1 Answer with 2 Questions

Q: Who are you?

A: You are the sum total of all your thoughts.

Q: What are you thinking today?

#7

I have a book called CJT Master Book: It's a book of the notes for my life. One of the sections is "Things I want to accomplish in my life."

#7 on my list: Own a nice boat! (days spent on the water floating around making each day better than before...I have always loved boats and always will)

My purposes: A boat for:

• Family Time...Teddy and Tate love it!
• Rest and recharge
• Place to share with others
• Retreats for others
• Place to improve self and others

Do you have a list of things for your life? If not, why not? What is more important than having things you want to accomplish in your life? Do this today! Best exercise on the planet!

Cardboard Testimony

An WOW Experience!
This world is so amazing with so many incredible people! I am so thankful for today and the opportunity to be part of this creative genius world! I can't wait to make it happen today!
Can you tell somebody is a little fired up today? Hope you feel the same!

Pace..Quick but Don't Hurry for me...

Pace!
A
C
E
!

Pace is critically important in life and in the marketplace. I see so many people literally killing themselves (mostly trying to get ahead) without taking time to appreciate and enjoy the surroundings. We live in an instant world. We have become a society of NOW. We want:

• Our hamburger thrown to us while driving a car in a drive-thru within 30 seconds or else we start laying on the horn...(How much sense does this really make? Think about it...this is nourishment for the one gift of body we get; only to expect to perfectly nourish and take care of that gift in 30 seconds?)
• Instant emails and texts. (How many people still have dial-up? NONE. Everyone is high speed and we want instant communication. The old lessons of think before talking is obsolete in 2008)
• Instant Results....Informericals saying lose 30 lbs in 30 days...sexual increases in 1 minutes lasting 40 days...

Pace is critical in today's world. We need to learn to get into a good life rhythm and acceptable pace. I see so many people turning and burning in the marketplace trying to make a name for themselves. They work to death in bad jobs only to not have enough energy to enjoy the good jobs that often come later.

Find your pace in the world. Find your pace in the marketplace. Then check and make sure the pace is one that will produce good long term results. In my business and life; the pace I use is Quick but Don't Hurry (and become sloppy) as my standard. My clients deserve me to be there producing better than expected results over the long haul...A WOW Experience! Some things that I purposely think about when I plan my pace:

1. Rest... Vacation...Re-charge my batteries so I can give 100% to every client...every time!
2. Hours at office
3. Hours planning and thinking (at least 50%! yes 50% of my time is planning and thinking...why so much? So I can work on my business and not in my business.)
4. Type of work (I avoid the grinds as much as I can)
5. Being a good steward of my gifts!

A deep subject that requires so much more than I can write about for this purpose. But the point to come away with is deliberate thinking about your Pace in life and business.

Frogs!

Picture at my cousin Tim Cody's house...Teddy loved this frog!

A group of frogs were traveling through the woods, and two of them fell into a deep pit. When the other frogs saw how deep the pit was, they told the two frogs that they were as good as dead. The two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump up out of the pit with all their might. The other frogs kept telling them to stop, that they were as good as dead. Finally, one of the frogs took heed to what the other frogs were saying and gave up. He fell down and died.

The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again, the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just die. He jumped even harder and finally made it out. When he got out, the other frogs said, "Did you not hear us?" The frog explained to them that he was deaf. He thought they were encouraging him the entire time.

This story teaches two lessons:

1. There is power of life and death in the tongue. An encouraging word to someone who is down can lift them up and help them make it through the day.

2. A destructive word to someone who is down can be what it takes to kill them.

Be careful of what you say. Speak life to those who cross your path. The power of words... it is sometimes hard to understand that an encouraging word can go such a long way. Anyone can speak words that tend to rob another of the spirit to continue in difficult times. Special is the individual who will take the time to encourage another.

Author Unknown

T.M.

Teachable Moments!

There are things that happen in all of our lives that we can use to learn and teach from. I call those Teachable Moments. Do you pay attention for those teachable moments that happen in your life? Most people miss them. And that is such a shame because these moments can be excellent tools to from which to teach others and share in real life at real time.

Some tips to take moments and teach from them:

• Pay attention to your surroundings
• Look for visual and audio lessons
• Ask questions
• Listen

A recent teachable moment: I told my son Teddy at restaurant to watch the staff pick up the dirty dishes from our table. And then told him the importance of him picking up his toys so we don't have a dirty house...just like the restaurant doesn't have dirty dishes all over. (Jury is out on if he got it...as I just picked up the toys again!)

Look for teachable moments in your life and use them!

Look for teachable moments to help you in business marketplace.

Patience...please

Be Patient...(hard to do and easy to say...trust me)

How many of you want things and want them now? How many of you want your plans to go perfectly and immediately? How many of you want things to go your way, every time? How many of you want control and instantly?

Well, the above is me; most of the time. I am seriously guilty of having no patience. This is a huge mistake. And every single time, I get pie in my face that there was a better plan and a better timeline when I show patience.

Patience is very hard for many of us. We just don't have it and just don't get it. But learning patience can be done and is very valuable to practice it. We say the word patience and understand how it can helpful. We teach our kids on patience. But in real life, it just stops at words and never gets into implementation of our life. If I had a dollar for every time I told Teddy to be patient; only to not practice patience myself...Note to self: Do what you say and say what you do!

Think about patience and practice it. I believe you will find, like me, there is a better plan and better timeline when we practice patience...

Bittersweet or sweetbitter??

Life is too sweet to be bitter!

Life is amazing. Life is unbelievable. The ups and downs. The twists and turns. The known and unknown. Today and beyond. Does it get an better than this?

Life is too sweet to be bitter...How about your life? Are you where you want to be? Are you in a good spot? Are you living the life you want to live? Any dreams lately? Priorities in line? Time well spent? Moving forward on the right "stuff"?

If you need to make changes, do them now. Why?

Life is too sweet to be bitter!

24/7/365

I was recently asked the question: How much time to spend on your business? My response was 24/7/365. The person was taken back so allow me to clarify as I did with her.

First, let me define my business. I am in the Dream Chasing Business! Chasing Dreams for:

• Chris Tapken (myself)
• My Family (and Friends)
• My Clients
• My Community
• My Church
• My Earth (any one that will listen)

So that is a ton of work and a ton of people which requires a ton of time. Second, don't think for a second that I spend all night at my office and neglect my family and other responsibilities. That is not the case; in fact, the opposite is true. My best work comes for my family and Chasing our Dreams as a family! And I can't do that at my office. That requires serious time and serious energy spent on my family.

But the point is that I don't allow my mind to sit idling. I keep pushing myself. I keep challenging myself. I keep moving forward. Bottom line: I have Big Dreams to Chase and achieve. So my business hours are 24/7/365!

How about you? For most, the sad story is that some people don't even have dreams. When I ask about dreams, most tell me they have not dreamed since childhood. That breaks my heart. Take some time and think about your dreams today. (by the way, this is the best r.o.i you can spend on time!) Think about what your dreams are and how you can achieve them. Write down your dreams. And then share your dreams with others. Get inspried by your dreams. Don't let your past or currrent situation stop you from dreaming.

Why not me?

When adversity comes our way, the first thing we want to do is make sense of it. Then we immediately say... "Why me?" We get consumed with having to figure why bad events happen to us. We spend all of our energy on trying to figure it out and hosting an world class event called: the Pity Party. All of this energy is negative and doesn't solve or address any of the adversity. I was guilty of this (as much as anyone on the planet). This was my operational conduct.

Then I sat down and thought about it from a positive view. Why not me? When adversity comes my way, Why not me? If I handled it with passion, courage and positivity then maybe others can learn from me and it will help them! Why not me?

So I have a new outlook on adversity. Plus I know this to be absolutely true: We learn so much more from our adversity than any of our good fortune.

Why not me? Adversity: Bring it on...I will grow and learn from it...and when it's all said and done; actually I will be thankful for it!

Have an awesome 4th!

Why not me?

Lighthouse

Do you have a lighthouse in your life? Lighthouses were, at one point, a critical part of success and accomplishment. Lighthouses guided ships to safe harbors, warned of dangerous waters, and guided people to navigational progress. Lighthouses were depended upon to guide and correct us through navigational points.

Same is true for our business and our life. We need lighthouses. We need those navigational points that tell us of progress, that warn us of danger, and take us to safe harbors and success. But in real life, most people don't have any lighthouses. They walk through life with no navigational tools to keep them on track or warn them of danger. The results is that most people in this life, hit the reefs.

And the reason is because they don't have lighthouses.

Today, we need a lighthouse our life. We all deserve that.

We have a Lighthouse program for you today!

Chris

Think about this...part II

2 more questions to ask yourself:

1. What is the most important thing I did last year?

2. What is the most important thing I am going to do this year?

MiH (Make it Happen!) Have a good weekend...

Chris

Think about this...

Please ask yourself:

1. I am going to stop ________________?

2. I am going to start ________________?

When? Today!

Be Organized

TOO MUCH WASTE!

The Data? The average person wastes about 2 hours per day because lack of organization. That is entirely too much waste! What does it look like?

• Lost items
• Misplaced items
• Keys and phones searching
• Helping kids find stuff
• Paperwork issues

When we look at the waste, we can't afford it. We all have way too much to accomplish in this world and wasting time to this degree can't happen. I will never be a SUPER organized person...not in my DNA...but I can improve. And when I look at the data and consider the waste of time, I have to improve. I absolutely hate time wasting. So this just my attention and I need improvement.

You?

Hot Sauce!

Even pre-IVF, we had a name picked out for a boy. If we were going to be blessed with a son, his name was going to be Teddy. From the second we found out one of the invetro worked, I was calling our baby TT; short for Teddy Tapken. Then we found out the baby was going to actually be a boy, Teddy was it.

So we have been called Teddy...TT... by his initials even when he was In-Utero all the way up until a couple weeks ago.

TT and I were watching a basketball game (imagine that!) and a player made a fancy shot and the announcer called him "Hot Sauce" for his athletic ability to make acrobatic shots. The next day, I came home and greeted TT, as I do everyday. But this day, he told me:

"Dad, don't call me TT anymore....only call me HOT SAUCE!"

So I guess it's HOT SAUCE from now on...maybe Tate will be the next TT??

M i H

Make It Happen!

Our new positioning statement is: Make it Happen! Not only true for my company but the marketplace in the entirety.

I see so many plans and great strategies. I see so much great rhetoric. I see so many wish full thinking's. I see so many people wanting and talking about change. I see so many wish-ers. I see so many people benchmarking. I see so much imitation. I see so much bragging. I see so much fluff!

Bottom line: I see so much blah blah blah...and also I see ALMOST NO ACTION!

For me, it's MAKE IT HAPPEN! We only have one shot at this life so I have to make it happen. The alternative is simply not an option.

I love this picture!

Today...and Why in the World???

Two critical points about today:

1. Today is the first day of the rest of your life!

2. Today is the youngest you will ever be. Act like it!

Now I ask you this:

• Why in the world are you not taking advantage of every second?
• Why in the world are you not doing what you want to do?
• Why in the world are you missing golden opportunities?
• Why in the world are you being lazy?
• Why in the world are you not living your dream life?
• Why in the world are you sleeping through life?
• Why in the world are you not living exactly where you want to live?
• Why in the world are you not spending time with those that mean most?
• Why in the world are you not working on your relationships?
• Why in the world are you stressed over things that don't matter?
• Why in the world are you concerned about your "stuff" or lack of "stuff"?
• Why in the world are you not working on YOU and YOUR MIND?
• Why in the world are you concerned about what others think?
• Why in the world are you not following your dreams?
• Why in the world are you not dreaming anymore?

Please think about it....

Happy Fathers Day

Dad's Wisdom!

When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand tohave the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished athow much he had learned in seven years. --Mark Twain

Creative genius of gaining more wisdom with the grace of time!

Dallas

In Dallas speaking to a great group tomorrow. I am excited!

It is so awesome when you love what you do! I got to tell ya!

How about you? Do you absolutely love what you do? If not, you are missing out....you should try it! Sounds like so much common sense to do what you love to do; but why are the vast majority in careers they really don't enjoy or working for company's they don't like.

It amazes me!

Hard to believe? Not really

I recently heard that 50% of people will not read another book cover to cover once they graduate from high school or college (whichever is last).

Surprising? Not really to me.

But then again, I am in the business of developing people and talent so I see daily, the lack of vision and narrow thinking on personal development.

The first question: When is the last time you read a book cover to cover?

If the answer is: Been a long time...then why? Seriously think about it...just simply ask...why?

The second question: What is more important than developing yourself?

Just something to think about. Are you one of those 50% that give up on learning? And if yes, does that make any sense?

Progress and not Pefection

Focus on Progress and not Perfection...

It took my years to learn this powerful rule. I have the tendency to focus on getting things just exactly the way I want them and get all caught up on details....all the while forgetting to focus on the big picture progress. This is a mistake.

For example, I will play around with my speeches for hours while ignoring the bigger picture progress of making an event successful. In my events, there is more than just the speech. I need to remember that and focus on the event as a whole and not just one aspect. I also tend to think about how far I have to go to become the presenter I want to be; rather than the progress I have already made as a speaker. Another mistake.

We need to focus on steady improvements and moving the ball forward each day and pay less attention to how far we have to go. By daily focus on progress, we will get those big perfect perfections. But daily focus on perfections will not get us any daily progress. (say that 3 times..)

A lesson I am still learning...but getting much better. See my focus on the progress!

Daily Question I ask myself

Sunset in Austin TX...

When the sun goes down I ask myself this question...(it's on my calendar daily)

What Good did you do today?

I have a ton to get done in my life...given that, I cannot waste time. I need to accomplish meaningful things each day. My check and balance to make sure excellent progress is happening; I ask myself this simple but yet profound question each night. If I can't answer this with solid and concrete answers, then I did not do my job that day.

But if I can answer this question and list out great efforts and great results, then that day was a win. Bottom line: I want to win each day. I want to do so much good with each day! Time is right on the top of my most precious gifts! I have to be a good steward of this undeserved favor and grace called TIME!

Tonight, I will ask myself: Chris, What good did you do today?

KISS...Keep it Simple Stupid

So Simple. But yet it takes these simple graphs and concepts for me to Really get it! (By the way, Ted Waitt, of Gateway fame, once said the simplest graphs are the most effective and hardest to make)

As my effort and production goes up, so does my business. Yes it really is that simple!

Your business and life are the same. The more meaningful things we get done, the better the results. Have a great productive weekend!

Chris

Focus on your 5...

What 5 things can you always control?

So many times we focus on things outside of our control all the while sadly neglecting the things we can control. Reverse this. Instead, focus on the things you always can control and work on those. Don't focus on those things outside of your control...it's wasted energy.

For me, here are my 5:

1. My Attitude
2. My Production (work ethic)
3. My Energy
4. My Relationships
5. My Vision and Goals

The following are things I don't waste any energy on:

1. Gas Prices
2. The Economy
3. The Stock Market
4. Competitors
5. Training, Speaking, Consulting Budgets

Focus and put your valuable energy on those things you can directly control!

Compass Program

(graph from Seth Godin)

• What is your story?

• What is your work?

Do you know these answers in complete clarity? If not, change that.

Compass Program

Time Management

Our time is the most precious thing we have. The rich can't buy more of it. The scientists can't make more of it. We all have this undeserved favor and gift called time. But why do so many just waste this gift?

One of the things with time management and getting meaningful things accomplished is to have priorities. So not only do we need to accomplish things, we need to accomplish the right things. Totally new ball game. With everything on your task list and calendar ask this:

• What will happen if I don't do this?

You will find, every single day, you are doing tasks that really don't matter that much. You are doing things that really don't move the ball forward in your life. Time....It's truly amazing and we need to maximize every second!

Compass Program

Tired of being Tired?

I hear so many people talking about how tired they are. To me, that is a strong indication of that person not living in the sweet spot of life. Once you find purposeful living...the type of living where you do what you love to do; you will find an abundance of energy.

The people living in the "zone" are the ones that accomplish everything and then have time for some more. They jump out of bed and understand the difference between achievement and activity. They flat out TCB...Take Care of Business!

One key point: AVOID PROCRASTINATION!

• Procrastination destroys businesses
• Procrastination destroys careers
• Procrastination destroys purposeful living

Get tired of being tired and make a change. Get into the "zone", avoid procrastination at all costs, and simply TCB!

Make sure to reserve your spot to a Free Open Forum where we will talk about these topics and some more...email kelly@christapken.com to reserve your free seat on the 28th of May.

Today's Thoughts

Saturday thought starters:

• Why is there a saying: "Sleep like a baby"...babies do nothing of the sort. Just ask my wife!


• I was at the office at about 4:30 am today knocking out some projects...I was blessed with a high motor!


• You have to DO STUFF in order to make progress. That to me is so easy to understand! I don't why more people miss this. (Proud to say, I have got some stuff done today already...more to still do)


• Must get caught up on some reading! Reading: The best habit in the world and only of the only things that you can do your entire life!


• Comfortably uncomfortable...Need to keep pushing myself...I hate comfort zones! I love living near the edge (not falling off the ledge but simply near it)


• I need to get better at asking for help. There are so many great people you can learn from and will help you, but you need to ask.


• Why do people stay in jobs they don't like?


• Why do people live in areas they don't like?


• I have lived 13,740 days! (37 years, 7 months, 13 days old)...I try to make every single one of them count!


• I love it when my calender is full!

Have an awesome weekend!
Chris

Today's Action

IMPORTANT!

***Challenge yourself today!***

What are you going to do today that gets you out of your comfort zone?

Don't just read this and nod your head and then ignore it...Read it and act on it.

Really push yourself today to do something that scares you.

***Push and Challenge***

Dreams

Dream

• In the top 10 of my favorite words...without a doubt
• In the top 10 of my favorite things to do...without a doubt
• Nobody can ever take mine dreams away
• One of those things that don't get better over time. (opposite of wine) The young are much better at dreaming than the old...why?
• I love trusting and acting on my dreams making them come real (even with the intense pain and adversity it takes to make them real)
• I am going to challenge myself to dream more
• I am going to challenge myself to dream bigger
• God's creative genius...without a doubt
• Written down in my Master Book (and journal)
• When I decrease my dream both in time and size of....I don't feel as good as when I am dreaming really big dreams all the time
• I need to get better at capturing the message
• Dream Chasing! I want to be a dream chaser!

How about you and your dreams?

Compass Program

Find the extraordinary in the ordinary!

One of the many ideas you will pull out of Compass Program is the idea of finding extraordinary outcomes from really basic things.

For example: Having Lunch with someone is a fairly ordinary deal. Thousands of people will have lunch in Austin TX today. But what about finding the extraordinary in an ordinary lunch?

Some ideas:

• You could really engage someone in deep conversation that really moves them.
• You could take an employee to lunch and tell them how much they mean to you.
• You could take a family member to lunch and say "I really want you to know I love you."
• You could treat the servers and staff like your family and make their day.
• You could find someone in the restaurant eating alone and buy their lunch without telling them you did.

Today: Take ordinary tasks and make into ordinary outcomes!

Compass Program

Here are some thought starters for you today (and you will get all of these plus much more at Compass Program)

• Avoid negativity. Do an audit of all the negative contributors in your life...including people! (Tip: First on all of our lists should be TV)
• Always move forward. But do you consciously have a written plan to accomplish this?
• Tempo in your life is critical. Do you have a harmony and life balance that accomplishes the important things in your life?
• Activity vs Achievement (huge difference...don't' mistake the two)
• Are you using your talents?
• If money did not matter, are you doing your Dream Job? If not, strong advice: Money is not a good enough reason to not achieve your dreams.

Have a WOW Day! ( this stuff is deep, I have to get out my worksheets and work on me now)

Chris

"Good Enough" is not Good Enough

Avoid the trap in life of "Good Enough" is good enough!

How many times do we tell ourselves: well...that is good enough and then we stop trying or stop improving? TOO MANY!

There is a real life trap out there in the rugged plains of reality called COMPLACENCY! Avoid it at all costs. Once we start to settle for good enough, it becomes a pattern and a plague. We tend to then repeat it and repeat it; never pushing ourselves for improvement and gain. And that is a shame.

The good news is once you are taught and learn this lesson; it is easy to avoid. How? Just never accept the "good enough" standard! Push, stretch, reach, strive, accelerate...for improvement. You and I are made by God who never settles; so why should we?

Simply, we will not settle anymore! Repeat that to yourself...just plainly say to yourself you are done with "good enough" and from now on...it's not good enough! You will be amazed on how this changes your life. And this is for EVERYONE. If you are the most successful, financially secure, happliy married, great life producer...you can still do more! So this rule is for everyone! We can all get better every single day...That is and must be the goal. And to do that, we can not settle for good enough!

Tate Tapken

A very Cool kid! Talk about being blessed...Talk about a WOW Experience!

#3 on my list was to have another child.

Mission Accomplished! I know exactly what I want to accomplish in my life because I write it down, track it, and make sure at all times I have my vision (Master Targets) and road map (goals) in front of my nose! And on the top of my head. It changes, just like a road, but nevertheless, it is in front of me.

Now comes the huge responsibility of raising Tate. The thought that I have been trusted to bring him up keeps me up a night. To me, there is no more important job on the planet than being a DAD!

What a miracle!

3 questions

3 questions I constantly ask myself:

You will learn this at Compass Program!

1. Where am I now?
2. Where am I going?
3. What will it take to get there and how long?

I put myself through the paces to make sure I know these three questions at all time. The result is a vision with an adjustable road map to hit my Master Targets in my life. When I make myself go through each of these questions in detail, I can't get lost. I may get "off track" a bit, but I can't get lost.

And really isn't that the goal in life? A life where we are on the road to doing the things we are called to do; to spending time with those that mean most; and living our best life possible!

To me that sounds pretty great so I make sure I know those three questions above. Try it!

Sign up for Compass Program as this is an example of the powerful stuff you will take away!

Compass Program

Working on the right priorities adequately is by far better than doing the wrong things perfectly!

A couple huge sub-points within this powerful, important rule:

• Do you have your priorities or Master Targets written down? If not, start there! Simply, you must have your life vision and objectives written down. In five seconds, can you pull out your life Master Targets and life vision? If not, correct that. It has to become part of you to become alive.
• Do you regularly pull out and read the vision for your life? Do you read your Master Targets often; like daily? I know many people that once wrote the vision for their life down but never read it again; might as well not even have one.
• Don't be a perfectionist and wait, wait, wait to start something. Just jump in and do the right things for your life rather than having to all the time be perfect. The waiting game is a wasteful game. Your life will pass by you before you get started on living your perfect life when you wait for the perfect time. It's like in business. I was asked when is the perfect time to start a business? My answer: Never. There is never going to be a perfect time; you just need to jump in and do it. Just jump in and do it is a valuable lesson itself.
• It's OK to just be adequate as long as you are moving forward! Get on the field and play; even if you are just a role player...but get on the field!

Get your priorities in line and do them! Simple (but if so simple, why doesn't everyone do this?)

Example of what you will learn at the Compass Program...sign up today!

Best Investment!

ROI!

The Best Investment you can make!

.42

yes 42 cents

One first class US stamp!

Write a hand written Thank You note and mail it in regular ol' US mail!

The results are amazing...Question: When was the last time you sent a handwritten thank you note using US mail? I already know...it's sad. But make a change...start today! You will love the results.

Compass Program

Why?

With your time and with your task list ask yourself:

• Why am I doing this? (most important...simple but yet hugely important)
• Why is this important?
• What will happen if I don't do it?
• What priority is this?

Simple ask yourself...just sit silently in your chair and say: Self, why am I doing this?

My promise:

1. You will be amazed at how much stuff you will stop doing that mean nothing
2. You will be amazed at how your priorities in life start to actually get done
3. You will be amazed at how much time you will free up to work on the real important stuff
4. You will be amazed at how much your relationships improve
5. You will be amazed at how much more money you can make
6. You will be amazed at how better you feel

Time management is a key concept you will learn at the Compass Program! Sign up today!

Ask yourself: Why would I not sign up for this course and improve my career and life?

Compass Program

At Compass you will learn:

Open mind. Having an open mind is so critical for development, growth, and joy in life. But it seems like the older we get, the more close minded we become. And that is a total shame. Why do we not have an open mind in this life? Some reasons or more like excuses:

• Because everyone else is closed minded
• Because I want to fit in...society norms...I don't want to stand out too much by being open minded
• Never thought about it...I just live and don't really think about those things
• Too much risk to be open minded...I actually may have to change my ways and I don't like change!

In a word to the above: WEAK!

In Compass, you will learn about having an open mind and real life tools to make that happen. You, I promise, will also be SO JACKED UP and energized by this new way of thinking; this new way of looking at things; this new way of living life.

I can't wait. In fact, I am jumping out of my seat as I type...that is how excited I get thinking about the Compass Program.

So sign up today! 512.291.7771 or kelly@christapken.com

Compass Program

When: May 27th
Where: Lakeway Hotel and Resort (absolutely motivating place view stunning views)
Cost: $250 per month including all world class training materials and one on one support

You asked for it...

We have been asked so many times to give a class that many people can benefit from (and is affordable). Well, here it is. We are launching the Compass Program which is a first rate program that will improve both business acumen and personal development.

The course is a once per month, half day class, where 12 key principles are introduced (one per month). The modules we will move mountains on:

• Diversity
• WOW Experience...World Class Customer Service
• Time Management...How to execute every single day to make your life well lived actually happen
• Effective Leadership Skills
• Change Management...Those that don't change, don't last
• Conflict Management
• Principles of High Performance...from a Focus to a Ferrari
• The Integrity Model...How to live the life you want to live
• The Role of Trust...both in our life and the marketplace
• The Seven Powers of Persuasion
• High Payoff People
• Positive Impact...How to rock and roll in your life!

Seating is limited so register today. Call Kelly to sign up at 512.291.7771 or kelly@christapken.com

Let's start the path to living your life as you dream about it and making orgainzations in Austin BIP (Best In Planet)

Hurry and sign up...See you soon.

Chances...Take advantage of them

Chances

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th...

Life is about more getting more chances. But why do so many of us not take advantage of that? One of the reasons I think we neglect more chances is that we view failure the wrong way. When most of us fail we feel:

• Embarrassment
• Shame
• Guilt
• Pity
• Sorry

But really we should not feel any of those when we fail?

I have failed big time. In fact you can see the dent of the failure in the Midwest. Big time failure in the public and most people's eyes. I see if differently. I did not fail. I learned. But for that, I would not be where I am today or more importantly the person I am today. So really did I fail? To me, heck no.

Given that, I have more chances to get things "right" and get where I want to be in life: spiritually, business, personally, relationally, mentally, and physically. I am going to jump on these chances and improve! How about you?

No more saying...

You can't say: Can't

In my mind, my son Teddy and I had an important discussion early this morning. Although it only lasted about 120 seconds, it was still very critical. I think we can all learn from this.

Teddy was getting into the shower and I was brushing my teeth. I mumbled to him to open the door to get into the shower and he said; "I can't..." Oh, no. I hate that word. I knelt down to his level and very seriously told him that he should never say he can't do something.

Can't is such a defeatist word. It is so weak. It is so lame. It is so not creative. It is so limiting. I hate it.

But start listening to all the people in this world that not only use the word, but rather thrive on it. Real life, this is how people talk:

• I can't, I am too old
• I can't, I don't have enough money
• I can't, I will never meet the right person
• I can't, I am not smart enough
• I can't, I will never make it
• I can't, I don't have what it takes
• I can't, I will go broke
• I can't, I am not the right person for that

From today on, remove the word can't from your vocabulary and then tell me how you feel! Sorry for being so simple, but most of the time, it's the simple things that make all the difference. This is one of them. Don't say or think can't and I guarantee you, life will be improved!