New Year, New You

2010 has not been kind to a lot of people.

We all need to be reminded that we can "not only survive life’s unexpected changes and transitions but also thrive. Powerful change is possible. You are fully capable of creating a life that you choose."

The people that matter in life will not define you by the mistakes that you have made or the size of your bank account - and those who do define you by those criteria are not worth your time or energy.

Create the future you want. Pursue happiness. Start today.

Quote Of The Week

‎"You were born original. Don't die a copy." ~ John Mason

No Predictions For 2011

"If you allow your thoughts to be infinite so too will be the possibilities you experience." -Bay Ghorishi

It's that time of year again when all the "visionaries" make their predictions for the new year ahead. It's easy to get sucked in this ego-fest and make not so bold statements like "this will be the year of mobile marketing." But making predictions and pontificating doesn't pay the bills for most of us. Ultimately, the best advice for the year ahead is "try harder and think bigger - you are better than you think you are and you can accomplish more than you think you can." That's it.

When you predict what will matter in the year ahead you have already set limitations to what is possible. Stop doing that. As the quote above says, try allowing your thoughts to be infinite and new possibilities will arise.

So let us never speak of 2010 again. It's time to rip off the rear view mirrors and forge ahead.

Spotting Opportunity

Opportunity often comes disguised in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat. -Napoleon Hill

How many times have we chased new business that appeared to be the best/surest opportunity for us only to have wasted time, effort, and money in a futile pursuit. Sometimes spotting opportunity means looking in less obvious places. Sometimes opportunity is where you think you'd find it least - disguised by other factors. I always hated the "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade" poster. But, the fact is that there are countless examples in business of people spotting opportunities where others only found defeat.

When Leo Burnett created his advertising agency during the Great Depression, he had a bowl of apples in his lobby for employees and visitors. These apples served as a constant reminder to his critics who said that opening an advertising agency in the middle of the depression was a bad idea. They said he'd soon be selling those apples on the street. However, he saw opportunity where others did not. Today Leo Burnett is an iconic agency employing many thousands of people all over the world.

Remember this: "The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed." - Chinese Proverb

So start looking for opportunities where others are not. Like the proverb says you may be closer than you think.

New York City Quote

“You come to New York to find the ambiance that will evoke your best. You do not necessarily know precisely what that might be, but you come to New York to discover it.” - Anna Wintour

Speaking of No Fear (watch this)

Jeb Corliss wing-suit demo from Jeb Corliss on Vimeo.

Dare To Fail - Again

"Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly" - Robert F. Kennedy

I have met a great number of "successful" people in my life. And, by "successful" I don't necessarily mean "wealthy" (Unfortunately, the word success is too often tied only to financial success). However, I sincerely believe that every successful person I have met has one thing in common - they do not fear risk.

The fear of risk is perhaps the single greatest factor that separates the "doers" from the "followers." Followers fear risk. They get very uncomfortable with change - they do not like the unknown (Not that there is anything wrong with that, as Seinfeld would say). On the other hand, most successful people that I have met can not bear to follow - they must go first. They are not afraid to fail because they have the confidence that if they fail - even if they fail to great embarrassment and humiliation - they know they have it within themselves to try again and ultimately win. This trait is not one of arrogance at all, but rather it is based on a kind of inner-strength that may have been there since birth. Often, the battles that these kinds of people fight is with themselves - not external forces (Take it from me, there have been many times that I wanted to punch myself in the face).

I have always been curious if people can overcome their fear of risk. And what happens if they push past this fear and then fail. Will they have the ability to pick themselves up off the ground and try again or will they be so disappointed that they will return to their former self - never to take chances again?

More than anything, I hate to see people give up. As Lance Armstrong said, "pain is temporary but quitting lasts forever."