Success Starts Here!

Has anyone else gotten into all the "countdowns" on tv this week? Probably not, I'm strange that way. Having said that, having a little free time on my hands since the weekend and the wintery weather we and a good chunk of the country got, I was all up in those countdowns. I love countdowns because they remind me of interesting things that happened during a given time. The best songs of the year, the biggest celebrity meltdowns, the best sports plays, they all lead to one thing, the end of an era. As we end this year, I suppose very few of us can truly say we accomplished everything we set out to. Chances are, you belong to the "human" race and thus had your fill like the rest of us of "life". Life has a way of reminding us we aren't in charge sometimes. It's a great lesson to learn. I assume like most, you have had your ups and downs, your share of moments of pure bliss and joy and moments of absolute pain and sorrow. I lost a cousin to sui

Friends,   First I wanted to take a quick moment to thank you for your time. I write these messages as personal therapy if you will but I post them in hopes maybe someone out "there" in the blog-o-sphere might get something out of it. So thanks once again.    Second, I don't want to alarm you but um, Christmas is coming!!!! In 69 days we will be wishing each other a Merry Christmas. How do I know this? Cause this morning's local paper reminded me with a big photo of Santa getting himself primed and ready (story was about preparations for the Macy's Day parade in NY and of course that parade ends with Santa). It got me to think of holiday seasons of yesteryear and my first reaction was a big smile on my face. As I thought more I remembered those holiday seasons which weren't as good and it gave me an idea, but I need your help. That in a moment.    Prior to that, a quick story. When I was a young married guy, I was stationed in Washington, DC. For those of y

This past weekend I had the honor of attending a good friend's retirement from military service. As he shared his remarks about a career that spanned 27 years, he said something I wasn't expecting yet it resonated with me. Maybe because it just made so much damn sense, and hopefully because I have been doing it unconsciously all the while (or so I hope I have). He said "I've succeeded in this Army career because I was willing to fail". Of course as soon as he said that, I grabbed a little coaster which was the closest thing to me, borrowed someone's pen, and wrote it down before I forgot it. As soon as I heard him say those words I was reminded of an old Michael Jordan commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45mMioJ5szc . Michael speaks about the many times he has failed over his career. He ends with "I have failed over and over and over in my life, and that is why I succeed." Wow, talk about powerful stuff. In today's sterile, hypo-allergen

            In the Army there is a response we tend to give when asked to complete the easiest of tasks or the most difficult of missions; that response is “too easy”. Those two words might not seem like a big deal but I truly believe we can gain something from them if we choose to. Obviously not all situations are “too easy”. Having said that, I believe going into any situation with the right mentality is always better than the alternative. So far, I figure for most of us 2010 has had its high points and its low points. The high points are easy to get through; it’s the low points that kick us in the rump. I submit if you take your challenges head-on with a can-do attitude you will succeed more times than not. It’s an easy lesson most of us learned when we were kids in school but one we tend to forget as we become adults.  Children are not yet tarnished by the adult world which tells us all the things we can’t do long before it tells us the things we can. A child will believe in h

As we once again prepare for a new workweek I felt compelled to send you a few thoughts on what I call Inspired Thought. You are reading the words of the man who invented satellite radio. Yes, thank you thank you, please hold the applause. I also invented car dvd players, named the "New Kids on the Block" group of the early 90s, and most proudly, invented the Snuggie blanket. By all accounts I should be sitting pretty on my own private island in the Bahamas counting hundred dollar bills as my hobby while I sit under a beach umbrella and sip thousand dollar a bottle champagne. Instead, I'm headed into the office tomorrow to my job, no not my company, just my regular ole job. Why? Did I lose it all in Vegas betting on black? Nope, I didn't listen to my "Inspired Thought". Oh I heard it, I just didn't "listen" to it. I've always been the creative type, and so for most of my life I have known that feeling you get when you come up with a grea

Like pretty much all of you, I remember exactly where I was that fateful day nine years ago. I remember my initial disbelief, anguish, pain, and subsequent anger. I was in a position and in a military unit which would be the first to strike at the terrorist forces which condoned, supported, and gave the green light for it. Those first 48 hours all I wanted was blood; vengeance. So it is interesting on this anniversary of that dark day in human history, that I remember not the hate or anger, not the desire for vengeance; I remember how for a moment in time, we stopped being black and white, straight or gay, Catholic or Jew, Protestant or Muslim. We became the "human" race. I remember watching, glued to my television like millions of others and what struck me most was strangers, running into danger to help each other. How two women, one black, one white, one from seemingly well-to-do origins while the other probably from far less, hugged on a street corner and cried on each ot

I LOVE Wednesdays. I always have. I think its because they are just far enough from Mondays to finally have them behind us, and from Wednesdays we can finally see the promised land of Fridays, so we find ourselves usually pretty motivated. From my personal experience I think I've always been more productive on Wednesdays. I got to thinking about the "why" as I usually do (I know, its annoying sometimes) and I think it comes down to the two things that drive all life, pleasure and pain. In one way or another, all life on this planet is constantly trying to move away from pain and towards pleasure. In our unique case as the weirdos of the living world, we happen to have the additional issue of emotions. Throw emotions over the relatively simple pleasure/pain principle and you've got yourself a heck of a mess. That pretty much sums us all up doesn't it? Most living things on this earth are run by instinct. That's not to say some of the more evolved creatures do

Well the summer's officially over. Tomorrow the last of America's students go back to school, mine included. Its been a great summer but there is always something uplifting about this time of year for me. Maybe its that I somehow live vicariously through my kids and can remember the butterflies in my stomach at the thought of walking through those school doors for another year of adventure. Although to them, the butterflies are more about how good they'll look and if the chics will dig em (which is probably what I was thinking at their age). I might be dating myself by the very comment I just made. Haha. Hey, what can I say, I've been cool, hot, fresh, and ill, and at various times of my life, those were proud monikers. With the new school year, I as a parent know that past the social dynamics of high school and middle school, my sons are in for a year of learning and that to me is really cool. I've been a lifelong learner as an adult. As a high school student, I

YAY its the weekend! We made it through yet another week. This is an especially special weekend as the last of America's children go back to school next week after the Labor Day holiday. I was hoping to share a tip with you in hopes of making this a better weekend. If you're anything like me, and hopefully you're not, you have a work cell or smartphone which was faithfully handed to you when you first started working or maybe after that big promotion. It was probably provided to you with some pomp-and-circumstance and someone important telling you what a valued and important member of the team you were that they would need to communicate with you even when you were out of the office. I'll never forget the first time I got an email from my boss at 10 o'clock at night. I responded, and its been downhill ever since. Haha. What I'm trying to say is your weekend is YOUR weekend. If you're one of the lucky citizens of this great country who doesn't have to

As you may know, I am a proud 20-year veteran of the U.S. Army. Last night as I was about to sign out of Facebook a young soldier in my field of specialty sent me a note. We got to talking and I could tell he really wanted to ask me something so I said "so what's up? You seem like you have something going on." He asked "what's the secret to your success?" Before I go on, I'd like to say I in no way consider myself any more successful than the next guy. Having said that, to this young man, I had somehow garnered that honor. So I sat there for a moment and thought about it. Its not the kind of question I expect on a Saturday night out of the blue. I thought of a few witty things I had heard inspiring people say but felt if he had the courage to ask, I should have the courage to give him a real answer; one that came from me. So as I thought of what to answer, I stumbled upon three words which seem to sum up whatever successes I feel I've had. I told him

The year is 1989. A recent high school graduate (barely) is overwhelmed with life. He dreams of a world outside the bounds of his environment and his poverty. Dreaming is a luxury; an escape from the real world, but not usually translated to a reality. One day in late November the young man returned to his car after a day of community college classes only to find it was gone. Nothing was there other than the remnants of broken glass. Downtrodden he began his 5 mile walk home. He had no one to turn to, no one who would come and get him, no one who would care. He reached a bridge just past the factory his single mother had worked at for so many years until her accident which she was fired for versus given any sort of support. As he stopped to look down into the cold November waters of the river below he contemplated how the world might just be better without him; how he hadn't really made a difference in this world and never would. Just as he was steeling himself to take the plun

I'd like to share an experience I had back in March with you. It was one of the few moments in my life where I felt totally helpless to "help", and yet served as one of the most inspirational moments in my life. In January, two days after the devastating earthquake in Haiti which left Port-au-Prince in ruins, I was deployed as a member of one of the first military units which went in to help. About 45 days in, I was in the mountains outside of the capital city when I ran into a small village called Bacho. You won't find it on a map, its too small. In this village lives a young 16 year old girl named Arielle, a child herself, who is the mother of two children. They live in absolute poverty. I brought them food and water and asked what we could do to make things better. The young girl replied "take my children with you to America so they can go to school". She didn't ask anything for herself. All she wanted was for her children to come to this great cou

Let's face it, Monday is not a popular day. It get's a bad rap. Its the day which sets the tone for the rest of the week. Many folks learn just how "painful" their week is going to be on Mondays. And honestly, if anything can go wrong, it will....on Monday. Having said that, I have a simple fix for your Monday morning blues; pull out a trusty pen and piece of paper and write on the top "I like Monday because....". I know, you're probably thinking "Is this guy nuts? I don't like anything about Monday!" Don't you? I bet I can help you find a few things you like. 1. Did you wake up this morning? Chances are, if you're reading this, you woke up this morning. I bet you most people who passed away this weekend, given the chance, would give entire fortunes to have this one day left on earth. So to begin with write "I like Monday because I woke up." 2. Did your loved ones wake up this morning? If the answer is no, you have an a

I was at a fast food restaurant today for lunch. I wasn't thinking of diet or nutrition. Against the better judgement of my ever-expanding waist, I just wanted a juicy burger and greasy fries. In front of me was a young lady, probably in her early 20's who had what seemed to be Down Syndrome. I was in a hurry and was a little perturbed a "slow" person was in front of me as I was in a hurry. I was thinking only of myself and my selfish needs. As I listened she began to order. It was so slow and she dragged it out for what seemed like minutes and minutes. I could tell what she wanted and thought more than once about jumping in and just telling the girl behind the counter what she wanted in an effort to hurry things up a bit. When she completed her order the girl behind the counter who couldn't have been older than 21 stopped, looked at her, and said "good job Karen, that is the first time you've gotten through it on your own". Shocked I watched her

Sundays are special. They are the day equivalent to spring. Things grow in spring, they come back to life, they focus on what is ahead. It is the natural order of things. And so this Sunday, I wish you great preparation, and belief you will achieve whatever you set out for this week; be it simply furthering a project at work, bettering yourself somehow, or taking the time to tell the ones you love, you love them. Friday will be here soon enough as time moves on without our request or counsel. As you look back towards this day on Friday, will you see success, failure or the monotony of yet another week? Will you see proactive approaches to opportunities which presented themselves or will you see missed opportunities you were too pessimistic, "realist", and reactive to take hold of? Remember, we all have the same 24 hours a day. What we do with it literally makes us who we are. When you think you don't have "time" to succeed, remember Einstein, Newton, Da Vinci,

I fancy myself a lot of things, most are only in my head. :). Some I've actually convinced others to believe, but all are things I actually believe. I consider myself a pretty average guy with hints of greatness. Usually they don't last long but I relish them while they exist. One of my greatest gifts is that of observation and appreciation, or so I believe; thus I start with my favorite poet, not just because I loved his poetry, but because 100 years before I roamed the halls of my high school, so did he. Seriously. Thus as this is a blog about "being" and hopefully being the "best" us we can be, why not start with the man who took the Road Not Taken: Robert Frost  (1874–1963).   Mountain Interval.   1920.   1. The Road Not Taken   T WO roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth;         5   Then took the o