Born without arms, John Foppe has had to break down and re-engineer every aspect of day-to-day life. He learned that the inability to do something didn’t rest on the lack of resources or vision - it is the emotional reaction to meeting an obstacle, even a small one, head on.

In the field as part of his master’s degree in social work, John saw this scenario play out over and over. To his surprise, he discovered that some people are not willing to continue their improvement and instead have built systems supporting their perceived limitations. As a speaker, John also witnessed this resistant mindset operate in all sort of companies. He repeatedly heard leaders complain about how difficult it is to motivate their people. John has addressed this challenge with developing a variety of solutions to effectively translate visions into outcomes. Among John’s answers, he has devised an approach he calls the "Ellipse"; a specific set of practices which mobilize one to circumnavigate problems and maintain the vision—to get results.

His compelling story and methods caught the attention of the legendary Zig Ziglar, who broke his long-standing rule of promoting from within and recruited and mentored John.

In 1995, John launched a successful training business that has taken him to 15 different countries, pro-football organizations like the Miami Dolphins, and to Fortune 500 clients such as Boeing, GE, and State Farm.

John’s insights on how the biggest vision can be derailed by the smallest bit of resistance are now being used to orchestrate the missions of visionaries and change agents around the world.

Cracking the Code
Why Don't Big Visions Translate Into Big Outcomes?

Visions don't translate because the message often gets garbled - like a code. In this presentation, John reveals how a "Code of Exasperation" can unwittingly exist within an organization. It's no secret employees have become burnt out, fearful, and frustrated. Instead, the secret is how these reactions kill vital initiatives. John explains how this Code is encrypted through four distinct roles workers take on.

Have you ever noticed how the more you try to mobilize people, the more resistance you get?

The "Code of Exasperation" can't be purged, but it can be re-written into a "Code of Execution". John teaches how to encode four new, productive roles where people execute in their own way. As people understand the part they play in the big picture of making something happen, they naturally embrace the vision. Rather than trying to transmit the vision to people, now people realize the vision through their own initiative. The buck stops getting passed; red tape dissipates; and sales swell.

Being an Executor, Not an Executioner
How to Get Everything Done Without Destroying Anything

Have you ever felt like a hamster on a wheel? The faster you go, the better you get, but better probably isn't enough, so you have to go even faster - an exhausting cycle.

Eventually, work falters. Enter the executioner! Managers crack down with tighter controls. When controlled workers feel they have no choice, they stop taking initiative. Workers also become executioners - slowly killing initiatives with inaction.

John explains how to break the cycle by showing people they can choose to be Executors. Making things happen becomes a way of life. Employees will learn how to be executors through:

• Realizing three ways of:
  • paying attention
  • stating intentions
  • applying efforts.

• Walking the "Ellipse," a specific set of practices which mobilize one to circumnavigate problems and maintain the vision.

• Understanding how 90% of making something happen involves making oneself available. John details five benchmarks for employees to measure their own availability for making things happen.

No more painstaking efforts to get people involved. Now, people get involved! When people choose to be Executors, turnover drops, innovation abounds, targets get hit.