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My email from Frank McKinney reflecting on the Palm Beach experience
Date: 11/21/2007 09:24AM
From: frankmckinney3@aol.com
To: doug@dougdoebler.com
Subject: Reflecting on Frank McKinney's Palm Beach Experience
Happy Thanksgiving Doug,
I feel most alive when experiencing extremes for the first time.
Last week's Frank McKinney's Palm Beach Experience for the benefit of our Caring House Project Foundation certainly let me know how alive I am!
I can't begin to thank all of those who were in attendance for the event. For those who weren't, I thought I would share a brief summary below.
First, I want to take a moment to thank all of our co-hosts for the event; my brother Bob McKinney, David Dweck, Yanik Silver, Mike Litman, Jim Toner, Sharon & Juan Restrepo, Doug Doebler, Mark Evans, Sherman Ragland, David Culver, Robyn Thompson, Ramon Williamson & Kendra Todd.
These generous and capable partners were responsible for a majority of the hundreds who were in attendance. Each guest came away with a tote bag filled with education products valued in excess of $6,500, all donated by our co-hosts. Their dedication and commitment to delivering a memorable experience will not soon be forgotten.
I also wish to thank our sponsors for the event, U.S. Trust, Bank of America Wealth Management, Food for the Poor, Pierson Grant Public Relations, Dale Construction, Elk, Christu & Bakst Attoneys, Sean Donahue of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage and Air-Ref. With your underwriting commitment, you helped insure that more monies went to the desperately poor and homeless.
I also wish to acknowledge Kimberley Trombly-Burmeister, our event "goddess," co-goddess Michelle Donahue, and Laurie McCoy and Renee Radabaugh from Paragon events. Simply put, the logistics would not have come off as they did without these women and their support staff.
I want to thank the many volunteers, including those from our Caring House Project Foundation Board of Directors. You know who you are and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
While I wish I could single out each attendee, and write a special thank you to you individually, we will be posting some of your thoughts on our website soon. There, in your words, you can share the impact the event had on you. Please send in your thoughts to Kimberley at jkburmeister@bellsouth.net. We will be sending out an event summary form for you to return.
Our intent from the beginning was to deliver an experience that can be drawn upon for a lifetime. This was to be the anti-seminar. I think we did just that.
While it would be rather lengthy to attempt to recapture the 3 1/2 days, we did video the entire experience. "Frank McKinney's Palm Beach Experience '07" will be offered on our website soon for those who were unable to attend.
A short summary of the event begins with our welcome reception on Wednesday night where we met each other at a sumptuous themed dinner in the ballroom of the host hotel. Photos were taken and fellowship shared.
Many rose Thursday morning at 4:30 to join me for a 5-mile run along the training route for my 135 mile Badwater Ultramarathon.
After a quick shower we gathered at breakfast where we met all co-hosts and departed on our luxury motor coaches for the mansion tours. We began at my 1st $50,000 fixer-upper that I did 20+ years ago, then traveled up in price and forward in time, while touring three mansions with a total value in excess of $75 million.
We had lunch under the big top on the site of our $135 million home and heard presentations from our co-hosts before resuming the tour, including visiting our $30 million green home; "Acqua Liana".
After our long day touring had come to an end, we returned to the host hotel to catch our breath before coming over to Nilsa and my oceanfront home for a magnificent 5-course meal. During dinner we were riveted by presentations from our co-hosts, then had the opportunity to tour through my oceanfront treehouse office. The day came to an end at 12:30am, after the last treehouse tour, 20 hours after it had begun.
With the coffee flowing on Friday morning, we were privileged to hear from legendary football coach Don Shula at an intimate gathering. Ten lucky participants received personally autographed footballs.
After breakfast we walked to the dock and boarded our yacht for our 2.5 hour cruise up the beautiful Intracoastal Waterway to view the mansions from the water. A cold front had come through, so the weather was perfect, sunny and 68 (yes, that is considered a cold front).
On the boat we heard from private bankers from U.S. Trust & Bank of America who educated us on how to take the "right turn" through the private bank doors to collect favorable loan terms, instead of the "left turn" to stand in the teller line to collect our free lollipop.
Upon arrival in Palm Beach we disembarked and walked the 5 short blocks to the Governor's Club, overlooking the ocean and the Intracoastal. OK, maybe it was a little over 5 blocks, but the walk was good for all after the 5-course meal the night before.
At the Governor's Club we heard from my personal mentor and experienced a highlight, Rich DeVos. What a treat. Although we could have been enlightened by Rich for hours, the time we spent in his presence was worth the entire trip for many. I promise, if we ever do this again, we will have him for longer!
After photos with Rich, we boarded the yacht for the return trip, where we were given a marketing lesson by Pat Liguori of Christies affiliate Premier Estate Properties. Pat has sold 1/2 billion dollars of real estate in 5 years.
Following Pat was a rather hilarious presentation by John Ferber, a young 33 year old who recently sold his company to AOL for $500,0000,000 (that's right, 500 million). John, a buyer of one of my oceanfront homes, shared his genius on how to build, survive and prosper at such a young age.
With little time to spare, we docked the boat and prepared for an unforgettable evening.
The night started with dinner around an oceanfront pool. Then all guests were ushered into the grand ballroom for my "Leave Your Fears Behind Coffin Exercise." In this thought provoking exercise, black drapes were dropped to heart pounding music to expose me lying in a gold embossed casket, followed by my brother Bob McKinney giving my eulogy.
After I rose from the casket, each co-host was asked to bring up one individual from the audience who then identified the single most significant fear they felt was impeding their life's progress.
They then were escorted into the casket by two angels, where they actually laid in the casket, with the bottom half closed.
I asked them to commit to living the rest of their life with no regrets. The only thing that died that night, and was left behind in that casket, was the overwhelming fear they shared with the audience.
After the no regrets coffin exercise, all in attendance were treated to Michael Israel's "Art in Concert" where 6 original pieces of canvas art were created, beautifully synchronized to theme music. With paint splashing and the audience in a frenzy, portraits of John Lennon, Bono, Ray Charles, The Firefighter Hero, a smiling Haitian Child and me were created right before our eyes.
After the show, all pieces were auctioned off to those in attendance, raising an additional $140,000+/- for Caring House Project Foundation.
It was now 12:00 midnight, yet the evening was far from over.
All who still had the energy, participated in our pizza, popcorn & pajamas roundtable exchange. All guests were strewn across blankets and pillows where we shared secrets to success in a very relaxed atmosphere. You should have seen some of the slippers and pajamas. This went until 2:00am, another 18 hour day.
Believe it or not, there we a dozen or so guests who met me at 4:30 the next morning (Saturday), after sleeping only two hours, for another 5 mile run! All part of the experience.
Our enlightenment breakfast was to follow, where we heard testimony from many on the bringing together of our professional highest calling with our spiritual highest calling. We also drew five guest names out of a hat, with the lucky ones being offered the opportunity to visit Haiti with us in February. More to come regarding this upcoming trip of a lifetime.
After our enlightenment breakfast we walked across to the beach where all co-hosts were seated on a panel and our guests on mats in the warm sand. We continued our roundtable discussion until 11:30, when the event was officially concluded.
For guests who had donated $10,000 or more, all were treated to a private lunch inside a $10 million mansion, with the final guest departing at 2:00pm.
Nearly 90 hours after Frank McKinney's Palm Beach Experience commenced, the festivities were over. The networking and contact sharing begins in earnest.
Now it is time to implement the many lessons learned. One does not need to seek alternative insight for the foreseeable future. Your success in the business we are all in, the business of life, depends not on the seeking of new strategies, but in the implementation of what you now know.
Sure there will be time for the upward spiral of the Maverick Approach, in short, "often happy, never satisfied," but for now, apply what you have learned.
I know I will, for you have taught me a great deal during this once in a lifetime event. It is now time for me to return to doing what I do best, so should you.
Some experiences are meant to only happen once, so I thank you for such a memorable 3 days, and for sharing your blessings with those less fortunate through our Caring House Project Foundation.
Be a Maverick & Make it BIG!
Frank McKinney
561.274.9696
www.frank-mckinney.com
Frank McKinney & Co
Caring House Project Foundation
1177 George Bush Blvd #202
Delray Beach, FL 33483
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