Like any real talent, the love of it came before the career. I was eating fire, juggling, unicycling and stilt-walking for fun, long before I discovered I could make a career out of it! I actually started out as a DJ. As I’m sure many Pro Mobile readers did, I would blow all my paper round money on music.
My local record store, ‘Adrian’s Record Shop’ , was massive. It had rows and rows of music, and I would spend hours listening to songs on the CD player they had in the corner, discovering music Top motivational speaker and peak performance coach, Jon Holder works with companies, athletes, CEOs and individuals to help them ‘find their awesomeness’! No stranger to the entertainment business, Jon spent the first ten years of his career hosting children’s parties as ‘Ziggy Zoo’ as well as working for TUI as a host and entertainer at holiday resorts around the world.
Now known for his high-energy motivational presentations, Jon will be speaking at this year’s Pro Mobile Conference. In this interview with Pro Mobile’s Editor, Eddie Short , he shares stories from his past as an entertainer, offers a few teasers for what delegates can expect at the Conference and also explains how he came to be a world record breaker! I didn’t think I would pursue it any further than that one party, so me and a few friends sat in a pub thinking of stage names.
It soon got a bit silly… all I remember is that we went from willy-woo to Ziggy Zoo, which made us laugh and that stuck. Ten years later, as much as I wish I picked a better name, it has served its purpose well as it was unique and would stick in people’s heads. That first birthday party was hard work, but I enjoyed the challenge. It felt like a good fit, based on my experience as a scout leader, my personality and my passion for circus skills and magic.
Up to that point I didn’t realise there were full-time professional children’s entertainers, and I certainly hadn’t seen one perform. That meant I had to make up everything myself, which led to a few mistakes early on, but also allowed me to develop a truly unique style and bring a fresh approach to the market. Although I continued doing some regular DJ work, I really focused in on children’s parties. One of the reasons was that I could fit in more bookings!
I could easily work seven parties in a weekend – one Friday evening, three Saturday and three Sunday – and make better money than if I’d done two regular evening gigs. It was full on, but I really enjoyed it and developed a really solid business that grew from referrals as parents recommended me to each other. Q: You mentioned being a Scout Leader, how did you get involved with that? A: As a child I wasn’t very academic and struggled in school, but I found that joining the Scouts really helped me.
I learnt practical skills and problem solving that have since proved invaluable. When I grew up I naturally progressed into becoming a leader, and I’m still very much involved to this day. It also helped when I started developing my children’s entertainment business, as I could trial new games and routines on the kids. In 2016 my entertaining and scouting careers culminated when I was invited to entertain 10,000 young people at the Essex International Jamboree!
Q: What lessons do you think mobile DJs working at ‘grown up’ events like weddings and corporate functions can learn from children’s entertainers? A: Kids’ entertainment is an art, not everyone can do it! I often describe entertaining kids as like herding kittens, not sheep! Kids are unlike adults, as an adult will be polite just to be kind, a kid will tell you the truth and walk off if you’re not any good!
We are all kids at heart, but many people bury their inner child pretty deeply. A party is a celebration and
about having fun, but most adults – especially since the social media revolution – don’t actually know how to do it! It’s like people now need a reason to dance and they clutch onto alcohol to give them courage. So having the ability to be a showman and use your voice to motivate the room to move – in the way a children’s entertainer does – has real impact and value. Take a busker on the street, who manages to capture an audience and entertain them when they don’t expect it, that’s a real art and that sort of talent will always keep your dancefloors busy and result in referral bookings.
Q: You’ve also worked for TUI as an entertainer and presenter; what were the highs and lows of working in holiday resorts abroad? A: I loved working abroad! It was the perfect gig, I got paid to do what I love in front of hundreds of holiday makers and they are the best crowd to have. People don’t take their worries or stresses on holiday, which means they are generally happier and more receptive to being entertained.
I found that jokes I used all of the time in the UK would absolutely bring the house down abroad, which was a massive confidence boost. I got to try out lots of new material and eventually got picked up by Whipper Snapper TV and became a content creator for some of the biggest holiday providers. I learnt a big life lesson too. Eventually I got to the point where I had all the best stage props and magic illusions, some custom-made from the States.
Getting through the airport was a nightmare, it could take over four hours just to clear customs, so I made the bold decision to sell everything and perform with just pocket tricks or stuff that I could buy from any supermarket. I found that my new act had the same impact and generated just as many “wows” from the audience. I had less ‘stuff’ to worry about so I could focus on my performance rather than these objects. Now I train top keynote speakers and I get them to put their fancy key note slides in the bin!
You won’t be remembered for what you have, but what you do, don’t get distracted by shiny things in your career, focus on your talent and you will soon find you have no competition. Q: Somewhere along the way I know you also broke a world record, how did that come about? A: Some people don’t understand this, but I love pushing myself in all kinds of different ways. I do a lot of things ‘just for kicks’ and this was one of them.
I skateboarded the length of the UK, in under 16 days, and set a new world record, beating the previous person by six days. I wanted to feel broken as I know our minds and bodies are more capable than we realise. It really did break me that challenge, but that’s why I did it! I guess I just enjoy the challenges in life.
I currently have five juggling balls on my bedside table, from being a kid who couldn’t catch a ball to now learning to juggle five does really give you a kick! Q: What led to your switch from entertainer to motivational speaker and coach? A: My time working in holiday resorts was great; those days were rock and roll! But after a friend got stabbed whilst we were out clubbing, I decided to jump on a plane, head home and focus on my own career.
The speaking came very naturally, and I am now starting to really get recognised for my radical approach to training and speaking.
I did what I did with my entertainment business, I looked at what everyone else was doing and decided to do something completely different. Feedback is king! I record every talk. I’m loaded with my own mic and camera gear every event I do, I watch it back and cringe like hell!
But that’s how I’ve grown so fast in under a couple of years in the speaker world and the same principles can definitely also be applied to the DJ business. I also think asking your audience to be honest and pick holes in your performance is essential, if you’re not good at receiving feedback, then get good! The positive stuff won’t make you grow, it only massages your ego. The coaching work I do is really taking off now as well.
I’m starting to get very busy with more clients than I was initially expecting, but it’s really not work if you love what you do! Q: Some people are sceptical of the idea of life coaching, why do you think it’s important? A: I was one of those. I was looking to understand what I wanted from life and how to obtain it and what I discovered had such a big impact on me that I became a coach.
It wasn’t until some of the businesses I coached started seeing big financial results that I realised what I was doing had massive value. A life coach is like having a personal trainer in the gym; yes you can go to the gym and work out on your own, but a personal trainer is going to make you work harder and get the results you want in a much faster time. The biggest thing is being accountable to someone. So like a kid having homework, if they don’t do the homework in the set time then they’re going to get in trouble.
Having regular coaching sessions gives my clients the push they need to make consistent progress. Most of my clients are new to coaching, so I take the risk of the table. I offer a guarantee that if they don’t see results within three weeks then they get a full refund, remember it’s about talent not time! Thanks to Skype I have coaching clients from around the world and this year I’ve had to start a waiting list.
Q: You describe yourself as ‘not just a life coach’ , what do you mean by that? A: I like breaking moulds and changing expectations. If you have a phobia of dogs, expect to turn up at my office with a puppy waiting for you! We all tell ourselves stories, which end up controlling us.
So, using the dog phobia as an example, there will be what seems like a logical reason why you're scared. Perhaps you were attacked, perhaps you saw a friend being attacked and ever since that event you can’t face dogs… But that fear needs to be faced, that story needs to be re-written. And the same goes for any fear, phobia or negative emotion. We all have them, and they hold us back.
Identifying and dealing with them is like lifting a weight you've been carrying on your shoulders. Sometimes you have spent most of your life carrying it, without even realising, but the difference lifting the weight can make really is incredible. Q: What can DJs attending the 2019 Pro Mobile Conference expect from your keynote seminar? A: I won’t hold back!
My talks are based around experience, you will see how your energy is everything to your life and business. We are going to explore what really makes you tick, you may even find some of it uncomfortable, but the outcome will mean you breaking all your beliefs and redefining who you really are. Q: And what about the workshop session you’ll be leading with a different small group of attendees on each day of the Conference? A: This is where it gets intense.
I run masterminds (that I’m really proud of) which are full on; in such a short time you will close the gap from where you are to where you want to be. I’m so excited to be a part of the Pro Mobile Conference, there really is nothing like it and it’s the best investment you can make in your business this year. To find out more about Jon Holder head to Having regular coaching sessions gives my clients the push they need to make consistent progress.
