“Learn to be satisfied. It is just as easy as being dissatisfied – and much more pleasant.” -Jacob de Jager For over five years now I have been writing a daily blog. The topic of each blog typically stems from something I went through or experienced during that particular day that stuck in my mind […]
I was raised to believe in the value of hard work. I don’t know if hard work came naturally to me or if it was a learned trait by watching my parents work their tails off. All I know is that being a slacker was never even a temptation for me. I always took personal […]
“I don’t want to drive up to the pearly gates in a shiny sports car, wearing beautifully tailored clothes, my hair expertly coiffed, and with long, perfectly manicured fingernails. I want to drive up in a station wagon that has mud on the wheels from taking kids to scout camp. I want to be there […]
The approach of most higher education institutions is completely backwards today. Rather than first year college students picking their classes based on their goal of a specific dream job, they end up picking classes based on what the University deems to be generally required, the classes their friends are signing up for, and what time […]
“Imagine there is a bank which credits your account each morning with $86,400, carries over no balance from day to day, allows you to keep no cash balance, and every evening cancels whatever part of the amount you had failed to use during the day. What would you do? Draw out every cent, of course! […]
“Become what inspires you.” What a GREAT quote! I guess I have never thought of it like that before so when I saw that quote I had to share it. We have to start by asking ourselves “What inspires us?” I asked myself that question and then I sat down and started typing up a […]
I shared this poem once before but I had forgotten all about it until I came across it today and it just seemed to reflect what I was feeling today so I wanted to share it again: As you travel through life there are always those times when decisions just have to be made when […]
Managing a To-Do List has been the bane of my existence for more years than I care to think about. As the CEO of a growing company I tried out countless Task Management Software programs along with exploring about every To-Do App that got released. Yet, no matter how many systems I tried I couldn’t […]
In order to be a successful company you must create an environment that encourages the contribution and open sharing of information. As the CEO of a high growth company I found it necessary to implement very simple, but incredibly powerful software tools to help us create that environment. Each tool served the purpose of facilitating […]
Somethings are so powerful you just have to read them again and again, and this particular poem is one of this things. I know I have shared this poem in past years, but today I read it again and it really hit me how much this poem describes the person we should all hope to […]
“Giving up on your goal because of one setback is like slashing your other three tires because you got one flat.” -unknown I absolutely LOVE that quote! I love the visual image it paints for us to help us recognize how dumb it is to give up on our goals just because of one little […]
Today is Father’s Day and it is the day we pay tribute to our Father’s and Grandfather’s and the men who have impacted our lives for the better. I thought a great way to pay tribute to my own Father is to share some of the things my Father has taught me: *Integrity matters most. […]
I received my once a week email from my daughter Ashley today – I love her emails because they always share something incredibly inspiring that literally makes my entire week. Today she talked about a story that her teacher Kami shared with her when she was a teenage girl that she said changed her life! […]
What I am about to say will seem completely foreign or even downright crazy to many people, but just hear me out before you throw up on this suggestion: The next time you sit down to send an email to thank someone, consider getting a pen and paper and writing a handwritten note instead. “Handwrite […]
“I am too positive to be doubtful, too optimistic to be fearful, and too determined to be defeated.” I love that quote because it provides a stark comparison to two ways we can choose to live our lives. We can either be doubtful, fearful, and defeated….or we can be positive, optimistic, and determined….which sounds better […]
“Somehow I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four C s. They are curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of all is confidence. When you […]
That phrase, “Have Courage and Be Kind” is repeated multiple times throughout the new movie Cinderella (the real life remake of the cartoon classic). It was advice given to Cinderella as a small child by her real mother before her real mother passed away. Today in a meeting someone reminded me again of the phrase […]
“If you can’t figure out your purpose, figure out your passion. For your passion will lead you right into your purpose.” We can all find something we are passionate about in life. And hopefully we have many things we are passionate about. The key is to figure out what they are. Some we come to […]
On our deathbed when we look back at our life, what will we wish we had done? It’s a questions we have all probably heard being posed before but when is the last time you actually stopped and tried to think about what your own answer would be. Will we wish we had worked more […]
“One of the greatest things about being an adult is the feeling of euphoria when you get to change into pajamas.” SO TRUE!!!! Today was possibly one of the longest days I have had in a very, very long time. It actually started just after midnight last night when I found myself still awake, working […]
Every one of us is a leader in our own right. Whether we lead an entire company, or a team of people, or a group of friends, or our families, or just ourselves…we are all leaders in some form or fashion. Whatever size our circle of influence may be today, if we work to improve […]
Even the most successful people in this world had to start somewhere. Often times I hear people express that they just don’t know where to start. My answer to that is simple – Just Start Somewhere. The truth is that it doesn’t really matter WHERE you start…what matters is that you DO START. People can […]
Everyone has a story…a history…a series of failures and mistakes that have shaped them into the person they are today. I, for one, believe we shouldn’t be ashamed of our story. Our story is what helped us become the person we are. That story is what taught us great life lessons that we might not […]
Isn’t it great to know that when you wake up each morning you start your day with a fresh new chance to make of it whatever you will? I think it’s fantastic!!! I love the quote in today’s title: “Life always offers you a second chance. It’s called tomorrow.” Because it reminds us that it’s […]
I LOVE authentic people. People who are genuine and real and ‘what you see is what you get’. People who are open about their fears and insecurities are endearing because they are people you can relate to. Whereas people that act like they have never made mistakes or that they know everything make the rest […]
I was working hard on preparing a Powerpoint presentation for a talk I will be giving at a University tomorrow evening when my computer crashed, and of course it crashed before I had saved my work. After hours of hard work I yelled out “Why did this have to happen?!?!” Arggghhhh!!! So frustrating, right!?! At […]
Last Thursday iconic independent filmmakers Robert Redford and George Lucas sat down to be interviewed by renowned film critic Leonard Martin at the Sundance Film Festival Power of Stories panel. I was fortunate enough to be present for this discussion which was titled, “The Visions of Independence.” It was clear from the conversation that these […]
There are a million aspects to life that are out of our control. And focusing on things you can’t control is absolutely pointless…no matter how much you focus on them you can’t control them so why waste the energy? Success comes when we stop worrying about those factors and things that are out of our […]
Deep within each of us lies talents, abilities, and powers that go so far beyond anything we could begin to imagine. Too often in life we sell ourselves short thinking “I can’t” or “I am not capable of…” or “I am afraid to try in case I fail”. We hide our true potential behind a […]
It has been said that the key to success is being ready to act when opportunity comes knocking at your door. Well hopefully you are ready, because opportunity is about to start knocking with a billion dollar vengeance! This particular opportunity starts with one word – Genealogy. Now before you tune out, you should know […]
