Thursday, July 31, 2008

MESSAGE #484 - WHAT’S GOING TO BE ON YOUR TOMBSTONE?

My true religion is kindness.
The Dalai Lama




The Mensch Of Malden Mills
July 6, 2003


(CBS) For years now, we've been hearing about corporate executives who made fortunes for themselves while driving their companies into bankruptcy, costing employees their jobs and sometimes their life savings.

Not so at Malden Mills, the textile company in Lawrence, Mass., that invented the fabric Polartec.

As 60 Minutes reported last year, Malden Mills also filed for bankruptcy protection, but that's the only thing it has in common with companies like Enron.

In fact, Malden Mills is known for going out of its way to help its employees, even when the company suffered a shattering setback. Correspondent Morley Safer reports on this story which aired last summer.



The fire that broke out at Malden Mills in the winter of 1995 was the largest fire Massachusetts had seen for a century. No one was killed. But the town was devastated. Malden Mills was one of the few large employers in a town that was already in desperate straits.

“The only thing that went through my mind was, how can I possibly recreate it,” says owner Aaron Feuerstein, the third generation of his family to run the mill.

“I was proud of the family business and I wanted to keep that alive, and I wanted that to survive. But I also felt the responsibility for all my employees, to take care of them, to give them jobs.”

He made a decision -- one that others in the textile industry found hard to believe. Feuerstein decided to rebuild right there in Lawrence -- not to move down South or overseas as much of the industry had done in search of cheap labor.

He also made another shocking decision. For the next 60 days, all employees would be paid their full salaries.

“I think it was a wise business decision, but that isn't why I did it. I did it because it was the right thing to do,” says Feuerstein.

Some might have said the proper business decision was to take the $300 million in insurance and retire.

“And what would I do with it? Eat more? Buy another suit? Retire and die,” asks Feuerstein. “No, that did not go into my mind.”

He kept his promises. Workers picked up their checks for months. In all, he paid out $25 million and became known as the Mensch of Malden Mills -- a businessman who seemed to care more about his workers than about his net worth.

The press loved him, and so did politicians. President Clinton invited him to the State of the Union Address as an honored guest. He also received 12 honorary degrees, including one from Boston University.

He became that rare duck -- the businessman as national hero.

“I got a lot of publicity. And I don't think that speaks well for our times,” says Feuerstein. “At the time in America of the greatest prosperity, the god of money has taken over to an extreme.”

For guidance he turns to the Torah, the book of Jewish law.

"You are not permitted to oppress the working man, because he's poor and he's needy, amongst your brethren and amongst the non-Jew in your community," says Feuerstein, who spent $300 million of the insurance money and then borrowed $100 million more to build a new plant that is both environmentally friendly and worker friendly. And it's a union shop that never had a strike.

Malden Mills is best known for Polartec, its popular lightweight synthetic fleece. And Feuerstein says he’s a fool for not patenting the process.

“They were able to come after us. But that's OK. We just make it better,” he says.

The company has developed Polartec that resists wind, water, and fire. The company's customers read like a catalogue of catalogues: L.L. Bean, Lands End, Eddie Bauer, the North Face, Patagonia. The Department of Defense has even ordered clothing made of Polartec, and Special Forces use it in Afghanistan for cold weather operations.



So is this the moral of the story, that good guys finish first? Sadly, not so, at least not so far. Malden Mills, the company that rose from the ashes, became so mired in debt that it had to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

If Feuerstein is unable to satisfy the banks and other creditors, the company could be sold, or even worse, liquidated - leaving the town of Lawrence with yet another closed mill to join the dozens of other textile makers in the area that have shut down, or moved to the South or overseas.

Is the textile business in New England, or maybe even in the United States, a dead industry?

“If you look at the textile industry in the U.S. in the last year, over 100 plants have closed. Tens of thousands of workers have been laid off. So Malden Mills is far from alone. It's definitely swimming upstream,” says Kathleen Seiders, a business professor at MassachusettsBabson College.

Malden Mills has a host of problems. The company lost customers while the new mill was being built, and three warm winters have hurt sales of Polartec. The company is also $140 million dollars in debt.

“Malden Mills will be transformed, I believe, when it emerges from Chapter 11,” says Seiders. But she believes that Feuerstein’s role in the company is likely to change considerably.

“My intuition is that he will remain in a leadership role, but his role will be largely symbolic. He will not be responsible for the key operating and financial decisions,” says Seiders.

Feuerstein realizes that banks may not have quite the same moral view of business that he does. “But I think that we are, at present, we are as we speak, turning the company around. And I think the banks realize it and that's why they're sticking with us.”

“There's a groundswell of support from people in every state of the country who write me the most beautiful letters, sensitive letters, compassionate,” he says. “And very often, there's a $5 check. Or a $100 dollar check or a $500 check, and I read those letters every day. These letters cheer me up.”

He's received about $10,000 dollars. At first, the money was returned, but now it's being put into a fund for poor children in the area.



“We're treated fairly. I mean, you'd better produce, he doesn't give it away,” says employee Bob Fawcett. “But he takes care of his people. But more than just in salary. If you're hurting, you're in trouble, you got a place to go.”

“I actually had two brain surgeries, but because of him I was able to get the doctors I needed,” adds employee Jackie Hosty.

Given the latest financial crisis, do they think this place can be saved?

“If anybody can pull it off, he can. Some people would walk away, I don't need this aggravation,” says Fawcett. “But he just steps up to the plate, time and time again. I don't know how he does it.”

And Feuerstein says he’s not going to give up, move to Florida or play golf. Golf to him is for the brain dead. Instead he likes to lie on his living room sofa, doing what he calls his mental exercises - reading and committing to memory his favorite poets, like Emily Dickinson and William Shakespeare.

Feuerstein and his wife, Louise, live comfortably but modestly in a five-room condominium. No chauffeurs, no private planes.

When he calls a factory pep rally, and brings in support from people like U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), you'll never hear a heckler. You get the sense that everyone is in this together, from the factory hand to the CEO.

What’s going to be on his tombstone? “Hopefully it'll be, ‘He done his damnedest,’” says Feuerstein. “You know, that I didn't give up and I try to do the right thing.”

He's still trying. Earnings are up at Malden Mills and the company says it expects to emerge from Chapter 11 by the end of the summer. But the new Malden Mills won't necessarily belong to Aaron Feuerstein. His creditors will own most of the company, unless he can raise about $90 million by August.

But Feuerstein says don't count him out. He’s confident that he'll get the money and keep his company.


© MMIII, CBS Worldwide Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

MESSAGE #483 - THE QUESTION...

WHAT
IS IT
GOING
TO BE –
REASONS
OR
RESULTS?

Art Turock
professional speaker


Monday, July 28, 2008

MESSAGE #482 - THREE THOUGHTS FROM THREE GREAT MINDS

I.
GREAT HOPES
MAKE
GREAT LIVES.
Dan Zadra
Founder of Compendium


II.
M.O.O.M.B.A.

My
Only
Obtacle
M
ay
Be
Attitude
Ed Agresta
Professional Speaker


III.
YOUR
SUCCESS
IS
ONLY
LIMITED
BY
YOUR
DESIRE.
Melissa Sapio
Psychologist

Sunday, July 27, 2008

MESSAGE #481 - RANDY PAUSCH


When death comes,
it's just like winter.
We don't say,
“There ought not to be winter.”
That the winter season,
when the leaves fall
and the snow comes,
is some kind of defeat,
something which we
should hold out against.
No.
Winter is part of the
natural course of events.
No winter, no summer.
No cold, no heat.

Alan Watts (1915 to 1973)
Philosopher

Saturday, July 26, 2008

MESSAGE #480 - FOR RANDY PAUSCH (1960–2008)

TO AN ATHLETE DYING YOUNG
A.E. HOUSMAN
(1859-1936)

The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.

To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.

Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields were glory does not stay
And early though the laurel grows
It withers quicker than the rose.

Eyes the shady night has shut
Cannot see the record cut,
And silence sounds no worse than cheers
After earth has stopped the ears:

Now you will not swell the rout
Of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.

So set, before its echoes fade,
The fleet foot on the sill of shade,
And hold to the low lintel up
The still-defended challenge-cup.

And round that early-laurelled head
Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead,
And find unwithered on its curls
The garland briefer than a girl's.

Friday, July 25, 2008

MESSAGE #479 - A SAD DAY

'Last Lecture' professor, Randy Pausch dies at 47
by Craig Wison, USA Today

Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon professor who became a YouTube phenomenon with his "Last Lecture," died Friday of complications from pancreatic cancer. He was 47. He died at his home in southern Virginia.

Pausch told USA TODAY during an interview at his home in March that the now-famous lecture was never meant for public consumption, nor was it for his colleagues or students. It was for his two sons and daughter: Dylan, 6, Logan, 3, and Chloe, 2. "If people are finding inspiration, OK, but the book is for my kids," Pausch said.

"I knew what I was doing that day," he wrote in the introduction of his best-selling book, also titled The Last Lecture. "Under the ruse of giving an academic lecture, I was trying to put myself in a bottle that would one day wash up on the beach for my children."

Pausch's wife, Jai, said Friday, "I'd like to thank the millions of people who have offered their love, prayers and support. Randy was so happy and proud that the lecture and book inspired parents to revisit their priorities, particularly their relationships with their children. The outpouring of cards and emails really sustained him."

The Last Lecture (Hyperion, $21.95) has been atop or near the top of USA TODAY's Best-Selling Books list since it was published in April. This week it is No. 8. It has been translated into 30 languages, and nearly 3 million copies are in print.

President George W. Bush, touched by Pausch's story, recently honored him in a letter, citing his service to his country.

"Your love of family, dedication in the classroom, and passion for teaching will stand as a lasting legacy, and I am grateful for your willingness to serve," Bush wrote.

Bush's wasn't the only accolade that came Pausch's way. He made Time magazine's list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Although celebrated in his field for co-founding the pioneering Entertainment Technology Center and creating an innovative software tool known as "Alice," it was his lecture that earned Pausch worldwide fame.

Titled "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," the humorous and heartfelt talk was videotaped and quickly spread around the world via the Internet. Millions of people have since viewed it. It was delivered at Carnegie Mellon on Sept. 18, 2007, a few weeks after Pausch learned he didn't have long to live.

In the lecture he urged his students and colleagues to live life to the fullest. Among his words of wisdom:

•"Never underestimate the importance of having fun. I'm dying and I'm having fun. And I'm going to keep having fun every day because there's no other way to play it."

•"We can't change the cards we're dealt, just how we play the hand. If I'm not as depressed as you think I should be, I'm sorry to disappoint you."

"Good teaching is always a performance, but what Randy did was in a class all by itself," says Andy van Dam, co-founder of the computer science department at Brown University, which Pausch attended as an undergraduate. "His students responded to him as athletes do to a great coach who cares not only about winning but about the team players as individuals."

Donations can be made to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, 2141 Rosecrans Ave., Suite 7000, El Segundo, CA 90245, or to Carnegie Mellon's Randy Pausch Memorial Fund (www.cmu.edu/giving/pausch), which supports the university's continued work on the Alice project.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

MESSAGE #477 - ARE YOU TOO MOTIVATED?

Some days do you
wake up too motivated?

Do you say to yourself,
“If I were any more
motivated I’d overdose.”

I’m never too motivated.

I ALWAYS NEED MORE.

One of my friends who
gets me motivated and
keeps me motivated
each and every day
is the great Ed Smith.

Ed is an internationally
acclaimed motivational
author. That means he
sells a lot of books!

Every day he sends me his
“One Minute Motivator” –
FREE!

Here is one of his “One Minute
Motivators.”

If you want to subscribe,
information is at the end
of the message.

HERE”S ED . . .

BITTER OR BETTER???

Instead of becoming
bitter,
become better.

When you are
faced
with problems,
look at them for ways
you can
improve yourself
so they don't
happen again.

Rather than
focus on
how upset
you are
or how hurt
you are,
focus on how
this can
show you
what new skills
or information
you need.

Once you
do this
and focus on
becoming better,
the bitterness
fades
and
is replaced
with hope.

Want more???

HERE’S ED’S INFO . . .

Edward W. Smith is the author
of the international best-selling book,

Sixty Seconds To Success and
the co-host of the Bright Moment
cable TV show. Information about
the book along with a sign up form
for the FREE, DAILY email of the

“One Minute Motivator” is at
www.brightmoment.com.

Video versions of some of the
“One Minute Motivator”
are at:
http://youtube.com/user/motivationalexpert.

Anyone emailing Ed at
edsmith@brightmoment.com
and mentioning
this blog, will receive a FREE 21-page Tool Kit,
that contains such things as free sources of
motivational material, a list of over 100

uplifting/motivating movies, and much more.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

MESSAGE #476 - DESIRE

IT’S
NOT
HOW
GOOD
YOU
ARE,
IT’S
HOW
BAD
YOU
WANT
IT.

P.S. Want more? Call Success Hotline at (973) 743-4690.

Monday, July 21, 2008

MESSAGE #475 - THIS IS NOT JUST ABOUT SPORTS!!!

“The difference
between
the hero
and
the coward
is
one step
sideways."

Gene Hackman
Actor


The difference between winning and losing
is NOT taking that sideways step.

Take it head on.

Whatever “it” is.

Take the pain head on.

Take the hunger head on.

Take the confusion head on

Take the rejection head on.

Bill Parcells is one of the
greatest football minds of all times.

He has always been looking
for the player who did not
take that one step sideways.

This is an except from an article
written about Parcells by Michael Lewis
in the New York Times on September 12, 2007:

At the back of Parcells’s personal binder there are a few loose, well-thumbed sheets that defy categorization: a copy of a speech by Douglas MacArthur; a passage from a book about coaches, which argues that a coach excels by purifying his particular vision rather than emulating a type. Among the papers is an anecdote Parcells brings up often in conversation, about a boxing match that took place nearly 30 years ago between the middleweights Vito Antuofermo and Cyclone Hart. Parcells loves boxing; his idea of a perfect day in the off-season is to spend it inside some ratty boxing gym in North Jersey. “It’s a laboratory,” he says. “You get a real feel for human behavior under the strongest duress — under the threat of physical harm.” In this laboratory he has identified a phenomenon he calls the game quitter. Game quitters, he says, seem “as if they are trying to win, but really they’ve given up. They’ve just chosen a way out that’s not apparent to the naked eye. They are more concerned with public opinion than the end result.”

Parcells didn’t see the Hart-Antuofermo fight in person but was told about it, years ago, by a friend and boxing trainer, Teddy Atlas. It stuck in his mind and now strikes him as relevant. Seated, at first, he begins to read aloud from the pages: how in this fight 29 years ago Hart was a well-known big puncher heavily favored against the unknown Vito Antuofermo, how Hart knocked Antuofermo all over the ring, how Antuofermo had no apparent physical gifts except “he bled well.” “But,” Parcells reads, “he had other attributes you couldn’t see.” Antuofermo absorbed the punishment dealt out by his natural superior, and he did it so well that Hart became discouraged. In the fifth round, Hart began to tire, not physically but mentally. Seizing on the moment, Antuofermo attacked and delivered a series of quick blows that knocked Hart down, ending the fight.

The Redskins video is still frozen on the screen behind Parcells. He is no longer sitting but is now on his feet. “This is the interesting part,” he says, then reads:

“When the fighters went back to their makeshift locker rooms, only a thin curtain was between them. Hart’s room was quiet, but on the other side he could hear Antuofermo’s cornermen talking about who would take the fighter to the hospital. Finally he heard Antuofermo say, ‘Every time he hit me with that left hook to the body, I was sure I was going to quit. After the second round, I thought if he hit me there again, I’d quit. I thought the same thing after the fourth round. Then he didn’t hit me no more.’

“At that moment, Hart began to weep. It was really soft at first. Then harder. He was crying because for the first time he understood that Antuofermo had felt the same way he had and worse. The only thing that separated the guy talking from the guy crying was what they had done. The coward and the hero feel the same emotions. They’re both human.”

Hart took the one step sideways.
Antuofermo did not.

THANK YOU: Ken Bernabe

Sunday, July 20, 2008

MESSAGE #474 - DON’T MAJOR IN MINOR THINGS

The great tragedy
of the world today
is that
we give
first-class loyalty
to

second-class causes,
and
these
second-class causes
betray us.

Lynn Harold Hough (1912-1986)
Methodist minister

Saturday, July 19, 2008

MESSAGE #473 - FEELING DOWN, DEPRESSED, & NEGATIVE – WATCH THIS!

Gene Kelly died in 1992.

He was a great actor and an extraordinary dancer.

Even though he’s gone . . .

He’s still able to give you energy.

He’s still able to change your mood.

He’s still able to make you happy.

Don’t believe me?

Watch this . . .


Friday, July 18, 2008

MESSAGE #472 - THE SOURCE

TALKING
USES
ENERGY.

DOING
CREATES
IT!

Slogan for IBM

or

A.C.E.

Action
Creates
Energy

Thank you, John McCarthy!

Thursday, July 17, 2008

MESSAGE #471 - FOR A. FROM M.S.U.

If there were ever a time

to dare,

to make a difference,

to embark on something worth doing --

IT IS NOW!

Not for any good cause, necessarily,
but for something that tugs at your heart,
something that’s your aspiration,
something that’s your dream.

You owe it to yourself
to make your days here count.

Have fun.
Dig deep.
Stretch.

DREAM BIG!

Know that things worth doing
seldom come easy.

There will be good days.
And there will be bad days.

There will be times when you want
to turn around,
pack it up,
and
call it quits.

Those times tell you
that you are pushing yourself.

That you are not
afraid to learn by trying.

PERSIST!

Because with an idea,
determination, and the right tools,
you can do great things.

Let your instincts,
your intellect,
and
your heart guide you.

TRUST!

Believe in the incredible
power of the human mind.

Of doing something that makes a difference.

Of working hard.

Of laughing and hoping.

Of lazy afternoons.

Of lasting friends.

Of all the things that will
cross your path this year.

The start of something new
brings the hope
of something great.

Anything is possible.

There is only one you.

And you will pass this way once.

DO IT RIGHT!

Author Unknown

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

MESSAGE #470 - A LITTLE TEST OF ATTENTION & AWARENESS

Two questions about attention and awareness.

These questions have to do with things you look at
every single day.

You might be looking, but are you paying attention?

QUESTION #1:
Which president is on a penny?
Which president is on a nickel?
Which president is on a dime?
Which president is on a quarter?

ANSWER BELOW . . .


QUESTION #2:
Of the four commonly circulated
U.S. coins only one has a
presidential profile facing
to the right.


Is it the . . .
A. Penny (Abraham Lincoln)
B. Nickel (Thomas Jefferson)
C. Dime (Franklin Delano Roosevelt)
D. Quarter (George Washington)


CIRCLE THE RIGHT ANSWER!

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

MESSAGE #469 - FOUR WORDS THAT’LL CHANGE YOUR LIFE . . .

DON’T
QUIT,
CAN’T
FAIL!

Little Big Man
Success Hotline Super Star

Monday, July 14, 2008

MESSAGE #468 - WHAT IS A FRIEND?

A British publication once offered a prize for the best definition of a “friend.”

Among the thousand of answers were the following:

“One who multiplies joy, divides grief, and whose honesty is inviolable.”

“One who understands our silence.”

“A watch that beats true for all time and never runs down.”

The winning definition was: "A friend is the one who comes in when the whole world has gone out.”

What’s your definition?

Click here to let the world know.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

MESSAGE #467 - THIS MESSAGE IS DEDICATED TO YOU!

THE
MIRACLE
ISN’T
THAT
YOU
FINISHED.

THE
MIRACLE
IS
THAT
YOU
HAD
THE
COURAGE
TO
START.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

MESSAGE #466 - SOMEONE TO ROOT FOR . . .

Olympic swimmer Eric Shanteau has testicular cancer


ATLANTA - Olympic swimmer Eric Shanteau is heading to Beijing with a startling diagnosis: He has cancer.

In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, Shanteau said he learned just a week before the Olympic trials in Omaha, Neb., that he has testicular cancer. His doctors cleared him to compete in that meet and he surprisingly made the team in the 200-meter breaststroke, finishing second ahead of former world-record holder and heavy favorite Brendan Hansen.

"I was sort of like, ’This isn’t real. There’s no way this is happening to me right now,’" Shanteau said. "You’re trying to get ready for the Olympics, and you just get this huge bomb dropped on you."

Luckily for Shanteau, the doctors determined his cancer was treatable and had not spread, so it wouldn’t be a risk to compete in the Olympic trials.

Now, Shanteau’s putting off surgery until after Beijing because he doesn’t want to disrupt his lifelong goal of swimming in the Olympics. The 24-year-old Georgia native will be monitored closely over the next month and vows to withdraw from the team if there’s any sign his cancer is spreading.

"If I didn’t make the team, the decision would have been easy: Go home and have the surgery," Shanteau said. "I made the team, so I had a hard decision. But, by no means am I being stupid about this."

Shanteau stressed he’s not willing to risk his life just to compete in his first Olympics. But, after considering the benefits of immediate treatment, he decided to put off surgery because it would keep him out of the water for at least two weeks, ruining his Beijing preparations.

The cancer was found after Shanteau noticed an abnormality and was finally persuaded by his girlfriend to see a doctor.

At his initial examination, Shanteau was told it was probably nothing more than a benign cyst. But an ultrasound showed the possibility of something more sinister, so he was sent to a specialist. On June 19, exactly one week before he was scheduled to leave for the trials, Shanteau heard that awful word.

Cancer.

"It almost numbed me," he said. "I’ll remember that day for the rest of my life. Talk about a life-changing experience. That’s as big a one as you can have, I think. You’re changed for the rest of your life. The few people I’ve talked to who’ve gone through this — and they’re all much, much older than I am — say I’ll know that even more in 10 years."

Luckily for Shanteau, the doctors determined his cancer was treatable and had not spread, so it wouldn’t be a risk to compete in the Olympic trials.

If everything had gone according to script, Shanteau would have already gone through surgery and be on the road to recovery. But the improbable happened in the 200 breaststroke, where Hansen — considered a lock to make the team — faded badly on the final lap. Scott Spann powered by to win the race, and Shanteau passed Hansen as well to claim the second spot on the team.

Shanteau was going to the Olympics.

But his thoughts quickly shifted to the cancer.

"A lot of people kept asking me after that race, ’What was going on? We thought we would get a little more reaction out of you,’" he said. "That kind of made it a little bittersweet. It went well. I made the team. Then I had to go back and deal with reality."

Only a few close friends and family knew about Shanteau’s condition before the Olympic trials. He decided to go public with his story because he hopes to inspire others with cancer.

Shanteau didn’t even tell his agent, Evan Morgenstein, until after he made the team.

"I was in shock," Morgenstein said. "I am still in shock. When a great person like Eric tells you he has bad news, you figure he pulled a muscle or twisted an ankle. This is so hard to understand."

According to the National Cancer Institute, testicular cancer is relatively rare, accounting for 1 percent of male cancer cases in the U.S. It’s often diagnosed in younger men. About 8,000 men are diagnosed and 390 die from the disease each year.

The cancer is slow to spread and usually treatable, but follow-up care is extremely important because of the risk of recurrence, the NCI said. Surgery to remove the affected testicle is the most common form of treatment, and a biopsy is performed afterward to determine the exact stage of the illness and any follow-up care that might be necessary.

If untreated, testicular cancer can spread to the lungs or through the kidneys to reach the lymph nodes, drastically reducing the chances of survival.

Shanteau’s camp already has heard from the agent of Lance Armstrong, who overcame the same disease and won the Tour de France seven straight times.

"Lance’s agent told my coaches that I’m the closest thing to Lance Armstrong that there is on the planet right now," Shanteau said. "If I can have a fraction of the impact that he’s had, just a tiny little bit, then I think what I’m going through will be good."

Up to now, Shanteau’s biggest international accomplishment was finishing fifth in the 200 breaststroke at last year’s world championships in Australia.

He faces long odds to make the medal stand in Beijing, having posted only the ninth-fastest time in the world this year. But Shanteau insists he won’t be distracted by the cancer.

"Making the Olympic team was the hard part," he said. "The Olympic Games should fun. I’m not worried about swimming fast there."

At the trials, Shanteau couldn’t help but think about his disease when outside the pool, but he put it aside as soon as he entered the water.

"The trials were great," he said. "It actually took my mind off it. I was getting exhausted thinking about it nonstop for two straight weeks. The trials were my release, kind of a way to get away from it."

Shanteau grew up in suburban Atlanta and attended Auburn University, graduating in 2006 with a degree in entrepreneurship and family business. After swimming, he would like to open a boat shop.

For now, he’s got more pressing matters.

First, the Olympics. Then, surgery to rid his body of cancer.

"I want the swimming aspect so badly," Shanteau said. "I know what I’m risking ... but it’s basically just a longer recovery time. After the Olympics, I’ll have nothing but time. That’s why it wasn’t too hard to make this decision."

Friday, July 11, 2008

MESSAGE #465 - KILLING TIME/WASTING TIME

KILLING
TIME
IS
NOT
MURDER,
IT’S
SUICIDE.


John McCarthy
educator & coach

* * * * * * *

Your time is limited,
so don’t waste it
living someone else’s
life.

Don’t let the noise of
others’ opinions drown
out your own inner voice.

And most important,
have the courage to
follow your heart and
intuition.

Steve Jobs
co-founder, Apple

Thursday, July 10, 2008

MESSAGE #464 - HOPE FOR THE BROKEN HEARTED

History has
demonstrated
that the most
notable winners
usually encountered
heart-breaking
obstacles
before
they triumphed.

They won
because
they refused
to become
discouraged
by their
defeats.

B.C. Forbes (1880-1954)
Founder, Forbes Magazine

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

MESSAGE #463 - ARNOLD’S PALMER’S SECRET OF LIFE

Arnold Palmer is one of
the greatest golfers
of all time.

Here’s his secret . . .

Passion is powerful . . .
nothing was ever
achieved without it,
and nothing
can take its place.

No matter what
you face in life,
if your passion

is great enough,
you will find the
strength to succeed.

Without passion,
life has no meaning.

So put your
heart,
mind,
and soul
into even your
smallest acts
. . .
this is the
essence of passion.

This is the
secret to life.

I play to win
even though
common sense
should tell me
that I no longer
have a chance.

Even when I
have been
playing at
my worst,
or when all
the breaks
have been going
against me,

I approach each
new day,
each new hole,
as a glorious
opportunity
to get going again.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

MESSAGE #462 - THE BANANA TEST

There is a very, very tall coconut tree
and there are FOUR animals:
a Lion,
a Chimpanzee,
a Giraffe,
and a Squirrel,
who pass by.

They decide to compete to see who
is the fastest to get a banana off the tree.

Who do you guess will win AND why?

Think carefully . . .

Try and answer within 30 seconds

Got your answer?

CLICK HERE
TO SUBMIT
YOUR ANSWER.

Thanks to Doris B & Sue B!

Monday, July 7, 2008

MESSAGE #461 - CREATIVE WRITING 101

Kurt Vonnegut (1922-2007) was one of America’s greatest novelists. You’ve probably heard of Cat’s Cradle, Breakfast of Champions, and Slaughterhouse Five.

In the preface to Bagombo Snuff Box, his short story collection, he gave this advice for writers.

He called it . . .

CREATIVE WRITING 101

1. Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted.

2. Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for.

3. Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.

4. Every sentence must do one of two things -- reveal character or advance the action.

5. Start as close to the end as possible.

6. Be a sadist. No matter sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them -- in order that the reader may see what they are made of.

7. Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.

8. Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To heck with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages.

The greatest American short story writer of my generation was Flannery O’Connor (1925-1964). She broke practically every one of my rules but the first. Great writers tend to do that.

Sunday, July 6, 2008

MESSAGE #460 - THE SIX W’S

WORK
WILL
WIN
WHEN
WISHING
WON’T.

Todd Blackledge
sports commentator

Thanks to Dwayne Clarke!

Saturday, July 5, 2008

MESSAGE #459 - WOW!

When I was growing up, you never wanted anyone to say, “You throw like a girl.”

Today, I’d be totally flattered if someone said, “You jump like a girl.”

For example . . .


Friday, July 4, 2008

MESSAGE #458 - WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? GET STARTED!

IT’S THE START
THAT STOPS
MOST PEOPLE.

YOU DON’T
HAVE TO BE
AN EXPERT
TO MAKE A
GOOD
BEGINNING.

STOP
STARING
UP
THE STEPS.
START
STEPPING
UP
THE STAIRS.

“A JOURNEY OF
A THOUSAND MILES
BEGINS WITH
A SINGLE STEP.”

Lao Tzu

Thursday, July 3, 2008

MESSAGE #457 - THE INTERVIEW

Many years ago, I had a conversation with a former student who was in her first year of teaching high school Spanish.

She told me an interesting story of how she got her job.

Months after she was hired, her principal told her, “the story behind the story.”

She was one of two finalists. She had just graduated from Montclair State.

The other candidate had five years experience in another school system.

The principal said that the decision to hire her came down to just one question.

Both candidates were asked, “Why do you want to teach?”

The more experienced teacher answered, “Because I love to teach Spanish.”

My student got the job because she answered, “Because I love to teach kids.”

Rob Gilbert

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

MESSAGE #456 - ADVICE FROM A COMEDIAN, A WRITER, AND AN ENTREPRENEUR

THE COMEDIAN
“My best advice:
Fall in love
with what you
do for a living.”

George Burns


THE WRITER
“Talent is extremely common.
What is rare is
the willingness to endure
the life of a writer.”

Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.


THE ENTREPRENEUR
“If you do something
for fun and create
the best possible product,
then the profit will come.”

Richard Branson


Tuesday, July 1, 2008

MESSAGE #455 - A DILEMMA

Many years ago in a small village . . .

A farmer had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to a village moneylender.

The moneylender, who was old and unattractive, fancied the farmer's beautiful daughter.

So he proposed a bargain.

He said he would forgo the farmer's debt if he could marry his daughter.

Both the farmer and his daughter were horrified by the proposal.

So the cunning moneylender suggested that they let Providence decide the matter.

He told them that he would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty money bag. Then the girl would have to pick one pebble from the bag.

1. If she picked the black pebble, she would become his wife and her father's debt would be forgiven.

2. If she picked the white pebble she need not marry him and her father's debt would still be forgiven.

3. But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown in jail forever.

They were standing on a pebble strewn path in the farmer's field. As they talked, the moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles. As he picked them up, the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag.

He then asked the girl to pick a pebble from the bag.

Now, imagine that you were standing in the field. What would you have done if you were the girl?

If you had to advise her, what would you have told her?

Careful analysis would produce three possibilities:

1. The girl should refuse to take a pebble.

2. The girl should show that there were two black pebbles in the bag and expose the money-lender as a cheat.

3. The girl should pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment.

Take a moment to ponder over the story.

The above story is used with the hope that it will make us appreciate the difference between lateral and logical thinking.

The girl's dilemma cannot be solved with traditional logical thinking.

Think of the consequences if she chooses the above logical answers.

What would you recommend to the girl to do?

Well, here is what she did . . .

The girl put her hand into the moneybag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost among all the other pebbles.

"Oh, how clumsy of me," she said. "But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which pebble I picked."

Since the remaining pebble is black, it must be assumed that she had picked the white one.

And since the moneylender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.

MORAL OF THE STORY:

Most complex problems do have a solution.

THANK YOU, JOHN McCARTHY!