Julio’s World

Ever had a rough week? I’m talking about intense times on all fronts from sunrise to sunset for five straight days? Most of us have, and last week was one of those for me. The cool part was that with all the stress, pressures, adversity and constant interruptions, I tried to keep it all in perspective. It’s what got me through the week.

This got me thinking that as we continue to raise our leadership to the next level (whether as a parent, coach, business executive, minister, government official or teacher), the challenges of life never stop. After the long week, I went to bed Friday night, got plenty of rest, woke up Saturday morning and went to the gym. When I got home, I sat back and reflected on the lessons I learned. I wrote in my journal the following, “EVERY DAY is an opportunity to LEARN, IF we pay attention. And every day we are GROWING, IF we want to.”

This past week I continued to learn more about:

Faith through trials
Patience through delay
Leadership through serving others
Humility through selflessness
Peace through the storms of life

I remembered that it is my PASSION for my family, for doing my best, for my teammates, for my friends and others that keeps me going. Passion helped me persevere, and it will help you too. I believe that in today’s competitive and demanding environment, your passion and your purpose must be greater than your challenges. To win in today’s marketplace requires that we all work harder, LEARN MORE, lead better, pray more, love deeper, reach farther and think bigger. All of this requires PASSION!

Many years ago I heard a speaker at a seminar I attended say, “When work, commitment, and pleasure all become one, and you reach that deep well where passion lives, nothing is impossible.” I believe he was right!

This past week I overheard several negative conversations regarding the state of the economy, the direction of our society and future of our world. Pick up the daily newspaper—negative. Watch 10 p.m. news on TV—negative. Most people are not in touch with the good things happening in and around their lives. We’ve become a nation of whiners and ungratefulness. NEWS FLASH! While things may not be going perfect or the way we want them at this very moment, we must continue to pursue, persevere and purposefully go after our goals at work and home. There is no time to waste.

The future belongs to the risk takers, to those who are determined, faithful and to those who refuse to give up. Today, I want to remind you to stay the course, build on what is right in your life and stay focused on your dreams. We all have challenges going on in our lives, but we must be resilient. Many times I share with you things to DO to help you, but today, I want to give you a few DON’Ts—so that you DO stay in your groove of life:

1. Don’t make excuses or blame others for your current situation. Take personal responsibility for every area of your life.

2. Don’t settle for average or good. In today’s world, good is not good enough. EXCELLENCE is what pays and will determine if you have a job in the future and if your income increases.

3. Don’t watch television more than you read or listen to educational material. In order to keep earning more you have to be learning more! Make learning a life-time goal.

4. Don’t tolerate negative thinking or negative people. Fill your mind with important facts, relevant figures, faith and the right perspective. Get away from negative thinkers and those with negative energy (the life drainers).

5. Don’t GIVE IN OR GIVE UP!

THE BEST IS YET TO COME…if you BELIEVE and DO!

“Experience: that most brutal of teachers. But you learn, my God, do you learn.”
-C.S. Lewis

Over twenty years ago I remember getting the revelation from a book I read that if a person lives to LEARN, then they will learn to LIVE. Ever since that day I decided to be a student of life and its lessons. I have come to understand that one can learn something every day IF one pays attention. Last week I had the opportunity to attend a world class conference with some of the best communicators around the world. I paid lots of attention, listening intently and took some great notes.

Here are a just a few of the ideas and concepts I learned about. Not all of them were new but all FRESH. As I share them with you, I want to challenge you to think about your perspective on these thoughts:

1. Stay small in your own eyes. Always remember that confidence helps you get to the top but humility keeps you there. Don’t despise your small beginnings where you are now. Don’t compare your life, position or situation to anyone else. One of the speakers said, “Comparison is acid to your soul.” Ouch! If you compare your situation to others, you will only waste your time instead of focusing on your own journey. Stay focused and faithful on your current assignment and in time your reward or promotion will arrive.

2. Extraordinary things happen when ordinary people not only go the EXTRA mile, but also pray. In other words, never whine, complain or make excuses. Always do your BEST and God will take care of the REST! Never underestimate what GOD can do through you. Don’t neglect the spiritual power of life.

3. The distance between where we are and our dream coming to pass is PAIN. Most people try and avoid pain but the fact is that if you plan to achieve and accomplish things in life, you cannot avoid it. Don’t be naive about pain, adversity and obstacles as you continue to pursue your dream. Pain is not prejudice and visits all of us. The positive thing about pain is that it is a good teacher. Hopefully, we extract the lessons and get stronger with age. Remember, “The difference between where we are now and where we want to be is the pain we are unwilling to endure.”

4. Always live your life with the end in mind – because the end will come. Wow! This is so true. Program your thinking, your relationships, your finances and your life for long-term. Dr. Covey says, “Begin with the end in mind.” Too many people think this is just about projects in business or goals in sports but the truth is it is about LIFE. How do you want to be remembered? What is the legacy you are leaving behind every day with people you meet? What type of heritage are you leaving your children?

As I listened for over two days to some great thoughts, I was reminded that none of us should wish for an easy life, but we should work to become better. We shouldn’t wish to have no problems, but we should focus on having more skills. Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere!

There is no other sporting event in America like the SUPER BOWL! I just got back from the big game, and boy, was it a game! When we landed in Miami, the first thing we did was sing our “Manning on the Ground” song:

“Pants on my legs, no gold in my teeth, landed in Miami with my feet on the ground.
Colts going down, my hat to the side, looking so cool with da who dats in town.
Manning on the ground, looking like a fool, cuz the Colts are going down!”

Now that my Saints have defeated the Colts 31-17, it’s time to reflect and extract two important lessons. It has been 43 years and 661 games leading up to the big game for the Super Bowl. The 662 game was a charm. So as I think about the Saints journey to the Super Bowl, many things come to mind but two stand out.

First, in order to win in sports and in life, you must BELIEVE! Believing you can and will overcome obstacles and adversity on the way to your goals is critical to success. Believing has the power to create and the power to destroy. Henry Ford was the person who said, “If you think you CAN or can’t, either way you’re right.” The fact is that in any endeavor the important factor is your belief. Without belief there can be no successful outcome. The Saints finally hired a coach and acquired a quarterback who believed they could win, and they did! Don’t stop believing in your dreams, your goals or your future. Have the FAITH to believe that you will achieve no matter what you’re confronted with.

Secondly, they learned to PERSEVERE. When I think about how long it took the Saints to win the Super Bowl, it is obvious they have persevered. Without perseverance there is no ability to win at anything in life. I know you have heard it or read it many times before, but we all need to hear it again:  NEVER GIVE UP. NEVER GIVE IN. We’ve got to constantly say to ourselves, “I know if I keep working at this and want it badly enough I will have it. It’s called PERSEVERANCE!”

Down in the Bayou—in the home of the Saints—we say, “WHO DAT? WHO DAT? WHO DAT say they gonna beat them Saints?” Today, I want to remind you, Who Dat? Who Dat? Who Dat say they gonna stop YOU? Stop you from reaching your budgets? Your goals? Your dreams? Who Dat?

Here are some pics from yesterday:

I just got home from a missions trip to Honduras. WOW! My heart broke as we went deep into the mountains and jungle and provided food and medical services to the poor. These people are what some would call the least of the least. We reminded them that they have not been forgotten. No electricity, no running water, no a/c, no access to health services or medicines. Your heart would break to see infants, 5, 6 and 7 year olds filthy, sick and with rotten teeth.

We provided medical and dental services for them. Our team worked around the clock to treat and help as many as possible. We provided a tooth brush and tooth paste which most had never seen. If you live in America, count your blessings daily! Most of these people would love to trade their problems for yours and mine. Talk about perspective!

So many thoughts have been running through my mind as I reflect on this trip. I have never gone that deep into the jungle or mountains. The simplicity of these people struck a huge cord in me. They aren’t worried about their 401k value, stock market going up or down or what they are planning for the weekend because they are focused on what they will eat today to survive.

While we were there, we experienced an earthquake (talk about scary)….7.1 on the Richter scale! It hit in the middle of the night and felt like a tornado and train coming at us at the same time as the ground shook violently. Everyone on our team was alright, but it reminded me of how fragile life is for all of us.

Last thought, at least for now. Right before we left, a leader in the village came and asked me to gather our team because he wanted to share some words. He thanked us, blessed us, read a scripture from the book of Psalms and then sang a song from his heart to us. It was all he had but one of the most moving and valuable gifts I have ever received! He reminded me in a few minutes what it means to live humbly and be thankful in all things and circumstances.

Here are some pics from the trip:

My niece, Alexandria, daughter, Hillary and me

Little children lining up for the food we were about to serve them

Neil Jackson and I at the Medical/Dental clinic

People lining up at 6:00 in the morning for medical/dental attention

Dr. Williams and me with a widow and one of her daughters

One of the infants we were able to care for

The bridge that broke during the earthquake

Lots of poverty but beautiful country

Recently I spoke at the Texas Roadhouse annual conference in California where their theme was, “With Purpose.” I’ve had the honor of addressing this company on several occasions, and their PASSION for their people, culture and customers continues to impress me. A lot of companies talk about culture but don’t invest enough in designing it, protecting it and growing it. I loved the topic of, “With Purpose,” because when you stop and think about it, at the end of the day, it is all about purpose.
 
Helen Keller once quoted, “Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.” She was right. Think about it:  What is the purpose of our life? What is the purpose of our family? What is the purpose of your career? What is the purpose of profits? What is the purpose of relationships? In today’s crazy world, it has never been more important to not just have a purpose-driven life, but also a purpose-driven business.
 
Most extraordinary businesses are driven by purpose. Nike, Southwest Airlines, Starbucks and even Wal-Mart all started and developed a purpose when they launched and grew their business. Why? I believe one of the reasons is because PURPOSE is one of the paths to high performance (both at an organizational and personal level).

So let me ask you a question. What is driving your life right now? Everyone’s life is driven by something. The dictionary defines the verb drive as, “to guide, to control or to direct.” Whether you are driving a car, a nail or golf ball, you are guiding, controlling and directing it at that moment. What is the driving force in your life?
 
Today I want to remind you that the greatest tragedy is not death, but life without purpose. Purpose drives everything in our lives. It will drive all major decision making in both your personal and professional life. Purpose will also determine how you allocate resources, hire employees, sell and build relationships with clients, plan for the future and even judge your success. There are so many benefits of living and working with purpose, and I want to give you four of them:
 
1. With PURPOSE, your life has meaning.
2. With PURPOSE, your life is simplified.
3. With PURPOSE, your life has focus.
4. With PURPOSE, your life has motivation. Why? Because purpose always produces PASSION!
 
Make sure you stay positive, stay passionate, and that you live and work WITH PURPOSE!

Happy New Year! 2008 is gone and 2009 has arrived!

As we embark on a new season, I want to remind you to keep dreaming BIG!

 Stay positive in a negative world. Pursue EXCELLENCE in all that you do!!!! PASSION! ENERGY! ENTHUSIASM! ENDURANCE! will all determine if you achieve your goals and targets this year.

We must INNOVATE in Business otherwise die!

Give more VALUE and strengthen relationships to win! In every economy there are winners and losers. History reminds us that the winners FOCUS on all of the above! Design, dictate and create the year you want to have. 

 Let’s go! Get Fired up! It’s time to rise up, make a difference and impact our companies, clients and communities. Don’t let circumstances or the cyncial conversations of others hold you back. Instead, let your CREATIVE THINKING  and PERSONAL RESOLVE  help you conquer the next mountains in your work and life. There’s opportunity out there. Go for it.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cheers to a great 2009!

Change is here and change will continue to come.The last couple of weeks as I been in several business meeting it has been obvious that the speed of change is catching many organizations by surprise. The political, social, economic and even religious landscape is changing at a pace never experience before. Many are running scared, others are consumed by worry but for others all this change means opportunities. Innovation, flexibility, speed and the ability to embrace change in organizations will determine who wins or losses in the next couple of months and years.  What are you doing to be a catalyst for change in your industry?

I wrote my first book when I was 29 and had a goal to write 10 books in ten years. That was the goal, but this is what happened. Between the ages of 29 and 35 years old I wrote four books—and then I started having children! Can you relate? My world was turned upside down for the better no doubt, but time was in short supply. Now that my princess is nine and my twin boys are six, I have had time (early in the mornings and late at night) to produce my first book project. Over the last five years I have compiled hundreds of  weekly Mental Snacks, selected some of my best and have developed them into a new book, Mental Snacks: Nourishment for your mind and fuel for your life! It comes out in two weeks. It’s a great resource you can use to renew your mind daily with a variety of topics to fuel your mind with hope, inspiration and motivation. Click here if you’d like to learn more about it or pre-order some copies for your clients or friends.