77. How to scale your family and career - with Aaron Ross

Practical Leadership Podcast

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Aaron Ross. Aaron is an entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and renowned author of "Predictable Revenue" and "From Impossible to Inevitable." He's a father of ten and has an incredible story to share.

In our conversation, we dive into the chaos and beauty of Aaron's life, focusing on his experiences balancing a massive family with his professional aspirations. Aaron talks about his journey from working at Salesforce to creating a successful sales system, and how his family motivated him to achieve financial success.

Key Points and Frameworks:

• Hypergrowth Model: Aaron describes his family's growth as hypergrowth, drawing a parallel between scaling a business and scaling a family.
• Emotional Intelligence: He emphasises the importance of emotional intelligence in navigating the complexities of life and work. Aaron believes that emotional intelligence will be a crucial skill for future success.
• Love as a Practice: Aaron shares his insights on love, viewing it as a skill to be practiced rather than just a feeling. This perspective has been shaped by his experiences raising a diverse and dynamic family.
• Constraints and Determination: Aaron discusses how constraints, like having a large family, forced him to be laser-focused and determined in his professional life. He prefers the term "determination" over "discipline," emphasising the importance of doing what feels right and following one's intuition.
• Nonlinear Path to Success: Aaron's career and personal life are marked by a nonlinear journey, where he often had to jump in feet first and figure things out as he went along. This approach led to many successes, despite initial uncertainties.

Memorable Quotes:

1. "We hyper-scaled the family." – Aaron Ross, discussing the rapid growth of his family. (00:03:02)
2. "Emotional intelligence will be one of the defining skills for future success." – Aaron Ross, on the importance of emotional intelligence. (00:08:20)
3. "Love is a skill, not a feeling." – Aaron Ross, sharing his perspective on love and relationships. (00:09:49)
4. "Life is so weird." – Aaron Ross, summarising his view on the unpredictability of life. (00:49:51)
5. "Everyone's doing their best, even when it doesn't look like it, including yourself." – Aaron Ross, emphasising the importance of practicing acceptance and appreciation. (00:50:34)

Tune in to hear Aaron Ross's fascinating insights and stories. Whether you're a leader, parent, or both, there's plenty to learn from his experiences!