WARNING: This can be pretty emotional. It’s a shining example of how to “live like you are dying” and seize every moment, take every shot, and do whatever you need to do to not let your music die inside of you.

When I watch this video, it inspires me to no end. To witness undying courage, incredible bravery, and one of the best attitudes I’ve ever seen about life AND to see it all coming from a teenager who knows he’s got just weeks or months to live, gives us all an impeccable example of how we should strive to live every day of our lives.

It’s not that he doesn’t have bad days, it’s not that he doesn’t get angry or sad or scared, it’s the fact that he deals with all of the emotions that we all deal with only 1000 times more intense and real than most people yet he still seeks out and finds the reasons to smile and give love and enjoy life.

This is an AWESOME source of inspiration and motivation and fits perfect for Motivational Mondays.

Enjoy and, be sure to share this one!

Live Young!

So I was talking to a friend the other day and he told me about a man who was turning 104 years old he’d just met. The man was moving some things getting ready for carpet cleaners to come clean his carpets.

My friend said he was a little hunched over from scoliosis but he was getting around and very active. When my friend suggested the man sit down and let him help him, the man looked at him, cocked his head sideways looking a little confused, and said:

“Son, there is no reason to sit down. I have things I want to do and sitting down will not only prevent me from doing the things I want to do, sitting down is not something I want to do!

I’m turning 104 in 8 days and we are going to have one heckuva party and I need to prepare some things for my guests.”

Then he said, “You, my kids, and most of the rest of the world think I’m old. But in my mind, I’ve always made the choice to live young. How in the hell else do you think I’ve made it to my 104th birthday party and I can still keep up with the 80 year old young bucks?”

WOW! Not only does that put a big fat smile on my face but it’s a great reminder and a real life lesson from someone walking the walk.

You’re old when you start living old. I know some people in their late 30′s that are old and others in their 70′s who are young and vibrant.

Opportunity to enjoy life and create success really isn’t bound by age, it’s bound or released from your mind and self perception.
And funny enough, after I heard this story I saw this video about living young. I think it’s the perfect compliment to celebrate this mans attitude, mindset, and 104th birthday!

It’s an advertisement for water but the message is awesome! How do you see yourself? You ALWAYS have the ability to alter your perspective of yourself, your life, and the world around you. And I can tell you from having young kids, kids have got it figured out. They DO see the world as their playground. The DO see the world as an endless sea of opportunity to create a fun filled, engaging, and fulfilling life!

Live young, find fun, spread happiness and joy, and create amazing memories and experience in your life because in the end, those things are the true measure of a successful life!

Take Time To Take Care of YOU!

In this episode of Motivational Monday I wrote something very special for a friend of mine who, like many, gives and gives and gives but still doesn’t see his true value in this world.

The thing is, he’s created a ton of success, has an amazing reputation and is respected in his field among all of the top leaders, and he’s made a powerful and positive impact on the world through his work, built an awesome happy healthy and loving family, and has literally transformed peoples lives all across the world in ways no one else on the planet could have done.

But sometimes he forgets that he’s a human being like the rest of us. He forgets that if he doesn’t take time for himself, everything else will eventually crumble down around him and everything he’s worked to create in his life will fade away.

He, like most people who are running at 10 million miles an hour, sometimes forget that they are the energy source for all of the success they created in their lives and if that energy source every burns out, ALL the lights go out!

So this episode of Motivational Monday is dedicated to my friend who I love like a brother (and it just so happens that all of us can benefit from this message as well).

And when I found this video by Jada Pinkett-Smith talking about this topic, I thought, :This is a shining and appropriate message because if anyone in this world is insanely busy and being pulled in 10,000 different directions BECAUSE of their success, it’s a wife and mother of one of the most in demand Hollywood celebs out there so Jada knows what she’s talking about from first hand, real world experience”.

See, there’s a magical place that has no keys to the doors to enter into it, no street signs to find it, no coordinates on a GPS system, and no invitations to go there.

It’s a place that not every person gets to enter in their life but the people who do get to that place are rewarded with something the people who don’t make it to that place, envy and desire their entire lives.

This place has many names but the most common name for this place is called success and there’s a very good reason there are no keys, no signs, and no invitations to this place.

Because it’s 100% defined by you based on you’re own desires, your past experience, your past failures, your current mindset, and your current beliefs about what and who you are and what and who you can become, and that is unique to you and you alone.

This place is different for everyone. For some it means peace of mind, for others it means amassing wealth, and for others it’s as simple as finding happiness in the smallest things in life, while for others it means something entirely out of the scope of what mainstream success is defined as.

But there is one universal instruction for ALL of us who every want to make to this place so many seek to get to…

To get to this place in your life, you must not seek to become better than another person, you must not seek to surpass another persons achievements, and you must not chase the “thing” that defines success for you.

To get to this place what you MUST do is look inward and have one single focused intention, to become a better, stronger, faster, smarter, and wiser version of yourself today than you were yesterday.

And when you can do that, the door reveals itself to you, you hold the key to unlock it, the map of how to get there reveals it’s secrets, and you don’t need an invitation to go there because you ARE there.

But, and here’s the rub, when we put the pedal to the metal and go all out in creating inspiration that compels action, we tend to forget to take time to take care of us!

And the most important thing to remember about all of this is, it ALL flows through you. You are the source of every experience, every emotion, every idea, every thought, and every action in your life so it’s vital that YOU take care of YOU first, the source of all of your experience in life.

Your body, your mind, your heart, your spirit, your soul… In your journey to serve your purpose in this life, be sure to tend to these things first because in doing so, your success is 100% guaranteed and you win the game before you ever even step foot on the field.

ALWAYS push hard, drive strong, give life every ounce you have to give, dream big, and never give up on your dreams, goals, hopes, and desires and apply that same power and focus to taking care of “you” all along the way and you’re life will continue to be amazing and only get more and more amazing as the years come and go…

10,000 Hours To Learn Something New?

We’re all busy, life just keeps getting faster and faster and there is no sign of anything slowing down. But at the same time, we all have goals and objectives and dreams and desires that require us to put in more time, effort, and energy than we currently are putting in if we ever expect to achieve those goals and objectives.

So how can we focus on growth and expanding when all of our time is already used up everyday? We dig in deeper and obtain a new perspective based on new information.

Experts say it takes 10,000 hours to learn a new skill. That’s focusing 40 hours a week for nearly 5 years!

Who’s got that kind of time kind for a learning curve like that? Especially in today’s fast paced world where we don’t even have time to wait 100 seconds for a meal in a sack handed to us through the window of our running car while we’re on our way to or from an appointment while dropping off or picking up the kids from school!

Thinking about investing 10,000 hours into anything these days just feels discouraging and extremely difficult.

It takes time and effort to grow and the time thing is a HUGE objection I get from a lot of people I talk to. They say they just don’t have the time to create the kind of success they want in life.

So when I saw this video, I had to share it with you along with this great quote that I think compliments it perfectly:

“You don’t have to be great to start, but you do have to start to become great!”

Enjoy and use this information to ignite a new spark of inspiration for you to reach your goals in life even faster in the short terms while you continue to invest in yourself for the long haul knowing that whatever skill or function you need to learn to continue to expand your level of expertise can be knocked out in 20 hours!

It’s kind of a freeing thought don’t you think?

We’re coming upon the middle of the year and I thought, “I can’t believe how fast it’s gone by!”. Then I thought, “Isn’t it hilarious that every year most of us always say I can’t believe how fast it’s gone by!?”.

And even though the year is flying by and we’re almost half way through it, there are still a lot of goals and objectives that we’re all working towards for 2013.

And sometimes, it’s hard to NOT get caught up in life as the enthusiasm and excitement of our new years goals start to blend in with our day to day life so in this edition of Motivational Monday, I wanted to drop a powerful reminder of the power we all have to achieve anything we set our minds to in our lives.

I’ve shared this before and I’m sure a lot of people have seen it, but it still has a powerful impact on me and I still love it just as much today as the very first time I became aware of this idea because it’s so simple to understand that anyone and everyone immediately says, “YES! I totally get that!”.

And when you understand something in the most elemental and simple way and you can see where and how it applies in your life, it automatically motivates you to give that 1 extra degree of effort every day in every area you can.

I know for me, being reminded of this makes me take a look at what I’m doing and ask myself, am I giving that extra degree everywhere I can to create the life that I want to live in?

And I’ll be it does the same for you.

So enjoy this video and this simple reminder of how the smallest amount of extra effort can be the defining difference between mediocre success and ridiculous success.

Give that extra “degree” everywhere you can in every day of your life and success will automatically follow!

My email signature says, “Make life and adventure!”

This video shows how and why.

It can be anywhere, at anytime, under any circumstance but whatever the case my be, when you make your life an adventure, it’s full of fun and excitement. And one of the key benefits is, you become attractive to everyone around you making new opportunity flood your life in the most unexpected ways you could image.

This video will fill your day with an abundance of smiles and it’s a great demonstration of making life and adventure anywhere, anytime, and with anyone.

You don’t need to be doing anything epic or even out of the ordinary to make your life an adventure, in fact, one of the core meanings of make life an adventure means transforming the ordinary into EXTRAORDINARY!

As you go through tho week capture the moments and opportunities that surround you and make them extraordinary and hey, who knows, you might even get a free tank of gas out of it!

This may be one of the most inspirational stories ever!

It’s a story about NEVER giving up, ALWAYS being grateful for what you DO have, and putting in every ounce of your heart, soul, mind, and body into YOU because in order to live your dreams, you have to become the person who is able to live those dreams.

Most people who “don’t” do it use excuses like time, money, other commitments, lack of ability, etc…
But I think very few people have been faced with an injury that has a 95% fatality rate, then just 4 months later picked themselves up, dug deep into their hearts to find the raw strength that every one of us has, and re-created a champion!

That’s exactly what D.J. did. He suffered an injury that has a 95% fatality rate but still didn’t give up on himself or his dreams.

He looked at a picture of himself and knew that was not the person that would have the strength, ability, stamina, and heart to step into his dream and make it a reality so he put 100% of everything he is into reshaping the guy he saw in the photo into the guy who could step into his dream.

His 100% effort wasn’t anywhere near what it was prior to the injury but he gave 100% to the levels he was able to and progressed each day. He gave everything he had every single day, eventually, building up his strength and stamina to rise from almost certain defeat.

Watching this story I had to hold back a tear or 2 when he got “the call” and he broke down. It’s an incredibly moving and touching story and an incredibly powerful reminder to NEVER give up on your dreams and even if your 100% isn’t at a level you want it or isn’t where you know it can be, whatever your 100% is, GIVE IT!

It’s the consistent and persistent effort that counts and creates the results you need in order to become the person who is able to step into your dream…

DJ. Hayden

First round NFL draft pick to the Raiders! Congrats and much respect D.J. You’re a true inspiration to us all…

7 Year old goes toe to toe with the Nebraska Cornhuskers and scores a 69 yard touchdown!

When you think of American football, especially here in Texas, you generally have thoughts of huge corn fed men snorting, gritting their teeth, and digging their cleats into the ground trying to get more solid footing for one reason, to crush the guy wearing the other color jersey and pound him into the dirt.

You usually think of tackles, passes, hard bone crunching hits, and rivals between fans like nothing you’ve ever seen.

What you don’t think about is being inspired to the point you get goose bumps!

You usually don’t think about a 7 year old boy who has battled brain cancer for 2 years, had 2 surgeries, and endured a 60-week barrage of chemotherapy.

And you normally wouldn’t think about that same boy standing toe to toe with these powerful giant athletes all suited up in full uniform.

But on this day, that was exactly what happened for Jack Hoffman.

This is 100% awesome pure feel good inspiration in just about 1 minute.

It’s these simple acts of kindness that make a lasting impression on the world in a positive way and for this little guy, made his dreams come true in front of 60,000 cheering fans!

Sometimes we forget how much power and ability we have to tape peoples lives with our words, actions, love, and leadership because we take ourselves and our talents for granted.

We all start at the beginning, and with hard work, perseverance, dedication, and through NEVER giving up, we gain skills, power, and abilities we didn’t have when we started. We gain strength, wisdom, knowledge, and confidence we didn’t have when we started.

And whenever we have the ability or opportunity to do something that impacts peoples lives like this, we should always remember that while some things in life my seem incredible simple to us to the point we take them for granted, having one shot at doing those very same things for others can be a life long dream come true.

Good job Cornhuskers for executing those phenomenal act of kindness and for not only adding an unforgettable experience to this brave little boys life, but for inspiring the rest of us to find ways to to the same for others with our talents, skills, power, and ability!

And Jack Hoffman… Great run little man, you scored a TD!

Looking for a powerful leadership development plan that lasts?

I recently wrote about John Wooden’s Pyramid of Success and 12 lessons on leadership based on his insights shared in his book, Wooden on Leadership.  Your response was overwhelming!

For those of you who don’t know who John Wooden is, he’s a record-breaking basketball coach who led UCLA to perfect season, 10 NCAA championships and 88 straight wins!  If you aren’t a sports fan . . . just know he’s a bad ass.

Even with all of the accolades for his wins, he’s most well-known for his beliefs in teamwork and leadership.  He coached his players to be great men, contributors, fathers, citizens, etc…  If you haven’t read Wooden on Leadership yet, I highly recommend you move it up your reading list.

In his book, he talks about suggestions to lead by and rules to lead by.  Today, I’m gonna cover some of the rules to live by.  I encourage you to incorporate these into your personal leadership development plan!  As you go through these, you’ll get the sense that he’s a no nonsense leader who hates excuses . . . like many other successful leaders.

9 Rules to Lead By for Your Leadership Development Plan

1. It’s Tough to Coach Character – If they don’t have it, you can’t give it to them. You may have team members who are talented in so many other areas, but if they are lacking character, move on.  Life’s too short.

2. The Star of the Team IS the Team – Team comes first, not individuals.  As a leader, you must be consistent in delivering your team first message.  Top leaders must understand they are only as successful as their teams and their teams are what make that success possible. Teamwork and leadership go hand in hand.  Selfishness?  Ain’t nobody got time for that!

3. Go Out of Your Way to praise Those “Quiet” Performers Who Make Things Happen – not everyone craves the limelight and posts his accomplishments all over facebook.  Recognize those making it happen and helping the team succeed.  They’re great models for others to follow.  Head down and getting it done!

4. Teach Your Team to Expect Unexpected Opportunity – Doors open and close all of the time in business!  Knowing your industry and which companies are failing, knowing your products and when the offer improves and how to sell it,  . . .all represent opportunity.  Teaching your team how to recognize it is critical to their success.

5. Believe in the Hidden Potential of All – I’m not saying you should waste your time trying to drag it out of people, but I AM saying that you should foster an environment that rewards hard work, development and improvement – all of which lead to unleashing those hidden talents. Teamwork and leadership, baby!

6. Success Breeds Satisfaction; Satisfaction Breeds Failure – There’s a thinker!  A leader MUST set realistic goals, but once they are achieved, don’t sit back on your laurels.  You must not become satisfied.  Achievement will continue at that level or an even higher level IF and ONLY IF you do not let the infection of success take hold of you and your team…. the symptom of that infection is complacency (hate that word!).

Contentment with what you’ve accomplished or acceptance of the status quo can kill your progress quickly!  Celebrate your wins…. but remember that good is the enemy of great. Getting to the top is difficult…. but staying there is harder because that complacency sets in – don’t let it!  This is one keeper for that leadership development plan for you and your team!

7. Identify and Remove Excuses for Not Getting to the Next Level – Boom!  Dropped the hammer on this one!  What are you telling yourself to rationalize where you are in your business right now?  You got it in mind?  Now tell yourself it’s bullshit and move forward.

8. Stop Saying “No” and Start Asking “How?” – Assume improvement is always possible and force yourself – and others – to figure out how!  if you think you have all the answers, you’ve stopped helping your team.  You have to keep asking the question “How can I help my team improve?”.  Once you’ve asked yourself that a hundred times, ask it again.  Constant improvement is a critical component to teamwork and leadership!

9. Welcome Contrary Ideas, but NOT Contrarians – You wanna keep that competitive edge?  You must listen to new ideas and perspectives from those on your team.   This should be done in a respectful manner where it’s not disruptive to the overall growth and direction of the team.

P.S. Which of these rules will you be incorporating into your leadership development plan?  If you know others who could benefit from these rules to lead by, please share on facebook and twitter.  After all, it’s all about teamwork and leadership!

Trust Behaviors You Must Exhibit to Build Strong Relationship Trust

This is a step 2 Blog, following the “How to Build Self-Trust” one from yesterday. (LINK TO IT).  Obviously, I take the concept of trust very seriously and you should too!  Without it, you will fail in your business endeavors and your relationships.  Sound a little dramatic??  Well, do you spend time or money with people you don’t trust? 

I didn’t think so!

You may be the smartest and most skilled person in your industry, but if I don’t trust you, none of that matters.  So once you’ve mastered self-trust (LINK TO BLOG), you can move on to relationship trust, as discussed in Stephen M.R. Covey’s book, “The Speed of Trust“.  Just like self-trust, you can build relationship trust through certain behaviors I’m gonna go over here.  These are based loosely on the ones Covey covers in his book!

Don’t freak out as you look ever these . . .they’re not meant to be easy.  They’re meant to be effective!  Real trust takes some time to develop and nurture which is another reason to get started now!

“You can’t talk yourself out of a problem you’ve behaved yourself into.” – Stephen R. Covey

“No, but you can behave yourself out of a problem you’ve behaved yourself into . . . and often faster than you think!” – Stephen M. R. Covey

13 Trust Behaviors Designed to Change Your Life

1. Talk Straight

Tell the truth and leave the right impression. Simply let people know where you stand by using simple language and integrity.  Never manipulate people or distort the facts to fit your needs.  Leaving false impressions on purpose is the same as lying.  Isn’t it so refreshing when someone just shoots straight with you?  You feel respected and confident you have the information you need to make a decision.

2. Demonstrate Respect

The best way to do this by being genuine.  Don’t “fake” care for someone.  People will see straight through that.  There’s nothing worse than watching someone you trust be super kind to someone, then turn around and bad mouth them to you as soon as they walk off.  Second, treat EVERYONE with respect, especially those who can’t do anything for you!  Last, and an important one for busy leaders, don’t try to be “efficient” with people.  You’ve been there, right?  It’s where you’re talking to someone, and they’re checking their watch or looking past you to find the real person they wanted to talk to!  Don’t be that guy!

3. Create Transparency

“What you see is what you get!” is a great way to lead and build relationship trust!  Share all of the information you can in an authentic and genuine way where people can verify the facts you just shared.  Don’t intentionally hide information from people.  Once they find out, not good!  And you feel bad.  So err on the side of full disclosure!  They’ll respect you for it!

4. Right Wrongs

Admit your mistakes.  Do everything you can to make it right and apologize quickly.  Basically, don’t let pride get in the way of doing the right thing.  It all comes down to personal accountability and humility!

“To know what is right and not to do it is the worst kind of cowardice.” – Confucius

5. Show Loyalty

Give credit where credit is due!  One way I practice this trust behavior is acting as if the person I’m talking about is present.  That way, I know I won’t say something I wouldn’t want them to hear and everything they would!  Respect people’s privacy by not sharing something they confided in you.  Stand up for those who aren’t present to stand up for themselves.

6. Deliver Results

This trust behavior is pretty easy to get since it’s so straightforward . . .establish a track record of results.  Just get the right things done and make it happen!  Strive to undercommit and overdeliver! No excuses.

7. Get Better

I love this one!  The fact that you’re reading this blog tells me that you’re a learner looking to improve.  Constant personal development is a must!  For ideas on development, check out the top leadership books list and the top self help books list I created.  Also, be open and receptive to the feedback people are giving you.

8. Confront Reality

This one can be difficult, especially if your reality sucks! You know what I mean . . .ignoring the bad stuff does not make it go away. Take issues head on and address the tough stuff directly and efficiently!  Acknowledge the elephant in the room when others won’t.  That is a very respected trust behavior!

9. Clarify Expectations

Make sure everyone is on the same page regarding what’s expected of each person in every relationship.  If you have a business partner and the expenses are totally out of whack, it should be clear who’s responsible for that.  That clarity comes from removing assumptions, stating things clearly and renegotiating, as needed.  This is so important to build relationship trust and to avoid simple misunderstandings that can become huge problems.

10. Practice Accountability

When things go well, give credit to others.  When things don’t, take accountability.  This is a credo I live by as a leader.  Obviously, this shouldn’t be taken literally but I hope you get the point.  Too often responsibility is shirked and the blame game starts.  Keep it positive.  Hold yourself accountable and be a model for others to follow.  This trust behavior feels good when you practice it…. and it has a trickle down effect that’s phenomenal!

11. Listen First

Seek first to understand then to be understood.  HUGELY important habit.  People love to feel not only heard but understood.  Listen with your ears, eyes and heart and get the full picture.  Do this, and the speed o trust will be Mach3!    Not only that, your ability to lead will be improved because you’ll know what’s going on versus assuming you have all the answers.  Hell, you may not even know the questions, much less the answers.  Everyone wins here when you practice this trust behavior!

12. Keep Commitments

Simply put, say what you’re going to do, then go do it!  Commitments should not be made lightly if you plan to keep them.  If you’re unsure, don’t voice the commitment .  . . remember, “undercommit and overdeliver”.  If you do find yourself in a broken commitment situation, own it.  Take accountability and move on. Do better next time.

13. Extend Trust

I love the way Covey says this in his book, “The Speed of Trust”, so I’m going to quote it directly here.  “Extend trust abundantly to those who have earned your trust.  Extend trust conditionally to those who are earning your trust . . . have a propensity to trust.  Don’t withhold trust because there is risk involved.”  Couldn’t have said it better myself, Mr. Covey!

Whew!  Told you they were powerful!  I understand you may be doing great with some of these trust behaviors.  However, I do hope you’ve identified some that could require some focused attention.  Once you have those determined, you can put an action plan in place.  I recommend referring to “The Speed of Trust” to assist you with that one.  He has an entire chapter dedicated on identifying areas of work and how to create an action plan accordingly!  Awesome stuff!

P.S. — Help spread the trust by sharing this on facebook and twitter.