Chuck Papandrea

The History of Our Freedom

2009-05-01T17:43:00.004-04:00

I've been watching the HBO mini series John Adams on DVD. What a powerful account of the efforts and sacrifices made by our forefathers to secure the freedom and liberties that our nation enjoys today.

There are likely several inaccuracies in this account compared to the true history of these events. Frankly, that's not going to make me throw out the overall message. The principles, and their basis, are too important to ignore.

I hope that more people study our history - the events, the foundations, the perspectives and the people - to better understand the origins of the freedom that was secured on our behalf. We need to learn from our history and foundational principles rather than discard them out of ignorance.

I would also hope that we would more carefully understand the references that we cite in our political arguments, such as our constitution and the bill of rights, to understand the true language and purpose behind the writings created to both document and preserve our freedom.

As one of my mentors often says, "Know why you believe what you believe."

What made us a free nation will keep us free. What made us strong will keep us strong. What was won on our behalf must be preserved.

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same."

Ronald Reagan

Success is a Decision

2009-04-01T12:29:00.001-04:00

"I found every single successful person I've ever spoken to had a turning point and the turning point was where they made a clear specific unequivocal decision that they were not going to live like this anymore. That they were going to achieve success. And some people make that decision at 15 and some people make it at 50, and most people never make it at all."

Brian Tracy

The Incentive to Succeed

2009-03-17T21:19:00.004-04:00

One of my network connections sent out a weekly commentary today. Great information to spur thought and conversation.

"Lyndon Johnson declared a War on Poverty, some 40+ years ago. Based on proposals I've seen, it appears that a War on Prosperity is on its way.

Current proposals would increase the top federal income tax rate to 39.6% for those with $200,000 in AGI, or $250,000 in AGI for joint filers.

In addition, about one-third of these earner's deductions would be disallowed, and we can expect payroll (FICA) taxes to be applied to all income over $250,000.

This combination of benefits will increase taxes for taxpayers in this bracket by about half. Finally, capital gains tax rates are expected to increase to 20%.

The beauty of this strategy is that the 2% of taxpayers affected cast only about 4% of the votes."

I was drawn to the final line about "votes" represented by the impacted taxpayers. I recall the recent elections and the campaign platforms, and put the entirety of this commentary in that perspective. It suggests that the slim minority of the voting public, affected by these proposals, lack the power to respond with any force in the ballot box.

I think that a review of history and a comparison of other national economies have both shown, however, that the general prosperity intended by this redistribution would eventually drive the opposite results. The incentive to succeed, to work towards prosperity, becomes a negative incentive when the fruits of those efforts are taken away. Over time, when the rewards diminish, the incentive to prosper fades as well.

I welcome your comments and insights.

The Making of a Champion

2009-03-16T21:45:00.004-04:00

Here's a quote that I heard tonight on a conference call. It's an incredible reminder of the activity - the work, the sweat, and often the time - required to reach your victory.

The most concise description I have heard is this:
Dream, Struggle, Victory

Many want to skip right to the end! They have a dream. They expect the victory. You can't just skip a step. If you want the victory, you must endure the struggle. And the greater the victory you desire, the greater your struggle.

Besides, if was that easy, would it really be worth it?

The quote? Enjoy...

"I hated every minute of training, but I said,
'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.' ''

Muhammad Ali

History Lesson... or is that an Economy Lesson?

2009-03-15T16:26:00.008-04:00

"All the perplexities, confusion and distress in America arise, not from defects in their Constitution or Confederation, not from want of honor or virtue, so much as from the downright ignorance of the nature of coin, credit and circulation."

John Adams

Attitude is Everything

2009-03-12T19:17:00.002-04:00

"Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude."

Thomas Jefferson

A Plan for Financial Success

2009-03-09T17:01:00.007-04:00

What if you had a plan for financial success?

Ron Blue recently testified before a Senate subcommittee conducting hearings on “Solutions for a New Era: Jobs and Families.“ Mr. Blue was appearing based on his solid reputation of financial expertise.

A Senator asked him what the average American family should do in the current economy. Ron Blue said that the American family could benefit from following a four-part financial plan:

Think long-term with goals and investing
Spend less than you earn
Maintain liquidity (or emergency savings)
Minimize the use of debt

Think Long Term: The longer term your perspective, the better financial decisions you will make.

Spend Less Than You Earn: You need to know what you are earning, what you are spending, have a plan and monitor it. Over the long term, this will contribute to financial success.

Maintain Emergency Savings: A reserve will help you ride out the surprises of life and avoid debt.

Minimize and Eliminate Debt: Debt may allow you to have more now, but it reduces your ability to have more in the future. Debt is an obligation on your future income, and because of compounding, it may represent the single most important factor influencing your future financial success.

These four principles work in concert. Together, they represent a formula for financial success.

These principles are so timely to today’s economic climate. Perhaps because they are timeless. They are by no means new; they trace back for thousands of years.

The principles have endured the test of time. They are independent of the economy - recession or boom. They are insensitive to oil prices and the real estate market. Many rich people, and likely many more poor people, can attest to them.

Those that have followed this path in recent years are comfortably surviving - some thriving - in the economic concerns of today. If you have been following them, continue. You will continue to thrive.

If you are in crisis, there is no better time to start then now. You can not establish a strong financial foundation without them. They will lead you out of your crisis, and help you prevent them in the future.

Note - reference source “Surviving Financial Meltdown” by Ron Blue and Jeremy White.

Spreading the Wealth

2009-03-09T13:34:00.006-04:00

I received this in an e-mail recently. I welcome your comments!

You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom.

What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving.

The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.

When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is about the end of any nation.

You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.

Prosperity?

2009-02-26T22:42:00.001-05:00

"I contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle."

Winston Churchill

Our Greatest Fear

2009-02-08T15:43:00.003-05:00

Watching the movie Coach Carter, I was struck by a short speech given by the character Timo Cruz.

Throughout the movie, Coach Carter asks Cruz, “What is your greatest fear?” Cruz never gives him a direct answer, though the course of events in the movie clearly show us that his fear is embodied in his struggle between the different directions his life can take. Finally turning to Coach Carter and the hope that his principle-based approach provides, Cruz's own life takes a hopeful, purposeful path.

In what I considered the climactic scene of the movie, where Coach Carter’s message is finally realized, Cruz steps up and delivers his answer. His inspiring quote is actually paraphrased from Marianne Williamson’s book A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles. The full Williamson quote is provided here.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Never Give Up

2009-01-24T11:25:00.003-05:00

Winston Churchill is widely considered one of the greatest leaders in history. The freedoms many nations enjoy today are in large part due to the stand that he and his country took during the second world war.

Researching leadership, I have found Churchill time and time again credited with some of the most thought provoking quotes - sayings that apply today as much or more than they did in the context of their original delivery. Principles are indeed timeless.

One quote for Churchill seems to stand out among all the others. Its about perseverance, a strength that all great leaders and successful people have shown. It is by far one of his most quoted speeches, in part due to distortions about what he actually said. The myth is that he stood before a group of students later in his life and delivered a short, one-line speech and returned to his seat. You may have heard a version similar to this:

"Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, give in. Never give in. Never give in."

If that had been his entire speech, the message and the dramatic effect both would have been sufficiently powerful. That’s likely why it is repeated so often. If find it important to know the full message, in full context. We can appreciate that message, and the principle, more fully.

On October 29, 1941, Winston Churchill visited Harrow School to hear the traditional songs he had sung there as a youth and to speak to the students. The speech was a little less than five minutes in length. The often quoted lines, in full context, are included in the excerpt below.

"You cannot tell from appearances how things will go. Sometimes imagination makes things out far worse than they are; yet without imagination not much can be done. Those people who are imaginative see many more dangers than perhaps exist; certainly many more than will happen; but then they must also pray to be given that extra courage to carry this far-reaching imagination. But for everyone, surely, what we have gone through in this period - I am addressing myself to the School - surely from this period of ten months this is the lesson: never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never-in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy. We stood all alone a year ago, and to many countries it seemed that our account was closed, we were finished. All this tradition of ours, our songs, our School history, this part of the history of this country, were gone and finished and liquidated.

"Very different is the mood today. Britain, other nations thought, had drawn a sponge across her slate. But instead our country stood in the gap. There was no flinching and no thought of giving in; and by what seemed almost a miracle to those outside these Islands, though we ourselves never doubted it, we now find ourselves in a position where I say that we can be sure that we have only to persevere to conquer."

This message remains as strong and as true as the day it was spoken. As individuals, and as a nation, we must strive to understand the meaning of and need for perseverance. We must take note of what is at stake, and persevere in the causes, positions and principles that will ensure lasting peace and prosperity.

The Power of Belief

2009-01-23T18:16:00.004-05:00

Are we aware of the messages and lessons we pass on to our children? Do we grasp the lasting impact of our messages, spoken and unspoken?

In honor of a new but already dear friend Ruth Adkins and the memory of her father, I am sharing a quote that she passed along today.

"You will because you believe you can"

Twenty years ago, Ruth's father shared this while speaking to her about life challenges she was facing. Little did he realize the power that one simple statement would have.

Ruth has clutched that phrase close to her heart for 20 years, and she pays honor to this incredible man now by passing it on to others. I believe she passes this along as much by example as she does in words.

Ruth has incorporated this in text, spirit and vision within the Inspiring Alliance program she leads for our "Wounded Warriors" - the veterans who have sacrificed for our great country.

Thank you, Ruth, for sharing this message.

For the rest of us, this is a great reminder of the messages and lessons we are sharing in and through our lives - those we hold dear are always watching.

Life Lessons From Gladiator

2009-01-21T21:09:00.002-05:00

I love to capture significant thoughts and perspectives. While watching the movie Gladiator, there were two quotes that had me scrambling for my notebook.

Marcus Aurelius: “When a man sees his end, he wants to know there was some purpose to his life. How will the world speak my name in years to come?”

Maximus: “What we do in life echoes in eternity.”

If it all ended today, do you like how your accomplishments and your impact will echo in eternity? Do they even have enough volume, enough significance, to echo at all?

Sadly, many will wait until they see their end to take those questions seriously. When they are finally face to face with their mortal selves, often without the strength, the time or the resources to take action on their answer.

These questions are not reserved for the end. The time to ask is now, today, in this moment. There is no better time to consider your purpose.

Now is the time to know, and now is the time to act.

A Living Message

2008-12-19T17:52:00.003-05:00

Our children are a living message to a future we will never see.

Our Privileges

2008-12-17T22:00:00.002-05:00

"Our privileges are not for our pleasure, but rather for our purpose."

A gentleman that I very much admire and respect often shares that very powerful quote.

What does it say to you? What does it mean to you, if anything?

I am first reminded that there is absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying our privileges. Absolutely nothing at all. But are they shared, or are they selfishly consumed? Are they used to enrich the lives of others, or are they used as a tool of self-promotion? Do they reach and improve lives at the extent of one’s circle of influence, perhaps even allow one to grow that circle and touch even more lives?

What do you consider your privileges? For many of us, we immediately think of money, of material riches - our “stuff” if you will. We are all blessed to a different degree. Some are certainly blessed with so much more than others. Many have worked countless hours, perhaps decades, for those riches. There is no doubt that they are hard earned and well deserved. The question remains, to the extent of your own privileges - why… for what purpose?

If we were to take a global perspective, even the poorest of us in this nation are living above the means and enjoying a standard of living far in excess of the rest of the world. I give thanks for such blessings every day, and I’m constantly reminded to consider the responsibilities that come with those blessings. If kept to myself, those privileges are certainly wasted.

I submit that our privileges reach far beyond material gains. What about the information we have in hand that could change lives. What about principles that we’ve learned, concepts that others have shared which have placed us on a better path in life? What about life lessons and experiences? How selfish to waste these only on ourselves.

What about those skills and talents unique to us? If we don’t use them to the fullest, for more than just our own gain, I wonder if we even deserve them.

What about positions of leadership - in our homes, in our community or in our government? If leveraged for personal glory and profit versus service and impact, better that the fall would come more quickly than the ascent.

Our privileges are not for our pleasure, but rather for our purpose. As you consider your life mission, your purpose, examine how your privileges have been provided to help you reach your fullest potential and greatest impact.

A Rational Excuse

2008-12-14T21:36:00.001-05:00

“More often than not, the only thing between you and your dream is a rational excuse.”

Mark Batterson, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day

Time to Make a Difference

2008-12-14T09:30:00.004-05:00

How many days are in the typical person’s life? How many hours? How many minutes?

Think about it. What is the average lifespan, and how far along are you? Is it 70? More than that? Perhaps less? In reality, we’re not even guaranteed tomorrow.

Take away time for sleep. Take away time for work. How much time do you really have left?

The math is important, but perhaps it's based on the wrong timeline. Do you to have children? How many days do you have left with them until they turn 18 and go off to college? How many days until the life and direct interactions you have with them now no longer exist? If you’re busy all week in business, count the weekends where you have more face time with them.

Count the number of days that you have with them to make a difference. You have them - are you using them?

Consider the chances you have to make a mark, to give them the tools, to give them the ability to make choices for themselves. The tools that enable them to handle the freedom of life.

You see, the freedom that our children will enjoy is not the absence of our rules and the limitations from the choices we make for them. Freedom is when they will make those choices themselves.

Will your children be prepared? Have you provided the right influence, the right guidance, so that when they leave you they are equipped to handle life?

Have you consistently invested the time with them before they leave to earn the chance to help guide them after they are gone? You see, the influence forced by dependence when they are children will no longer exist. The influence and involvement thereafter is by invitation only - and you’re not the one sending it.

How are you going to invest the very next hour that you have in your life? How many do you have left?

A Lesson From The Kid

2008-12-11T22:25:00.003-05:00

What did you dream about when you were a kid?

Bruce Willis plays the adult Rusty (Russ) Duritz in the movie, “The Kid”. Giving credit to the Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com) the main premise reads:

"Russ Duritz is a wealthy L.A. image consultant, but as he nears 40, he's cynical, dogless, chickless, estranged from his father, and he has no memories of his childhood. One night he surprises an intruder, who turns out to be a kid named Rusty, almost 8 years old."

That kid is Russ himself. I love his eight year old summary of his 40 year old self.

“So, I'm forty, I'm not married, I don't fly jets, and I don't have a dog? I grow up to be a loser.”

Are you the person you imagined you would be? Are you living the life you dreamed when you were a kid? Would the eight year old “you” say you grew up to be a loser?

What did you dream about back then? Did you have a poster of a minivan (black light poster, of course!) on your bedroom wall? Did they even make posters of cubicles and credit card debt? Did you surround yourself with such images? NO!

Most guys had the Ferrari - or your favorite Italian car ending in a vowel - along with sports heroes, a favorite band, and perhaps a dream girl or two.

The girls rooms? Perhaps posters of the latest teen heart throb, perhaps a hero. Maybe the room was filled with dolls, princesses, cheerleading trinkets and prom bouquets. Perhaps a musical instrument or a favorite sport.

Memories intertwined with dreams for the future. Not to belittle where life led us, but does it match the life we imagined? Is it a life we actively created, or what simply happened? What would you tell the eight year old you?

Looking back doesn’t change anything. Unless we learn something, and it changes our thinking. And if we leverage that new thinking to take different actions.

If you stay on your current course, where will you be in five years? Do you like those results? What does that mean ten years will look like? If you could shape that future self, create your dream life, what would you do?

If the “you” five years from now could speak into your life today, what would you say? What would you tell yourself to do, starting today? What would you beg yourself to stop doing, today?

Do you hear what you are saying?

How Far Are You Willing To Go?

2008-12-10T10:59:00.004-05:00

If you’re like me, you recognize that our children provide us with a great excuse to be kids ourselves. Over the past 12 years, I have cherished the time I share with my son Matt, and I’m very intentional and intense about that time. The interaction and the relationship are what’s important. The event, the game, or the environment can enhance the time, but they are not the focus. It is time invested in his future. Sadly, so many parents miss out on this precious time.

I’m blessed that Matt enjoys to go to movies with me. As adults, we rarely venture out to the rated G movies on our own. Sadly, we sometimes miss out on some incredible messages.

It’s been a couple of years since we saw the Disney movie “Meet The Robinsons” together. I walked away from that movie absolutely on fire. Look at any summary of the film, and you’ll see that the life lesson was to keep moving forward. Failures, mistakes and setbacks are not obstacles. They are not the end of the line. They are an opportunity to learn and to grow. They refine us, and they lead us to better solutions.

We only fail when we quit.

Disney himself is credited as saying, “Around here, however, we don't look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we're curious...and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”

The “keep moving forward” concept is critical to who I am and how I live my life. But was that enough to set me on fire? Well, no. I drew something else from the film that resonates with me to this day and drives me forward with strength and energy. With intensity.

I claim it was on the opening screen, even before the film itself. I may have the wrong movie. I may be misquoting the message. I may have been the only person in the theater who saw it. I can’t seem to find a reference to it anywhere. It's not on the DVD. But it is burned into my memory and is as real as the day I saw it.

“Everyone on this planet has a dream. The question is how far you are willing to go to make it come true.”

From the moment I heard that, I knew that I must be faithful to the dreams planted inside of me. How far indeed would I be willing to go to make them come true?

You have a dream planted inside of you. Do you have the courage to find it? Do you have the passion to follow it? Are you willing to step out, to keep moving forward and to persevere in the face of any obstacle?

How far are you willing to go to make it come true?

Are you listening?

2008-12-08T22:03:00.002-05:00

What and who we listen to ultimately influences what we do.

(Thanks to Andy Stanley for his message on that theme for the past three weeks.)

What does that assertion say to you?

You often hear that you are a product of your associations. Everything about you, eventually, assimilates into the patterns of the people around you. Your thinking, your habits, your attitudes, your wardrobe. Your income. Eventually, everything.

It seems obvious when you see a group of teens all dressed alike. The latest trends to grunge. Hair the same, tattooed or not, perhaps piercing. It is also plain to see in talk, interests, music, hobbies and habits. Like attracts like, or else like becomes like if it wants to remain in the fold.

We instruct our children to watch who they hang out with. We know what can happen. Are we as careful ourselves?

That’s the “who” part. It’s not so obvious with the “what”. What we listen to. What we read. What we watch. Each of these inputs eventually drives our thinking, our belief systems, and finally our actions. When we see, hear, or watch something long enough, it becomes our norm. It becomes our reality. Over time, we may even find ourselves defending it as if our life depended on it.

Perhaps that’s actually true. Perhaps our life - the quality of our life - indeed depends on it.

In my personal mission statement, you’ll read this. "I never stop learning and growing, always drawing from the best sources of information. I guard my thoughts from unwholesome information and unhealthy environments. I seek wise counsel and mentorship, knowing that The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel."

What about your personal mission? If you are intentional about your future, it is critical that you ask:

“Who am I listening to?”
“What am I listening to?”

Your Measure of Success

2008-12-06T19:42:00.004-05:00

Quote of the Day:

"The size of your success is measured by the strength of your desire, the size of your dream, and how you handle disappointment along the way."

- Robert Kiyosaki

The Middle Class is Shrinking

2008-12-05T19:34:00.005-05:00

Wealth, poverty, and the group in the middle. There is a distinct division within our society. Though we may debate the actual numbers, don’t miss the point.

We find the wealthy at one end of the spectrum. I reference Robert Kiyosaki and the Cashflow Quadrant for my definition of the wealthy, and the estimate that it‘s about 5% of the population.
On the other end are those below the poverty line. A year or so ago, that was about 15%. What would you think has happened to that number in the last few months?

For now, that leaves the remaining 80% in what would be called the middle class.

Kiyosaki and others have documented what we can see clearly. The middle class is shrinking. Jobs are going away by downsizing and outsourcing. Those reductions have recently accelerated through business failures and store closings. For those that remain, wages are dropping. Add global competition and a transformation of the business world, the rate of change is staggering.

Much of this change, and the impact, is outside of our direct sphere of influence. But not all of it.

I submit that where we find ourselves now (and the direction we move) relates directly to our ability to compete on an individual level. And it’s far beyond tactical execution. As an example, did you know that 80% of people that lose their jobs do so because of people skills rather than technical skills or expertise?

More than anything else, it's actually our thinking, the information that we obtain and leverage, that drives our results.

What I’ve learned is that, for me, I have to constantly develop myself to remain competitive. I have to grow to simply keep pace. As an employee, as an entrepreneur or as a business owner, the story is the same. Stop learning, and you start dying. In this case, that’s financial death and all that comes with it.

So what will you do with this information?
Do you agree that there is a 5/80/15 split?
Do you agree that the middle is shrinking?
Are they moving up to the 5% or down to the 15%?
By default or inaction, most are moving down to the 15%.
Will you follow them...
or will you chart a course towards the 5% instead?
Where are you now…
and which direction are you planning on going?
Will you take action?
What will happen if you don’t?

No Regrets

2008-12-04T21:58:00.003-05:00

The older I get, the more I hear people express regret for the way they’ve lived their lives.

Sometimes it traces back to what they have done. An action. A choice. A mistake in judgment. Perhaps a blatant, intentional decision fully knowing the negative consequences. One event that changed the course of their life, or a chosen course that slowly defined their life.

More often, though, the regret is for something left undone. Mark Twain put it this way. "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do." If you ask me, this one is tougher. But it hits home all the same. Call it comfort or complacency, fear or ignorance. No matter, we will always miss the shots we didn’t take.

“Do I regret how I have lived my life?” Actions taken or failures to take action. As I write, and as you read, the question must be asked. Someday we'll be called upon to give an account for our lives. Will we like the answer? I don’t think I’ll have regrets for missteps or mistakes. I believe my greatest disappointment will be the day I learn what could have been. My full, unrealized potential. When I learn all that I was capable of doing that I simply ran from, avoided, or just let linger without a response. Things I stepped around. Wherever I set the bar, the understanding that I set it too low.

We all have the same 24-hour day. We all have a dream, a passion, planted within us. We all have skills and talents that support that passion. We all have resources that support those skills and talents. No, we don’t all have the same talents, skills or resources. Sometimes it takes a stretch, some extra effort, to make something happen in the midst of our circumstances. Still, we all have the opportunity.

I believe the differences, though, are not the limiting factor. We are far more limited by our thinking. Our beliefs, our attitudes and our self talk. The information we have on hand, and the new information we pursue. The actions we choose to take based on that information.

Beliefs drive decisions. Decisions determine direction. And every direction has a well defined destination.

I believe that each and every one of us are called to greatness based on the unique talents and skills that have been planted in us. They were planted in us for a purpose. They were planted in us for our mission.

The beauty in all of this? No matter where you have been, and no matter where you are now, you can choose a different path. You can tap into your passions and pursue a life void of regret. You can maximize every moment, every day and every opportunity. If you don't like the direction your life is taking, and the associated destination, you can step back and address the beliefs and decisions that are driving you there. But you must take action.

You were meant for something great. Step out and chase a mission worth every breath you’ve been given. Armed with passion and determination, you will create a valuable, abundant life. Stretch yourself! Dream BIG! Leave it all on the battlefield, with no regrets.

And So It Begins...

2008-12-03T18:50:00.003-05:00

“If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing.” How can you go wrong by quoting Ben Franklin, right?

My mission includes both, thank you. If I'm going to invest my time in writing, it must be worth your time in reading. I plan to inform, to entertain, to teach, and to reach. I look forward to sharing what I've learned, and learning from what you share in return. I'm sure we'll both grow along the way. If not worth the reading, say so.

But writing alone is not my purpose. I would consider that, for myself, a very empty life. Taking a page from my own book of quotes, “Education without application is worthless.” Our life lessons are worthless if they fail to bear fruit. Application requires action. We were blessed with our lives for a purpose, and that's certainly a cause beyond ourselves. We're here to make a difference. We're here to impact and influence.

Beyond results in our own lives, we are called to leverage ourselves to equip, encourage and enable the successes of others as well.

My passion in life is helping people grow and change in the way others have helped me. Sharing principles of health, of wealth and of wisdom. Financial common sense. Wealth thinking. Relationship building. Self Mastery. Learning like we'll live forever, but living with an understanding that we are never promised another day.

Why bother? Simply put, it is amazing what can happen when you take personal responsibility for your actions and your decisions, when you take mastery of your life and control it's direction. The Principle of the Path tells us that direction determines destination. In the days ahead, however many we are given, we'll unpack that too.

I invite you on this journey. The destination is yours to create. Enjoy the ride!