MESSAGE #1360 CONTEST!!!
WATCH THIS VIDEO AND ENTER THIS EXCITING CONTEST. YOU JUST MIGHT WIN A SIGNED COPY OF MY NEW BOOK AND A POWER BALANCE BRACELET! GOOD LUCK! CONTEST ENDS TOMORROW (SATURDAY, APRIL 16) AT 5PM EST.
MESSAGE #1359 IT’S NOT TOO LATE
Well here I am back in good ole New Jersey, and as wonderful a time I had on my honeymoon in Hawaii, it’s great to be back. I love traveling, but there’s something I love even more—real life.
Most people “live” for their vacations.
Most people “can’t wait” until the weekend.
Why is that?
1. Many people don’t do what they love.
2. Many people don’t cultivate gratitude for what they already have.
3. Many people don’t think success in sports and life is possible.
Some say that I am successful.
I don’t look at myself that way. I look at myself who is doing what he is passionate about, truly wants to make a difference in the world, and believes that anything is possible.
Did you know I failed out of college—twice?!?
Anything is possible if you believe you can achieve. All you have to do is start taking the correct action.
TODAY.
It’s not too late to be what you might have been.
MESSAGE#1358 BE A FOODIE
Here I am sitting at the airport in Maui. What a great week we had. One of the highlights of our trip was the Tour da Food with the great Bonnie Friedman.
As we drove around the island in search of delicious, local food, I noticed the gas prices. $4.78 per gallon! We all agreed that those prices were outrageous, and then Bonnie said something that stuck with me.
Our new foodie friend said that she stopped worrying about the gas prices because she couldn’t do anything about them.
I was impressed.
Why worry about things you cannot control? Isn’t that a waste of time and energy?
In sports, you can’t control the weather, umpires or results, so you needn’t worry about them. Instead, focus on the things you can control, like your effort, attitude and reactions.
Bonnie shifted her focus from the incredibly high gas prices to providing exceptional service.
Be like Bonnie today.
Next blog entry from Princeton, New Jersey…home, sweet home.
MESSAGE #1357 SERVICE
In tennis, the serve starts the point.
In life, the serve starts the relationship.
We are all on some sort of team, be it a sports team, a business team, a relationship team, or a project team.
The key to being a great player is to help add value to the team and put the team’s goals before your individual goals.
The greatest players in history always made the team better.
Here in Hawaii, the service is amazing. It has to be, otherwise there is little financial gain. When you provide extraordinary service, you get extraordinary tips.
When you add value to the other players on your team, you get better results.
Everyone wins.
MESSAGE #1356 THE ROAD TO SUCCESS
I did it.
I took the famous Road to Hana here in Maui.
This all-day trip included 600 hairpin turns, 57 one-lane bridges, plants, vegetation, local foods, breath-taking scenery, the bluest water you’ll ever see and 9 of the world’s 13 climates.
They say The Road to Hana is about the journey, not the destination.
Many tourists finally get to Hana, spend about 10 minutes walking around, and then get back in the car and drive back, wondering what all the fuss is about.
They don’t understand that it’s about the journey.
Sports and life are the same way.
People don’t sing to get to the end of the song, do they?
Arthur Ashe put it best…
“Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is more important than the outcome.”
Today my journey is humpback whale watching.
MESSAGE #1355 INSANITY IN HAWAII
Hawaiian Word of the Day:
Pupule: poo-poo-lay
Crazy, insane
Pupule reminds me of Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity-doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.
Often we keep doing the same thing and we complain that we are not getting the results that we want.
We want to get fit but we keep eating the same foods and stay sedentary.
We want to get better grades but we don’t change our study habits.
And we want to become a professional athlete but we don’t train like the way we should.
So in many ways, we are pupule.
Take different actions and get different results.
This rule applies, no matter what language you speak.
MESSAGE #1354 YOU ARE BAMBOO
Today I saw some bamboo trees here in Hawaii. I saw traditional bamboo trees, as well as a black bamboo tree.
I love bamboo trees for their beauty; and I love bamboo trees for their metaphorical value.
When you plant bamboo trees, nothing happens for the first four years. But then, in the fifth year, the bamboo tree grows two and a half feet every day for six weeks reaching up to ninety feet.
You, my friend, are a bamboo tree.
You may not see it, but you are germinating right now.
All of the work you are putting into your sport, studies or sales, will soon explode and you will get the results you are looking for. But be patient and persist.
MESSAGE #1353 HAWAIIAN WORD OF THE DAY
Hawaiian Word of the Day:
Akamai: ah-kah-my
Smart, clever
What does it mean to be smart?
Does it mean having a PhD?
Does it mean getting good grades?
It might, but being akamai to me means taking the right action.
Doing what needs to be done, whether you feel like it or not.
Be akamai today!
MESSAGE #1351 ALOHA!
Well here I am, steps away from the beach and blogging on my iPad2. I can hear the sounds of the waves crashing down and smell the sweetness that only an island can provide. A tiny green lizard just jumped up on the table.
Now, I am not blogging to make you jealous, I am blogging because I can’t NOT blog.
Let me explain…
I blog every single day. It has gotten to the point that it is more difficult to NOT blog, than it is TO blog.
To put it another way, it’s better to do a little a lot, than a lot a little.
It’s better to blog every day than it is to blog once in a while.
It’s better to study a little bit every day than cram the night before.
It’s better to eat healthy (almost) every day than to diet.
So I will be with you for the next week, from Maui, to keep you motivated and mentally tough, and also because I simply can’t NOT do it.