Disheartened after another day of failing to connect with his students, the young teacher trudged upstairs to his office and slumped down at his desk chair in defeat. He was angry, and he had every right to be mad. After all, his boss at the YMCA had assigned him a seemingly impossible task. He had…

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Most great people have attained their greatest success just one step beyond their greatest failure. -Napoleon Hill When I was growing up, one of the questions I used to hear from motivational speakers was this: “If the possibility of failure were erased, what would you attempt to achieve?” That seemed to be an intriguing question.…

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Practical Tools for Leaders: Breaking the Patterns of Worry Anxiety is one of the top nemesis to a leader (and all humans for that matter). This issue can paralyze the progress of any organization. After years of working with CEO’s and business owners I have noticed that we all have a pattern for dealing with…

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As a leader, do you ever feel your important messages fall on deaf ears? Are your carefully constructed and communicated strategies always getting implemented? Are you often frustrated by the difference between the results you ask of others and what you actually get? Leaders agonize when developing vision, mission and strategy. They carefully choose words…

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In a speech in 1933, American president Franklin Delano Roosevelt, addressing a nation mired in a Depression and on the verge of a world war, famously stated, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” During the first century A.D., Epictetus said, “It is not death or pain that is to be dreaded,…

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In John Maxwell’s first book, Think on These Things, hewrote an entire chapter on hope. There’s one line that has stuck with me since I read it 25 years ago: “Hope dares to give when no one is sharing.” Hope gives—I love that! Even when no one believes, hope gives. Even when the circumstances seem…

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year, right? That time of year when people are busier than ever preparing for family visits, fighting crowds at the mall, wrapping presents, finishing projects, and setting goals, all while trying to bake fruitcakes for neighbors. Our lives are busy with so much still to be done. And…

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Last time I shared my thoughts on the beauty and value of hope. Since hope is such a beautiful thing, this question has to be asked: “Can anyone have it?” The answer is yes! Regardless of your present situation, background, personality, upbringing, or circumstances, you can be a person of hope. Doing the following three…

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