Gaining perspective...

Life is a series of ups and downs... take neither that seriously. Someone can have ten awesome things happen to them and get upset at the slightest roadblock. Appreciate the positives and deal with the negatives, but always remember there are more positives to come.

Good things happen in life continually. Unfortunately bad things happen too. The goal is to lessen the impact of negative things when they occur. How you react when adversity hits is an important key to life. Don't get too low during the lows and don't get too high during the highs, both are temporary.

Pick your battles. If you overreact to everything, nothing is sacred. Let things go that do not matter. Allow things to hit you like a ghost and have them pass right through you. See things for what they are... probably pointless. Take a step back and gain perspective.

Focus on the things that do matter to you and those are usually the positive things in your life. Keep smiling everyone, this too will pass...

Keep dreaming...

As children, our lives were 100% in front of us. Nothing was defined and anything was possible. Our dreams seemed likely and possible. As we all grew older, our lives began to become more defined and our dreams suffered. Our dreams became narrower and smaller... and sprung up a lot less often.

As we grow older, it starts to become more clear that there are things in our lives we are never going to get to do. We begin to limit our options and eliminate our dreams. As we grow older we begin to replace our dreams with regrets. The ideas of "I wished I would have..." or "I'll never get to..." pop into our heads more often.

Anything is possible. The same thing you forgot as a kid, still holds true today. It's not too late to become the person you wanted to be. You believed it as a child but forgot it along the way. It might be a lot harder and it might be a little different, but dreams can come true and goals can be reached.

Never stop dreaming, never grow old...

Knowing versus action...

Acting outside your comfort zone is the first step in living outside your comfort zone. It may seem like a small step but life is a series of small steps. Each step forward is a step closer to achieving your goal. An enormous goal can be reached with a series of smaller goals stacked on top of each other.

You will worry that people won't accept you. You will fear people are looking at you. You will talk yourself out of taking risks. Not trying is a lot easier than actually trying... but no results are a lot less satisfying than results. We want results.

Knowing what you need to do and doing it are two completely different things. Get the ball rolling and set forth on your new path.

Become the person you want to be...

Our jobs...

A person is not defined by the job they have but rather by the person they are. Jobs are merely what you do and not who you are.

Everyday I have the opportunity to work with some amazing people and I'm not shy to say that many of them are my role models. They come to work everyday with smiles on their faces and leave with smiles on their faces and that inspires me. It's not the job they do rather the people that they are.

Many of them are family men who sacrifice daily for the needs of their children and think that should be applauded. I think it's a very noble career path, not dealer, but parent. It's a 24 hour job that gets little respect but it's truly what defines you. Adults don't make children, it's the children that make adults.

Growing up I remember my parents working hard. They sacrificed time and money everyday for us. I remember watching them and wanting to emulate them. I see them in many of my co-workers and it makes me prideful. Some days they are tired. Some months money is tighter than others. Sometimes they have to tell their kids no. I remember this growing up.

One day I hope to mirror these people I see everyday. Maybe one day I will have my own family along with that opportunity to sacrifice and nurture for the sake of something wonderful. I'm pretty sure the only career that I want is husband and father, but until then I will just smile and do my best at my simple job, dealer.

You don't have to listen to your mind...

One thing I strive for in life is to become a better person than I used to be. My quest is to learn new things or improve on the things I already do. People like what they are good at. Most people choose the safe route and continue to do the things they are already excel at. I've learned to avoid the safe routes. My philosophy has always been to focus on the things I'm not good at instead of spending time with the things I can already do. This was not always the case rather it was something I learned.

Being a very shy kid... there was a lot of things I had to work on. I realized I had a lot of room for improvement but really wasn't sure how to do it. I was pretty comfortable in the life that I had carved out, but I knew I had a lot more potential than settling for comfortable. We all have tremendous potential whether we are willing to be honest with ourselves or not. Grasp your potential.

Being comfortable in my situation made it difficult to break out of my shell. I was nervous about rocking the boat and upsetting other people. I limited myself because I was worried about they way people would think of me. I did not know til later how stupid that actually sounded.

Already entrenched in my role as the quiet guy, the moments I did speak up was met with raised eyebrows. I wasn't very good at reading social cues, so I didn't really understand how to take them. Feeling uncomfortable with not understanding these reactions, I became discouraged from speaking my mind. I continued to be content with my position in my life. I imprisoned myself. My mind became my own worst enemy.

I finally realized one day that I didn't have to limit and listen to myself. Rocking the boat and living outside of my comfort zone was important for me to learn about myself... boy was that an eye-opening revelation.

Our dreams can be achieved...

We all have dreams and direction in life. Some people believe they can achieve them... others have have lost them along the way. Surround yourself with the people who continue to dream. Align yourself with friends who not only support you but also can inspire you. Support and inspire others.

For better or for worse, we become who are friends are. Surround yourself with great people and achieve great things. Avoid following someone who isn't going anywhere... they make terrible guides. Strength is used in two ways, you can either pull people up or hold people down. Pull other people up.

In your life you will run across a lot of people. Some people will help you reach your dreams while others will tell you your dreams are impossible. Your dreams are possible. Strive for your goals and help others reach their theirs too.

Nothing is impossible. Some journeys are longer than others and have more bumps in the road. You need friends who will remind you these are only bumps... stay focused, keep smiling, and never give up.

Be positive and stay motivate. Life is too short to waste time with people who tell you that you can't. You can...

How you became you...

Quite often people find themselves stuck in a certain routine. Whether they like the routine or not, they are comfortable enough with it to stick with it. But what if they don't like their routine anymore? What if they wanna break away from their routine? What if they don't know how?

Psychology tells us that people fall into routines and enjoy being comfortable because in a nutshell... it's normal.

Within a social circle people develop their role and define their place. When you first enter the group, you behave a certain way and gain social acceptance because of it. That very social acceptance leads you to continue to behave in that same manner as before to further the acceptance. Think of it like a puzzle, you eventually become a piece.

People maintain character whether they like it or not in order to fit in. The funny guy will always joke because the first time he did, people laughed. The nice girl will be nice because the first time she helped someone out, they thanked her. The leader will lead and followers will follow because the first time this dynamic occurred everything went smoothly. After enough time, you role become established.

This may all seem very vague but I wrote it like that for a reason. The model I described happens in all aspects of life and in any and every relationship you have. This dynamic is repeated continuously and circles infinitely overlap. This is how your personality is developed. This is how you became you...

My journey...

A large part of psychology deals with the idea of the human mind trending you towards social acceptance. Evolutionary psychology has conditioned you to make choices that best helps your survival. Individuals rely on their minds and conscience in day to day decisions. Maslow's hierarchy of needs identifies social support as being an important to an individual. In other words, we all fight the same fight... the battle against loneliness.

Another basic principle is the idea that if you continue to perform the same actions you should expect a similar result each time. In other words, if you do what you always do... you are going to get what you have always gotten.

What if you aren't happy with the results you've been getting? Imagine a scenario when your day to day life isn't what you want it to be. Imagine a scenario where you want more out of life?

My book wasn't written for the people in life who are satisfied with their current day to day situations, my book was written for the people who are unhappy about things. I write for the people want more out of life but don't really understand how to get there. This will seem second hand to some of you guys, but to a lot of people this will seem foreign.

I grew up a very shy child. I wandered aimlessly and very quietly. I watched life like a television show... not really involved in it, but more as a fan. I wasn't miserable by any means, but I knew I wanted more out of life. There came a time in my life when I wanted to not just watch the world, but become a part of it.

The journey wasn't easy by any means. Life is a process and a constant learning experience. Everyday is part of the journey. Everyday is filled with ups and downs, mistakes and failures, but in the end these things help up grow.

I want to thank everyone who has been a part of this journey with me. In the coming weeks, I hope you enjoy the upcoming blogs and excerpts. Life is an amazing thing, have a fantastic day and keep smiling...

Things do happen for a reason...

Most people hear the phrase "things happen for a reason" when things aren't going there way. People tell them that when something bad has just happened... as a way for them to cope. What's really important is for people to say it when things are going great as well.

People forget that life is filled with ups and down, twists and turns. People also forget that things do happen for a reason... but they forget this when times are good. Good things happen to good people. You are entitled to all the greatness you've achieved. It happened for a reason and the reason was probably you've earned it and deserved it. It's true that bad things will happen to good people also but they are seldom permanent (even thought we make think the pain will last forever).

Take time to enjoy the things you have. You've earned them. Appreciate the things in life that make you smile and grace past the things that upset you. Value the people in your life that love you and remember to love them back. Take the time to find your happiness... even with you think it's lost. Keep smiling everyone, today is another day to do something special :)