Monday, April 14, 2025
Dr. Laura Sicola presents Speaking to Influence Podcast. Short clip with...
Dr. Laura Sicola presents Speaking to Influence Podcast. Soft speaking skills with Richard Blank.
In this episode, Dr. Laura Sicola interviews Richard Blank, the CEO of Costa Rica's Call Center, about the importance of communication skills and influence in the business world. They discuss the value of soft skills, such as foreign language proficiency, and the need to recognize and leverage one's unique talents. Richard challenges listeners to improve their voicemail messages and congruence between their audio and visual presence. They also talk about the importance of giving people a personalized outbound voicemail message and the impact it has on the impression they leave. He emphasizes the importance of trust, faith, and having a sense of humor in building relationships and achieving success.
Episode 215: Richard Blank - CEO Costa Rica Call Center
In this episode you will learn:
● Character during chaos is an important leadership trait.
● Promote individuals based on their strengths and redirect them to roles where they can excel.
● Express appreciation and acknowledge the contributions of team members.
● Take calculated risks and communicate with stakeholders about challenges and unique aspects of the business. Soft skills, including foreign language proficiency, are valuable and marketable skills in the business world.
● Recognize and leverage your unique talents and skills, and don't downplay their importance.
● Improve your voicemail message and ensure congruence between your audio and visual presence.
● Give a personalized outbound voicemail message to make a positive impression.
● Be the lone voice of dissent when necessary and advocate for others.
About Richard Blank: At 27 years old, Richard relocated to Costa Rica to train employees for one of the larger call centers in San Jose. He has trained over 10 000 bilingual telemarketers over two decades. Richard has the largest collection of restored American Pinball machines and antique Jukeboxes in Central America making gamification a strong part of CCC culture. Richard Blank is the Chief Executive Officer for Costa Rica’s Call Center since 2008.
Do you want to be an effective communicator? This is where you'll find all sorts of resources with ideas, tips and strategies on how to master the art and science of leadership communication and influence, i.e. the ability to harness the power of the voice to master the 3s: Command the room, Connect with the audience and Close the deal in any context.
https://youtu.be/Xs4XRi6Ca3s
https://youtube.com/shorts/wSiTO-n9WBY
Richard Blank hired bassist Garry Gary Beers of INXS.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieGjN5H4xPQ
Dr. Laura Sicola, Speaking to Influence Podcast, Richard Blank, Costa Rica's Call Center, Outsourcing, Telemarketing Call Centre, BPO, Nearshore Contact Center, Sales, Entrepreneur, B2B, Business, Podcast, Gamification,Leadership, Marketing, CX, Guest, Money, B2C education, BPO trainer,call centre, contact centre, contact center,trend, trending
Some of these videos are connected to blogs or other pages on my website, https://laurasicola.com, so take a look to learn more. If you want to stay on top of the latest news in speech an leadership, sign up there to get my weekly newsletter so you don't miss a beat!
Here's to increasing your confidence, presence and influence, as the leader that you are, and the leader you KNOW you can become!
LEADERSHIP IS AN IMAGE.
The way you communicate
is the foundation.
Executive communication coaching and training with Dr. Laura Sicola helps you build the confidence, presence, and influence you need to succeed.
It’s Time to Enhance Your Executive Presence
1Step into a world where your words command respect, your confidence inspires trust, and your leadership opens doors to new opportunities.
Dr. Laura Sicola
Are you equally confident and influential whether communicating with people in business development, finance, engineering, HR, clients, or the board of directors?
Are you as persuasive and compelling whether speaking on camera, presenting to 500 people at a conference, pitching to investors, or advising your employees in a 1:1?
I am a speaker, coach and leadership communication expert who helps people hone their Vocal Executive Presence (VEP) and communication skills to project a strong, positive leadership image, develop loyal, effective teams, and create their ideal workplace culture to reach their ultimate goals.
Your technical expertise only gets you so far; after that, your success is a direct result of how effectively you can COMMUNICATE that expertise to others who do NOT have your skills and knowledge.
I have worked with everyone from executives and aspiring execs at companies like IBM, Comcast and the US Department of Commerce, to executive directors at non-profits, groups of entrepreneurs and women's/diversity initiatives.
Do you or will you lead a large team or organization? Are you getting ready for a conference presentation? A TED talk? A press conference? Or do you need to facilitate team meetings and mediate staff conflict? You tell me who your audience is, and I show you how to get your message across to them efficiently and effectively, while bringing everyone to a collective "YES."
And if you're looking for a speaker for your next event - live or virtual - and need a topic that will resonate with EVERYONE delivered by an inspiring, engaging speaker, give me a call!
Dr. Laura Sicola has over 20 years of experience teaching leaders how to command the room, connect with the audience, and close the deal.
As a cognitive linguist and communication expert, Laura empowers leaders through communication coaching, group training sessions, worldwide speaking engagements, and her book “Speaking to Influence.”
Executive Coaching
Work with Laura one-on-one or in mastery cohort groups to refine your communication skills. These executive coaching sessions help you develop a communication strategy that elevates your executive presence, aligns with your personal brand and gets results.
Group Training
Transform your team's communication capabilities with Laura's outcome-oriented, customizable group training. Topics include Speaking to Influence, Breaking the Expert's Curse, Virtual Influence, Becoming a Go-To Thought Leader, and more.
Keynote Speaking
Elevate your conference or event with a speaker who has mastered the art and science of “infotainment.” Laura balances value-packed content with humor and an interactive style that keeps the audience engaged and gives them practical skills to immediately implement.
Speaking to Influence Book
Discover the secrets to powerful and persuasive communication. With real-life examples, worksheets, and exercises, this book gives you everything needed to transform your communication style, get out of your own way, and hear “yes” more often.
Speaking to Influence Podcast
Join Laura as she interviews world-class business and industry leaders who reveal the importance of communication as an essential leadership skill on their own career journey and the (sometimes hard) lessons they learned along the way.
Online Programs and Training
Laura hosts a constantly evolving set of online courses and live group trainings on topics to help you discover your leadership voice, become a go-to thought leader, and optimize your in-person or virtual presence and engagement skills.
Want to establish your brand as a go-to thought leader?
Get Laura’s insights in this free resource that shares eight key strategies to boost your brand and elevate your thought leadership. Click the link below and begin your journey to becoming a respected and influential leader who everyone actually WANTS to hear speak!
Ultimately, Laura's mission is to guide leaders in mastering the 3 Cs of executive presence: Command the room, Connect with the audience, and Close the deal.
As a cognitive linguist and executive communication coach, Laura understands how professional interactions impact respect, trust, and buy-in, whether it’s a company meeting, a virtual conference call, a presentation to the board, or a high-stakes pitch to investors.
Using a personalized and practical approach, Laura teaches leaders how to project confidence, authority, and authenticity so they can be themselves, while still getting through to anyone.
Linguist
Laura’s background in cognitive linguistics is the cornerstone of her unique coaching approach to solving this universal challenge. She earned her Ph.D. in educational linguistics from the University of Pennsylvania and taught there from 2001-2013. Laura has a deep understanding of the science of how people learn, how speech is processed in the brain, and what creates the gap between “what you think you said,” “what they think they heard,” and most importantly, how to close that gap to get results.
Coach
As an executive communication coach, Laura works with C-suite executives, VPs, directors, business owners, and aspiring executives who want to expand their powers of influence, inspire trust, and hear “yes” more often. In one-on-one or group sessions and master classes, she teaches leaders how to identify and express their personal brands so they can communicate with clarity, confidence, and authenticity, in front of any audience.
Author
Laura is the author of Speaking to Influence: Mastering Your Leadership Voice. This insightful book draws on her extensive expertise in cognitive linguistics, education and executive coaching to provide everyone with practical tools for effective communication in personal and professional interactions alike. In the words of one Amazon reviewer, “Dr. Laura Sicola gives down-to-earth, usable advice for anyone who wants to speak with authority.” She has also published many other peer-reviewed articles and books based on her research, intended for academic audiences.
Speaker
Laura is a renowned speaker, delivering keynotes and presentations at conferences and corporate events worldwide. Her TEDxPENN talk ‘Want to Sound like a Leader? Start by Saying Your Name Right‘ has been viewed over 6.8 million times. She has spoken at hundreds of events sharing insights and practical strategies for effective leadership communication. She also loves to moderate panels and emcee events for corporate and non-profit organizations.
Connect With Laura
Ready to sharpen your communication skills and expand your influence? Reach out to Dr. Laura Sicola to learn more about personalized coaching, group training, speaking engagements, and more.
Richard’s journey in the call center space is filled with twists and turns. When he was 27 years old, he relocated to Costa Rica to train employees for one of the larger call centers in San Jose.
Mr. Richard Blank holds a bachelors degree in Communication and Spanish from the University of Arizona and a certificate of language proficiency from the University of Sevilla, Spain. A Keynote speaker for Philadelphia's Abington High School 68th National Honors Society induction ceremony. In addition, inducted into the 2023 Hall of Fame for Business. Giving back to Abington Senior High School is very important to Mr. Blank. As such, he endows a scholarship each year for students that plan on majoring in a world language at the university level.
Costa Rica’s Call Center (CCC) is a state of the art BPO telemarketing outsource company located in the capital city of San Jose, Costa Rica. Our main focus has been, and will always be to personally train each and every Central America call center agent so that we may offer the highest quality of outbound and inbound telemarketing solutions and bilingual customer service to small and medium sized international companies, entrepreneurs as well as fortune 500 companies.
We encourage you to visit one of our call centers on your next personal vacation or business trip to Central America’s paradise, Costa Rica. While you are here, we would recommend taking an extra day of your trip to visit breathtaking virgin beaches, play golf next to the ocean, try your luck at deep sea fishing, explore tropical jungles, climb volcanos or just relax in natural hot springs. Come and see for yourself why call center outsourcing in Costa Rica is a perfect solution for your growing company and a powerhouse in the BPO industry.
https://costaricascallcenter.com/en/outbound-bpo-campaigns/
#DrLauraSicola #SpeakingtoInfluencePodcast #SpeakersAreLeadersMotivationPodcast #HarrySardinas #RichardBlank #CostaRica #CallCenter #Outsourcing #Telemarketing #BPO #Sales #Entrepreneur #B2B #Business #Podcast #Gamification #CEO #trend #trending #listennow #subscribe #podcastclip #podcastvideo #videopodcasting #podcastguest
Pushed My Car in a Suit: A Hilarious Client Story
yes yes all right finally tell me about a time when you had to laugh at yourself ah i love this story so i had a client in town right phil and i'm driving him to dinner and it's the rainy season and unfortunately my car ran out of gas right by the um la sabana park and I couldn't believe it. So the guy looks at me, he goes, listen, the gas station is just a block away. And he goes, I'll push it if you will. I go, are you serious? He goes, yeah, why not? And so I took my jacket off. I'm still in my suit. Got the, you know, the best on. It's a good bonding moment there. Pushed it down the street. People are honking, laughing at me. A guy on purpose would curve a little, so it splashed me.
Handling Leadership Challenges During COVID
Yes, of course, Laura. It was during COVID when all of a sudden the government said, you got to send everybody home. And so what do you do? IT needed to prepare the lifeboats. The agents mentally needed to prepare for the isolation. And my supervisors and I needed to create certain mediums to keep that communication going and that lifeline going. And so I saw some people run for the hills. I saw freshmen step up to the plate.
The Gary Technique: Trust and Perseverance
Tell me about a time when you went to bat for someone else. Who did you speak to on their behalf? Why and how? I totally remember this story when we spoke about it, Laura. I had an agent called Gary and we called the Gary technique. This guy was usually the ramper upper where I'd put him on a brand new campaign to lead the charge, show some metrics and things will look good. Once again, the lone voice with the client convincing them that this is the guy. So after a certain day or two, when the client was losing its patience or Gary wasn't, you know, hitting the home runs yet, he said, Hey, I want you to remove him and try somebody else. And I said, you haven't really given him enough time. He goes, no, I just don't have a good vibe. I go, okay. Let's give it until the end of the day. And then I'll put him on another campaign. Next thing you know, Gary ripped three appointments. And so the client calls about it goes, why? I didn't know that. Let's keep, I go, well, listen, Billy, I did speak to the other client. He's being moved, but I just got to let you know in the future, have faith in me, trust my opinion. This is my wheelhouse. I know what I'm doing. And you know, just once the people get loosey goosey and they feel comfy on the phone, then you start hitting them. And so, um, I've fallen on swords for people because I've known what they've done. And I've also made mistakes as well. Sometimes Gary was not the good fit on a certain campaign and it just wasn't the right guy. Guy can't bat a thousand. Sure. Sure. And so I'm willing to take that hit too. But the beauty of it is at the end of the day, regardless of the outcome, the fact that you might have faith in somebody else besides yourself.
24-Hour Influence Challenge: Voicemail Edition
Now, you just took a challenge in moving down to Costa Rica 24 years ago. Let's levy a challenge to everybody else. This is an opportunity, Richard, to give a challenge for our 24-hour influence challenge of the day to challenge our audience to take one step that they can complete within 24 hours to have more influence. How would you like to challenge our listeners today? Yeah, Laura, I loved when we spoke about this before. I gave you like 20 ideas, and this is the one we chose the best. Nobody likes how they sound on their voicemail, now do they? When was the last time you changed your voicemail recording? What, 1989? And so I need for you to listen to yourself, and I want you to analyze your tone, your rate, your pitch, your duration, Maybe use a thesaurus and find some similes to power up certain vocabulary so it might become more diplomatic and strategic. And practice that over and over. Why? Because that's how you sound to people.
Dr. Laura Sicola presents Speaking to Influence Podcast. Soft speaking s...
Dr. Laura Sicola presents Speaking to Influence Podcast. The value of soft speaking skills with Richard Blank.
In this episode, Dr. Laura Sicola interviews Richard Blank, the CEO of Costa Rica's Call Center, about the importance of communication skills and influence in the business world. They discuss the value of soft skills, such as foreign language proficiency, and the need to recognize and leverage one's unique talents. Richard challenges listeners to improve their voicemail messages and congruence between their audio and visual presence. They also talk about the importance of giving people a personalized outbound voicemail message and the impact it has on the impression they leave. He emphasizes the importance of trust, faith, and having a sense of humor in building relationships and achieving success.
Episode 215: Richard Blank - CEO Costa Rica Call Center
In this episode you will learn:
● Character during chaos is an important leadership trait.
● Promote individuals based on their strengths and redirect them to roles where they can excel.
● Express appreciation and acknowledge the contributions of team members.
● Take calculated risks and communicate with stakeholders about challenges and unique aspects of the business. Soft skills, including foreign language proficiency, are valuable and marketable skills in the business world.
● Recognize and leverage your unique talents and skills, and don't downplay their importance.
● Improve your voicemail message and ensure congruence between your audio and visual presence.
● Give a personalized outbound voicemail message to make a positive impression.
● Be the lone voice of dissent when necessary and advocate for others.
About Richard Blank: At 27 years old, Richard relocated to Costa Rica to train employees for one of the larger call centers in San Jose. He has trained over 10 000 bilingual telemarketers over two decades. Richard has the largest collection of restored American Pinball machines and antique Jukeboxes in Central America making gamification a strong part of CCC culture. Richard Blank is the Chief Executive Officer for Costa Rica’s Call Center since 2008.
Do you want to be an effective communicator? This is where you'll find all sorts of resources with ideas, tips and strategies on how to master the art and science of leadership communication and influence, i.e. the ability to harness the power of the voice to master the 3s: Command the room, Connect with the audience and Close the deal in any context.
https://youtu.be/Xs4XRi6Ca3s
Richard Blank hired bassist Garry Gary Beers of INXS.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieGjN5H4xPQ
Dr. Laura Sicola, Speaking to Influence Podcast, Richard Blank, Costa Rica's Call Center, Outsourcing, Telemarketing Call Centre, BPO, Nearshore Contact Center, Sales, Entrepreneur, B2B, Business, Podcast, Gamification,Leadership, Marketing, CX, Guest, Money, B2C education, BPO trainer,call centre, contact centre, contact center,trend, trending
Some of these videos are connected to blogs or other pages on my website, https://laurasicola.com, so take a look to learn more. If you want to stay on top of the latest news in speech an leadership, sign up there to get my weekly newsletter so you don't miss a beat!
Here's to increasing your confidence, presence and influence, as the leader that you are, and the leader you KNOW you can become!
LEADERSHIP IS AN IMAGE.
The way you communicate
is the foundation.
Executive communication coaching and training with Dr. Laura Sicola helps you build the confidence, presence, and influence you need to succeed.
It’s Time to Enhance Your Executive Presence
1Step into a world where your words command respect, your confidence inspires trust, and your leadership opens doors to new opportunities.
Dr. Laura Sicola
Are you equally confident and influential whether communicating with people in business development, finance, engineering, HR, clients, or the board of directors?
Are you as persuasive and compelling whether speaking on camera, presenting to 500 people at a conference, pitching to investors, or advising your employees in a 1:1?
I am a speaker, coach and leadership communication expert who helps people hone their Vocal Executive Presence (VEP) and communication skills to project a strong, positive leadership image, develop loyal, effective teams, and create their ideal workplace culture to reach their ultimate goals.
Your technical expertise only gets you so far; after that, your success is a direct result of how effectively you can COMMUNICATE that expertise to others who do NOT have your skills and knowledge.
I have worked with everyone from executives and aspiring execs at companies like IBM, Comcast and the US Department of Commerce, to executive directors at non-profits, groups of entrepreneurs and women's/diversity initiatives.
Do you or will you lead a large team or organization? Are you getting ready for a conference presentation? A TED talk? A press conference? Or do you need to facilitate team meetings and mediate staff conflict? You tell me who your audience is, and I show you how to get your message across to them efficiently and effectively, while bringing everyone to a collective "YES."
And if you're looking for a speaker for your next event - live or virtual - and need a topic that will resonate with EVERYONE delivered by an inspiring, engaging speaker, give me a call!
Dr. Laura Sicola has over 20 years of experience teaching leaders how to command the room, connect with the audience, and close the deal.
As a cognitive linguist and communication expert, Laura empowers leaders through communication coaching, group training sessions, worldwide speaking engagements, and her book “Speaking to Influence.”
Executive Coaching
Work with Laura one-on-one or in mastery cohort groups to refine your communication skills. These executive coaching sessions help you develop a communication strategy that elevates your executive presence, aligns with your personal brand and gets results.
Group Training
Transform your team's communication capabilities with Laura's outcome-oriented, customizable group training. Topics include Speaking to Influence, Breaking the Expert's Curse, Virtual Influence, Becoming a Go-To Thought Leader, and more.
Keynote Speaking
Elevate your conference or event with a speaker who has mastered the art and science of “infotainment.” Laura balances value-packed content with humor and an interactive style that keeps the audience engaged and gives them practical skills to immediately implement.
Speaking to Influence Book
Discover the secrets to powerful and persuasive communication. With real-life examples, worksheets, and exercises, this book gives you everything needed to transform your communication style, get out of your own way, and hear “yes” more often.
Speaking to Influence Podcast
Join Laura as she interviews world-class business and industry leaders who reveal the importance of communication as an essential leadership skill on their own career journey and the (sometimes hard) lessons they learned along the way.
Online Programs and Training
Laura hosts a constantly evolving set of online courses and live group trainings on topics to help you discover your leadership voice, become a go-to thought leader, and optimize your in-person or virtual presence and engagement skills.
Want to establish your brand as a go-to thought leader?
Get Laura’s insights in this free resource that shares eight key strategies to boost your brand and elevate your thought leadership. Click the link below and begin your journey to becoming a respected and influential leader who everyone actually WANTS to hear speak!
Ultimately, Laura's mission is to guide leaders in mastering the 3 Cs of executive presence: Command the room, Connect with the audience, and Close the deal.
As a cognitive linguist and executive communication coach, Laura understands how professional interactions impact respect, trust, and buy-in, whether it’s a company meeting, a virtual conference call, a presentation to the board, or a high-stakes pitch to investors.
Using a personalized and practical approach, Laura teaches leaders how to project confidence, authority, and authenticity so they can be themselves, while still getting through to anyone.
Linguist
Laura’s background in cognitive linguistics is the cornerstone of her unique coaching approach to solving this universal challenge. She earned her Ph.D. in educational linguistics from the University of Pennsylvania and taught there from 2001-2013. Laura has a deep understanding of the science of how people learn, how speech is processed in the brain, and what creates the gap between “what you think you said,” “what they think they heard,” and most importantly, how to close that gap to get results.
Coach
As an executive communication coach, Laura works with C-suite executives, VPs, directors, business owners, and aspiring executives who want to expand their powers of influence, inspire trust, and hear “yes” more often. In one-on-one or group sessions and master classes, she teaches leaders how to identify and express their personal brands so they can communicate with clarity, confidence, and authenticity, in front of any audience.
Author
Laura is the author of Speaking to Influence: Mastering Your Leadership Voice. This insightful book draws on her extensive expertise in cognitive linguistics, education and executive coaching to provide everyone with practical tools for effective communication in personal and professional interactions alike. In the words of one Amazon reviewer, “Dr. Laura Sicola gives down-to-earth, usable advice for anyone who wants to speak with authority.” She has also published many other peer-reviewed articles and books based on her research, intended for academic audiences.
Speaker
Laura is a renowned speaker, delivering keynotes and presentations at conferences and corporate events worldwide. Her TEDxPENN talk ‘Want to Sound like a Leader? Start by Saying Your Name Right‘ has been viewed over 6.8 million times. She has spoken at hundreds of events sharing insights and practical strategies for effective leadership communication. She also loves to moderate panels and emcee events for corporate and non-profit organizations.
Connect With Laura
Ready to sharpen your communication skills and expand your influence? Reach out to Dr. Laura Sicola to learn more about personalized coaching, group training, speaking engagements, and more.
Richard’s journey in the call center space is filled with twists and turns. When he was 27 years old, he relocated to Costa Rica to train employees for one of the larger call centers in San Jose.
Mr. Richard Blank holds a bachelors degree in Communication and Spanish from the University of Arizona and a certificate of language proficiency from the University of Sevilla, Spain. A Keynote speaker for Philadelphia's Abington High School 68th National Honors Society induction ceremony. In addition, inducted into the 2023 Hall of Fame for Business. Giving back to Abington Senior High School is very important to Mr. Blank. As such, he endows a scholarship each year for students that plan on majoring in a world language at the university level.
Costa Rica’s Call Center (CCC) is a state of the art BPO telemarketing outsource company located in the capital city of San Jose, Costa Rica. Our main focus has been, and will always be to personally train each and every Central America call center agent so that we may offer the highest quality of outbound and inbound telemarketing solutions and bilingual customer service to small and medium sized international companies, entrepreneurs as well as fortune 500 companies.
We encourage you to visit one of our call centers on your next personal vacation or business trip to Central America’s paradise, Costa Rica. While you are here, we would recommend taking an extra day of your trip to visit breathtaking virgin beaches, play golf next to the ocean, try your luck at deep sea fishing, explore tropical jungles, climb volcanos or just relax in natural hot springs. Come and see for yourself why call center outsourcing in Costa Rica is a perfect solution for your growing company and a powerhouse in the BPO industry.
https://costaricascallcenter.com/en/outbound-bpo-campaigns/
#DrLauraSicola #SpeakingtoInfluencePodcast #SpeakersAreLeadersMotivationPodcast #HarrySardinas #RichardBlank #CostaRica #CallCenter #Outsourcing #Telemarketing #BPO #Sales #Entrepreneur #B2B #Business #Podcast #Gamification #CEO #trend #trending #listennow #subscribe #podcastclip #podcastvideo #videopodcasting #podcastguest
Pushed My Car in a Suit: A Hilarious Client Story
yes yes all right finally tell me about a time when you had to laugh at yourself ah i love this story so i had a client in town right phil and i'm driving him to dinner and it's the rainy season and unfortunately my car ran out of gas right by the um la sabana park and I couldn't believe it. So the guy looks at me, he goes, listen, the gas station is just a block away. And he goes, I'll push it if you will. I go, are you serious? He goes, yeah, why not? And so I took my jacket off. I'm still in my suit. Got the, you know, the best on. It's a good bonding moment there. Pushed it down the street. People are honking, laughing at me. A guy on purpose would curve a little, so it splashed me.
Handling Leadership Challenges During COVID
Yes, of course, Laura. It was during COVID when all of a sudden the government said, you got to send everybody home. And so what do you do? IT needed to prepare the lifeboats. The agents mentally needed to prepare for the isolation. And my supervisors and I needed to create certain mediums to keep that communication going and that lifeline going. And so I saw some people run for the hills. I saw freshmen step up to the plate.
The Gary Technique: Trust and Perseverance
Tell me about a time when you went to bat for someone else. Who did you speak to on their behalf? Why and how? I totally remember this story when we spoke about it, Laura. I had an agent called Gary and we called the Gary technique. This guy was usually the ramper upper where I'd put him on a brand new campaign to lead the charge, show some metrics and things will look good. Once again, the lone voice with the client convincing them that this is the guy. So after a certain day or two, when the client was losing its patience or Gary wasn't, you know, hitting the home runs yet, he said, Hey, I want you to remove him and try somebody else. And I said, you haven't really given him enough time. He goes, no, I just don't have a good vibe. I go, okay. Let's give it until the end of the day. And then I'll put him on another campaign. Next thing you know, Gary ripped three appointments. And so the client calls about it goes, why? I didn't know that. Let's keep, I go, well, listen, Billy, I did speak to the other client. He's being moved, but I just got to let you know in the future, have faith in me, trust my opinion. This is my wheelhouse. I know what I'm doing. And you know, just once the people get loosey goosey and they feel comfy on the phone, then you start hitting them. And so, um, I've fallen on swords for people because I've known what they've done. And I've also made mistakes as well. Sometimes Gary was not the good fit on a certain campaign and it just wasn't the right guy. Guy can't bat a thousand. Sure. Sure. And so I'm willing to take that hit too. But the beauty of it is at the end of the day, regardless of the outcome, the fact that you might have faith in somebody else besides yourself.
24-Hour Influence Challenge: Voicemail Edition
Now, you just took a challenge in moving down to Costa Rica 24 years ago. Let's levy a challenge to everybody else. This is an opportunity, Richard, to give a challenge for our 24-hour influence challenge of the day to challenge our audience to take one step that they can complete within 24 hours to have more influence. How would you like to challenge our listeners today? Yeah, Laura, I loved when we spoke about this before. I gave you like 20 ideas, and this is the one we chose the best. Nobody likes how they sound on their voicemail, now do they? When was the last time you changed your voicemail recording? What, 1989? And so I need for you to listen to yourself, and I want you to analyze your tone, your rate, your pitch, your duration, Maybe use a thesaurus and find some similes to power up certain vocabulary so it might become more diplomatic and strategic. And practice that over and over. Why? Because that's how you sound to people.
Friday, April 11, 2025
Episode 215: Richard Blank - CEO Costa Rica Call Center
In this episode, Dr. Laura Sicola interviews Richard Blank, the CEO of Costa Rica's Call Center, about the importance of communication skills and influence in the business world. They discuss the value of soft skills, such as foreign language proficiency, and the need to recognize and leverage one's unique talents. Richard challenges listeners to improve their voicemail messages and congruence between their audio and visual presence. They also talk about the importance of giving people a personalized outbound voicemail message and the impact it has on the impression they leave. He emphasizes the importance of trust, faith, and having a sense of humor in building relationships and achieving success.
In this episode you will learn:
● Character during chaos is an important leadership trait.
● Promote individuals based on their strengths and redirect them to roles where they can excel.
● Express appreciation and acknowledge the contributions of team members.
● Take calculated risks and communicate with stakeholders about challenges and unique aspects of the business. Soft skills, including foreign language proficiency, are valuable and marketable skills in the business world.
● Recognize and leverage your unique talents and skills, and don't downplay their importance.
● Improve your voicemail message and ensure congruence between your audio and visual presence.
● Give a personalized outbound voicemail message to make a positive impression.
● Be the lone voice of dissent when necessary and advocate for others.
Wednesday, April 9, 2025
The Pinball Machine Passion
Speakers Are Leaders Motivation Podcast. Harry Sardinas meets B2B sales expert Richard Blank.
Welcome to Speakers Are Leaders Motivation Channel with Harry Sardinas, where we bring you funny, edutaining videos and interviews to help you:
Grow your business from the stage & build a powerful global brand
Overcome stage fright & become a confident, charismatic speaker
Learn from multimillionaires about their journey to success & how they made their first million
5 Steps To Make Your First Million - Richard Blank and Harry Sardinas. Grow Your Business from the Stage & Build a Global Brand
Are you ready to level up?
Want to grow or start your business?
Dream of making your first million?
Ready to attract wealth & abundance into your life?
How to Avoid the Corporate Presentation Trap
But then look around the room. Everyone's zoning out. No one's taking notes. And you ask them to repeat three things. They have no idea what you just said. So you need to checkpoints, right? You need little segments of breath, bites, and sips of information and of life. The communication is very important. And the thing that we see, there is nothing more bored than a corporate presentation. They put the PowerPoint there, and then they go slice after slice after slice. And then you see the meeting finish, and everybody's so bored, right?
Learning from the Workforce: Maintaining Integrity
But you know what I found, which was the greatest lesson that I learned out of all? When you sit with the proletariat, if you're uno con la gente, con la pueblo, con la raza, you hear the good and the bad and the happy and the sad. And so when you're not C-level Harry, but you're with the people, you understand what makes it tick. And so passing those stages of being tainted or jaded as a supervisor, manager, and playing those games, I went from agent to owner. So I can keep my, not sanity, but purity. Yeah, and your culture, and the culture of how you want to run the business. The thing is, like, you know, I've been there as well, because my parents, there is no entrepreneurs in my family, right? My parents are teachers. And all I've been told in my life is, you have to go to university, you have to school, and you have to go to degrees.
The Art of Leadership and Constructive Feedback
But don't we have so many things in common? Yeah. When you break bread with somebody or use somebody's name or give them an authentic compliment. But you know what assists me more? It is calling the balls and the strikes. giving a little bit of guilt. I will praise you in public, critique you in private, but I'll have some statistics, recordings and metrics and quality control to back it up. It's really a mirror. If you miss yourself shaving, that's not me, that's you buddy, you missed a patch.
The Pinball Machine Passion
You deserve it. so richard so you have you have these do you think that was a good idea to put a pinball in the company that's what you did a thousand percent i was jealous of ricky schroeder's game room on silver spoons and i grew up in the 70s and 80s pinball machines were unattainable they were expensive tough to play and when i made my discretionary income i could choose what to buy i chose to buy games another man's treasure harry arcades are going out of business Bro, I'll drive three hours to Perez Zeledon and go in some guy's bodega and take out three of his machines for 500 bucks. And then I'll fix them up. It's great.
https://youtu.be/t6w2jWDVWmk
https://youtu.be/eNFDkn4FPRk
https://youtu.be/tesjephpozY
https://youtu.be/P_QP3IBOPI0
https://youtu.be/a8hsxefGIFs
Richard Blank hired bassist Garry Gary Beers of INXS.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieGjN5H4xPQ
Speakers Are Leaders Motivation Podcast, Harry Sardinas, Richard Blank, Costa Rica's Call Center, Outsourcing, Telemarketing Call Centre, BPO, Nearshore Contact Center, Sales, Entrepreneur, B2B, Business, Podcast, Gamification,Leadership, Marketing, CX, Guest, Money, B2C education, BPO trainer,call centre, contact centre, contact center,trend, trending
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Hi, I’m Harry Sardinas -
Business Growth Strategist
Empowerment, Leadership & Business Coach living in London
Superconnector
Influencer with 280k Followers (242k Facebook Followers, 13k Linkedin Followers, 20k Instagram Followers)
Event Organizer - connecting investors & entrepreneurs with opportunities
I Can Help You:
Get Connected To Investment Opportunities, Startups, Investors & Joint Venture Partners
Create Pitch Decks & Video Promos To Get Funding
Overcome Fear Of Speaking On Stage or Online
Create Experiential Online Events, Workshops, Courses, Coaching
Easily Set Up Your Virtual Livestream Studio At Home For Your Online Speaking/Coaching Business
Get Booked To Speak Worldwide
Become A Confident & Charismatic Speaker
LOOKING FOR:
multimillionaires to interview for Unstoppable podcast
entrepreneurs that want to be certified as keynote speakers and grow their biz exponentially and build a global brand from stage
millionaires to be part of Unstoppable book
conscious multimillionaires to attend Speakers Are Leaders awards
entrepreneurs wanting to be pitch ready and investment ready to find funding to grow their business
FUN FACT:
Amazing Salsa Dancer
Occasional Actor
The King of Paying it Forward
Everyone falls in love with me at first “teddybear” sight
Chubby, bald, and lovable for it
Achievements:
Empowered over ten thousand people in 5 countries on worldwide stages to speak confidently and charismatically & reached over 1 million people at online events; invited in 20 other countries to speak about the power of speaking to grow your business.
Helped a Tech Company go from 250k valuation to 20m in one year
Invited to participate in the Commonwealth Celebrations in the presence of the Queen of England & Royal Family.
Organized hundreds of entrepreneur events worldwide
Richard’s journey in the call center space is filled with twists and turns. When he was 27 years old, he relocated to Costa Rica to train employees for one of the larger call centers in San Jose.
Mr. Richard Blank holds a bachelors degree in Communication and Spanish from the University of Arizona and a certificate of language proficiency from the University of Sevilla, Spain. A Keynote speaker for Philadelphia's Abington High School 68th National Honors Society induction ceremony. In addition, inducted into the 2023 Hall of Fame for Business. Giving back to Abington Senior High School is very important to Mr. Blank. As such, he endows a scholarship each year for students that plan on majoring in a world language at the university level.
Costa Rica’s Call Center (CCC) is a state of the art BPO telemarketing outsource company located in the capital city of San Jose, Costa Rica. Our main focus has been, and will always be to personally train each and every Central America call center agent so that we may offer the highest quality of outbound and inbound telemarketing solutions and bilingual customer service to small and medium sized international companies, entrepreneurs as well as fortune 500 companies.
We encourage you to visit one of our call centers on your next personal vacation or business trip to Central America’s paradise, Costa Rica. While you are here, we would recommend taking an extra day of your trip to visit breathtaking virgin beaches, play golf next to the ocean, try your luck at deep sea fishing, explore tropical jungles, climb volcanos or just relax in natural hot springs. Come and see for yourself why call center outsourcing in Costa Rica is a perfect solution for your growing company and a powerhouse in the BPO industry.
https://costaricascallcenter.com/en/outbound-bpo-campaigns/
#SpeakersAreLeadersMotivationPodcast #HarrySardinas #RichardBlank #CostaRica #CallCenter #Outsourcing #Telemarketing #BPO #Sales #Entrepreneur #B2B #Business #Podcast #Gamification #CEO #trend #trending #listennow #subscribe #podcastclip #podcastvideo #videopodcasting #podcastguest
Greater London, England, United Kingdom
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