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Point to Ponder
Some wise person once said,
"Most people are
as happy as they make up their minds to be!" Not sure who
said it, but it makes sense to me.
As you know I just
celebrated my 60th birthday, twice. Spent a week with Irene
at a resort outside of Holguin, Cuba relaxing, reflecting, and
generally enjoying the sun and fun. We had a wonderful time and were
very well treated by the resort staff as well as the folks in a
small town close by. I was impressed at how genuinely happy
these folks were, in-spite of their not having a standard of living
any of us would envy. They smiled, they laughed, and they shared
their joy with those around them. I loved it. Not like the
complaining too often seen in our northern neighborhoods.
On the bus enroute to the airport
for our return trip, our guide told us stories of what had been
happening in Cuba. He told us they had recently shut down half of
their sugar factories as the machinery wasn't working well enough to
justify the expense of production. He told us about the dark time in
their history when the Soviet empire imploded and pulled out of
Cuba. Over-night their country's income dropped by 72%.
How would you react if
you lost nearly 3/4 of your income in one blow? How would
you live? I can relate, as I went through something like that
following 9-11. That was a dark time in my business and yet, looking
back, it forced me to re-evaluate my business and make some
foundational changes that have helped in our success over the past 5
or 6 years. Often, in hindsight, challenges can be our greatest
teachers.
Overnight there was
literally no money for workers. People were sent home to
wait until the Government came up with a solution and what little
income was radically reduced. Our guide told us it was a tough time
and many people got angry... angry at the Soviets, angry at the
Government, angry at... well, you get the idea.
Then he said something
very insightful:
"Many
of us decided we could either be out of work and angry... or be out
of work and play domino's ..." followed by a big smile and a laugh which was shared by most
of us on the bus.
His insightful comments shared a
glimpse into the spirits of so many of the Cuban people who
philosophically adjusted to the challenges and realities and decided
to make the best of it.
Following that challenge the
Cubans began looking at tourism as a viable source of revenue and
employment. In fact, in order to work at the resorts and in the
tourism industry, Cubans go to school for extensive
training.
One of the crew on a 'cat' cruise we took mid week told
us he had lost his 'complete' house and everything in it during
the recent hurricane. He was working to rebuild while his wife
and baby son lived at her mothers. He told me he figured it
would take about 2 years to earn enough to buy the basic materials
to reconstruct a very basic shelter for his family.
His home was destroyed and, yet, you'd never know it by his
demeanor and genuine smile. (Pictured here are examples of very
basic homes in rural Cuba.)
Interestingly enough I found
myself listening to the 'minor' complaints of my fellow Canadians as
we flew home and in the airport in Toronto and later, Edmonton.
Guess they didn't see what I saw or perhaps they were just
'tourists' and along for the ride.
I celebrated my birthday,
again, on May 15th when my amazing friends at The Brick
decided to host a birthday lunch for myself and Irene. I am so
blessed to have such wonderful friends and colleagues in my life. I
love working with them and I love spending time with them. In-spite
very demanding, hectic work schedules and being impacted by some of
the same harsh economic challenges we all face, they still make time
to have fun to be happy, and to encourage others. That is one of the
reasons they are a 'great' company and I am confident they will
weather this storm and come out even stronger. As Warren Buffet
teaches, invest in the people who create value for the
company.
Many people quizzically
comment on my age... many can't believe I am 'actually' 60
years old. They think I am quite a bit younger... But, as I tell
them, "Think about it? Would I lie about being this age?" I
was thinking about that and other than good genes I think one of the
reasons I don't look my age is my attitude towards
life.
Overall, I am a pretty
happy guy and for the most part a pretty positive,
pro-active one as well. I love what I do, I find a sense of
satisfaction in tackling challenges, and in giving encouragement and
innovative ideas to others. That un-doubtedly has an impact on how I
look. I bet my big smile makes my face look younger too... These
wrinkles are love and laugh lines and I cherish each
one.
All the best until next month.
May
you have Happiness
May your joys be
as bright as the morning and your shadows merely shadows that fade
in the sunlight of love.
- May you have enough
happiness to keep you sweet
- Enough trials to keep
you strong
- Enough sorrow to keep
you human
- Enough failure to keep
you humble
- Enough success to keep
you eager
- Enough friends to give
you comfort
- Enough faith and courage
in yourself to banish sadness
- Enough wealth to meet
your needs
And
one thing more: Enough determination to make each day a more
wonderful day that the one before.
An old Irish blessing... I wanted to
share its wisdom with you.
Creating
Opportunity
An enterprising person is one who comes across a pile
of scrap metal and sees the making of a wonderful sculpture.
An enterprising person is one who drives through an old decrepit
part of town and sees a new housing development. An enterprising
person is one who sees opportunity in all areas of life.
To be enterprising is to keep
your eyes open and your mind active. It's to be skilled enough,
confident enough, creative enough, and disciplined enough to seize
opportunities that present themselves... regardless of the economy.
A person with an enterprising
attitude says, "Find out what you can before action is taken." Do
your homework. Do the research. Be prepared. Be resourceful. Do all
you can in preparation of what's to come.
- Enterprising people always
see the future in the present.
- Enterprising people always
find a way to take advantage of a situation, not be burdened
by it.
- And enterprising people
aren't lazy. They don't wait for opportunities to come to them,
they go after the opportunities.
Enterprise
means always finding a way to keep yourself actively working
toward your ambition.
Enterprise is two things. The first is creativity. You
need creativity to see what's out there and to shape it to your
advantage. You need creativity to look at the world a little
differently. You need creativity to take a different approach; to be
different.
What goes hand-in-hand with the
creativity of enterprise is the second requirement: the courage to
be creative. You need courage to see things differently, courage to
go against the crowd, courage to take a different approach, courage
to stand alone if you have to, courage to choose activity over
inactivity.
And lastly, being enterprising
doesn't just relate to the ability to make money. Being enterprising
also means feeling good enough about yourself, having enough self
worth to want to seek advantages and opportunities that will make a
difference in your future. By doing so you will increase your
confidence, your courage, your creativity, and your self-worth; your
enterprising nature.
Jim has been inspiring audiences and
fellow speakers, like myself, for decades and challenging us to
think and to act. He is a gracious man who shares his wisdom
generously. He was one of my Quantum Success co-authors in support of Laura's
Hope which is dedicate to funding research for a cure for
Huntington's disease.
Last Minute News
May was
marvelous:
- Keynoted the Trans Canada Yellowhead
Highway Association 62nd annual general meeting with civic leaders
from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and BC in attendance.
- Lunch speaker for the Christ Centered Professionals Club in Edmonton
hosted by the folks who publish The Shepherd's Guide, a
Christian Yellow Pages.
- Launched www.FoundationalSuccess.com - please click
through and purchase your personal copy.
- Back in the film studio to do a few
more clips for Secret Selling Tips, as well as some creativity and
leadership ones.
- Had a very pleasurable 60th birthday
party with my friends from The Brick. I am blessed to have folks
like this as friends and clients.
- 1st of two keynotes for Fortis Alberta
in Red Deer on May 27th.
- Two articles of mine were
recently published: 1) Connections West, a Meeting Planner's
International magazine serving Western Canada, and 2) Software Sales Journal's May issue, where I am
still listed as one of their most read writer's a year after my
last piece was published in May 2008. Amazing that I would turn
out to be a writer. My English teaching mom must be looking down
from heaven and shaking her head. SMILE!
- Created a special DVD to take for Back
Of Room sales in Winnipeg which includes live and unedited
videos from my keynote in Mumbai, India as well as the Toastmasters
International convention last August.
- Speaking of Impact, our CAPS Magazine,
used one of my articles in their Spring 2009 issue and have
slated another one to run in their Summer 2009 issue.
June will be
extremely productive and a tad hectic.
Who says there is a recession on?
Of course, I know there is, and people are suffering. But,
I decided I was not going to participate in 'this' one.
In tough times people need hope and they
need help. I am privileged to be equipped and able to provide
both. Check out this video clip.
- June
3rd: 2nd
of two keynotes for Fortis Alberta in Red Deer at their
training facility.
- June 4th: Going to Winnipeg...
just like the Fountain Tire TV Adv.
- June
5th: Friday
morning - Opening keynote at the Toastmasters International Region IV conference
entitled - "Throw another log on the fire! -
Fuel the Flames of Your Success."
- June 6th:
Saturday
morning -
Presenting for my CAPS family at
our Winnipeg Chapter, entitled, "Have
MOUTH will travel - The amazing mis-adventures of Canadian
Ideaman, Bob Hooey."
- June
12th: Keynoting for the graduating class of
2009 at Lamont High School. This one will be a lot of
fun and I am being paid with a plate of cookies. mmm!
- June
19th: Afternoon
session on productivity and enhanced time management
skills for a real estate valuation group in Edmonton.
In the evening, our Wild Rose Advanced Toastmasters
Club's 25th anniversary.
- Going to complete
and launch our Secret Leadership Tips series to service
some folks who have already subscribed and will then
make it available for online subscriptions.
- Hope to be working
on year three Secret Selling Tips series for our Striver's
clients stateside.
Looking forward to
finishing the raised 'mini-orchard', sitting garden area at our
place in the country and getting a start on building a ground level
addition to the front deck for a gazebo. Almost done, a few more
trees to plant, and the wood chips to place and it is done. I'll
include a picture soon.
As always, we'll
have work on web sites, some other writing projects, and
some new ideas I have germinating. By now, most of you
know I love to be working 'on' something creative. Summer
is no different, in fact it has been a great time to work
'on' the business, not just 'in' the business.
July will be a
great month
- July
7th: conducting
a Speaking for Success workshop as a building confidence
program for their leaders and supervisors at a large
Pulp Mill in Peace River.
- July
11th: Our daughter Amanda heads to Australia
to take a teaching job. She's been teaching in Calgary
and decided to garner some international experience.
Hmmm...perhaps we'll have to go for a visit.
- July
17th-22nd: Going to Phoenix for the annual
NSA convention. Be great to see some of my speaker friends
from around the world. My NSA-AZ is host chapter so
will be helping out here and there.
More later...
Late breaking
news
Bob gets the bull... well, a small one
anyway.
Following my presentation for the Trans
Canada Yellowhead Hwy Association, Mayor Merril Kiliwnik from
Russell, MB presented me with my very own "Arthur",
the red bull.
Arthur is their town mascot and
according to other officials (who really wanted one) getting an
"Arthur" is an honor (no bull).
Since 1973 the Beef & Barley Festival
has been a major event in the community of Russell, Manitoba.
Beef & Barley was chosen for their celebration to honour
the area's high quality of farm production, with special emphasis
on the Beef Breeding industry and Barley growing.
In 1974, Mr. Art Kinney, along with
a group of businessmen, developed a plan for a Town Mascot.
A caricature of a bull, to represent not any one breed, but
all breeds of cattle was developed. On October 5th, 2001,
in honor of Mr. Art Kinney, their town bull was officially dubbed,
"Arthur".
"Arthur" sits
on a shelf above my desk as I write this...
Thanks for
reading
Bob 'Idea Man' Hooey would be pleased to be a
part of your success team and to work with you to help
make your conference, meeting, or training event a
success.For
more information about customized keynotes, professional and
personal leadership training and coaching, or seminars/retreats,
please visit www.ideaman.net or call our Creative Office
at: (780) 736-0009
for
availability.
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or training package to suit your specific career, company, or
organizational needs.
Ask about our innovative leadership and/or sales
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8 months and still having lots of fun together. Irene
took a picture of my feet on the beach in Cuba.
Foundational Success - Building blocks for
Personal and Professional Success, is now available.
30 top authors and experts invested their wisdom for
this project in support of the CAPS Foundation.
Online price is only $20
Click
here to be one of the first to purchase this amazing
collection of wisdom and to help our CAPS Foundation.
About Bob
Bob is a professional speaker, author, leadership,
sales, and business success expert.
He is proud to
be an active professional member of these amazing
groups of people dedicated to polishing their craft
and to better serving their clients and audiences.
Bob is the co-founder
and a past president of CAPS Vancouver, an honorary
founding member of CAPS Sask., an honorary member
of CAPS Halifax, as well as being an active member
of CAPS Edmonton. He served as CAPS National Director
(2000-2002).
He would be happy
to discuss how he can work with you to equip and
motivate your leaders, their teams, sales teams,
or volunteers to grow and to succeed.
Call
him today at 1-780-736-0009 to explore
leveraging his innovative Ideas At Work with your
organization.
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