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Chatting with Amanda Holmes: Bestselling author and CEO

Bestselling author and CEO Amanda Holmes chatted about her book “The Ultimate Sales Machine.”

Amanda Holmes
Bestselling author and CEO Amanda Holmes. Photo Courtesy of Amanda Holmes
Bestselling author and CEO Amanda Holmes. Photo Courtesy of Amanda Holmes

Bestselling author and CEO Amanda Holmes chatted about her book “The Ultimate Sales Machine.”

Chet Holmes is known in the world of business to be one of the greatest teachers of marketing, sales, and business. His book “The Ultimate Sales Machine” has inspired millions of executives worldwide to help better market and sell their products.

Chet Holmes passed at the early age of 55, and in doing so left behind a legacy that only a person with drive, vision, and desire could fulfill. That person was none other than his daughter Amanda Holmes, who at the young age of 24, became the CEO of her father’s empire, Chet Holmes International.

Amanda’s story is remarkable. It was never intended to lead her father’s multi-million dollar enterprise with more than 100 employees. Life shifted for her and she pivoted to keep her father’s legacy alive. That was not an easy task when you consider that all of the employees were twice her age.

In the cutthroat world of business, you either have to pivot or move out. Amanda stepped up to the challenge, not only becoming successful in filling her father’s shoes but even more so helping her take the company to levels that no one thought it could reach. She has become a role model and influencer to others who are facing challenges in their own lives.

We had an opportunity to catch up with Amanda Holmes for an interview on her revamp of the timeless classic “The Ultimate Sales Machine,” and on how she is taking Chet Holmes International to new levels of growth and success. This is what she shared with us.

Q & A interview

Before being the CEO of Chet Holmes International what was lifelike for Amanda Holmes?

I was a singer-songwriter. I’d just finished music school at USC’s Thornton School of Music. Then, I released my fourth record, and was making my living as a musician writing songs, and performing at shows around Los Angeles.

What’s your favorite part about working at Chet Holmes International?

I just spent the last few weeks at trade shows with a 4ft billboard on my back. They call it a “human billboard.” It had a lifesize picture of the Ultimate Sales Machine on it.

From Boston to Orlando to Los Angeles people walked up to me repeating over and over and over again that this book and my father’s work literally changed their life. I had grown men crying at the impact we’ve made for them, it’s an honor and a privilege to be part of something that makes an entrepreneur’s dreams come true.

In your everyday role as the head of Chet Holmes International what’s one challenge you regularly face in your job and how do you overcome it?

The hardest challenge I face is always myself. I used to think, “how could a singer ever become CEO of a world-class revenue-generating company?” I questioned myself over and over again, and yet I had a mentor, an Indian Saint by the name of Sarva Loka Maa Her Holiness Sri Sri Sri 1008 Guruji Poonamji. Her title is long due to its high honor, I refer to Her as Guruji.

Guruji taught me that fulfillment comes from giving. When everything felt like it was going to collapse, Guruji taught me to go beyond my own needs or desires and instead focus on being of service. When you serve clients with their best interests in mind, they come back for more and walk around as billboards for your business!

I have to constantly remind myself to be of service, and that in giving we receive.

Another critical piece Guruji taught me was that when you care about what others think of you, you’re limiting yourself to their expectations. I was so consumed by all the stress of staff watching me try to figure out this company I didn’t know how I’d make a change.

Guruji actually told me I should shave my head to release my expectations of what others thought of me, and commit to being the best version of myself.

Believe it or not, I actually took the plunge and shaved my head. The surrender from everyone else’s expectations was so liberating I kept my head shaved for years after that. Reminding myself over and over again that every time I shaved my head I committed to be a conduit of love and light and be of service to my higher self.

Obviously, not everyone is going to go shave their head, but the practice of detaching yourself from everyone else’s belief systems of who you should be or how you should act is a critical piece to a life well lived. On your own terms.

If you could pick any chapter in ‘The Ultimate Sales Machine’ that you feel would have the biggest impact on an individual, what would it be and why?

Our clients say that Chapter 4 changed their life. It’s a complete paradigm shift for anybody trying to grow their business. We even give that chapter away for free so people can experience its brilliance. If you’d like to get 9x more from every move you’re already making to generate new clients, that’s the chapter to read!

It will be interesting to see everyone’s response to the new edition. I poured every ounce of my heart into Chapter 13. I found a letter my father had written to a friend where he explained how he generated more money in 6 months than in the previous 8 years combined because of this one thing. So I’m giving that to the people as the encore he never got to give on How to Live a Rich and Full Life.

This chapter is very different from the rest of the book, arguably the most important of them all.

What does it mean to you to have your name next to your dads on the new edition of his book, ‘The Ultimate Sales Machine?

Absolutely insane. You know I accepted the deal from Penguin saying that I didn’t want to have my name on the book cover. I was originally just going to write the whole book in my father’s voice. But as the four years went by writing draft after draft, I gained strength in my own voice.

It finally got to a point where I was out of integrity if I kept my father writing these things, they truly had come from me. So it wasn’t until the very end I proposed to Penguin to add my name and they loved the idea.

I told them with an author on the cover that was alive, I’d get more keynotes and speaking engagements so it would help them sell more books, and they loved that!

The book “The Ultimate Sales Machine” is available on Amazon.

Markos Papadatos
Written By

Markos Papadatos is Digital Journal's Editor-at-Large for Music News. Papadatos is a Greek-American journalist and educator that has authored over 20,000 original articles over the past 18 years. He has interviewed some of the biggest names in music, entertainment, lifestyle, magic, and sports. He is a 16-time "Best of Long Island" winner, where for three consecutive years (2020, 2021, and 2022), he was honored as the "Best Long Island Personality" in Arts & Entertainment, an honor that has gone to Billy Joel six times.

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