When I work, I work. When I’m with my wife, I’m a husband. When I’m with my kids, I’m a father. When I’m on stage, I’m a speaker. I don’t mix those things up and I don’t take from one area to take care of another.
Arman Sadeghi is a published author, speaker, entrepreneur and Philanthropist. As the author of The Business Bible, CEO of 6 companies, a business coach, motivational speaker, husband and father, he enjoys working hard to help everyone around him better. His passion is to educate and to help individuals and companies reach their full potential. He currently spends half of his time pursuing his passion of changing people’s lives and helping companies reach their full potential and the other half of his time growing the various businesses he has developed in the last 7 years.
His education includes attending The University of California at Berkeley and earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Molecular and Cell Biology as well as attending Harvard Medical School. He is a serial entrepreneur who started his first company in his parents’ garage at the age of 15 by teaching himself how to set up and maximize computer networks in the early 90’s. Currently, Arman Sadeghi owns and operates six different companies in various different industries including IT, Data Security, Business Consulting, Marketing, Photography and more.
He founded All Green Electronics Recycling in 2008 after watching a “60 Minutes” expose on the current state of electronics recycling in the United States and the lack of focus on Data Security and Environmental Stewardship. All Green was named the 366th fastest growing private company in the United States by Inc. Magazine. Arman Sadeghi’s broad knowledge of business, technology, human behavior and personal development has allowed him to coach some of the most successful executives in the world to reach even higher levels of success while also ensuring that they thrive in all areas of life.
Where did the idea for Titanium Success come from?
I started my first “business” as a 10-year-old by selling baseball cards door to door and I launched my first official business at the age of 15. After several years, I went back to school and attended Berkeley, where I studied Neuroscience and then Harvard Medical School. After leaving Harvard, I went back into the business world as an entrepreneur and I decided to put the two together. Putting my knowledge of business together with Neuroscience allowed me to see business, customers, employees and vendors in a way that I had never seen before.
With 25 years of experience in business, I used to be focused on using my knowledge to start more companies and growing my own businesses. After a near-death experience in 2013, where I found myself in the hospital and about to go into surgery for many hours, I decided that I would no longer keep that knowledge to myself. I made a vow to God in that hospital bed that when I got out of the hospital, I would dedicate my life to taking the knowledge I have and sharing it with other business owners and executives so they can attain incredible levels of success and happiness. A few months later, Titanium Success was born and the journey and growth have been incredible!
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
My typical day starts just before 4 AM when I get up and immediately head to the gym for a quick 25 minute workout followed by getting ready in the locker room to head to my destination. On the days that I am putting on a business seminar or doing a keynote address, my morning is spent doing the things I need to do in my own businesses so I can commit 100% to my audience and once the seminar or event starts. On the days that I’m in the office, I spend most of my day meeting with my employees from my six different companies and coaching them so they can consistently grow. When I am not on stage and I am not working with my employees, I am typically writing some articles or parts of my next book.
My secret to productivity it’s quite simple. Why most people spend most of the day doing things that are urgent and important, I focus A majority of my time doing things that are important but not yet urgent. When I am unfortunately forced into a situation of having to do something urgent, I make it a point to spend an equal amount of time or more doing something that is not yet urgent but important enough to help me ensure I won’t have to spend time putting out fires in the future.
Another extremely important aspect of productivity for me is focus. I believe that the most successful people in the world are successful for many different reasons but one thing they all have in common is the ability to focus.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I think Nike said it best… Just do it! I am not one to waste time. When I decide that I want to do something, there’s nothing in the world that can get in my way because I get focused on the goal and I forge ahead without any second thoughts or regrets. In my career, I have seen too many incredible ideas die because an entrepreneur simply wasn’t willing to work hard enough to make it happen. Throughout my life I have failed many times and I am certain that I will fail many more times in the years ahead, but I refuse to fail as a result of not working hard enough or as a result of not taking action.
What’s one trend that really excites you?
The cloud and complete connectivity. I love the fact that the world is getting more connected, that things are being put into the cloud and that people and things all over the world are being connected. More than ever before, I now have worked to help my clients setup virtual employees across the globe so that tasks can be completed at a lower cost and at a higher level of quality. In many cases, we can have someone in another country acting like a member of the team and because of technology and connectivity, it feels like they are in the office next door.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
I wake up very early each morning. I workout everyday without ever skipping a day! When I work, I work. When I’m with my wife, I’m a husband. When I’m with my kids, I’m a father. When I’m on stage, I’m a speaker. I don’t mix those things up and I don’t take from one area to take care of another. For example, when I’m with my wife, I typically turn off my phone completely (Powered Down) and I even put on a bit of a show by showing her the phone as I slide my finger across to shut down and I say, “The only person in the world I need to talk to is right here with me!” You’d be surprised how incredible that makes people feel.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Plan more. Think More. Failure is guaranteed no matter what you do so don’t be afraid of failing but don’t ever fail because you didn’t try hard enough.
Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on?
When you feel down, depressed or anxious about something, think about the worst case scenario and make it as bad as possible and then think about it for a moment and you’ll realize that even the worst possible case would still be “ok” so it’s not that bad.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
Take calculated risk. Without risk, you cannot break through to the next level.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business? Please explain how.
Focusing on efficiency. The best way to grow your business is to become more efficient at what you currently do so you can do more of it in a shorter time and then come up with new things to do. Trying to grow an already inefficient company is the guaranteed way to fail.
What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
One of my businesses that relies on commodities nearly went bankrupt because of a crash in the commodity market along with some other things as well. It was a case of everything bad happening at the same time and we almost didn’t make it. However, I worked harder than I’ve ever worked before in my life and did everything humanly possible to save the company and I succeeded! Now, the company is thriving and growing.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
Today, with the world so connected and people so readily available for hire in other countries, I think setting up a company that is a one-stop outsource shop would be amazing. Basically, people would come to you and you could setup a system for them where you can outsource many different areas of their company for a fraction of the cost including Accounting, Human Resources, Customer Service, Administrative things, etc. While all of these services are currently available, there is no one company that is implementing them efficiently and cost-effectively. I was planning on doing this in 2018 but I hope someone beats me to it so I can use their services.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
On my first day with my wife, I got her a single red rose that must have been the most beautiful rose I’ve ever seen. I went into a flower shop and said I wanted flowers but I didn’t want a dozen because it had to be small and elegant. I said “charge me whatever you want for a single rose” and make it the most beautiful rose ever, and they did! They only charged me about $20 though so I tipped them another $80 =)
What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
I use a Google Mail plugin called “boomerang” and it’s an incredible tool to make sure that the various things I ask for via email are not forgotten. Whether I’m sending something to my employees, vendors or clients, it’s a great way to make sure that if they don’t respond, I will be notified.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
My favorite book of all time is “How to win friends and influence people.” It’s a book I’ve read every year of my life for the past 20 years and the reason I keep reading it is that it is truly the “how to guide” for life. Incredible book and one that everyone should read.
What is your favorite quote?
“Be happy with who you are and what you have while pursuing everything that you want” – Jim Rohn
Tell us about one friend or acquaintance of yours who we should interview on IdeaMensch. Who are they and what are they doing?
My sister, Dr. Angie Sadeghi. She is an amazing doctor and she is the type of entrepreneur who is going to change the world!
Connect:
LinkedIn: linked.com/in/arman-sadeghi-
Mario Schulzke is the Founder of ideamensch, which he started a decade ago to learn from entrepreneurs and give them a platform for their ideas.