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If you want the marketplace to recognize you as a Smokin’ Hot Piece of Brain Candy, “thinking” is not your main responsibility. Thinking is merely the residue of leading a potent, productive and profitable thought life. Want to learn how to have one of those? I thought you might ask. 1. Take intellectual initiative. Most people’s thoughts are somebody else’s. Don’t let this happen to you. Mindless acceptance is…

Your humanity is not a liability. Being a robot, however, might lose your company money. Today we’re going to talk about being a human being. Which, after extensive research, is something I’ve discovered can be surprisingly difficult for many people – myself included. Einstein once said, “Our task must be to free ourselves from the prison of self-delusion by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures…

“Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.” These famous words have been attributed to the likes of Alfred Hitchcock, Richard Pryor and Canadian Hockey legend Reggie Leach. Sadly, we may never know who deserves the original credit. IN REALITY: It doesn’t matter who said it. All that matters is that YOU do it. Now, I’ve done some preliminary research. And as far…

This post is working in conjunction with Duct Tape Marketing’s annual Make a Referral Week! 1. Circumvent people’s suspicions. Recognize that you’re beginning with negative balance with most people. Sad but true. It’s just the posture of the masses. People have been sold, scammed and screwed; conned, played and hustled; manipulated, used and marketed to for too long and their TIRED of it. Your mission is to exert comfortable…

“The man who goes alone can start today; but he who travels with another must wait till that other is ready.” Thoreau. Walden. 1854. Does that statement still hold true today? Absolutely. Especially for entrepreneurs and creative professionals. MY THEORY: That’s the problem with collaboration. Or teams. Or partnerships. Or committees. The more people you have, the longer it takes to move. Not that you should be opposed to…

People frequently ask me if I’m a motivational speaker. My answer is, “Not really.” HERE’S WHY: The only person that can motivate you is yourself. Sure, outside influences are helpful. They can educate you into awareness. They can disturb you into discomfort. They can inspire you into excitement. But in the end, the onus is on you. Motivation lies within. Buddha had it right: “Be a light unto yourself.”…

People often ask me about my writing process. So, instead of trying to explain it, I thought I’d just show it. This is the second in a series of writing sessions (4-hour time lapse down to 8 minutes!) of my unparalleled content generation, content management and content deployment systems. Episode 4 — 2.4.10 Soundtrack — “Up There” by Charlie Hunter from Come in Red Dog, This is Tango Leader….

Contrary to the actions of Will Ferrell, you don’t need to strip down buck nekkid and run around the room like a drunken maniac to steal the show. Although that technique does work pretty well. True show-stealers are the ones whose energy, attitude, actions and words compose a vortex into which surrounding people can’t help but be sucked. Whether you’re giving a speech, facilitating a brainstorming session, conducting a…

The most important word in your entrepreneurial vocabulary is “next.” Next fortifies action. Next symbolizes progress. Next is the BFF of your business. Next means complacency prevention. Next means continuous improvement. Next is the monetizer of momentum. Next is the fervent architect of creative reinvention. Next is the critical trigger of entrepreneurial advancement. Next is the rocket fuel of your career. Next derives from the German term, nahisto, which…

It’s amazing how quickly humility shows up when you’re incapacitated in a hospital bed for six days with a three-foot tube in your chest wacked out on morphine experiencing multiple anxiety attacks. That happened to me in February of 2006. “Excruciating would be an understatement,” I explain to people when I tell the story about my collapsed lung, aka, pneumothorax. Fortunately, from great suffering comes great awakening: That was…