Lately I have been giving a lot of thought to the concept of selfishness. Perhaps that’s because it’s an area in which I personally struggle. I know I am not alone in asking the question, “Is it our natural human tendency to be selfish?”

One could argue that our economic system rewards greed and selfishness and that while putting others first feels good, most of us put our personal interests and desires first.

And on a more basic level, how we conduct our daily lives says a lot about whether we are selfish. Do we only think about ourselves or do we have concern for others? Are there circumstances where it’s appropriate to be primarily concerned with one’s own personal profit, pleasure or desires? What’s the proper balance?…read more

Have you ever thought about how you want to be remembered? At your funeral, as people reflect on the type of person you have been, your accomplishments and the experiences they have had with you, what will be the dominant thoughts on their minds? When they listen to your eulogy, what would you like for them to hear?

Last week my family and I watched a new television show called Undercover Boss. This particular episode featured Rick Arquilla, President and COO of Roto-Rooter.

Rick went undercover and posed as a rank and file employee to determine what it’s really like to work in the trenches of his own company. Needless to say it was a humbling and eye-opening experience…read more

In yesterday’s lesson I pointed out the critical importance of building a strong self-image if you want to live a happy, successful and fulfilling life. I then outlined the first five ways to build your self-image. In today’s lesson I will continue this two part series with the remaining five points.

For the sake of this lesson, I define your self-image as the combination of your self-worth, self-confidence, self-esteem, self-respect, because they really all do impact how you look at yourself…read more

I just finished reading a great book written by a long time friend, Bob Burg, along with co-author John David Mann. The title is Go Givers Sell More and it hits the bookstore shelves today. While the book is primarily designed for those in the sales industry, its core lesson is universal. To succeed in the business world, you must be someone who brings value to the lives of others, before expecting anything in return.

This concept embodies a fundamental shift in the mentality of sales people who market products and services as well as our approach to the marketing of our personal services.

I am ALWAYS turned off when people try to pitch me on things without first trying to build a relationship with me or to learn if what they are marketing is something I desire……read more