Be a lamp – a lifeboat – or a ladder I came across this saying a while back and it made me stop and think about who in our lives have been there as a lamp, a lifeboat, or a ladder. I’m sure for most of us it would be easy to choose someone who is a lamp in our life – someone who believed we’d come into our own one-day and be the person we were born to be. That one person, who against all odds of human reasoning liked us, loved us and believed in us and today […]
Harness Your Power
Recently, I was reading a review about Laird Hamilton’s life that will be seen in an upcoming documentary called “Take Every Wave.” Laird is a legendary big wave surfing star who, according to the write-up, is as polarizing as he is acclaimed. I know a bit of who he is from magazine articles and his one-time marriage to volleyball star Gabrielle Reece, so in reading the write-up I was curious about how he pushed himself to set aside his fear of the water and waves and sharks and whatever else lurks in the ocean to become the master of the elements. […]
Leaving Greatness in the Graveyard
A while back I saw a motivational video about pushing through the pain to achieve the goal of greatness. It was a video of famous and not-so-famous athletes who worked hard day after day, night after night, to be the best, understanding that success is a mixture of blood, sweat and tears. Today they are recognized sports figures who are greatly rewarded by their abilities. As the video is playing you can hear voices—sort of sounds like preachers in the background giving the message of determination, power, fight and success—and there is one section of the video where the words […]
It’s not what happens to you
It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters. Epictetus There is no easy way to say it and no need to sugar coat the truth that for many could be life-changing, so I’ll hit you straight up and remind you that “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” You know this to be true, and yet it is so hard to let offenses, real and imagined, go without a fight or at least a great put-you-in-your-place-amazingly-smart-aleck comment. Recently, I was speaking at a leadership luncheon, and I […]
Don’t Complain About Things You Are Not Willing to Change
I have just about reached my limit with people who complain about things they are not willing to change. You hear it all the time from some in your group. They are the ones who whisper loudly that someone else didn’t do their job or someone else didn’t tell them some tiny bit of useless information or someone else said something to someone. And you know the rest of the excuses of the one person who blames their lack of accomplishments on everyone else but themselves. Today, I have a lot to say to those people. What are we supposed […]
Don’t Be a Clapper
Recently in an interview session, I asked my client what was the best advice she’d ever received and she replied, “Don’t be a clapper.” What,” I said, “what does that mean”? She said that all her life her parents had told her never to stand on the sideline of life but to jump into whatever opportunity came her way so she wouldn’t be one of the crowd, the audience or those in the stands, enjoying the action but never participating in the thrilling excitement of the game, the sweat and tears of the action. She said that those sideline people […]
Business, Politics and Pageants Have a Lot in Common!
For many years I was a rock star pageant interview coach…I know I know your probably surprised to know that at one time I was one of the Southeasts top pageant interview coaches for Miss America, Miss USA, Little Miss, the Rodeo queens, the cow queens and watermelon queens and the list goes on… at one time I had more winners on the stage than any coach in the Carolina’s and probably the Southeast. But what’s interesting – as I learned early on… it’s really not me but by coaching my clients to dig deep within themselves and learn to […]
I Get by With a Little Help From My Friends
I always liked that Beatles song. Most of them I’m ambivalent about, but something about the tune and truth of having strength in numbers makes me feel safe in the world today. Like many of you, I have groups of friends for different aspects of my life. I have church friends, work friends, former work friends, political friends (former political friends), my mom’s friends, my brothers’ friends and my sweet neighbors. I even have a small group of more mature friends whose company I love. In the midst of it all, I have a small group of trusted friends that […]
Aspire to Inspire before you Expire…
I was sitting with friends and we were chatting about our morning rituals – what is the first thing you do in the morning when you get out of bed… Some folks head straight for coffee pot or put on their running shoes and go for a quick run some stay in bed and read emails or hit the snooze button. I head straight to the shower so I can get dressed to be ready for the day. Being self-employed, for more years than I can remember, I learned early on to get up and get going and get ready […]