365QOD-Day365

"The Journey Of A Thousand Miles Begins With A Single Step"- Lao Tzu

WOW!  365 days ago we began a journey.  The funny thing is it seems like yesterday. 

I look at the labels I have assigned to the posts

acceptance action balance branding business change communication connections creativity decision making demanding Direction doing exceeding fear feelings financial focus giving happiness I am influence integrity leadership learning learning about others life mission making mistakes mastery momentum motivation passion procrastination receiving sources strategy stretching success intelligence teamwork transitions zen

 

and to me they boil down to two words: self help.  The best advice I ever read about self help comes from Jim Rohn who said that self help is like bathing... best done everyday.

 

I have learn many things along the way.  There are about 500+ devoted folks who regularly read the posts.  Amazingly, only a few have made comments.  I try to pose the questions in such a way as to hopefully make you stop and ask yourself a question that could change your day.  

 

In the age that we live, it is so easy to change channels.   All of you could have started to read something else or just stopped reading the posts. 

 

But you did not.  For this I can only say THANKS...

 

Today's question is:

"Can this crazy guy write for another year?"

 

P.S. I am and soon will be starting a second blog.... 

 

365QOD-Day364

"Most people will succeed in small things if they were not troubled with great ambitions"- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

I have always heard that they way we do small things is how we do big things.  Unfortunately, we often start with great ambitions.  This puts undue pressure and eventually leads to quiting early.

It is in the development of daily routines that lead to that end that we need to focus on.  By having good routines, which we can eventually do automaticaly,  we can achieve anything.

So determine your great Ambition, Break it down in the smallest of tasks, Create rotines that support those tasks, Design your routines wisely so that you can, Effortlessly follow they by having a daily, Focus on your small things by , Greatly.....

Today's question is:
"What are your ABCs?

365QOD-Day363

"Make sure you visualize what you really want, not what someone else wants for you"-Jerry Gillies

Almost year a ago I started to write this blog.  My personality type is that I get excited by new projects.  This works well for my job since I work as a Project Manager. 

But in my personal life attacking multiple targets has led to many great starts and many unfinished ones.  After a few years I eventually decide that an unfinished project is no longer worth it and I erase it from my mind.

This is why tackling this project was important to me.  To be focused for a year on a goal is something I have never done.  It involved creativity and maybe that is what made it easier to focus and to reach the goal line.

The big secret I think was that I kept at it a little bit at a time.  At times I wrote the posts daily.  Sometimes I wrote them several at a time and delay posted them.  The output was fairly consistent.  It looked as if it was achieved daily. 

The big question now is, will I stop?  Absolutely not!  This is like a drug.  My daily drug of creativity.

The biggest challenge to me is to keep reading and experiencing life in order to share what I learn and experience with you.

Today's question is:
"What can you achieve in a constant effort over a year?"

365QOD-Day362

"A career is wonderful, but you can not curl up with it on a cold night"-Marilyn Monroe

I often observe the people that work around me.  They have developed their work habits over their career and I enjoy observing them. 

What do I see?

The younger ones are often working harder than others as if trying to let everyone know that they belong.  The more mature ones see the end and are now coasting.  They feel as if they are fire proof. 

The ones in the middle, like me, work a little more than needed but enough to go home and have a life.

It all boils down to a single word: balance.  In my opinion, what we see as balance varies with our age.  Hopefully, at the end of our lives we can say that we achieved that balance. 

Today's question is:
"In which group do you belong?"

365QOD-Day361

"The secret of all those who make discoveries is that they regard nothing as impossible"- Justus Liebig (I love his last name!!!!)

We limit ourselves.  Big time!

Yesterday I did something unusual.  I ran next to a bicycle.  My wife got a new bike and she went out for a ride next to me as I ran my 10 mile practice run.

She did not know the rules.  In my mind I expected her to ride her bike next to me.  She sometimes got excited and paddled up ahead.  Sometimes she followed me from behind. 

This change of pace forced me to run my practice run 10 minute faster than I have ever run it.  I made the discovery that I can run faster.  I now believe that I can run even faster than I did Saturday.

It was a discovery.  I knew it was not impossible.  I, however, never pushed myself to that level.  I hope she goes again.

Today's question is:
"What is currently impossible in your world?" 

365QOD-Day360

"One loyal friend is worth ten thousand relatives"-Euripides

I sometimes think that God gives us the friends that we have to make up for some of our family members. 
Some of those "tough" family members are like rough sand paper. They are abrasive and only make us better people for tolerating them.

Then there are our true friends.  The true friends make our lives smooth.  They provide the polish.

Today's question is:
"Are you the sand paper or the polish to the people in your life?"

365QOD-Day359

"Challenges are what makes life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful"- Joshua J. Marine

I am training for a half marathon.  I try to run once during the week.  It is usually a short run of 7 miles or less. But on the weekends I try to push myself to do more than 10 miles. 

The other day I was in Virginia, I woke up at 6 a.m. and put my running shorts and shoes on.  It would have been so easy to stay in bed since I did not have my first meeting till 9.

I left the hotel and started down an unknown street.  There was a guy up ahead with a hood over his head.  He was walking.  I asked him if he was going to run.  He said that he was done.  I asked him to run with me and to my surprise he did.  We ran a few miles while talking. 

During the time we ran we talked about our lives and the run seemed so short.  He is at the same place I was two years ago, just starting to run.  It was up to me to nurture his pursuit.  I did and I hope he keeps up with it. 

The easy thing would have been to just keep quiet and continue to run without speaking. 

Today's question is:
"Did you nurture a stranger today?"

365QOD-Day358

"There are only two ways to live your life.  One is though nothing is a miracle.  The other is as if everything is"- Albert Einstein

The other day I got in a conversation with a friend of mine who is a non-believer.   I do not judge people if they believe or they do not. 

It is not my business BUT this friend asked me how I as a scientist could believe.  At that point I have to respond.  I fall into the second way that Einstein mentions in the quote.  I see perfection where there is imperfection.  I marvel at why we have five fingers instead of 10.  When I wake up and I am running as the sun is coming up I marvel how we can be so close to the sun and yet not be as dry as Mars. 

Yes, I marvel at the miracle of life. 

Today's question is:
"Which way do you live your life?" 

365QOD-Day357

"It is so annoying that I can not take my eyes of it"- reason people give when asked why they watch a bad show

I just read a story in USA Today about a YouTube sensation Dane Boedigheimer hit Annoying Orange.
Amazing!

I have never watched the show. I have not interest in the topic BUT I can appreciate the brilliance behind creating a simple video show and parlaying that into a popular show.

The story did not indicate how profitable the show is but with millions of viewers I am sure it does well.  I guess it is a simple ideas that translate well to shows.

Today's question is:
"What idea that you have that can be translated into an Internet video show?"

The story can be found at:
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/talkingtech/story/2012-01-24/annoying-orange-youtube-tv/52776276/1

365QOD-Day356

"The only time teammates seem to approach him at this point is when they begin to the see the end of their own careers. He recognizes the look in their eyes, the panic that comes from facing a truth that they won’t be able to do the only thing they have known. They have heard the same stories all football players hear, that the first two years after football are the worst, and they wonder how Williams has peace. They wonder if they can handle what is about to happen.

“I don’t feel [the fear],” Williams says. “I was talking to my doctor about this the other day. And because I have found something that I love and that I want to do when I’m done I’m sure I’m going to miss it, but because I’ve been able to look that monster in the face I’ll be better prepared. Some people are afraid of it so they try to delay it as long as they can.”- Yahoo story

I read a story about Terrell Owens today and was reminded of this quote.  In the story, he is described as someone who earned close to 80 million dollars and now has financial troubles.  His monthly child support alone is around 50k.  He did not spend money crazily but made many bad investments.  So now out of football he is struggling.  He can not move on to the next phase of his life.

Ricky Williams was also very destructive in his life but it seems like he has turned it around.  He even returned to football after being kicked out for drug abuse.  It seems as if he is in peace with himself.  Without that peace he would not be able to come back.

Today's question is:
"What are you transitioning to?"

Ricky's story can be found at
 http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=lc-carpenter_ricky_williams_ravens_010912

365QOD-Day355

"You are a genius"-my English 9th grade teacher's (Mr. Howard Schmidt)words

Those are hard words to forget.  What did I do to deserve them?  I do not remember exactly but never the less they still make me glow.  (He is the main editor of my first book)

But as the old saying goes....So what? 

Being something and actually doing something are different.  One is about having potential and the other is about achieving that potential.

Imagine a marble on the edge of a building roof.  It has a lot of potential energy just sitting there.  Unless it is given a push, a nudge, it never takes the leap.  Once the leap occurs the potential energy gets converted into kinetic energy, the energy of motion. 

Today's question is:
"Are you Mr./Ms. Potential or Mr./Ms.Kinetic energy?"

365QOD-Day354

"So sad"- my reaction

Unless you have not heard the news Joe Paterno passed away Sunday.  I never attended Penn State.  But I can feel for the students and alumni of the school.  He was a legend.

Why write a post about Joe?  Well, I was wondering if we could learn lessons from news stories.

What lesson would we learn from Joe?  He was passionate about football. He coached the team for 46 years.  Wow!  He won national championships. 

Unfortunately, some people will judge him by his response to his assistant molesting children.  Maybe his focus was too much on football and not enough on the world around him.

I do not know all of the facts but I believe that he probably did not do enough.  He had a lot of power at Penn State.  He could have pushed the issue.  But for reasons we will never know...he did not.

I believe that the weakest link determines the strength of a chain.  If the location is such, the link can be removed.  But if it is in the middle then you can not easily do it.  The chain becomes a couple of smaller, less impressive, chains.

Today's question is:
"What is your weakest link and how can it get you in trouble?"

365QOD-Day353

"It is only bad news"- my friend's opinion of the news

I often look through two newspapers.  Out of two papers(one local and one national) I rarely read more than one or two stories total.  It usually takes a few minutes each day.

When I get magazines from the library I go though them and mark the corner of the stories that appeal to me.  Then I start reading only those stories.

Similarly, I scan the stories of the most popular stories on yahoo without reading them.  I just get the jest of the story.  Sometimes I do read a story or two per day.

This focus allows me to read stories that nurture me instead of wasting my time.  It is my choice to do it this way.

Today's question is:
"How do you reduce your information input?"

365QOD-Day352

"She looks great"- my impression of Jennifier Hudson's weight loss
I can not help but notice the many ads Jennifer appears in these days.  The journey she undertook was challenging.

The other day I read a story about a guy named Ben Davis who has posted a video on youtube called "My 120 pound journey".  Pretty inspirational.

Both stories made me conclude that when a human being sets their mind to achieve a goal then the only person that can prevent them from achieving the goal is the person who set he goal.  I believe it.

These two individuals are inspiring and made me wonder if my goals are big enough. 

Today's question is:
"Who inspires you?"

365QOD-Day351

"He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life" Ralph Waldo Emerson

Yesterday I used Mark Twain's quote that advised to live fully.  My advise was to allow give your all and except that at times your best might not be good enough.

Emerson adds another bit of advise- conquer some fear everyday.  Start by first identifying what scares the shit out of you.  Create categories and identified several things that you fear happening.  Make it a point to tackle one per day.   I need to create my This Stuff Scares the Shit Out of Me list. 

Today's question is:
"Which fear will you tconquer today?"

365QOD-Day350

"The fear of death follows from the fear of life.  A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time."- Mark Twain

I love this quote.  In my opinion it advises that we live life fully.  By doing so, we can truly live and we will not fear death. 

What can anyone ask of you?  In my opinion it is to do your best.  By doing our own best at each moment we would be living fully.  You would not have time for dark thoughts or fears.

So if it is that easy...just simply live fully..why don't we live fully?  Because sub-consciously we believe that our best might not be good enough. Therefore we fear.  We have to understand that at times our best just won't be good enough. At other times it would be better than good enough.  You will only know by being fully engaged and allowing yourself to fail if it isn't good enough.  Hint:  the world will not end if you are not good enough at one thing or several things.

Today's question is:
"How prepared to die are you today?"

365QOD-Day349

"... I came across it in the book Breakthrough Entrepreneurship (which I highly recommend) by entrepreneur and teacher Jon Burgstone and writer Bill Murphy, Jr. Of Stevenson’s definition, Burgstone says, “people often need to say it out loud 50 or 100 times before they really understand what it means.” Here it is:

Entrepreneurship is the pursuit of opportunity without regard to resources currently controlled.

"-Howard Stevenson.


So how does one pursue the opportunity without regard?


"Burgstone puts it:

Every time you want to make any important decision, there are two possible courses of action. You can look at the array of choices that present themselves, pick the best available option and try to make it fit. Or, you can do what the true entrepreneur does: Figure out the best conceivable option and then make it available."

As human beings we always want to make the best choice.  Notice that Burgstone advises to conceive and then make available NOT pick the best option and make it fit.   In other words see the end(the best conceivable option) and the steps in between the start and the end in order to make it available.

Making the "best" available option fit does not make it the optimal solution.  

Today's question is:
"Are you working towards the best available or are you conceiving the optimal solution?"

The article can be found at:
 http://www.inc.com/eric-schurenberg/the-best-definition-of-entepreneurship.html

365QOD-Day348

"An estimated 60 percent of former NBA players are penniless within five years after hanging up their sneakers."-Yahoo story

I read this fact in a story about a former NBA player who has prospered after his career.  What made the story more impressive than the success was the fact that the majority of the other players failed so miserably.

Isn't this true for most Americans?  Imagine averaging 50k a year for 30 years of your career.  Some years you are below and some you are above but you only average 50k a year.  Over a 30 year 35 year career you would have totaled over 50*35=1.75 million dollars.  Lets give you a boost and round it up to 1.8 million.  Uncle Sam will take a third or 600k.

Roughly you would have kept 1.2M.  Let us assume 50% of your net income goes towards bills.  This might be low or it might be high.  Now we are left with 600k.  If you can get 5% returns on the average it means you have a 30k per year pension or $2500 per month before taxes being taken out.

If we just save you would be OK.  If the 50% is closer to 90% or more you will not have the safety net.  Moral of the story is that with planning one can retire even if one has a median salary.  With  smart investments one can even retire more "comfortably".

Today's question is:
"How comfortable are you?"

365QOD-Day347

"Q: How do you eat an elephant? A: One bite at a time."- conversation with Patrick Mallot

I published a book in August.  It is available in both paperback and as an ebook from Amazon.  The price is the same 9.99.  Why?

After many MBA courses in which students argued about the price they most often concluded that by selling it at a lower price leads people to believe that it is not worth the purchase.

The other day I read a USA Today article about Amanda Hocking, an author who has written 22 published and unpublished ebooks and sold more than 1.5 million copies of her books and earned an estimated $2 million by pricing her books from 99 cents to $2.99.  She just signed a contract with St. Martin press for $2 million.  Amazing!  Great for her!

So what is the right price to sell a book?  I do not know.  Maybe mine is overpriced?  Maybe hers would have sold the same amount even if they were 9.99?  Maybe she would do better selling her books instead of going through the publisher?

Amazon's Kindle allow you to earn 70%  of the book price.  Create space, Amazon's paperback partner,  is a lot less.  Maybe $2-3 per book.

My first royalty check was for $27 dollars. It was not a lot money BUT the idea that it was residual income.  Money earned without having to show up and trade time for money.... nice..very nice..

Her first royalty check was $15.72. I think I will take a picture of mine and frame it...It will inspire me to write my next book.

Today's question is:
"What can you do to bring in residual income?"

P.S The article can be read at 
http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/story/2012-01-03/amanda-hocking-self-published-author/52345642/1

365QOD-Day346

"..headaches come in many forms"-Tommy Henderson

The other day I was having a conversation with a friend when he uttered this phrase.  I complimented him and registered it for later use.

Our conversation was about another friend who suffers from constant migraines.  This was a physical form of a headache.

Tommy was talking about mental headaches.  This is when we are struggling with major decisions for a while without knowing the best way to play out our destiny.

In my humble opinion the only way to get rid of a headache is to decide.  Often times the decision is painful but so is pulling off a band-aid.  It has to be done and done quickly.

Today's question is:
"What is your biggest headache?" 

365QOD-Day345

"Embrace change"- a wrist band

I sat in a hotel lobby the other day. A young gentlemen was there to interview.  He was smiling and we struck up a conversation.

While talking I noticed his wrist band.  It said, "embrace change".  I asked him what it meant to him and he said that it was an extra wrist band that his cousin had given him.  In other words it had no special meaning.  Maybe it looked cool.

I thought the slogan was cool and spent some time thinking about what it meant to embrace change.  To me it means that when my deck gets shuffled I respond by thinking first and then executing my plan.  Accepting the event that has changed is the key.  Often times wed want to fight that reality instead of modifying our strategy.

If we know where we need to go then a change just slightly modifies our journey.  It should not completely change it.  I think by embracing it we relieve a lot of stress from believing that we can stop it. 

The best way to explain it is to look at the difference of Aikido vs. other traditional martial art styles.  Other styles confront an attack by reacting to it.  Aikido welcomes the attack and uses it against the attacker.  It "embraces" the attack. 

Today's question is:
"Are you reacting or embracing change?"

365QOD-Day344

"Make a conscious decision to look for what is right and pleasing in others. Create a new habit of complimenting those around you. Turn judgments into blessings."-Wayne Dyer

I am a bad social networker.  Besides posting to my Facebook page and twitter accounts, I don't spend enough time to read and write comments.  However, I did this morning and read this quote on Wayne Dyer's account.

It is amazing how it is easy to lift people up instead of tearing them apart.  I got in an elevator yesterday and when a couple came in I smiled and started a conversation.

The gentlemen had a nice bag.  It looked rugged and worn.  I complemented his bag.  The construction, the material, etc.  I can tell that he loved the bag.  He smiled.  I can tell that he felt proud of his bag choice.

I could have just as easily smiled and said nothing.

Today's question is:
"How will you lift people up today?(...chose your victims without much thought..)"

365QOD-Day343

 "The greatest achievement was at first and for a time a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn; the bird sleeps in the egg; and in the highest vision of the soul, a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities..." - James Allen

Even the smallest starts from an even smaller part.  Even the big bang started from an "unknown" source of energy.  It is the seed.

Currently I am nurturing two seeds.
I want to run a marathon this year.  This is my physical goal. 
I also want to publish a book on lessons we learned from Steve Jobs. This is my mental goal.

Many years ago I used to watch people that worked with me retire and die within two years.  They had no seeds that they were nurturing.  They no longer had to do physical work and they stopped mentally challenging themselves.  They had no dreams left in them.

Today's question is:
"What are your dreams?"

365QOD-Day342

"The ultimate fusion of music and fitness"- Motoactv.com ad

Several years ago I read an article that argued that people with not want a singular device.  They wanted a cell phone that served as a cell phone only.  The article said that most people did not want a camera on a cell phone.

How foolish this article appears today.  Most of us can not imagine a dumb phone.  A phone without a camera.  Forget about it! A phone that does not keep your busy schedule.  No way!

The ad I mention above is a new type of fitness tracker and music player with a brain.  It appears that new trend is starting to develop in the fitness arena.  The device you took along for entertainment is now tracking your performance as well.    

Today's question is:

"What changed our views so fast?"

365QOD-Day341

"Surfing is not about your ability to maneuver a board, but rather it is about how completely you experience the moment" Ryan Levinson Outside magazine's Chief Inspirational Officer

How many things do we do on automatic?  We wake up and drink our coffee.  We drive to work.

Do you remember the taste of the coffee you had this morning?  Do you remember the details of your drive.

The answers are most likely no.  We maneuvered a few thousand pound weapon without conscientiously experiencing the moments.

Why? Maybe our brains are not designed to handle that level of processing.

Today's question is:
"What do you think would happen to our brains if we experience more moments?"

365QOD-Day340

"We can waste our lives dreaming big but letting insecurities blind us, or we can look up and see life as a series of moments to be experienced rather than conquered"- Ryan Levinson Outside magazine's Chief Inspirational Officer

I recently read an article in a running magazine in which the author talked about how he had done many races in his life. He raced and raced but never really appreciated the scenery. 

Imagine that.  He ran at some fantastic races but never enjoyed the scenery and only worried about the win.  He was trying to conquer the race but did not appreciate the moments.

The only person I race against is me.  I can care less if I do great or not.  I only care that I finish the race.  While I am running I am constantly noting my surroundings and the people within them.  Their expressions, their form in the scene give meaning to the moment.

Yesterday was December 31, 2011.  I ran 7 miles in about 100% humidity(fog).  It was very memorable.  People looked like they came out of clouds.  I will remember that run for a long time because I lived in the moment.

Today's question is:
"Are you conquering life without experiencing it?"

365QOD-Day339

"Do not disturb my circles"-Archimedes last works before being killed by a soldier

On Christmas day my right hand wrist started hurting really bad.  I opened my hand very wide and put a bandage to help it not move and strengthen a bit.  No problem.

On Monday after Christmas my hand felt a little better and I put the bandage on early in the morning.  Again I opened my hand wide.  The whole day my hand felt a little better.

Monday night I decided to write a few posts.  I sat down to write with the laptop on my lap with a cooling fan underneath it.  I wrote and wrote.  Man I was in the flow.

The number of readers for December was up and I wanted to improve my posts so I wrote my heart out.  A couple of hours later I stopped writing and put my laptop down and walked over to my wife.  She looked at me and asked me the question, "What happened to you?"

I looked at my hand and my right hand was twice the size of my left hand.  It was huge.  I did not notice it at all while writing it.  It took almost a day before my hand regained its original size. 

If I ever had any doubts about the idea of flow, they were removed.  When I am doing something creative I lose myself to it.  I flow with the moment and the world around me stops.

Today's question is:
"When is the last time you were in the flow?"

365QOD-Day338

"New Year, a new me"- a common belief

At this time of year we often think in terms of what we want to start doing.  Some people want to eat better.  Others want to start exercising.  Everyone is looking for a change that leads to a better self.

I am instead thinking about what I can stop doing.  I read an article in Harvard Business Review about the 5 things you should stop doing.  It is a good article.

Most of my October month was spent asking myself "What next do I want to accomplish?".  I had a project that I had planned and after some long thinking sessions I concluded that I want to write a book about Steve Jobs.  So I started and after a month I stalled.

Maybe I need to stop?  Maybe I am doing too many other things I need to stop in order to focus on the book?  I know I need to stop something.  What? Maybe I am saying yes to too many things? Which things?

I currently do not know the answers to my questions.  Maybe by the time this post appears I will?

Today's question is:
"What 5 things should you stop doing in 2012?"

P.S. The article can be found at
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/12/five_things_you_should_stop_do.html

365QOD-Day337

"I thought about doing that 5 years ago!"- my thought

Five years ago I was taking and teaching martial arts classes.  I noticed that students were progressing through the ranks too fast.  It seems that most systems and instructors are in the game of constantly rewarding a student in order to keep them coming.  The next belt is a carrot.  The student knows that if they come to class and do what they are suppose to do they will progress in rank and achieve the black belt level within 4 years.

I recently read an article about a ballerina who spent 40,000 in order to be able to teach her classes on line to at most 12 students at a time.  I thought that this was pretty high until I saw that her client base increased more than 400 percent to about 10000 users in 50 countries and she now offers DVDs available for purchase.

Back to my story...
I thought to myself that it would be best for the student to learn a particular form and in the same time learn how to do the form by using weapons.  That way the student would be required to master a form, same form with sword, same form with nun-chucks, same form with Bo-staff, etc. The constant would be the foot work.  The hands would be busy using the weapons while doing the same footwork.  So I developed sets of forms from white belt to black belt with each of these weapons.

Then I thought to myself... one can offer this online.  A student can sign up for a class and they can watch a course during which the student is taught all of these forms.  They can then be asked to come in and test for rank or submit a tape of themselves performing the forms.  So someone would progress more slow but by the time they reach black belt they would be an expert with open hands or weapons.

Today's question is:
"Could you offer your product online to a real audience?"

P.S. The article can be found at:
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220713

365QOD-Day336

"Everything could be made adaptable"- my belief

I was reading the December 2011 issue of the Entrepreneur and came across an article by Michelle Juergen on a company Day2Night. Why would an article about women heel height excite me?

Being a guy I could care less about women's shoes.  They look painful just to watch them try to walk.  I especially can't get the new styles where the heels are so high and the front is also raised.  Makes absolutely no sense to me.

So why did I get excited about Day2Night's idea?  Their shoes come with five heels of different heights that can be switched out with a push of a button.  A women can go from a 1 inch heel to a 5 inch heel.  Brilliant!
They did not change the concept of a shoe.  They simply changed a part of a shoe to make it great.

Could the same concept be made for guys?  Probably not in the same way but imagine a company making a running shoe with 5 different heal structures for training on different surfaces.  Wow!  I looked at the bottom of my almost 2 year old Pegasus 25 and noted after all of the miles I have put on these shoes they look white as snow and almost brand new.  The only part that was worn out was my heel.

Today's question is:
"What sub-part of your system could stand a little adaptability?"

P.S. the original article can be found at
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220729

365QOD-Day335

"The top 1% owns 36% of all wealth"- Fortune Nov 7th 2011

This country has become very polarized.  The gap between poor and wealthy is getting bigger.  The media is constantly reporting this fact. What good does it do me to know that someone is getting richer or poorer?  I do not earn their income.  I do not know what they had to do to earn their income. 

What worries me is that people are focusing on the wealthy and not slamming the real crooks- the politicians.  How many of them were millionaires before they entered public service?  Probably only a few.  So how does a guy become a millionaire by being a public servant earning 175k a year and having to maintain two homes?  Very good question. 

Our founding fathers were statesmen.  We now have career politicians.  Founders expected people to give of themselves for a few years and go home.  They never envisioned an animal that loves to eat from the public troft for decades. 

By focusing on the rich or taxing them more it does not do the common man any good. Are there inequalities in the system?  Many!  US CEOs make 475 time the salary of the average worker.  
In Germany the ratio is 12 times. 
In Japan 11 times. 
In Britain 22 times. 
In Canada 20 times. 
So what is reasonable?  Venezuela 50 times or Mexico 47 times. No!

I think that every CEOs salary should be tied to the average pay.  Whatever the magic number is(I like 20) let the company decide.  So if the average salary is 50k then the CEO can make the most 1M.  No options, no extra perks. Keep it simple sweetheart!  If the CEO wants to raise their salary then they have to increase the salary of the average worker.  How do you do that?  Produce better and cheaper products. And do not allow a CEO of one company to serve on another board.  By being in bed with one another they have increased their salaries to 475 times the average salary of a worker($23.16 in US). 

Today's question is:
"In your world, what ratio is the right ratio?"

365QOD-Day334

"What makes a good business book stand out from all the others?
The best books always give us an opportunity to organize our experiences--to take what we know and give it shape and meaning and context. I've always said that we are all experience-rich and theory-poor. And to me the point of business books is to remedy that problem."- Malcolm Gladwell interview by Kevin Ohannessian(link is below)

A few post ago I wrote about So what? moments and stopping to think about what the meaning of those 5 posts is to you.  When I read the interview that Malcolm did, the line that we are all experience-rich and theory-poor stood out. 

This is another way of saying we read, do, and experience things BUT we do not always understand them(theory-poor).

Today's question is:
"When you are confronted by different sources telling you the same, how do you make yourself believe the information?"


P.S.  The link to the interview is
http://www.fastcompany.com/1800273/malcolm-gladwell-tipping-point

365QOD-Day333

"I can't live off of free"-my sentiment

While reading December 12th issue of Fortune I came across an article by Verne Harnish about how to think a little bit different.  It made me think about how to apply these ideas.

First idea was about finding a new way to do "free".  It mentions a software company called Atlassian.  Instead of giving the product away that it normally sells for $10, it promised to donate that money to a global literacy charity.  This lead to many folks on Facebook mentioning it.

Since the company made the offer back in 2009 it has raised $1.5 million for charity.  WOW!  (in other words 150,000 customers bought at least the basic product)

It has sold $8 million in products to customers that traded up from the basic $10 product to a higher end product.  WOW! (in other words $8M/150k~$53 upgrade)

The moral of the story is to do good and the money will follow.  Do not follow money it will not lead you to good.

Today's question is:
"What product that you create/produce that can not be given away for a donation?" 

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"Why pay?"- a movie character living on $5 per day

I recently saw an OK movie called $5 per day in which Christopher Walken looked for ways to exist without paying.  He even went to the extreme of having 365 drivers licenses so he can get free birthday meals at participating restaurants.  Since he had 365 cards, everyday was his birthday.

This is not reality for the rest of us.  We must pay for things we use.  I marvel that some things like Youtube are free.  I can type in any music act and find music that I have enjoyed in the past.  Imagine doing that 10 years ago.  You couldn't do it without having a physical copy of the music.

However, the artists get screwed.  They created the work and now are not being compensated for it.  It is not fair but in this case free has won over fair.

Even with patents, copyrights, and trademarks they are not protected against free.

Today's question is:
"Do you believe you can protect the things you create?"

P.S. Happy New Year!

365QOD-Day331

"...after 20 years, the knees of distance runners were actually healthier than those of control group."-Stanford Medical School researcher finding

In another study, by the American College of Sports Medicine, it was found that "physical activity [including running] is beneficial, rather than detrimental, to joint health."

It is my conclusion that the human body is amazing.  We can abuse it BUT as long as we abuse moderately it will spring back and become stronger. I guess the key is moderation and not extreme abuse.

I find that as long as I run a few times a week I can abuse my body by eating a little more than I need and still not gain any weight.  If I control what I eat and still run, then my body responds with a modest weight loss.

If I drink more than one beer, I note that next day I do not feel as well as I usually do.  So for me the key is to stop at one beer.

Today's question is:
"How do you stop yourself from abusing yourself?"

365QOD-Day330

"Why would you want to be like someone else?  It's exhausting just trying to be yourself."- Cigna ad

I find inspiration in many things.  I saw this ad printed on a T-shirt in a magazine I was reading.  The words resonated with me.

Often we see someone do things we admire, dress the way we wish to, and we try to imitate.  However, we are never as good as the original. A clumsy imitation.

I guess it is simply human nature to try to improve ourselves by adapting portions of others.  Hell, that might be the secret to the survival of the human race.  If we were very different and broke away from the herd easily we would have gotten eaten.

However, we should understand what makes us cool.  What makes us original?  This should be our lifetime effort.  Copying portions of others gives us a glimpse of what we like but drilling inside is the key to being yourself most often.

Today's question is:
"What is the true you inside of you?"

365QOD-Day329

“Some people live X years, but most people live 1 year X  times.”-Anonymous

Practice does not make perfect.  

How do I know?  I used to watch little kids practice very hard before a rank test.  They would flare their arms vigorously BUT not with any precision or form.

So what makes perfect? Perfect practice makes perfect.

In order to understand why something works or does not work we must take it apart and examine why we succeeded or failed.  We must take ourselves apart and understand our thinking and beliefs that contributed to the result.

Doing something over and over and expecting better results without examining the reasons is not productive.  We can not improve by doing it more often.  We must do it after we have obtained some wisdom by examining our success and failures.


Today's question is:
"Do you question your successes as well as your failures?"

365QOD-Day328

"So what?"- words on a picture I have on my cell phone

Once in a while I put this picture on my phone that has a guy with his hands raised to the side with a puzzled look.  Next to him are the words so what. 

I have just shared 5 posts which I labeled successful intelligence.  So what?

The ideas behind the 5 posts were based on a study that found that company founders, disruptive innovators, typically have five discovery skills:
Questioning
Observing
Networking
Experimenting
Associating

Again, so what?  Well, unless you and I take a pause and really think about how to apply and improve these skills we will stay at the same level.  The pause is the key.

Maybe listing a couple of actions you can immediately adopt and track your success with them is the way to do it. I suspect that it is unique to each of us.  What might work for me will fail you.

Today's question is:
"So what will you do with this nugget of information?"

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"And your name is?"- a question we often pose after forgetting a person's name

Fifth discovery skill of disruptive innovators is Associating.

Rarely do we come up with a solution that solves a problem by itself.  In my opinion it often requires the combination of two or more techniques to come up with something unique.

In a past post I wrote about how I spent a few hours with a world class designer to come up with a solution on how to graph data uniquely.  His approach was one of beauty.  My approach was one of logic.  The ultimate solution married the two into a unique format.

I find it very interesting to speak with people of very different backgrounds than mine.  I learn the most from these people.  Their approaches intrigue me.  They are foreign to me.  It is like learning how to handle a new weapon.

So associating techniques and people can lead to unique approaches.  I often try to associate a person's name with another person by that name to remember the name.  Most of the times it works.

Today's question is:
"How do you freshen up your approaches?"

365QOD-Day326

"I did not fail 10,000 times.. Designing a light bulb is a 10,000 step process" - paraphrase of Tomas Edison's words

Fourth discovery skill of disruptive innovators is Experimenting.

I can not remember ever succeeding at anything on my first attempt.  Now I have done very well at a few things during my initial attempt but I would not call them success.

In order to allow oneself to fail it takes a belief that eventually the experiments will succeed.  But what if they do not? What if after many experiments the result is a failure?

You must completely re-think your strategy, your approach, your execution, etc.  Then be willing to start from scratch with a beginner's mind and try again.  How many times?  It depends on how important success is to you.

Today's question is:
"Do you give yourself  permission to fail?"

365QOD-Day325

"More business decisions occur over lunch and dinner than at any other time, yet no MBA courses are given on the subject."- Peter Drucker

The third discovery skill of disruptive innovators is Networking.  

I often design new systems. It is rare that I know enough to solve the many problems that come up by myself.  This is where networking comes to play for me.

I have to identify the right person(s) who have the knowledge to nudge my progress forward.  One problem though.  If you only knock on people's doors when you need help then they will initially help but eventually resist your request.

So even though it seems pointless to chat about nothing it is necessary for the maintenance of a relationship.  People want to know that you genuinely care before they will care to help you.

Today's question is:
"How do you show that you genuinely care about someone?"

365QOD-Day324

“You can observe a lot by watching.”-Yogi Berra

The second discovery skill of disruptive innovators is Observing.

By taking the time to carefully observe phenomenons one can learn a lot.  The trouble with observing is not to jump to conclusions too quickly.  To let the event play out and not interfere.

For example, suppose you notice that event B always occur after A.  You are convinced.  You have observed it.  That must be it.  But it could be premature.

What you might not notice is that B is made up of sub-events C and D.  Of which C plays a major part and D a very very minor part. 

You say so what B always occurs after A.  But a better observation is that C always occurs after A.  It is more specific of an observation. D plays a minor role and it can be ignored.

So don't fall for the easy conclusion based on an observation.  Dig a little deeper.  Maybe go back to asking the 5 Whys?

Today's question is:
"How do you slow yourself down to eliminate premature observations?

365QOD-Day323

"When all think alike, then no one is thinking."- Walter Lippman

While reading the November 7 issue  of Forbes I noticed an article about Innovating From Small to Big by Jeff Dyer and Hal Gregersen.  In the article they discuss a study they published in their new book The Innovator's DNA(have not read it yet).

The study found that company founders, disruptive innovators, typically have five discovery skills.  I will like to explore these five in detail over the next 5 days.

The first of these skills is Questioning.  One of the best techniques that I have learned for questioning is the 5 Why.  In this technique a person doing an investigation continues to ask why to establish the cause, effect, and evidence for each why. 

As parents, we often hate when kids continuously ask why.  Well, the 5 why(or more if needed) is the adult version of this game.  It tries not to assume that an event has a single cause but tries to drill into it more deeply.  It gets pretty close to the true cause fairly quickly.

Today's question is:
"Did you ask at least 5 Whys when presented with new information?"

365QOD-Day322

"It was the worst of times; it led to the best of times"- Chris Prentiss

I recently re-read the book Zen and the Art of Happiness by Chris Prentiss.  I had read the book about a year ago and figured while being stuck on a five hour flight to read something.  It took two hours.

After the flight I thought about how true this phrase has been in my life.  Going through the valleys always prepares me for the peaks.  I just have to make sure that I keep my feet moving forward by not getting stuck looking back.

Today's question is:
"Are you in a valley or on a peak?"

365QOD-Day321

"Who you allow into the circle of your life will make the difference in the quality of your life.  As the Buddha taught,'He who walks in the company of fools suffers a long way.  Company with fools..is always painful; company with the wise is pleasure."

Have you ever taken an inventory of the type of people you let into your circle?  Most of us would answer that we never do this.  We are not snobs and befriend everyone.  BUT maybe that is not the best strategy.

Maybe we should strive to befriend the wise?  I always want to meet quality people who care to discuss ideas and not people.  I want to learn about their thoughts and ideas.  Talking to people about other people is a waste of time.  All it does it brings me down.

Today's questions is:
"How and where do you find wise people?

365QOD-Day320

"Bird I hope you win it all"- my words of encouragement

The other night I was in a casino.  One of my co-workers, Robert, sat to my left on a lot machine.  Our machines payed off $4100 is a triple was hit.

After a few pulls I decided that the machine was a loser and moved to Robert's left. 

A couple of minutes later, Bird and Randy, a couple of co-workers showed up.  Randy was to sat down in front of the machine I lost a few bucks on and I told him about my experience.

Bird who was watching behind Robert and I and enjoying one of the many cranberry and vodka cocktails decided to sit down in the "unlucky chair".  I wished him luck and told him that I hoped he wins it all.

He played without paying attention.  We were playing penny slot machines and he did not care if he lost a few pennies.

Maybe it was the many drinks but all of sudden Bird started complaining about the loud ringing sound that his machine was making.  He had won the $4100 jackpot!  WOW!

Today's question is:
"Could some things you perceive as unlucky be very lucky?"

365QOD-Day319

"Brrrrrr"-my words at 6:16 on Saturday morning

One of my goals is to run in every state.  So far I have run in Indiana, Illinois, California, Georgia, Florida, and Texas.

The last few days I went to Lake Tahoe area in Nevada and wanted to run.  The first morning I got up and it was completely dark at 6.  So I ran on the treadmill(something I never do).

Next day the same so I worked out on the elliptical machine.

Third day I ran again on the treadmill.

On Saturday, just a couple of hours before I was to leave for the airport I woke up at 6 again.  I gave myself every reason in the book not to run.  It was a long list.  About 6:15 I simply put on my running clothes and shoes and went outside.

It was about 20 degrees. I ran a mile and came back... My ears were frozen.  But when I returned I felt great.  It was not the distance that I conquered.  It was me.  I made myself do something that I did not want to do. 

Next week I go to Virginia....

Today's question is:
"How do you make yourself do something that you do not want to do?"

365QOD-Day318

"What would you say about yourself"- Unknown

Often we let others describe us.  We let their words define us. 

Unfortunately, when we try to describe ourselves it is often based on our job(s).  But is that all we are?

I told a story of a gentlemen asking me the question, "So what do you do?" in an earlier post and having difficulty to answer it.  Eventually I concluded that the word creator(with a small c) describes me the best.

I create.  That is who I am.  I feel the best when I create something that did not exist before.  Something unique.  And if it is a product, I feel even better.

Today's question is:
"What one word would you use to describe yourself?"

365QOD-Day317

"I am loosing my eyesight, but I am getting insight"- unknown

Our bodies change as we get older.  Physically, unless we exercise we will age faster.  Our metabolisms will change and every little bite will turn into an extra pound that we carry.

These changes are inevitable.  But the quote brings up an interesting question, "Can we convert the inevitable into a positive?"

I like to believe that it is doable.  We must make an attempt to accept the changes and drive them toward positive results.  Noting the change and nudging oneself toward a better outcome must be done one nudge at a time.

When I say to myself that I do not feel like doing X, I force myself to do X.  Amazingly, X gets done and I love the feeling of self-control.  Every time the don't feel like it voice wins I feel terrible.

Today's question is:
"What are you loosing and what insight are you getting?"

365QOD-Day316

"If your life were a book, and you the author, how would you like your story to go?-Amy Purdy Ted speech

The other day I listened to a portion of her speech.  This question stood out. 

I am the author/artist of my life.  Everyday is a canvas on which I place colors that either stand out or are kind of mute.  The ones that stand out are the memorable events.  The mute ones are the day fillers.

Once in a while,  as the author/artist I have to once in a while step back in order to get the full affect of my actions and plan my future actions. 

Today's question is:
"What do you want your life to add up to in the end?"

365QOD-Day315

" If you don't use your head you will do a lot of walking."-my mother's advice.

"You seem to do a lot of walking?"- a statement put to me by another employee.  I had just returned from chasing other employees to resolve an issue.

I do walk a lot. It allows me to get to know a lot of people.  I believe that we too often communicate by sending an email and hoping  that the other person does what you wish them to do.

Like others I send a note BUT often I follow it up by walking over and talking with the person.

Today's question is:
"Do you do a lot of walking?"

365QOD-Day314

"11 seconds"- the amount of time it takes to dial a number on a rotary phone (from the book Crazy Busy)

I remember reading this line.  The author got frustrated when he had to use a rotary phone.  He questioned himself if he had become too busy in his life that 11 seconds drove him nuts when he had to dial a number on the rotary phone.

This leads me to believe that our patience is very limited and we are putting incredible amount of stress on ourselves.

Many years ago I attended a Handling Multiple Projects with Multiple Deadlines course.  The presenter asked how many people felt stressed.  After most people raised their hand he offered the following definition of stress:

Stress occurs when we are working on many items but we never seem to complete them- In other words a lack of closure.  

Today's question is:
"How do you assure that you finish the right things?"

365QOD-Day313

"Wow!"- my internal thought

After church I went to the cafeteria.  My wife and I sat down at an empty table.  After a while a burly gentlemen sat down next to us.

No wanting to be rude I introduced myself and spoke with the gentlemen.  His name is Dario.

To say that I was blown away would be an understatement.  Remember yesterday's quote?  Well it fit just as well today.   (The universe was sending me a message)

He is a truck driver.  That is not uncommon amongst my people BUT he was so much more.  The more was exceptionally intelligent, well read, and very thoughtful.

He loves philosophy and reads many books while traversing the country.  A man who took a car from Houston to come to service in Galveston(about 50 miles away).  I am often on the bleeding edge of using technology for learning BUT Dario was way ahead of me.  Wow!

I hate judging people but I could not resist and I asked him why is it that he driving a truck instead of using his mind.  He explained his plan to me.  Well thought out and it made sense.

One other thing about Dario.  He is a large man.  He is so full of energy that his energy fills the room when he speaks.   Most people suck the energy out of a room.

Today's question is:
"Does your energy add or take away from the room?"

365QOD-Day312

"Don't judge a book by its cover"- an old admonition

Today I went to a Serbian orthodox church in Galveston.  I have lived here for a three months but have always looked for an excuse not to make it to church.  Well, finally I made it.

The orthodox service has always been a disappointment to me.  I was born in the religion but consider myself more spiritual than religious.  I have never gotten a message to think about for the rest of the week.  Until today... The priest looked like he was in his late thirties with long hair and beard.  He looked as close to the image of  Jesus I often picture in my mind. 


The service was your typical service for an hour.  Lots of ritual and standing with most of the service being sung instead of spoken. 

However, after the priest has been preaching a story while singing he finished the service.  Last thing he did was take about 15-20 minutes to relate the story to everyday human failings and what we can do about them.

It was the best live sermon I have heard.  I thanked the priest afterwards and told him that I loved it.  I also told him that I would be back next week to hear his message.

Today's question is:
"Have you exceeded someone's expectations today?"

365QOD-Day311

"Can't be everything to everyone..you will be nothing to no one"-anonymous

I was reading the USA Today newspaper and came across an article that talked about one-dish eateries.  The example talked about a mac and cheese restaurant that focused on mac and cheese only.  Of course you can add topics but overall there were only 10 ways to get mac and cheese and most of the dishes were under $10.

Compare this business model vs. typical Greek owned restaurant that not only covers most Greek foods but also provides most American types of meals.  Why?  The Greeks realized that there weren't enough of them in most neighborhoods to make the restaurant success so they had to encourage other groups.

I personally love the first model.  Do only a small amount of things and do them exceptionally well.  I think these types of eateries will be a success.  You can produce quality instead of quality. 

Today's question is:
"What is the one thing that you do better than anyone you know of?"

365QOD-Day310

"I don't have a strategy.  Hell, I don't even have money!"- a response from a friend

Yesterday gave some interesting statistics on desired income.   So what about delayed gratification?

In another USA Today article I found this table
How delaying Social Security will increase size of your annual benefits.
Age                              Annual payment                 Increase over 62
62                                    17,772                              
63                                    19,044                                   7%
64                                    20,832                                   17%
65                                    22,644                                   27%
66                                    24,468                                   38%
67                                    26,664                                   50%
68                                    28,884                                   63%
69                                    31,128                                   75%
70                                    33,408                                   88%
assuming individuals are currently 62 and earning $100,000 a year until benefits begin.

I laughed at the earning 100,000 per year line.  Most Americans do not have a salary that comes close to that.  But assuming that the percent increases are proportional it looks like we better plan on working till 70 and not taking social security.

Today's question is:
"Do you plan to work till you are 70?"

365QOD-Day309

"I can't retire.  I will have to work till the day before I die"- what most people believe

I read a recent USA Today article.  In it the article there was a table:
Assuming a 5% initial withdrawal rate
To get this much income                         you need
25000                                                    500,000
35000                                                    700,000
45000                                                    900,000
55000                                                   1100,000
65000                                                   1300,000
75000                                                   1500,000

So a million will give you about 50k worth of income.  For every 25k above you need an extra 500k.

Today's question is:
"How close are you to your desired retirement salary?"

365QOD-Day308

"Q: Do you embrace change or fear it.  Why?  A I just sold my house, gave away most of my belongings and I am living around the world without  a plan for the next year or two.  I love the juicy ambiguity of change"  Mary LoVerde answer to Patricia Gras' question

The line "I love the juicy ambiguity of change" is a great line in my mind.  To embrace change as something positive is difficult for most of us.

We tend to want the world to return back to the way it used to be because we understand it and are comfortable with it.  However, change happens and often we are ill prepared to deal with it.  We definitely want to foolishly believe we can control it but eventually we realize that we can not.

Today's question is:
"Do you think you can ever love the juicy ambiguity of change?"

365QOD-Day307

"Q: If you could change one thing about the word, what would it be? A: The vibration of it."- Mary LoVerde answer to Patricia Gras' question

I read a short interview that these two ladies did and few statements stood out to me. The vibration of it.

There are times when I spend a whole day thinking about a statement.  Joel Osteen got me on September 12th 2010 with the statement ...Number your days.

So what does this lady mean with the vibration of the world?  Tesla was a genius who gave us many inventions.  One of the things that he s know to have said is that he knew the resonant frequency of the world and he could easily split the Earth.  WOW!

I believe that we all resonate at a frequency.  We could change our frequency consciously by thinking about a situation in front of us an adapting to it.  This is why I think we click with certain people.  Their vibration frequency is fairly close to ours.  They are in sync.

Today's question is:
"Can you control your vibration frequency?"

365QOD-Day306

"You must stop your running- at least not run 13.1 miles"-advise I received

As I mentioned yesterday I had a scare after a half-marathon.  It is easy for me to say I give up.  But I can not.

Call me stubborn. Call me stupid. But I have to keep running.

I have to have at least one mental goal and one physical goal towards which I am striving.  This makes my life purposeful.

Currently I am working on a book about Steve Jobs(mental) and would like to run the Chicago(and NY) marathons next year.

Today's question is:
"What are your mental and physical goals?"

365QOD-Day305

"Not dead, can't quit"-Richard Machowicz

I ran a half-marathon today(12/4/2011). It was over one long and tall bridge in LaPorte Tx.  I have been training for it and recently ran practice runs that were 13 miles but this race kicked my butt.

I did not sleep too well.  During the night I woke up 3-4 times and every time went back to sleep and had a bad dream.  Finally I woke up at 6 and started my day.  The race was at 8.  By 8:30 I am usually done running when practicing.

The day was miserable.  High humidity about 70 and raining.  I could not tell if my shirt was wet due to rain or sweat.After 2 miles I started not feeling good. By 8th mile I was sluggish and my pace was more than a minute slower than normal.  Last mile was a challenge... it seemed like it lasted forever.

After the race I passed out.  I have low sugar so I rushed to eat something.. a few pieces of pizza..so my sugar was ok.  The medic said that my blood pressure had dropped to 90 over 50..too low. So I passed out and scared the people around me... All day long I have been researching and thinking about why? I believe I lost too much salt and electrolytes.  I drank water and a bit of Gatorade but it was not enough.

I have a lot of time to think about it before my next half-marathon in February.  As the saying goes.. not dead can't quit. 

Today's question is:
"Have you ever been medically scared enough not to do something?

365QOD-Day304

"In summary, for children to develop the capacity to delay gratification, it is necessary for them to have self-disciplined role models, a sense a self worth, and a degree of trust in the safety of their experience"- M Scott Peck M.D.

In my humble opinion, these three things are also true for us as adults.  The instant gratification we often choose leads to many of our problems: overeating, drinking too much, etc...

It is not uncommon that the ills of the parents are passed on to the children.  If your parents smoke you are more likely to smoke.  If one's family overeats one has to fight the desire not to overeat.

These role models become us.  Their self-worth becomes our ceiling.  We become the role model for the next generation.  To raise the level of the next generation we must raise our own level.

The solution for failure in the first two lies in the third portion of the quote.  We must develop a safety net.  A degree of trust that the experience, if challenging, will still not harm us.

We often see life events as either failure of success.  As I point out in my book, The Result, there is a third way of thinking about experiences.  We always get a result.  If we are given an environment in which we are allowed to test ourselves(whether at home or at work) to achieve different results, we will eventually reach the success we are seeking.  Success might not be immediate.  Thus, the first portion of the quote- delayed gratification- is important.

Long time ago I saw a story of a lady who had lost a lot of weight by simply waiting for 20 minutes to eat once she decided that she was hungry.  During those 20 minutes she examined why she wanted to eat.  Was it because she was bored and needed something to do with her hands.  Or is it a legitimate need to replenish her energy source.  

Today's question is:
"Can you delay your desires by 20 minutes?"

365QOD-Day303

"What translates a desire into action?"- a question I often pose to myself

I am reading an old book called The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck M.D.  In it he offers the following statements:

"Desire is not necessarily translated into action.  Will is desire of sufficient intensity that it is translated into action.
The difference between the two is equal to the difference between saying:
'I would like to go swimming tonight' and 'I will go swimming tonight'"

I believe that word choices often determine whether we will do something or just wish we will do something. 

Today's question is:
"What words do you use to turn desires into action?"

365QOD-Day302

"A man can only be beaten in two ways:  if he gives up or he dies"-Richard Machowitz

How easy is it to give up?  The answer for most people is very easy.

We all start endeavors with all of the energy from the universe.  We have hope and we have energy.  After a few days the hope has given way to despair and the energy has become a drain.

As I often run I get a pain I remind myself that pain comes into waves.  As the pain comes I remind myself that it will only last for a short duration.  Amazingly this holds true every single time.  So I have learned to just keep running through it and not to give up.

The second option is death.  Death is inescapable.  However, giving up is always an option. Unfortunately, it is often an option that is easy to choose.

Today's question is:
"What would happen if you took the option of quitting away from yourself?"

365QOD-Day301

"Focus= when clarity concentration and action converge to create a specific result in the present" - Richard Machowitz

I recently listened to a speech by Richard Machowitz.  In it he talks about how we spend time thinking about the past, present, and future.

Consider how hard it is to achieve clarity  if one spends time thinking in these different time frames:
Past  Now  Future
25%   50%   25%       (these are fixations)

In other words you are only here 50% of the time.  A lot of energy is wasted being in other time frames.

Today's question is:
"How do you focus your energy on the present?"

365QOD-Day300

"WOW!"- my rejoice at reaching the 300 post

When we start any endevor that will require continuous actions we start with success in mind.  When something takes many steps to complete or even daily tasks to complete then that success become a challange.

As Jim Rohn cautions, "If something is easy to do, it is easy not to do". 

For the last 300 days my posts have regularly published.  There were a few that published a day late BUT they did publish.  Most of them were early.  I tend to write in spurts.  I might write daily.  Often times I write several posts in one sitting.  Which is scary when you think about the variety from one post to another.

Again, it would have been easy to just stop writing.  The reason why I didn't?  It fulfills my need for a creative outlet.  I feel good after writing a post. 

It is nice to know that many people I do not even know regularly read my posts.  I tried to write from the heart and about what I learn.  maybe those appeal to you guys.

After 300 posts... all I can say is THANKS

Today's question is:
"What is easy to do that you did not do today?"

365QOD-Day299

"80/20 rule should be 90/10"- an opinion

I recently tried to explain to a co-worker the 80/20 rule.  How 20% of our activities result in 80% of our gains.

While reading articles on Behance site I came across a 40-30-30 rule in an article by Michael Schwalbe.  It was relating to ski training.  The author suggested that 40% is physical training.  During this phase you are suppose to fail daily.  You are trying to get your body to perform something that is new so failure is expected. 

The other 60% was mental training.  Of this percentage, 30% was technical skill and experience.  With practice you gain both.

The other 30% is where you take harder risks and increase the chances of failure.  However, you will not fail as often even though you are outside of your comfort zone.

"Only by trying something new, struggling, learning, and then trying again do we improve our performance.  It is simply acclimating to unchartered territory"

Interesting rule...

Today's question is:

"Does the 40-30-30 rule fit your experience?"

365QOD-Day298

"Why would you want to do that?"- a question someone posed to me

A few years ago I read a story about a Microsoft scientist that walks around with a camera that records his life.
He records videos, takes pictures automatically, GPS location, etc...   He is able to reduce his day to a 15min record of it.

I recently read an article in August 2010 issue of Popular Science about a camera from viconrevue.co.  It is a wearable camera with 5 sensors:light detector, thermometer, compass, accelerometer and infrared
120 degree view
Any one triggers a per second
No trigger then 1 every 30 seconds

Today's question is:
"Why wouldn't you want to record your life if you could?"

365QOD-Day297

"All masters started out as disasters"- Harv Eckert

European Journal of social sciences reported that:
"... teens who mentally reheares overcoming adverse competative situations gained the most confidence in their ability to play soccer.  This is called Motivational Specific Mastery (MS-Mastery)"

Visualize yourself actually mastering a challenging situation, not just running through it with good outcome
I think you have to add as many senses to the experience.  You have to think about all of the little steps that it took to get to the mastery. 

Some of us would do those steps by visualizing them.  Others would rehearse them by speaking them out loud.  A few would even have to practice them in order to internalize them.  Each of us has a sequence that is like a magic key that would discover that mastery. 

I watched a student one Saturday morning discover er key.  She had to see me do an example, followed by explaining to another student how to do it, and lastly she had to do a third example.  Once she used that sequence she mastered that concept.

Today's question is:
"Can you visualize yourself actually mastering a challenging situation?"

365QOD-Day296

"Strength is breaking a chocolate bar into four and only eating one piece"-Judeth Wurst

How easy it is to break the chocolate and how hard it is to stop at the one piece.  It does require will.  Or does it?

Long time ago one of my co-workers, Dave, lost a lot of weight after a heart attack.  When I asked him if he went on a special diet he said no. 

Dave told me that he simply ate half of what he normally ate.  If he wanted a candy bar he found someone to share that candy bar with.  Instead of 2 scoops of ice cream he ate one. 

He said that for a month he was miserable.  BUT one day he realized that he still ate what he always ate BUT now he just ate half.  The realization that he ate what he always ate gave him will.  He was not denying himself anything.  He just simply ate half.

Today's question is:
"Can you cut your bad habits in half?"

365QOD-Day295

"It all follows the 80/20 rule"- my response to a medical problem

I recently spoke with a young woman I know about her medical problems.  The discussion was about whether most medical problems were based on heredity or nutrition.

I believe the 80% is heredity and 20% is from the inputs that we provide.  We tend to me very abusive to our bodies.  It is amazing that we last as long as we do. 

This past Saturday I ran 13 miles with my running partner.  My weight was down to 207.  I have been as heavy as 265 in my life.  I work out most days of the week(either with weights or short runs) but my weight is not plummeting.  I eat mostly fruits for breakfast, salads for lunch, and whatever is in front of me for dinner. So why is my weight not dropping like a rock. 

The obvious answer is the "whatever is in front of me".  I am not controlling what I eat at dinner and during the day I snack of a few sweets.  I got to figure out a way to stop eating sweets.  I lose about 100 calories from running 10 minutes.  However, I easily gain a couple of hundred calories by eating one candy bar.  It is about communicating with yourself.  I need to do a better job of that.


Today's question is:
" How do you control the 20%?"

365QOD-Day294

"Manifesto?  I am not the unibomber!"- a friend's response

I recently read Leo Tolstoy's Rules for Life on Behance website.  His rules went something like this:
1.   Get up early (five o'clock)
2.   Go to bed early(9 or 10 o'clock)
3.   Eat little and avoid sweets
4.   Try to do everything for yourself
5.   Have a goal for your whole life, a goal for each section of your life, a short erm goal, goal for every month, goal for every week, goal for every day, goal for every hour and for every minute, and sacrifice the lesser goal for th egreater.
6.   Keep away from women
7.   Kill desire by work
8.   Be good, but try to let no one know it
9.   Always live less expensively than you might
10. Change nothing in your style of living even if you become ten time richer.

I do not know if I can argue with any of these rule he had.  Maybe 6?  I think that I need to come up with my own 10 rules for Life.

Today's question is:
"What are your 10 Rules for Life?"

365QOD-Day293

"Play nice"- a parent's advice to a child

I just got through reading the new book on Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson. It is at times not very flattering to the subject.  He comes off as someone having a personal disorder syndrome. 

He is very opinionated and demanding about items and people either were geniuses or not worth the trouble.  He definitely did not play nice.  At times he was very mean and hurtful to the people in his life.

Maybe playing nice is not good advice?  Maybe we all need to be more opinionated?  The people who got the wrath of Steve either did something with the criticism, were asked to leave, or chose to leave. 

I personally think that at times he was an asshole.  You can be critical of people but you must be constructive with the criticism.  Being hurtful on purpose is not necessary.  It does not elevate you or the other person.

Today's question is:
"Did you play nice today?"