Driving under a negative influence can get you a ticket to jail, but living under a negative influence can get you a ticket to hell.  Living under the negative influence of what you may ask.  Well, it’s living under the negative influences of those who are around you daily.  Yes my friends, the negative influences of those whom you choose to associate with on a regular basis can make your life a living hell.

To whom are you listening to and with whom are you associating with daily?  Are you choosing to invest most of your time with those who are positive, encouraging, uplifting and supportive, or have you become comfortable with sharing company and space with those who are discouraging, disgruntled, argumentative and pessimistic?  Your honest answer to this question will dictate whether or not you end up living a life fraught with stress, strain, heartache and pain or a life of joy, happiness, fulfillment and progress.

I invite you today to seriously consider being caught living under “positive influence” in this life.  Upgrade your circle of friends if needed.  Protect your positive mental mindset from the would-be negative influences that surround us all.   We only get one time through this “life” thing so let’s keep leaning forward in a positive motion as we attempt to make it GREAT. 

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I  would be two kinds of crazy and three kinds of foolish to let this day slip away without something to say about its’ infamous notoriety.  This day in 2001 we witnessed an unspeakable atrocity and demonstration of the amount of horror that can be inflicted on innocent beings for the sake of a distorted version of retribution.  Out of all the times I’ve been able to process complex thoughts and make since of life’s challenging twist and turns, I continue to fall short of understanding a reasonable rationale for taking innocent lives for any cause. 

Is there a cause that’s so great that it would justify such an egregious, callous, barbaric act?  I can’t imagine there being a “yes” answer coming from the mouth of any sane, rational, compassionate human being.  Some may argue one way or another but I will leave the debating up to the debater’s while I attempt to advocate peace and understanding.

In spite of it all, what was meant for evil actually yielded some good.  This horrific tragedy actually resulted in bringing our great nation together as one.  For a few years people managed to put their indifferences aside and come together in a show of solidarity in our great nation.  But today, hidden selfish agendas and politics as usual has once again started to divide us.  

My sincere hope and prayer is that it will not take another tragedy to bring us back together again.  After all, who says that blood shed is necessary to affect change?  I believe there’s a better way and it starts with me.  I will take the advice of the late Gandhi and actually strive to be the change that I want to see in this world of ours.

I still have great faith in the human spirit and the inherent “Good” that’s in us all.  Let’s recall this day together.  Let’s all remember where we were and never forget where we’re going and remind the next generation from where we’ve come.  Let’s all play our respective part in getting us where we need to be, safely.  Embracing this breadcrumb of wisdom will definitely help us all make it GREAT.

O ver the years I’ve learned that the heart and character of great men and women are forged and fashioned in the crucibles and furnaces of struggle, hardships and suffering.  

The reality is there’s never a convenient time for adversity, but we must understand that no one can achieve true greatness and significance unless he or she has gone through the “fire.”   Just as gold, silver and other precious metals are forged by extreme heat to remove all impurities and be molded into the desired shape, so too is the process of those who wish to achieve great things among us in this life.

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If you believe in your heart that “it’s” possible for you, then “it” truly becomes possible for you, whatever “it” is.

My prayer for us today as we approach yet another welcomed weekend is, may we continue to be honest with the person peering back at us in the mirror. May integrity continue to be the foundation for the way we conduct business. May our mistakes be few and our excuses non-existent.  May our passion be our focus fueled by our unwavering beliefs and convictions.

May there be many moments that make us smile with authentic joy.  May our hearts deepest desire be to do for others in need.  May we have the courage and bravery of a fearless lion in the face of our greatest fears and become unstoppable in our noble and just pursuits.  Finally, may I continue to attack each day with these truths because my boys say they want to be like me.  

Yes my friends, this life is definitely worthy of even more than just our best efforts.  So let’s not just make it good, let’s subdue it and make it GREAT!

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My Book:     “Make it GREAT”
www.MakeItGreatNOW.com

Was hanging out at the beach the other day staring at the waves crashing into the shore and I suddenly felt a small wind of inspiration come over me so I grabbed my trusted old pen and pad and started writing as follows:

For those of us who’re seeking to make a positive impact on this world, it’s imperative we turn our trials into our triumphs, our mess into our message, our test into our testimony and our problems into our prophecy of a profound winning probability.  We must choose NOT to be a victim, but to be victorious, not for our own sakes, but for the sake of those who come after us so that they may see that “it” is possible.

In the face of crisis we will not cower away and retreat to that foxhole of fear and trepidation for we know that out of crisis comes “Opportunity”.  So instead, we rise, Rise and RISE again to take full advantage of our moments to shine and show that we were designed for a time such as this.  We’ve already studied in advance so that we can show ourselves approved in times like these.     

Our mental surfboards have been waxed, polished and well-maintained to ride the countless waves of the unique opportunities in the days ahead.  Yes indeed we are a strange breed better known as “resilient overcomers.”  The words “no retreat, no surrender” comes to mind in troubled times for we know unequivocally that anything that’s worth-while in this life will always be realized on the other side of fear and adversity.  So we press-on toward the mark of the high call of our Creator and will not waver in our faith and belief that our goals are possible and our cause is indeed noble and just. 

Our victory is inevitable simply because we have made the commitment to not stop until we WIN.  So my bold statement to life today is, “Bring it on”, for we will stay the course for yet one more day and welcome the challenge of the waves for we know between the crest and the crash of the waves exist the special “OPPORTUNITY” to be better today than we were yesterday.  So, BRING IT ON I say!!!  

What words do you choose to speak today in lieu of the crashing waves around you?  I trust you will say the same.   BRING IT ON !!!   Let’s continue in our steadfast efforts to make it GREAT!

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