picked it up because thismight be a G-rated podcast.
I will not tell you what he saidbefore, w hat he told me to do,
which was get something back onthe air right now, and we'll
talk about it later.
(32:11):
So, when I got a record playingand then the church service
started, I then was done for theday.
Little did I know that I wasgetting ready to be done for my
career because I had planned onthe next day, coming back to the
station and asking for my raise,I was trying to get t o$2 and 10
(32:32):
cents an hour.
And so, I came back down to thestation and I walked in and I
sat with the manager.
I said, and I hadn't written aletter.
I didn't tell him what I wantedto do.
I just came back d own there andsaid, Hey, sorry about
yesterday, t will never happenagain, by the way, I wanted to
talk to you about maybe bumpingmy pay to$2.10 or$2.15 an hour.
I've been doing this show nowfor about six months.
(32:56):
And he says, we know that I'mreally glad you came in, b
ecause we've decided to go in adifferent direction.
And it's been nice having you,if we can have your keys, t
his'll be the end of youremployment here at WRNC.
So, timing was bad, I didn'tthink through it, I didn't prep.
And I have to say probably atthat time, Amanda, I'm not sure
a letter w ould h ave made anydifference.
Amanda (33:16):
Oh man.
Oh, the end of your radiocareer.
Oh, that's such a bummer.
Dead air.
The dead air, that stinks sobad.
That's a good story.
That's a really good story.
(33:36):
I liked that a lot.
Oh my gosh.
Okay.
That was awesome.
We all know that timing, timingis everything.
That is one of the things thatwe have learned today.
So is there anything else thatyou would like to add to our
national conversation aboutgetting a raise?
JD (33:55):
Well, I'd say two things.
Number one, if you're plans forgetting a raise, don't come
through, and you don't get whatyou want.
The next thing that I wouldalways offer is there's a reason
you're asking for a raise is youwant more money.
We'll consider today, the worldthat we live in.
And we kind of live in the gigeconomy where people have a side
(34:16):
gig, because like this podcast,it's virtual, there's lots of
businesses that you can actuallyown or start yourself and make
more money.
So, I would offer that to peopleas they're looking to their
future is if I want more moneyand I can't get that raise, is
there anything else I can do?
Well, there's many, many optionsout there to become an
(34:38):
entrepreneur.
And there's lots of reasons todo that.
So, I would just say to yourlisteners is don't close your
ears and don't close your mindsto those opportunities.
There might be one right aroundthe corner that can help you add
a few hundred dollars a month,or maybe, to your paycheck.
So, there's sometimes more thanone way to skin a cat.
Amanda (34:57):
That's true.
Can you tell us what you're upto now?
That's going to really make animpact on your industry or in
your life in the next few years?
JD (35:06):
Well, I can tell you what our hope is, and our plan,
because we had this,"for what,"conversation about three years
ago, with two buddies of mine.
We looked at this national, youknow, we have this pandemic now,
this unprecedented time, youmentioned COVID.
Well, there's also anothercrisis going on in our country
right now, Amanda.
And that's the crisis offinancial literacy.
(35:28):
And in short terms, what we'retalking about, there's the mass
of American public just doesn'tknow the basics of how money
works, and I'll have to add tothat, it's not even their fault,
because it's not taught inschools.
You know, the schools teacheverything else, but that, and
there's only 17 States in theentire country that require any
(35:49):
type of financial training atthe high school level or below.
And yet we're the 14thwealthiest country, I mean the
number one wealthiest country inthe world, but we rank 14th in
financial literacy.
So, here's the massive problem.
If you took the economy outthere today and you looked at
the population, and we'll roundit down to 300 million people,
(36:10):
about 80%, make between$30,000and$90,000 a year, that's just
the average incomes of about 80%of our population.
People think that it's thewealthy that run the country.
It's not the wealthier arewealthy and some have power, but
the mass people 240 million ofthe 300, they make between
(36:30):
$30,000 and$90,000 a year.
So, here's what happens, if I'ma mid-level manager at, let's
say the power company down thestreet, and I make$60,000 a year
as a mid-level manager, a goodsalary.
I have a 401k and a health plan;I've got a great deal.
Well, here's the facts.
Once I make my deposit into my401k, if I'm contributing, then
(36:51):
I pay my taxes and I'm paying myrent and my mortgage, my car
payment, my Verizon bill, somefood and clothes to the kids.
Well at the end of all that Imight have$1,$2or$3 or$300.
I could do something with, Idon't know what to do, and
because I don't know what to do,I typically don't do anything
with it.
And that means it's usually getsconsumed or squandered.
(37:14):
Well, that's a problem becausethe masses are going to get to
the end of retirement andthey're not going to have
enough.
So, our thought was, what if wetaught people how money works?
And so, we got together, and wewrote a book, and I'm going to
make sure that, I'll show you mybook here on your screen.
"How money works, stop being asucker." And the concept of the
(37:40):
book was how can we get thisinformation out, so people can
handle it?
Well, here was what we did.
Most financial books are writtenon a level that nobody wants to
read, it's usually 200 or 300pages, they're hard cover, you
gotta have a computer or sliderule to figure it out, and you
don't understand it.
So, this book was created andwritten, by two partners of mine
(38:02):
, that we all just kindabrainstormed on.
We wrote it on the level of afifth grader, a 10-year-old
could understand this, if theyread it.
However, an 80-year-old wouldappreciate it because the
concepts Amanda, in the book,talk about the things that the
wealthiest people in our countryuse to become wealthy.
We also talk about the grossinjustices done to us by the
(38:25):
financial institutions like forbanks.
And I'll give you a really quickstory.
If you go to a bank today, andyou walk in there to deposit
some money into your savingsaccount, you'll notice that the
banks are paying a little bitless than most of the time, 1%.
Well, we talk about in our bookabout how this works.
(38:46):
Well at 0.09%, guess how long ittakes for a dollar to turn to$2?
800 year, 800 years.
But yet you've been to a bankand they'll loan out money at
17% on the credit card, or 4% ina CD.
(39:08):
And so, I mean interest on anequity line.
So, the point is you're going todouble over eight lifetimes and
they're going to double everyfour to 17 years on your money,
but yet we still give it to them.
Well, guess what sits up in thelittle teller window, right
(39:28):
beside the place where you slidethe money through, there's
usually a little dish in there.
It's got candy in it and it'ssuckers in them, because they're
telling you what they're doingto you right there in terms of
the banks.
I won't mention the one that Igo to often by name, but I'll
tell you this, they're soaggressive, there's not just
(39:50):
suckers.
Guess what kind of suckers arein the little dish?
Ah, the dumb, dumb.
So, they're telling us whatthey're doing to us, and we
still give them our money.
And if people just knew thatthere was a way that they could
become their own bank, theycould do what the banks do for
themselves.
Then now we're making adifference, and that's what we
(40:13):
want to do.
So, the"How money works," bookis all about teaching people,
how to do that, how tounderstand the basics and change
your life financially.
And we do two things with ourcompany.
We teach people those secrets,which the bank won't teach them
so, they can use it for theirown benefit.
We also teach people how to beentrepreneurs.
So, what if you wanted to be inthat industry, and being a
financial world, which is thebiggest one on the planet.
(40:35):
It's bigger than retail and realestate put together times two,
and make a living, helping otherpeople understand how money
works.
So, that's what's going on, andwe're excited about it.
And for any of your listenersthat would like, we'd be more
than happy.
You can go to Amazon and buy ourbook.
We're proud to say that sinceDecember we've sold almost,
(40:56):
almost 450,000 copies just inthe past six months and we've
been on national TV with thebook and you can buy it on
Amazon.
But if you'd like for yourlisteners that want to reach out
to you, or you can have themcontact me, we will send them a
book, compliments of the"RaiseUp Podcast" because we think
what you're doing is a greatidea.
Amanda (41:17):
So, thank you so much.
So, what we'll do is we'll putthat in the show notes.
If you just let me know wherethey can contact you?
What's the best way to get intouch with you so that people
can, can get their book?
JD (41:31):
I'll do it as a matter of fact, we'll, we'll them contact
to our general website and theycan click here.
We'll send them a book and theycan learn the secret so they can
go in and not be a sucker.
Amanda (41:43):
I love that.
Not a dumb, dumb either.
That's awesome.
Well, JD, thank you so much forbeing on the show.
This has been incredible, andyou were so insightful.
I really appreciate it.
JD (41:56):
Well, this has been fun for me and I do appreciate you
taking me back in time, andhaving me go down the DJ road
one more time.
And the story is old, but itdoesn't ever get old to
remember.
Amanda (42:08):
Memory lane.
And we learned a lot about deadair and timing for sure.
Awesome.
Well, thank you so much.
And thank you guys forlistening.
If you enjoyed the podcast, youcan subscribe, you can share
with your friends, you can clickthe share button and take a
screenshot and share it on yoursocial stories and tag me at
(42:30):
Amanda LeFever.
Thanks again for listening.
And thanks again.
JD, I'll talk to you guys soon.
Bye.
You better have a plan in place, if you want to proceed to
ask for more money, that'sintentional.
It'd be, hey, do you think Ican, or maybe you will.
No, you want to have a plan anda tactic that you put into place
that puts the deck stacking inyour favor to get that, yes.
And there's a way to do that.
It doesn't necessarily mean itworks every time, but you want
(00:23):
to ask in a way that you'regoing to get a yes, more times
than you get a no.
Amanda (00:37):
Welcome to the Raise Up Podcast.
We are back again and I'm yourhost, Amanda LeFever.
And we have an incredible guestfor today's show.
JD Phillips is an entrepreneurwho has spent 25 years in the
financial services industry,helping clients successfully
create and implement savings andretirement income plans.
In addition to that, he's also amaster sales trainer and team
(00:59):
builder who once built a salesdistribution team of over 50,000
representatives.
He's a professional speaker whohas delivered messages of
strategy, success, principles,and inspiration to corporate and
national audiences throughoutthe US.
Most recently, JD served as aconsultant and contributor to a
(01:19):
national bestselling bookentitled, How Money Works.
JD thank you so much for beingon the show.
JD (01:27):
Well, Amanda, thank you.
It's my pleasure.
And I'm excited to be part ofyour program.
What I've heard about it isnothing but amazing things.
So hopefully we can add a tidbitor two.
Amanda (01:36):
Yeah, I'm really excited.
And first I have to ask beforewe get started, how are you guys
doing?
COVID-19 has been rough on a lotof companies.
How has your team and yourfamily kind of coping with the
shutdowns?
JD (01:48):
Well, interestingly enough, our team and our business is
actually spiked during this timebecause we are a virtual
business now.
So being home had it advantagesfor sure.
And as far as the family, wehave twins, boy, girl twins.
Now we're lucky Amanda, theyboth look like their mama, so
(02:09):
that's a good thing.
Number two, they are juniors incollege, so they were forced
home with the virus and we'vebeen quarantining, and they've
been doing their school onlinehere, and now throughout the
summer to make up for lost time.
But everybody's safe and healthyand we're glad to be all
together for a little while.
(02:30):
And listen, when they're at homeand they're six years old, it's
one thing.
When you're home, when they're22 is a whole different thing,
we don't carry quite the weightwe used to.
Amanda (02:41):
It's probably like a whole different dynamic.
JD (02:45):
Turn the page they say, turn the page.
Amanda (02:49):
And interesting too, to be home with mom and dad.
Now, do they go to the sameschool?
JD (02:54):
They don't, they're diametrically opposite when it
comes to school and study.
Our son is an accounting majordown at Ole Miss down in the
deep south, and is loving thatentire culture and all that goes
with it.
Our daughter's i n pastoralministry, she studying at L ee
university outside of Cleveland,Tennessee, n ear Chattanooga.
And, t hey both do their thing,man.
(03:16):
And, s he's actually g oing t ograduate this year.
She's g oing t o do four yearsof college i n three she's
anxious to get after it.
So we're, we're real happy forher and proud of both of them.
Amanda (03:28):
That's amazing.
I'm so glad you guys are safeand healthy, and exploring new
bonding ways to be a family.
Well, as you know, our show isall about someone improving
their financial situation, likegetting a raise at their job.
So, given all that's going on,if a personal friend came to you
(03:49):
and said, this is a tough time,but I've earned a raise, I think
I've earned a raise at work.
How do you recommend I go aboutmaking that happen?
How else, would you help them?
JD (04:02):
Well, I would tell you, first of all, you know, things
in life that we do, importantthings in life, I always start
with a why.
Because if we can get tosomebodies why, whether it be a
new job, a raise, anotherposition or another step in
their relationship, evenpersonally, that gets you to an
emotional level.
So, the first thing that I wouldshare with somebody, if they
said that is okay, well, why doyou want it?
(04:24):
What are some of the significantreasons to get a raise?
And first of all, it really kindof boils down to a little bit of
math.
If they're working for acorporation, more money and in
the form of a raise would mean alarger contribution to their
401k.
If they're participating forthat at work, because it's
always a percentage of yoursalary.
The second thing is that that'sreally amazing is it could
(04:48):
contribute to their income insuch a way they'd have more
money to save.
And more money to save isimportant.
Not only for raise, from aperspective of more cashflow
through what your increase wouldbe, but it also gives you a
better way to plan for yourfuture.
But when you begin to thinkabout getting a raise, why do
you want it and get emotionallycharged about the benefits of
(05:09):
having it, because that'll putyou in the right mindset to
begin to formulate yourstrategy.
So, I would tell you alwaysstart with your why, and why do
you want it, and why is thatimportant?
And then develop the strategyfrom there?
Amanda (05:21):
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense because when you're
looking at it as just, I wantmore money, it's really hard to
kind of strategize around that.
If you have the, I want moremoney because of this, or I want
to be able to do this, I don'tknow, it lends a different
weight to it somehow.
JD (05:39):
So, you know, Amanda, that brings up a great point that you
just reminded me of.
I had a mentor long ago, verywise business owner,
entrepreneur type.
And he sat me down one day, Iwas struggling with a decision
on which way I should go, whichstep I should take next.
And he said, you know, JDthere's one thing you should
always remember from this dayforward, whenever you're faced
(06:00):
with a business decision, achoice, or direction you want to
take, take the time to sityourself down and ask yourself
the two word question.
The two word question is, forwhat.
I'm getting ready to make thisdecision, for what?
I'm going to take this nextstep, for what?
I'm doing this job, for what?
And if you'll take the time todo that, what it'll do is it'll
(06:22):
bring your subconscious out ofoblivion and it'll help you
laser focus on exactly what yournext step and focus should be.
And once you get your mindthere, it allows you to make the
right preparations for whateverthe next step in fact will be.
So, I would offer that to allyour listeners as, use that tool
for yourself.
When you get to a situation, inthis case, if you're asking for
(06:45):
more money, or raise, bump inpay, however you want to refer
to it, start with that two wordquestion, for what?
And see if it doesn't help youfocus.
Amanda (06:53):
I like that.
And so it's more of a way touncover and figure out what
exactly you're doing this forand why, and then get some
clarity?
Is that kind of what you'resaying?
JD (07:05):
It will, you'll be amazed.
You know, we first talked just afew minutes ago about when you
ask yourself why?
That gets you to an emotionallevel, then you ask the question
for what?
That begins to put you indirection and into motion.
And you're exactly right.
It's about clarity andintention.
If you're asking for more moneyat whatever level you are, if
(07:26):
you're brand new at your job,you've been there a year, or
you've been there 10 years, orwhatever your number is, you
better have a plan in place.
If you want to proceed to askfor more money, that's
intentional.
It'd be, hey, do you think Ican, or maybe you will no, you
want to have a plan and a tacticthat you put into place that
(07:46):
puts the deck stacking in yourfavor to get that yes.
And there's a way to do that.
It doesn't necessarily mean itworks every time, but you want
to ask in a way that they'regoing to get a yes, more times
than they get a no.
Amanda (07:59):
And so, it sounds kind of like one of our guests before
was talking about layinggroundwork.
And it sounds a little bit likeactually doing that.
Have you learned any specificways to kind of gain some
groundwork before you have thatconversation?
JD (08:17):
Well, I would have to agree with that.
And, and I'm a little bit oldschool.
So, I would tell you that welive in this digital technology
age.
I mean, look at your podcasthere, all the most modern tools
and technology to get thesemessages out.
But believe it or not, and wehave email, and we all know
email, which has now becomealmost a dinosaur to some
(08:40):
extreme by some measure.
But yet we're very effective ingetting information from point A
to point B.
But believe it or not, the oldfashion, Amanda, written word
seems to still carry a whole lotof weight.
And I'll often will tell peopleif you're getting ready to ask
(09:01):
your manager, your boss, whoeveryour supervisor or superior is
for your raise.
First of all, you want to askfor permission to ask, that's
number one.
And if I have a review comingup, let's say I have a six month
review coming up, or I have aperformance review coming up for
the year.
Prior to that review, I'm mightask you if your my supervisor.
(09:23):
Amanda, during this time, can wespend a few minutes talking
about my compensation?
Because I want to put the ideain your head that that's coming.
So, when we're having ourreview, I'm going to have to sit
around wondering, well, gosh, Iwonder if this is a good time to
bring this up.
Once I plant that seed, and yousay, well, sure or we can talk
(09:44):
about it or whatever theresponse is.
Don't worry about if it's notthe response you want, because
you haven't given the reasonyet.
You just telling them, hey, Iwant to open the door so we can
both step in and have thatconversation.
Well, then what I often willshare with people, believe it or
not, you can do this in person,but if you'll take the time and
you put your thoughts down onpaper and quote, unquote, write
(10:06):
a letter to your supervisor,explaining to them why you want
what you want, and why it'sjustified.
And you can list certainreasons.
You can list certain facts.
You can list certain performanceresults before you ever walk in
the door and drop that to themprior to your meeting.
Well, guess what happens now?
(10:26):
You now know that they knowwhat's on the front of your
brain.
And when you get up ondiscussion, it won't be awkward
and they may prepare a responsethat might surprise you.
And if not, at least you haveset the table so you can have
the discussion.
Amanda (10:41):
That's true.
And so, you go in and you kindof ask permission to ask before.
So, you're laying thatgroundwork there and then
actually prepare a letterbeforehand to give them, and
then they're prepared and notblindsided.
Is that kind of, I don't knowwhat the strategy is around
that.
JD (10:59):
Exactly.
That's the perfect word.
It's a strategy.
And the tactic of that strategyis this.
First of all, you'll separateyourself.
Nobody else is doing it or veryfew because they won't take the
time because you have tothoughtfully prepare the letter
and think through.
And I made a note here about theletter as you know, what, what
would you list?
Well, if you write the letter,you're writing it.
(11:23):
That means you're in control ofwhat you say, how you want to
say it.
And you can paint the picturewith the exact colors that you
want to paint it with.
So you're not in there all of asudden getting a question back
from your supervisor.
And you're trying to answer onthe fly.
So you can pick inventory inthis letter and you can explain,
well, this has happened since mylast pay raise.
(11:45):
I picked up these skills, I'vetaken on this leadership role.
We had success in this project.
I performed X percent overquota, whatever the case may be,
you can strategically place itin writing in front of them.
Then the supervisor, boss, orwhoever might be when they
receive that.
Well, it gives them a chance toevaluate that.
(12:05):
And they may not even rememberbe aware, understand, but it
lets them know exactly whereyou're coming from.
And you're not asking just toask, you're not asking them
because we all know don't everask for a raise goes, Hey,
Amanda, I need a raise because Ineed more money.
That never works becauseeverybody needs more money.
So your reason is remember now,for what?
(12:27):
And we're back to the question.
Well, the letter helps youidentify that very specific
answer that's presented to yourmanager or supervisor before you
had that meeting.
And when you walk in, everybodyknows besides whatever's on
their mind.
They know exactly what's on yourmind.
Amanda (12:43):
That's true.
So, is the, for what and yourwhy, is that something that you
actually share with your manageras well?
Or is that not something that'slike your own personal
awareness?
JD (12:56):
Well, that's a great question.
And I would share it dependingon the relationship I have with
my boss, supervisor, or if it'sappropriate, some of it might be
personal and not appropriate inthe workplace to even share.
Some of it.
they may not care about youmight have a manager or
supervisor that's onlyinterested in black and white
facts and figures.
(13:17):
And if you hit this number, youget it.
If you don't, you don't.
Well, trust me, they have nolost love over what your, for
what or why is.
It doesn't matter to them, butit matters to you.
But that's the point.
That's why you had thatdiscussion with yourself as you
prepare is because you want yourmindset to be such that you are
(13:37):
justified in asking for what youwant.
And you're justified becausehere's one of the mental
dilemmas and hurdles that peoplestruggle with when asking for a
raise.
Sometimes they think, well,maybe I'm not really worth it,
this self worth equation intheir brain, as well, I'm not as
(13:58):
good as so-and-so, or I didn'tdo as much as you know who.
Are all of a sudden, they beginto doubt their worth and their
value.
That's why you have thediscussions with yourself.
That's why you take theinventory.
And that's why you list thethings that are important to
prove that you bring more value,which equates to more pay.
Amanda (14:17):
And it sounds like it would almost be a confidence
booster too.
JD (14:21):
Oh, there's no question.
It's a confidence booster andalmost like a television program
or a movie, you know, a moviethat has a script and the script
has been rehearsed and thendelivered.
Well, you get to focus ondelivery because you know the
words without rehearsal, youdon't know the words.
(14:43):
And so you might present a greatmessage in the wrong way.
Cause you didn't practice thewords.
You didn't know exactly what tosay or how to it, and you're
more focused on what am I goingto say next, instead of how am I
going to say it?
How to presenting will be justas important as the, what to
that you present.
Amanda (15:01):
Yeah, because I can see too, those conversations,
there's a lot of energy.
And usually from what I'veheard, it's a lot of anxious
energy, and people are nervous,and they're reciting it over and
over, and they're worrying aboutwhat's going to happen.
And so, it sounds like all ofthis really helps not alleviate,
(15:22):
or get rid of the worry, but ithelps it so, that you feel more
confident going in.
JD (15:29):
Well, you do number one because, the supervisor or boss
is not going to be shocked.
They already know what you wantas part of your review, or part
of the conversation where theyask, because you presented it to
them ahead of time.
And the trick is once youpresent your value, be very
(15:50):
specific.
Remember now we're intentionalin our tactic, but now we're
going to be specific in our ask.
You don't want some money.
You don't want some more money.
You want a number, you want$5,000 more per year.
You want 5% more based on yourannual pay.
Present your ask in the form ofa specific number, either by pay
(16:12):
period or by year or as afunction of percentage, a 10%
increase based on all the thingsthat I have validated through my
preparation.
And if you're specific, then nowyou've given them why you want
it, why you deserve it, whatyour value is.
(16:33):
And oh, by the way, take thetime when you do this.
If you're at let's say you're$40,000 a year, and you're
trying to get to$45,000.
Are the people around you thatdo what you do, whether it's in
your company or across thestreet of the competitor, does
their job pay$45,000 for thosesame skill sets or experience
(16:56):
levels.
And use the market around you tomake sure that you're getting
paid, what the market pays.
Now, if you can get more forthat, well, that would come down
to how great of a negotiator youmight be.
But for sure if I know that thefellow across the street in that
cubicle makes 45 and I do whathe does plus some well, I'm
(17:18):
going to use that information tosay, Hey, over at Acme
corporation, they pay 45 forwhat I'm doing, and I'm doing it
better, based on these stats andfacts.
So, using the marketplace tohelp you evaluate, and then
measure your own worth can be avery effective tool.
Amanda (17:34):
I love that.
So, a little bit of marketresearch to try and figure out
exactly what everybody else isgetting paid in that position.
So, one question that I did wantto ask is what if somebody is
ready like right now?
They feel like they earned itand they're worth it.
Do you say, wait until you'velaid the groundwork or you
(17:56):
charge in there and ask for whatyou want?
JD (17:59):
Well, that's going to be what we call a feel thing.
If you really feel it, then, youknow, certainly I wouldn't ever
tell somebody not to go for it.
If they really feel they'reprepared and ready.
I would say this, just becauseyou're ready and you're itching
to go, and you want to scratchthat itch, doesn't mean they're
ready.
(18:21):
Think about it.
What if you charged into the dayafter they just got their
quarterly returns, and they'redown 15% from last year,
quarter.
And that's the day you picked torun in and drop the bomb on
them.
That you're the next superstarneeded to get paid that way.
Well, you might have thegreatest pitch in the world, but
if it comes at the wrong time,it's not gonna matter what you
(18:44):
say.
Cause it's gonna fall on deafears or one, that somebody might
be in a bad mood.
So, I wouldn't tell you not todo that.
I would just say double checkyour timing that you don't, you
know, go shoot off your bestfirecracker, and then have
nobody there to listen to itpop.
Amanda (18:59):
That's true.
Oh, I like that.
I like that analogy too.
That's really good.
So, have you had people approachyou, and tell you that they were
going to ask about theircompensation or wanted to talk
about it?
Have you seen this wholestrategy play out before?
JD (19:16):
Yep.
Well, so yeah, I'll answer intwo parts.
I've never had somebody come tome and been prepped me for that.
Now lots of times is causing thetype of, or work in industry
I've been in.
It's never been a salary typeposition where you're going to
give somebody a merit raise.
I'll get the calls from a salesside, lots of times there's
(19:39):
bonuses, extra commissions.
Now lots of times we would getthe conversations of, Hey, I'm
only so far away from that nextlevel.
You know, if I don't quite getit, can I still get the bonus or
something like that?
I'll get at the compromiseconversation, but not from the
perspective of the prep.
(20:01):
Now I have used it before myselfbecause prior to financial, I
spent a few years in thecorporate sales world, with IBM
and they trained you on how towork in the corporate
environment.
And they trained you onapproaching to ask for raises as
you move through the corporatestructure.
And which quite frankly, that'swhere I learned the technique of
(20:24):
writing the letter.
Amanda (20:25):
That's amazing that they would do that training too.
I feel like more of them needto.
JD (20:31):
Well, back in that time, way back then, that was the early
on, that was back in theeighties.
The corporate America looked alot different than it does
today.
You know, not so many people hadtheir corporate jobs and were
looking for a side view becausethey're trying to supplement
their income back then.
It was you.
It was the 20 years get the goldwatch and the banner and the
(20:53):
stock options.
And that's, that was the career.
Well, those jobs in this day intime is almost nonexistent that
world doesn't exist anymore.
But they were really groomingcorporate executives at the
time, and that was part of thetraining, not only knowing how
to sell and present, but how tofunction in the marketplace as a
sales rep.
From how do you travel?
(21:14):
How do you run a territory, andalso how do you advance into
management?
So that was probably thetraining.
Amanda (21:20):
Well, you've trained a lot of sales individuals, right?
50,000 sales individuals?
And so, a lot of this, do youfeel like plays with sales as
well?
Like you're almost sellingyourself when you're going into
these conversations?
JD (21:36):
Well, there's no question that the training that I
received coming through bothcorporately and independently
from just some terrific mentorsand people that were willing to
share with me has been valuable,and in being able to turn and
then share that.
The trick is when you begin,whether it's training and sales
or leadership, the trick is youwant to give people information
(21:58):
in a way that is relative tothem.
So, many people will train onwhat they think is important.
And that might be true, but Iwant to train on what you think
is important because that'sinformation you're going to hear
and you're going to learn.
So, when we do training, we'realways finding out from the
sales group we're working withor the individual, you know,
(22:20):
what is it that you need to knowto be better?
And that's what we train on.
It's not an agenda of, hey,these are the five things you
need to know.
Then once you know these things,everything's perfect.
And here's your training.
Ours is okay, that's the basicthat sets you on course.
Now, what are the things thatyou need to help with?
So, you can get more comfortablebecause sales training, when it
(22:42):
boils down to it at the rootlevel is all about two things,
confidence and belief.
We can train people to bestronger in those two areas.
Then they can go do anything.
They can sell anything, they canpresent anything, and they can
share anything.
Amanda (22:56):
Do you think that translates to people that are
working in corporate Americatoo?
JD (23:01):
I think to some degree it'll help because you don't get to
control your future in corporateAmerica, because it's controlled
by the next person ahead of you.
You've got to transfer, orsomebody has to get fired or
pass away or get promoted.
And then you get a shot at thatslot it's, some of that's kind
of scheduled that way.
So, no matter how ambitious youmight be, no matter how
(23:24):
aggressive you might be,sometimes you just gotta wait
your turn.
However, this whole notion aboutbelief in confidence that has
everything to do with, when youdo get the opportunity, if you
are very confident in whatyou're doing, and you have a
high believability, and what youstand for, or how you perform,
then that will put you in abetter position to compete for
(23:44):
that slot.
Amanda (23:46):
This is the first time that I think we've ever really
talked about mindset as like adriving force in these
conversations.
I do remember one guest thattouched on it briefly, but do
you think that mindset is like ahuge factor that someone should
be focusing on as well as likepreparing and laying all the
groundwork?
JD (24:07):
I think mindset's where it starts.
If you began to think like theperson that is in the position
that you want to be, it's almostlike the old"Dress for Success"
routine, right?
You know, you dress for the jobyou want, not for the one you
got.
Well, let's think like a CEO,let's think like a vice
president, let's think like anarea manager.
(24:29):
And when I get ready to vie forthat position or that raise,
then I'll approach it as theywould critically think through
that.
If I'm trying to get a CEO job,and I'm still thinking like a
junior vice president, I'mprobably not going to present in
the same way that someone that'sthinking like that person would
present.
So, mindsets to me is more thanhalf the battle.
(24:51):
And that includes, of course,your attitude, and your
ambition.
But I believe it has more to dowith intentionally making moves
that puts you in a position toask for the job, the raise or
the next thing that you might beseeking.
Amanda (25:07):
That's amazing.
Okay.
So I have a question, and Iusually ask most of our guests
this question.
And it's where I'll ask if youhave any stories that you might
share about getting a raise,someone that you know, or that
you actually went through.
So, do you have anything, andcan you tell us what happened?
JD (25:29):
Well, there's a lot of things I can tell you.
Some you'll laugh at some youwon't, but I'll tell you them.
I can, we spoke of, and so manytimes on podcasts, or
recordings, or shows you alwayswant to hear, well, let's hear
about the success story, how youwent from rags to riches or
whatever the case might be.
Well, I think there's as muchlessons than sometimes, and the
(25:52):
ones that we don't get.
So, if it's okay, I'll tell youabout a raise I didn't get it.
It has to do with some we spokeof earlier, and that was timing.
So, I'm gonna take you back, wayback in time.
And it was my first paid jobever.
And I was only 17 years old atthe time.
(26:13):
I was still in high school, butI got a job on a radio station
as a disc jockey.
And it was, I had one show aweek.
It was for six hours on Sundaymorning.
It was from six in the morning till 12 noon.
It was in Raleigh, NorthCarolina.
And I'll never forget it wasWRNC, the rock of Raleigh and, y
ou k now, the whole shebang.
(26:36):
Well, what was interesting now,I w as getting paid back that
time, a whopping$2 and 5 centsan hour, which was the minimum
wage back in the seventies,which that really dates me.
But it's still a funny story.
I'm racking up the massive dough, you know, a nd c oming DJ.
But what happens is, and thatshow the first five hours from
(26:58):
6:00 AM to 11, it was just aregular radio show.
I t was the John Dalton show,every Sunday morning, I think I
had like 12 listeners.
Mom, and t here's a couple offriends around the neighborhood
would get up and listen, but we,we had this show and it was just
commercial.
And you read the news every houro n the weather on the half
hour, and you played top 40music, but the last hour,
(27:21):
Amanda, of the show from 11 to12 was the live Presbyterian
church service from thedowntown, First Presbyterian
church in Raleigh, which was abig church.
And that's the old school, allthe old Raleigh money and all
the old families and the b lue bloods t hat it was, it was the
deal.
And so, they broadcast theirservice through the radio
(27:43):
station.
And you had, at that time, thislittle intro tape, very much
like the intro on your podcast,where it was 15 seconds of
recording, and y ou'd push thebutton, the recording say,
welcome to the church service.
We're going to take you therenow where the services are just
beginning.
And at that moment you weretrained, if you were running the
board at the radio station, youpush this little button, it w
(28:06):
ould open up this two way,almost like a two way radio at
that time, but it would open upthe line and you could hear the
sound coming from the churchthrough the channel, which i s
pumped out over the radio.
So, it was called open the line.
And we, there was always anaudio person at the other end,
and they were managing the soundon the church end.
(28:28):
And I was, of course, in thestation.
Well, they always told you toplay that tape, that intro tape
somewhere between, you know, 3minutes to 11:00, to the top of
the hour.
And because the organist, ofcourse, as you know, in a
church, traditional church service, t hey're playing the o
rgan a s people come in and sitdown, so the music w ill be
playing, but they also told youat any time, if you're on air on
(28:51):
a radio station, back then i twas still wax records, believe
it or not, 45's a nd the big ones.
So, this i s really taking usback in time, a nd they told you
to have a record, what they callq ueued up.
Now q ueued up record was on theturntable and you had to spin
it.
So, just so you could hear thebeginning of the sound.
So, as soon as it startedplaying, the sound would pop.
Because on radio, and if you'regoing to go off the air for any
(29:15):
reason, have any quiet time, ithas to be either documented, or
you have to warn people.
Look, this is going to be deadair.
Like when they say we're g oingt o have a test of the emergency
broadcast system and you playyour test, dead air on the radio
could signal there's somethingseverely wrong, like some kind
of a n atural emergency orsomething.
(29:36):
The FCC that monitors that,that's serious, they'll shut a
station down.
They'll fine the owners andgeneral managers and everybody
else to boot.
If there's dead air, well Ididn't either.
So here we are at the churchservice, the time is 3 minutes
to 11:00.
I got my record q ueued up.
Now you'll have to pull us up onYouTube sometime and l isten to
(29:58):
it.
But in 1974, which is when thiswas going on, t he number one
song on the top 40 charts was asong called, Midnight at the
Oasis.
And the a rtist was MariaMuldaur.
I have no reason to know thatsong or that artist, except for
the fact of what happened here.
So, I play my little tape we'regoing there, w here the services
(30:19):
are just beginning and t hat open up the church l ine.
At that moment, there wasnothing, there was no music,
there was no o rgan playing,there was nothing, there was
dead air.
I knew that was bad with myquick s tart training there.
I said, oh yeah, play yourrecord that's q ueued up.
So, I just reached over thereand hit the record and starts
(30:40):
playing the song.
Then I'd have to put your camelto bed.
It's probably not the mostappropriate song t hey're p
laying in place with churchservice, but it was music and it
wasn't dead air.
S o, I'm l ike taking a breathgoing, okay, o ne what's going
on at the church.
A nd I was getting ready to pickthe phone up and call and say
what's going on.
But then I realized at that sametime, I had not turned off the
(31:03):
church key.
So, the open line, which hadnothing coming my way via sound,
I was pumping the sound not onlyover the radio wave into the
church a nd was blaring out inthe sanctuary of this church.
Well, I didn't have to call thechurch because the phone lit up
and it was the guy at the churchgoing JD, what's that there rock
(31:25):
and roll music, you're pumping in t his church, cut that off.
And so, I panicked and I like when I reached over, I lifted the
needle up off the record.
And so, I'm like, okay, problemsolved.
No, because once I pick theneedle up off, now, there's no
sound coming out over the radio,dead air.
Not five seconds later, the redphone rings, think of watching
(31:49):
the old TV show, Batman, havingt he red phone, the red phone
went off.
And I knew what that was, andthat wasn't the guy from the
church, that was the owner.
And I picked it up because thismight be a G-rated podcast.
I will not tell you what he saidbefore, w hat he told me to do,
which was get something back onthe air right now, and we'll
talk about it later.
(32:11):
So, when I got a record playingand then the church service
started, I then was done for theday.
Little did I know that I wasgetting ready to be done for my
career because I had planned onthe next day, coming back to the
station and asking for my raise,I was trying to get t o$2 and 10
(32:32):
cents an hour.
And so, I came back down to thestation and I walked in and I
sat with the manager.
I said, and I hadn't written aletter.
I didn't tell him what I wantedto do.
I just came back d own there andsaid, Hey, sorry about
yesterday, t will never happenagain, by the way, I wanted to
talk to you about maybe bumpingmy pay to$2.10 or$2.15 an hour.
I've been doing this show nowfor about six months.
(32:56):
And he says, we know that I'mreally glad you came in, b
ecause we've decided to go in adifferent direction.
And it's been nice having you,if we can have your keys, t
his'll be the end of youremployment here at WRNC.
So, timing was bad, I didn'tthink through it, I didn't prep.
And I have to say probably atthat time, Amanda, I'm not sure
a letter w ould h ave made anydifference.
Amanda (33:16):
Oh man.
Oh, the end of your radiocareer.
Oh, that's such a bummer.
Dead air.
The dead air, that stinks sobad.
That's a good story.
That's a really good story.
(33:36):
I liked that a lot.
Oh my gosh.
Okay.
That was awesome.
We all know that timing, timingis everything.
That is one of the things thatwe have learned today.
So is there anything else thatyou would like to add to our
national conversation aboutgetting a raise?
JD (33:55):
Well, I'd say two things.
Number one, if you're plans forgetting a raise, don't come
through, and you don't get whatyou want.
The next thing that I wouldalways offer is there's a reason
you're asking for a raise is youwant more money.
We'll consider today, the worldthat we live in.
And we kind of live in the gigeconomy where people have a side
(34:16):
gig, because like this podcast,it's virtual, there's lots of
businesses that you can actuallyown or start yourself and make
more money.
So, I would offer that to peopleas they're looking to their
future is if I want more moneyand I can't get that raise, is
there anything else I can do?
Well, there's many, many optionsout there to become an
(34:38):
entrepreneur.
And there's lots of reasons todo that.
So, I would just say to yourlisteners is don't close your
ears and don't close your mindsto those opportunities.
There might be one right aroundthe corner that can help you add
a few hundred dollars a month,or maybe, to your paycheck.
So, there's sometimes more thanone way to skin a cat.
Amanda (34:57):
That's true.
Can you tell us what you're upto now?
That's going to really make animpact on your industry or in
your life in the next few years?
JD (35:06):
Well, I can tell you what our hope is, and our plan,
because we had this,"for what,"conversation about three years
ago, with two buddies of mine.
We looked at this national, youknow, we have this pandemic now,
this unprecedented time, youmentioned COVID.
Well, there's also anothercrisis going on in our country
right now, Amanda.
And that's the crisis offinancial literacy.
(35:28):
And in short terms, what we'retalking about, there's the mass
of American public just doesn'tknow the basics of how money
works, and I'll have to add tothat, it's not even their fault,
because it's not taught inschools.
You know, the schools teacheverything else, but that, and
there's only 17 States in theentire country that require any
(35:49):
type of financial training atthe high school level or below.
And yet we're the 14thwealthiest country, I mean the
number one wealthiest country inthe world, but we rank 14th in
financial literacy.
So, here's the massive problem.
If you took the economy outthere today and you looked at
the population, and we'll roundit down to 300 million people,
(36:10):
about 80%, make between$30,000and$90,000 a year, that's just
the average incomes of about 80%of our population.
People think that it's thewealthy that run the country.
It's not the wealthier arewealthy and some have power, but
the mass people 240 million ofthe 300, they make between
(36:30):
$30,000 and$90,000 a year.
So, here's what happens, if I'ma mid-level manager at, let's
say the power company down thestreet, and I make$60,000 a year
as a mid-level manager, a goodsalary.
I have a 401k and a health plan;I've got a great deal.
Well, here's the facts.
Once I make my deposit into my401k, if I'm contributing, then
(36:51):
I pay my taxes and I'm paying myrent and my mortgage, my car
payment, my Verizon bill, somefood and clothes to the kids.
Well at the end of all that Imight have$1,$2or$3 or$300.
I could do something with, Idon't know what to do, and
because I don't know what to do,I typically don't do anything
with it.
And that means it's usually getsconsumed or squandered.
(37:14):
Well, that's a problem becausethe masses are going to get to
the end of retirement andthey're not going to have
enough.
So, our thought was, what if wetaught people how money works?
And so, we got together, and wewrote a book, and I'm going to
make sure that, I'll show you mybook here on your screen.
"How money works, stop being asucker." And the concept of the
(37:40):
book was how can we get thisinformation out, so people can
handle it?
Well, here was what we did.
Most financial books are writtenon a level that nobody wants to
read, it's usually 200 or 300pages, they're hard cover, you
gotta have a computer or sliderule to figure it out, and you
don't understand it.
So, this book was created andwritten, by two partners of mine
(38:02):
, that we all just kindabrainstormed on.
We wrote it on the level of afifth grader, a 10-year-old
could understand this, if theyread it.
However, an 80-year-old wouldappreciate it because the
concepts Amanda, in the book,talk about the things that the
wealthiest people in our countryuse to become wealthy.
We also talk about the grossinjustices done to us by the
(38:25):
financial institutions like forbanks.
And I'll give you a really quickstory.
If you go to a bank today, andyou walk in there to deposit
some money into your savingsaccount, you'll notice that the
banks are paying a little bitless than most of the time, 1%.
Well, we talk about in our bookabout how this works.
(38:46):
Well at 0.09%, guess how long ittakes for a dollar to turn to$2?
800 year, 800 years.
But yet you've been to a bankand they'll loan out money at
17% on the credit card, or 4% ina CD.
(39:08):
And so, I mean interest on anequity line.
So, the point is you're going todouble over eight lifetimes and
they're going to double everyfour to 17 years on your money,
but yet we still give it to them.
Well, guess what sits up in thelittle teller window, right
(39:28):
beside the place where you slidethe money through, there's
usually a little dish in there.
It's got candy in it and it'ssuckers in them, because they're
telling you what they're doingto you right there in terms of
the banks.
I won't mention the one that Igo to often by name, but I'll
tell you this, they're soaggressive, there's not just
(39:50):
suckers.
Guess what kind of suckers arein the little dish?
Ah, the dumb, dumb.
So, they're telling us whatthey're doing to us, and we
still give them our money.
And if people just knew thatthere was a way that they could
become their own bank, theycould do what the banks do for
themselves.
Then now we're making adifference, and that's what we
(40:13):
want to do.
So, the"How money works," bookis all about teaching people,
how to do that, how tounderstand the basics and change
your life financially.
And we do two things with ourcompany.
We teach people those secrets,which the bank won't teach them
so, they can use it for theirown benefit.
We also teach people how to beentrepreneurs.
So, what if you wanted to be inthat industry, and being a
financial world, which is thebiggest one on the planet.
(40:35):
It's bigger than retail and realestate put together times two,
and make a living, helping otherpeople understand how money
works.
So, that's what's going on, andwe're excited about it.
And for any of your listenersthat would like, we'd be more
than happy.
You can go to Amazon and buy ourbook.
We're proud to say that sinceDecember we've sold almost,
(40:56):
almost 450,000 copies just inthe past six months and we've
been on national TV with thebook and you can buy it on
Amazon.
But if you'd like for yourlisteners that want to reach out
to you, or you can have themcontact me, we will send them a
book, compliments of the"RaiseUp Podcast" because we think
what you're doing is a greatidea.
Amanda (41:17):
So, thank you so much.
So, what we'll do is we'll putthat in the show notes.
If you just let me know wherethey can contact you?
What's the best way to get intouch with you so that people
can, can get their book?
JD (41:31):
I'll do it as a matter of fact, we'll, we'll them contact
to our general website and theycan click here.
We'll send them a book and theycan learn the secret so they can
go in and not be a sucker.
Amanda (41:43):
I love that.
Not a dumb, dumb either.
That's awesome.
Well, JD, thank you so much forbeing on the show.
This has been incredible, andyou were so insightful.
I really appreciate it.
JD (41:56):
Well, this has been fun for me and I do appreciate you
taking me back in time, andhaving me go down the DJ road
one more time.
And the story is old, but itdoesn't ever get old to
remember.
Amanda (42:08):
Memory lane.
And we learned a lot about deadair and timing for sure.
Awesome.
Well, thank you so much.
And thank you guys forlistening.
If you enjoyed the podcast, youcan subscribe, you can share
with your friends, you can clickthe share button and take a
screenshot and share it on yoursocial stories and tag me at
(42:30):
Amanda LeFever.
Thanks again for listening.
And thanks again.
JD, I'll talk to you guys soon.
Bye.
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