January 31, 2007
Technology, Common Myths and Quick Fixes by Kyle Wilson

The internet, email, iPods, BlackBerries, TiVo, etc., are all amazing technological advances that have created many advantages and conveniences readily at our disposal, but if we are not careful we might miss the real keys to success -- as Jim Rohn would say, "Designing a life versus just making a living."

It reminds me of something the comedian, George Carlin, said after his wife's recent passing:

"The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers; wider freeways but narrower viewpoints. We spend more but have less; we buy more but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families; more conveniences but less time. We have more degrees but less sense; more knowledge but less judgment; more experts yet more problems; more medicine but less wellness.

We've learned how to make a living but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon and back but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things."

Wow! Well said!

Carlin's quote raised this key question: Is everything moving at such a fast pace that we have trained ourselves to try and find the quick fix or overnight success formula in most of what we do, including our health, relationships, skills and finances?

As I went through the 20 plus hours of Classic Jim Rohn footage recorded in 1981, 1983 and 1985, I was continually reminded of the rock-solid principles and ideas Jim has shared over the past 40 years. Principles, that when followed, have had a profound impact on so many peoples lives! Why? Because principles do not change (regardless of technology). Whether it is a 12-year old, a 24-year old, a 40-year old or a senior citizen, we are all subject to the guiding principles of success.

Now, I also recently watched a new personal development movie making the central point that we are what we think about, and if we want something we must think about and speak it into being. And this is true in the sense that yes, whether in the form of praying, stating your intentions, or writing your goals out -- amazing things can and do begin to happen. Then I waited to hear the next point in the movie. But honestly, if there was a next point, I never got it. The whole movie seemed to keep restating point number one: You are and get what you think about.

Okay... But I think there is more to the equation.

During the movie, I couldn't stop thinking of Jim's simple formula: There are about a half dozen things that make 80% of the difference in any area of your life, and that success is based on your philosophy, your attitude, your activity, your results which then affect your lifestyle.

In other words, after you come up with what you want and state what you want, you then have to go do the activity -- the work, the discipline -- to get what you want. To have a harvest you have to plant the seed, water the seed, keep the weeds out and only then can you harvest the crop.

In fact, Jim demystifies the whole subject of success and failure with these two definitions:

"Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying basic fundamentals."

"Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day; while failure is simply a few errors in judgment, repeated every day. It is the accumulative weight of our disciplines and our judgments that leads us to either fortune or failure."

I do believe there are many ways to jump start your success in any area of your life, including goal setting and visualizing what you want. In fact Jim says, "You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight."

But for true, long-term, real success in life you must know and follow the laws and fundamentals of success on a consistent basis. Whether it is a company, a family, your health, relationships or money... there are proven principles that when followed will produce successful results.

Yes, life and technology are moving fast! And we can benefit greatly from so much that is available to us. But to build a life, make sure and build it on the fundamentals of success.

To Your Better Future!

Kyle Wilson
President
JRI

Reproduced with permission from the Jim Rohn Weekly E-zine.
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January 30, 2007
Create Your Own Mission Statement for Your Personal and Professional Life by Denis Waitley

Two of life's greatest tragedies are: Never to have had a great mission in life, and to have fully reached it so there is no challenge remaining.

Are you going where you want to go, doing what you want to do, and becoming who you want to become? These are the questions we must ask ourselves. Set some quiet time aside after you have finished this program and see the two you's in the mirror of your mind:

1. There is the reflection of the person you are today.

2. There is the image of who you will be in the future.

Looking at my own life, I am incredibly different in many respects from the person I was ten years ago.

As you reflect on your past and anticipate the future, understand that virtually nothing you have experienced has been wasted. It all blends together into wisdom and knowledge, and creates your own unique brand of cultural diversity.

Action Idea: In your professional life, what is most important for you to achieve in the remainder of career? In your personal life, what is most important for you to achieve in the remainder of your life? Find a close friend or associate you trust and network with often, and challenge each other to continuously strive to reach these objectives.

As you consider your mission in life, you may want to use this action step as your guidepost for the 21st Century: Chase Your Passion, Not Your Pension. Passion in your purpose will help you take control of your life, and also give you one other advantage that is not widely recognized: About ten more years of life, on average. Pursuit of a goal wears out very few people. But they rust out by the hundreds of thousands when their pursuit of happiness turns into a geriatric park. A job is something you do for money. A career is something you do because you have an inner calling to do it. You want to do it. You love doing it. You're excited when you do it. And you'd do it even if you were paid nothing beyond food and the basics. You'd do it because it's your life.

Be inspired to learn as much as you can, gain skills as much as you can, to find a cause that benefits humankind and you’ll be sought after for your quality of service and dedication to excellence. My nephew and niece, David and Heidi, at the ages of 30, had three little girls 7, 5 and 2. On an anniversary some years ago, they went out dancing and the margarita she had must have been one powerful fertility drug. She became pregnant that night, and with no incidence of multiple births in our family, eight months later, she delivered quadruplet girls, prematurely. I hurried down to the Children's Hospital in San Diego to get a photo opportunity and possible media coverage as "Uncle Denis of the Waitley Quads." They told me to stand in the corner, saying I hadn't contributed anything. The TV anchorwoman asked my niece Heidi how she felt. She said, "I feel a little tired. We're going to need a new car." They turned to my nephew David, whose eyes looked like burnt corks. "David, as the father, how does it feel to have seven little girls under the age of seven?" David replied, "We're not going to need a new car, we're never going anywhere again." But that's not the point of the story. In addition to seeing them as wonderful parents devoted to their seven little girls, my attention was focused on the neo-natal nurses caring for the newborn quadruplets, weighing between a pound and a half to two and a half pounds. Caring passionately for them like little birds in nests. Oblivious of quitting time. Not hearing the lunch bell at noon. Doing what they loved. Involved in helping improve the quality of life. We all can't be Tiger Woods, or Barbra Streisand, or Jonas Salk. But we can chase our passion, not our pension. You'll always do well, what you love most. That's the essence of all that you've experienced in this program.

Action Idea: If you had the time and circumstances allowed, what is one of your most passionate desires in life you would like to pursue? It could be a new business idea, music, action, sports, or community service. Starting tomorrow, chase that passion a little bit at a time.

-- Denis Waitley

Reproduced with permission from the Denis Waitley Ezine.

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January 29, 2007
Competition with Others by Dr. Tony Alessandra

You might be tempted to say: "What's wrong with a little competition?" Nothing's wrong with it. It's healthy. It's when your need to compete, and be superior to someone else, gets in the way of the best possible outcome for both of you - that's when competition becomes a liability. I'm talking about the kind of person who always needs to be "one up" on other people.

A person who lives his life in competition with everyone -- and we all know someone like that -- might get admired for his achievements, but he doesn't get the freely given attention and support of others. A person who exudes the message: "I'm smarter, or prettier, or richer, or more committed than you are" doesn't garner people's trust. That's because the message is clearly about "Me first."

A willingness to be flexible means that occasionally you're not number one. You may need to take a backseat to a colleague who's trying something innovative. It may mean that you'll need to compromise in a negotiation. Maybe the fact that you're the best salesperson of the month every month prevents other people from even trying.

Does your level of competitiveness get in the way of relationships? If you play a one-on-one sport such as tennis or racquetball, do you always play to win, to beat the other person? If you play board games or video games with your children, is it more important to win than to have fun?

On the one hand it seems as though we're being pushed to be more competitive. Many of us work for companies that are in fierce marketing battles with global competition. There are fewer tax dollars to go around, fewer jobs in many industries. Yet the paradox is the solutions we're finding to those problems involve not MORE competition, but MORE collaboration.

For years I've developed books and other materials for people in one of the most competitive arenas imaginable: selling. I've spoken to thousands upon thousands of dedicated salespeople who relish competition. Yet my message has been consistent: learn to approach the potential customer or client as a consultant.

True professionals in sales, the ones who are successful in all respects, not just in dollars, are those people who focus more on helping than on selling, who listen more than talk, who problem-solve rather than persuade. These collaborative techniques create many more long-term customers than one-shot sales.

I don't teach 50 ways to close a sale. I teach a step-by-step consultative approach that allows both the customer and the salesperson to feel good about each other. When I discovered that selling didn't have to be a contest of getting you to buy my product or service, and that it didn't have to be that I either won or lost, I was relieved. I presented you with choices, helped you think through whether any of them was suitable for you and made sure you were satisfied if you did choose to buy. Whether you bought something or not, I had done my job. I didn't need to be the best salesman of the month. I just needed to meet my own goals and go to bed knowing I had done a thorough job of collaboration.

I just have one tip for you if you have a streak of competitiveness that gets in the way of your relationships: stop seeing the other person as an opponent. Reframe the relationship as a mentoring one, as a friendship, as a chance to do something together that neither of you could do alone. Look directly into that person's eyes and see a fellow human being who doesn't want to be beaten, or made into a loser any more than you do. People who are always out to win may collect a lot of marbles, but they lose a lot of friends. And I'd trade a bag of marbles for a good friend any day.

Reproduced with permission from “Your Achievement Ezine

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January 28, 2007
Juggling our Personal and Professional Priorities

You may have heard the story about the analogy of the "circus juggler" to each of us as we try to balance our personal and professional priorities. I have heard the story repeated by many keynote speakers and have used it in previous books, but have never been able to trace the identity of the original author.

When the circus juggler drops a ball, he lets it bounce and picks it up on the next bounce without losing his rhythm or concentration. He keeps right on juggling. Many times we do the same thing. We lose our jobs, but get another one on the first or second bounce. We may drop the ball on a sale, an opportunity to move ahead, or in a relationship, and we either pick it up on the rebound or get a new one thrown in to replace what we just dropped.

However, some of the balls or priorities we juggle don't bounce. The more urgent priorities associated with self-imposed deadlines and workloads have more elasticity than the precious, delicate relationships which are as fragile as fine crystal. Balance involves distinguishing between the priorities we juggle that bounce from the ones labeled "loved ones," "health," and "moral character" that may shatter if we drop them.

The reason I always ask my seminar attendees to list the benefits of reaching their goals is so they can arrange them in the true order of importance to them, and give them a sufficient amount of attention as they juggle them within their time constraints.

Handle your priorities with care. Some of them just don't bounce!
-- Denis Waitley

Reproduced with permission from the Denis Waitley Weekly Ezine.

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January 27, 2007
Key Words to Remember: Weigh, Count and Measure by Jim Rohn

Three key words to remember: weigh, count and measure. Now why weigh, count and measure? To see what your results are from your activity, your attitude and your philosophy. If you find that the results are not to your liking there are only three places to look. Your philosophy needs to be fine-tuned; your attitude needs to be strengthened or your disciplines need extra skill. But that's it. Activity, attitude and philosophy create results.

Now, on results I teach that life expects you to make measurable progress in reasonable time. But, you must be reasonable with time. You can't say to someone every five minutes, how are you doing now? That's too soon to ask for a count. Guy says, "I haven't left the building yet, give me a break!" Now you can't wait five years - that's too long. Too many things can go wrong waiting too long for a count to see how you're doing.

Here are some good time frames:

Number one - at the end of the day. You can't let more than a day go by without looking at some things and making progress. New Testament says - if you are angry, try to solve it before the sun goes down. Don't carry anger for another day. It may be too heavy to carry. If you try to carry it for a week, it may drop you to your knees. So some things you must get done in a day.

Here's the next one - a week. We ask for an accounting of the week so we can issue the pay. And whatever you've got coming that's what you get; when the week is over. Now in business there are two things to check in the course of the week. Your activity count and your productivity count. Because activity leads to productivity we need to count both to see how we're doing.

My mentor taught me that success is a numbers game and very early he started asking me my numbers. He asked, "How many books have you read in the last ninety days?" I said, "Zero"; he said, "Not a good number." He said, "How many classes have you attended in the last six months to improve your skills?" And I said, "Zero." He said, "Not a good number." Then he said, "In the last six years that you've been working, how much money have you saved and invested?" I said, "Zero" and he said, "Not a good number." Then here's what he said, "Mr. Rohn, if these numbers don't change your life won't change. But" he said, "If you'll start improving these numbers then perhaps you'll start to see everything change for you."

Success and results are a numbers game. John joins this little sales company. He's supposed to make 10 calls the first week just to get acquainted with the territory. So on Friday we call him in and say what? "How many calls?" He says, "Well." You say, "John, 'well' won't fit in the little box here. I need a number." Now he starts with a story. And you say, "John, the reason I made this little box so small is so a story won't fit. All I need is a number because if you give us the number we're so brilliant around here we could guess the story." It's the numbers that count. Making measurable progress in reasonable time.

Here's the best accounting. The accounting you make of yourself. Don't wait for the government to do it, don't wait for the company to do it. But you've got to add up some of your own numbers and ask, "Am I making the progress I want and will it take me where I want to go now and in the future?" You be the judge!

To Your Success,
Jim Rohn

Reproduced with permission from the Jim Rohn Weekly E-zine.

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January 26, 2007
We Will See What Happens by Ron White

A few years ago, my sister and I were the first ones down the tunnel to board our flight for Norfolk, Virginia. Just as we were about to board the plane – a mechanic emerged from inside the aircraft and blocked the door with his arms. He turned to the flight attended and hurriedly stated, 'We got problems!'

I thought to myself, "Why did I have to be the one to hear that? Why couldn't I have been at the back of the line? I didn't need to know that!" Very soon, we were back in the terminal waiting and then ultimately back on the plane. I attempted to put my secret knowledge out of my head and waited for the pilot to give us an explanation. Pilots take courses to ease passenger's minds, right? They know what to say to calm nerves…

Unfortunately, I don't think this pilot took that course. Soon his voice boomed throughout the plane, "Sorry for that delay ladies and gentlemen. We had to power on the plane. But, we have a generator on the ground right now and we are going to jumpstart the engines. Once we get them going, we will get up in the air and head to Norfolk and see what happens."

Click.

That was it. That was all he said. See what happens? We are going to get up in the air and see what happens? Couldn't we have just a little better plan than that worked out?

At this point all I could do was nervously laugh. One woman started yelling, "Oh no! We are going to crash!" There were sighs of desperation and nervous laughter spreading throughout the cabin like a tidal wave (And we hadn't even taken off yet). Thirty minutes passed and we were still sitting there – then came the voice of death (I mean, the pilot) over the intercom again, "Ladies and gentlemen, I know you are frustrated – so are we – we know you are hot, we only have one engine going right now and it is working double time."

Click.

There were moans as it seemed we had all boarded the vessel of doom. It seemed that without question we were all seated in an aluminum casket seat buckled next to strangers. After all, the pilot said he was frustrated. He told us our one engine was working double time and his elaborate plan was to get up in the air and see what happens! Then we did. We got up in the air and what happened? Nothing - other than thrust and lift. We arrived in Norfolk and no sooner had the wheels touched the tarmac a round of applause burst out and as everyone simultaneously exhaled throughout the airplane.

Although, I do sincerely like to have a better plan than 'see what happens' worked out when flying – it really isn't such a bad life strategy. All too often, I will watch people chase their goals and are frozen with inaction because they don't have all the necessary pieces or guaranteed results. When in reality – they will never have all the pieces. Success will never be guaranteed. The best thing that you can do is just get up in the air and see what happens. Adjustments can be made in the air or should I say in the middle of the process.

If your effort is to build a business then listen closely, "Get up in the air and see what happens!" Don't give yourself all the reasons why you can't. Do not wait until you have everything you need – you never will!

If your mission is to start a friendship, say "hello", get up in the air and see what happens! Don't stress over what you will talk about – wing it with mid air adjustments. The results could be enormous. Do not allow yourself to stay on the runway because you feel the flight is doomed. The only doomed flight of friendship is the one that stays on the runway.

If your goal is to learn a new skill, "Get up in the air and see what happens!" It might not be as challenging as you thought. You might be smarter than you thought. It could be fun!

When traveling, I hope that my pilot has a more detailed plan than, "We will see what happens." Although in life it isn't such a bad strategy.

-- Ron White

Reproduced with permission from the Ron White Ezine.

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January 25, 2007
Autograph Your Career and Your Life with Excellence by Denis Waitley

In 1644, a child was born. He lived to be 93 at a time in history when the average life span was but 35 to 40. He taught himself his trade and began his career. He often worked alone with primitive tools, but his focus every day was to put the best he had into his work. The man made violins. He labored over each and every process and step to ensure that he had "autographed" them with excellence and the best that was in him. He created his own personal standard of excellence for his craft, and he actually signed his name on each instrument that passed the test.

Today, some three hundred years later, the name of this craftsman who was committed to excellence is the benchmark for the best in musical instruments. His name? Antonio Stradivari! His Stradivarius violins sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars because they are the best.

When Stradivari labored, he did not know of the legacy he was creating. He was doing his best, day in and day out, to reach his standard of excellence. He didn't spend the extra time and care to get the accolades of upper management or to be the top producer in the company. He did it because excellence was part of his focus, mission, and obsession.

It is easy to do world-class work when a boss is looking or a supervisor is around. But the test is in what you do when no one is looking. High achievers have developed the ability to stay focused when no one else is around. Does your quality or performance fluctuate based on who is in the office or which customer you are serving? Excellence is not something that you can just turn on and off whenever you feel you need it. It is a habit rooted in your attitude about your life and career.

Are you just going through the motions day to day, or are you creating a masterpiece? Autographs are valuable because they are rare and are tied to excellent performance. In today's world, superior effort and service are becoming endangered species. Is the autograph you place on your work and service each day a Stradivarius or a Michael Jordan? Or is it unknown, with little value? Autograph your career and your life with excellence.

Having a firm commitment to excellence, like Stradivari, has an amazing effect on your achievement motivation. When people who are simply going through the motions or who are just working for a paycheck hit a challenge or obstacle, they often run to their boss and get him or her to do it, or they procrastinate by getting a cup of coffee or shuffling the papers on their desk. On the other hand, when individuals who are committed to excellence hit a similar challenge, they immediately bounce back with energy, and they are actually exhilarated by the chance to stretch themselves to overcome the problem. A commitment to excellence will create focus, and focus will assist you in maintaining your positive motivation and in creating a balanced life.

So, start today and autograph your work with excellence!

Denis Waitley

Reproduced with permission from the Denis Waitley Ezine.

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January 24, 2007
Look Out, Baby, I'm Your Love Man by Jack Canfield

Les Brown and his twin brother were adopted by Mamie Brown, a kitchen worker and maid, shortly after their birth in a poverty-stricken Miami neighborhood.

Because of his hyperactivity and nonstop jabber, Les was placed in special education classes for the learning disabled in grade school and throughout high school. Upon graduation, he became a city sanitation worker in Miami Beach. But he had a dream of being a disc jockey. At night he would take a transistor radio to bed where he listened to the local jive-talking deejays. He created an imaginary radio station in his tiny room with its torn vinyl flooring. A hairbrush served as his microphone as he practiced his patter, introducing records to his ghost listeners.

His mother and brother could hear him through the thin walls and would shout at him to quit flapping his jaws and go to sleep. But Les didn't listen to them. He was wrapped up in his own world, living a dream.

One day Les boldly went to the local radio station during his lunch break from mowing grass for the city. He got into the station manager's office and told him he wanted to be a disc jockey.

The manager eyed this disheveled young man in overalls and a straw hat and inquired, "Do you have any background in broadcasting?"

Les replied, "No sir, I don't."

"Well, son, I'm afraid we don't have a job for you then."

Les thanked him politely and left. The station manager assumed that he had seen the last of this young man. But he underestimated the depth of Les Brown's commitment to his goal. You see, Les had a higher purpose than simply wanting to be a disc jockey. He wanted to buy a nicer house for his adoptive mother, whom he loved deeply. The disc jockey job was merely a step toward his goal.

Mamie Brown had taught Les to pursue his dreams, so he felt sure that he would get a job at that radio station in spite of what the station manager had said.

And so Les returned to the station every day for a week, asking if there were any job openings. Finally the station manager gave in and took him on as an errand boy - at no pay. At first, he fetched coffee or picked up lunches and dinner for the deejays who could not leave the studio. Eventually his enthusiasm for their work won him the confidence of the disc jockeys who would send him in their Cadillacs to pick up visiting celebrities such as the Temptations and Diana Ross and the Supremes. Little did any of them know that young Les did not have a driver's license.

Les did whatever was asked of him at the station - and more. While hanging out with the deejays, he taught himself their hand movements on the control panel. He stayed in the control rooms and soaked up whatever he could until they asked him to leave. Then, back in his bedroom at night, he practiced and prepared himself for the opportunity that he knew would present itself.

One Saturday afternoon while Les was at the station, a deejay named Rock was drinking while on the air. Les was the only other person in the building, and he realized that Rock was drinking himself toward trouble. Les stayed close. He walked back and forth in front of the window in Rock's booth. As he prowled, he said to himself. "Drink, Rock, drink!"

Les was hungry, and he was ready. He would have run down the street for more booze if Rock had asked. When the phone rang, Les pounced on it. It was the station manager, as he knew it would be.

"Les, this is Mr. Klein." "Yes," said Les. "I know." "Les, I don't think Rock can finish his program." "Yes sir, I know." "Would you call one of the other deejays to come in and take over?" "Yes, sir. I sure will."

But when Les hung up the telephone, he said to himself, "Now, he must think I'm crazy."

Les did dial the telephone, but it wasn't to call in another deejay. He called his mother first, and then his girlfriend. "You all go out on the front porch and turn up the radio because I'm about to come on the air!" he said.

He waited about 15 minutes before he called the general manager. "Mr. Klein, I can't find nobody," Les said. Mr. Klein then asked, "Young man, do you know how to work the controls in the studio?"

"Yes sir," replied Les.

Les darted into the booth, gently moved Rock aside and sat down at the turntable. He was ready. And he was hungry. He flipped on the microphone switch and said, "Look out! This is me LB, triple P - Les Brown, Your Platter Playing Poppa. There were none before me and there will be none after me. Therefore, that makes me the one and only. Young and single and love to mingle. Certified, bona fide, indubitably qualified to bring you satisfaction, a whole lot of action. Look out, baby, I'm your lo-o-ove man"

Because of his preparation, Les was ready. He wowed the audience and his general manager. From that fateful beginning, Les went on to a successful career in broadcasting, politics, public speaking and television.

Les Brown is an internationally recognized speaker and author.

Reproduced with permission from “Your Achievement Ezine.

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January 23, 2007
Principled Communication by Stephen R. Covey
If our motive is to manipulate, our communication and our leadership in general will prove to be ineffective over time. In recent years, since the publication of my book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, I have worked with many wonderful individuals who are seeking to improve the quality of their communications, relationships, products, services, organizations and lives.
But sadly, I see many people using a variety of ill-advised approaches. In effect, they try to apply short-cut, manipulative practices learned in academic and social systems to natural systems, the "farms" of their lives.
 
The Problem: Alternate Centers

Let me share with you some examples of the problem. Then I will suggest the principle-centered solution. Some executives justify heavy-handed means in the name of virtuous ends. They say that "business is business" and that "ethics" and "principles" sometimes have to take a back seat to profits. Many see no correlation between the quality of their personal lives at home and the quality of their communications at work. Because of the social and political environment inside their organizations and the fragmented markets outside, they think they can abuse relationships at will and still get results.
The head coach of a professional football team once told me that some players don't pay the price in the off-season. "They come to camp out of shape," he said. "Somehow they think they can fool me, make the team, and play great in the games." When I ask in my seminars, "How many of you would agree that the vast majority of the work force possess far more capability, creativity, talent, initiative, and resourcefulness than their present jobs allow or require them to use?" the affirmative response is about 99 percent. We all admit that our greatest resources are being wasted.
Our heroes are often people who make a lot of money. And when some hero an actor, entertainer, athlete, or other professional suggests that we can get what we want by practicing hardball negotiation, closing win-lose deals, and playing by our own rules, we believe them, especially if social norms reinforce what they say.
Some parents don't pay the price with their kids, thinking they can fake it for the public image and then shout and slam the door. They are then shocked to see that their teenage kids experiment with drugs, alcohol, and sex to fill the void in their lives.
When I invited one executive to involve all his people and take six months to write a corporate mission statement, he said, "You don't understand, Stephen. We will whip this baby out this weekend." I see people trying to do it all over a weekend trying to rebuild their marriage on a weekend, trying to change a company culture on a weekend, trying to pump out a major new business proposal. Some things just can't be done over a weekend.
Many executives take criticism personally because they are emotionally dependent on their employees' acceptance of them. A state of collusion is established where executives and employees need each other's weaknesses to validate their perceptions of each other and to justify their own lack of production.
In management, everything goes to measurement. July belongs to the operators, but December belongs to the controllers. And the figures are manipulated at the end of the year to make them look good. The numbers are supposed to be precise and objective, but everyone knows they are based on subjective assumptions. Most people are turned off by "motivational" speakers who have nothing more to share than entertaining stories mingled with "motherhood and apple pie" platitudes; they want substance; they want process; they want more than aspirin and band-aids for acute pain. They want to solve their chronic problems and achieve long-term results.
I once spoke to a group of executives at a training conference and discovered that they were bitter because the CEO had "forced" them to "come and sit for four days to listen to a bunch of abstract thoughts." They were part of a paternalistic culture that saw training as an expense, not an investment. Their organization managed people as things.
In school, we ask students to tell us what we told them; we test them on our lectures. They figure out the system, and then they party, procrastinate, and cram to get the grades. They think all of life operates on the same short-cut system.
 
The Solution: Center on Principles

These are problems that common approaches can't solve. Quick, easy, free, and fun approaches won't work on the "farms" of our lives because there we're subject to natural laws and governing principles. Natural laws, based upon principles, operate regardless of our awareness of them or our obedience to them. Often habits of ineffectiveness are rooted in our social conditioning toward quick-fix, short-term thinking. In school, many of us procrastinate and then successfully cram for tests. But does cramming work on a farm? Can you go two weeks without milking the cow, and then get out there and milk like crazy? Can you "forget" to plant in the spring, goof off all summer, and then hit the ground real hard in the fall to bring in the harvest? We might laugh at such ludicrous approaches in agriculture, but then in academic environments, we might cram to get grades and degrees.
The only thing that endures over time is the law of the farm: I must prepare the ground, put in the seed, cultivate, weed, water and nurture growth. So also in a business or a marriage there is no quick fix where you can just move in and magically make everything right with a positive mental attitude and a package of success formulas.
Correct principles are like compasses: they are always pointing the way. And if we know how to read them, we won't get lost, confused, or fooled by conflicting voices and values. Principles such as fairness, equity, justice, integrity, honesty and trust are not invented by us: they are the laws of the universe that pertain to human relationships and organizations. They are part of the human condition, consciousness, and conscience.
People instinctively trust those whose personalities are founded upon correct principles. We have evidence of this in our long-term relationships. We learn that technique is relatively unimportant compared to trust, which is the result of our trustworthiness over time. When trust is high, we communicate easily, effortlessly, instantaneously. We can make mistakes, and others will still capture our meaning. But when trust is low, communication is exhausting, time-consuming, ineffective, and inordinately difficult.
Most people would rather work on their personality than on their character. The former may involve learning a new skill, style, or image, but the latter involves changing habits, developing virtues, disciplining appetites and passions, keeping promises, and being considerate of the feelings and convictions of others. Character development is the best manifestation of our maturity. To value oneself and, at the same time, subordinate oneself to higher purposes and principles is the paradoxical essence of highest humanity and the foundation of effective leadership.
Principle-centered leaders are men and women of character who work with competence "on farms" with "seed and soil" and who work in harmony with natural, "true north" principles and with the law of the harvest. They build those principles into the center of their lives, into the center of their relationships, into the center of their communications and contracts, into their management processes, and into their mission statements.

Dr. Covey is the author of several acclaimed books, including the international bestseller, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Reproduced with permission from “Your Achievement Ezine.”

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January 22, 2007
Center on Principles by Stephen R. Covey
Real character development begins with the humble recognition that we are not in charge, that principles ultimately govern. I don't talk much about ethics and values because to me those words imply situational behaviors, subjective beliefs, social mores, cultural norms, or relative truths. I prefer to talk about universal principles and natural laws that are more absolute. You may think that it's just a matter of semantics and that when most people talk about values they really mean these universal principles. But I see a clear difference between principles and values. Hitler was value-driven; Saddam Hussein is value-driven. Every person and organization is driven by what they value. But they aren't necessarily ethical or principle-centered.

The Humility of Principles

The key to quality of life is to be centered on principles. We're not in control; principles are in control. We're arrogant when we think we are in control. Yes, we may control our actions, but not the consequences of our actions. Those are controlled by principles, by natural laws.

Building character and creating quality of life is a function of aligning our beliefs and behaviors with universal principles. These principles are impersonal, external, factual, objective, and self-evident. They operate regardless of our awareness of them, or our obedience to them. If your current lifestyle is not in alignment with these principles, then you might trade a value-based map for a principle-centered compass. When you recognize that external verities and realities ultimately govern, you might willingly subordinate your values to them and align your roles and goals, plans, and activities with them. But doing so often takes a crisis: your company's downsizing; your job's on the line; your relationship with the boss goes sour; you lose a major account; your marriage is threatened; your financial problems peak; or you're told you have just a few months to live. In the absence of such a catalytic crisis, we tend to live in numbed complacency so busy doing good, easy, or routine things that we don't even stop to ask ourselves if we're doing what really matters. The good, then, becomes the enemy of the best.

 Humility is the mother of all virtues: the humble in spirit progress and are blessed because they willingly submit to higher powers and try to live in harmony with natural laws and universal principles. Courage is the father of all virtues: we need great courage to lead our lives by correct principles and to have integrity in the moment of choice. When we set up our own self-generated or socially-validated value systems and then develop our missions and goals based on what we value, we tend to become laws unto ourselves, proud and independent. Pride hopes to impress; humility seeks to bless.

Just because we value a thing doesn't mean that having it will enhance our quality of life. No "quality movement" in government, business, or education will succeed unless based on "true north" principles. And yet we see leaders who cling to their current style based on self-selected values and bad habits even as their "ship" is sinking when they could be floating safely on the life raft of principles. Nothing sinks people faster in their careers than arrogance.

Arrogance shouts "I know best." In the uniform of arrogance, we fumble and falter pride comes and goes before the fall. But dressed in humility, we make progress. As the character Indiana Jones learned in The Last Crusade, "The penitent man will pass." In pride, we often sow one thing and expect to reap another. Many of our paradigms and the processes and habits that grow out of them never produce the results we expect because they are based on illusions, advertising slogans, program-of-the-month training, and personality-based success strategies. Quality of life can't grow out of illusion. So how do we align our lives with "true north" realities that govern quality of life?

Four Human Endowments

As human beings, we have four unique endowments self-awareness, conscience, independent will, and creative imagination that not only separate us from the animal world, but also help us to distinguish between reality and illusion, to transform the clock into a compass, and to align our lives with the extrinsic realities that govern quality of life. Self-awareness enables us to examine our paradigms, to look at our glasses as well as through them, to think about our thoughts, to become aware of the and psychic programs that are in us, and to enlarge the separation between stimulus and response. Self-aware, we can take responsibility for reprogramming or re-scripting ourselves out of the stimulus-response mode. Many movements in psychology, education, and training are focused on an enlarged self-consciousness. Most popular self-help literature also focuses upon this capacity. Self-awareness, however, is only one of our unique endowments.

Conscience puts us in touch with something within us even deeper than our thoughts and something outside us more reliable than our values. It connects us with the wisdom of the ages and the wisdom of the heart. It's an internal guidance system that allows us to sense when we act or even contemplate acting in a way that's contrary to our deepest values and "true north" principles. Conscience is universal. By helping companies and individuals develop mission statements, I have learned that what is most personal is most general. No matter what people's religions, cultures, or backgrounds are, their mission statements all deal with the same basic human needs to live (physical and financial), to love (social), to learn (educational), and to leave a legacy (spiritual).

Independent will is our capacity to act, the power to transcend our paradigms, to swim upstream, to re-write our scripts, to act based on principles rather than reacting based on emotions, moods, or circumstances. While environmental or genetic influences may be very powerful, they do not control us. We're not victims. We're not the product of our past. We are the product of our choices. We are "response-able," meaning we are able to choose our response. This power to choose is a reflection of our independent will.

Creative imagination empowers us to create beyond our present reality. It enables us to write personal mission statements, set goals, plan meetings, or visualize ourselves living our mission statements even in the most challenging circumstances. We can imagine any scenario we want for the future. If our imagination has to go through the straightjacket of our memory, what is imagination for? Memory is limited. It's finite; it deals with the past. Imagination is infinite; it deals with the present and the future, with potentiality, with vision and mission and goals with anything that is not now but can be. The man-on-the-street approach to success is to work harder, to give it the "old college try." But unless willpower is matched with creative imagination, these efforts will be weak and ineffective.

Nurturing Our Unique Gifts

Enhancing these endowments requires us to nurture and exercise them continuously. Sharpening the saw once a week or once a month just isn't enough. It's too superficial. It's like a meal. Yesterday's meal will not satisfy today's hunger. Last Sunday's big meal won't prepare me for this Thursday's ethical challenge. I will be much better prepared if I meditate every morning and visualize myself dealing with that challenge with authenticity, openness, honesty, and with as much wisdom as I can bring to bear on it.

Here are four ways to nurture your unique endowments.

Nurture self-awareness by keeping a personal journal. Keeping a personal journal a daily in-depth analysis and evaluation of your experiences is a high-leverage activity that increases self-awareness and enhances all the endowments and the synergy among them.

Educate your conscience by learning, listening, and responding. Most of us work and live in environments that are rather hostile to the development of conscience. To hear the conscience clearly often requires us to be reflective or meditative a condition we rarely choose or find. We're inundated by activity, noise, conditioning, media messages, and flawed paradigms that dull our sensitivity to that quiet inner voice that would teach us of "true north" principles and our own degree of congruency with them. I've heard executives say that they can't win this battle of conscience because expediencies require lies, cover-ups, deceit, or game playing. That's just part of the job, they say. I disagree. I think such rationalization undermines trust within their cultures. If you have back-room manipulation and bad mouthing, you will have a low-trust culture.

 A life of total integrity is the only one worth striving for. Granted, it's a struggle. Some trusted advisors PR agents, accountants, legal counselors might say, "This will be political suicide," or "This will be bad for our image, and so let's cover up or lie." You have to look at each case on its own merit. No case is black and white.

 It takes real judgment to know what you should do. You may feel that you operate "between a rock and a hard place." Still, with a well-educated conscience or internal compass, you will rarely, if ever, be in a situation where you only have one bad option. You will always have choices. If you wisely exercise your unique endowments, some moral option will be open to you.

 So much depends on how well you educate your conscience, your internal compass. When my kids were in athletics, they paid the price to get their bodies coordinated with their minds. You've got to do the same with your own conscience regularly. The more internal uncertainty you feel, the larger the grey areas will be. You will always have some grey areas, particularly at the extremity of your education and experience. And to grow, you need to go to that extremity and learn to make those choices based on what you honestly believe to be the right thing to do.

Nurture independent will by making and keeping promises. One of the best ways to strengthen our independent will is to make and keep promises. Each time we do, we make deposits in our personal integrity account the amount of trust we have in ourselves, in our ability to walk our talk. To build personal integrity, start by making and keeping small promises. Take it a step and a day at a time.

Develop creative imagination through visualization. Visualization, a high-leverage mental exercise used by world-class athletes and performers, may also be used to improve your quality of life. For example, you might visualize yourself in some circumstance that would normally create discomfort or pain. In your mind's eye, instead of seeing yourself react as you normally do, see yourself acting on the basis of the principles and values in your mission statement. The best way to predict your future is to create it.

Roots Yield Fruits

With the humility that comes from being principle-centered, we can better learn from the past, have hope for the future, and act with confidence, not arrogance, in the present. Arrogance is the lack of self-awareness; blindness; an illusion; a false form of self-confidence; and a false sense that we're somehow above the laws of life. Real confidence is anchored in a quiet assurance that if we act based on principles, we will produce quality-of-life results. It's confidence born sp; of character and competence. Our security is not based on our possessions, positions, credentials, or on comparisons with others; rather, it flows from our own integrity to "true north" principles.

 I confess that I struggle with total integrity and do not always "walk my talk." I find that it's easier to talk and teach than to practice what I preach. I've come to realize that I must commit to having total integrity to be integrated around a set of correct principles. I've observed that if people never get centered on principles at some time in their lives, they will take the expedient political-social path to success and let their ethics be defined by the situation. They will say, "business is business," meaning they play the game by their own rules. They may even rationalize major transgressions in the name of business, in spite of having a lofty mission statement.

Only by centering on "timeless" principles and then living by them can we enjoy sustained moral, physical, social, and financial wellness.

Dr. Covey is the author of several acclaimed books, including the international bestseller, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. It has sold more than 15 million copies in 38 languages throughout the world. In 1996, Stephen R. Covey was recognized as one of Time magazine's 25 most influential Americans and one of Sales and Marketing Management's top 25 power brokers. Dr. Covey is cofounder and vice chairman of FranklinCovey, the leading global professional services firm with offices in 123 countries. FranklinCovey shares Dr. Covey’s™ vision, discipline and passion to inspire, lift and provide tools for change and growth of individuals and organizations throughout the world. Copyright 1996, 2005 Covey Leadership Center and FranklinCovey. All rights reserved.

Reproduced with permission from “Your Achievement Ezine.”

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January 21, 2007
Make Your Customer Feel Important by Brian Tracy

LISTENING IS THE KEY
Listening builds self-esteem. It has been said that, "Rapt attention is the highest form of flattery." When you listen intently to another person and it is clear that you genuinely care about what that other person is saying, his or her self-esteem goes up. His or her feeling of personal value increases. He or she feels more worthwhile and important as a human being. You can actually make another person feel terrific about himself or herself by listening in a warm, genuine, caring way to everything he or she has to say.

PAY CLOSE ATTENTION
When a man and a woman go out for the first time, they spend an inordinate amount of time talking and listening to each other. They look into each other's eyes and hang on every word. They are each fascinated by the personality of the other. The more each listens to the other, the more positive and happy each of them feel and the stronger becomes the bonds of affection between them.

FOCUS 100% ON THE OTHER PERSON
The opposite of listening is ignoring. You always listen to that which you most value. You always ignore that which you devalue. The fastest way to turn a person off, to hurt their feelings and make them feel slighted and angry is to simply ignore what they are saying or interrupt them in the middle of a thought. Ignoring or interrupting is the equivalent of an emotional slap in the face. Men especially have to be careful about their natural desire to make a remark or an observation in the middle of a conversation. This can often cause the sales conversation to come to a grinding halt.

ACTION EXERCISES
First, take every opportunity to make the other person feel important by listening attentively to what he or she says.

Second, avoid interrupting the other person by slowing down and pausing for a few moments after he or she has stopped speaking.

Reproduced with permission from the Ron White Ezine.

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January 20, 2007
Do More Than Required This Week

By being passionate about the work you do, you will deliver more in quality service than you expect to receive in payment as compensation. This, in effect, is a way to keep money or value chasing you, rather than you chasing it. By always doing more than expected, you'll always be underpaid - which is how it should be.

For if you're paid more than you're worth, you eventually will be restructured, reengineered, replaced, fired, out placed, declared obsolete and disposed of. Overpaid individuals are overdrawn on their knowledge and skills bank account. Individuals who are underpaid for the level and quality of service they provide are always in demand and always ahead of the pay scale in terms of knowledge and contribution. So money and opportunity are always chasing them.

Let money chase you, but never let it catch you, or you'll become a slave to money, instead of money working for you!
-- Denis Waitley

Reproduced with permission from the Denis Waitley Ezine.

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January 19, 2007
Stop Just Writing About Your Past and Start Writing Your Future! by Chris Widener

"The history of free men is never written by chance, but by choice – their choice." -- Dwight D. Eisenhower

Many people spend a lot of time on their history. Some do it purposefully with such hobbies as journaling, while others simply write and rewrite their history over and over in their minds. Depending upon the way you go about this, this can be good or bad. If you are doing it so you can reflect back on your life, that’s good. If you are doing it so you can learn from your past, that’s good too. Unfortunately, many people do it simply as a subconscious act of running themselves into the ground over and over.

What you "write" in your mind is an act of mental discipline, just as what you write on a sheet of paper is a discipline. Keep that in mind.

So if this is true, that we can make a choice as to what we want to write, both literally and figuratively, we have an extraordinary opportunity!

Instead of going over and over our past, we can choose to write our future! Have you ever thought about writing your future before it even happens to you? Well, now you can – and you will!

Here is a process that will let you determine and write your own future!

Choose to choose your own future. If you don't make the decision to accept responsibility for your own future, then you are choosing to not write your future. You must choose to choose. Do you?

Determine what you want your future to be. Be specific.

What do you want to earn?

Where do you want to live?

What do you want to weigh?

What do you want to do for a living?

What do you want to do in your leisure time?

How much do you want to retire on?

If you don't know the answers to these questions, then you may as well not even begin to write your future. Take some time to answer them fully.

Get a good understanding of your strengths and weaknesses. If you are going to write your future, you will have to have a sober understanding of what you are good at and what you are not particularly good at. Maybe ask a good friend or your spouse to give you an honest appraisal of your strengths and weaknesses.

Focus on playing to your strengths while ever improving your weaknesses. Be sure that what you are doing is utilizing your strengths to their fullest. And you don't want to forget your weaknesses, even while you are trying to stay away from them. Instead, set smaller goals for improvement in your areas of weakness while you set grand goals for the areas you are strongest in!

Get out a three pieces of paper. On the top of one, write, "One year from today I will…" On the next write, "Three years from today I will…" On the last write, "Ten years from today I will…" Then begin to fill them out. Make commitments to yourself. As you write them, end each sentence with a transition to how you are going to do it. For example, you may write, "One year from today I will… Have $4800 in my saving account by saving $400 per month."

Start putting only information into your mind that will benefit the fulfillment of the kind of life you are writing about. For example, if you have a hard time spending money rather than saving it, you should probably cancel all of the catalogues that come each day that entice you to spend. Instead, spend the time you would have spent thumbing through catalogues going through financial growth material instead.

Discipline yourself to spend your time in a manner that will help you get to your goals. For example, cut out five hours of television a week and spend that time on your goals instead. That would be a difference of 260 hours in the next year! Wow! What could you do with another 260 hours? Almost anything!

You do not have to be a paper cup blowing to and fro in the wind! You do not have to live at the whims of other people or circumstances. You CAN choose your future! You can write it out just the way you want it to happen! Yes, ups and downs will come but you will outlast them and eventually arrive at your destiny. Then, when you get to the end of your life, you will know how it all turns out because you will have been the author!

Get going – write your own future!

Reproduced with permission from the Chris Widener Ezine.

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January 18, 2007
The Importance of Leaving a Legacy by Jim Rohn

There are four areas concerning Leaving a Legacy that I consider to be fundamental; a Life Well-Lived, Principles to Live By, The Importance of a Spiritual Legacy and an Impact Legacy and a Financial Legacy. Today I would like to share on a Life Well-Lived.

You know, I have had an amazing life. I have traveled the world. I have shared my heart with so many wonderful people. I have been fortunate enough to make a great living and enjoy the fruit of my work. I have met thousands of people who are dedicated to personal development and self growth. I have made it my life's pursuit to teach others the philosophies and actions that would help them achieve greatness and personal fulfillment in their own lives. Forty years ago, it felt like it would never end. Today, I still imagine I have many years left, but I also am more aware than ever that there is much less time left than before.

Being aware of this has made me even more clear on my goal of living well and teaching others to do the same. Our One-Year Plan of Success is designed to help others achieve all of their dreams and is part of one of the legacies I want to leave behind.

Leaving a legacy for others to follow is part of what drives me. I followed others who had gone before me; they left a legacy for me. Now I am making sure that those who come after me will have a trail to follow as well. You see, leaving a legacy is important.

Think about those who left a legacy for us to follow and for you specifically:

Your parents
Your grandparents
Your aunts and uncles
Your schoolteachers
Your coaches
Your neighbors where you grew up

For those of us in America (For our international readers, take a moment to reflect on those leaders who helped form the foundations of your country):

The founding fathers of the U.S., who had a dream of a place of self-determination

Abraham Lincoln, who freed the slaves

FDR, who saw us through the great depression

The many men and woman who defended our liberties through the wars of the 20th century so we could live in freedom

JFK, who called us to space exploration and set us on course to have a man walk on the moon

Martin Luther King Jr. who left us a legacy to pursue the dream of racial equality

There are literally thousands of men and women who lived in a way that affects our lives today.

And yes, the list goes on from there as well. These are the people who we knew, who we lived with, and who shaped us deeply, for good and for bad in some cases.

You see, a legacy can be anywhere on the continuum, from very bad to very good. It all depends on how we live our lives.

How we live our lives is critically important. This month Chris and I want to challenge you to take a look at how you live. We want to challenge you to think deeply about the major areas of your life where you can and should leave a lasting legacy.

Why is leaving a legacy important? Here are a few reasons:

The legacy we leave is part of the ongoing foundations of life. Those who came before leave us the world we live in. Those who will come after will have only what we leave them. We are stewards of this world, and we have a calling on our lives to leave it better than how we found it, even if it seems like such a small part.

Legacies have raw power for good and for bad. There are people who have changed the world for good, people who have opened up new worlds for millions of others, people who have spurred others onto new heights. And there are people who have caused massive destruction for countless millions, people who left a wake of pain behind them wherever they went.

There are parents who have blessed their children with greatness and other parents who have ruined their children's fragile minds and hearts. What we do affects others. Our lives have the power to create good or purvey evil. It is important that we choose to do good.

It is an act of responsibility to leave a legacy. Because of the power of our lives and the legacies we leave, it is a great responsibility to choose to leave a positive legacy. All good men and women must take responsibility to create legacies that will take the next generation to a level we could only imagine. I truly believe that part of what makes us good and honorable people is to have a foundational part of our lives based on the goal of leaving a legacy.

Purposefully leaving a legacy for others breaks the downward pull of selfishness that can be inherent in us. When we strive to leave a legacy, we are acting with a selflessness that can only be good for us. Yes, I suppose someone could work hard to earn money so that when he or she dies, a building is named after them, but that is not the kind of legacy we are talking about. We are talking about legacies that make life better for those who come after us, not about our own fame or recognition, but about helping others. After all, we won't be around to watch our legacy. To build that which will last beyond us is selfless, and living with that in mind breaks the power of selfishness that tries so desperately to engrain itself in our lives.

It also keeps us focused on the big picture. Legacy building is "big picture." It keeps us focused on the long-term and gives us values that we can judge our actions by. When we are acting based on selfishness, personal expediency and the like, we are "small picture"--whatever is pragmatic right now. When we are building a life that will give for many years, we are "big picture." Ask yourself: How does this action affect my overall goals? How will this affect people in the years to come?

Yes, your legacy is very important. Take this last month to reflect on how you are going to use the lessons, information and skills from the first eleven months to build a life that leaves a tremendous legacy!

Until next time, let's do something remarkable!
Jim Rohn

Reproduced with permission from the Jim Rohn Weekly E-zine.

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January 17, 2007
Seeds of Greatness by Denis Waitley
(This excerpt was taken from Denis Waitley's Seeds of Greatness Treasury)

Love: The Greatest Four-letter Word

L - is for Listen. To love someone is to listen unconditionally to his or her values and needs without prejudice.

O - is for Overlook. To love someone is to overlook the flaws and faults in favor of looking for the good.

V - is for Voice. To love someone is to voice your approval on a regular basis. There is no substitute for honest encouragement, positive strokes and praise.

E - is for Effort. To love someone is to make a constant effort to spend the time, to make the sacrifice, to show your interest.

Reproduced with permission from the Denis Waitley Weekly Ezine

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January 16, 2007
Einstein's Ability to Risk and Willingness to be Wrong by Ron White 

The early life of Einstein gives us some clues to the great man that he would become. He was never one to dominant conversation to prove his intellect. Even as a child he didn't talk much. It has been said that he didn't talk until 3 -- there are conflicting accounts on this. However, what is not conflicting is that it took him a little longer to talk than the average child. But, we must remember that Albert Einstein was far from average.

Einstein's parents hardly coddled their first born. They gave him tremendous freedom to roam and grow. This no doubt had a positive outcome on his development. When he was just four years old, he was allowed to roam the neighborhood alone. Believe it or not his parents even encouraged him to cross the street on his own at this young age. They watched behind the first few times to ensure that he looked both ways, but soon he was on his own doing this.

Now, keep in mind when he was crossing the street he wasn't dodging Fords, Chevrolets, Mercedes or cars with a lot of horse power -- he was dodging only horsepower. In other words, he was dodging horse drawn carriages. But, it was still very dangerous for this young child. In our world today, I would not encourage my four year old to roam the neighborhood alone or even allow him near the street. With that being said, the principles of self-reliance and risk that Einstein's parents implemented in his life are ones that we can perhaps model on a smaller scale. Einstein certainly modeled this behavior with his own son on a smaller scale.

In his late twenties, Einstein moved to Zurich with his first wife, Mileva, and their son. Friedrich Adler was living near Einstein and they became great friends. They would often get together to share ideas. Often times their sons would get rowdy and it would be hard for them to talk. Many parents would barge in and tell their sons to be quiet, that they are having a meeting. Not Adler and Einstein, these great thinkers would climb into the attic to carry on their conversation. They allowed their boys to grow and explore even if it was noisy.

His freedom as a child and the freedom he gave his son was, in part, due to his attitude on failure. He was not afraid to fail. After all, he tackled some of the most perplexing questions of our universe. Many would have shied away from tackling these questions simply because the rate of failure seemed extraordinarily high. However, it is evident that Einstein was not afraid to be wrong or to fail.

When Einstein was 50 years old, reporters were hounding Einstein for an interview during which he was working on a unified field theory. Putting the "unified field theory" into layman's terms, this meant he was working on a theory that would put the entire universe into a mathematical equation, and he had the attention of the world. Reporters parked outside his home in hopes of an interview. Many kept all night vigils waiting for the story. As a rule, Einstein did not chase the spotlight and dodged the requests often. It was the same in this instance as well. He did, however, allow an interview with one reporter from the New York Times. You see the New York Times was edited by Carr Van Anda, and Van Anda had found an error in a previous Einstein's equation. Image that! The editor of the New York Times finding an error in the math of Einstein! Don't you think that Einstein must have been irate that the editor would point this out? He must have been insulted. Actually, on the contrary, Einstein was impressed and that is the reason he allowed an interview to this reporter from the New York Times. You see Einstein was not afraid to be wrong, and when corrected he was not insulted.

At Princeton, Albert Einstein was more like a kindly uncle. When he arrived in 1935, and was asked what he would require for his study, he replied, "A desk, some pads and a pencil, and a large wastebasket - to hold all of my mistakes."

Albert Einstein spent his last two decades trying to reconcile quantum physics with relativity. His holy grail -- a so-called "Unified Field Theory" -- eluded him. He once casually mentioned to a colleague that he was on the verge of his "greatest discovery ever," before admitting that "it didn't pan out" just two weeks later.

One day in his twilight years, he received a letter from a 15-year-old girl asking for help with a homework assignment. She soon received a curious reply: a page full of unintelligible diagrams, along with an attempt at consolation: "Do not worry about your difficulties in mathematics," Einstein told her, "I can assure you that mine are much greater!"

The man who was the greatest success at mathematics also failed a lot at them. But that didn't stop him from moving forward.

Not only was he willing to risk at math, he also risked when he gambled. While attending a physics symposium in Las Vegas one year, Albert Einstein, to the astonishment of many of his sober-minded colleagues, spent a fair amount of time at the craps and roulette tables.

"Einstein is gambling as if there were no tomorrow," an eminent physicist remarked one day. "What troubles me," another replied, "is that he may know something!"

Too often in life, we attempt to spend all our energy demonstrating how we are right instead of accepting constructive criticism and getting better. This is not true of Einstein. Not only was he not afraid of being wrong, he was not afraid of being corrected. Inquire of yourself, ask yourself honestly: How do you respond when you are corrected? Do you lash out or are you grateful?

If you want to develop the mind of Einstein. You must not be afraid to fail and allow yourself the opportunity to fail. Herman Melville put it this way, "He who has never failed somewhere, that man can not be great."

Thomas Edison when he was constructing the light bulb built 1,000 proto