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Russ: This is the BusinessMakers show heard here and online at thebusinessmakers.com. It is now time for the Aflac BusinessMakers Flashback, brought to you by Aflac, ask about it at work. And for this mornings' flashback we are going to roll back to last summer when I had the opportunity to sit down and talk with author, entrepreneur extraordinaire, and the man behind the Lean Mean Fat Reducing Grilling Machine, former Olympic gold medalist, and two time World Heavy Weight Champion, George Foreman. We enter the discussion where I just asked George if he thinks being an American gives an entrepreneur and extraordinary chance to go out there and makes something of themselves.
George: So much so because America is the home of the second, third, and fourth chance.
Russ: There you go.
George: I've had more than one chance, and you can miss, miss, miss, and keep on missing. There's still – you got a lot of people out that will give you another chance.
Russ: Okay. Well, the reason we got on your radar and got you to spend time with us is that you got this new book out now, Knockout Entrepreneur. What motivated that, and tell us a little bit about the book.
George: You go through a period when everything is going well, things are going good, and everybody think, "Oh, surely I can make it. I can do this. I can do that." Then you look out and see bad news about things aren't going that well, and a lot of people lose heart. They become afraid. And it's only because no one tells the true American story, that there's nothing wrong with the bottom. When you're down at the bottom, you can see nothing but up. And this is the time when you – there are millions of people who pass you. I'm exaggerating some. Every day, what happened if you could sell them something, you in business? And most people just don't understand that everybody leave outta their home willing to buy something.
Russ: Yeah. George, there's so much in your book about personal initiative and about how, once again, no matter how far down you are, there's still an opportunity to pick up. It's a cause that we always champion here on theBusinessMakers Show, but man, oh, man, you're the leading cheerleader, the leading advocate, and you seem to really believe in that.
George: I really do because the good thing about America, and I'll say that because I've lived in other places for a long time, and you can get a chance if you're willing and makes a lot of friends. You gotta make lots of friends. It doesn't hurt to have a wealthy friend or two. You could always get a loan, because banks sometimes will turn their back, turn their head until you go and get something.
Russ: That's right. You know, in reading the book, I was sort of taken by that occurrence that happened in the last fight. It was the fight with Shannon Briggs and the way that you handled what seemed to be a very unfair defeat in determination. I mean, I think everybody that was watching the fight, even the commentators on TV, thought you had it won for sure, but that's not what the judges said, right?
George: No, you wait – that's why I talk "Knockout Entrepreneur." Don't wait for a decision. It can go any way. But you want a good business, make certain you search for a knockout, something that they gotta buy, and the reason they gotta buy it because you gotta make them love ya.
Russ: All right. Well, I understand, after the first commentator that stuck a microphone in your mouth at the end of that fight, you were immediately selling the George Foreman grill. Is that right?
George: I didn't get a knockout that night. I waited around for a decision, and I was disheartened, and no one really wanna lose a boxing match, and I was sad for a second. Then the commentator asked me, "George, what happened?" and I thought, "Huh, I got national television here. I got millions of viewers. I'm not gonna waste this on what just happened. I'm gonna – on the past. I'm gonna talk about the future, and the future is the George Foreman Lean Mean Fat-Reducing Grilling Machine. I started to sell, and I forgot about me and started understanding that this is a family thing and a business thing.
Russ: How did the commentator react to your comment?
George: He was like, "What does that have to do with anything? What does that have to do –" And I said it again: "Look at me. I feel great. It's the George Foreman grill." He just couldn't understand that you can be disheartened about a loss, but you can also be encouraged about the win, the chance to sell, an opportunity to sell. Television is all about selling, nothing else.
Russ: That's great. So tell me a little bit more about what motivated you to write the book.
George: Well, the book is about making certain that every friend and family member that you meet understand that you can do it. You really can do it. You can start a business, and you can become the best at it. Just believe in yourself. The General Motors, the Ford – that's the past. You can be the future of this country. All you gotta do is believe – find something that you believe in, and sell. Learn to sell. You will never starve. Plus, you'll become awful wealthy.
Russ: Okay, speaking of being wealthy, that is a perfect segue into the Lean Mean Fat Reducing Grilling Machine. George, that is just an incredible story. I remember, I think it was while you were still fighting actually, and we started seeing these TV commercials it struck me as unusual and unique, but once I read the book I was blown away with the success.
George: It's strange because even the grill itself – I had become the darling of Madison Avenue, doing commercials for Kentucky Fried, Meineke –
Russ: Meineke muffler, yeah.
George: – Oscar Meyer wiener. I mean, I was making money here to there doing commercials, just standing up smiling. Doritos. And some friends said, "George, you should stop. You're making all these companies wealthy. Why don't you get your own company?" I said, "Well, sure, how much you gonna pay me?" They said, "No, no, no money. Get your own product." And so we came up with this little – not as attractive as it is today, this grill, and I looked at it for weeks and months, almost six months. And they kept saying, "What do you do, George? You wanna do the thing?" And I said, "I haven't tried it yet," and my wife said, "Oh, it's great, George. Try it. I tried it. I used it. You put the burger on. The grease goes away, and it's still moist. The food is good." I said, "Really?" She said, "I'll fix you one." Well, she did. My wife did. She said, "This is a great product, George." I said, "You think I should do it?" She said, "I know you should." That's how – that's the origin of me and the George Foreman grill.
Russ: So your wife obviously deserves a lot of credit for this.
George: And I put my signature on it...yeah, all the credit. She got all the money, too.
Russ: (Laughter)
George: But anyway, I put my signature on there because of my wife, and the thing worked. And then, originally, I only thought, "I'm gonna get 16 of these things." They said, "What do you want?" There isn't any money. Put your name on it, a joint venture, and I'm the major stockholder. And I said, "I want 16 grills." I thought that'll be impossible. I was gonna give a few to my aunt and my mom. All the people cook and take it to my training camp. That's all I thought would happen. The next thing you know, people would meet me and "George, we love you," and I thought, "They finally saw my punch." They said, "No, no, your grill." And they just started the word of mouth and started to sell 1 million, 2 million, and we sold over 100 million of those grills to this day.
Russ: And that wraps up our re-visit with our interview with George Foreman. And that concludes this mornings Aflac BusinessMakers Flashback, brought to you by Aflac, ask about it at work. And stayed tuned in for our featured guest segment as our own Esther Steinfeld visits with Tom Patterson, former drug company salesmen who set out to make the ultimate undershirt for himself and because the founder of Tommy John Clothing Company. You're listening to The BusinessMakers Show, heard here and online at thebusinessmakers.com.