Gina Mollicone-Long

Gina Mollicone-Long helps people get what they want. Academically trained in engineering, philosophy and the intersection of science and spirit, Gina brings a wealth of knowledge and information to her process. Extensively trained in modern and ancient performance techniques, Gina aggregates their teachings and shows people how to make powerful transformations. Gifted in rapport, connection and language, Gina cuts to the core of your reality and empowers you to engineer a new one.

She is an international best-selling author, compelling speaker and peak performance coach with a mission to reveal greatness in individuals, teams and organizations. She is the creator of Greatness U, the only NLP coaching training school to offer a 6in1 format. Since 1998, she has trained, coached or spoken to tens of thousands of people on six continents. Her books, Think or Sink and The Secret of Successful Failing are widely read and enjoyed by people around the world. She can show you exactly how to get out of your own way.

What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?

A typical day is broken into 3 parts. After walking the dog and going to the gym, I spend the morning practicing many of the techniques that I teach at Greatness U. This includes affirmations, meditations, coherence breathing as well as connecting to my intuition. I use this time to prepare for the busy part of the day. Once I’m in my office, I am either optimizing the content for Greatness U courses, working on a breakthrough for a private client or preparing a keynote speech for a group of CEOs. The final third of my day is spent with family and friends either cooking, reading or going for a long walk along the beach. My secret to being productive is to segment my day and withdraw my attention to distractions. I set aside days and times for meetings and/or email and the rest of the day is allocated in my calendar using a delightful color-coding system.

How do you bring ideas to life?

I’m an external processor so I bring ideas to life by talking about them with others. This can either be an informal meeting at the office or a more formal setting like a webinar, retreat or private client breakthrough. Given my love of systems, I try to get every idea flowing in some sort of audience to determine what works and what needs to go. Basically, I love to talk about it. I’ve been speaking since I was a kid so I bring things to life with my words.

What’s one trend that excites you?

A very exciting trend is the absolute explosion of personal and professional coaching. It delights me to see that people recognize that there is great value added in using a coach to get results faster and with less effort. It is also important to note that becoming a coach is a viable career option and gives people the power to start their own business and make a tangible difference for others. We have experienced this trend firsthand at Greatness U with the explosion of our 6in1 coach training.

What is one habit that helps you be productive?

My undergraduate degree is in engineering and my master’s is in the philosophy of science and religion. I am obsessed with systems of all kinds. That’s what got me into being an expert in change. I use a system for organizing my time that relies upon my calendar, categories and colours to help me see what my priorities are at a quick glance. I try and turn everything into a system so I can optimize it.

What advice would you give your younger self?

I would definitely tell my younger self that coaching was a “real career option” in the future. When I was a teenager, I coached 5 different sports and taught swimming lessons as my part time job. I was really good at it. But then, I bought into the notion that I had to get a real job after university so I gave up on all the things I loved to follow the herd. Luckily, I didn’t last long before I left the corporate world and started consulting with CEOs on how to get their goals faster and with less effort. Little did I realize that I was doing executive and business coaching before coaching was even a thing.

Tell us something you believe almost nobody agrees with you.

I believe that any change is possible but not all changes are plausible. People argue with me all the time because they try and convince what changes are “realistic”. However, reality is a contruct and I stand by my claim that you only need TWO pre-conditions for ANY change: 1) a burning desire to change and 2) the willingness to give it what it takes to get there. I teach all of the students and coaches at Greatness U that screening their clients for 100% desire and coachability (willingness to follow the coaching) will lead to success every single time.

What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?

In life you get what you focus on so you MUST focus on what you want. You must learn how to know if you are really focusing on what you want and moving toward what you want or if you are actually focusing on what you don’t want and moving away from it. Both behaviors looks the same on the outside but only focusing on what you want will actually produce long term results.

When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?

When I feel overwhelmed, I put myself back in a resourceful state by changing any one of three components of the performance triad: focus, emotions or physiology. I change my focus by literally directing my attention to what I want by reading an inspirational quote. I change my emotional state by using my resource anchor (an NLP technique) to bring myself back into a powerful resourceful state. I change my physiology back to being powerful by practicing a coherence building breathing technique. When I feel unfocused, I get up and move my body for 10 minutes or so just to get the energy flowing and interrupt the pattern.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?

I think the most valuable strategy has been one that I call “Ready, Fire, Aim”. I wrote about this in my first book where I described how it’s more important to keep moving than to be perfect. This is due to the law of intertia that states that an object at rest will tend to stay at rest and an object in motion will tend to stay in motion unless acted upon by a big force. The hardest step is the first one. Just take it. You can fix it, improve it or change it as you go. Most people get stopped before they even start. Just start.

What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?

I joined the corporate world right out of university. I knew it was the wrong place for me. It was a great job at a great company and I’m grateful for all that I learned while I worked at P&G but I knew deep in my heart that I was meant to be an entrepreneur. However, I didn’t have the courage to follow my heart at such a young age. Instead, I tried to rationalize all the reasons why I should stay. When it really wasn’t working out, I went to another company hoping that it would be better because I erroneously put the cause of my discontent outside of myself. Needless to say, it was not better and that ultimately led me to exit the corporate world but not without a lot of doubt and suffering first. I learned a few key lessons from that experience: 1) trust your heart 2) take bold action 3) if the grass is greener somewhere else then it’s time to water your own lawn.

What is one business idea you’re willing to give away to our readers?

Everyone thinks that they have to have the latest gadget, state-of-the-art technology, patents or complicated strategies to succeed. The one area where most entrepreneurs and managers fall down is that they actually know nothing about human behaviour and performance. If you or your people aren’t operating at peak potential then you are leaving money on the table. Investing in people is not a soft skill. It’s the only real advantage that you have. The humans that work for you have unlimited potential so invest in that development so they can do what they do best. Send them for training, hire them a coach and create an environment where they can thrive.

What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?

I’m not a huge tech saavy person however we use Keap at Greatness U to help us keep track of everyone and everything. It enables us to keep track of all of our clients and students while also ensuring that they are able to access the incredible support products that go along with our trainings. Data management gives us the edge in being able to serve our customers.

What is the best $100 you recently spent?

I love buying things. I get real joy from buying awesome stuff. I believe that money comes back to you the way it leaves you so I pay attention to buying things that I love. The best $100 that I spent recently was on an awesome baby gift for a dear friend who lives in Australia. I marvel at the fact that I can send the perfect organic cotton baby snuggly halfway across the world at my fingertips.

Do you have a favorite book or podcast from which you’ve received much value?

I read a gazillion books a year. And I always learn something. That being said, there is a book that I read in my trainings and that I require when I’m working with a private client. It’s a children’s book called The Little Soul and the Sun by Neale Donald Walsch. It’s a powerful metaphor for reframing why people do mean things and why bad things happen. Even though it’s a book for children, it is an awesome reminder for anyone and everything who struggles with the way it is.

What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?

Ted Lasso. Hands down. In a world where there is an over emphasis on what’s wrong, Ted Lasso brings out what is right on so many levels including and especially the power of belief. If you’re a coach, watch Ted Lasso. If you’re not a coach, watch Ted Lasso.

Key learnings:

• Ready, Fire, Aim. Done is always better than perfect. Just get out there and take some action. When in doubt, be like Dory and just keep swimming.
• Anything is possible if you have desire and willingness. Focus on what you want and be relentless in your pursuit of it. Never ever give up.
• Invest in yourself and your people because the payout on human performance will always benefit everyone. Greatness lies in everyone so help them reveal it to the world.
• Believe. Believe in yourself. Believe in those around you. Believe in a world full of goodness and good people. It will surprise you how much the world will start to show up when you do this.