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Motivation & Inspiration

Endings First, Beginnings Next

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I have known for many years that in order for new beginnings to open up, endings must happen.  Whether this is in personal or business life, this axiom is generally true.  The problem with most people, including myself, is that we dislike and fear change and taking risks.

There is a common saying that people should not burn bridges.  The problem with that is that sometimes that is the only way to let go and ultimately move forward.  Of course, there are upsides and downsides.  One has to focus on the positives and upsides or the negatives and downsides can be overwhelming.

I have had some practice on “burning bridges” and making endings and new beginnings.  And I am happy to say, as a whole, my decisions have been pretty good.  Short term, they were inconvenient and sometimes painful, but ultimately a greater good and opportunity opened.

Without getting into specifics, there are some things happening in my life that are simultaneously ending and beginning.  I am happy some of the circumstances and relationship are approaching their endings.  It is a welcome relief.  In fact, I have been looking for other things to end and leave behind.  I want to “lighten the load”, if you will.

The people I want to “keep” are people who have been “of service” to me.  They are solid people who are honest and stick to commitments they keep.  Their “flake factor” is very low.  The others are simply “needy and takers”.  In other words, they only come around when they need something.  Or there are other people who are simply lazy, unmotivated, and basically stuck in a rut.  They are in a situation of their own creation and like pigs in a pile, they continue to wallow in the mud.  You offer and try to give a helping hand out of the mud but ultimately they want you to do all the work to lift them out.  That won’t happen here.

On the opposite end of the spectrum are people who are inspired, ambitious, go-getters, risk-takers, enlightened, and action-takers.  I love and respect these types of people.  And when these people run into each other, they tend to get along quite well.  And the synergy they create is far greater than what the individuals can do.

I am not waiting until 2009 to prepare for it.  I am in process of “cleaning house” both literally and figuratively.  I am paring down the people I associate and correspond with.  I am leaving and abandoning those projects that don’t work anymore.  The unhealthy, fearful, lazy, unambitious, immature, and losers are left behind.  Life moves a lot faster when you stick with other winners.

It feels really good to make the endings happen.  It is amazing how quick, new people and opportunities open up.  It is easy to fall into a rut especially when you have a lifestyle like mine.  And so, I have to make a conscious effort to purge every so often.  I have a great feeling that come the end of summer, most of the purging I have to do will be done which will open up the rest of 2009 for interesting and great new people and opportunities.

Review of Sony Pictures Movie Studio Tours

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Having planned a couple of extra days to enjoy Los Angeles, I booked a ticket to visit Sony Pictures Studios Tours.  Like most of the movie studio tours, they are not well advertised or marketed.  Most people find out about movie studio tours from word-of-mouth or by seeking it out.

Being a big movie fan myself, it was a high priority for me to check out all the movie studio tours.  (I scheduled the Paramount Movie Studio Tour for the morning but goofed up my schedule and arriving too late.)

The Sony Pictures Studios Tour located in Culver City, CA costs $28.00.  You can purchase tickets online in advance (with a $2.00 fee) or simply make reservations.  I did not know I could make reservations until AFTER I had bought tickets online.  Because I also wanted to attend the Warner Brothers VIP Studio Tour, it was a bit of a trick to schedule 3 studio tours within a 2-day period.  Because of limited availability of the Warner Brothers Deluxe Studio Tour (a 5-hour version of the WB VIP Studio Tour), I was forced to reschedule my tickets with Sony Pictures Studio Tour.  Fortunately, the folks at Sony were accommodating.  They were able to simply use my same ticket but schedule it for another day.

The Sony Pictures Studios Tour is a 2-hour walking tour of the old MGM Studios that Sony Pictures bought out.  Underground parking is free in the visitor section of the Sony Pictures office building.  One of the things you learn early in the tour is how MGM sold off so much of their backlots over the years that what they have left is much smaller than how they started.

Even with that, there is still plenty of walking to do.  I recommend some comfortable walking shoes.  They say that no two tours are exactly alike.  They attribute this to the fact that every tour guide has a different style and the daily circumstances are such that the tour is designed to be flexible just in case the tour encounters an actual TV or movie production.  If that happens, the tour obviously work around these important and well-controlled events.

On my tour, sound stages had been set on the upcoming movie “Angels & Demons” which is a prequel to the movie and book of the same name “Da Vinci Code”.  We also passed by Beyonce Knowle’s trailer and the sound stages for her upcoming movie “Obsessed”.

I made my first visit to a Foley studio which is where many sound effects are created.  We also visited the set and green room of “Jeopardy”.  I have to say that Green Room was a bit nasty but the tour guide said it was because a party was thrown a couple of nights earlier and it had not yet been clean.  The Green Room is really a green room.  Apparently, green is supposed to help calm the nerves of people who will eventually go out on stage.

We walked through many interesting exterior sets that had real-life workers within the building!  Apparently, the designers and architects make the insides of the buildings functional but decorate the outside in such a way to create the illusion you are in a different city or locale.

I don’t want to give the entire tour away but those were the highlights.  My tour guide, Tony, is an aspiring screenwriter and seems to enjoy giving movie studio tours as he looks for his big break.

Overall, anyone who loves movies and wants to learn more about the behind-the-scenes of movie-making should check out Sony Pictures Studios Tour.

Returning from 2008 Book Expo America in Los Angeles

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I just returned from over a week-long adventure in Los Angeles that included the huge 2008 Book Expo America in Los Angeles.  This event followed the 3-day IBPA’s Publishing University also in the same city.

The last time I attended Book Expo America was in 2002 in NYC.  It was before I started my publishing firm, Ascend Beyond Publishing.  I definitely feel like I waited too long to go back but I did try to make up for lost time soaking it all up and managed to get some nice advance copies of upcoming books.

I am a book lover myself which is one reason I got into the publishing business.  I can honestly say my legs hurt every night from all the walking on the convention floor during the day.  The are so many exhibitors to visit and products to check out.

I had not planned on attending another Book Expo America for another 2 years but now I feel somewhat compelled to go back next year.  I have put it on my calendar.

Finished Attending IBPA’s Publishing University Conference

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It has been an exhausting 4-days since my arrival into Los Angeles to attend the IBPA’s (Independent Book Publishers Association) 2008 Publishing University Conference.  It was a great 3-day experience taking in the variety of experiences and information shared.  I think there must have been nearly 300 people including staff, speakers, attendees, and guests.  The one thing that persistently shows up is how little business sensibilities most wannabe authors have.  Most are so desperate to become authors, they throw their promotional stuff to everyone and anyone.

I have to admit even I was overwhelmed with some of the new information and distinctions that were presented especially in the area of media and public relations. I met some important people and contacts that might be instrumental to some changes I plan on making to my publishing business in the months to come.

The full impact of what I got out of IBPA’s Publishing University will linger until after I get back.  Fresh off of that 3-day conference, I have just begun my next 3-day run at the 2008 Book Expo America.  It has been 6 years since I attended this huge industry event.  I think I waited 2 years too long to come back.  I won’t make that mistake again.

My feet is sore.  I have had three 11-hour days.  Today, I put in a light 9-hours and so I have a chance to update this blog.  I can do some reading and catch up on some work in my hotel room.

Shift Happens: “Did You Know 2.0” Online Video

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It isn’t often that I run into an online video that truly makes me stop and think.  Most online videos I see on YouTube are stupid, nonsensical, and just a lot of goofiness going on.  At best, I would say it is entertaining.  At worst, it is a waste of time and bandwidth.

However, in a phone conversation with my investor friend Joe, I was ranting and complaining how the quality of education both in the public and private sector is terrible.  How much of the real estate seminar industry was pretty sleazy and appealed to people’s ignorance.  And how so many people will suffer financially in their lives because of the mis-education and mis-information people accept as gospel.

I ranted on how people are not taught to think and not able to discern what is good information and what is bad.  Further, that the rate of change in our world would only reward those able to adapt, not people who clung to old ideas and notions of what the world SHOULD be like vs. accepting what the world IS.

In that spirit, Joe mentioned a video he had seen on YouTube.  It was referred to him by another person.  He told me to do a search on “shift happens”.  I got a chuckle out of that phrase but thought it was quite appropriate to what we were talking about.

Tonight, I finally had the opportunity to search “shift happens” on YouTube and I found related videos also entitled “Did You Know?”

I will not reveal the content of those videos but I will say, it made me speechless and it scared me.  It made me reflect on what I am doing today and what direction I am taking for the future.  And while I have not entirely figured out what I will do in the months and years to come, I do know that I cannot sit still.  I also know that I have to be prepared to leave people behind.

There will be people who will not accept the message of exponential change in the videos.  It will be too much for them to take.  They will either be paralyzed with fear unable to move or they will go into hiding being in denial that it will not affect them.  Either way, my feeling is that you have to ally, partner, and associate with those will want to move through the next waves of change or you will become a victim.

There is no way the government can save everybody.  There will be victims, many of them.  The strong, smart, and nimble will flourish unbelievably.  The weak, ignorant, and slow will find the future to be a depressing place.

The wealthy will continue to become wealthier.  The poor will become poorer.  25% of the middle-class will adapt and improve their lifestyles.  The other 75% will drop further down in their socio-economic ladder begging for assistance.

I believe at least half of the millennial-generation will continue to be dependent on their parents until they are age 30.  While they have the advantage of being technology-adaptable on their side, their poor work ethic, lack of professionalism, lack of discipline, and poor coping skills will hinder them.  But it is not entirely their fault.  The spoiled attitude of the millennial generation is a result of poor parenting skills of the baby-boom generation.  They pander to their children and do not have the emotional resolve to be strong parents.

Regardless of my observations of the millennial generation, I invite you to go check out the “Did You Know 2.0” Video.  It is an excellent educational and thoughtful video.  It is well worth the 8 minutes out of your life to view it.

Like Attracts Like, Unlike Repels Unlike

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In my two recent trips in Colorado Springs, I can say it has not been dull. I have come into contact and interacted with a variety of people. Most of the interactions have been by choice, not a requirement.

Unlike my interactions in Columbus, GA where I am known within some circles, I start with a clean slate in Colorado Springs. I am a complete unknown and basically just an out-of-town guy trying to establish some kind of new home and community for himself.

Like anyone else, I would like to be liked and respected. But if that does not happen, then so be it. My world does not necessarily go into a tizzy if I am not absolutely liked or respected. I have matured to the point that my self-worth is not necessarily measured by my ability to win a popularity contest.

What has been interesting to observe is the to-and-fro of the relationships encountered thus far. I have been drawn to some people and some people have been drawn to me. I have repelled some people and some people have repelled me. However it happens, I tend to think it happens for the best. Everyone sorts themselves out on who they want to associate with and spend time with by how they prioritize their time.

I am not into forcing people together. I have the good fortune of mostly not having to deal or interact with people I do not want to or prefer to.

I think many people take it personally when relationships and friendships do not work out. I think that if it doesn’t work out, it is ok. For a relationship or friendship to work, both parties have to want it and show it.

Today, I had lunch with a student who was older than me by 10 years. He invited me to lunch earlier this week. I was flattered and happy for the opportunity to interact with a local. We talked about real estate investing and he asked for my views and insights. I happily gave them. In that interaction, I got a much better sense of him as a person and he did of me.

Although we were different in many ways, I saw that we had many similar values despite our exterior appearances. Despite him being 10 years my senior, he was very respectful which only made me respect him more. He wanted to know more my views but in the process I also learned more about him.

The lunch lasted two hours. It was a long lunch. The lesson I took out of it what made it work is that I was willing to let my guard down and open up and reveal some personal information. So was he. In the opening, some degree of trust was created.

This also happened with the couple I am renting my cabin from. Although there are certainly differences, we also share some core values. I have grown to like my “landlords” a great deal. They are great people. It is funny that they are creating this relationship with me as a “tenant”. But it required a mutual sense of trust to open up and share some personal information.

In this creation of trust, we may end up investing together. It is too early too tell if it will actually happen but at least the sentiment is there. I am not overly concerned with the outcome. I am simply happy we can kick back, connect, and create a mutually beneficial friendship.

A couple of other relationships have not progressed quite as well. I am a little disappointed. Despite my efforts to open up first, I certainly do not feel the reverse. I do not think they are bad people but clearly their guard was up or what they were willing to share was filtered. Everything feels a bit “polite”.

What I want to leave you with is, why do you like some people more than others? Why are you attracted to them? More importantly, what kinds of people are attracted to you? Why are they attracted to you? I think you will find a pattern in there that will be eye-opening.

I look at my team in Columbus and the people who I have great, professional relationships with. I can articulate exactly why I like each member of my team and I have a good idea why they like me on their team. At some level, I have a friendship with each of these individuals. It starts as a professional relationship but we are drawn together because we like and trust each other. We share goals, values, and interests together.

And so I say, Like Attracts Like, Unlike Repels Unlike.

“TurnKey Investor” Book Series at 2007 NAR Convention

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TurnKey Investor Books at NARIn an earlier post, I said that Matt Lombardi (Managing Director of Marketing & Sales) was going to do something “extra special” for me since he knew Wes and I was attending the 2007 NAR Convention.

Matt placed and displayed 4 of the “TurnKey Investor” book titles in the Main NAR Exhibit Booth at the center of the Expo:  3 paperback books and 1 audiobook.

I have to admit I was a bit stoked that the books would get some good exposure at the NAR Expo.

Wes Weaver (a leading contributor of the “TurnKey Investor” book series) and I managed a pose next to the books on the display area.

Meeting Kendra Todd (Winner of “Apprentice 3”) at NAR 2007 Convention

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Kendra Todd at NARDuring my week at the NAR 2007 Convention, I had the unexpected pleasure of running into and meeting Kendra Todd, Season 3 Winner of Donald Trump’s TV show “The Apprentice”.

Wes and I were near the NAR Booth in the center of the Expo area.  We were looking around to figure out which direction we wanted to walk next when I noticed a young, attractive woman in a green dress speaking on a small stage.  It took me 2 seconds to recognize this woman as Kendra Todd, Season 3 Winner of Donald Trump’s “The Apprentice”.  Being a fan of “The Apprentice”, I have to admit I was excited about meeting and chatting with Kendra.

Wes and I walked over to the Lowe’s booth to where she was speaking on stage to a small group of expo attendees.  We had arrived at the last 10-minutes of her presentation so it did not take long for us to get a chance to meet and chat with Kendra.

Interestingly, it did not seem many people recognized Kendra so it was easy for us to approach and speak with her.  I did ask her where her current homebase was (Delray Beach).  I asked her about her current schedule.  She commented how if she had 10 days to herself without travel, it would be wonderful.  I asked about where her future direction lies.  I don’t think I am betraying her confidence when she stated that she wanted to work more with women and wealth-building.  I surmised she wanted to move away from the real estate field from which she is known.

It is my guess Kendra wants to make a bigger impact on the world than working exclusively in the real estate world.  (We share that trait in common.) She has a lot going on right now from what I could tell from her comments but I got the feeling she was having fun.  She admitted to me winning “The Apprentice” opened up a lot of doors for her.  (No big surprise there.)  Kendra did mention she did appreciate the quiet times the few times she gets it.

All in all, meeting and chatting with Kendra Todd was a fun experience.  She was a down to earth young woman.  I found Kendra to be more petite in person than on TV.  She was also gracious enough to stand in a photo with me as you can see.

Back from 2007 NAR Convention in Las Vegas

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NARAfter an exhausting week in Las Vegas, we have finally gotten back from NAR 2007 Convention (National Association of Realtors).  I have to admit to being impressed with the convention.  It was a huge event with approximately 30,000 people.  It was well-planned and well-organized.

I wasn’t too crazy about having NAR in Las Vegas but it is better than where they had the convention in 2006 (New Orleans).  Sometimes, you just have to make the best of situation and environment you are in.

I did have a chance to finally meet Matt Lombardi, Managing Director of Marketing & Sales in charge of carrying “The TurnKey Investor” Book Series.  He was friendly, gracious, and welcoming.  When I informed him Wes and I were going to attend the event, Matt Lombardi made the extra effort to “show off” our books at this particular show.  Needless to say, I was happy for that effort.

Although I am not a Realtor myself (or plan to be anytime in the near future), it was still very educational being in that convention environment.  I did have my brain stretched by Seth Godin (author of Permission Marketing, Purple Cow, Unleashing the IdeaVirus, etc.).  I had never heard him speak before and the room was packed with what I loosely estimated to be around 2,000+ people.  He had a captive audience and there was good reason for it.  Essentially, I was captivated by the paradigm shift I was experiencing.  Sure, I have read his books but listening to the man himself was a way more powerful experience.

Not having any experience in politics beyond the ability to register and vote, my brain was also stretched by Michael E. Dunn on how relatively easy it was to gain political power and influence without ever running for office.  He outlined his political influence model and showed how the process “really” worked.  He was very direct and concise in his presentation.  I was compelled by his ideas that I may one day involve myself with the political process.

Watching Bill Cosby live (my first time) with 25,000 people was also a fun hour.  It was a jammed room however.

The folks at NAR were very thoughtful of creating a private Bloggers break area to sit, break, write, and reflect.  Having great Wi-Fi connections to keep in touch was a huge asset.  It was funny to watch all the Realtors and the gadgets they were carrying.  I consider myself a power user of technology but compared to all the PDAs, smartphones, webphones, Blackberries, etc., I felt like a novice with my very ordinary Samsung cell phone.

All in all, I have to say NAR 2007 was a much better experience than I expected.  NAR 2008 will be located in Orlando, FL which is convenient since that is where I am from.  I definitely plan on attending NAR 2008 in Orlando.

MyLeftLung.com – Melita’s journey with lung cancer

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Melita HuntIt is with a great deal of sadness, and perhaps a celebration and opportunity, that my friend Melita Hunt has launched her own personal blog, MyLeftLung.com.  Unfortunately, it relates to her journey with the recently-discovered lung cancer.

Melita Hunt is the CEO of Van Tharp Institute.  Van, a man I highly respect, wisely chose her to run his office operations.  Unfortunately, I found out a few weeks ago just after my plans to visit Colorado Springs was well under way that she had lung cancer.

I remember vividly how I got the news.  I was up at 3am (as I typically am in the East Coast) and this email from Melita comes through.  She was responding to a long overdue “how are you doing” email from me.  I had thanked her for introducing me to the seminar I attended in San Diego because it was a wonderful experience.  And when I get the response from her, it is so not what I expected.

I felt like I was punched in the stomach.  I have never known anyone directly who had gotten lung cancer and here it was, a young vibrant woman who has contributed to my life in so many subtle (and not so subtle) ways, getting lung cancer.  I can say that I thought it was so unfair.  She didn’t “deserve” it.  (That said, I don’t mean to imply that other people I do not know deserve it either!)

If there is anyone that can pull through this, I think Melita can.  She is of strong mind, heart, and spirit.  Behind the scenes, I had long considered having her as co-writer for my blog but it just never came about.  But now, I get to happily and with great love and admiration announce and support her new blog, MyLeftLung.com.

(If you are wondering why she named her blog, MyLeftLung.com, you are not alone.  I found out that the name was inspired from her “best case scenario” (BCS)  which was to give up and sacrifice her left lung.  Can you imagine that as a “best case scenario”?  Alas, BCS will not happen.)

I regard Melita’s new blog to be a motivational and inspirational one.  And so, any of my commentary regarding Melita and her blog will fall under Motivation & Inspiration category because that is what she represents to me.

I invite you to read Melita’s blog, MyLeftLung.com to get inspired and motivated.  I know I will.

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