Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeffrey Byrd.

Hi Jeffrey, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.

I was a professional photographer in 2014. At that time I was posting photos on Facebook and other places online.
A friend who attended K-12 with me saw my photos and writings online and asked to interview me on the TV show she was doing then.
The show was postponed, due to a medical illness with the staff and we ended up around her kitchen table telling each other our stories since we had last seen each other many years before.
She had left the D.O.D. and began a speaking, training, and coaching business with the John Maxwell Team.
She thought I’d be a good fit for it, and I looked into it and joined within the month!
That was 10 years ago and I still love finding ways to enhance people’s lives and corporations.

Since joining the John Maxwell Group (the new name), I have become a Maxwell Method of DISC trainer and consultant, a brain health trainer with Dr. Amen, and a Values-based Leadership Specialist.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?

I would not call this a smooth road.
The entrepreneurial path is not an easy one for several reasons.
First, everything depends on you! Entrepreneurs are the creative department, the accounts payable department, the advertising and marketing department, and the delivery department. It can be overwhelming, and it can be very difficult to know where to focus next, as so many things are competing for your attention at once. The desire to escape into an easier realm can be very tempting, and there are times when it is so difficult to determine the next appropriate action.
Second, amid the busyness, there can enter a voice that says, “You are not doing anything right.” The truth is that you are making progress and are doing many things right. Winning this mindset and the mental/belief battle is very important.
Thirdly, business is inconsistent, as is the pay! If you are used to working a traditional job, you know (pretty much) what is expected of you and what wages/benefits to expect. Planning is much easier with traditional jobs, but not so much as an entrepreneur.
It takes courage!

As you know, we’re big fans of Jeffrey Byrd Coaching. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?

Jeffrey Byrd Coaching exists to enhance lives, be they personal or professional. As a colleague of mine says, “Better is possible”!
Each of us has the ability and potential to be better at whatever we set our hand to. This applies personally as well as professionally.
We can each become a better husband, wife, father or mother, child, boss, employee, or person.
The goals of Jeffrey Byrd Coaching are to build more effective and better people and, hence, organizations and teams.
Jeffrey Byrd Coaching builds better leaders by helping them understand and value employees and their contributions. Teams are strengthened and produce more effectively when each member feels appreciated, understood, and valued.
Jeffrey Byrd Coaching stands apart from other organizations because our focus is not only on what is realized on the surface of employee behaviors but on what goes on beneath the surface to understand the “Why?” of what is informing what is visible on the surface of their behaviors.
Understanding the story that informs a person’s narrative is critical to understanding their performance and touching them in a way that improves their performance and results.
A very impactful way to understand team members in an organization and to learn to communicate with each other in a way that is appreciated and received is the Maxwell Method of DISC personality and communication training.
The Maxwell Method of DISC is a personality training that assesses each person and indicates their communication preferences. As team members learn how each person wants to (and doesn’t want to) be communicated with, communication becomes clear and kind, time isn’t wasted on needless poor communication and petty offenses, and productivity increases.
Putting “heart” back into business is what Jeffrey Byrd Coaching is most proud of. People leave jobs because they first believe something “better” is out there. Creating jobs where skills, people, contributions, and hearts are “appreciated, not tolerated” creates a culture that people not only don’t want to leave but can’t imagine being without!
Jeffrey Byrd Coaching brings training to groups to help them understand each other and work together more effectively with less petty drama.
The result is a healthier culture, greater effectiveness, and more satisfied employees and clients!

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?

I was into a little of everything!
I especially was (and am) fascinated by the natural world.
I spent recess in the library studying marine animals and astronomy.
Later, I fell in love with birds, an interest that has taken me around the world and introduced me to my wife through a bird photo I posted online!
Personality-wise, I was a know-it-all, a trait that has gotten me into trouble.
I was an only child with very religious parents (often I felt condemned) when I was young, (they later became very loving and supportive, but it took some time for me to receive this).
While in college I studied Psychology, likely to try to understand myself.
I didn’t feel as good as others, and I masked it by trying to be better than others. People didn’t see the inner conflict happening and could only see my airs of superiority. This went on for some time and I now hope to live my remaining days helping to lift others mentally, socially, spiritually, and even physically.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.jeffbyrdcoaching.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coachingrocks
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-byrd-077b598/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jeffreybyrdcoaching2398

Image Credits

Tara Evalle
Cindy Casky
Nia McLeod
Angie Byrd
Stephanie Smith
Jeff Byrd