One of the most foolish things we can do on our respective journey through this “life” thing is to fool ourselves into thinking that we can please all of the people all of the time.  I even believe it’s foolish to think we can please all of the people even some of the time.

As a public speaker I’ve been privileged to witness and experience this phenomenon first hand.  When I first started speaking I used to request my audiences to fill out a short, one page survey after each event to let me know their opinions on what worked and what didn’t work. 

After collecting and reviewing hundreds and hundreds of these surveys, one day I came across my “Dream Survey” which reflected what I wanted people to say about my content and delivery.  It was from a student who was soooo impressed with the content and delivery of the presentation that she took the liberty to right even more uplifting and encouraging comments on the backside of the page. 

After reviewing several more surveys that were collected from previous events I also ran across one that was the complete opposite of my “Dream Survey.”  It was from a teacher who was soooo disappointed with my presentation that he took the liberty to right even more attacking comments on the backside of the page.  Out of all the surveys I’ve ever collected to date 98% of them are all positive and .5% or negative and 1.5% are indifferent.

The most surprising thing I noticed about these two surveys was not that they were sooooo drastically different, but the fact that they were both from the exact same event.  So, I had to ask myself the question, “were these two people at the same event?”   Hmmmm…   I must admit that I was a little quietly concerned about this finding but I quickly realized the lucrative lesson in it all.  So as a result, I decided to frame them both and mount them on my shelf in my office.  Today they now both serve as a constant reminder that “no matter what I do, I can’t please them all.”

So it’s for this reason that I remind you today that in your day-to-day pursuit of happiness, no matter what you do or say, or how good you are and try to be, you can never, ever, ever, ever please them all and to think you can is two kinds of crazy and three kinds of foolish.  This is just another one of life’s little guarantees. 

Don’t be discouraged but be encouraged today on your journey in spite of the would-be dream crushers around you and make it GREAT!

The Book:    “Make it GREAT”
www.MakeItGreatNOW.com

It took me many years to figure out the following little nugget of knowledge and I invite you today to take a little peek at it free of charge.

Money is like a dog in a fenced yard roaming behind the locked gate of life barking and growling to be released into the lives of each individual.  Then upon your entry into the workforce the gate is then opened wide and the money-dog is released.

After being locked up for so long the money-dog frantically and jubilantly flees like a runaway slave in search of anything that’s attractive and worthy of its attention.  The nugget of knowledge here is that “most people” don’t know that pursuing and chasing the money-dog only makes it run away further and faster.

There’s one and only one effective and efficient way to catch and subdue the money-dog and bring it under your control forever.  It’s as simple as 1-2-3 but it’s not easy and it definitely can’t be done overnight.  To have the money-dog eating out of the palm of your hand is simply accomplished by becoming attractive.  Yep that’s right folks, working on “You” and making yourself more valuable to the marketplace of the world by creating value for your fellowman makes you attractive.  The money-dog is very attracted to people with juicy value to offer.

So I passionately say to you today, don’t spend a life chasing and pursuing the money-dog, but make a commitment to become more and more attractive so the money-dog will chase and pursue YOU.  The wealthy understand this little-known fact and principle all-too-well and some have even become masterful at it, so why not you?

To ignore the development of this skill will ultimately subject you to a life of pay-check to pay-check and repeated financial hardships and struggling to make ends meet.  So are you becoming more and more attractive everyday, or, are you committed to ride out the rest of your life chasing the dog?  No need to answer out loud or raise your hand, just hear and understand and make your plan if you can, friend.  Let’s keep on, keeping on as we attempt to make it GREAT!

My book “Make it GREAT” is riddled with this kind of stuff so don’t wait to reserve your copy in advance today @:   www.MakeItGreatNOW.com

It never ceases to amaze me to see how many people stumble through life neglecting or completely ignoring the development of the number one most important skill this side of the universe.

This skill is without a doubt the key ingredient to any recipe for success.  It’s the salsa that makes the chips of life taste so much better and it’s the single most important factor in the formula for accomplishing your biggest goals and dreams.

The most influential leaders of all time have mastered this skill and leveraged it for good and not-so-good means down through the years.  Philosophers and intellectuals the world over have hailed this skill as being the undisputed difference-maker that separates and distinguishes humans from any other species on the planet.

So what exactly is this overlooked, underused, juggernaut skill-set you ask?  Well it’s quite simply the skill and the ability to Communicate.  Yes my friends communication is the fuel that makes the world go round.  Growing this skill to its full potential is definitely worthy of our best of efforts but “most people” have resigned themselves to give it no effort at all.  Mastering this skill is not an overnight process but the ongoing process of mastering it can yield HUGE dividends in more ways than one. 

So I say to you on this Magnificent Monday, master this skill and watch all of your biggest goals and dreams come true.  Let’s all go out there and communicate our way to GREATNESS and make it GREAT!

Pre-Order the book TODAY: 
www.MakeItGreatNOW.com

Meet Tommy, better known as “Smokey”.  I had the distinct privilege of meeting him while out on a photo shoot a few days ago.  On any given day he would go unnoticed by “Most People” in our society because he appears to have lost his status.  But as I’ve said before, I’m anything but “Most People”.

Smokey just-so-happened to be hanging out behind a dumpster in the alley behind a building in the downtown commercial district area of Bakersfield, CA where we were conducting our photo shoot.  I noticed him and called him over for a short chat and my photographer April Massirio snapped this photo to capture the moment. 

An outcast to most,  he quickly became a friend to me that day.  He shared a quick story with me of how he made it to Bakersfield and his continuous struggle to get back on his feet.  The main thing I noticed about Smokey during our conversation was his smile and his outgoing, energetic personality.  His ability to behave in such a manner in spite of his current situation and circumstance made me realize all over again how blessed and fortunate we are for both the little things and the not-so-little things we all have in our lives.  The real truth is, the biggest thing we have in life is “Life” itself, and that’s a great thing indeed.  

I invite you to take a short break today and take your focus off of those things you don’t have and refocus on those things that you do have.  Also realize that what you focus on most will develop in your life.

Smokey is in the “Struggle” phase of his life again and how he deals with it will dictate where he ends up and who he becomes in the process.  He made my day, so I returned the favor and made his day with a gift that made his smile even bigger.  “Thank You Cedric” he said.  “No, THANK YOU SMOKEY!”  I said.  We exchanged a few more parting words of thanks and encouragement and moved on with our lives.

I don’t know what the future holds for Smokey, but I do know who holds our future.  Our choices and decisions in these present moments will determine how that future pans out for us all.  So I say to you today, let’s all make a point to do something on a regular basis to make someone else’s day GREAT!  GO GET’EM SMOKEY!!!!!!

The Book:     “Make it GREAT”
www.MakeItGreatNOW.com