Today we’d like to introduce you to Jonathan Sprinkles.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Let’s go back to a galaxy far, far away…the University of Texas. In my senior year, I started talking to local high school kids about staying in school and making positive choices. Instantly, I felt at home. It was the one place in life where I could do everything I love: be creative, entertain, and teach. I could be my whole self, and make room for developing my gifts. The only problem was–I wasn’t very good. When I look back at some of my old videos, they were so cringy! What was I thinking?! Little did I know, I was in the infancy of something that would one day change my life.
After college, I worked for Dell Computers in their Business Sales Division. At the time, Dell was everything. They were the #1 company in all of tech. People were going crazy over Michael Dell’s “direct model.” I thought it would be a great place to learn the business and hopefully accumulate the stock options that were rumored to be making people millionaires before 30 years old.
I loved the challenge of sales, but I knew nothing about selling…or even about computers. But I figured out quickly that in order to be successful, I didn’t have to sell the product, I had to sell myself. I listened to tapes (yes cassette tapes) on my drive to work that taught me about selling, a positive mindset, and leadership. I began mastering the most profitable skill in business: earning people’s trust.
Within 9 months, I was promoted. I was on the fast track to making six figures. But I never forgot the joy I experienced when I was with the kids. I worked 70-80 hours per week, but on Saturday mornings, I reserved that time to be a “motivational speaker” for local middle school and high school kids. I wasn’t getting paid much, if anything at all, but I loved it more than I loved my 9-5 job. It was where I was supposed to be. I knew it.
Fast forward another year and a half, the business picked up so much that I had already used all of my vacation days for the year by April. I was ready to stop chasing a paycheck and start chasing my purpose. It was my time.
I stepped out on faith, deciding to ‘bet on myself’ and live my mission by impacting students with my message “A New Way to L.I.V.E. For a New Generation of Leaders.”
A few years into it, I was voted National Speaker of the Year!
As I matured, I shifted from being a “motivational speaker” to leaning into my passion – teaching people how to use The Power of Connection to improve their careers and lives. That gave birth to my company, The Connection Lab, and we now work with institutions and organizations such as Disney, Verizon, the Kaiser Permanente medical system, as well as branding work for athletes, celebrities, and high-achievers.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The biggest struggle I had in my career wasn’t with competitors; it was with believing that I could do it. I had a habit of undervaluing what I brought to the table.
Sometimes, people I met at events would share with me that they got more value in 30 minutes with me than they did from the person they flew thousands of miles to see. My market was telling me that I had a big opportunity, but because of my mindset, I remained small and ignored all of the signs.
I never thought anything of it because certain things came easily to me. I used to believe that if it wasn’t difficult, it wasn’t valuable. For that reason, I looked at my work as nothing special; something that anyone could do.
My personal struggles turned out the be the catalyst for creating systems of personal transformation for other high achievers who were dealing with the same issues. The Connection Lab was founded because of my personal disconnect, and journey to building the step-by-step process for success from the inside out.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
One thing that I love most about my work is that it’s rarely the same. My time is broken up into three ways: 1. Keynote speeches – Imagine you’re at a big industry event at a hotel or convention center. I would be one of the speakers who opens up or closes the event, likely with my message “The Power Of Connection.”
2. Leadership consulting – I do the deep work with organizational leadership, helping them create “A Culture of Connection” so that their people feel seen, heard, and valued, which increases performance and profits.
3. Brand consulting – I’ve been super blessed to work with Grammy winners, Hall of Famers, high-performers, all the way to solopreneurs, helping them build their brands, tell their stories, and build their platforms as a thought leaders in their industry.
My clients tell me that what makes me different is that I “get them” so I am able to draw out their best qualities that other people can’t access. I don’t just talk about human connection, I live it!
I pay attention to details such as how people’s energy shifts when they talk about certain topics, the moments when their confidence lights up the room. These are subtle clues that reveal what I call “our magic” — and we all have it! It takes a special connection to get people to loosen up, let their guard down, and tap into it. But when it happens, it’s the most amazing thing to see.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
That’s easy. I won the school district’s Black History Month speech contest in the 6th grade. I earned 3rd place the year prior, and vowed that I would do my best to win for my school.
Rather than doing my talk about a character (MLK, Booker T Washington, etc), I debated whether people of color should call ourselves African American or Black. The five-minute speech was called “What’s In A Name?”
The speech was special because my father (who passed away when I was in high school) helped me research and write it. Okay…he mostly wrote it. And it was good!
But in the very end…the last 15 seconds…I stumbled. I said one wrong word, and I panicked. I paused and the silence was deafening. I thought I let him down, as well as my teachers, my mother, and my grandmother who we all in the audience to see me.
Fortunately, I won (by a narrow margin), and was written up in the newspaper.
I’m sure the video is floating somewhere around Youtube…gulp!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/JSprinkles
- Instagram: @jsprinklesdotcom
- Youtube: @jonathansprinkles
