Stay The Course

Successful people are dreamers who have found a dream too exciting, too important, to remain in the realm of fantasy.    ~Earl Nightingale~

We all have the Lazurus-like ability to arise from the spiritually dead  and face our problems and fears head on.  With unyielding  resolve and confidence there is a way out or a way around our haunting, compromising past or present obstacles…..that is, if and as soon as we resolve to stay the course.

But staying the course is a tough nut to crack.  I don’t make light of it.

We have spouses, bosses and families demanding our undivided attention.

We have bills and creditors flattening our purses.

We have stress and depression caused by feelings that either we or our world seem out of whack.

We have a host of dysfunctional baggage ready to trample our fragile determination to amount to something…..anything! – during our brief visit to this planet.

We have hoards of nay Sayers and  do-nothingers surrounding us with negativity and doubt.

We have debilitating diseases and mental illnesses which, each in their own perverse way, give us a false justification for surrendering to the whimsical life of fate and inevitability.

In other words, the deck seems to be heavily stacked against numbers’ of us in our pursuit of excellence and success.  Maybe our looks are “bad.”  Too fat, thin, pimply, gawky, short, paunchy, shuffling, gaunt, shriveled with disease or slumped over with dis-ease.

All of these maladies are figments of our imagination or as a result of our stinking thinking.

Whatever “too” you may think yourself afflicted with, there are millions more who have greater tragedies to face every day, yet they still somehow rise to the challenge and master the skills requisite for success in their chosen life path.

If you are reading this message then you are part of a fortunate few around the globe who have ready access to the Information Age.  Computers are helping to level the playing field for growing legions of working-class people everywhere.  These are the brethren who used to live in abject poverty, shameless ignorance, utter despair, only to die broke, broken and in complete obscurity.

We all have a lot to be grateful for and we can do a lot to make this world a little more peaceful, a little more loving, a little more honest and and a little more rich because we have passed through.

I have resolved to never give up on myself again.  And neither should you ever give up on you.

We may have bad days or weeks or months – even horrible ones -  but hope and faith in ourselves, in our blessed capacity to learn and grow bigger, will ultimately lead to a lasting happiness.

Life is a series of peaks and valleys sprinkled with moments of revelry and wisdom.

Every day, every victory, every defeat, every trial, every touch of love, every slap of hate…..everything in our world is only a representation of who we are and what we stand for at the moment.

It is your job and mine to take control of our respective  lives and become the very best we can muster.  That is our destiny.  That is our duty to ourselves, our families, our community, our world, and our Creator.

Nobody other than you can play your hand.

Not one program, not one marketing genius, not one spiffy handsome god or stunningly beautiful goddess holding your hand in love, not one religion, nor one  race, nor one nation-state should or could ever reel you in and hold you soul hostage without your consent.

You must cross the road to get to the other side…..alone.

The beauty of this journey is that it comes with the gift of life.  The tragedy of it for many is that life passes us by because we so fear what others may think of us.

There is a perverse comfort in holding onto the lesser self and consciously settling for second best.

I hold a special affection for the growing legion of middle-aged, for those older and aging rapidly because of loneliness and melancholy, for those who are gripped in dire financial straits, and for those precocious dreamers of  youth who can’t wait to test the waters of life.

I greet you with true humility and want each of you to become my friend as we march down the path of righteousness, truth, independence, tolerance, financial comfort and growing confidence in ourselves and in those we touch.

Far too many online marketers are focusing on how much money they can make and how much money they claim they can make for you, if, of course, you invest in them.

While money and success are wonderful tools in sculpting a great life, they mean little if we remain weak in character and unwilling to learn anew day by day.

Let us drink to a life of intrinsic richness, not just the trappings of wealth.

Chew on ideas.  Drink them down with a brew of meaningful action.  And never fear failure; fear only inertia and complacency.

Challenge limiting concepts, no matter how certain we are that we are right or on the side of justice and fairness.

Our planet is abundant and we need not extort nor highway-rob our fellow citizens to get our fair share.

You are never too young nor too old to dream and to act boldly.

With imagination, one can move forward in the world, even if planted in a wheel chair or trapped in a prison cell.  I just know that each of us through our respective marketing efforts will march forward.  And when we reach stumbling blocks or armed resistance to our concerted efforts, we can and will dig deep within to find the spirit to persevere and win.

Let’s cheer each other on.  Let’s bring out the best in ourselves by bring out the best in others in our business and private lives.

I leave you with The “Parable of the Pencil”, an inspirational piece which sums up this message…

The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box.

“There are 5 things you need to know,” he told the pencil, “Before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best pencil you can be.”

“One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in Someone’s hand.”

And Five: On every surface you walk through, you must leave your mark. No matter what the situation, you must continue to do your duties.

“Your mind can only hold one thought at a time, make it a positive and constructive one.”
Shalini Verma, Indian Life Coach

The problem in Japan and in the world isn’t that opportunity doesn’t exist or is diminishing.  The problem is that we are unable to focus long and hard enough to turn our pie-in-the-sky, castle-building notions into warm, soft bundles of cash and happiness.

Just as a focused effort to make a delicious meal leads to satisfaction and praise by others, so will all our well-hatched dreams turn into reality if we follow the recipe of our design and not forget to turn on the range of possibility thinking.

I have been told about and experienced the discomfort that many Japanese feel when possibility thinking is brought up in casual conversation.  If I suggest to a Japanese person that there is absolutely nothing bad about wanting to be great and aspiring to be rich, their eyes often head south because they have been trained that safety and familiarity are preferable to risk.

Yet as I continue to paint images of a “better you” in their mind, slowly they begin to melt.  Maybe it’s my charismatic speaking style, but I don’t believe that’s why they drop their defense.

They drop it because they secretly wonder what life could and would be like without the cultural chains attached.

As one of my mentors, Bob Proctor, says, “If you can see it it in your mind, you can hold it in your hand.”

Nobody is going to accomplish what you can.  Why not throw away the self-imposed chains of mediocrity and discover just how great you can be?

I’m on your team.  Let’s grow to fantabulous heights together.

“Remember, when your intuition and your logic are in conflict, your intuition is always right. Depend on it!”
~Bob Proctor, Entrepreneur and Life Coach~

A fine line exists between being negative toward something or someone while putting out bad vibes toward it or him/her, and being acutely intuitive and able to avoid unhappiness, disaster and tragedy.

It all comes down to how much you trust yourself and whether you are grounded and focused on a goal or vision.  If you have spent the majority of life following the crowds and obeying orders mindlessly, then your intuitive attributes will not function well, even when you find yourself in dire straits.

“I just knew it,” “I told you so,” “I can’t understand why you did that,” are great examples of the unrefined, intuitive qualities we all possess being misused or abused for egoistical reasons or to cover ones tracks.

Telling others why they were wrong or telling yourself that you had a hunch (which you failed to act upon), is both counterintuitive and unproductive.

This message to you pains me because just this past week I took a back seat to my hunches and let someone else take the lead in a business negotiation with a Japanese businessman I thought was a train wreck from the get-go.  My hunch was 100 percent correct, but I sat in silence or nodded agreement while my ally forged ahead with negotiations.

Trust your intuition – those diamond-in-the-rough hunches.  As Bob Proctor has also said in The Science of Getting Rich, “Prayer is when you talk to God.  Intuition is when God talks to you.”

Belief in yourself starts inside.  Only you can know what is best for you.  Only you can sniff out a rat, avoid it, and ultimately come up smelling of roses.

“What this world needs is a new kind of army – the army of the kind. ” ~Cleveland Amory~

Peek out the window.

Gaze at the sky, the stars, and the rolling hillside.

Hear the melodious chirping of the mockingbirds and the clopping sound of a horse passing by.

Pay attention to the laughter of children spellbound by gaiety.

Smell the budding rose, pluck it, and then pass it on to one you love or respect.

Let the ladybug tickle across your face unimpeded.

Ah, it’s splendid to be alive and hear the rooster’s welcoming crow at dawn. Welcome once again to the daybreak of endless possibilities.

My Lord we are blessed with abundance – even if we are blind, deaf or in any other manner disabled.

We have a chance until our last gasp for air to make a difference…and that is cause for wonder and boundless joy.

We are not animals tied to a post with no free will. We are nothing but will and energy unlimited waiting to be unfolded.

So what’s holding you back from your true self? Bills and ills? The kids? That ornery boss of yours? Those greedy politicians? Taxes? Youth? Age? The local Gestapo? God?

It’s only your belief that ties you to that phantom post. The restraint that could hold you in place has never existed, other than in your vivid imagination.

Your journey can start or move forward with one act of random kindness, then another and another.

Get the ball rolling and there will never ever be a need to worry about lack in any of its ugly colors.

I sense greatness is in the air for each and every reader of this random message. Your destiny IS in your hands and in your heart.

Live with an attitude of gratitude and brush off the disappointing or sad vicissitudes that comes with the territory of being alive.

“An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory. “  ~Friedrich Engels~

I am not a Bible geek or thumper, but most certainly that book is loaded with wisdom and thought-provoking ideas worthy of your study time.  This Jewish-born fellah thumbs through it on occasion.

My thumb hit this passage from Psalms:  “To you Lord, I call; my Rock , do not be deft to my cry, lest, if you answer me with silence, I become like those who go down to the abyss.”  David’s lament is still relevant, isn’t it?  We all sometimes feel forsaken and alone.  The question is, What will we do about it other than pray?   It gets you thinking, doesn’t it?

My shelves are lined with inspiring, thought-provoking motivational and self-help tapes.  The titles themselves get me excited:  The Strangest Secret, Achieving Credibility, Lifetime Strategies for Personal Effectiveness, Conversation Power, Your Secret Wealth, The Power of Purpose, The Art of Exceptional Living, Cultivating an Unshakable Character, How to be a No-Limit Person, How to Beat Talent, Brains and Education, The Psychology of Selling, The Focused Mind State, Take Charge of Your Life, Coping With Difficult People, The New Dynamics of Goal Setting, The Science of Getting Rich, Leadership Mastery Course, Unleash Your Greatness.  Each is recorded by outstanding, successful people and all but two recordings for the largest self-help/motivational organization in the world, Nightingale-Conant.

Moreover, each of these eight-hour recordings are more than bookshelf dwellers to me – they are the fuel which energize my life.  Nearly half of these eight-hour recordings I have transcribed, so that I could further embed them in my conscious and subconscious mind.

I am a student of life, a philosopher, a teacher, a writer and in recent years an inspired entrepreneur who wants to spread the gospel of empowerment through self-improvement to all.

We each read good books, watch inspiring movies, and see random, touching acts of courage in our daily lives.  When meeting such ideas and people, we think the world is good and there must be something more to life than three square meals, a 40-hour grind in the big city, a comfy bath, and a glass of Chardonnays before shuteye.

And there is.  Life is what you make or make of it.  I encourage everyone reading this message, to take up anyone of the Nightingale-Conant themes above, set aside an hour at home or during your commute each day, download as much material as you can on the topic which piqued your curiosity…and get down to work in mastering the principles which could change your life and the life of those whom you daily touch for the better.

Grandiose ideas are delectable to chew on, but true happiness begins when one decides that the ideas and the people who express them are God’s very special present to us all.  You were born to be rich in every aspect of that word.  No shame, endless gain.

When you turn your learning into earning, endless possibilities unfold for doing good and being good.  Random acts of kindness can become predictable.

Now doesn’t that resonate with you?  I certainly hope so.

A dozen years ago – just before the 911 debacle – I had the honor (and profound sadness) to visit the Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Dome and Museum. It was both haunting and a reminder that war is the lowest common denominator in human spiritual development. I saw silhouetted bodies seared into cement blocks, pictures of dieing civilians slumped at the side of road or in evacuation parks radiating to a very painful death.

Then I think about Auschwitz and Dachau and Birkinau Concentration camps for further reminders of how bestial human beings can become in the name of God and motherland.

And I am in turn reminded of the Killing Fields of Cambodia, the Yugoslav bloodbath, the Crusades, the Salem Witch Trials, the Rwandan Genocide…and the list seems to go on and on.

And then I wonder: When will we ever learn, when will we ever learn?  Evil always seems to raise its ugly head, even as selfless, virtuous acts of kindness go on under the radar each and every day worldwide.

I can remember a post-911 cartoon depicting Hussein’s Iraq was just one, huge, nuclear crater and with a big For Sale sign jutting up from its bowels. That disgusted me and made me feel there are no border lines between the despicable and the righteous. We live in Heaven, yet choose to vacation in Hell…just for the Hell of it.

As a serious student and teacher of Kabbalah (or fill in your blank), can you fight for your country or any other?  Would you be willing to go to jail rather than indiscriminately kill in the name of (fill in the blank)?

Just some fodder of what is gripping me suddenly. Sixty-six years have passed since the Pacific War and the good guys and the not-so-good guys say they are keeping the peace by arming to the teeth.  When will we ever learn?

When dealing across cultures, language and intent often come front and center. The misuse of a word can lead to a tidal wave of misunderstanding and breakdown in important relationships.

Japan – just like many countries of the world – has some extremely talented second-language speakers of English. In many cases such individuals studied abroad to gain such mastery.

Because of the grammar-intensive nature of Japanese education in English, the local bilingual may have more intellectual mastery of my language than than does the off-the-cuff American steelworker chatting around the coffee maker on break.

Let it be known that I have had countless numbers of such misunderstandings in my 31 years here. The English native has learned to associate certain words or phrases with specific intention, whereas the Japanese speaker is speaking English directly from the literal meaning taught in textbooks.

Just this past week, I had a serious falling out (and making up) with a business associate whom is quite confident he understands and communicates in English efficiently. Without going into the gory details, I thought he had relegated my talent and future to the dustbin of time, but upon careful probing I realized that he was just fumbling my language.

Hey, we all make mistakes and then take things too personally. As my drill sergeant in Air Force Reserve training some 38 years ago said: “Never assume. When you assume, you make an ass out of you or me.”

A final note: Japanese and Americans see the world through a different prism. If you assume that there are more similarities than differences, you will be sadly mistaken. An American sun is yellow and a Japanese sun is red. Could there be any more fundamental difference?

All those other people you bought from before me no doubt had great intention, but the truth is that every one of them was a liar and a thief. I’m different from them. I’ll make you rich.

The paragraph above is a cookie-cutter example of the mind-manipulating strategy many marketers use in order to gain your temporary trust and get you to open that billfold just one more time. They promise you that they – unlike the others – will deliver the goods.

So you pluck down the cash for that new i-pod that records more songs than God could create. You needed only a fraction of that memory, but what the hell? Easy come, easy go.

So you buy that $1000, 80-CD training program on how to become a millionaire and hope against hope that this will be the time you finally hit pay dirt. It isn’t, of course, but the marketer sold 1000 sets and made a cool million off of wannabes like yourself.

I believe it was the renown motivator and super successful marketer, Zig Ziglar, who first said: “If you stand for nothing, you’ll fall for anything.”

What do you stand for? When you wake up each day do you say “My God, thank you” or just groan “Oh, my God?”

The point is that nobody can tell you your truth. Nobody can tell you the truth about why you should be grateful. Nobody can tell you the truth about what makes you happy. Nobody can tell you what you excel in or could excel in. Nobody can tell you what things you need in your life to help you grow into the person you could be and what things will lead you down the road to misery and poverty.

I will be truthful with you. The best thing you can sell in this world is yourself. There’s no other product or service which you could be more familiar with. If you know where you are going and you know what you stand for, only you can stand in your path to greatness.

The truth is that you will begin to discover a path to lasting happiness the day you decide to live truthfully and on purpose without gloating about your virtue and good intent. The road to hell is paved with good intent.

Buy only those things that match your desires to be at the helm of your life. Auction sites are fabulously successful because a majority of people clutter their lives with other people’s dreams, rather than their own. If you’re over 40, most likely half your house is cluttered with impulse buys that only had the wrapper seal broken once before being stuffed into a closet.

Those things are stealing from your life. The temporary high of spending money on other people’s truths is hardly ever worth the price. Your passion and your job should be aligned.

Only things which empower you towards being the best you can be are worth your pennies, pesos, rubles and yen. The rich collect books in big, private libraries; the poor have cars on long-term loans and widescreen TVs bought with plastic money they don’t really have.

That’s what the truth is.

I once heard a potential Vice President of the United States say:  “It is patriotic for the richest to pay more taxes to uplift the suffering of the struggling middle class and the most needy.”

That’s pure bunk.  The best way to uplift anybody is to rise and lead the way.  That is why Jesus said:  “Let the dead bury the dead.”

This is a “success manual” that gives readers a step by step plan for taking control of their lives and unleashing their incredible potential. The book consists of 12 Lessons: Your Attitude is Your Window to the World; You’re A Human Magnet; Picture Your Way to Success; Make a Commitment and You’ll Move Mountains;

Now I’m not a Christian and I’m not trying to flog religion to you, but there is no cavalry coming to save us from the travesty and travails of life.  And that’s not a bad thing because we grow when we are challenged or when life doles out a small or large dose of unfairness.

Character is built when we must put our minds to work.  As my most profound mentor, the late Earl Nightingale said:  “We all walk in the dark and each of us must learn to turn on his or her own light.”

Many before us have suffered through the deep valley of despair and rose to greatness in all aspects of life.  It can be done by us ordinary folks!

Tax breaks, tax increases in the name of patriotism and government intervention has NEVER given a man or woman his or her dignity.

What has done wonders is to nurture a mind which wakes and sleeps with big dreams and an attitude to make those dreams into a reality.

Unfortunately, your schoolmarm and your neighbors for the greater part believe that life is pure luck and unpredictable.  They often teach you to follow norms and to stifle the creative urge in order to fit in and move up in society.

So then come along those get-rich-quick schemers who guarantee you that you can escape the money struggles, if you follow their blueprint.  The trouble is that their blueprint once again stifles your creativity and problem-solving potential and ability.

In a few words, we give away our power because we don’t believe we are capable or worthy of being rich, being a leader, and being true to ourselves.

This problem begins in infancy.  Only a very few people get training in essential skills and aptitudes which will serve them for a lifetime.

Such skills as how to fix things, how to problem solve, how to wisely earn and save money, how to finance a home or other big-ticket item, how to become independently wealthy by our age of majority, how the tax code works in your particular country, the purpose of marriage and family, how to start a small business in your home or community, how to control your anger and childish desires, and probably most importantly, how to be happy when the world around you appears to be lined with dark storm clouds.

No government or politician can learn these life skills for you or pass out a magic pill.  Our thriving survival in this lightning-fast, changing world depends upon making sure the next generation gets a real education rather than a government whitewash.

Teach your children well by first going back to school and learning the skills essential for a fabulous, balanced life.

Five hundred years ago the average citizen believed that if you went too far in the ocean you would fall off the ocean cliff and into the great abyss.

Fortunately, the age of world exploration and discovery enabled us, step-by-step, to debunk that (and other) false rumors. I say fortunately because to live in mysticism and fear is to live and die in ignorance.

Whether actress Cyndi Schaeffer or talk show host Oprah Winfrey or MLB Superstar Derek Jeter uses a certain deodorant or endorses a certain diet plan or recommends a certain book should be irrelevant to you. You too would likely endorse these things if a sponsor would pay you millions of dollars for your wink, wiggle or stern tone.

But it is our responsibility to create responsible products and services which will not be up for auction on eBay one month later. “As seen on TV” is not for you, an intelligent, value-added entrepreneur or concerned individual.

In marketing circles, many would state that my idea is anti-marketing and that if I adhere to such a philosophy then I cannot be a good marketer. I beg to differ.

When one lives on a competitive plane and sees limited resources at every turn, then conniving and treachery rules. A few winners and many losers will be the result. Look at our present economic straits and those of the bulk of the world and you see the result of excess, deception and hedonism.

Selling should be based on creating true and lasting value to an individual’s life. Buying the hottest 1000-calorie Salsa music video will breed nations of fatties, not skinnies.

As seen on TV is selling you a physical dream that most people can’t even imagine in their present flabby state. They buy on an impulse – which is great for the marketer – and then put the DVDs, jump ropes and whatnot in the closet next to the exercise bicycle, the boxes of “date expired” diet drinks, and belly massagers.

Rather than opening markets and creating future customers, we are creating hundreds of millions of lifetime skeptics and put-your-hand-on-your-wallet cheapskates. If the purpose of deception is to sell products today and then run from the lynch mob in the dead of night…..then “As Seen on TV” will dupe many. But the long term effect will be devastating.

Japan is the oriental capital of such schlock. Buy and throw away is built into the system. The idea – like too many others – was artfully designed and implemented by the American automobile manufacturers of yore. It is called planned obsolescence and in a sustainable environment it must finally be buried next to the dinosaurs. Our future undoubtedly depends upon planned obsolescence becoming obsolete.

The adjustment to such a responsible idea will be a bitter medicine for most to swallow, yet it is coming to our world regardless of whether we oppose such frugality and consciousness. Mark my words.

“Never look down on anyone unless you’re helping him up “   ~Jesse Jackson, activist~

Education is the key to a successful life. But not the type we traditionally think about – reading, writing, history, math and science.

I’m talking about the mindset that teaches an individual to love learning rather than feel education is a means to an end. While it is that…it is much more.

I’m talking about the mindset that teaches every child how to work with and manipulate his/her world through core competence.

We should learn how to make money and how money works and can grow, from grade school onward.

We should learn how to repair and build the things which addict us in our rush to consume.

We should learn that an education is a never-ending joy.

We should learn to delay gratification or have have our privileges taken away from us as a reminder of how grateful we should be.

Why is it that schools don’t teach us to be rich internally and externally?

Why is it that ninety percent of the wealth of the world is controlled by less than 5% of the population?

Why do we sell a failed education policies as a mainstream avenue to success?

Yes, the government must intervene to restructure education systems to encourage thinking rather than random brave waves.

Yes, the government should intervene full force and emphasize that my piece of the pie needn’t be smaller; we just need to create a bigger pie based on real rather than phantom value-added services such as the notorious security houses.

This Japanese man was sold a bill of goods that did not match his interest and ability. Japan is a sink or swim society because the price of conformity is that you must stop thinking and get busy. By doing so, you never have a chance to develop possibility thinking.

Too many people get this Japanese guy’s story wrong and look down at him. The greatest leaders in business and commerce have arisen Lazarus-like after hitting rock bottom.

Rather than look down at this guy as a bum, you might want to wish you were him. Why? Because the only way he can pull himself up will be to think and do.

If we are not growing, we are dieing. That Japanese man is in a much better position to grow and thrive than his critics who feel cool and smug because they have some income and comfort.

We only condemn the downtrodden and the poor because of a poverty of ideas and an uneasiness when we see a world of despair which is uncomfortable to ponder.

“What other people think of me is none of my business”
~Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady and Philanthropist~

The greatest obstacle to success on any level is being overly concerned about what other people may think of you.

The majority of people in Japan are very concerned about what others think of them.  They follow rules which many outsiders might find suffocating.

“What would your boss, mother, father or neighbor think?” is given deep consideration in social circles.  This concern for acting appropriately can bring orderliness and conformity, two positives for society.

But it also means that mindless behaviors – such as smoking, excessive drinking or adultery get a cultural wink.  Moreover, it stifles creativity and the willingness to take risks – something a majority of people never do here.

The best strategy is to follow your heart, since we all have only one life to get things right and an undetermined number of years to attain excellence.

The best intention of friends, colleagues and others you associate with are usually detrimental to your best interest and happiness.

If someone praises you, don’t attach yourself to that adulation too much because the other side of the coin – when that person scolds or scorns you – will lead to disempowerment and devastation.

You should never let external events steer your internal compass.  If you know who you are and what you want and need to maximize your happiness, then trust yourself to navigate the unchartered waters of life.

Everybody has opinion, but yours is the most special for you  It’s time to get off the emotional roller coaster by ceasing to try to please everyone.  You can’t satisfy everyone and trying to do so will inevitably displease most people you want to be at your side.

No matter how one spins the effects of the economic climate, one constant remains: the few people with a great attitude or an outstanding skill base can get to hold onto their jobs, while the marginally efficient workers can get their pink slips without a blink.

Education and a hunger to learn will put you in the running for the best jobs and best entrepreneurial options.  We have libraries, we have the Internet, and we have a plethora of in-house and societal seminars/workshops to upgrade our skills and knowledge.

Yet how many people wile away their free time multi-tasking escape activities such as watching TV, email messaging, reading vacuous comics, listening to deafening music, or just sleeping away the hours, days and years?

One bad habit repeated over and over again can put you on the operation table for open heart surgery or on redundancy avenue in your workplace.  You can’t be faked out by the short-term feeling of invulnerability.

The man who eats a Snickers Bar every day for thirty years may at first only get a sugar high.  But down the road he will deal with heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and perpetual drowsiness.  The smoker will run marathons in his twenties but by the time he is in his forties will be wheezing, suffering from chronic bronchitis, or more likely knocking on death’s door.

In the same manner, a man who doesn’t read the book, attend the seminar, or in general upgrade his skills will find himself left behind or left out in the workplace.  He may claim it is unfair that he gets laid off, but the years of bad habits and perpetual intellectual laziness are his responsibility alone.

Maximum Speed Reading is an incredible new program that will help you to read and comprehend massive amounts of written information – in any subject area – with unbelievable speed and remarkable retention and recall.

Our results in life are usually very scientifically predictable.  That is either good and bad news depending on our willingness to change and shape up.

Start a daily plan of education.  Make it as habitual as eating breakfast or brushing your teeth.  At the end of the day ask yourself:  What have I learned today?  What have I accomplished?  What do I want to learn and accomplish tomorrow?

In many super successful people’s houses, the most important room is the library, not the entertainment room.  And the library – believe it or not – is often filled with books read rather than those pretentiously displayed .

I was never a fan of our former President, George W. Bush, but I knew that he was not stupid, as many people claimed between snickers.  You don’t become President by being a stupid oaf or even by being the son of a President.  It recently was revealed that President Bushwas an avid reader and had plowed through over 185 books in less than two years.

Never underestimate a man or woman who reads and challenges his mind in many subtle ways.  Such a lifetime habit will bring infinite joy and breakthroughs which are clearly attributed to the ritual of making education a daily part of ones life.

Always be extremely vigilant over the gateway to your mind.  Your destiny is in your hands.  Everyday use all your senses to soak in the sensations and information essential for your spiritual and financial prosperity.

Most information is – in our cyber-connected world – free of charge.  Further down the road, however, being intellectually bankrupt will cost you dearly.

Top portion of a "Letter from Heaven," produced in England. Such bogus machinations have been around for a long time.

Nearly half of the unsolicited mail I receive centers on a similar scheme: Read this message, sign up as an affiliate,pay an initiation fee, share this message with other lazy folks in your circle, build a huge downline of carrot-chasing thieves, rinse and repeat, and finally retire in the Bahamas in six months or so.

There may be a product or service as an inducement to these schemes, but the material is often hackneyed, untruthful or dated and inserted just to keep the authorities from clamping down on the organization (rightfully) for being a pyramid or Ponzi Scheme.

Wikipedia defines a pyramid scheme as follows:
A pyramid scheme is a non-sustainable business model that involves promising participants payment, services or ideals, primarily for enrolling other people into the scheme or training them to take part, rather than supplying any real investment or sale of products or services to the public. Pyramid schemes are a form of fraud.

So…how many of those “exploding MLMs” which the shiftless sign up for are anything more than evolved chain letters that use a pyramid structure to promote? Meguesses over 90 percent of them.

Often when I read about clever thieves and fraudsters, I think to myself: “What a waste of human potential! If they are clever enough to rob a bank or steal $10 million from people with a scam, they most certainly could use their ingenuity on the up-and-up to accomplish the same or much more without facing a prison term.”

Use your creative juices to create real value. Stay clear of MLM schemes. They are insidious and seriously compromise your integrity and credibility. Don’t be fooled by those involved in such schemes that tell you they are making money hand over fist and money-making is easy. It’s a fools’ game. Honest fistfuls’ of money do not need smoke nor mirrors.

If you are sitting pretty on May24th, then hang up your cleats and let your life move forward blissfully on autopilot.  You have all the money, love, fame and respect you could ever desire.  You are serving the world while serving yourself.  Congratulations.

But I have a sneaking suspicion that your life and the accomplishments you desire are far from optimal.  And that insecurity — that void — is not a bad omen.  It keeps you alive and adds meaning to life.  The great accomplishments throughout history were not built by complacent-minded people.  They were built by people driven by a desire to see just how high and far they could go in life.

Let’s assume you have anywhere between one day and fifty or more years of life to go.  Let’s assume you have achieved little other than a survival lifestyle that depends on you going to work each day and making widgets or closing that next deal.  That survival mode is God’s grace to you.  It is as if He is saying:  “OK.  You are not going to starve.  You are not short in the intelligence department.    I have given you good friends, love through many channels, and a general sense of well-being.  Yes, Mom loved your sibling more than you…..so what are you going to do next – snore or soar?”

If you have read thus far, I am certain you want to soar.  The alternative is to sink and suffer.

The doomsayers are everywhere telling you that the economy is heading south, while implying that everyone is going to be a victim of this economic malaise.  If you choose to believe that gloomy outlook, then just stay in bed for the rest of the year.  But if you sense that these purveyors’ of doom are totally unhelpful and dead wrong, then decide that this year – whether it be your 20th year or 70th on this planet – will be the very one where you run to daylight and soar to unimaginable heights.

While everyone buys into darkness and puts their collective heads in the sand, this can and will be your breakthrough year.  When things look darkest, opportunity looms around every corner and on the other side of every deep valley.  Life is balance and always has been.  Where there is loss, gain can’t help but be over the horizon.  This is law, not some esoteric notion!

Congratulations on being alive and ready to reach your stride.  This is going to be a great year full of fantastic opportunities amidst an economic paradigm shift.

I promise you insightfulness and honesty to help you see options for success which you might otherwise have overlooked.  Let me serve you.   Together we can and will reach unimaginable heights in the next 365 days.

Get ready to roll.