ECircle Academy

ECircle Academy eCircle Academy helps coaches, consultants, speakers, authors, trainers, and facilitators generate epic income by becoming Iconic Thought Leaders.

Whether you call yourself a coach, consultant, speaker, author, trainer, or facilitator, you got into the business because you want to help people. In fact, you have a passion for it. But if you're like many of the people we work with, your passion is not fully translating into the financial success you dreamed and hoped for. Let’s face it, it’s hard to find good, loyal, high-paying clients. You are probably not making the kind of money you want or need to make in order to have the kind of lifestyle you desire. You realize that lots of time with little money does not give you freedom. We believe you deserve more, and our world needs you living your full potential. To generate epic income, to attract ideal clients, and to truly live the free life, you must become an iconic thought leader. But how do you do it? You have tried lots of tactics, and they have delivered poor to mediocre results. You may even have begun to doubt that it’s possible for you to try succeed at this anymore. We know how you feel. We have been there, and felt the same way, but we found that there is a way to the promised land of success and it’s not nearly as far off as you might now be thinking. It is why we launched eCircle Academy for Thought Leaders. Every quarter we come together for a 2-Day immersion workshop. These workshops are all about refining and preparing your next quarter game plan to build on your success. In each workshop we:
Review: Look at what works and what didn’t over the last 90 days and share our learnings and our successes. Think: We’ll spend some time creating your intellectual property, reviewing it and delivering mentoring on making it rock star. Sell: We’ll go to work on creating all the collateral and designing the conversation that you need to hit your sales targets over the next 90 days. Deliver: We’ll work on delivery - how are you going to deliver your next program, what do you need to make that world class and create raving fans and referrals. Celebrate: Each quarter we celebrate the different breakthroughs you’ve achieved. This creates a culture of success, and gives us space to share the victories we can’t share anywhere else. Learn: Each workshop we’ll bring in a rock star world class presenter whose message will help accelerate your journey. We’ll also teach some of the finer distinctions and nuances of the methodology. Plan: We spend some time creating the detailed plan for the next 90 days so you leave knowing exactly what you need to do. Mentor: There is space for open mentoring at the front of the room through hot-seats, and one-on-one mentoring from the faculty. Connect: There are lots of informal opportunities to connect socially with other students, the faculty and the presenters. These workshops are the cornerstone of the program, and over 12 months you will share the journey with a group of peers on the same journey. In addition to the workshops you will have access to the following:
Online Community and Curriculum: We’ve created an online platform that brings the community alive online and gives you access to the training and resources you need to build your business. Coaching: You will have a member of our eCircle Academy Faculty coaching you one-on-one through out the program. Each month you will have a 30 minute scheduled coaching call to keep you on track. Mentoring: Each month there will be a 60 minute mentoring call with our faculty where you will have the opportunity to ask any questions, share any challenges and get any blocks removed. What you can expect to achieve:
The aim of eCircle Academy for Thought Leaders is to add $100k to your annual income every 12 months and to write at least one book per year to position you as an expert and support your marketing. The program details:
The program investment is $11,995 upfront or 12 payments of $1,195 per month for 5, 2-Day Workshops every 90 Days. Plus access to the online community, curriculum, coaching and mentoring. New participants can apply for a one-time scholarship to trial the first workshop immersion at a special investment of $995. The workshops run from 9am-6pm and the scheduled dates for the program are:

January 21,22, 2016
April 7,8, 2016
July 7,8, 2016
October 6,7 2016
Jan 12,13, 2017
April 6,7, 2017
Jul 6,7, 2017
Oct 5,6, 2017

09/15/2026

What do two federal prosecutors know about running a restaurant?

Apparently enough to build 285 locations, employ 14,000 people, and change the way America eats pizza.

Rick Rosenfield co-founded California Pizza Kitchen with his law partner in 1985 — no restaurant experience, no culinary training, a mortgaged home, and one big idea: pizza doesn't need tomato sauce. Barbecue chicken pizza caught on like wildfire, and suddenly shopping mall developers from across the country were calling.

But Rick is the first to say the concept only got them in the door. What kept them there was culture — a framework they called ROCK: Respect, Opportunity, Communication, Kindness. They required servers to pass written menu tests before being hired. They posted tip averages so servers could see exactly where they stood. They fired their first chef one month in, cried on the office floor, and somehow kept going.

The line that sticks from this conversation: "The minimum standard is excellence. If you have to ask me whether you should serve a burnt pizza, you've already answered the question."

What's the standard you're holding in your business — and are you holding it consistently?

🎧 Listen & watch now:

YouTube @ thethoughtleaderrevolution
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVpG40NYonM
https://www.TheThoughtLeaderRevolution.com
https://rumble.com/v7fiqgc-ep816-rick-rosenfield-how-to-scale-to-9-figures.html
Apple Podcasts
Spotify

09/11/2026

Most people quit when the market says no. Tim Leatherman heard no for eight years.

Knife companies said his invention wasn't a knife. Tool companies said it was a gadget. He mailed pictures of his prototype to more than 100 catalogs and got exactly zero responses. He'd spent two years building the thing and seven more trying to sell it.

What finally worked? One catalog buyer in Seattle who, instead of showing him the door, sat him down and told him exactly what to remove. Tim hated losing those features. He cut them anyway. That simplified tool became America's original multi-tool - the Leatherman Pocket Survival Tool. In their first full year of production, they'd hoped to sell 4,000 units. They sold nearly 30,000.

Tim is back with Nicky for his third conversation, and this time he's got a new book - The Leatherman Book, releasing October 6th, 2026. It's the full story: the garage, the rejections, the partnership, the pivot, and what it actually takes to build something that lasts.

What's the thing you almost gave up on that you're glad you didn't?

Listen & watch now:

YouTube @ thethoughtleaderrevolution
https://youtu.be/Yca8u5vgYYc
https://www.thethoughtleaderrevolution.com/episodes/815
https://rumble.com/v7fcx9y-ep815-tim-leatherman-the-leatherman-multitool-story.html
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep815-tim-leatherman-the-leatherman-multitool-story/id1134107972?i=1000789027797
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6F6CX1er2XzLbl8Amq2DcY

09/09/2026

There are moments when someone great steps off the stage, and the right response is not to scroll past - it is to stop and pay attention to what their example has been asking of you all along.

Lionel Messi just announced his retirement from international football. Over twenty years. A World Cup. Three Copa Americas. A goal tally that puts him third in the history of the game. And a way of playing that made millions of people feel something true about their

Nicky watched him play live twice. The second time - a full 90 minutes - left a mark. This episode is his reflection on why Messi's retirement is worth more than a moment of sadness. It is worth a real look in the mirror.

What did Messi build with what he had? What are you building with what you have?

Listen & watch now:

https://youtu.be/wNOlnQsklbo
https://www.thethoughtleaderrevolution.com/episodes/813
Rumble: https://rumble.com/v7f08u0-what-messis-retirement-teaches-every-entrepreneur-about-greatness.html
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep813-tl-nuggets-244-leo-messi-retires-from-international/id1134107972?i=1000787832021
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6DmfnrSjqCqofFgx1thCVU

09/09/2026

"He believed so strongly in the product that he just couldn't wrap his mind around anybody saying no." That line from Patrick Francey stopped me mid-conversation.

Patrick is the founder of the Real Estate Investment Network, a 43-year entrepreneur, and one of the clearest thinkers I know on what it actually takes to build something that lasts. And in this conversation, he told a story I haven't stopped thinking about.

A multi-billion-dollar company cycled through sales teams, marketing teams, and management - firing and replacing everyone in sight - while sales continued to collapse. One rookie in the back of the room finally said the quiet part out loud: the dogs don't like the food. Two years of turmoil, solved in one sentence. That's what paying attention to the right details actually looks like.

We also got into what Patrick calls "own your need" - the discipline of stating your expectations rather than assuming people can read your mind - and a sharp distinction he draws between mindset and self-mastery. Mindset is how you react to the world outside. Self-mastery is the inside job. The difference matters more than most people realize.

What did you think the problem was before he revealed the answer? Drop it in the comments - I'm curious.

Listen & watch now:

YouTube @ thethoughtleaderrevolution
https://youtu.be/_YmixW5y_dw
https://www.thethoughtleaderrevolution.com/episodes/814
https://rumble.com/v7f90he-ep814-patrick-francey-how-to-build-an-unbeatable-mindset.html
Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep814-patrick-francey-how-to-build-an-unbeatable-mindset/id1134107972?i=1000788511159
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3Yd6kfF0p39qBMgjFNwQlZ

09/07/2026

Terry Donnelly has built and exited companies in digital advertising, cannabis beverages, and hotel technology. He's held the CMO seat at a $1.3 billion agency portfolio. And he traces all of it back to seven years on the road as a touring musician.

When the gig ends, you're unemployed. So you hustle. You fill the funnel. You never stop looking for the next thing - not out of anxiety, but out of discipline. That mindset became the engine of everything Terry has built since.

In this conversation, Terry and Nicky dig into what it really means to know your own strengths (hint: it's less about your resume and more about how your brain works), why confusing urgent with important is one of the most expensive mistakes a business owner can make, and how Terry's current company grew from 8,000 to 50,000 hotel rooms by giving their core product away for free.

Nicky also brings in John Wooden's Pyramid of Success - including the lesson about socks that might be the best explanation of attention to detail you'll ever hear. What does the correct way to put on socks have to do with winning championships? More than you'd think.

What's the skill that runs underneath everything you've built - and are you using it intentionally?

Listen & watch now:

YouTube @ thethoughtleaderrevolution
https://youtu.be/sHYSSLT__RI
https://www.TheThoughtLeaderRevolution.com
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep812-terry-donnelly-always-be-hustling/id1134107972?i=1000787445336

09/01/2026

There's a question Ken Keis asked himself at 5:30 in the morning, standing on a dairy farm he'd built across the street from his parents' place. The question was simple: "If I'm here 20 years from now doing this exact same thing, is that okay?"

His answer was no. And that no became a career, a company, 3,000 paid presentations, and a body of work that has helped people across the world find out what they're actually built for.

Dr. Ken Keis joined Nicky for a conversation that covers the real mechanics of building a thought leadership practice — not the theory, but what it actually looks like over 37 years. How he overcame dyslexia. Why he hired a coach in 1989 before coaching was a mainstream idea. The difference between people who have opinions and people who have wisdom, and why we keep asking the wrong ones for advice.

He's also offering a free copy of his book, The Quest for Purpose, to TTLR listeners. The link is in the show notes.

What question could you ask yourself right now that might change everything? Drop it in the comments.

🎧 Listen & watch now:

YouTube @ thethoughtleaderrevolution
https://youtu.be/bBO-7YWF_4E
https://www.TheThoughtLeaderRevolution.com
https://rumble.com/v7erih2-ep811-dr.-ken-keis-building-your-thought-leadership.html
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep811-dr-ken-keis-building-your-thought-leadership/id1134107972?i=1000786483515
https://open.spotify.com/episode/5YbtPQ95y3KoElcGOmlzyE

09/01/2026

Most people think fundamentals are boring. John Wooden thought they were everything.

The greatest basketball coach in history — 10 national championships, four seasons without a single loss — didn't open practice with plays. He opened it with socks. Literally. Every new UCLA player got a personal demonstration from Coach Wooden on how to put on socks without folds. Then came the exact shoe fitting. Then the proper lace tie. Each one traced directly to performance: folds cause blisters, bad-fitting shoes restrict movement, loose laces make you fall.

It sounds almost too small to matter. That's exactly why it worked.

I took that same obsession with detail and applied it to the business of coaching and consulting. If you want to sell consistently, you need the same foundation Wooden gave his players. Time-block your prospecting. Raise your energy before every sales conversation. Walk in with a plan.

What's one fundamental in your business you know you've been glossing over?

🎧 Listen & watch now:

YouTube @ thethoughtleaderrevolution
https://youtu.be/AWOLN_Zr8wo
https://www.TheThoughtLeaderRevolution.com
https://rumble.com/v7efs8w-ep809-tl-nuggets-243-details-matter.html
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep809-tl-nuggets-243-details-matter/id1134107972?i=1000784808758
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4vV3tKpct9LThXDW64mUtY

09/01/2026

Norm Gordon built over 1,000 apartment units in Canada — not by outworking everyone else, but by learning to make his money work harder than he did.

His origin story is something else. The son of two Holocaust survivors who arrived in Canada with nothing, Norm grew up watching his father turn a clothing store and a handshake deal on farmland into the foundation of a real estate portfolio. He took the lesson seriously.

One of the most memorable stories from the conversation: a Sunday drive with his 12-year-old son leads to a going-out-of-business sale, which leads to Norm buying $30,000 worth of distressed computer paper, which leads to $110,000 in profit in under six months. Not because he was lucky — because every time he made a little money, he stopped and asked himself: am I thinking big enough?

That question — and the discipline of iterating on the answer — is the through-line of his whole career. His new book, Out of the Norm, collects the stories. Worth picking up, and worth sharing.

What's the best investment you've made that didn't look like an investment at first?

🎧 Listen & watch now:

YouTube @ thethoughtleaderrevolution
https://youtu.be/9jWu0tudUOY
https://www.TheThoughtLeaderRevolution.com
https://rumble.com/v7e52zq-he-turned-a-sunday-drive-into-80000-then-built-1000-apartments-norm-gordon.html
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep808-norm-gordon-out-of-the-norm/id1134107972?i=1000784067524
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1hDBjyH2FMrRpQc7e0PD15

08/27/2026

A man came to Virginia Prodan's law office with a gun and orders to kill her. She shared the gospel with him instead. He put the gun down. He accepted Christ. Twenty years later, he walked into her Dallas office — now a pastor — and asked to write a chapter in her book.

This is not a parable. This is what happened.

Virginia grew up in communist Romania watching her parents submit to a regime they hated. She decided at six years old she would not live that way. That decision took her through law school, into courtrooms where she defended persecuted Christians against the full force of Ceaușescu's secret police, and eventually onto President Ronald Reagan's radar — who picked up the phone and called the dictator directly to negotiate her release.

She arrived in America as a single mother with three kids and almost no English. Her children went on to graduate from Harvard Law, SMU, and the US Air Force Academy.

Her memoir is called Saving My Assassin, and it is exactly what it sounds like.

What part of Virginia's story hit you hardest? Let us know in the comments.

🎧 Listen & watch now:

YouTube @ thethoughtleaderrevolution
https://youtu.be/kiUPKuFXmZU
https://www.TheThoughtLeaderRevolution.com
https://rumble.com/v7eb686-ep809-virginia-prodan-prayers-for-my-assassin.html
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep810-virginia-prodan-prayers-for-my-assassin/id1134107972?i=1000785753848
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3dFCfKKvSuIdEJdbM8jKGA

08/14/2026

Most coaches and consultants don't have a marketing problem. They have a sales hesitancy problem — and there's a difference.

Sales hesitancy doesn't always feel like fear. It feels like scrolling, strategizing, and optimizing. It looks like building funnels, posting content, and hunting for approaches that promise clients without requiring an actual conversation. It is avoidance wearing the costume of productivity.

Nicky Billou breaks down eight specific patterns that signal sales hesitancy — and then walks through the four-step path to overcoming it for good. It starts with honesty, requires a real decision, demands skill development, and calls for going all in. No shortcuts, no workarounds.

If any of this lands, share it with someone in your network who needs to hear it.

🎧 Listen & watch now:

YouTube @ thethoughtleaderrevolution
https://youtu.be/oepBOf-kh7U
https://www.TheThoughtLeaderRevolution.com
https://rumble.com/v7e3i8s-you-dont-have-a-marketing-problem-you-have-a-sales-hesitancy-problem.html
Apple Podcasts
Spotify

Address

900 York Mills Road
Toronto, ON
M3B3H2

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when ECircle Academy posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The School

Send a message to ECircle Academy:

Shortcuts

Share

Category