I know what you are thinking.  Is really going to talk about food again, and baking.  Well, yes, yes I am.  Today was a great day.  Do you feel a sense of accomplishment when you can provide for your family in the way of food.  I got up early this morning as we had run out of eggs and ran down to the store before the rest of the family was up.  I had taken my sourdough starter out of the fridge last night and fed it so this morning I was excited to make sourdough pancakes for the family.

Let me tell you....yum, yum if I do say so myself.  I stopped at the local produce stand...how nice is that...and grabbed some blueberries and strawberries.  The pancakes were sourdough with blueberries, sausage links, scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese, and of course some sliced strawberries and blueberries as well. 

Is it weird that I gain some of my self worth by cooking for the family.  I have to tell you, that when I cook, if I cook for the sake of cooking without the intent of the family thanking me, it is much better.  Do you know what I mean.  People that do things out of the goodness of their heart, but if you don't bend over backwards to thank them and tell them how great they are for doing "something out of the goodness of their heart" you are somehow a mean person.  Wouldn't you think if someone was really doing it out of the goodness of their heart truly, accolades, recognition, or any of the like would not be necessary? 

I baked some Walnut Bread knots.  They were intersting.  Actually quite tasty but it was with a standard commercial yeast.   I have to tell you, after working with the sourdough starter over the past couple of weeks, sure makes you want to thank the person who invented commercial yeast.

Made another nice loaf of sourdough bread today.  Had that with the family tonight.  Made some spaghetti with home made sauce and meatballs.  All in all, what a better way to spend a Sunday.  Family, baking, a bit of TV if you must know, and oh yeh, I got talked into making cookies tonight by one of my three year olds.

Tried a new recipe from King Arthur Flour that is suppose to be fool proof.  Apparently I am a fool, because it didn't have enough flour and I event weighed the ingredients so I put the exact right amount of flour in.  I am the fool because I knew the recipe was off and cooked a batch anyways.  Flat, mess.  Great taste though.  Tweaked the last batch by adding some more flour.  Don't know, but I may have a new go to chocolate chip recipe which says a lot.  I have tried lots and lots and lots and never found one that I liked as much as the simple Toll House Cookie recipe on the back of the chocolate chip bag....funny how and oldie can be such a goodie!

Do you ever wonder how you get everything done you are responsible for?  I know I do.  The past week has been crazy.  Last Thursday flying to San Jose, CA.  Four jam packed days of training, and fun.  Fly back to Portland on Monday.  Go to a meeting Monday night, jump in the car on Tuesday and drive to Central Washington.  Central Washington on Tuesday and Wednesday, drive to Boise, ID on Wednesday evening.  Thursday, work in Boise, ID, drive back to Central Washington on Thursday night.  Friday morning, work, drive back to Lake Oswego, OR for a recognition party, finally back to Camas, WA late Friday night, to be back on the road 8 am in the morning to head back to Lake Oswego.

Believe it or not, riding in the passenger seat as KayCee drives making a blog input finally headed home for good.  Well, at least until Monday morning when we get to do it all over again.

It is a crazy life where things get out of balance, and the entire time wondering if we are on the right track yet knowing at the same time we are; weird but true.  With absolute clarity having our goals in clear site now, the temporary sacrifices are so worth it.  The idea of being on a path where the only real lifestyle choices truly lie at the end of a career, at the end or our life is such a foreign concept to us.  It always has been.  Grabbing hold of that entrepreneurial spirit and seizing control of our families destiny is empowering, liberating, and at the end of the day the path we know we are to be on.

I am sure you are all wondering how the first loaf of bread came out from my new venture on creating a tradition that we can pass down to our family and kids.  A quick refresher.  Last week I started a sourdough bread starter that we can grow as a family, enjoy the company of family in friends in enjoying the fruits of our labor, and create a story.

You must feed the sourdough starter everyday.  I started with 1 cup of unbleached bread flour, and one cup of warm water.  I mixed it in an old Jelly Belly container, as it was clear, and allowed us to see "inside the starter."  It is important to not only view the starter (that is the flour/water mixture in case you are wondering, I thought it was some kind of exotic brew, but nope) from the top for activity (bubbles, smell, growth), but also see inside.

After day one, I took out 1 cup of starter from the jelly belly container, and added 1/2 cup of new flour and 1/2 cup of new warm water and mixed the starter left in the container, the new flour, and new water.

Oh, by the way, the container is simply sitting on the counter all day every day at this point.  Be sure to mix, or swirl the starter several times each day to keep the little fellas we are growing in contact with new food (flour).  Also, keep the starter covered.  I am using the yellow cap that came on the jelly belly container and I punched a few holes in the top to allow the mixture to breath.

Funny thing is, I am told (or at least this is what I read all over the bread blogs) that with the same flour, and same water, but creating a starter in different parts of the country, the end product (bread) will have a different tasted due to air conditions.  The little critter of bacteria and yeast is ALIVE!

Anyways, each day, went like the day before, bubbles started to form, that sourdough smell started to brew.  Then, we went to San Jose, so Howard, my father in law was tasked with caring for our new family pet.  Same thing, dump 1 cup of starter, add 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup bread flour, and stir, then swirl a few more times throughout the day.

Get back from San Jose (gone 3 days), the little critter was all grown up.  The volume had more than double in the container, it had the sweet, sour smell that is indicative of sourdough.

Now, I decided to give it a try.  Mixed in 1 cup warm water, and 1 cup of bread flour and mixed it up.  Set it on the counter in an open container (i.e. dumped it out from its Jelly Belly home into a glass Pyrex container (NO METAL I AM TOLD SHOULD TOUCH YOUR STARTER).  I left, went out and did a meeting, and when I came back, the volume had nearly doubled (about 3 hours, but again, it sounds like every starter is different in terms of speed) and it was white frothy on top which told me it was done and ready to go.

Now follow the recipe.  The new mixture in the Pyrex is the Proofed starter that the sourdough recipe will call for a certain amount.  Stir the proofed starter which will reduce the volume and mix up the ol recipe.  My called for 2 cups of starter, about 3 cups of flour, 4 tsp sugar (feeds the yeast and helps it to rise), 2 tsp salt (helps kill the bacteria which eats the sugar for your yeast), and a couple of tbsp of olive oil.  That is it.  Mix, need, rise, degas (flatten the bread), form shape of bread, rise, cook for 35-40 minutes at 350 degree.

Done.  Okay, I haven't tasted it.  I had to leave yesterday while the bread was still rising.  One thing I learned.  Don't cut the score marks on the top of the bread before it rises.  It needs that continuous skin that is formed during needing to keep the gases in that causes the rise.  Howard, again to the rescue.  Reformed the dough so the cuts were gone.  Let it rise, baked it, took it out to early, cut a couple of slices, realized it wasn't done, put it back in (for those bakers out there, you know that doesn't work well), but all in all, it finished up, and he said it had a good taste.  Don't know what it looks like, or tastes like, but I know it works, and so the story begins!

The doormat, the jerk and the lizard brain


The best reason to be a jerk at work is that of course no one will listen to you or support you or embrace your ideas--you're a jerk.


The best reason to be a doormat at work is that in your effort to get along, to be nice, and to go with the flow, of course you won't be expected to stand up and shout, "follow me" when your ideas might take you in a different direction.
Both extremes are the refuge of the lizard brain, the voice of the resistance. They reward the desire to fit in, not to stand out.


"It's not my job" is a comforting refrain when you'd like to hide out. So is, "they all hate me and won't do what I say."


Fear is the driver here, it's fear that pushes people in either of these two directions. That's because in between the two extremes lies responsibility and opportunity and the requirement that you actually do work that matters.
The hard part, the part that gets you rewarded, is understanding that sometimes it is best to use common sense and toe the line, while other times you are facing fear that must be overcome.
Linchpins might be afraid, but they know precisely what they're afraid of. And then they do something constructive about it.

The above was posted on Seth Godin's blog.  If you don't know who Seth is, he is an expert in the area of sales.  Isn't it interesting his analysis of fear being a major motivator in how people show up in their work lives.  The reality, in my opinion, fear drives many things we do, not just in our work lives, but family, social, health, you name it, fear drives us more.

Fear of Loss as we talk about in our industry is motivating more so to most people that the desire for gain.  If you feel like you are about to lose out on an opportunity to advance in your life whatever it may be, the fear of losing out drives more than the result of moving forward on an opportunity.

Interesting how once we move into action, if we continue to focus on the fear associated with action, we most likely will get exactly that, the fear outcome.  To be able to truly focus on the big picture, the goal, the prize if you will must be more important than the idea of not acquiring the goal.

We all know people in our lives that focus so much on the negative things in their lives, and then wonder why they have so many bad things happen to them. 

On the flip side, we also know people who it seems like they consistantly are at the right place at the right time.  I know that it is their focus.  Focus on the positive, not the negative.  KayCee and I have both been in a world over the last 5 years where it was easy to focus on the positive, because, to be honest with you, it was quite simple to earn an amazing income in real estate.

On the flip side of that, when our real estate world started to crumble, I knew with absolute clarity that our situation would get better.  I didn't know how at first, and the desire to have stability and lifestyle were a driving factor. 

The popular saying, or perhaps a new saying to some, "When the why/goal is big enough, the how to doesn't matter."

In a nut shell, there are a million different ways to show up in life, and a million different ways to go after our desires in life.  At the end of the day, we get to make the decsion of what to focus on, and how intensely we focus on them.

How often do you think back throughout your life at defining moments.  Moments that were without question a game changer.  Perhaps at the time, the magnitude of the decision may or may not carried the potential weight that in hindsight it so clearly did. 

Throughout my life, I know of several defining moments for me.  Some good, some bad, but all of them have brought me to the place where I am today....which to be honest with you, I wouldn't change for a second.

Here are some game changers in my life.

1.  As a young boy around 10 years old if I remember right, I was sliding on the ice out in front of my house and I fell flat on my face leaving the better half of my front tooth placed in the ice.  I was wrestling competitively and had to wear a mask so I wouldn't break the tooth out again during practice and competition.  It really began to form some of my early childhood personality.  I really started to become reserved and somewhat introverted....I guess the easiest way is to say that I was shy.  As I got older into high school, the tooth began to turn yellow from the method it was replaced.  I sunk a bit deeper into my shyness as I just wouldn't smile.  I was embarrassed.  Interestingly enough, in college I finally was able to afford to have the tooth replaced with a crown.  It gave me more self confidence, but 10 years of introversion has been a process to work through.  Today, I continue to work on it and enjoy pushing my social comfort zones.

2.  Marrying my wife and the birth of our children has definitely been a decision in my life that has created amazing impact on my family, career, health, psychology, and so many other things.  In contrary to the above experience, this experience allowed me to do and be more than I ever thought possible.  To have someone in your life that is on the same page with a common future affirms and reinforces the path that we are on.  My children give me drive.  Prior to my children, I believe that I was a go through the motions kind of guy.  I have been fortunate to live a life that has allowed me have many successes that have come without major input of effort.  Seeing my children and knowing that to drive my life with a purpose has allowed me to stretch and push into areas that previously I did not push into because I did not have a driving purpose.

I have many more decisions that have creating defining moments, and will share more in coming posts.  What sorts of events define you?  Or should I say, what sorts of events do we allow to define ourselves.  We are the some total of the life experiences we have and how we choose to view that.  The choice in the matter brings the empowerment!

I have the extreme fortune this week to spend time with so many friends.  Isn't it interesting as we pass through life we have people come and go in our lives.  It is so rare that in a normal job, that we are able to truly find the sorts of relationships that stand the test of time.  In my opinion, having the shared work experience is typically not a bond that lasts.  Most of this is largely due to this idea that we don't choose our coworkers.  When we have no light at the end of the tunnel, and we know our task is to do day after day at a job we may or may not like and to make the best of it, we are forced to make a decision to not only stay and do, but to also make the best of it.  That is to say, we may or may not truly enjoy the people we work with, and we may or may not ever choose to become friends with them in another set of circumstances, but 8 hours per day, day after day, we better make the right choice on that one.

With that thought, it leads me back to my original thought, that I get to spend the weekend with friends.  Through my current business, we come together based on a common future and not a common past.  We come together out of a desire to better our lives and those that are open for the ride.  We are 100% volunteer to the cause as no one has to stay and everyone gets the choice to quit everyday, because for most of us, we start out in the beginning strictly for the soul concept of committing to a cause for our lives.  For those that stick it out in our business, and truly see that the right kinds of people when given the choice and more importantly opportunity to find their ways into your life, friendships founded in integrity, mutual respect, and gratitude are fostered.  And from those fostered friendships, we begin to see that real relationships, real friendships, real businesses partners truly build on the concept of one plus one equals far more than two.  In fact the right group of people, whether big or small, simply require a greater cause than each individual person to create that which is bigger than themselves.  In a word, its fun, in another word, its gratifying, in another word, its humbling, in another word, its inspiring and so many other words said and not yet known as our journeys continue on.

In sunny San Jose, CA.  Why you may ask.  That is a great question.  I don't know that I would ever choose to come to San Jose, but I can actually tell you it is quite a nice town.  Polite, fun folks who genuinely seem happy to have us here.  When I say us, I mean we are attending a major international convention for our business.  We are here to learn, network, get to know our team better, and at the end of the day capture a vision of what our company can provide to so many.  Look forward to jotting down a few ideas over the next couple of days.  Expecting a bit over 20,000 people, so just my cup of tea....lots of people...or not!

Tell me if this has ever happened to you.  You call into customer service and you have a simple thing that you are trying to resolve and you get escalated and escalated and rerouted again and again and yet again.

Let me tell you about my fun.  It all started about 2 months ago.  When KayCee and I moved to the Washington area, my cellular provider, Sprint, did not have coverage at our home.  Rather than pay the cancellation fee, we decided to ride the contract out.  The beginning of December I called Sprint to cancel my service as the end of the 2 years was the first week of January. Side note, did you know that you pay for a month in advance so if you call to cancel on the date  you actually are at your two years, there is a good chance you are going to pay for a month of service you are not planning on using.  When I called, they of course asked for my PIN code.  As I did not set one up when I started, I didn't know what it was.  The security question, right, we all love the security question. What was your first car.  Nope, I apparently don't know what my first car was, and in fact when I listed off every single car that I have ever owned, not a one of them matched.

To my luck, they let me know they could email me the information that was required to cancel to my email on file.  I asked what the email address they had on file was and yep, sure enough, it was one I use.

One day, two day, three days, and still no email with the information.  At that point, (I will take accountability as I didn't call back at that time) I got busy and let it go.  Of course, when I sat down yesterday, now two more months of service on a phone that I don't use totaled another $198 and some change.  Again, I called to make the final payment and cancel the service.  I once again went through the same process as before....no I don't know what my PIN is, and no I do not know what my first car was.  They said, oh, but we will allow you to make the payment, but we can't help you beyond that.......What?  That is odd to me.

Of course, this time being wiser, I said I wouldn't authorize the payment until I knew I could also cancel at the same time.  To my dismay, now there was the issue.  I get transferred to the cancellation department who says, nope, sorry can't help you, but you are in luck, we can email the information you need.

Perfect, (they told me to wait ten minutes), 10 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, still nothing.  I decide to go to the store to get it resolved in person.  Okay, here is my bad, when we moved from Verizon to Sprint, we changed the name to KayCee, don't remember why but we did, so yet again, sorry, you don't have the PIN when I walked into the store....I can take your payment, but can't help beyond that.

As you can imagine, frustration level RED by now, and I call KayCee.  She buzzes on down to the Sprint store, keep in mind she is in the Tricities Washington, to get it taken care of.  She walks in, they take her money and payment and then say, oh, sorry, we can't help you with the rest of this because you don't have.....DRUM ROLL PLEASE....the, you guessed it, the PIN....you have to call the 800 number to get that straightened out....Oh my goodness.

KayCee calls the 800 number who asks for the PIN and first car and of course as you all know, we have been down that road, and once again, Oh, you are in luck, we will email it to you.

Tick tock, tick tock, alas, no email.

I then call into the 800 number again today.  First gentlemen, Jose', nice fellow, asks for PIN and car, even tries a few cars, just in case he has the magic, and he says, you know, I can email that to you.  Getting wise finally, I say, can I spell my email address for you....and wow, what a suprise, they spelled Kole with a c, spelled Paramount with a pEramount and used and underscore instead of a -.....But, of course, they can't change the email information, because how are they to verify I am who I am. 

So, he apologizes and forwards me to a supervisor.  The supervisor, nice guy named Keven, says you can go online and take care of it.....You guessed it, as I explained to the Employee of Sprint, they ask for the PIN to set it up.....of course he says oh no, you can do it.  With Kevin on the phone, I jump on, try to register, and Well color me stupid, the PIN is required, and I'm back to the same point. 

Kevin says, let me forward this to a supervisor, and I say, but aren't you a supervisor, because Jose forwarded me to you, and he said oh no, I'm the customer support, and I said wasn't Jose', and he said no, and I said Oh my goodness in my head of course. 

Kevin forwards me to Dave who turns out to actually be a supervisor and Dave fortunately was briefed from Kevin and finally didn't ask me for my PIN.  One step ahead.  However, Dave gets a little huffy and tells me how can he be sure I am who I am, and I say how can you be sure I am who I am when obviously the information you have on file for me is 100% inaccurate and I ask him to just fix the email and he quotes an FCC guideline and says I have to go to the store to get it resolved.

I say, well, there in lies my problem as I have already done that, and while you tell me that they gave me the wrong information, I am telling Dave that I have a lack of confidence and no desire to go back to the store to simply be referred back to the 800.

Are you tired yet.  He finally verifies a bunch of information from my bill and says okay, you just missed the billing cycle (I'm thinking weird), so it will be March 5th and you will be done. 

And the wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round, round and round!

http://holykaw.alltop.com/43-of-canadians-prefer-bacon-over-sex

You have got to be kidding me.  I was on alltop checking out some of the latest headlines, and I came across this little tidbit.

There was a recent study that showed 43% of Canadians prefer bacon to sex.  Seriously, that is weird.  Now, I will tell you, I do enjoy a good piece of bacon like the next guy....in fact, ask my wife, if we make a couple of pieces of bacon for the family, I will always double whatever she makes because I would just assume eat nothing but bacon for breakfast on some days!

What kind of foods might you give up.  Or that is to say, if you had a decision to eat something over something else, what might that be.  I give up lots of things for food.  Perhaps that is why I am such a fatty!

You may or may not be aware of the fact that I enjoy cooking a great deal.  Now, I can tell you that I am not able to cook as much as I might like to, but when I have an opportunity, I am always willing to try something new.

The interesting thing to note I find is that many people either bake or cook.  For most of us home novices, we probably take a stab at both of the broader genre's.  I have decided to begin baking bread again as in my late teens and early twenties I used to bake bread quite regularly.  The odd thing is, when you haven't been in the game for a while, you start to lose some of that "feel" that comes with experience.

Sourdough bread is what made me decide to jump back on the bandwagon.  A bit of nestalgia I suppose.  For my children, I have begun a sourdough starter, that if all goes well, I will continue to keep and feed weekly.  And one day, I would hope to pass that starter onto them.  It seems so interesting as I have researched the idea of just making a sourdough starter that there are people who have starters that are more than 200 years old.  My chemistry background would lead me to believe that there is still some small amount, no matter how miniscule of that original flour and water as you always add to the existing starter.  What life, what stories, and what history we can build around the table as family and friends come together for the feast of life. 

And so it is, a new chapter in the Mogel family history began today.  I'm excited, and like all goals keeping my eye on the big picture of what I am truly hoping to achieve, a family tradition, will keep me passionate about the weekly feeding of our new friend!

Read through the following blog and see how you measure up in a few categories!

http://www.openforum.com/idea-hub/topics/the-world/article/ghandis-neurons-the-practice-of-empathy-bruna-martinuzzi

“If there is any one secret of success,” said Henry Ford, “it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from his angle as well as your own.” This is empathy. Not an easy undertaking, even though scientists have now proven that we are indeed wired for empathy. In this fascinating video by Nova Science, we see how mirror neurons, also dubbed Gandhi’s neurons, act as a “neurological Wi-Fi” to help us connect with other people’s feelings.

Almost one hundred years after Henry Ford’s pronouncement, Dave Patnaik, in Wired to Care: How Companies Prosper When They Create Widespread Empathy shows how a variety of global successful organizations, from Nike to Harley Davidson, benefit from integrating empathy for the consumer as an integral part of their culture.

Empathy is our ability to recognize and identify with the concerns other people have. In short, it is our capacity to care for others besides ourselves. Not only does the ability to empathize make us more successful in our professional and personal lives, but it is also the decent thing to do. It’s the path of the mensch.

With our overloaded psyche and our fast-paced lives, our empathy skills can become corroded. How do we practice empathy? Here are a few pointers:

1. Don’t Take for Granted the Most Important People in Your Life. Is your unwavering focus on the finish line causing you to unintentionally neglect your family’s emotional needs? If so, you might derive inspiration from the poignant words of Brian G. Dyson, a former CEO of Coca-Cola:
   “Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. You name them-work, family, health, friends, and spirit-and you are keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls-family, health, friends, and spirit-are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged, or even shattered. They will never be the same. You must understand that and strive for balance in your life.”
2. Understand this Universal Human Fear. A fundamental fear experienced by most is the hidden fear of not measuring up. Recognize this and do your part to genuinely make those in your circle of influence feel that they are enough. It’s a powerful act of interpersonal philanthropy.
3. Cultivate an Executive Presence. Much has been written about what executive presence is but one thing is certain: those who possess it have “social generosity.” We invariably walk away from them feeling energized and better about ourselves. This is because they have empathy, the quality that makes them sense our need to feel important. They see us not as we are, but as who we could become. Simply put, they care about how we feel. What a wonderful gift it is, to be able to bestow this on those we encounter. One could argue that it is indeed impossible to have executive presence without empathy because a major requirement for executive presence is the ability to connect with others.
4. Stop Negative Listening Habits. Adele Lynn isolated six negative listening habits, including the Rebuttal Maker (listening long enough to formulate his rebuttal), the Advice Giver (jumping too quickly to give unsolicited advice), the Interrupter (more anxious to speak his words than to listen), the Logical Listener (rarely asking about the underlying feelings or emotions attached to a message), the Happy Hooker (using the speaker’s words only as a way to get to his own message: “That’s nothing, let me tell you what happened to me”), and perhaps the worst of all, the Faker (pretending to listen). Do you inadvertently fall into any of these poor listening habits? Self-awareness precedes self-management. Making someone feel that they are truly listened to is the most foundational aspect of empathy.
5. Beware of the Pygmalion Effect. How you persistently view someone that you closely interact with can have an effect on how they perform—a self-fulfilling prophecy. People are very good at sensing how we view them. We translate this through a multitude of micro gestures: frequently checking email while they talk to us, picking up the phone when they enter our office, or looking away when they speak at meetings. All of these seemingly insignificant gestures are posters with a clear message: you are not important. Put yourself in their shoes for a moment and try to experience what that must feel like. Developing empathy involves putting our foot on the brake for a moment to ponder such issues. Our First Nations people have a beautiful saying for empathy—it is: “Walk a mile in my moccasins.”

Empathy helps us forge positive connections with others. It’s a state of mind and a way of being that act as a catalyst to help us create positive communities for the greater good.

Bruna Martinuzzi is the President of Clarion Enterprises Ltd., Clarion Enterprises Ltd. a firm that specializes in emotional intelligence, leadership and presentation skills training. Her latest book, The Leader as a Mensch, explains how you can become the kind of person others want to follow.

 As you know, I am a big personal growth kind of person, and I came across the above article and it was so incredibly interesting.  If all of the the parts are taken from the article, it boils down to leadership in a nutshell.

I suppose I could then draw the conclusion that in order to be a good leader, we must be truly empathetic.  In my experience, I would say empathy has more power to influence than nearly any other attribute.  As John Maxwell states, a leadership is simply the ability to influence others.

I can tell you when it comes to those that are closest to me, I fail terribly in the empathy category.  Especially with the kids.  Trying to be in tune with my children's needs and still staying focused on our goals for our family as a whole is always challenging.  I believe if there was no light at the end of the tunnel for our current endeavors it would be difficult to maintain our current activity.  With that being said, it really is no different than when we were working our previous jobs, so I guess we are goal oriented and driven to succeed.  Better to succeed with hard work and consistency to provide family freedom then to work at 90% and sacrafice family time and never hit the mark.

Being a good listener is so critical.  Eye, contact and engage are the key.  Let things slide is important too.  The idea of always being right or its your way or the highway is so counterproductive.  People love to talk about themselves.....let them!

Believing in people before they believe in themselves.  Isn't that what being a leader is, or a coach.  To recognize the talent and potential of people around you and to empower them with your belief in them is such a gratifying experience.  When someone steps up to the plate, knees shaking, but you are confident they will perform and then they knock it out of the park when they catch their stride.  What could be better!

http://www.youngentrepreneur.com/blog/100-top-entrepreneurs-who-succeeded-without-a-college-degree/?

Check out the link above and see a quick list of 100 people that you know that do not have a college degrees so the article talks about that question.  Is it a requirement for real success to have a college degree.

I think it is important to take a look at the list.  When I first started looking at it, it starts with Abraham Lincoln, and in my opinion, it was such a rarity in the early to mid 1800's to have a college degree, that was not necessarily that impressive.  Delve into that badboy though. 

Here is my take on it.  I do have a college degree, but I can tell you, if you happen into a passion for what you do in college, I believe that you will have the ability to have success.  To have passion for whatever you do is a critical piece of the pie.  That passion for what you do can be in the pursuit of your goals and perhaps it is truly the goal that you are after.  Many of us have heard the saying when the goal is big enough, the how to does not matter.  There are quite obviously an infinite number of ways to be successful, but at the end of the day, there has to be an underlying passion infused with an incredible work ethic and the desire to master your goals. 

Clear and concise goals are the cornerstone of all success.  It a rarity that we find people that are successful that have not proclaimed a clear path to achieve a set of goals. 

I believe that college definitely can be a factor to build a foundation of success upon.  With that being said, I believe it is just one small part of the big puzzle.  In my case, I didn't enjoy what I was doing in college one bit.  It is however the "proper" thing to do in todays day and age.  If you want to be successful it is engrained in our psyche that we are to pursue education.  Here is the kicker.  Education can be found in an infinite number of ways.

The science of success should be a requirement at the high school level.  I believe our youth armed with the proper knowledge of what it will truly take to be successful will be better armed to truly prosper in the 21st century.  For me, prior to my involvement with my current company, I had never been introduced to the idea of these success principles. 

There was always that idea of goals and goal setting, but it was never with a clear intent or a thorough understanding.  That is the key.  The old adage of knowledge is power....not always true.  Knowledge is power when the knowledge is applied in the pursuit of your goals.  We all know incredibly well read people who are not successful.  Action proceeds results. 

In a nut shell, get educated on what you love, and apply what you love to the pursuit of your goals!

I guess I should prefice everything I'm about to say as 100% opinion.  I can say that most of it is rooted in the information that I have from the real estate industry as a builder and from my wifes long term career as a mortgage broker.

Now, let me also preface, this is not meant to be a negative, just a serious dose of reality check in case a few of us are living under a rock or simply choose not to smell the roses.

I watch the economic "recovery" and I have to ask myself if it is a real recovery or not.  I know that last month the unemployment rate was just shy of 10% which means walk down the side walk and one out of every 10 people walking by you doesn't have a job.  Even more so than that is the fact that the underemployment rate is right at 16.6% which is a combination of unemployed and folks that still are working but have their hours cut back.  Scary.

I truly believe that the real estate market is such a major driver of the economic health and stability.  In talking my friends who are still building or involved in the trades, the slump continues with no real prospects of returning.  Some of the largest companies in the Boise, ID area where I was a builder have officially shut their doors.  And when I talk about larger companies, these are companies that had serious staying power and actually had the ability to continue with their doors open, but the amount of money going out was simply to keep paying their employees, noble, but at the end of the day, that can only go on for so long.

As far as the numbers on forclosures and that sort of thing, I can tell you that the banks simply are not pursuing forclosures at this point.  I do not know a ton of people, and I am aware of more than 10 people right now, that are pushing two years in their homes without making payments, and they have not even been served preliminary paperwork to start the forclosure process.  That is scary.  I understand the banks would rather have a homeowner in the property protecting their interest, but at the same time, when these homes hit the market as forclosures, won't the prices continue to drive down.

By no means am I a financial wiz, but when the additional forclosures hit the books, will that have serious consequences on the banks numbers?  Would that potentially cause some economic issues with investor confidence. 

The slow down of the real estate market affects every service industry, manufacturing industry, you name it.  I can tell you, the real estate community likes to spend money.  When those dollars are gone, the resturaunts, botiques, vacation rentals, and all of the extras start to suffer as well....i.e. more job loss.  The economy lost another 30,000 jobs in January again.  So, are we really recovering, when we still are not creating a net job increase.  I guess its not getting as bad as fast is the moral of the story.

The reason why I said don't be that guy, is because I like to have a positive outlook on life and I believe I do, but there also has to be a rationalization of reality.

What Has Happened to ACN?

Today has dawned a new day or a new era for KayCee and I.  I officially have been charged with handling our personal finances.  I have resisted, begged, pleaded, and ultimately I lost out.  I have always handled the finances for the bulk of our businesses and with our networking business, the need for managing our business finances has all but vanished as there is such a small investment of cost to operate.

With that said, I am putting out requests for those of you that utilize a good personal finance program.  You know, track bills, pay bills, track income, track investments, etc.  I have always utilized quickbooks pro for my businesses which is most likely what I will use for our personal finances, just a bit of overkill.

I did download a free copy of Microsoft Money which my understanding is it will no longer be supported here shortly so it is definitely a temporary situation.  Does anyone have any experience with Intuit Quicken which appears to be a slightly watered down version of Intuit Quickbooks.  Anyways, just throwing that out there if anyone has any feedback on what you use and what kind of systems you find beneficial for managing your households I would appreciate it!

Just a quick one today.  There are a number of great books that I have enjoyed bringing into my life over the past year on my journey to grow personally and professionally.

1.  Think and Grow Rich--Napolean Hill
2.  How to Win Friends and Influence People--Dale Carnegie
3.  The 21 Irrifutable Laws of Leadership--John Maxwell
4.  Excuses Be Gone--Wayne Dyer
5.  Anything by Bryan Tracy
6.  Anything by Jim Rohn
7.  Anything by Tony Robbins

What are your favorites?

In an interesting economy, where most every business is fighting tooth and nail to maintain some sort of viability, what really sets one option apart from the other?

Is it price, service, value, or is it a combination of all of those things.  In my opinion, the most critical point in any business is the ability to provide exceptional customer service.  And quite obviously, or not so quite, is the idea that everyone is a customer.  Not just the people actually putting the physical dollars into our tills, its each and every person that makes the system tick.  As an employee, how can we be a person of value to those that we work for, and with.  And even more than that, how can we be in service to those that work for us?

What brings up this topic?  I was on a shopping excursion just the other day to a major electronics store.  Before my visit, I had called ahead to ensure the product I was in search of was available.  Speaking to a very pleasant gentlemen over the phone, he was able to find the product and ensure it was available.

Jumping into the car and driving the 30 minutes or so to the store, I was excited about the ability to zip in, grab my item, and get back with my purchase prior to a meeting that I required it for.

Oh my goodness.  I must tell you that I was floored when I walked in.  I walked back to the department where my product was (a couple of computer items for my Mac) and asked a young man if he could show me where the item was.  He walked past me to the area without much of a hello or hi.  No biggie, I definitely am not one that needs much coddling.

As we approach the area where my item is located, he grabs an item that is not what I requested and pushed it at me.  After looking at it, I let him know that it wasn't what I was looking for.  He grumpily told me that it was all they had.  After letting him know a gentlemen on the phone had found exactly what I was looking for, he looked at me and told me, well, that is all I know about these items and stood there with his backed now turned to me looking down the aisle.  Again, no big deal.

I thanked him for his assistance and he sauntered off.  Upon his departure, I looked through the product section he had taken me too, and found the part.  Also needing other products that he didn't bother to ask me if there was anything else I needed, I again walked up to the customer service desk for the area.

When he saw me standing at the desk, he came over to me and said is there something else you needed.  I told him I appreciated him directing me to the section for the initial part I needed, but I would like to have someone else assist me from this point forward.

He got very defensive, and asked why was it that I didn't want him to help him.  I let him know again that I appreciated his assistance in showing me the section, but also let him know that based on his comments as to his limited knowledge on the topics I would prefer to work with someone more knowledgeable.  At this point, he proceeded to tell me that he had done everything he could to help me.  Again, I thanked him, and let him know I was choosing to work with someone else.  I am the customer and that is my choice.  He then began to argue with me and tell me that he was very good at his job and that he thought it was ridiculous that I was asking to work with someone else.

At this point, I just had to say, "Really (refer to blog from yesterday), I'm done speaking with you."

And to my luck, the gentlemen who spoke with me on the phone was standing there and helped facilitate the rest of my transactions.

The moral of the story.  Service is king and every business is service related.  If you don't provide it, then don't expect to survive.  The store I was at was a large chain and I'm sure they will not skip a beat with this young mans service inadequacies, but I hope for his sake he has the ability to turn over a new leaf and find the key to success is to help enough people get what they want, and through that, you will get everything you want (Zig Ziglar Paraphrase)!

Do you ever find yourself wondering what the heck you are doing.  You have that overwhelming urge to just look at a situation and you just simply say, really?  Like really, are you kidding me I am seriously here or seriously doing this or you seriously did that or are you kidding me on that price, you know, Really?

My wife and I are having a fabulous time, hanging out in a distant land (i.e. anywhere other than at home with the kiddos!), enjoying each others company, but truly we are out and about to build business and feed those beautiful little kiddos, and you have that situation where you show up to build business and you walk in, and you say really?  We hung out in that distant land and didn't have to big of a payoff.

Okay, lets shift the attitude.  Because in the process of saying Really, it is always one step ahead of where we were at before.  I suppose its that whole idea of glass half full or half empty. Today, we will definitely look at the half full cup, because at the end of the day, the half empty people are the dream stealing friends, the ones that somehow seem to find a cloud on a sunny day, you know, I affectionately call them soul sucks. 

You know them, the friends that you feel spent after spending a bit of time with them.  The ones that take the life literally right out of you.  The brighter/dimmer affect.  Every day when I walk out of the house, its an opportunity to provide light (brighter) in others, or choose to provide the clouds that block out the light (dimmer) for others around you.

I choose to be a brighter.  Focus on the positive.  I think when looking at any situation through the right perspective, there is always the ability to find something good in every situation no matter what.  I challenge anyone to throw out a situation that when looked at as a brighter there is no upside.  Come on, throw them at me!

What is this grind really about?  Do you ever find yourself asking that question.  I guess it could be summed up as the meaning of life.  For many men and women, me included, there comes a time and a place where there must be something more, some greater purpose for us in this world.  For me, I am still looking for the big bang fall from the sky tell me what its all about.

I do know that I have found a home as a teacher of sorts.  Perhaps not a teacher of math, sciences, or history, but a teacher of people in the prospect of helping people.  You may ask how that comes about.  It comes about purely by happenstance. 

A few years ago when I was building homes, I found that it became such a grind.  Now don't get me wrong, I know that I was a good solid builder and that produced a quality home that my clients could be proud of.  Is that and was that enough?

It is referred to as the midlife crisis by old people....of which I am not old, but am I old enough to be at that cross roads of starting to think about legacy.  Perhaps that is what that crisis is really about.  I can tell you, when I began to question myself and my purpose, it provided an avenue of creativity that was stagnate or to be honest with you, probably was never there to begin with.  I have always been a do it just good enough to win. 

That is sad to say, but I can tell you, whether it was sports, school, career, I have always been blessed with the ability to rise to the top with minimal efforts.  I wonder if passion for something would shift me out of drive into overdrive, or even better hyperdrive. 

With that said, Darren Hardy, the editor of Success magazine, has his BHAG for each year.  His Big Hairy Audacious Goal.  What is your BHAG?

I can't really believe that my blogging endeavor has already been derailed.  Assuming that I didn't manage to make it through my first full week with a blog a day, is it really possible for me to make it an entire year?

Isn't that so much how the story goes.  We begin the new year or a new quest or a new whatever you want to call it with hopes, dreams, aspirations of creating amazing things or in my case on this venture, something as simple as a blog a day. 

At the beginning of this year I set many new years resolutions, but this year it is different.  I know, I know what you are already thinking, that is what people always say.  This year, yes, this year will be different. 

For me, it is a different year.  It's about taking 100% accountability in this new season of my life.  My goal was simple.  Be my word to myself.  And through that, it is an absolute must (Thanks Tony Robbins for that line) that I will be my word to all of those in my life and to my individual goals. 

Have you ever tried that on for size.  Be in integrity, being that which you say you are both inside and out.  I believe that is the general gist of the word integrity, being one or whole. 

I have mentioned the diet that I am doing, and it is such an interesting thing that happens about 8 pm every night. That is usually my time to play, or in this case eat, eat, and then eat some more.  At about that same time every night, my brain starts telling me I have a decision to make.  I believe that decision goes something like this, to Eat, or not to Eat, that is the question.

The truth is, it is still a question, because I haven't been working at this new choice in my life to make it a habit.  That is ultimately what it boils down to.  Until that thing you said you would do long after the mood you said it in is gone (Paraphrased from George Zaluki) becomes a habit, it is a choice. 

We've all been there where we work out, work out, work out, for 3 weeks and then life happens, and a day passes that we fall off the regime.  The next day comes along and then we work out, work out, work out, and the end of the following week we go on a family trip where we miss two days.  Most studies show that a habit is not formed until repetition of the habit is repeated without fail for a minimum of 28 days, i.e. a month.

Think about when you get out of the shower.  This one will make you think.  Do you dry yourself off the exact same way, same manner, and same speed every day.  Bet you will think about it tomorrow, but those simple acts have become such a part of who we are that it comes without thinking, there is no choice involved.  For true change to take place, we have to stay at something long enough where it no longer is a choice. 

Come on Kole, get this blog thing done!!!!