2007 August | haRdLy NOrMal

Archive for August, 2007

The Better Number

Published by August 23rd, 2007 in Blogs, Change, Character, Community, Homeless, Just Me, Leadership, Learning, Life's Lessons, My Big Mouth, Personal Growth, Recovery

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Phil Cooke, whom I highly respect, told me three years ago that I should not mention I was homeless. I agree that it probably hurts my personal brand in some way. Actually; one of the reasons I started this blog was to augment and enhance my personal brand but I just can’t seem to leave out that I was once a recycling engineer. Since I started this blog I have probably written more on homelessness, or ministry to the homeless, then I have on marketing and excellance. It just must be part of me

This Friday I turn 13. August 24th marks the day I finally walked off of Hollywood Blvd and into Hollywood and Vine Recovery Center. Why I say finally is because I had “visited” twice before yet this time I “got it”. I like this birthday so much better because 13 is a lower number then my chronological age and its awesome commemorating this tremendous accomplishment. It truly is the road less traveled!

Most people do not understand addiction. Serious addiction! This week I was reading one of my favorite blogs at LifeChurch.tv, I really respect how open Senior Pastor Craig Groeschel is in his posts. It takes a lot of courage to be so transparent. This week he started a 4 part series on addiction. Of course, this is a great week for me to do a little introspection and reading these posts made me think of all the addictions in my life

I can so much relate to being addicted to “crisis management”. I literally love the feeling I get when I am able to solve an impossible problem. I even know why my smartphone is called a “crackberry” and I can relate to much of what is written by everyone who responded. If you haven’t yet mosey on over to LifeChurch.tv and you’ll discover some amazing posts written by some very courageous people

We all are addicted to something. What are you addicted to?

Real motivation

Published by August 21st, 2007 in Community, Homeless, Just Me, Leadership, Learning, Life's Lessons, My Big Mouth, Outreach, Personal Growth, Vision

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This is a couple we met this past week. What set them apart was the joy in their spirit. Byron had an amazing smile and they were happy even given their situation. Of course that is not easy when you are living in a park…homeless!

Byron is a waiter and he has not been able to find a job. The woman stated they have been homeless since January. She then went on to say in a somber voice that January is fast approaching. Even though I could empathize with her pain I did not know if she was saddened because it will soon be cold, or that January will bring a one year anniversary of living on the streets, or both!

I will look at this photo often because it gives me motivation to help others. It also makes my problems just seem to disappear. If you are reading this blog and happen to find this post; I ask that you join me in prayer for this gorgeous couple and others who desperately need some hope.

Personal MBA – why pay $150,000?

Published by August 20th, 2007 in Blogs, Change, Just Me, Leadership, Learning, Life's Lessons, Marketing, My Big Mouth, Personal Growth

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Frank Zappa once said “skip your high-school prom and go to the library and educate yourself”

There is a lot of truth in that statement. As or me I believe high-school still serves an important purpose and that is to teach social skills. Most; if not all of my edumacation resulted from the “school of life” so when I found out about the Personal MBA I was curious. Being honest; my only real formal education was when I studied psychology for three years at LACC though I only learned enough to be dangerous. Not once in my career has any formal education helped me land a job. Experience, knowledge, passion and people skills are all that matter!

I originally discovered “The Personal MBA: Mastering Business Without Spending a Fortune” on the ChangeThis blog. Here is what the author Josh Kaufman wrote about this manifesto:

Interested in learning advanced business concepts, but don’t have the time or money for a traditional MBA program? Business schools don’t have a monopoly on worldly wisdom – if you care more about increasing your effectiveness at work than a diploma and a few lines on your resume, the “Personal MBA” is for you.

ChangeThis has lots of great stuff to continue your higher education and you can find a link in my blogroll or click here.

Recently Seth Godin posted about an updated “The Personal MBA Manifesto Mastering Business Through Self-Education” by the same author. You have to scroll to the bottom to find the links. What I think is neat is Josh offers support and coaching via his forum and there is a suggested reading plan. This is a great site and if you are willing to invest in yourself you will want to take advantage of this awesome resource!

Get Motivated

Published by August 18th, 2007 in Change, Character, Future, Just Me, Leadership, Life's Lessons, Marketing, My Big Mouth, Vision

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I am blessed by having the greatest pastor, boss, spiritual father and mentor in the entire world. Pastor Blunt is always investing in us so yesterday he sent most all of the staff to the Get Motivated Conference. It was awesome. I was not only able to see Brain Tracy live but Zig Ziglar – wow!

Here are a few thoughts:

General Colin Powell should run for president. Actually, I could not help but think that his speech was really a setup for a future run for office. He was very good.

He said something that I don’t think many people noticed its importance. Probably even the most important statement made all day. The General was talking about the change in China and other communist countries. He said “trade is driving the political realignment of the world”. Too me, that was huge! People all over the world are looking past their differences to make a buck. Trade, or money if you will, is changing everything!

He also said something that as leaders we need to accept and this one is not easy. “Face the reality of your failures” – OUCH! In my life I have had some huge failures. Some even recently however, if I let failures paralyze me I have then thrown in the towel. Face your failures, accept them, learn from them, even allow them to drive you to success but don’t stay in your failure! In my own career and personal life, as I grow and my successes become greater, I noticed my failures get bigger. I can say with experience that those who have great successes also have great failures.

On the subject of a bad follower or employee the General said a very real truth. “your followers will know before you do”. He went on to say that people know who is slacking, who is not productive, who is taking long lunches and who is being difficult. The followers look to the leader to take care of the situation. To make things better! Either counsel the person, reassign the person or remove the person but do something. If you don’t you stand a chance of the other followers losing respect for your leadership

Almost all of the speakers spoke about execution or as I like to say “make it happen”! An idea is nothing without implementation!

Some quick notes from Brian Tracy. I love Brain Tracy.

Everything is hard before it gets easy
Take action – then correct the course – action then correction
All business skills are learnable
All sales skills are learnable
Learn from experts

Phil Town talked about stocks. Made it sound easy but it was really a commercial for his own seminar. A very expensive $3K seminar. Trust me, if I had the disposable income I would take the class. One very important thing I learned, which I kind of knew, I even look up the reports but I didn’t “get it” was to watch the insiders. If the CFO of a company is buying or selling there is a reason.

James Smith was almost identical to Phil Town only real-estate. Another expensive $6K class that I wish I could afford and some great tips that teased you to take the class. I really liked him and I believe what made him different is he kept stressing that you need to do this to help others. Not to get rich but to help others. That alone sets him apart from all the other get rich quick late night infomercials.

What I thought was neat, and it was my first time at an event like this was that EVERYONE spoke about Jesus. In fact, Peter Lowe did a really cool alter call. I was extremely impressed with how openly they made it a Jesus event. Everyone made it clear that to have real success you need God.

It was a great day and I wish I brought my recorder. I had it in my hand but figured I would just buy the CDs. Turns out they do not sell audio or video of the events.

I don’t have many regrets in life but I was a little envious of the young people that were with us. Not in a bad way. It is just what an awesome opportunity it must be to catch the spirit of learning in your 20’s. To experience all this wisdom!

I also looked at the thousands upon thousands of people there. Many of them had been to this conference before yet why were they all not millionaires? Why were they all not “getting it”? I know in my own life I have always been into learning however, I myself did not “get it” until I met my mentor Pastor Blunt. I just pray that I will never settle for good enough, that I will always want to improve, to get better and make things happen!

Each and everyone of us has the power to do something great yet the majority of people either are scared of change or simply cannot motivate themselves. Probably the single most important inspiration that kept resonating through all the speakers, besides the importance of God, was that anyone can succeed. No matter what your background, race, financial situation, age or other challenges you can be something great! You already are!

Serious change is coming! Are you ready?

Published by August 18th, 2007 in Bible, Change, Character, Community, Future, Just Me, Life's Lessons, Media, My Big Mouth

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Some time ago Pastor Blunt bought several of us Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki’s book “Why We Want You to be Rich”. It is a great book and if you have not read it I highly recommend you do so NOW! There is a lot of terrific information but one point they make I have been thinking about all day. Basically they state that in about 8 years there will no longer be a middle class!

Yesterday I was at a conference and I will post on that in a moment. Several of the speakers validated this serious and imminent transformation to society. Speakers like Steve Forbes and Phil Town, who, most definitely are credible experts validated that in 8 to 10 years everything is going to change for the worse!!!

Trust me, I am a positive person and thinking positively about life has had a dramatic improvement on me. That is not going to change. Positive things happen to positive people. There is nothing as ugly as a paranoid sprit on a person although we must face reality when awful things either happen; or are about to happen.

Having lived in Los Angeles during the 1992 LA riots you could not help but feel this is a sign of things to come. The riots were not about race! Rodney King was only the spark that ignited an impending explosion of “haves” and the “have-nots”. I remember when the news hit that the city, my city, was going insane. I worked at Starcom Television at the time so I walked over to the Technical Operational Control or TOC where I could see all the live feeds from the various helicopters and cameras around the city. Words cannot describe the feelings all of us experienced as we watched 20 TVs on the wall filled with extreme chaos, violence and looting. No one said a word, we just watched in silence!

After the riots we received the contract from the FBI to transfer all the raw footage captured by all the news cameras during the riots. We saw stuff that would never be broadcast but, time and time again it was all about money and people trying to “get theirs”. Black, White, Latino, Asian where all helping each other break into stores. My absolute favorite clip was of a police officer, who, after seeing multiple people walk out of an electronic store with televisions, pulled out his gun and yelled “freeze police”! No one stopped; no one paid attention to him or his gun. They just kept on looting. There were far too many people for him to shoot so he put his gun back into its holster.

I lived in North Hollywood at the time and the very next garbage day every house had a couch, a TV, an entertainment set, a washer, a dryer, a microwave or other items out on the curb for pickup since they all looted new stuff. Seriously; every single house had something on the curb to go to the dump.

I said all that only to illustrate that we have been given a glimpse of the future so we better not ignore the change that is coming.

I know I don’t want to think about this but when I do it really changes my perspective. I ask myself “what am I investing in?” I don’t believe that in 8 years time I will have Donald Trump money but more importantly, I can invest in God’s kingdom. That means more then ever we have to be eternal minded. We need to invest not only our time but our money in our local church. The government will not be able to take care of us. If you remember the riots the National Guard forgot the bullets and it took days for ammunition to arrive.

Also, we need to invest in people. Our relationships are so very important. Are the friends you have today the type of friends you can count on when times get tough? Are your friends givers or takers? Will they help you and love you when you do not have a thing to give them in return? Are they spiritually and emotionally strong enough to handle a crisis situation? Are they able to put others in front of themselves in a crisis situation? Is integrity important to them? Do they keep their word no matter what? Are they selfish? Better yet, are you selfish? Are you the type of friend who truly understands Proverbs 17:17? Proverbs 18:24? Are you loyal? Do you care about others more then yourself?

Too me, if I really allow this to change my perspective, which it should, then I need to be more concerned about God and caring for His people then a new BMW or that Hawaii vacation.

Any thoughts?

Lessons from a child

Published by August 15th, 2007 in Internet, Just Me, Life's Lessons, My Big Mouth, Outreach

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Ok, without going into much detail I am very streetwise. I have had guns held point blank at my head numerous times and lived to blog about it!

Even though most of the homeless are relatively harmless there is a very dangerous aspect of people who primarily are in survival mode. People on drugs, or just simply desperate, can be extremely unpredictable! There is also a subculture to any homeless park. The freaks, the fringe, the king and his servants, the knuckleheads, the suppliers, the bullies and those just stuck on stupid. Being aware of your surroundings is crucial.

This past Saturday I noticed a couple of knuckleheads walking into the park. I quickly walked over and engaged them in conversation to see if there might be trouble. I’ll be honest with you, they were hardcore and I decided to walk away after a very brief conversation. I seriously was concerned and thought it was best just to keep my eye on them from a distance.

breaking down the wall To my shock, right as I started to walk away, this kid came running up with a handful of goodies saying “would you like some socks?” I turned around quickly to defuse the situation BUT, and this is huge, these two hardcore knuckleheads melted from the generosity. Seriously, when I spoke to them not one second sooner, they were street hard. After the kid offered socks and water they were all smiles! They even let me take their picture which is very rare in this situation.

Love can break down all barriers and sometimes it takes the innocence of a child to remind us of that truth.

Don’t despise humble beginnings

Published by August 15th, 2007 in Blogs, Community, Homeless, Internet, Just Me, Marketing, My Big Mouth, Outreach

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I was watching History Detectives on PBS last night. The part of the show I saw was about an early Coca-Cola trading card used for advertisement and promotion.

Here is a quote from Allan Petretti who is considered one of the country’s leading experts in Coca-Cola memorabilia as they asked him to validate the card.

“They didn’t even think that the product was going to sell. As a matter of fact, they only sold 25 gallons for the first year, and they paid $25 for advertising. So this product was in its infancy. The fact that Coca-Cola, their logo, is not on this card is not surprising to me.”

Ok, we all know today Coca-Cola is probably the most recognizable brand in the world – period! They ONLY sold 25 gallons in the first year! $25 for a yearly advertising budget!!! The king of all branding didn’t even put their logo on early marketing materials!!! WOW!

Here is another interesting quote from the show that shows the change in Coca-Cola’s strategy and the impact of a good marketing campaign.

“It’s clear from this artwork that it was advertising that helped turn Coca-Cola from an exotic medical potion into a defining symbol of American culture. Incredible artwork; a collector’s dream. What’s great is that these pieces were not meant to be collected. Coca-Cola gave out these premiums and produced these ads to go into stores, to be displayed on the counters. The colors are screaming. The subject matters are joyful. They make you smile. And for that reason, people paid big money for them. “

There are lots of lessons here. Design matters! Design can change everything and design can change a culture – or create one! Coca-Cola’s advertising has had a significant impact on American culture, and is frequently credited with the “invention” of the modern image of Santa Claus as an old man in red-and-white garments. Yup, Coke changed us forever with marketing

Marketing is extremely important yet most business give marketing the least amount of resources. In fact, when it is time to make budget cuts marketing is one of the first to be chopped. Why? Because it is hard to wait for the return on your investment. Today we want immediate results. We can’t wait a year, or two, or three to change the world! It has to be now!

The other lesson here is that everyone, every company, and every church has to start someplace. Coke only sold 25 gallons the first year. The first night FedEx flew they only carried 3 packages. We cannot look down on humble beginnings!

Handing out hope This past Saturday we went down to “Hobo Park”. We gave out bottled water, first aid kits, socks and underwear among other items. We also cleaned up the park which is a very unique aspect of our AAB ministry. We did not move a mountain however; we were planting seed for the future. It was an awesome day! Most miracles take time and are well worth the wait! The thing is handing someone bottled water will not change a life but hope will. The bottled water is just a tool.

Planting seeds The problem of homelessness is a gigantic issue. It is easy to get discouraged because you want to do more and feel powerless to relieve their suffering. You cannot look at what you didn’t do, but, what YOU DID DO! You gave hope and that hope could very well change a life. You also planted seed for the future in their life, the ministry and your own life.

So if you are discouraged because your business, your ministry or maybe something in your personal life has not progressed as fast as you want, or as big as you want, there is hope. Lots of hope!

On a funny note blogs are work! You have to post often and to be honest; I did not have a thing to type about today. I even asked someone to be a guest blogger today yet somehow I was able to take a marketing subject and twist it into a more spiritual one. Look! A squirrel!

Is good enough enough?

Published by August 12th, 2007 in Blogs, Change, Leadership, Marketing, My Big Mouth

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I was listening to a Brian Tracy CD and he said “just good enough seldom is”. That statement kind of hit me. “Hey, that’s me”! I believe that if you just try a little harder, and care a little more, you can always achieve excellence! It is never easy and lots of times you end up in trouble or misunderstood however, average is for losers and doing something remarkable is worth the risk! At the time I was wrestling with the idea of starting a blog and was looking for not only a tagline but my niche. As you can see in my header I adopted that saying.

Today Seth Godin writes a great post on the same subject. I actually have been thinking about changing my tagline but now after Seth’s post it is a keeper. I also know that Seth happened to visit my blog a few weeks ago and just maybe, just maybe, my tagline encouraged his thinking. Ya right LOL

The Persuaders

Published by August 12th, 2007 in Change, Marketing, Media, My Big Mouth, Television, Vision

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Frontline, one of my all time favorite series, produced a great show about the current mess in advertising called “The Persuaders”. You can watch it online here or purchase it here. I loved it so much I had to buy it! If you work in this industry it is a must see. To be honest, we are all marketers in one way or another so even if that is not your job title this is a great program to stimulate thought.

Tricks

Published by August 12th, 2007 in Just Me, Marketing, Media, My Big Mouth, Television

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In one of my first posts I talked about a direct mail piece that was really from a car dealership however, the outside envelope looked like it was from an attorney. Today in the mail I received a postcard with the huge letters “final expiration notice” trying to trick me into calling about an auto warrantee.

Tonight I went to the movies. Right before movies these days are ads and this type of advertising is called “on-screen”. Of course, the company that runs the ads wants you to believe this type of advertising is successful. I mean, it makes common sense that on-screen would work because there is a captive audience.

This particular company runs a very interesting ad to reinforce this concept of success.
They play a video of three horses in a race running to the finish line. The announcer in a true horse racing voice says “TV, radio and on-screen are coming around the stretch and it is neck to neck. Wait a minute, on-screen is pulling ahead”, as the announcer gets more excited “on-screen is in front of radio and TV. The winner is on-screen”!

Psychologically the ad covertly gets you to believe that on-screen advertising beats out radio and TV. The truth is studies show that most people are offended by on-screen advertising since they paid to get into the movie. It actually has an adverse effect on the advertiser.

Any thoughts on how some advertisers today will do anything to get past the clutter?