About Mike Goss, PMP®, DTM®, Certified Coach®

We all want to leave our mark, to make our lives matter.

You'll get out of life just what you put into it. Life is not a spectator sport. Life is about participating.  

"Don't Just Let it Happen. Make It Happen."

One of my favorite quotes is from Zig Ziglar: "Your success will be determined by how many other people you make successful." Following Zig's advice, I began working on my "bucket list" before I knew what that meant.

Goals realized

• Serve my country.  DONE.  I was a Staff Sergeant in the United States Air Force. I received the Air Force Commendation Medal for finding and solving an electrical problem that affected all F-4 "Phantom II" fighter/bombers flying in Southeast Asia.

• Work for Otis Elevator Company, my dream company since grade school.  DONE. I worked for Otis in Charleston, Portland, San Francisco and Phoenix.

• Open a retail computer store.  DONE. Computer Techniques helped many small business owners and professional clients accomplish more with our computers, printers and software. We were one of the first dealers of Altos Xenix-based multi-user computers, as well as computers made by KayPro, Morrow, Eagle, Columbia and Corona.

• Be a college instructor.  DONE.  For two decades, I taught Sales, Marketing, Leadership and Business Computer Applications courses through the evening division at Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, Oregon. I enriched the lives of over 5,000 students.

• Develop commercial database applications.  DONE.  My Auto Dealer Service Department Point of Sale System boosted average repair orders by over 30% the day we turned it on. 

• Be a bank executive. It wasn't my goal; it just happened, and it was fun. DONE. In my nearly four-year stint as a Senior Vice-President, I led a team that was given a goal of winning $30 million in net new deposits. Our team achieved $58 million at the height of the 2008 recession.

• Teach business owners how to grow their businesses, in an evening workshop format.  DONE. I created my “Business Building After Hours” workshops as an outreach benefit from the bank’s branches to their local business communities. My workshops received rave reviews and new customers. 

• Be a keynote speaker. DONE. I delivered leadership presentations to the Oregon State Sheriffs Association, the Oregon Department of Public Safety, the Oregon Recreation and Parks Association, and the Trauma Intervention Program.

• Be a weekly radio talk show guest.  DONE. Every Sunday afternoon for two years, I presented "Business-Building Secrets with Mike Goss" on News Radio KXL-FM in Portland, Oregon. I reached over 10,000 listeners with tips on how to grow their businesses.

• Publish a book. DONE. "Breaking Through Walls" is a business novel about overcoming life's obstacles. It is available from Amazon as a paperback, a Kindle online book, and an audiobook.

• Publish a second book. DONE. “Now THAT Reminds Me of a Story” contains over 40 short, humorous stories from my life and career.

• Teach sales professionals how to increase their sales by telling stories.  IN PROGRESS.

• Teach sales professionals how to increase their sales through sales project management.  IN PROGRESS.

• Train project managers how to pass their challenging PMP® (Project Management Professional) certification exam. Over a period of seven years, I enriched the lives of several hundred managers, engineers and project managers.

• ...and other goals I haven't defined yet.

The Outcome: Lives Enriched

When God calls me home, I want to be able to say I used His gifts to serve others. 

How about you?