Ramon Ray
Appearances
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
That's somebody I can aspire. So I'm honored. to be that way. And thank you for having me here on your show. Appreciate it very much.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
I think of my boy Josh Johnson, a tap dancer in New York City. I've known him since he was a little kid. I think of George Estrada. He has a construction company in the east side of Long Island. So these are just a few of the names and people who I vibe with on a regular basis. So was that helpful? Or did I go too far, too long?
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Yes. No, I appreciate that so much. And it's funny that me and my son argue and uplift the most of anybody in my life besides my wife. me and him. I mean, dad, you are not focused. He may not sit exactly like that, but that's what I'm hearing. And I'm like, no, I'm not. Then a few days later, son, you're right. I need to focus more. Or him.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
I remember my guy, Yakov Yurinsky, with the same age, but he's done a few different things to me and bigger things to me in life. And I remember one day, and this is more metaphorically, but like, Yakov, I did this deal. I got $120,000. And his Argentinian-Israeli accent, Ramon, curious, why didn't you make $250,000? Dude, I just... In a good way, he just challenged.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
So you need these people in your life to hug you and to whoop you both at the same in a good way. You know, they're definitely not whooping, but you get more so encouraging you to do the best you can do. Yes, sir.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Yeah. When I look at what me and Mick are doing right now, we're having this discussion with you. I'm talking to you. You. I'm having a discussion with you. Now, I don't know Mick's setup. But I don't think he's an NBC Fox business with a thousand different cameras. But we look pretty darn good, people. He looks like a chocolate perfection right there. That lighting in his shirt and all this.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Me, I got my little lights going on. I could show them to you, but then I'll mess up. So my point is, it's simple. And just the little I can imagine what he's doing right now. I doubt I'm wrong, Mick, but let me know if I am. Simple things, what? We got to have good audio. Got to have good lighting. Got to show up proper. You know, got to clean up a little bit. That's it. Go for it.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Some people, Mick, they're not doing it because, oh, it's not right. It don't look like Jimmy Kimmel. It don't look like a Tyler Perry studio. People. So that's the aspect of simple. Or your first podcast. Maybe a dog barked back there. You're going to delete the whole thing. Maybe your baby cried. We all been babies. So...
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
That's just some, I could go on, but that's just some concepts of, as Seth Godin even says, stop waiting for perfection. It's never going to come.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
That's right. And P and people do that. I mean, again, you want, you, you don't, it's like the airlines as long, you know, the brakes got to work and we got to have oxygen tanks and whatever else in the plane, but you know, let's let the plane fly. So, so some people can spend all day long trying to perfect the blue color of hue.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
This ain't Louis Vuitton people, you know, especially at a certain level, make the sale. You can apologize instead of asking for permission your whole life. Cause if you wait, ask for permission, every step you go, Mick, You never go move. You're going to be on step one and I'll be on step seven. And you'll think I'm all that in the bag of chips. Well, we are make you and I are.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
But still, you get the point. You didn't take a step.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Yeah, I think some we've just said. One is definitely the aspect of don't wait for perfection. That's why it's the biggest one. Don't wait for perfection. It's never going to come. I think number two, what do you really want to do? And I've suffered with that lack of confusion over who I am, what I want to do. Do I love kids? Therefore, I should work at a child daycare?
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Or do I want to be an entrepreneur, a business owner, and run a daycare center? Yeah. And I say that because I just had my friend Brandy Wood, she has an amazing event called Child Care Millionaires. So those who are looking for Child Care Millionaire Academy, I think, Association rather, CMA, Child Care Millionaire Association. Point being is that what do you really love to do?
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Is it that you just love being in nature, chopping wood all day? Or do you want to be a business owner of the Forest Society of America? I'm making stuff up, Mick, just to let people know this works in everything. So I think that's number two. What do you really want to do? What's your real passion? I think the number three, the best advice is understand that we only live once, Mick.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
We only live once. One of my buddies, Scott Simons, had a segment where he said, it must be nice. And in the segment, it must be nice, he was saying, don't throw stones at me because I've decided in this season to work hard. I may miss a few games. I may miss a few. This is my family. But I have something I'm building towards.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
And so when you look at me and all the nice things I have, don't throw rocks at me in the same way. I won't throw rocks at you because every single one of your children's games you're at, you have date night every Thursday from four to midnight without stop. You're there to visit your grandmama every day. That's great for you.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
I'm not going to throw stones on you because because you're doing that and I can't or I decided not to see what I mean. So don't so I could go on with those tips, but I think don't throw stones at other people. Everybody has their own life. There are some things, Mick, that I think are bad.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
You know, if Mick saw me doing something nefarious, cheating on my tax or something, something wicked, there's no call me out. But most things in life, me and Mick can make a dollar a thousand different ways. He wants to have a franchise. I don't. I want to, you know, scale to 10 locations. Mick wants to have a donut shop in a truck. God bless America. Take your pick, people.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Yeah, I think decide now what kind of community you want, because thank you, Mick, for that. I do have a community, but it's in very different ways. The community could just be a LinkedIn group. So if that's the kind of community you want to build community and build your brand in it to be able to see how you can serve them, as my friend Shea Brown says, sales is service.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
And that's part of that service is you can be compensated for that. People will pay you for the service. That's one. Part of the brand building could be like my friend Lamar Tyler has, where he has a paid community of people. Thousands pay him every month to be in his community. Both are communities, but you can build community different ways.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
But I think the best way when I think of community, again, quoting from my mentor, right? We quote our mentors, Seth Godin. It's about knowing that people like us do things like this. It's about raising the flag. Seth Godin says that, raising the flag, saying, I'm here. I like to have almonds and cashews with raisins. I don't know. And broccoli sticks. All who like that. Come on down.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
I'm honored. Well, I think the concept you're referring to, of course, is the celebrity CEO, this concept of, and I started this in 2019. I've been doing it for many, many years, but I started it, which is relatively recently, 2019, because people kept asking, Ramon, we see you on Fox Business. We see you on MSNBC. You were in New York Times. You're in the Wall Street Journal. You're on Inc.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
You get what I'm getting at there is that it's deciding I do this. I show up this way. I'm willing to take the first step towards leadership, towards taking action. Those who want to join me. The door's open. Come on and get on the bus. So I think that's what that aspect of community is like. And again, to underline that community can go different ways to different people.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
There are tools and apps for community, school and Facebook and mighty networks and so many more. Our community can just be the people at your church. You and a group of guys just vacuum after church on Sundays. That's community right there.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Mick, what an honor to be part of your life. I am humbled, and I've never heard such kudos. I'll just receive it. I'll receive this gift quite like I have today. And thank you, Mick, for that. And thank you for being a light to so many others, Mick, that I bet you don't know who you're serving. And isn't it the power of being humans in the world?
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
When life goes around beautifully, there's a few knuckleheads who muck up the gears. But if people like me and Mick and others can make the world a better place, Mick, thank you. And if you receive that book, Celebrity Seal from Mick, make sure you tell Mick thank you.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Tell people to check out Mick Unplugged and make sure you tag him on your socials and tag me too and we'll all uplift Mick on Mick Unplugged.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
You're an entrepreneur. You're quote unquote all over the place. I'm not literally, but for their purview as they're getting small business education material, I show up and I said, you know what? This is being the celebrity CEO of your industry. It's not being Serena Williams or Michael Jordan celebrity, like global celebrity, President Trump, Vice President Harris, President Biden.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Yeah, two places I recommend. People can go to RamonRay.com, RamonRay.com, R-A-M-O-N-R-A-Y, and or check me out at ZoneofGenius.com, ZoneofGenius.com.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Mick, I receive that. Thank you.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Take your pick. You know, Elon Musk. Those are uber different. But that means mech Ramon in our industries, in the sphere of people we serve, we have the opportunity to be well known or not. Absolutely. Yeah.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Sure, sure. I mean, I think there's three core things. And again, I can talk about this for 67 hours. So you let me know how much time we have. But The three things I think best people remember is one, the aspect of attraction. What are you doing to get people attracted to your brand? Or said a better way, actually, key strategies.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
What are you doing to get people to have attention, to just know who you are and that you have a solution for them? Because most people just don't know there's a solution out there for them. So how can you get the attention of the right fit audience that you can serve? That's one. As you get that attention, we can talk about that more, build it up, get the attention. Hey, I'm here.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
I can help you, help you, help you. They're not a customer, the attention. Then what can you do to start to build trust? And for me, I think trust is best defined. Mick is an education. How can I be on a program like this? Mick Unplugged. How can I be on your webinar, on your Zoom, on your email list, follow you on social?
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Any way I can just to build trust because trust is built over time, over and over and over and over and over. And after you build that trust, By God's grace, people say, you know what? I trust this guy. Let me vote with my money and buy something from them. Clearly don't happen all the time, but we'd all be trillionaires.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
But my point being is that you build up that attention of, say, 10,000 people, 100,000 people, 500 people. Build the trust then over time of half of them. So we're talking about 200 people, 100 people over time because the flywheel keeps going, Jim Collins flywheel. And then 10%, 20% maybe buy from you. And you rinse and repeat that, you got a nice size business going.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
You can easily build a $500,000 million business just on that. Now to get over that level, of course, as my mentor Lamar Tyler and Damon John would say, that's what the strategy is, hiring the right team and more. But for a smaller business, You focus on attention, building trust, and having that trust generate the sales. You can do that all day long by this concept of celebrity CEO.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
And one of the things I want to add as well, Mick, is that just be different. That's all the thing I want to add. Thank you for your time on that. But just all that's important, but choose how you show up in different. It doesn't mean you have to be as gregarious as Ramon and be funny and all that. No, but there's got to be something that makes you pop and stand out. So I want to add that as well.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
That's right. Because that goes back to the aspect of being hidden, right? The journey you went through. Yeah. You can do referrals, word of mouth, kind of on the DL. Hey, if you want to see me, just call me, just meet me in the back of the room. You can You can do it that way. But if you want to grow some degree, hey, listen, you said your pool is dirty all the time. My name is Jenny.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
We have some pool cleaning services you may want to check out. I'm giving any example. It doesn't have to be in the industry, you know, speaker, coach. It works for anyone. You know, you said your child is misbehaving in school. My name is Robert. You know what? We can help your child possibly. And overcome that.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
So whatever it is, or in our case, we're speakers, coaches, consultants, thought leaders. So yeah, getting the word out. So when people are ready, because you built the attention and trust, and when they're ready, they're going to buy from you.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Well, let me answer it in two ways. And if you don't mind, with permission, I'd love to start with the because now. Because now is different than it was at the beginning. And I think there's two sides. We all need to make a living. We all need to provide for our families. So I do want to say that part of my because, I must say, Mick, is and has been I need to provide for me and my wife.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
I want to provide for my kids who are adults and out of the house. I want to build generational wealth. I want to build my community. I want to have others. So my why today, maybe because of maturity, I'm a bit older. I'm 52 this year. Maybe because of things like that, I'm seeing it. Yes, I need to eat. And that will always drive me. But also as I get older, I want to help others.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
I want to help my aunt, my cousins. I want to give them things that they're trying to do. Not that they can't do it, but if I have more, if I have 20 pieces of fish and they have one, I can afford to give them five. So I think my because, Mick, That's why I have a fastidious, I think, a fire in me every time I wake up. Yes, got to take care of myself today.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Whatever reason that's in me, I always will have that. I'm like a lion. I always want to hunt, you know? But really, then it goes back to, I think, really generational wealth. Really, how do I provide? How do I help my church? How do I help us build a church in Dominican Republic? So I think that's the key of where I'm going. And go back to the beginning.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Really, I got fired from the United Nations. And it really was the simple aspect not to disappoint people, but I had to survive. So that was not because there was a very simple reason I had to survive.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
I'm resilient. Yeah. So to give the context, I had a job at the United Nations right out of high school, kind of before college. I don't remember the exact time frame, but maybe when I was 19 or so years old. So they've told me I was one of the youngest hires at the United Nations, in fact, at that time. So I was there and I worked there for a number of years, Mick, over 10 years.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
And while there, I got the journey of technology, CompuServe, Prodigy, AOL. The early 90s would have been. The Netscape Mozilla browser was just being birthed and modems, you know, with the noise. And, you know, you know that, you know, was there. So give people a sense. Early 90s is where I was. It wasn't the blogging and live streaming we have today. You know, camcorders were the thing, you know.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Um, so that was there. And then bottom line is I had permission to do some entrepreneurial, what they call side job hustles. I had permission from my boss, uh, do do some issues. There was an employee who was made a stink about it. He didn't like it. That permission was revoked, but I had a bite of the apple. I had a taste of entrepreneurship, and I didn't stop.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
But eventually, my contract was not renewed or fired. So that's the context on how that happened. And when that happened, I won't forget the day. In fact, I think I have the DHL envelope a few feet from me in my garage that said, Ramon, your contract's not renewed. It was maybe a Wednesday, as I recall. And you're going to be gone on Friday. That's it. Sayonara.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
So thankfully, I had some side hustles, and I had a little bit of revenue in there. But my wife would tell me every month, Ramon, 5,000 less, 5,000 less. At the time, our family income, household income, 5,000 less. And so to your point, like I know you would make as well, I had to make it work.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
And that's where this journey of me ramping up my speaking, being a paid speaker, which I'm now blessed to speak all over the world, in-demand motivational keynote speaker. working with some of the largest brands in the world, Dell, Microsoft, VeriSign, AT&T. I could go on working with them on a variety of amazing campaigns and then building niche publications.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Started smallbiztechnology.com, sold it. Started smarthustle.com, sold it. Started the Small Business Summit, sold it. And today I'm the publisher of zoneofgenius.com. And as you know, Mick, celebrity CEO. We help entrepreneurs build their personal brands.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
I love that question, Mick. No, thank you for asking that. Mentorship is everything. A few mentors in my life, some, I mentioned one, Seth Godin. I know him. I can text him and he'll get back to me and et cetera. We're friends, you know, professional friends as it were. So he's a mentor. He's been a mentor of mine for years.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
He was one of the first speakers at one of my events in 2006, 2007, something like that, way back in the day, and has done it a few times for me. So that's one, Seth Godin. Number two, Steve Harvey. I've never met him. Met his daughter, Brandi Harvey, but Steve Harvey's a mentor of mine, just his swag, how he shows up, how he talks. He's talent, and has a media company. Kevin Hart as well.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Those are two of my... distant mentors who I don't know than others. I'll just shout out. And I'll talk about mentorship is, um, Lamar Tyler. I'm in his program. I invest in his program, his client, but Lamar Tyler is a mentor of mine. Um, I think of Brian Hess in Pittsburgh. I think of Scott sign with, I think of Glenn Lundy. So those are a few people who I look up to.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
What is it, brother? I'm blessed and fantastic. It's good to be here, and thank you for that honor. I receive it as so many have been a mentor to me from a distance. Seth Godin, I've been to so many of his events. I've read so many of his books, so I understand the feeling. He knows me, but we don't rock like every week. But yet, I follow his journey, and I'm like, you know what?
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Um, and about mentorship, um, Here's the thing about mentorship. It's different than having a client. It's different than necessarily paying for a coach or consultant. Because, Mick, I could pay you $5,000 a month. You could coach me and leave. We do whiteboard session in Panera or something, right? That's good. It's important. People should invest in that.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
But a mentor is kind of like, yo, Mick, I know it's 3 a.m. My friend told me that my business is not going to survive. It's going to fail and I should stop. What do you say, Mick?
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
mc knows me a bit and he may encourage me and say brother that's okay they ignorant ignorant intensely not ignorant ignorant or he may say dude you've had these calls with me for the last 10 years and it's not going nowhere Maybe you should get a date. You know what I mean? A mentor has that feeling. They can just talk. There's nothing in it for them. So I think that's the power of mentorship.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
Often someone you trust and who trusts you, someone who knows you a bit personally would be great. And somebody who has a vested interest in your success. My buddy, Yakov Yurinsky. That's another name I got to shout out. Yakov Yurinsky. He would teach me and I'd crown his shoulders. when I would leave the United Nations for lunch break, and he'd show me how businesses were built.
Mick Unplugged
What Drives Ramon Ray to Turn ACTION into UNSTOPPABLE PASSION?
So that's the power of mentorship. And then me being mentored, absolutely, Mick. I have a number of young men who I call regularly, who they call me from time to time. My son is my number one mentee. Yeah, and it's not like I walk around, I'm his mentor. No, you can't. Not like that. But I think of my son who we talk several times a day and we sharpen each other.