As Margaret Meade once said "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."

Our collective actions proved Ms. Meade right and I am happy...no thrilled...to report that Renee Brace and the ASPCA Online Community spoke with Verizon Executive Coordinator, Steve Schwartzman, and the offensive ad has been pulled in all markets. Mr. Schwartzman was very understanding of everyones feelings and admitted that they have received quite a bit of heat over this commercial.

The first days of training were the best: I got doses of the most positive reinforcement I've ever recieved, something I didn't get much of as a child.  My original intent was to work only a few hours per week, but I soon found myself wanting to work as hard as possible.  My division manager Mike Dawid (awesome guy) even gave me access to several motivational audio seminars, as well as books written by past Cutco reps and Robert Kiyosaki.  Ready to take on the world, I ended up selling $1,000 worth of Cutco in my first two days. 

After about a week and a half, I quit the Vector program.  I felt horrible for giving up on the team that was so inspiring to me.  It's not that the business plan didn't work, because I know it does.  If you want to make a few extra dollars selling Cutco, you definitely can if you're dedicated.  It requires spending a lot of time with your division manager and constantly improving your sales skills.  This is a great business if you don't have much money, and the promotions are there for those who want them. 

However, my original intent was to make a few extra dollars and focus more on my real estate business.  Vector was flexible with my schedule, but I was actually losing focus.  I knew that in order for me to be successful at Vector, it took a lot of dedication between office meetings and calling prospects. 

In addition, I learned that the real money wasn't in the knives, but in recruiting.  If you work hard selling Cutco you have the opportunity to become a division manager, which focuses more on recruiting sales reps.  As a division manager, I'm speculating that one makes a percentage of sales off of the reps, in addition to other types of bonuses.  I imagine this is where the true money is made.  YES, YOU REALLY CAN MAKE MONEY WORKING FOR VECTOR!  Too many people quit right away because they think it won't work! 

Vector requires that you invest a small amount of money for your demo kit and gas money, but this is true of any business. As for me, I didn't have any extra money.  My money was invested in my real estate, and I'm hardly rich as of right now.  Therefore, I didn't feel it appropriate to spend additional money trying to make it work. 

I also didn't wan't to build a business on a product that wasn't mine - that's the bottom line.  I had already experienced sales success when I worked in banking, and doing it all over again really didn't seem that appealing, despite the large dose of enthusiasm and encouragement I received.  Personally, I would rather work hard to be the one who creates the original idea.  If you really want to be rich, this is truly how it is done.  If you come up with just one good idea, you could hire all the sales reps you want.  Then YOU get to keep the larger portion of the pie, not your division manager or regional manager. 

Again, selling Cutco is great work if you have the time and energy to become a division manager and sell the system, instead of remaining a sales rep.  In my case, my real estate business was most important to me and I would end up losing my properties if I didn't stop spending money on gas and such.  Honestly, I didn't really spend that much selling Cutco, but it was more than I could afford at the time. 

Overall, if you're considering selling Cutco I would definitely recommend giving it a shot if you have time and a small amount of money.  It teaches you the reality of trying to promote a product without any help - you are responsible for your own success like any business!  That's the beauty of it. 

Does anyone out there have any experience with Vector????

Freedom is the right to live as you wish.
If you wish to free yourself from enslavement,
you must choose freedom and the responsibility it entails.
There's a price for every freedom,
something to be given up for every liberty.

It's up to you to weigh the price you must pay
for each of your freedoms.
And everything you want has a price.

Freedom is the opportunity to make decisions.
It's the capacity to take a hand in your own development.
Freedom is the right to choose.
It's the right to create for yourself the alternatives of choice.

No one is free who is not the master of himself.
You are free to do whatever you like.
You need only face the consequences of your actions.

Copyright 2008 www.yourdailymotivation.com

Something that I've picked up from travelling to and from home to work via public transport is the repression of emotions on each vehicle of transport--whether it be a tram, train or a bus. All entail a bleak atmosphere. Faces of people who paint an expression of ignorance and apathy to avoid others on the train or whatever.

That said, I want to touch upon how and why the detachment of emotions and the facade of expressions realistically work. I will emphasise here and now that this is all in the depth of theory and whilst I publish this; it pains me that I'm unable to corroborate it. I really mean it. What's a statement without objective evidence. Bah.

This is a philosophy that I wholly believe in and although, many will claim that the act of pretense or feigning certain emotions is inherently immoral and self-contradictory - it really isn't. It might be unnoticeable since it is of a manner that we enact ourselves during the course of each day but it certainly isn't wrong. In fact, the general notion of self-improvement is realistically the conditioning of these emotions feigned. Without drilling too much into the topic of self-improvement, the art is about self-analysis and rebuilding yourself into another person. Essentially, this involves an adjustment in behaviour or personality. So, by logic, the mere change in traits implicitly relates to the refinement of emotions. Consequently, the permanency of this is noted as a result of an self-improving effort.

Take, for example, someone with confidence issues. He/she tries to express themselves in a way that dispels their lack of confidence. That person is essentially and initially pretending to be or seem like another person with the traits that are contrary to what they considered as a flaw in their own character. Whether it proves to accomplish in the long-term or is fallible in itself isn't the point. The point is that pretense is the starting point of becoming and forming who we want to realise. It then becomes an enigma as to constitutes a pretentious construct of character and the ethical considerations of this.

This hide of character is commonly seen with the majority of retail workers. And isn't this true?

It's what they're paid to do. The chirpy, lovely girl behind the counter is coerced to present themselves in a manner that evokes similar emotions from potential customers. And isn't that true too?

The only way to survive in the world is to either forget the social constraints that are apparent in our world. It doesn't feel natural to do so but how would we survive in such conditions without learning to adapt?

It's horrible to think that as humans, we can't act naturally as we would like to. Of course, there's reason to say why do we need to heed and live by social norms and collective expectations of society? It's because that's how it realistically works. There's even more reason to ask: if it all depends on the goal and desires of one person and how they live - why does a person need to consider social requirements? That might be a difficult one to answer. However, this is how I see it - if one has desires and needs, whether it be material (superficial) or abstract (emotive) - there has to be one of those desires and needs that regards the interaction with people as a necessity to fulfill those goals. If so, the goal of interaction with people is mainly based on how effective an individual is with their presentation and demeanour towards that speciail other person. That presentation can be changed by the facade we want to display to obtain whatever response we're looking for. Yeah, I'm really complicating it.

I can't speak as to how many people have legitimate desires that involve the connection and interaction with people but if you're a normal person, I would have to believe that some component of that desire requires the presence or mutuality of other people.

"Be yourself" has become so redundant to me. There's two simple choices to make - stay and be yourself or adapt to how other people behave. And being yourself isn't really as simple as people think. Those who disregard others around them to behave the way they wish have a disjointed and disconnected social awareness. However, those who adapt themselves to how other people behave are only fooling themselves with what they innately are.

I really feel that there's no gray area in that respect. Draw the line between having a social awareness or not having a social awareness. How easy it is to hypothesise, yet how difficult it can be for those who have grounded themselves with what they are and want to change. Ah, fun times.

Don sponsored Paula. Paula sponsored Judi. Judi sponsored Sarah. Sarah
sponsored Marilyn. They all sponsored a lot of other people too, but
you should focus on THIS amazing leg for 1 important reason: they all
made Diamond, a very high achievement (and well-rewarded and
recognized) in their company!

And every one of them did it the same way - using the generic (no
products or companies mentioned) "Success In 10 Steps" ebook.

On Saturday, July 26th, at 8:55 pm Eastern time, Richard Dennis will interview Sarah Thompson. You'll learn Sarah's secrets - exactly how this duplicatable system came about. You'll get all the details on how you can use it to build your M-L-M fortune.

In this interview, you will learn:

==> Why Mentoring for Free has such strong appeal
==> What makes the ebook "Success in 10 Steps" so powerful?
==> Why this ebook attracts your perfect target market
==> Who exactly opens and reads Success in 10 Steps? And WHEN do they
open it? (This is REALLY the key!)

It is F*REE to listen to this LIVE conference call. However we only
have a limited number of spots on the conference bridge. If You have
struggled to duplicate in your net*work mar*keting business, you
really need to hear how Sarah Thompson hit paydirt with this system.

Just reply back with "Sarah" in the subject line to confirm your
planned attendance.

As soon as I get your reply, I'll make sure to reserve you a spot on
the call and get the access information to you.

This is going to be packed out call!

To Your Success,

Jayne Cambra 
617-892-4661 Anytime
jaynecambra@gmail.com

We are continually faced by great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluble problems.

We cannot discover new oceans unless we have the courage to lose sight of the shore.

Success is always to be found on the other side of fear.
The secret to productive goal setting is establishing clearly defined goals, writing them down and then focusing on them several times a day with words and emotions as if we've already achieved them.

You must have long term goals to keep you from being frustrated short term failures.

One step at a time is enough for me.  Impatience is simply a way of beating yourself up.

Never be afraid to try something new!

One person with a belief is equal to 99 who have only interests.

Begin difficult things while they are easy.  Do great things while they are small.  The difficult things of the world must once have been easy.  The great things must once have been small.

A thousand mile journey begins with one step.  Start today.

The worst bankrupt in the world is the man who has lost his enthusiasm.  Let a man lose everything else in the world but his enthusiasm and he will come through again to success.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Constant effort and frequent mistakes are the stepping stones to genius.

Without goals and plans to reach them, you are like a ship that has set sail with no destination.

Action without planning is the cause of all failure.  Action with planning is the cause of all success.

Decide what you want, decide what you are willing to exchange for it.  Establish your priorities and go to work.

It is literally true that you can succeed best and quickest by helping others to succeed.

A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and goes to bed at night and in between does what he wants to do.

It is more important to know where you are going than to get there quickly.

The winners in life think constantly in terms of "I can, I will, I am".   Losers, on the other hand, concentrate their waking thoughts on what they should have done or on what they don't do.

We must stop assuming that a thing which has never been done before probably cannot be done at all.

You're not a failure if you don't make it.  You're a success because you tried.

Self discipline is the key to everything.  I believe it down to my core.

Welcome the challenges.   Look for the opportunities in every situation to learn and grow in wisdom.

Our most profitable lessons are learned from failure, not success.

Believe that problems do have answers, that they can be overcome, and that you can solve them.

If you really want to do something, you'll find a way.  If you don't, you'll find an excuse.

The most important single ingredient in the formula of success is knowing how to get along with people.

No one can knows what he can do until he tries.

Success in life consists of going from one mistake to the next without losing your enthusiasm.

credit to www.inspirational-quotations.com

By The Inner Biochemist - :Kristine:Earl:

And then some... these three little words are the secret to success.  They are the difference between average people and top people in most companies.  The top people always do what is expected ...and then some.  They are thoughtful of others; they are considerate and kind ...and then some.  They meet their responsibilities fairly and squarely …and then some.  They are good friends and helpful neighbors …and then some.  They can be counted on in an emergency …and then some.  I am thankful for people like this, for they make the world a better place.  Their spirit of service is summed up in these three little words …and then some.

You can find this essay quoted in an awesome succeed-in-life-and-work book entitled 212 – the extra degree by Sam Parker and Mac Anderson.  This book makes an excellent gift to your family, friends, colleagues, and clients.  Visit this website:  www.212movie.com. 

When it rains it storms so they say. It seems all at once I had run out of packaging cardboard and perhaps that is why my sales slowed this week. I believe you emit those things via energy fields to the world. I am now prepared again. Bring it on Baby! I salvage excess clean cardboard from local businesses and cut it down to the four standard sizes I need for packaging orders.

I filled two large orders this week, one of which is 24 originals for matting, framing and exhibit at the Klausen Gallery which will be for sale during the City's next Gallery Hop on August 8th, 2008. The Klausen Gallery is located at 106 Prince William Street in Uptown Saint John, New Brunswick. I had attended the last gallery hop and not in my wildest dreams did I think my art would be included in next hop.

Jorgen Klausen is the owner and he is one brilliant photographer.

I was also contacted by OrangeWillow about sending reproductions on consignment down to the Pivot Gallery and Boutique in Kentucky that she owns and operates. You can follow the developing story here on her blog. I shipped 18 reproductions out on Wednesday to her.

This is exciting for me. The first two, of hopefully many more gallery contacts.

I may have been creating art since the age of four however it's only in the last few years that I've begun to be recognized for it. I am a beginner at best when it comes to galleries and selling my art. I am learning and doing the best I can as a I go.

^{Image Credits
• 1. Print selection sent to Pivot
• 2. Cutting cardboard on my deck
• 3. Miniatures originals with certificates to the Klausen Gallery.
• 4. Four larger originals with certificates to Klausen.}

Several times recently I have felt kind of burned out with my riding, and I have really had to force myself to go for that next ride. I have also started to notice some mild discomfort in my knees after some of my rides, usually when I have pushed myself harder up a hill, or tried to better my route times. In response to these problems I decided that I was probably pushing myself too hard, and I needed to slow down and let my body catch up a bit. I also began to realize that even though I had ridden my daily route quite a few times now, I had barely noticed the surroundings on the way. I was always so focused on getting to my destination, and pushing harder and faster, that I didn’t really enjoy the ride.

So… I have officially given myself permission to slow down, and I have really been working on focusing on enjoying the ride, rather than how fast I was getting there. I have to say that it has been difficult! I have started out a ride at a slower pace… but then… within a mile or so I convinced myself that I was fine… and was back to pushing myself as usual, often ending with the “burned out, sore knee” feeling from before. It also seems like every time I commit to slowing down I encounter another biker on the road, usually on a speedy road bike, and I am compelled to try to keep up with that person, even though their bike is geared faster and weighs less than a third of what I am riding! But, all is not lost, as I have had several rides recently where I was able to really let go and just enjoy the ride, and it was great. Ironically, most of them have been my night rides, which is kind of funny because my first night ride was probably one of the most difficult rides I’ve had since I started bike commuting. But my last couple of night rides have been a bit cooler, and yes, I was tired when I got finished, but it was a good kind of tired, and my knees were stressed, but not really painful. Best of all, I actually took the time on the ride to notice things around me. I remember now, I really like riding my bike!

So, I’m still pushing myself, only now I’m pushing myself to not push myself.

Permission to slow down, Captain? Aye, that’s an order!

Do any of you relate to this? If so, leave a comment and let me know.

There is no force more potent than love.
Take away love and your world is a tomb.
Your life echoes emptiness without love.
With it, your life will vibrate with warmth and meaning.
Even during hardship, love will shine through.

As you look back upon the events in your life you will find
that the moments that stand out, the moments when you have really lived,
are the moments when you have done things in a spirit of love.

If you have it, you don't need to have anything else,
and if you don't have it, it doesn't matter what else you have.

Therefore, search for love.
Once you have learned to love, you will have learned to live.

Love is the most important ingredient to your success.

Copyright 2008 www.yourdailymotivation.com

This week, I’m passing along the five things your brand or client must embrace to increase its chances of executing a successful social media strategy, based on Geoff Livingston’s book Now is Gone with my own take and additions.

1. Give Up Control of the Message (click here to read)
2. Participate Within the Communities (click here to read)
3. Stakeholders Who are Social Media Savvy (click here to read)
4. Dedicate the Resources (click here to read)
5. Ethics and Transparency

People want to participate within communities with people they can trust. That also applies to your company or the community relations managers who lead your social media efforts. Social media communities have little patience – if any – for unethical actions or smoke and mirrors.

Ethics Schmethics?
The first part of that equation is conducting your business in an ethical way. This isn’t about what you tell your audience. This is about how you operate as a company. Making mistakes is acceptable – depending on the mistake, of course – as long as you own them and make changes to lessen the chance of it happening again. Having a positive corporate reputation about the way you do business will help soften the beach for your social media effort.

Increased Transparency
Likewise, the social media community expects more transparency than you may be used to providing. The one-to-one relationships that these networks provide empower everyday consumers to ask direct questions and receive direct replies. You don’t have to give away total access to your business, but if you have a reputation for hiding issues, spinning facts and skirting responsibility, then you’re online outreach will most likely fail.

As Geoff says, “If your company has not traditionally been open in its dialogue with consumers, this should be a red flag for you. The company may not be new media ready.”

What’s missing from this series? What other important ideas should a brand embrace before planning and executing a social media strategy? What would you add to the list and why?

*Image by Scott Feldstein and used under the Creative Commons Attribution License.

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When I was about four years old, I took a tinker toy and plunged it through the seat of my grandparents leather recliner.  I wasn't intending to be bad, I just had a general curiosity in the whole experience.  I distinctly remember being more of an observer, rather than a participant; although some small voice was trying to tell me it was wrong.  My grandma was horrified, but I remember not being punished - and that haunts me.

When I was going through my divorce and recovering from the mess that had become my life, I would randomly drop by my grandma's house and have coffee with her.  I got off work in the mornings and I'd stop by her house around 10 am or so.  Neither of us were morning people and that time worked just fine.

"I remember she'd drink her coffee out of a big, green four-cup measuring cup"

I remember she'd drink her coffee out of a big, green four-cup measuring cup.  Sometimes she'd make me breakfast.  Comfort food, that was.  And we would talk.  I was amazed at how intelligent, gentile, and wise she was.  She was one of my best friends during a time when I was hanging out with not-so-wise people.  She never expected anything out of me; she just accepted me for who I was.

"I never realized the perspective of a parent"

Until this morning, I never realized the perspective a parent, or even a grandparent has.  I am so absolutely crazy about my darling daughter.  I've never loved anyone the way I love her.  It is jumping up and down, I'd do anything for her, radical love.  My parents had that kind of love for me, but they were always trying to shape me, mold me, change me - especially my Mom.  My grandmother just accepted me.

Today, as I write this, I am struck by the charge given me to mold and shape my daughter and then the reflection that what she needs most from me is acceptance.  There is a part of me that is fascinated by her growth, development, and fascination with the world around her.  There is another part of me that wants to put her in a jar and preserve this innocence and beauty forever.

On the day of my grandma's funeral, just moments after I presented a sketch of her life in front of 200 people, my great-aunt told me a secret about my grandmother.  The eagerness of which she revealed my grandmother's secret and illegal, back-alley abortion, when she was just 17 years old, tumbled out like unsatiated revenge.

"I don't know what purpose this 70 year-old revealed secret served"

I don't know what purpose this 70 year-old revealed secret served, but it didn't change the love and respect I had for this amazing woman in my life.  I had no secrets from her, and now, apparently, she had none from me either - even posthumously.  If anything, it put matters nto focus and raised my appreciation of the pain she walked with.

All my life, I've lived pretty much in the moment.  I've rejected the notion that I'm a sum of my parts, a sum of my past, and have prefered to look towards the vision of who I am becoming.  Most people that we meet don't see us that way.  They judge us for our reputation - either earned or myth.  My grandma never judged me for my past, instead, I was always the little boy who she loved without conditions.  Something she was never able to do with her five daughters.

As my darling daughter plays with the notes on our piano, I am struck by the mystery of maturation.  Would, if I could, keep her right where she is?  Would, if I could encourage her to new heights of imagination and achievement?  Would, if I could, be the best daddy I can be?

I'm called to be a Radical Dad.  I will do whatever it takes to give my kids the best foundation possible.  Life is hard and the pain and scars come without warning, so how can I best arm them with the skills necessary.  Not just to survive, but to thrive and live the abundant life.  I want my kids to laugh, to cry, to dance, and to mourn.  I want them to taste, and smell, and feel, and hear, and touch the world with fascination and curiousity.  I want them to be wise and hungry for knowledge and learning.  I want them to have empathy and humor.

What is a Radical Dad?  I am a Radical, unrepentant rebel of a Dad.  I will do whatever it takes to make sure my kids love themselves, love others, and love their Creator.  If that means pushing back against peer pressure, the culture, and broken systems, than I will.  If that means loving their mother more than I love myself, than I will.  If that means sucking up my ego, to let them become their own people, then I will.

I will be radically authentic, radically genuine, radically real, and radically transparent - all for the sake of my family.

Worldly success is fleeting, and I've already experienced it in many ways.  Seeing my kids live happy, productive, abundant lives - well, I can think of no better success and no better joy.

"Remember, too, that all who succeed in life get off to a bad start, and pass through many heartbreaking struggles before they "arrive." -Napoleon Hill

Session 10: Planning
This session helped us begin to implement all the previous things we had been working on and set key milestones that will help us get done what needs to get done before we plant. It's both encouraging how much we have already done and discouraging how much there is to do. We'll try to hold these plans loosely as they will surely change.

Session 11: Priorities
For this final session, anticipation was high. All week we had been told, "Don't leave early. Make sure you stay for the last session, it's always the best." We were not disappointed.

In this session, Dr. Steve Childers (President of GCA) presented his "Eight biggest mistakes...that he can share publicly." The gist of this session was that personal spiritual renewal and health is far more important than some version of of earthly "success" in church planting. This was a sobering session that caused both Molly and I to really think seriously about what lies ahead. Here are a few of the key takeaways for me:

• I have views of what "success" is and most of them are illegitimate and not based on faithfulness to God's call.
• Joy comes from who I am in Christ, not what I do for Christ.
• At the root of my frantic propensity to overwork is usually the sin of pride and an exalted sense of my importance in the kingdom of God.
• Goals are things I can influence and control. Desires are things I cannot. Therefore, I should work toward my goals and pray for my desires.
• God's goal for my life is not merely to serve him, but to know him, love him, trust him, glorify him and enjoy him. God is not a means to another end--he is the goal of everything.
• God loves me. Really. A lot. "The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing" (Zephaniah 3:17).
• I need people who don't just tell me how to live and do ministry better, but also point me to the truth of the gospel.
• I can choose to be content and enjoy life now, or I can put my hope in "I'll be happy someday when..." and never actually get it.
• I have an amazing wife who needs to be treasured and not sacrificed to the idol of "success."

As you can tell, this was an impactful session. We're so thankful to EVBC for sending us to this seminar. We learned a lot and were truly refreshed in many ways. May God be your joy and may you know the power of his amazing love.