Monday, June 27, 2011

How are YOU doing?

It is that time of year that is almost the mid-point, summer is pushing everyone really hard, vacation time is upon us, and the last thing most of us are thinking about right now is our New Years Resolutions.
Did you make some this year? Most of us look at 5 key areas of our lives and make some type of promise to ourselves to do better in the coming year, so now is a great time to stop and evaluate where we stand at the half way point. According to some research many folks are doing well in at least one area, and about 5% are thriving in all 5 areas of our daily life.

Here are the 5 general categories:
CAREER: what you do every day to earn a living.
COMMUNITY: your level of engagement where you live.
SOCIAL: your personal relationships with the people you see regularly.
FINANCIAL: your money and how you spend it.
PHYSICAL: your health and how you take care of your life daily.

All five of these areas can be changed by doing very small changes that can have a huge impact in your total life. The key is to intentionally choose to make and continue with those small changes. I saw a TV report last night about a man who weighed 375 pounds and was literally eating himself to death. He had lost his job due to not being able to do the work, wasn't involved in his surroundings, had very few friends, was going backwards rapidly in the money area, and obviously had absolutely no health or physical activities. He finally hit the bottom one day and started with small changes, which led to bigger changes, and now he has lost over 150 pounds and is showing others how to change their lives as he did. He has accomplished all of this in only 2 short years - after he had spent almost 30 years getting himself into that condition.
It can be done!

Why not right now, today, take a few minutes and evaluate those 5 elements listed above and see where YOU are doing? Decide if you are happy with the findings, and if so, continue your good life, if not, make a small change in habit in those areas you find you have needs and see what happens in the next few weeks and months.
I suggest a goal of making 2011 one of the best years you've ever had! Let me know where you stand and how you are doing.
Steve

Monday, June 20, 2011

Getting Noticed

Have you thought about what you are doing in both your personal life as well as business life to get noticed?
Since yesterday was Father's Day I was afforded the luxury of getting to do exactly what I wanted (as long as my children stayed happy)and fortunately for me my children are all grown (one with a 2 year old girl who really made me appreciate this special day even more) so they were perfectly content to let me read the paper and surf the net as I wished.
What I discovered was that so many folks today are doing weird or crazy things just to get noticed. Now it used to be that only car dealers did that on TV, but today it seems as if everyone is doing it. I wonder when the buying public became so stupid as to fall for these outrageous tactics? I also wonder if it really increases business for long term customers or just gets the few curious bottom feeders who drain the life out of your business with demanding everything but not being willing to pay for anything, thus allowing you the opportunity to put yourself out of business by doing business with them and meeting their demands.
I have many friends in the retail and wholesale sides of business in the ceramic tile and stone world - good friends - who also happen to be good business people. Rarely do we see them doing crazy or outrageous things to get noticed.
Oh they are noticed, but it is for the RIGHT reasons, such as dong more than expected, doing everything correctly the first time around, giving value for the price paid, etc, etc.
I wonder often how quickly our business world would improve if everyone just decided to provide QUALITY products and services at fair prices and go back to just allowing the marketplace to decide which company to use, rather than paying attention to the publicity stunts that some do just to get noticed?
These are my thoughts on this subject, I'd be honored to hear your thoughts.
Steve

Sunday, June 12, 2011

When Opportunity Appears

Someone once defined "Opportunity" as the willingness to give up something in hopes of getting something even better. I thing that word "HOPES" is what keeps so many of us from pursuing the opportunities that we sometimes see in front of us.

Rarely is opportunity available without having to give up something in return, money, time, whatever, but you must be willing to take that step of walking away from your comfort zone to take advantage of the chance for the opportunity.

What opportunity are you facing in your life? Do you see the opportunities that are available to you? Are you alert to the opportunities that appear in your business or life regularly? Are you actually LOOKING for the opportunities?

During my life I have tried to make a habit of actually LOOKING for opportunities and then being willing to trade what I have for what the opportunity offers.
How about you? Are you actively looking for opportunities today?

These are my thoughts today, what are yours?

Steve

Monday, June 6, 2011

June 6th 1944 - "D" Day

On D Day our President, FDR, went on live national radio (very little TV back then) and lead this country in prayer for the safety of our troops who were involved in that invasion.
Not trying to be either political or religious, but just a few short years later we can't even imagine something like that happening, or can we?
As I see it, what helped make this country of ours so great is that we build this nation on a foundation of ethical and moral standards that we seem to have lost today. Maybe the best way we can honor those troops who fell dying for freedom back on D Day is to take a moment and think about why we can't move back to those values and standards that made our country great.
The Devil is the only one who try's to tell us (A) you can't go back, (B) you will never be forgiven for your errors, and (C) nobody cares. He is wrong on all 3 counts.
I'm proud to be an American every single day, not always proud of what some people do in our country, but I served in the Army to add my help to their rights to say and do stupid things that I disagree with.
Please THINK today and reflect on the lessons of that June 6th 1944 and what it COULD and SHOULD mean to America today. I believe that the past 67 years worth of sliding away from our standards, values, and morals can be reversed if the American people decide that is what we want to do. I for one am ready!

May God continue to Bless our Country!

These are my thoughts today, what are yours?
Steve