My wife Brenda is involved with a number of different groups on social media and in one of the groups there was a challenge to share “three truths”.  They wanted basic core truths that each person lives by. This morning I thought I’d share my basic truths and I’d love to hear yours.

1. I’m here to help others. I know I’m not telling you anything new here but life is tough at times. At some point, each of us is going to stumble and fall. I believe that I’m here to help others through this crazy ride and get to the other side.
2. I’m here to make a difference. I believe that there’s something big I’m supposed to do, to make a difference, to leave the world better off than I found it. I also know the ONLY thing stopping me from achieving this is my fear and insecurities. Too many go to their graves with their dreams and music still in them and I refuse to join their ranks.
3. I’m supposed to...

If you’re starting the day thinking, “Same Stuff, Different Day”, then I hope you had an awesome yesterday because that’s what you’re going to get today. As Benjamin Franklin so wisely put it, “If you do tomorrow what you did today, you’ll get tomorrow what you got today.”Instead of seeing today as just another boring and tedious day, you need to see it as a new beginning.

Today really is a gift that is taken for granted way too often. I guarantee you that there will come a morning that you won’t be a part of. Don’t squander your today because that’s what your life is made of. Today is a chance to do better, to become more, to see more, and to experience more. Today is a chance to care, to serve, and to make a difference. Today is a magical do over and the beauty of it is today happens every 24 hours! 

To help you maximize the opportunities that each today brings, you need to be looking for...

I once read a quote that really got me thinking by Andrew Carnegie that said, “Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best.” This quote dug into my brain like a tick. I mulled it over and over. Over the years, what’s driven me to do the things I did? My answers were revealing and I think they’ll help you too.

• Acceptance. I was looking for acceptance. I wanted to fit in and belong. I wanted people to like me so I did things that I thought would get them to do just that.
• Approval. I was looking for approval. I wanted to be validated by others. This is where my self-worth and self-esteem came from.
• Appreciated. I wanted to be appreciated. I wanted others to recognize the contributions I made. This made me feel valuable.
• Impress. I wanted to impress people with my knowledge and ability. I wanted to show off what I could do others couldn’t because it made me feel important.
• Prove. I wanted...

Falling down is a given. Feelings of disappointment, lack, inadequacy, and doubt in your life at times are a given. Thoughts of giving up are a given. Tears shed are a given.

Getting up and pushing through those feelings is a choice. And it’s the most powerful choice of all. After all, they’re just feelings. They don’t determine who you or I become unless we let them. The greatest battle you’ll ever have isn’t with a customer or a competitor; it’ll be with yourself.

When you’ve been knocked down, what you do next is the true measure of who you are and who you’ll become. Get up, dust yourself off, clench your jaw, and push forward. Always push forward.

Never give up on your dream. Never give up on yourself. Never give up; period. Do this and you’ll show the world just how AMAZING you are!

For most people, life has its ups and downs based on the circumstances they’re going through. The quality of life they have is based on what’s happening to them. When they’re going through a low point, they’re blaming others or their circumstances for their current situation. They sit there waiting for their circumstances to improve so they’re life can get better. They’re playing the victim. They’re the passenger in this vehicle called life and circumstance is the driver. Don’t be like most people. Realize that your life can be better than this with one simple mindset change. All you have to do is to accept complete and total responsibility for where you’re at.

You know that where you are now is the result of decisions you’ve made in the past. Taking responsibility isn’t about placing blame because the act of blaming is an exercise in futility. Taking responsibility is all about owning where you’re at which then...

Have you ever stopped and thought about what your expectations are for your life? It’s an exercise worth doing because you’ll most likely find that you’re thinking negatively, expecting little, and feel you’re being abused by people, circumstance, and life in general. The easiest way to find this out is to listen to the words you use. Your words are a HUGE indicator of your mindset. It’s true, everything that goes into your eyes and ears eventually comes out your mouth and hands.

Your expectations create your outlook on life, your outlook creates your attitude, your attitude determines how you see and filter the world around you, which creates your actions, which create your results, which confirm and reinforce your outlook on life. So, your words and actions are both an output of your outlook but they also feed and strengthen your outlook without you even being aware of it.

By listening to the words you use, it’ll give you a real...

There’s so much doubt and frustration today and it’s because people want to see the things they want before they’ll believe they’re capable of achieving them. It doesn’t work that way. The only place achievement comes before belief is in the dictionary.

The fact is you believe in certain things right now. Many times, these beliefs have been built up over time and you aren’t even aware of them. How is that possible? When something happens to you, you naturally look for a cause and effect relationship subconsciously. You may believe that today is going to be a bad day because yesterday was or you believe that people are out to cheat you because someone cheated you once. What you MUST understand is that what you believe is what will be manifested in your life. What you believe is the seed of what will be. Why leave the potential of what your life can be to your subconscious and circumstance? Choose to create the life you want by changing...

When you open your eyes in the morning, what do you see? Are you like most and see just another morning if you even see it at all? Or do you realize what a gift you’ve been given, twenty-four hours filled with love, adventure, fun, and overflowing with opportunities?

This is possibly the most important question you can ask yourself each and every morning because it’s right here when you open your eyes that you set the limit to the possibilities in your day. What you do first thing in the morning sets the tone and energy level for the rest of your day.

Don’t take today for granted because your life is nothing more than a collection of days. Want a GREAT life? Live GREAT days! Great lives aren’t created in the future, they’re created each and every day. Promise yourself that today you’ll live with intention and not coast through the day on autopilot missing all the amazing gems this day is going to be filled with. If you catch...

Before you can ever have or achieve everything you want in life, you need to have a vehicle that’ll get you there. I’m not talking about your business or your next great idea, I’m talking about you. 

The essence of who you are is actually made up of four beings. You have a physical being, an intellectual being, an emotional being, and a spiritual being. The health and vitality of each of these beings determines how far you get in achieving your dreams. Ignoring any of these beings limits what you’re capable of creating.

You won’t have the strength, focus, determination, or belief in what you want to achieve if you’re not “whole” first. There’s a reason why you put your oxygen mask on first before helping others on a plane. It’s because if you don’t take care of yourself first, you’ll never be able to take care of those around you.

What I see all the time though is what I call Used Car...

Every morning you wake up you've got a choice to make. You choose whether to survive or thrive. You have to realize that a great life doesn’t happen accidentally or magically, it happens intentionally. If you don’t start your day by deciding how that day will end, then you’re allowing circumstance and feeling to determine the quality of your day for you.

Surviving is all about making it to the end of the day, about paying the bills, and about going through the day on cruise control. The end result is laying your head on your pillow at the end of the day filled with regret and despair because inside you there’s a voice telling you that you’re capable of so much more.

Thriving, on the other hand, is all about the destination. It’s taking the time to set a goal big enough for yourself that it scares and excites you, one that pushes you and your team to become and do more than you’ve ever done before. You need to realize that life doesn’t...