The Person You Meet in Hell

Wow, what a great weekend. Pam and I went to the 4 Day MBA program in Austin, Texas, taught by Keith Cunningham. We took our CFO, Amanda, and spent four intensive 10 hour days learning how to make our business more profitable. At least that is what Kieth would have you believe the course is about when you sign up. Keith wants you to think that you are coming to learn how to make your business more successful and to understand the numbers, but the secret is in what he doesn't tell you. What we were not prepared for was that he not only helps you improve your business, but he also helps you to change your life. You see, Keith is one of those guys who is after never ending improvement. He is truly trying to be better every day and to do the very best he can for his students. That is a rare trait, and because of that, his teaching is phenomenal, very personal, and loaded with unbelievable information. In fact, almost every sentence is a pearl. As expected, his pearls apply to business, but the pleasant surprise is how well they also apply to the rest of your life. It was awe inspiring. I like Keith. He is a man's man, and while pretending to be hardcore on the outside, he is really a teddy bear on the inside (hmmmmm, that sounds familiar). The content of the course was top notch, but what makes it so amazing is the heart and soul that Keith and his amazing wife, Sandi, put into it. We thank them from the heart, and if you are a business owner, or have anything to do with business finances or operations, we would highly recommend you attend their courses. One of the things Keith shared with us was something he learned years ago that we can all take to heart. It goes right along with our philosophy of Living Every Minute. He said, "Hell would be meeting the man (or woman) you could have been." Now that is something we should tattoo to our foreheads! Can you imagine that? You live your ordinary, average, plain life, in zombie mode - trudging through a mediocre life just like everyone else. One day, 10 years from now, you are at a party, and you are literally introduced to the person you could have been. The person you could have been if . . . . . .if you had read that book that changed your life. . . .if you had deepened that relationship with your wife or husband to the deepest level. . . .if you had built that business you said you would but never did. . . .if you had repaired that relationship instead of letting it go. . . .if you had decided to take control of your health, get in shape, and become a physical Adonis. . . .if you had decided to take control of your financial freedom. . . .if you had taken that trip. What an interesting conversation that would be! What would it be like? What would the person you could have been look like? What would you talk like? Who would you know? Where would you live? What would your intimate relationship be like? How about your career -where would that be for the person you could have been? That question, that concept, that idea, certainly made me think. I never want to meet that person; I never want to wish I had become more tha I did. I want to become that person. I want to be the person I could have been. I am committed to it, and if you are a reader of this newsletter, you are too. You are one of the five percent that refuses to live a life of mediocrity. Congratulations on that. Now, take 5 minutes, get out a piece of paper, and define what that person would look like. Specify who you could be if you were playing at the top of your game. Take each of the four pillars (health, wealth, relationships, and character development) and decide the person you can become. Ok, time to commit to make that happen. Write down what you can do right now to start down the path. What five things could you do this week to get you closer? Before you close this e-mail, do one thing in one area to start becoming the person you "could have been". It is my challenge, and it is yours, to become the best person we can become, and to continue to Live Every Minute.