Someday

Do not put off what you really want to do.. do not always say “ someday”

Do it !

Make a plan and make someday happen because we never know what life has in store.

And I am not just talking about that vacation you talk about with your spouse but I am talking about the simple things.. time with your family or your spouse.

Sure plan that vacation too but meanwhile just try to enjoy today.

You will have a dozen voices in your head during the course of a day telling you what you HAVE to do or what is important... do not get so caught up in the day to day that you forget to just-BE-

Make someday today.

Work Backwards

Sometimes when things get too big or confusing you may need to work backwards ...
Where do you picture yourself in the end or in 5-10 years ?
What is most important to you ?
Answer those questions and work backwards... make goals to achieve where you want to go and push the other stuff to the side... stay focused.
Who is most important to you ?
Stay focused and do not get caught up in too much of the day to day, always do your best in your work day and to help others through out your day but remember the important people in your life and who will truly be there there in the end.
Smile, breathe , take in the positive and try to push away the negative- simple words that can just be forgotten during the course of a busy day, of a busy life but it can be just that simple.
Remember who and what is important !

Memorial Day

Let us remember what we are celebrating on this holiday weekend..
Memorial Day..

A day on which those who died in active military service are remembered.
We also take this time to thank all military members, those that have served and are actively serving.

Freedom is not Free- 

Thank you to all that have served and are serving and to those that gave their lives may their families be proud - God Bless-

The River

You know a dream is like a river
Ever changin' as it flows
And a dreamer's just a vessel
That must follow where it goes
Trying to learn from what's behind you
And never knowing what's in store
Makes each day a constant battle
Just to stay between the shores
And I will sail my vessel
'Til the river runs dry

Too many times we stand aside
And let the waters slip away
'Til what we put off 'til tomorrow
It has now become today
So don't you sit upon the shoreline
And say you're satisfied
Choose to chance the rapids
And dare to dance that tide

There's bound to be rough waters
And I know I'll tke soome falls
With the good Lord as my captain
I can make it through them all

And I will sail my vessel
'Til the river runs dry
Like a bird upon the wind
These waters are my sky
I'll never reach my destination
If I never try
So I will sail my vessel
'Til the river runs dry
Lord, I will sail my vessel
'Til the river runs dry

Divide and Conquer

It is the oldest plan of attack ... Divide and Conquer

Throughout history the theory of dividing people and separating them and getting them angry has been a plan to be able to obtain power.

The same actually applies to the business world.

People try to wedge themselves between you and others and all in the effort for them to obtain power, the message is they are bad - I am good- follow me.
I could never understand that method and still do not understand it but it certainly works , it works for several reasons but mostly because people are scared easy and are mainly just worried about themselves therefore they will leave people behind and follow who ever they need to in order to survive.

The problem is “ If you do not stand for something, you will fall for anything.”
Think for yourself and think if “ they” are so willing to talk trash about others don’t you think it could be you they are trashing tomorrow?
 And think to yourself why do they need to lead by tearing down?
Who do you what to inspire to be or to follow?

You can lead by looking at the positive, you can be a role model.
You do not have to buy into the negative- it is all wasted energy-
-Be You - Be Positive... and never forget how you got where you are and who can truly be trusted.

Trust your gut and always try to build a bridge.. hate is very weighty and so is negative.

Options

Weigh your Options... know your options.
In order to make an educated decision you need to know all the options.
What would be your plan B or plan C ? Which option is the most solid, the one that you have the most confidence in ? What about profit ?
Think ahead , in order to weigh your options you need to think of the “ what if “ situations .
In choosing the best option do you know that you may need to stay in the circle and help move it along ? You should know the partners that may need more assistance then others. We all have business partners that we know will take their part in just “ get it done” and we also know others that may need more TLC- make an educated decision-
Do your homework!

Stress

Stress Kills...

Stress can sneak up on you and stress and depression are kissing cousins.
Unfortunately like other diseases and health issues most people live in denial and like other diseases like alcoholism you need to recognize it before you can begin to battle it.
Others may see it in you before you see it buy until YOU believe it you cannot and will not address it.

In cases of stress or depression or alcoholism there are other factors to take in , maybe your job or your peers are giving you problems, maybe it is just something small that grew into something big and you can’t seem to get back on track. There are many reasons why people suffer through these nightmares but hold true that you CAN face them down and you can lighten your load but first you need to do an honest self evaluation. Then start to strip away the negative and the best way to do that is to concentrate at the positive and on what is most important to you.

And hopefully when you think about what is most important to you , you start to realize it is your loved ones and enjoying the simple things NOT the objects and the stuff we stress about.

Breathe... take deep breaths and call a time out during your day and close your eyes and try to let it all go. Practice makes perfect...

Keep on keepin On

Keep on Keepin On

There are no easy answers and there certainly are no roads that do not have their share of issues or challenges so understand that their will be tough days and you will get frustrated, that is ok- that is life.

We all go through it , no one has a perfect life .
It is tougher now because we all jump on social media and see all the smiling faces but remember that is just a snapshot in time and I guarantee you that all those smiling faces are also dealing with something, not that we should delight in someone else’s pain or suffering but we need to realize that it is all part of our experience- everyone.

Learn how to improve, learn how to communicate better . Take care of yourself and give yourself a pass- stop beating yourself up- you are trying to figure this world out along with the rest of us.

It is not about how many times you fall down but how many times you get up.

Just grab the wheel  and keep on keepin on and do your best.

People Matter

Two major ingredients to why we do what we do are:
Greed and being paranoid

We start to get things and want more things... that is greed - we want bigger, better and newer , we want more pay and promotions and along with that we want more power.
Then we start to obtain more things and more money and maybe even a little power and then enters being paranoid.

We become paranoid because now we do not want people to take what we have or take our job.
Unfortunately when we become paranoid it begins to remove what we use to enjoy and we become ugly and defensive, nothing good comes from both greed and bring paranoid.
I do think that both will enter everyone’s life and I do believe that they are both essential to face and to stare down and to conquer.

With both you have to continue to remind yourself what is important and what and who truly make you happy, do not get caught up in it all , with the power or the material stuff, it simply does not matter- it is one big illusion.

People matter , the simple things in life matter.

Let them all fight and scratch and claw and gossip, they are struggling to make sense of their lives and that is ok too because they are just caught in the web and they too will hopefully see the light one day but until then do not follow- lead.

Lead by being the example, lead by letting go of being paranoid and lead by looking for the simple things that make you smile- smile from the inside.

We all have the power - it is how we use it that determines our path.

Unconditional Love

Uncondional Love is beautiful ...
And also very hard to come across.
I think mostly we receive unconditional love from our moms and our dogs, if we’re lucky.
Most people will judge you or look at our negative side and never see US or the good in you but moms and dogs do not care- they love us no matter what.
There is no pretense or rules , they just love.
Happy Mother’s Day - tell your mom you love her - and pet your dog too !

Pay Attention

Pay Attention...

Listen and learn and be responsive, do not always make it about you. As a matter of fact you should make it very little about you. People want to tell their story so listen and in the end unless they ask you about specifically about you they most likely do not even care- sorry just speaking truth here.
A lot of people talk so much about themselves and what they have done and how great they are that you completely shut them down as they are bragging and most likely mentally already moved on.
Nothing more boring to me then to hear someone bragging about themselves and it tells me all I need to know about their character.

Pay attention to others and what they say both verbally and with their body language, you will learn a lot about them and if you truly care you will find a way to connect.

Connecting and caring is the key to life... we all want and need to connect.

Mistakes

We all make mistakes... it is ok
If you are not making mistakes you are not trying new ways to improve.
It is easy to follow but difficult to lead, if you want to lead you have to make mistakes.
We learn from our missteps, replay the conversation in your head- how could you have approached it differently.
Think about the process and where along the way could there have been improvements, either with you or someone else in the chain and ask how YOU can improve it.
Try new things, think differently- what is your ultimate goal ?
In order to make significant change you will make mistakes, the idea is to identify those mistakes and keep reshaping the process and most important you need to be in inclusive.
Listen- Learn - Ask questions - take the time to absorb it all and admit when you are wrong and praise others if they have suggestions.

Friends

What does friendship mean to you ?

Are “ friends” people that can help you ? Are they people that at that moment in time help you advance in your job or help you obtain access to something or somebody?

If your friend goes through tough times or changes jobs are they still “ friends “ ?
I was brought up that a friend is a friend for life , through thick or thin.

I have tried to help a lot of people along my way and I can honestly say that I have no hate in my heart , even for those that use my name in vain or miss represent the truth. Deep down they know what I did for them or what happened in a particular circumstance. I have always tried to look at both sides, I understand why people may lie or try to throw me under the bus and most times it is because of either insecurities or they fear their own job- I get it.

Even though I get it - it still hurts - it hurts mostly because I feel the person themselves are really only hurting themselves and most of all they do not understand the power of real friendship.

Listen to yourself - to prove a point or to gain access are you talking negative or are you turning your back on friend or talking out of school ?
Just ask yourself- is it worth it ?
In the end- who can you really trust if you continue to just throw friendships away ?

Who was there for you ? And why are people pushing you to turn on who was a friend?
Are they personally motivated?

Do not follow- lead
Be positive

Be a friend

Depression

The problem with depression is you cannot see it.
Do you know somebody who suffers from depression?
If you are not privy to knowing - how would you indenify it ?
I can pretty much guarantee that there are people that you work with or friends or relatives around you that are suffering from depression and you most likely have no idea.
We are blind to depression for several reasons- (1) people learn to cover it up, they smile and laugh when around others and fall right back into the black hole when alone (2) Most of the time we are too busy being absorbed in our own lives to actually “see” and listen to the people around us.
Unlike other illnesses you most likely do not have any outward appearances that are easily recognizable, you do not have a bone sticking out or your complexion looks the same and if you smile they will never know.
A lot of other things get cause depression, if you are a child growing up today you have to deal with bulling and social media and with kids not running around outside creating their own circle of friends and just playing they are stuck in front of the computer more- alone.
Adults have increased worrying about their job and bills which all feed into depression.
So what can you do ?
To help others you need to stop, look and listen and be there for them.
For yourself you need to try to want for less and appreciate more.
Of course nothing is that easy and some will say depression may be in your DNA , it it well may be, same as the illness of alcoholism. But if you indentify your weaknesses you can beat them-
But first you need to look in the mirror and “see” the people around you.

Follow Up

Teo words that will determine your level of success...
Follow Up
It does not matter what business you are in or what title or job you may hold if you want people to remember you and if you want to succeed then follow up on what you promise.
Don’t just plan it out or send an email or walk away when your part of the deal is done- follow up.
If you sent an email or left a voicemail asking somebody a question- follow up.
If they do not get back to you then get back to them and do not let too much time pass.
If you really want to go the distance follow up after it is all said and done.
Ask how it went and most important- listen.
If something went wrong then try to make it better, do not make excuses or point blame but step up and take it on, the last thing the person wants to hear is you did your job and it looks like somebody else messed up.
Seems simple right ?
If you truly care then show them - Follow Up.

Real Freedom

Lyrics from Jackson Browne’s song- walls and doors-

-There can be freedom only when nobody owns it
I'm going to say that again
Because I know you know it
There can be freedom only when nobody owns it


We hold the key to real freedom but after our first full time job most of us surrender it to the “man” our ever loving jobs - so we give up our sunshine to buy what we need - or think we need.
That is why we look back at childhood with such fondness and we love looking at the world through the eyes of children because that is when we were Free.

There can be freedom only when nobody else owns it ... think about it.
Do not allow money to enslave you , Yes we all need to work so we can provide and have a roof over our heads and food on the table but do not mix up need and want and do not allow your work to enslave you.

Keep your power and choose what is important and follow that.

Make it your goal to find real freedom... to look at life through the eyes of a child.

That my friend is life- that is freedom !

What a wonderful world

I see trees of green, red roses too
I see them bloom for me and you
And I think to myself what a wonderful world

I see skies of blue and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself what a wonderful world

The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people going by
I see friends shaking hands saying how do you do
They're really saying I love you

I hear babies crying, I watch them grow
They'll learn much more than I'll never know
And I think to myself what a wonderful world
Yes I think to myself what a wonderful world

Sung by Louis Armstrong - a black man in 1967...  and born in 1919-

Do you think he saw some changes in his lifetime 

Big Shot

So you feel like a Big Shot ...
You have a title that gives you “ power” and because of that you feel important but what “ power” do you really have ?
Tittles are fleeting and so is whatever Circle you are now in ... this too shall pass and outside your little circle others just see you as YOU. That is why is important that you never allow your head to get to big and you should always treat everyone with respect.
Think about what you would do if the roles were reversed... because one day they will be.

I’m not impressed by your looks, money, social status or job title. I’m impressed by the way you treat other human beings.

 #HumanRights #Respect #helpinghand

Improve

All we can honestly do is try our best to IMPROVE every day
Will you mess up ?- Yes
Will you react the wrong way or say the wrong thing ?- Most likely.
But learn from it all and try to do better.
We all have our positives and our negatives and no matter how old you are you should still be wanting to learn and improve- Mr. Arpin, my mentor, was 86 when he died and was one of the smartest men I knew and he would always say he was still learning. Paul had his false too as we all do but he sincerely tried and he knew that he had made mistakes along the way but he always tried to learn from them. If he had a “ do over” in some of the things in his life. I am sure that he would have taken it but we do not have “do overs” so - Live - Love and Learn -
Make it your goal to improve both professionally and personally.