[00:00] A Different Kind of Fast Five
Ryan and Brook pivot from the usual format to dive into a timely and emotional topic—how much time we really have left and how we’re using it.

[01:20] The Power of QTR: Quality Time Remaining
Ryan shares a concept he heard from Ed Mylett—QTR—and how it reframed his thinking about urgency, intentionality, and time.

[02:08] Brook’s Wake-Up Call: Stage 4 Diagnosis
Brook shares the deeply personal news about his father’s cancer diagnosis and how it immediately clarified his perspective on life, legacy, and presence.

[04:46] Two Men, Same Age—Very Different Legacies
Brook contrasts his dad’s response with Tony Robbins’ drive to feed 2 billion people—highlighting how beliefs shape behavior and define our legacy.

[06:18] Done Playing Small
Brook explains how this experience has pushed him to stop playing small and step fully into purpose, impact, and contribution.

[08:14] Pain vs. Suffering: Making the Choice
Brook reveals his mindset shift after the diagnosis—choosing to feel pain without spiraling into suffering—and how it’s informed his approach to supporting his father.

[10:03] The Sleepwalk Effect
Ryan explores how most people live in autopilot mode and how our internal constructs often limit the experiences and results we believe are available to us.

[12:15] The Bold Move: Taking a Day Off
In a rare move, Brook commits to stepping away from work for a full day to prioritize family and presence—challenging the idea that hustle is the only way.

[13:38] Make Room for Your Gifts
Brook shares a powerful quote from Jim Rohn via Tony Robbins: “Your gifts will make room for you.” A reminder to step into who you were made to be.

[14:19] Preview of What’s Next
Ryan and Brook commit to expanding this conversation in a future episode, diving even deeper into how to fully maximize the time we’ve got left.

[03:05] From Bunk Beds to Zig Ziglar
Brook’s uncle, Navy-SEAL-in-training, fills a shared bedroom with personal-development tapes—sparking Brook’s fascination with influence and landing him a high-end restaurant job that doubles his peers’ tips.

[08:42] Two Months, Zero Sales
A brutal start in timeshare sales ends with a 92 % close rate, an $80 k month, and a lifelong belief: master the lowest-quality leads and everything else gets easier.

[18:55] Relationship Selling at Buffini & Company
Personality profiling (“You said, but I heard…”) teaches Brook to tailor every conversation, sets new revenue records, and plants the seeds of his future Close Everyone framework.

[26:14] Fired on Friday, 30 Clients by Monday
After an unexpected termination, Brook launches his own coaching practice—walking into 50 real-estate offices, offering free training, and signing 30 paying clients in 30 days.

[35:48] Day 1 at Tony Robbins
No chair, no leads, “that desk is cursed”—yet Brook nets $98,670 in his first month by mining overlooked leads and letting results, not volume, do the talking.

[46:37] Tripling Income, Halving Hours
A two-hour dawn ritual (“How do I triple my income and cut my hours in half?”) yields a repeatable sales system that scales across a newly remote team.

[57:22] Scaling Business Mastery to $33 M
Brook turns a struggling division into a zero-ad-spend powerhouse, then closes with the two WHYs every coach must answer: your personal why and your client’s transformational why—meet both, and sales take care of themselves.

Episode Highlights

00:01 – Why communication is the missing skill in leadership, sales, and coaching
01:13 – The shocking stat about managers and communication training
02:54 – Marcus’ early experiences that sparked his obsession with asking better questions
06:17 – A baptism gone wrong… and the moment that revealed the true power of questions
08:40 – How asking the right questions transformed a tense moment into connection and clarity
11:10 – The childhood experience that exposed the cost of miscommunication
13:41 – “It’s dumb not to dumb it down”: Why trying to sound smart is costing you influence
16:55 – The #1 KPI every sales team should track: "No one has ever asked me that before."
18:41 – The most powerful question in discovery (and why it's not “why”)
23:28 – Introducing “The Pathfinder” and the quadrant that reveals your communication identity
26:22 – Dictator, Lawyer, Instructor, Pathfinder: Which one are you?
29:45 – Why real leadership means not being the hero
31:44 – Solopreneurs beware: Why great salespeople often struggle as leaders
35:23 – The Pushback Pivot: A simple technique to stay curious (and disarm objections)
40:09 – Why defending kills authority—and what to do instead
41:08 – The “Question Only Game” (and how to use it to lead someone to their own insight)
45:10 – The 3 P’s of a perfect question: Progress, Purpose, Path
48:28 – A real-life communication test: Solving a personal crisis in under 60 seconds
52:35 – The magic question that created a breakthrough (and why it worked)
54:11 – Why true mastery in communication comes from decades of obsession

Links Mentioned

• Marcus Sheridan’s book: They Ask, You Answer
• Learn more about Marcus: https://marcussheridan.com