The Deeper Work to Fix Your Relationship Welcome to Episode 20 of Concentric, where hosts Gary De Rodriguez and Jason Croft explore the key to making any relationship work - getting right with yourself. In this episode, they delve into the foundational aspect of figuring out one's role in any conflict in a relationship, even if it's not apparent. Listeners are encouraged to ask themselves tough questions to uncover past trauma that may be triggering negative reactions in relationships. But more than that, Gary shares his process to heal trauma and how it has helped his clients rapidly overcome relationship conflicts and how you can do it too. This episode is a powerful guide for anyone starting a new relationship or struggling with conflict in an existing one. So, get ready for a journey of self-discovery with Gary De Rodriguez and Jason Croft in this transformative episode.

Welcome to Episode 19 of Concentric. Today we've got another quick-win episode for you around the idea of upgrading your language. This applies to the language we use in our heads and in our everyday interactions. We often don't think about it too deeply.  We simply consider that it's just how we speak or what we would normally say in a given situation. It's really important to analyze what we are saying to ourselves and to others on a regular basis.  Those things are often reflections of what we think about ourselves at a deeper level and the beliefs that we hold about the world.  Conversely, by changing and upgrading our language, we can be proactive in shaping new beliefs and developing new habits and outlooks on life. Gary walks us through some quick and simple approaches to get started with this right away.

Welcome to Episode 18 of Concentric. In today's "Quick Wins" episode, we're covering how to quickly get back in alignment in your relationship. On this show, Gary and I dig deep on these different subjects and give you tactics and strategies around a lot of these topics.  In this episode, we wanted to give you something you can grab onto and use today, and really improve your life.  These quick tips apply for getting back in alignment with your significant other, a friendship that you have with somebody, or even a parent/child relationship. Sometimes, we start heading in different directions a little bit.  We each see the world through our own frames and filters and over time we assume our partner has the same filters when they don't.  Gary walks us through some really powerful tools here so that we can get back into alignment quickly with ourselves first in terms of how we're framing everything and then working with our significant other or that friend and getting back into alignment with them by opening up that communication. All right, let's jump in!

Welcome to Episode 17 of Concentric. Today we're talking about the power of beliefs and how we can challenge those beliefs that we hold so dear at times that are completely wrong or just may be wrong. Beliefs form the basis of how we see the world, and how we interact with others in the world.  And it's critical that we take the time and have the awareness to challenge some of those beliefs, especially at the moment that either you're being triggered by an event or by someone. It's great when we can take a step back and ask a few powerful questions that will help us challenge those beliefs and potentially reframe things so that we can either come to a resolution with that other person or learn something from that negative event that we went through. Gary and Jason not only talk about the power of beliefs and what a difference reframing them can make, but Gary also gives us three really powerful questions that help us in that process. Make sure to check out the entire episode to fully understand the role beliefs play in our lives and how we can shift them for the better.

Today on Concentric, Gary and Jason walk through this idea of true collaboration in business. Purposefully getting the input of everyone in your organization at a level that makes them feel like they're being listened to is a powerful strategy for building a better company culture.   But it also benefits the company in powerful and profitable ways by having new ideas and areas for improvement brought to you, as a business owner, as the CEO.  And there's an entire system around this that Gary walks into companies with and implements for them.  In this episode, Gary walks you through exactly what he does for those companies and shows you how you can take this idea of collaboration, get quality input from your team, and put it all in place to make it a system within your company so that it's something that's happening on a regular basis.

Today in Ep15 of Concentric, Gary De Rodriguez and Jason Croft are talking about purpose. This is a nice, big, broad topic for sure. There are so many layers to this and the one we really dig into today is that internal purpose. So many of us focus on "What is my big purpose in life?"  "What should I be doing with my career or as a parent or a spouse?" Defining those types of powerful external purposes can be beneficial.  The category of, "I'm going for this.  Everyone, get on board.  Let's go." Another point of view on purpose is that if you're alive, you're on purpose. I think that's powerful, as well. What Gary really takes us through is this internal purpose and how to take ourselves from whom we start out as when we come into this world to who we are when we leave it. And it's a really powerful, insightful conversation around that.

Welcome to Episode 14 of Concentric. Jason Croft and Gary De Rodriguez dig in today around the aspect of using data to not only find that right candidate for a specific job at your company but for those folks who are in those roles now, taking them through some assessments that will help you determine if this person is in their best role.  And if not figure out how to train that person or find that perfect role for them based on their strengths. There are so many different assessments out there that almost everyone in the business world is familiar with, but the one that Gary's talking about here in this episode is unique in not only how it assesses that individual, but also how it evaluates numerous jobs in terms of who you should be looking for, for that role. But then a whole separate layer to it is a training aspect.  For instance, a manager can make that assessment of an employee and determine that the role they are in requires certain traits or behaviors the employee doesn't have.  But they're so close?  This assessment identifies what they need to develop to really thrive in this role and then sets up the training to go along with this. So not only does that "level up" that employee who goes through that training, but now the company and that manager have data to measure against, and the employee knows what they're shooting for. I know we dig into the "humanness" of us all on this show, so it may seem counterintuitive to think we're concentrating on the numbers and data to assess somebody, but it's really the data of digging into who they really are, which then allows us to build up their great "humanness" in that role and help them, help the company, and really improve the entire company culture. Make sure you reach out to Gary to have a conversation about implementing this assessment in your company.

Welcome to Episode 13 of Concentric. Today, Gary and I dig into the aspect of truly understanding another person, whether that's someone you're in a relationship with just someone you're kind of in conflict with and you're trying to come to that resolution. The better you can understand them, the better that you'll be able to communicate your "side" and the better you're going to be able to develop what your "side" should be, in terms of what's really going on. And there are several levels to this.  This is a big, broad topic in terms of conflict resolution and having those critical conversations, as Gary calls them.  We dig deep into this specific aspect of those critical conversations around understanding. Gary of course has immense training and years of experience in deciphering certain physical characteristics, body posture, and all of those things that help him diagnose really quickly what's going on with someone. But we all have that understanding.  We all know, even if we can't quite put words to it, what someone is feeling or when something's a little "off".  That sense will allow us to dig deeper with that person if we'll just have that intention. And we take those few moments to think to ourselves, "Okay, let me stop the chatter going on in my brain for a little bit and truly take in what this other person is communicating both in words, body language, and energy." So we explore the importance of this topic and then really get into some tactical how-tos to help us all when we're in that situation.

Today we're talking about reality as a construct.  Now, the context that we're talking about that today has to do, of course, with relationships and interacting with other folks, but very quickly gets into conflict resolution.  And then taking a step into not just the understanding of, "Okay, I'm in control of this situation," or "I may not be interpreting the situation correctly."  It certainly takes a belief switch to get there for some of us. But more importantly, and maybe more difficultly, is when you're in the moment and something's going horribly wrong in your perspective, and it's causing an emotional trigger, whether that's with somebody else, or just something happening, to be able to stop at that moment and ask yourself, "Why am I reacting so negatively in this situation?"   One of the first indicators in the moment for when we should ask this is when your response seems like an overreaction.  As Gary points out, we may have things coming at us that we can't control, but we can control our response to them to construct our world. Our reality. So I hope that gives you some context around what we're talking about here with reality as a construct.  Gary does an amazing job digging in and really giving us all some incredible, useful tools for moving forward in our life.

Welcome to Episode 11 of Concentric!  Today, Gary and Jason talk about developing your vision and the importance of that in order to lead and influence others.  You know, even for ourselves, we need a clear vision of where we're going and why we're doing something to really accomplish any kind of goal in life.  And when it comes time to get folks on board that you need help from, you're 100 times more likely to influence them if you have that clearly defined vision.  And we sense that in others.  We've seen those people who just believe so strongly in what they're doing, that we almost don't even hear the word, that they're saying to us.  But we're on board.   And we've witnessed the opposite as well:  the folks who are saying all the right things, but you're just not buying it.  You don't know what it is, but something is off.  Sometimes that feeling comes when someone is dishonest and they're trying to trick you into something.  But often it's the fact that they're not confident in what they're telling you.  So, having the skills to not only develop a vision and follow through with it but to communicate that vision is very important.  So that's what we really dig into today:  developing those skills of defining that vision in order to influence others.  All right, let's jump in.

Welcome to Ep10 of Concentric. Today we're talking about two of my favorite subjects:  business and people, and more specifically the relationship between the two.  Balancing the business/people dynamic is great and messy and hard and wonderful. More and more, business leaders and the public at large are recognizing personal development and how it relates to business.  There have been some people, though, who go out there and say, "Invest in personal development and you'll be successful tomorrow!  That's all you need." There are some other folks who are like, "That's all trash and nonsense.  Focus on the business fundamentals. That's how you grow a business." In reality, those are extremes and if any strong division occurs, it's from each "side" thinking the other side is that cut and dried. What we dig into today is the messy middle.   Of course, you don't just go read Think and Grow Rich and that's all you need to know to have a successful business.  But at the same time, even though it's possible to grow and succeed in business:  sell a widget and make a bunch of money with no focus on yourself - how are you in the process?  Is there a level of fulfillment that you miss out on?  And do you grow faster, develop a better team, or are you more successful in business when you focus on some of those aspects of personal development? Gary and I certainly feel like the answer is yes.  Everything that you do, business included, is just better when you consistently grow and improve as a person and learn how to relate to somebody, whether you're selling them something or you're managing a team. If you are practicing self-leadership and developing those skills, it's just going to go smoother. It's going to be better. Everyone's going to enjoy the process more. So that's what we get into today. So many insights. I think you're gonna love it. Let's jump in.

Welcome to Ep9 of Concentric. We really dive in on this concept of self-leadership quite a bit on this show already.  Because it's so foundational to everything else that we teach and really just what we believe in this world.  It's so important to take control over your own experience in life, rather than leaving it up to the rest of the world to dictate how you're going to feel or how you're going to operate.  And maybe it sounds simple.  But it's actually tough when we do get triggered by things out in the world, and we react to that triggering event, rather than stopping and going, "Okay, why am I so upset about this?"  Gary dives into how important our mental and emotional states are to just being consistent and congruent and showing up in life, how we want to show up, and certainly when it comes to leading others.  We can't possibly do that without leading ourselves first.  So this is an amazing foundational episode in which Gary gives us insights on how to do this because it's very difficult to course correct when you are being triggered by something, especially in the moment.  It takes the foundational work beforehand so that in the moment you can call upon that decision that you've made, or insights that you've gained, in order to not have that same emotional response.  Make sure you check out the full episode and share it with someone you think needs to hear it!

Have you heard this crazy idea that improving yourself improves over 97.861% of all relationships in your life? In Ep8 of Concentric, Gary De Rodriguez and I are talking about the real power of personal development - making yourself better as you go through this life. Gary gives us some real insight into not just how to do it, but how to think about it as you go through this process. People often look at self-improvement and personal development in terms of "Let me get this handled, and then I'm good". But it's really this ongoing process (and I promise that I don't mean that in an overwhelming "things never get better" way). Quite the opposite. It's a constant improvement.  It's not like you gain some of these skills and then you're instantly a phenomenal speaker,  all your relationships are perfect, or you make a million dollars the next week. And sure, nobody would say that that's what they're expecting. But there's a little part that does feel like "Let me solve this one thing. And then I'm off to the races." And what actually happens is you get to that next level a little faster. You encounter the challenges that come into your life (or challenging people) and you react differently.  You handle them differently, which makes your life different. Those are the insights that we get into today. And how to approach this endeavor not to get it all figured out but to get on the right path and move in the right direction.  And then as you get these distinctions for your life, they build on each other.

Welcome to Ep7 of Concentric. This is our third in a three-part series around values. If you haven't watched episodes five and six, basically, you need to go do that.  It will really give you some context around what we're talking about here. In Ep5, we dug into the importance of values, and in Ep6, Gary took me through the process of figuring out what my top five values are. In Ep7 here, we get into really answering the questions, "Great, I have these.  What now? What do I do with this information around what my top values are?  Both at a broad level and also just day-to-day - how do I use the disinformation that I have now to improve my relationships, improve my quality of life, improve how I feel about myself?" So, this is super valuable and a lot of fun. You know, as I mentioned in Ep5, we did this series on values early on in the show because it's so critical.

Welcome to Ep6 of Concentric, this is our second in a three-part series around values. If you haven't checked out Ep5, I encourage you to do so.  It really sets the stage and gives you context around what we're talking about here:  the incredibly important aspect of identifying your values In this episode, I dig in and go through this process.  I did it several years ago. But as we talked about in episode five, your values often evolve and change either dramatically or subtly as you enter different stages of life and you have new experiences. It was really eye-opening to go through this process again with Gary, even with how difficult it can be.  And you'll see why it can be so difficult.  I'm forced to ask myself some of the tough questions. But on the other side of this process, it's so valuable, so insightful to have this information.  To realize, "Oh, that's why I'm frustrated here. I don't get along with this person here. Or I do get along with this person because they're aligning with my values, or I'm frustrated here because I'm fighting my own values."  So in this episode, we dig deep and give you some insight into how you can do the exact same thing.

Today starts our three-part series on Values. We wanted to get into these early on because discovering your values and really identifying those top five values specifically ... it's foundational to everything you're going to do in life.  Certainly in your relationships, in how you interact with anyone in life, but especially how you interact with yourself. And when you find those uncomfortable moments in life, or when you feel that overwhelming frustration, again ... especially with yourself, a lot of times you're living outside of those values and counter to what you truly value in life. And if you haven't taken that time to identify what those are, how are you ever going to win? How are you going to get past those frustrations? I did this process for the first time several years ago with Gary.  A very uncomfortable process to go through!  I joke about that because it's tough. It's asking a lot of the hard questions, but it's phenomenal on the other side. Going through that process creates so many "aha" moments.  And it's so worthwhile. So, in this first episode of the series, we dig into why it's critical that you figure these values out and why specifically it's your top five values, and what that means. In Episode Six, we get into me going through that process and really getting a picture for you to see, "Okay, how can I whittle these down?"  Here are all the options that I could have.  But how do I identify mine and then pit the values against each other, essentially, to see which ones come out on top, identifying which ones are really core to you at this stage in your life? And then in Episode Seven, we get into "Great, I've identified these.  Now what?  What's life like now? How do I use these insights to move forward and to improve my relationships?"

There is tremendous power in being flexible in a relationship. In this episode of Concentric, we get into the psychological purpose for being flexible and  Gary shares some tremendous insights on building relationships, whether personal or business. A couple of things to look out for in this episode on flexibility: - How to approach any potentially rough conversation with openness and flexibility to get the best possible outcome while still standing firm in some nonnegotiables. - Walking away amicably -  Sometimes you can be as open as possible but then there is still not going to be a resolution.  Gary gives us some fantastic tools when you find yourself in that situation.

Welcome to Ep3 of Concentric. In this episode, we're digging deep into two big topics that I am so passionate about ... relationships and business. And specifically, how critical it is to have both working together. I love the fact that now more than ever before, people are understanding how those two things come together. They've always been intertwined, but before it was way too common that humanity and business were siloed in terms of what to improve on at work. As I see more examples of companies really developing their people throughout the organization, the beautiful thing to me is that it's good business.  We're taking these things that were traditionally kept separate and we're bringing them together to benefit both aspects, humanity, and business. And we don't just talk around the idea of these subjects.  Gary goes in-depth on how to make this happen.  How to transform an organization.  How to develop your people in a way that really does improve your bottom line while having this incredible ripple effect throughout the organization and beyond. So, you can be somebody who starts a company and develops the people within your organization, and realistically affect hundreds, even thousands of lives. It's incredible to me:  two amazing, important aspects in this world coming together and how we can make it all better.

Welcome to Ep2 of Concentric. Today we jump into one of the (if not THE) most important aspects of developing great relationships and building alignment with others:  your relationship with yourself. It's critical that we finally understand what causes us to behave in certain ways or relate to particular people the way we do.  But once you do the work and get some of that understanding ... what do you do about it? You will be amazed at how quickly you can change the beliefs you hold and reverse the effects of negative experiences in your life with the tools that Gary teaches. We dig deep into how vastly different his approach is to traditional talk therapy practices and how you can take some of those next steps to get past those unconscious blockages in your life. This is an exciting and foundational topic, so dive in and let's make some big shifts in our lives.

Welcome to Ep1 of Concentric. We are so excited to have you on this journey with us on creating transformational relationships in all areas of life. My co-host on this show, Gary de Rodriguez is an absolute master at helping people shift certain core elements within themselves and empowering them to go on and build alignment with the important people in their lives. And that's exactly what we're doing here with this show. We thought it was important to start with why relationships are so important and some foundational concepts that everything else builds upon.  For example, Gary dives into the Drama Triangle and the Creator Triangle.  Understanding each of these helps you shortcut your journey to real relationship growth. By the way, if you're listening to the podcast version of the show, you can check out the video version on YouTube to see some of the diagrams as Gary talks through those concepts. Now, let's jump in.