“No one who achieves success does so without acknowledging the help of others.  The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude.”

                                  – Alfred Lord Whitehead

It took longer than I thought, but everything seems to be in place and it looks like my book will be published later this month.  Entitled, Before I Sleep:  The Incredible Power of Journaling, the book contains a sampling of my Sunday evening mailings with a little twist; following each story there is a reflection page designed to encourage journaling. …

“When faith is lost, when honor dies,
The man is dead!”

                                              – John Greenleaf Whittier

When I arrived home Wednesday evening, I quickly turned on the TV in hopes of catching the end of the baseball game; I was too late. The Astros had defeated the Red Sox and the commentators were focussing on the upcoming game to be played Friday in Houston.  Not being a fan of post-game commentators, I grabbed the channel changer and stumbled upon an old favorite, The Last Samurai starring Tom Cruise. …

When we try to juggle everything, we can’t enjoy anything! 
Put it all down and take a few moments to enjoy life!

It was a conversation with my friend Rudy, coupled with a book I recently finished, that serves as the inspiration for my writing this week.  On Wednesday morning I called Rudy to discuss a few details regarding a project we are pursuing.  During the conversation he asked, “Are you working from your deck?”  I laughed and answered in the affirmative. …

“You can’t raise the bar for others,
if you haven’t raised it for yourself.”

                                                               – John Maxwell

When was the last time you raised the bar?  Mind you, I’m not asking when was the last time someone else raised it for you, rather I want to know how recently you heightened expectations for your own personal performance –  as a person.  Did that surprise you?  When we hear the term “raise the bar”, most of us assume that the discussion is focused on our performance at work, an athletic endeavor or some other behavior that can be quantified. …

Be brave enough 
to start a conversation that matters!

                                                                                                        – Dau Voire

We’ve all had one, and in all likelihood we’ve been on both the giving and receiving end.  It’s called a courageous conversation, and in most cases it’s not something to which most of us look forward.  Why is that?  The reasons vary but one of the most commonly cited is fear.  This emotion is present in these conversations for any number of reasons. When on the receiving end, we often fear losing something such as position or status. …