That word people struggle with saying is “no”. 

If you really think about it, it’s one of the first words we learn to say. The first three words uttered out of most babies mouths is “mama”, “dada”, and “no”. They say it to everything. Try to take something from them, they’ll certainly yell, “NO!” Try to make them eat something they don’t want, they’re going to scream, “NO!” Try to put them in the bed when they are fighting sleep, issa “NO!” 

Somewhere along the way, most people develop a people pleasing habit and lose that “No”...

You’ve heard me talk a lot about how it takes 66 days to create a habit. So, I have a question, and I want you to really think about this. What have you been doing consistently for the last two months? Is it something that would create good habits or bad habits? Would you be proud to tell someone that you’ve been doing it?

Have you been sitting on the couch, watching TV every evening after work? Have you been writing articles for your blog? Have you been creating products for your business? Have you been avoiding doing something that you really need to do for your business?

Whatever you’ve been doing consistently for the last 66 days has likely become something that you do without even thinking about it. In other words, you’ve formed a habit. 

If you’ve inadvertently formed a bad habit, it’s not too late to break that and replace it with a good habit. You can make your mind up, right now, that you’ll create a good habit by...

Have you ever wondered why we experience pain? Not physical pain but emotional pain.

If you really think about it, some of the most painful moments in your life have probably happened when you decided to make a difficult change that you perceived to be for the better—in other words, when you decided to seek growth. The pain we experience, in these instances, could be as simple as the discomfort of taking on the unknown or as deep as the agony of heartbreak. 

In any case, it’s difficult to sit in the pain and allow it to take its course. Like accidentally touching a hot burner on a stove, your natural reaction is to retreat out of the pain back to the safety of the what is familiar and comfortable, but then you don't grow.

When we get accustomed to situations, ideas, and people that once may have served us but no longer do, it can be hard to let go—even when we’ve grown unhappy with it or them. As purpose-driven entrepreneurs, we have to seek...

I posted the video below on Instagram today after realizing I have some really dope friends in my life.

 

 

They’re all doing great things in their lives—growing businesses, excelling in their careers, raising families and everything in between. The part I love the most is that we all support and push one another to be better people. 

I think it’s extremely important, and maybe even vital, to your success that you surround yourself with people who have your back. I talk a lot about the mental struggle that comes with pushing through your fears and committing to giving your all to your business. Having supportive people in your life alleviates some of the stress that comes with that struggle. 

You should be able to share your dreams with your friends without fear of being insulted or laughed at. You should be able to tell them about your ideas and get their feedback—even if whatever you’re selling isn’t something...

There’s a saying, “When it rains it pours”. When things go wrong—one after another, after another—it can certainly feel like that saying is true. You can convince yourself that the Universe has it out for you or that things won’t ever get better. Your problems overwhelm you and trouble seems hard to escape.

I’ve been there before. Honestly, I’ve been there a few times in my life. Everything around you crumbles and negativity takes over your thoughts. It feels like no matter what you do, you can’t fix your situation and you can’t see your way out. 

When you’re in that state of mind, it’s hard to stay motivated. Your dreams as an entrepreneur take a back seat to how you feel, and you end up going...

I had a dream last night about a former friend that I haven’t seen or talked to in years. In the dream, I hadn’t seen him in a long time, but we ran into each other in a club and we basically picked up where we left off with our friendship. 

We had a few drinks in the club and when we left, he offered to drop me off at home. From that point on, there was a series of things about our interactions that made me really uncomfortable. Remember, this is a dream, so I’ll try to explain some of the things that happened. 

First, I had allowed him to use my phone in the club. As we left the club—to my surprise—I saw my phone at the door of the club, on the ground, in the rain. He casually picked it up and handed it back to me with very little regard for the fact that it was my property and was very likely ruined. 

Next, when I opened his passenger side car door, there was a young child there, sitting in the passenger seat of his car. This...

When I’m out around town or travelling and I see something that I find beauty in, I—naturally—want to take a picture of it. I pull my phone out of my pocket, find a great angle and I snap away—fully expecting to have a masterpiece to post on social media or to, at some point, frame and hang on my wall.

More often than not, I get home, look at the pictures, and realize they came out horrible. I could run into Big Foot, see a UFO, take a selfie with Barack Obama, and discover dinosaur bones, all in the same day, and every single picture would be unrecognizable. For years, I was convinced that I was horrible at taking pictures.

It’s not that I’m horribly bad at actually framing the picture or anything like that—I actually do a descent job at that. The most common problem I run into is that my pictures come out blurry. Not shaky hand blurry though. See, I either keep my phone in my pocket or my hands most of the time. If my phone is in...

Buckle your seat belts, stow your carry-ons, let your seat backs and tray tables up on take off and landing, blow into the red tube to inflate the life vest, there’s a flotation device under the seat, 2 exits in the front, 2 in the middle and 2 in the back, and if there’s a drop in cabin pressure, an oxygen mask will drop—place it over you nose and mouth, adjust the straps and always put on your own oxygen mask before you help other people. 

Always put on your own oxygen mask before you help others. Why would you want to do that? It’s counter intuitive, especially when we’re trying to protect someone we love from harm—like small children or the elderly. But think about it. If you don’t put on your mask first, you could potentially lose consciousness, and if you lose consciousness, you’ll be no help to anyone and that person you want so badly...

Shameful fact about me—I can’t swim. In fact, I’m pretty horrified of putting my face under water. When I was 14, I fell into a giant wave pool at a crowded water park and would’ve very likely died if a stranger hadn’t noticed and pulled me out. 

It’s been a lifelong desire of mine to conquer my fear of water and learn to swim, so last summer, I signed up for beginners level swimming lessons at my local YMCA. In the weeks leading up to the class, I had imagined myself doing cannon balls into the pool, snorkeling on white sand beaches and doing Olympics worthy dives from the diving board at the next pool party I graced with my presence. By the time the first class rolled around, I was super pumped but also very nervous.

That day, I excitedly showed up to class, put on my trunks and made my way to the pool. To my surprise, there were already 5 other students in the pool with the instructor. I asked a lady standing near the pool with a...

Some can be found on the same corner, day after day, at the exact same time—kind of like…a job, and a fair amount of the time, it’s a young able bodied person who could work just as hard as you do if they wanted to. If you’re cynical to this practice, like I am, seeing them probably evokes a bit of anger or annoyance in you. 

But there are also those of us who can never tell a panhandler, “No”. Sometimes panhandlers are relentless in begging for money, and when you feel sorry for them, you just cave in and pay ‘em. Even when you know they’ll likely use...