It's time for me to get excited about my life again. It used to be that I was so excited to get up in the morning, work on my business, spend time with my family, and just ENJOY life. But over the last year or so, I've let myself fall into a bit of a rut. There were still lots of good times and fun, but it just hasn't been clicking quite like it used to. Well I've had enough! I officially declare today "the first day of the rest of my life".
This is not the first of these firsts. I've had a few. I was probably 13 when the first one came. I had been told by doctors that I couldn't play sports anymore (a central part of my life to that point). I was crushed and my world fell apart. I wallowed in self-pity, railed against the decision and the doctors and felt cheated. But eventually I discovered other avenues to be passionate about and eventually declared one day that "this would be the first day of the rest of my life".
Another day came after my transplant. When I woke up and realized I was being given a second chance, I knew that I was having a first day of the rest of my life. That from that point forward, life would be different. And it has been. But I've allowed life, some problems with anxiety, and financial struggles, to dull that new feeling. I've allowed myself to be become numb to the miracle that is LIFE. So today I declare the first day of the rest of my life. The life where I am completely joyous, loving and passionate about life.
It's a powerful feeling making this declaration. And the best thing about it is, you can choose to do it at ANY time. You make a commitment to yourself that from this point forward things will be different, and then, you do it. It's almost that simple. Yes you have to choose that decision over and over again. But it can be done. Your attitude, after all, is all in your mind. YOUR mind. So YOU have control.
So if you've been in a funk lately, or not feeling like life is what you want it to be, make a change. Declare today the first day of the rest of your life and then most importantly, act accordingly. Act differently and your life will be different.
God Bless and have a great weekend!
Friday, October 23, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Lessons Learned... Be Early
Yesterday I was put in my place. A client I'd been working with told me that she felt like she wasn't a priority in my life because I had been late to our last two meetings.
The worst part about this wasn't losing the client, it was the fact that she was right. Despite KNOWING that it is important to be early, despite TELLING OTHERS that it's important to be early, I was late. Twice. Pretty bad.
So learn a lesson from me today, practice what you preach, and be early. It shows respect to the person you're meeting, and allows you to be totally prepared.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Where are you headed?
I've been watching the v-log of a friend and colleague of mine Stu Saunders (www.ylcc.com) the last few days. Stu is both a friend and a mentor as he has been doing what I do for more than twenty years, and he's great at it. He loves what he does and more importantly, he loves the people he works with and for.
In addition to being a friend and colleague, Stu provides me with a vision of where I want, in part, my career to be. I can look at where he is, what he's done, what he's accomplished, and see in part what I where I want to be, what I want to do and what I want to accomplish. Having that vision clearly defined in my mind is a major step toward realizing it.
Do YOU know where you want to go? Do you have a clear vision for what you want your life, your career, your family to look like in 1, 5, 10 years from now? If you don't, let today be the day you start. Having a clear vision for where you want to go is a critical part of ensuring that your life goes in the direction you want it to. Of course there are no guarantees, and you'll likely hit roadblocks and detours, but you stand a much greater chance of achieving what you want to if you have a clear plan.
Map out your life. Articulate where you'd like to see your career, your relationships, your finances and your spiritual life to be. Not only will these descriptions provide inspiration, they will also give you great clues as to what steps you need to take to realize those visions. Once you figure out what those first steps are, do the next most important thing... take the first one.
Make today a great day!
In addition to being a friend and colleague, Stu provides me with a vision of where I want, in part, my career to be. I can look at where he is, what he's done, what he's accomplished, and see in part what I where I want to be, what I want to do and what I want to accomplish. Having that vision clearly defined in my mind is a major step toward realizing it.
Do YOU know where you want to go? Do you have a clear vision for what you want your life, your career, your family to look like in 1, 5, 10 years from now? If you don't, let today be the day you start. Having a clear vision for where you want to go is a critical part of ensuring that your life goes in the direction you want it to. Of course there are no guarantees, and you'll likely hit roadblocks and detours, but you stand a much greater chance of achieving what you want to if you have a clear plan.
Map out your life. Articulate where you'd like to see your career, your relationships, your finances and your spiritual life to be. Not only will these descriptions provide inspiration, they will also give you great clues as to what steps you need to take to realize those visions. Once you figure out what those first steps are, do the next most important thing... take the first one.
Make today a great day!
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Life is Precious and Fragile, so LAUGH HARD and LIVE WELL
I got a shocking email from a the family of a friend on Oct 6th. A business associate and friend whom I've known for a few years now, suddenly had a brain aneurysm. I found out because she sent me an email on the 6th about noon, and I responded shortly thereafter only to receive a response from her husband later that evening to say that she had the aneurysm about ten minutes after she's sent me the email! It happened just that fast!
Thankfully, it sounds like while she has a very long road ahead, she will make it. But her health crisis was just another reminder to me to how short and fragile life can be. We can be here today and gone tomorrow. So my message today is LAUGH HARD, HUG LOTS and LIVE BIG.
I share this story not to make your worry (although I know that's the reaction many might have, myself included from time to time). What I think we need to learn from tragedies like this one is not to worry constantly about what might happen to us, but rather to never take our lives for granted and to live everyday well.
That doesn't mean we live recklessly or that we don't make plans for the future, but rather it means we don't sit around waiting for the perfect opportunity to come along to do what we know we should be doing. If you have a friend you need to reconsile with, call them. If you have a family member you haven't spoken to in years, call them! If you have a dream in your heart that you're saving for a special day to act on, do it!
I believe Abraham Lincoln's quote may be one of the most true statements I've ever heard, "It is not the years in your life, it is the life in your years." Many have lived FULL complete lives in 30, 40 or 50yrs. Some have not been able to do the same in 80 or 90.
So don't waste time worrying about when your life may end and also don't waste time waiting to start living it. Live your goals and dreams today. Share your gifts with the world. Now. Make sure that when you leave this earth (whether it's a year from now or 80 years from now) that it will be at least a little bit better of a place because you were here.
Thankfully, it sounds like while she has a very long road ahead, she will make it. But her health crisis was just another reminder to me to how short and fragile life can be. We can be here today and gone tomorrow. So my message today is LAUGH HARD, HUG LOTS and LIVE BIG.
I share this story not to make your worry (although I know that's the reaction many might have, myself included from time to time). What I think we need to learn from tragedies like this one is not to worry constantly about what might happen to us, but rather to never take our lives for granted and to live everyday well.
That doesn't mean we live recklessly or that we don't make plans for the future, but rather it means we don't sit around waiting for the perfect opportunity to come along to do what we know we should be doing. If you have a friend you need to reconsile with, call them. If you have a family member you haven't spoken to in years, call them! If you have a dream in your heart that you're saving for a special day to act on, do it!
I believe Abraham Lincoln's quote may be one of the most true statements I've ever heard, "It is not the years in your life, it is the life in your years." Many have lived FULL complete lives in 30, 40 or 50yrs. Some have not been able to do the same in 80 or 90.
So don't waste time worrying about when your life may end and also don't waste time waiting to start living it. Live your goals and dreams today. Share your gifts with the world. Now. Make sure that when you leave this earth (whether it's a year from now or 80 years from now) that it will be at least a little bit better of a place because you were here.
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
Sometimes you just have to laugh...
Yesterday I had what was probably one of the funniest embarrassing moments of my career as a speaker. While it makes me look rather stupid, I thought it was worth sharing with you anyway...On Saturday I spoke to the Atlantic Fabricare Association (an association of dry cleaners). The event went well and I happily accepted their cheque after the event, put it in my pocket and went home.
My wife and baby went with me on the trip and we didn't arrive back home until late that night. So when we got home I was tired and wanted to get to bed, so I threw my pants on the floor and went to sleep.
The next evening I realized that I hadn't cashed the cheque yet. I made a mental note to put the cheque in my wallet so I could bring it to the bank in the morning. That night as my head hit the pillow I remembered that I still hadn't put the cheque in my wallet. So I got up and went to get it out of my suit pants, but the pants weren't on the floor anymore. My wife has a habit of picking up after me (I know I should pick up after myself:) so I went to look in the closet assuming she'd hung them up for me, but they weren't there...
After much searching, I found the pants in the basement... on a drying rack... wet... that's right, my wife had WASHED my dry-clean only suit pants. But wait, it get's better... the cheque was still in the pocket! It was a lump of wet, balled up paper.
So I fished out this lump of wet paper from the pocket of the pants and at 11:00 at night tried to unfold it and piece it back together. Amazingly, despite the fact that it was in about a dozen pieces, I was able to re-assemble the cheque. I taped it together but the teller at the bank, looking at this mess of what used to be a cheque, and politely told me she couldn't cash it.
I was left now with the unenviable task of calling my client, a dry cleaner, to ask him if he could cut me another cheque because why again?... because my wife had washed my dry-clean only suit pants and their cheque in the process! How stupid did I feel? Very!!
Thankfully, the client is a wonderful guy. He laughed at what was obviously a ridiculous situation and I couldn't help but laugh with him
Sometimes life hands us situations that can be maddening and frustrating. We can take those situations and struggle against them, try to fight them, get angry with them and cry "no fair"! Or, we can roll with the punches, go with the flow and laugh at them as best we can. While the first option may seem more appealing initially, it's the second option that will keep your blood pressure down and help you to smile and enjoy life more. Take your pick!
Monday, October 05, 2009
Eliminate Negative News from Your Life
I was listening to the radio on my way to work today and heard a report about the increasing death toll from the tragic earthquake and resulting tsunami in Samoa when I realized how hearing this "update" was actually one of the insidious ways that bad news creeps deeper and deeper into our consciencenous.
This won't be the first time you've heard someone point out the fact that bad news gets more attention than good news. It's hard to live on this earth and not notice that. Unfortunately it must be what sells, otherwise the news organizations wouldn't do it. But what I realized listening to the news this morning was, it's not just that bad news is reported more often than good news, but that it's reported over and over again. When something like what happened in Samoa happens, we don't just hear the story and it's done, we hear about it over and over and over again for weeks. We'll get updates on the death toll, updates on the negative economic impact, updates on how many bodies are found in the rubble, and on and on it will go. It's not so much that good news isn't reported once in a while, it's that it's reported once and that's it.
This weekend "Run for the Cure" was hosted across the country. Our local city's run had over a thousands people participate (quite a feat for a city of 100,000 people). The difference in the reporting of this event is that it was mentioned quickly, once. We won't hear about it for weeks. We won't get daily updates from people who participated on how they benefited, what a great time it was and how it made a difference, like we might if it were a story about a tragedy. Good news, you see, doesn't sell.
So, what are we, the people who strive to stay positive and encouraged in a discouraging world, to do? I would like to encourage an all out boycott of mainstream news, but I know that isn't practical for many. Although it is what I try to practice as much as I can. It's not that I want people to stick their proverbial heads in the sand and pretend like the world is a harmonious heaven on earth, BUT, it would be beneficial to our collective mental and emotional health, I think, if we didn't feel so compelled to stay up to speed, and share, every negative bit of news we hear.
So if you feel like you can do it, try abstaining from the evening news. It's 90% negative stuff that either a) Doesn't directly affect you OR b)You can't do anything about OR c)Both. So why poison your brain with it? Many will claim that they NEED to watch the news to stay "up to date". I'd ask, why? To me, if you aren't a world leader, there is little benefit for me to know about Iranian nuclear armament for example. And, guess what, if it's something you really need to know about, there are plenty of folks out there who will ensure that you're up to speed on all the negativity happening around the world.
So, should you just stay in your own little bubble and live a quiet life, detached from the rest of the world? Of course not. Community enriches life and staying connected to others it important. But why not replace some of the negative news most of us fill our brains with every day, with some positivity instead. One of the great things about the internet is that you can now access many sources of Good News that are out there. These publications for the most part can't afford to be in print, because not enough of us read them for them to stay in business, BUT they can produce online publications for little cost.
Here are just a few of the great newspapers out there that you can visit that are chalked full of Good News! And better yet, they're free!
It's what the world needs more of. The truth is there is a TON of great stuff happening in the world. Let's start filling our minds with THAT news. But be careful, if you do this for a while, you may feel a little out of place the next time your colleagues or friends want to talk about the latest plane crash or suicide bomber. But, the upside is, while you might not fit in as well anymore, you will brighten the lives of those around you, as well as your own. And you may just find this "horrible" world, isn't so bad after all!
This won't be the first time you've heard someone point out the fact that bad news gets more attention than good news. It's hard to live on this earth and not notice that. Unfortunately it must be what sells, otherwise the news organizations wouldn't do it. But what I realized listening to the news this morning was, it's not just that bad news is reported more often than good news, but that it's reported over and over again. When something like what happened in Samoa happens, we don't just hear the story and it's done, we hear about it over and over and over again for weeks. We'll get updates on the death toll, updates on the negative economic impact, updates on how many bodies are found in the rubble, and on and on it will go. It's not so much that good news isn't reported once in a while, it's that it's reported once and that's it.
This weekend "Run for the Cure" was hosted across the country. Our local city's run had over a thousands people participate (quite a feat for a city of 100,000 people). The difference in the reporting of this event is that it was mentioned quickly, once. We won't hear about it for weeks. We won't get daily updates from people who participated on how they benefited, what a great time it was and how it made a difference, like we might if it were a story about a tragedy. Good news, you see, doesn't sell.
So, what are we, the people who strive to stay positive and encouraged in a discouraging world, to do? I would like to encourage an all out boycott of mainstream news, but I know that isn't practical for many. Although it is what I try to practice as much as I can. It's not that I want people to stick their proverbial heads in the sand and pretend like the world is a harmonious heaven on earth, BUT, it would be beneficial to our collective mental and emotional health, I think, if we didn't feel so compelled to stay up to speed, and share, every negative bit of news we hear.
So if you feel like you can do it, try abstaining from the evening news. It's 90% negative stuff that either a) Doesn't directly affect you OR b)You can't do anything about OR c)Both. So why poison your brain with it? Many will claim that they NEED to watch the news to stay "up to date". I'd ask, why? To me, if you aren't a world leader, there is little benefit for me to know about Iranian nuclear armament for example. And, guess what, if it's something you really need to know about, there are plenty of folks out there who will ensure that you're up to speed on all the negativity happening around the world.
So, should you just stay in your own little bubble and live a quiet life, detached from the rest of the world? Of course not. Community enriches life and staying connected to others it important. But why not replace some of the negative news most of us fill our brains with every day, with some positivity instead. One of the great things about the internet is that you can now access many sources of Good News that are out there. These publications for the most part can't afford to be in print, because not enough of us read them for them to stay in business, BUT they can produce online publications for little cost.
Here are just a few of the great newspapers out there that you can visit that are chalked full of Good News! And better yet, they're free!
- http://www.happynews.com/
- http://alittlegoodnewstoday.org/
- http://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/
It's what the world needs more of. The truth is there is a TON of great stuff happening in the world. Let's start filling our minds with THAT news. But be careful, if you do this for a while, you may feel a little out of place the next time your colleagues or friends want to talk about the latest plane crash or suicide bomber. But, the upside is, while you might not fit in as well anymore, you will brighten the lives of those around you, as well as your own. And you may just find this "horrible" world, isn't so bad after all!
Thursday, October 01, 2009
Book Signings
Hi everyone. This is just a quick blog entry to invite you to join me at two book signings this weekend. I'm going to be at the Chapters/Indigo in Halifax, NS this Saturday (Oct 3) at 6:00pm signing copies of my book, "Live Life from the Heart". Then I'm going to be in Fredericton on Sunday, Oct 4th, at 2:00PM.
Come by and say hello. Get a copy of the book too while you're there ;)
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