As a proud “Generation X’er” raised by old fashioned “Baby  Boomers”, my most effective form of disciplining my “Generation Y” kids was to threaten them with the action of what I call, WWMPD, “What Would My Parents Do”.  My stories alone of how and what my parents used to do to me and my three brothers when we screwed up was enough to cause a few sleepless nights for my kids. 

For years I have relished the opportunity to leverage the stories of my childhood upbringing.  Fraught with belts and switches, I methodically used the stories to motivate my kids to take a desired action.  This technique I learned at a young age from my Mom and her six sisters.  We were often times forced to sit and listen to them read the stories from the book of Revelations in the Holy Bible and would be frightened into doing good and maintaining the Christian faith.  Those were indeed good-ole times. 

Yes folks, many of us Generation X-ers were raised on the threat of “Bodily Harm” and “Bible-ly Harm”, and both methods were affective on me.  As a kid, I honestly was more afraid of what my parents would do to me than what the bible would do to me because I was terrified of what we Texan’s called, “Butt Whoopins”.  The interesting thing is that my two older brothers and I used to almost always seem to get our “Butt Whoopins” at the same time. 

I remember one time standing in line in my parent’s bedroom mentally and physically preparing to be assaulted by Dad for one of our most recent screw-ups.  My two older brothers were actually arguing over who was going to go first because they both wanted to be first to get it over with.  Even as an adult today I struggle to understand the logic in there argument.  My logic and belief was that if I went last, my Dad would have an increased chance of being tired and remorseful and would probably take a bit more pity on me, so I waited.  I also figured while I waited I would cry uncontrollably in advance with snot-bubbles and tears of terror in hopes that this action would evoke an even bigger feeling of remorse and pity, but my efforts were futile.  My 5’ 9”, 330 pound Dad had the strength of ten men and the stamina of a gazelle and remorse and pity took a back seat to “well-deserved-butt-whoopin”.

I must admit that my vivid memory of these past events and storytelling ability have served me well in raising my Generation Y’ers.  But even more than that, I’ve discovered a piece of leverage that’s even more powerful than the threat of bodily harm.  This newly discovered leverage appears to be even more powerful than bible-ly harm too.  The threat of this one action results in immediate compliance in almost every case, the mire mention of it can make eyes pop open and command attention from Generation Y and even many Generation X’ers.  Well, what exactly is this new secret piece of leverage?  Hmmmm…

I would love to share my new effective finding with you today but I just don’t have enough room to do it here, so you’ll just have to get my book, “Make it GREAT” when it’s released this November of 2012.  You can pre-order the book to guarantee your copy because the first batch will be a limited number. 

Many have already taken advantage of pre-ordering the book which includes a bonus CD that’s loaded with Tips and Takeaways to making it a GREAT life.  The Bonus is for Pre-Orders Only.

I’m also a HUGE fan of what I call “Creative Conscious Capitalism” which means that this book is being leveraged to do good in this world in more ways than one.  As such, a portion of every book sold will directly benefit a child in need of water, food, clothing, shelter or education in several parts of our global community. 

So, Pre-Order Today to lock-in your value and save your seat.  http://www.cedriccrawford.com/the-book/

I can’t wait for you to see and hear what I’ve seen and heard.   Let’s all continue to Make it GREAT!

You can pick your cars but you can’t pick your kids.  Good or bad, happy or sad, mad or glad, your kids will always be your kids.   Out of all those who complain about some of the members of their family, I’m not one of them.  I actually feel that I’ve been dealt a pretty good hand.  This little rag-tag team is full of personality and no two are alike, but they do have at least one thing in common,  they’re all dreamers. 

My assistant coach, Karen, is award-winning when it comes to keeping this team on task, including me.  After 18 years of being together, she still has not lost her fire and drive for making herself better in every way.  I’m pleased to say that I’m still her biggest fan.  Apart from each other we would struggle, but together we can’t be beat.  We have a habit of enjoying the moment because tomorrow is never promised and as adversity rears its’ ugly head, we prepare to dig in to overcome and become even stronger on the other side. 

Yes our team is indeed a force to be reckoned with and we continue to steamroll ahead as we fight to maintain our battered and scarred but still undefeated record.  Together we can not and will not lose.  Come what may for the day we are committed to remain a team and each player knows their roll and are getting better and better at living it out.  A well oiled machine we are with an occasional hiccup that resolves quickly like most great teams do.  We are committed to continue to bring our best to the table because it’s then and only then that the scoreboard becomes obsolete.

I challenge you today to make sure that your team is not just on the same page but also reading from the same book.  Formulate a game plan in advance so that steps for overcoming challenges and adversity will be already in place.  Also regular team meetings conducted at the dinner table to vent frustrations and concerns appear to prevent a lot of undue heartache, stress and strife.  Picking the right battles and not sweating the small stuff can make a BIG difference too.  And, always remember to never ever forget that we only get one time through this “life” thing and we don’t wont to experience “death by rules”.  Too many rules can squeeze the life out of life, so LIVE OUT LOUD!

Finally, don’t forget to have some pure, unscheduled, random, spontaneous, senseless, unadulterated, legal and ethical FUN!  We can all be more intentional about making this good life, GREAT, so let’s whip that team into shape and  Make it GREAT!

Over the years I’ve noticed a very interesting pattern among the general public when it comes to our nation’s presidents.  It appears that every president, without exception, has their flaws and are imperfect and most people are poised to pounce on their problems if given the opportunity

Many have criticized the current president, complained about the previous president and will no doubt continue to condemn the next president after this one.  The honest truth is that the presidents may change but flaws and imperfections will remain.  So don’t be surprised at what happens in the future with the next one.

I’ve conducted a very thorough investigation into the history of the presidency and I’ve officially confirmed that every president we’ve had thus far lacks a 100% approval rating and are frequently the target of retribution, reprisals and ridicule.  It is for this reason I have personally come to admire every one of them that have ever taken an oath of office.  I truly believe that the courage it takes to take such an action trumps the struggles, stress and strain that many of us have in our own lives.

So our choices are still the same today.  We can choose to beat’em up, build’em up or just shut up and work on that which we can control.  I choose the latter.  My good word to you today is, “he who has it all figured out with no flaws, let him criticize, complain and condemn as he casts the first stone.”

Let’s all choose wisely as we attempt to make it GREAT!

H ave you ever heard of a “Compliment Accepting Etiquette“?  Well me neither, so in light of seeing that there is a widespread need of an etiquette for accepting compliments, I thought that I would take the liberty to create one.  

When receiving a compliment from someone, we must not be so quick to deflect the compliment by giving a compliment back or responding with a witty deflect comment.  Furthermore, we must not make the classic mistake in always thinking that a compliment from the opposite sex means the person is trying to pick-up on us.  A compliment given or received does not automatically constitute an invitation for further relations.

I’ve found that the easiest way to show our appreciation for the compliment given to us is by simply saying “Thank You”.  I myself have been guilty of this action on both sides of the fence, but I’m getting better everyday.   So, we all should keep this little tip in mind as we go through this life, and be sure to make it GREAT!   GREAT WEEK !!!